Pei Wenxuan was slightly stunned. He looked at the girl in red palace dress in front of him. He didn't know why, but he saw some indescribable tenderness in that person's eyes.

Such tenderness was something the young Li Rong had never experienced before. The Li Rong standing in front of him had the mellow fragrance of time. Even in the moment when she showed tenderness, she had the toughness and calmness that was hard for a teenager to achieve.

Pei Wenxuan's heart was slightly moved, and he chuckled: "Now that I'm back, did His Highness give me a reward?"

"At this time, you are still asking me for a reward?"

"Your Highness knows that I am a humble minister," Pei Wenxuan lowered his eyes and said gently, "I am not used to accepting losses."

"Okay," Li Rong also laughed, "If it's done, there will be a reward."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Pei Wenxuan raised his hand to salute, then he looked up at Li Rong. After looking at her for a long time, Li Rong was about to urge him, but she saw this man quickly stepped forward and pulled her into his arms.

"It's fine, don't worry about me."

"You old fox," Li Rong was held in his arms, her head resting on his shoulder, "What do I have to worry about?"

"That's good," Pei Wenxuan let her go, straightened her clothes, and carefully scanned her eyebrows, eyes, nose, lips, not missing any details, until the end, he said, "Then I'm leaving."

After saying this, he finally let go. This time he didn't seem to dare to look back and left in a hurry.

It was a long time after Pei Wenxuan left that Li Rong came to her senses. She felt that winter was approaching and the night wind was much colder.

She took a deep breath, then turned around and got into the carriage.

In the middle of the night, Xun Chuan brought the Qin family back to the princess's mansion. Li Rong had someone settle the Qin family down, and then transferred all the staff of the Inspection Department and the princess's guard back to the princess's mansion to guard the gate.

The Qin family suffered many tortures in prison, especially Qin Lang, who was tortured to the point of being on the verge of death. The family had doctors examine them one by one, and it took a long time.

The lights were on throughout the princess's mansion all night, and Li Rong did not go to bed. After thinking for a while in the study, she asked someone to call Xun Chuan over.

Xun Chuan had just watched the doctor examine Qin Lang's body. The doctor looked a little tired under the mask. She came into the room and saluted Li Rong. Li Rong looked at the information in her hand and raised her hand to let her sit down. Without raising her head, she said, "How is Sir Qin?"

"Fortunately," Xun Chuan sat down, his voice a little hoarse, "his life was saved, but he will probably need to be taken care of in the future. After all, he is old."

"He raised you, right?" Li Rong said, putting down the intelligence in her hand and looking up at Xun Chuan, "Have you ever thought about telling him about your story?"

"Let's not talk about it for now." Xun Chuan said in a calm voice, "He said he wouldn't let me work outside. Just tell him I'm still alive, and he won't worry."

Li Rong hesitated for a moment, nodded, and didn't ask any more questions. She handed the list written by Qin Lang to Xun Chuan and whispered, "Take this list. I may be trapped in the palace after tomorrow. You will have two responsibilities at that time. First, protect the Qin family and never let anyone take them away from the princess's mansion."

"yes."

"Second, you go find Shangguan Ya and pick out the right person from the list and get the testimony of the witnesses who embezzled the military pay in Huangping County."

"clear."

"That's it," Li Rong looked up and saw the light rain outside. She said tiredly, "Is it almost dawn?"

Before he could finish his words, the sound of troops was heard outside.

Xun Chuan raised his hand and grasped the sword. Li Rong held down her sword and said calmly, "Don't be alarmed. Someone will come."

Xun Chuan slowly calmed down after hearing what Li Rong said. Li Rong withdrew her hand, looked at the lantern swaying in the wind on the corridor, and said, "Pour some tea."

Xun Chuan calmed himself down and raised his hand to pour tea for Li Rong.

Li Rong listened to the sound of tea trickling down, and Li Rong listened to the chaos outside. After a while, Jinglan came into the room and said in a cold voice: "Your Highness, the Minister of Justice Su Rongqing led his troops to surround the mansion and come to demand the prisoner."

Li Rong didn't say anything. She raised her hand and held the teacup beside her. She drank a sip calmly, then looked at Xun Chuan and said, "If you die, remember to pour the cremation powder on your face."

Xun Chuan understood what Li Rong meant. She was a "dead" person, and if the body appeared somewhere else, it would bring trouble to Li Rong.

She said respectfully, "Yes."

Li Rong was silent for a moment, then said, "Don't think about ruining your reputation in advance. If you do that, you won't have to stay in the Inspection Department."

Xun Chuan froze for a moment, but finally said, "Yes."

Li Rong said nothing more. She changed into a red palace dress with peonies embroidered with gold thread, put on a golden brooch, and then led the group out through the corridor.

