"Grandmother, I'm going to the palace today. I'm leaving the two children in your care," Yun Qingran said to Zhao Shi.
“You can take care of what you need to do. Don’t worry about the children.” Zhao took the two children.
"Yan Yan, An An, your father and I are going to the palace. Would you like to stay with your grandmother?" Yun Qingran squatted down in front of the two children and said softly.
“Okay, Mother, go ahead. We’ll be good.” Jun Yan Yan nodded and answered in a soft, sweet voice.
Yun Qingran nodded to them, then went back to her room to wash up and change clothes in preparation for entering the palace.
"Do you blame your mother for not staying with you?" Zhao asked the two children after Yun Qingran left.
Jun An'an shook her head, "It's not my fault. Father and Mother are not only our father and mother, but also the Northern Cold King and Princess Rongchang of Beiyin. They have not only us, but also responsibilities."
“I don’t blame him either,” Jun Yanyan added.
"What two good children." Zhao held her two children, feeling very comforted. She had been worried that they might hold a grudge against Ranran, but she didn't expect them to be so understanding and considerate of their parents.
When Yun Qingran returned to her room, she immediately saw Jun Molin, who was already dressed and sitting on the bed with a resentful expression.
"Pfft~" Yun Qingran chuckled.
"You're still laughing?" Jun Molin said with even more resentment.
"Who told you to be so impulsive?" Yun Qingran sat down next to him, took his wrist, and checked his pulse. "It's alright, it's just temporary weakness from being scared, not permanent weakness."
Jun Molin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If he were permanently impotent, he would go crazy.
"Stop being so coy, get up, let's go to the palace," Yun Qingran said.
"Okay." Jun Molin stood up.
The two arrived at the palace gate and met Jiang Yunqi. The three of them entered the palace together.
"Liu Jieshu is truly wicked, actually framing his own superior like this." The Emperor was furious after reading the confession.
The ministers, eunuchs, and palace maids in the emperor's study were all silent and dared not speak.
"Is Liu Jieshu Liu Rencheng's son?" the Emperor continued.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” replied one of the ministers standing in front.
Anger surged across the Emperor's face; it seemed the Liu family was about to be implicated.
“Your Majesty,” Yun Qingran stepped forward, “Liu Jieshu’s crimes are heinous, but this also shows that Lord Liu Rencheng is honest and just.”
She's not a saint, but since she promised Liu Jieshu she wouldn't implicate his family, she wouldn't.
"Ranran, what do you mean by that?" the Emperor asked, looking at Yun Qingran.
“Lord Liu has been an official for decades and even fought alongside Your Majesty. If he wanted to help his son get promoted, Liu Jieshu would certainly have been promoted. This shows that Lord Liu is honest and upright and did not abuse his power for personal gain for his son. Otherwise, Liu Jieshu would not have taken the risk of framing my elder brother,” Yun Qingran explained.
After hearing this, the Emperor thought about it and realized it made sense. He sighed, "Alas, Minister Liu is pitiful to have such an incompetent son."
"Your Majesty, now that we have all the witnesses and evidence, can we acquit my elder brother?" Yun Qingran asked.
"That's natural." The Emperor nodded.
"Your Majesty, although the evidence against my father for embezzlement is conclusive, I firmly believe that he did not embezzle. I beg Your Majesty to conduct a thorough reinvestigation." Yun Qingran then made her request.
Several ministers opened their mouths, then closed them again. The day before yesterday, Minister Li, Minister Sun, and several other officials who had spoken during the examination of children's urine in the main hall were denounced before even returning home after court. The accusations included having affairs with their siblings and engaging in relationships with male prostitutes.
The crime itself wasn't serious, but the level of shame was extremely high!
This was blatant revenge, and it goes without saying that it was done by His Highness the Northern Cold King. Only he had the audacity to confront these officials, and only he possessed such a private secret about one of them.
It's best not to say anything more, otherwise you'll be the next one to be exposed for a scandal.
"Yes, granted." The Emperor immediately agreed.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Yun Qingran expressed her gratitude happily.
After leaving the palace, Jiang Yunqi asked, "Where are we going now?"
“Go find Uncle Zhang,” Yun Qingran replied.
“Princess Rongchang, do you suspect that Uncle Zhang is behind this?” Jiang Yunqi thought it was very likely. Uncle Zhang had been in the Zhen’an Marquis’s mansion for so many years, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to bury something in the courtyard.
“No. It couldn’t be Uncle Zhang.” Yun Qingran shook her head. “I just went to see him to ask him some questions.”
Uncle Zhang is Bicao's father and the steward of the Zhen'an Marquis's mansion. When the mansion was so poor it was practically empty except for its walls, the three of them didn't leave. Instead, they refused wages and used their earnings to support Yunxiao's family. There's no way they could have any problems.
"I see." Jiang Yunqi nodded shyly.
Seeing that Jiang Yunqi's guess was wrong, Jun Molin revealed a gloating expression, "Serves you right for talking too much."
When Jiang Yunqi saw Jun Molin's smile, he was speechless. "Your Highness, has no one told you that this is childish?"
The three arrived outside the Zhang family's gate and could hear Uncle Zhang cursing even before they were outside.
"Which damned bastard dared to frame our Prince? If Old Zhang finds out, I'll twist his head off and use it as a football..."
"Uncle Zhang!" Yun Qingran pushed open the door and went in.
"Young Miss, you're back! How was your trip to Southern Chu?" Uncle Zhang saw Yun Qingran and quickly ran up to greet her, beaming from ear to ear.
In his heart, the young lady was like his daughter; he always thought about her.
"It went very smoothly." Yun Qingran nodded to him with a smile.
"Young Miss, you're back!" Zhang Ma ran out upon hearing the voice.
"Yes, Aunt Zhang." Yun Qingran nodded to Aunt Zhang, then asked, "Where's Bicao?"
"She went out to inquire about the Marquis and the eldest son," Zhang Ma replied.
“My older brother is fine now, he’s probably been released by now,” Yun Qingran said.
"Really? That's wonderful! The young master is alright." Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang were so happy that they cried tears of joy.
After the old couple had calmed down, everyone sat down at the stone table in the courtyard. Yun Qingran said, "Uncle Zhang, I came here today to ask you about the more than 800,000 taels of silver in the courtyard."
"Miss, I don't know what happened either." Uncle Zhang's face was full of worry again.
Although the eldest son is out of danger, the Marquis is still in prison, which is worrying.
"Uncle Zhang, think carefully. Has the Zhen'an Marquis's mansion been repaired? When was it repaired? Who was in charge of the repairs?" Yun Qingran looked at Uncle Zhang expectantly.
Silver couldn't have been buried in the yard naturally; it must have been buried there by someone at some point. And so much silver couldn't have been buried secretly at night; the yard must have had to be dug up to be buried there.
The only time it's possible to bury silver is during courtyard renovations, because replanting trees requires digging holes in the courtyard, and at other times, any disturbance to the courtyard will be discovered.
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