The following day after court.
After watching Li Qiji return to the Imperial Study, Ji Shang jumped down from the roof beam and knelt respectfully before Li Qiji.
"Your Majesty, there has been progress."
Li Qiji picked up a cup of tea from the table, gently brushed away the floating tea leaves, glanced at Ji Shang kneeling on the ground, nodded, and said, "Hmm! Tell me?"
"Yes, that's right. The two people who died in Chengyue Palace killed each other."
"They killed each other?"
"yes."
Li Qiji slammed the teacup down on the table and looked at Ji Shang, who was kneeling on the ground, saying, "Nonsense!"
"Go find someone to show me that the two of them committed suicide together. Suicide together? Fine! If you say they committed suicide together, then tell me how they committed suicide together and then ran into the lotus pond?" Li Qiji looked at Ji Shang kneeling on the ground, and the nameless fire in his heart was rising rapidly.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. This is all the information I have found. I will investigate further in secret."
Ji Shang was also puzzled; how could two people who committed suicide together hide their bodies in the lotus pond?
"Your Majesty, these two people did indeed commit suicide. I am certain of this, because the eunuch was from the stables and the maid was from the laundry department. They were from the same village before they entered the palace."
The young eunuch's family was too poor to marry this palace maid, so his family sold him into the palace. The money was then used to pay for his elder brother's wedding.
"After the young eunuch was sold into the palace, the woman was married off to a wealthy family in town as a concubine. It is said that she ran away on the wedding day and somehow ended up in the palace as a maid. She searched for a long time before finally finding the young eunuch who was her childhood sweetheart."
"The two were still in love, so the young eunuch asked the palace maid to be his 'partner'."
"Hmm! Are you trying to tell me that these two are just hopelessly in love, and that's why they're going to commit suicide together?"
"Pretty much! Anyway, the two of them have been secretly seeing each other quite a few times, even talking about leaving the palace together when they're old, and then..."
"Absurd! Ji Shang, is this the result of your investigation? You have truly disappointed me."
Li Qiji looked at Ji Shang kneeling in front of him, and he was furious. He wished he could drag him away and tear him to pieces.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me! I will investigate again immediately."
"roll..."
Li Qiji sat back on the dragon throne, somewhat annoyed. Looking at the three large piles of memorials on his desk, he felt completely overwhelmed.
"Your Majesty, please take care of your health!" Hua Quan carefully poured another cup of tea for Ji Wu, who shrank back like a turtle, not daring to show his face, afraid that he would also become the target of criticism later.
"Let's leave this matter to the Imperial Clan Court!"
"Jiwu, go to the Imperial Clan Court and ask Lord Liu there to handle things properly as soon as possible." Li Qiji gently pinched his brow with his long, slender fingers, which showed distinct knuckles, and his whole body showed signs of fatigue.
"I wonder how the military rations are doing on the border. A few days ago, they were talking about the court distributing new year's military rations. And now this has happened in the palace. The festival is coming soon, and it seems there are more restless people." Li Qiji seemed to be talking to Hua Quan, or perhaps to himself. It was unclear who he was talking to.
Just as Li Qiji was feeling troubled, a young eunuch ran in from outside and whispered, "Your Majesty, Lord Xin requests an audience!"
Li Qiji looked up from the memorial, somewhat surprised, but still eagerly invited, "Please come in quickly."
Before long, the voice of a eunuch announcing the news came from the doorway.
"Lord Xin requests an audience!"
Li Qiji looked at the man who came into the sunlight from outside. He was wearing a bright red official robe with a wide black belt around his waist and an academic official's hat with two black tassels floating behind him.
"Your subject Xin Chenchen pays respects to Your Majesty!" The man was about to kneel as he entered when Li Qiji quickly stopped him.
Li Qiji stood up from the dragon throne, walked up to the man, and smiled at him. "Cousin, there's no need for formalities between us! May I ask what brings you to the palace today?"
"Your Majesty, etiquette must not be disregarded!" The man's gentle voice was like a spring breeze, pleasant and melodious.
Li Qiji waved for all the servants around him to leave. Hua Quan also instructed his servants to bring tea before leaving himself and standing guard at the entrance of the Imperial Study.
"Cousin, what brings you here? How are you doing at the Imperial Academy?"
The man was Li Qiji's cousin, the son of Xin Bai, the younger brother of Empress Xin. He was twenty-five years old and served as a professor at the Imperial Academy, a seventh-rank official.
"Have Uncle and Aunt gone home? They should be able to have a family reunion this year, right?" Li Qiji looked at Xin Chenchen, the man in front of him, with some anticipation.
"Yes, we're already on our way back to Beijing, and we should be arriving soon."
"That's good, that's good. Mother has been looking forward to it for a long time, waiting for Uncle and Aunt to return to the capital for a reunion. After returning to the capital this time, will you not go back to your hometown in Jiangnan?" Li Qiji turned to look at the man who was sitting upright.
Xin Chenchen thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Don't you know what kind of person your uncle is? Let's wait until they arrive before making any plans!"
"But cousin, you're already twenty-five. When are you planning to get married?"
"I haven't considered that yet, let's wait and see!"
Li Qiji turned his head to look at Xin Chenchen and said with a smile, "Cousin, do you have someone you like, so you've been waiting for her all this time?"
Xin Chenchen gave a wry smile, looking at the man in the dragon robe, feeling somewhat melancholy, unsure of how to begin.
"Cousin, what brings you to the capital today?" Li Qiji asked again, because his cousin was not fond of going to the palace and usually only came when he had something important to do.
Xin Chenchen glanced around and whispered in Li Qiji's ear, "I heard something happened in the palace, so I came to check it out. Also, there have been some bad rumors circulating outside the palace, so I wanted to come and find out what's going on."
"In my opinion, cousin, what does this mean?"
"If my analysis is correct, this matter should be related to your old imperial uncle. That man's wicked intentions are still alive and kicking." Xin Chenchen's unfathomable appearance made Li Qiji feel a sense of admiration.
"Cousin, do you mean the Seventh Imperial Uncle?"
"Hmm! There's no one else but him. He's the one with the most thoughts. It can only be said that my aunt raised this royal uncle too well back then, which caused him to have inappropriate thoughts." Xin Chenchen gently placed the teacup aside.
"You and Qi Shang should be careful, and you should also keep an eye on your aunt. For so many years, that person has been living in the border region, and the barbarians are separated from him by a river. They are far apart and can't afford to have any ulterior motives."
"Yes, brother understands."
"Well, it's time for me to leave the palace."
"No, cousin, it's rare for you to go to the palace. Go see my mother. I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."
Xin Chenchen nodded and headed towards the Empress Dowager's palace.
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