The gate had just opened, and a cold wind and rain blew in. Outside the gate, Su Rongqing, dressed in plain clothes, holding a paper umbrella, led a group of soldiers and stood outside, looking at Li Rong calmly.

One of them was inside the door, and the other was outside. The cold wind made the lantern in front of the gate sway. Li Rong chuckled, "Minister Su is so powerful that he brought so many people to stand in front of the princess's mansion before dawn. Did I violate any law? This is what the Dali Temple should have come for. I wonder what excuse Minister Su found to come here?"

"Your Highness," Su Rongqing said in a steady voice, "Hand over the Qin family now, and I will pretend that your prisoner robbery never happened."

"Prisoner kidnapping?" Li Rong smiled. "The Qin case was originally handled by my Inspection Division. I felt that the person I wanted was in danger of death, so I specially brought him up for review and custody. What's wrong with that?"

"Even if Your Highness wants to interrogate a prisoner, he should follow the law and have it approved by the relevant officials."

Su Rongqing's voice gradually became colder: "Your Highness, you'd better hand the person over. You have to think it over carefully--" Su Rongqing raised his eyes, and the rain fell along the umbrella to form a curtain, making Su Rongqing's face somewhat blurry behind the umbrella curtain.

Li Rong had never seen this man look at her like this before. He spoke as if warning her, "The Inspection Department has not been built yet."

The Inspectorate has no outstanding achievements, and no one can accept it. No matter how much Li Ming supports her, she still has a hard time. Now that she has made such a big mistake, Li Ming must be completely furious.

Li Rong looked at him for a long time, then she laughed: "You are threatening me."

Su Rongqing said nothing. He just looked at Li Rong. Li Rong didn't know why, but she smiled and repeated, "You actually threaten me?"

Su Rongqing pursed her lips and said slowly, "Your Highness, I am doing this for your own good."

"You are not doing this for my own good," Li Rong said slowly and affirmatively, "You are doing this for the Su family behind you, for the power of the aristocratic family behind you. Su Rongqing, it's okay for people to have selfish motives. There's no need to be so pretentious."

As she spoke, Li Rong stepped out. Jinglan immediately held up an umbrella and walked Li Rong towards the carriage at the door.

Li Rong walked with her head held high and said slowly, "Lord Su, don't try to intimidate me. If you want to complain, go ahead. The morning court will begin soon. I'll be waiting for you in the main hall of this palace."

As Li Rong spoke, she passed Su Rongqing.

Su Rongqing clenched his fist unconsciously. Just before she left, he suddenly asked, "Why don't you believe it?"

Li Rong turned around and looked at Su Rongqing who was not far away. He was trembling slightly, as if he was trying his best to control his emotions. He said with difficulty: "Your Highness, why do you have to regard everyone's kindness as malice? What your Highness is doing now is harmful and has no benefit. What are you asking for?"

"I don't know either."

Li Rong smiled bitterly: "Maybe, it's just to find peace of mind?"

Su Rongqing was stunned for a moment, and Li Rong walked up to him. Su Rongqing held an umbrella and Li Rong stood in front of him. The heavy rain poured down the umbrella, creating a small world for them.

Li Rong looked up at him. At that moment, time seemed to have no boundaries. Past and present lives merged together. Su Rongqing's eyes were dazed for a moment. Li Rong smiled and said, "Sir Su, I used to think that we were the same kind of people, but after thinking about it for many years, I realized that we were not."

"You can give up everything for your family, including your conscience, morality, and your life. One day in the future, maybe you will become a person like Yang Lie. He was also a passionate young man, but in the end, he sold out his country for glory in order to make his family prosperous."

"And I can't."

"If I do this, I will never be at peace here for the rest of my life," Li Rong raised her hand and placed it on her chest, her voice calm, "I cannot go against my moral principles. I cannot watch the Qin family fall because of party strife today. If one day your Su family faces injustice," Li Rong looked at Su Rongqing's gradually shocked expression and smiled slowly, "I will not sit idly by."

"Actually, you're right. If it was just for power, what I'm doing today wouldn't be of much benefit. I should have been tied to the aristocratic family, I shouldn't have set up the Inspection Department, and I shouldn't have investigated the Qin case. But I want power, not just because I want to be the boss."

"I also want to be able to live in the world I want."

Su Rongqing stared at her blankly. Li Rong knew that he could not understand. She raised her hand and gently brushed away the dead leaves on his shoulders. She whispered, "So, Lord Su, you don't need to persuade me, and you don't need to stop me. You can't persuade me, and you can't stop me. The prince and I are not on the same side. You can rest assured to assist him. I will walk my own way. If Lord Su disagrees," Li Rong raised her eyes and smiled, "just come over."

