Chapter 19 Why not humble yourself as a husband and be gentle and respectful to your wife?
Yuan Jing still retained his rationality and advised, "Third Princess, you mustn't. Mother Empress takes this matter very seriously. If you interfere and Mother Empress finds out, you will definitely be severely punished."
"I understand, Your Majesty. I will not make a move at this time." Yuan Xiao agreed on the surface, but in his heart he thought that it would not be too late to send someone to make a move after Yuan Yan arrived at the place and found an opportunity.
...
Meanwhile, after the court session, Yuan Yan greeted all the ministers who had assisted in handling the matter.
"Lord Li, Lord Yang, the Empress Dowager has entrusted us with the task of investigating the grain transport. I am not very familiar with matters such as grain transport and storage, so I am afraid I will have to trouble you gentlemen to take care of it."
"Your Majesty is too kind. Since His Majesty has appointed you, I will do my utmost to assist you in investigating this matter," said Attendant Yang respectfully.
Yuan Hao specifically assigned these women to assist Yuan Yan to hold these officials involved in the canal transport accountable. They were the main force in the investigation, while Yuan Yan primarily played a supervisory role.
Yuan Yan was well aware of this, and before she demonstrated her true abilities, it was estimated that none of the officials present expected her to actually contribute to the grain inspection.
She exchanged a few pleasantries with everyone before returning to the Prince's residence.
Yuan Yan first selected a group of capable guards from the mansion to accompany her, and then ordered people to pack the items needed for the trip.
Until their departure, no one informed Lu Lingyue, the only servant in the household, to help with packing.
“Young Master, I heard that His Highness the Prince of Yue is about to travel to Chuzhou on His Majesty’s orders… It’s a long journey, and I heard that he has important business to attend to. He will be gone for quite some time. Don’t you want to go and see His Highness?” Hengwu asked cautiously, observing Lu Lingyue’s expression.
Lu Lingyue was playing the zither when he heard this. His expression remained unchanged, but for some reason, he plucked a string out of place.
"I'm not going." Lu Lingyue stopped playing the zither.
"She said she didn't want to see me again, so what does it matter to me where she goes now?"
“Young Master, that’s not how it works… What His Highness said yesterday was probably all said in anger. We men should be gentle and respectful to our wives; how can we argue with our wives?”
"Your Highness and the young master have known each other for so many years, and Your Highness still has feelings for the young master. The fact that the young master took the initiative to take a concubine has caused a conflict, which is also a manifestation of Your Highness's affection for the young master."
"If that's the case, why don't you take the initiative, young master, and apologize to His Highness? I'm sure His Highness will forgive you."
Hengwu earnestly and sincerely advised him.
He knew that the young master had been somewhat absent-minded ever since Yuan Yan left that night, and perhaps he already felt remorse, but was unwilling to take the initiative to back down because of his pride.
If things continue like this, the two will inevitably drift further apart. After all, what wife would want to be with an unresponsive ice statue forever? In time, other men will surely take advantage of the situation.
"Stop talking about Hengwu. I know you are thinking of me wholeheartedly. But the rift between me and the King of Yue is irreparable... What's the use of talking about this now? There are too many things between us, and we can never go back to the way things were."
"I've been abandoned by the Lu family, and this is probably how my life will be. In the future, she will be the King of Yue, and I will be my nameless servant in the backyard. We will have nothing to do with each other, and that will be fine," Lu Lingyue said in a cold voice.
Why is the young master so stubborn about matters of the heart...? Hengwu knew that she couldn't persuade him today, so she had no choice but to shut up and give up.
As for Yuan Yan, she had important matters to attend to and had long forgotten about her husband, Lu Lingyue. This time, she didn't even step into the backyard when she returned to the mansion.
Yuan Yan, accompanied by Xue Lang, Yu Liu, and other officials of the Prince's Palace, a group of guards from the palace, and three hundred elite soldiers bestowed by the Empress Dowager, set off quickly after making all the preparations.
...
Yuan Fengdu, the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner, was the first in the region to receive the imperial edict, learning that His Majesty had appointed the Second Princess, the Prince of Yue, to inspect the grain transport and requesting her assistance.
After that, all the officials in Chuzhou, both high and low, who were in charge of the grain transport also found out. Because they had connections in the imperial court, they knew that they were going to be investigated even before Yuan Yan was on his way.
"I don't care what you think of, before that nobleman arrives in Chuzhou, you need to quickly prepare a presentable account, one that can't be easily identified as suspicious," the Chuzhou granary official solemnly instructed his subordinates.
"My lord, aren't you worrying too much? I've learned that the Second Princess Yue only has martial arts skills and has never handled any political affairs. She knows nothing about these grain storage accounts."
“With such a master leading the way, even if there were officials from the Ministry of Revenue dispatched by the court to assist him, they might not be able to see the problem.” The warehouse manager, however, was not flustered at all and stepped forward with a smile.
“No, we haven’t even met His Highness the Prince of Yue in person yet, how can we know if these rumors are true or false? His Majesty is furious this time and has ordered a thorough investigation. To avoid the matter being exposed and us losing our heads, we must prepare for both possibilities.” Attendant Cao shook his head, still insisting on keeping the accounts in order.
Upon seeing this, the officials agreed, saying, "Since it is the master's request, we will do our best."
At this moment, Yuan Yan was still a day or two away from Chuzhou.
"Host, the Emperor has entrusted you with such an important task. What are you going to do?" the system asked.
"This matter is not difficult. The deficit in the grain transport is nothing more than a result of corruption, and the Empress Dowager is well aware of this."
"The Empress sent me here mainly to deter local officials and prevent them from becoming too arrogant. We must catch the big fish in this matter, kill one to warn a hundred, and set an example for others."
Yuan Yan slowly said, "In this way, I will hold the power of life and death. It is not me who should be panicking, but those officials with guilty consciences."
"But those people will definitely try every means to hide the accounts and prevent you from finding out the truth, right..." the system worried.
“I don’t understand accounts, but don’t we have Yang Shiguan and the others? If we don’t do our job well, they’ll be even more anxious than I am. If the Chuzhou officials try anything funny, we’ll just deal with it as it comes, without having to think too much about it.”
Yuan Yan didn't seem worried about the task at all, and even had the mood to comfort the system.
"Your Highness, we will reach Chuzhou in a little over a day," Xue Lang stepped forward to report.
"Alright, let the soldiers rest for a while, there's no need to rush." Yuan Yan told the soldiers and the royal guards to rest and recuperate before continuing their journey.
Therefore, when Yuan Yan and her entourage arrived in Chuzhou, the local officials had already received advance notice and were waiting for them at the city gate.
The governor of Chuzhou personally led a group of officials to wait here, kneeling to welcome Yuan Yan.
Yuan Yan dismounted and stepped forward with a smile, personally helping her up.
"Your Excellency, no need for formalities. You have greeted us at the city gate; what crime have we committed?"
A note from the author:
The setting is fictional, the place names are fictional, and the official positions are based on multiple dynasties.
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