After saying that, Li Rong turned around and quickly got on the carriage.

After she got into the carriage, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

At this time, Pei Wenxuan had already led his men out of the city.

He took the token of the Inspectorate and the Princess's token, and hurried along with the elite secret guards. Not long after they left the city, the secret guards came up to him and said, "Sir, someone is following us."

Pei Wenxuan glanced around and thought for a moment before whispering, "Let's find an inn and rest first."

"Rest?" The secret guard was a little surprised, and Pei Wenxuan replied, "Well, go ahead."

Pei Wenxuan had made up his mind, and everyone had to follow him. The group found an inn to rest. As soon as they entered the inn, Pei Wenxuan found a secret guard with a similar body shape to himself, and then asked another person to go to the edge of a cliff nearby and prepare a rope to tie to the side of a big tree.

When everything was ready, it was daybreak, the clouds broke and the sun came out, the night rain had just stopped, and Pei Wenxuan's men set out again. This time, Pei Wenxuan's team changed to a carriage, and Pei Wenxuan sat in the carriage and traveled far away.

Inside the imperial palace, as the voice of "enter the hall" was sung, the ministers, all dressed in black with red edges and holding tablets, filed into the main hall.

Li Rong walked in the front, and the ministers behind her were all looking at her quietly. After entering the hall, Li Rong stood gracefully next to Li Ming. As soon as the court began, Li Ming directly called Li Rong's name: "Pingle."

Li Rong stepped out of the line, and then heard Li Ming suppress his anger and say, "I received a report last night saying that you broke into the Ministry of Justice at night and robbed the Qin family?"

Li Rong knelt down after hearing what Li Ming said. Li Ming raised his hand and smashed the memorial in his hand on her face, saying angrily: "What, are you addicted to making trouble in the Ministry of Justice?! I didn't punish you last time, do you really think I allow you to do whatever you want so lawlessly?! I asked you to investigate the case, not to act arrogantly. Give me a reason, why did you rob the Qin family in the middle of the night?!"

"Your Majesty," Li Rong kowtowed and said respectfully, "Since the Qin case is under my jurisdiction, the Qin family should be under my care. Before, I couldn't even meet the Qin family, let alone interrogate them. In order to find out the truth of the case, I had no choice but to make a fuss about the prisoner hijacking."

"Then why don't you let him go?"

Li Ming frowned, and Li Rong said calmly, "Now according to Lord Qin's confession, I dare not do that."

"What do you mean, Your Highness?"

Minister of Justice Xie Lanqing said with some sarcasm: "Are you saying that my Ministry of Justice is trying to harm Lord Qin?"

“That’s a concern.”

Li Rong responded directly, and Xie Lanqing was so angry that he laughed: "Okay, very good, since it has come to this, Your Majesty, I have something to say, and I have to say it."

Li Ming frowned and said slowly, "Master Xie, Pingle is young and outspoken, don't take it to heart."

"Your Majesty," Xie Lanqing said with a sad face, "Since you know that His Highness is young, how can you treat the court as a joke and hand over such a crucial matter as the Qin case to His Highness Pingle?!"

"Thank you, sir..."

"Your Majesty, I understand that you love your daughter dearly, but it is pointless to give such great power to His Highness Pingle. It will hurt people if you give a sharp knife to a child. Look at how many absurd things His Highness Pingle has done since he investigated the Qin case. He broke into the Ministry of Justice without permission, beat up officials of the Ministry of Justice, broke into the residence of ministers, beat up servants of ministers, and now even kidnapped prisoners. He is simply disregarding the law! Not only does His Highness Pingle not repent, but his wrongdoings are getting worse and worse. Your Majesty, if you don't stop and punish him, it will be a big mistake!"

Having said that, Xie Lanqing knelt down. There was a chorus of response in the court, and many people knelt down as well, shouting that Li Rong should be "stripped of his fiefdom and severely punished."

The whole court was in an uproar. Xie Lanqing was so excited that he shouted, "Your Majesty, if Your Majesty insists on favoring His Highness Pingle, I will resign today, so as not to see His Highness committing evil in the court in the future and feel sad. Please agree!"

As Xie Lanqing spoke, she took off the hair crown on her head and placed it beside her.

The ministers around him took off their hair crowns one after another and followed Xie Lanqing's example by placing them at their sides.

Li Ming looked up at his daughter who had been silent. After a long while, he finally said, "Pingle, you heard it too. You caused such a big disaster. Have you found out anything?"

“Not yet.”

Li Rong knelt on the ground and said calmly: "After investigating the case, I found that all the witnesses were killed and most of the evidence was destroyed. I am still investigating now. Please give me some time, Your Majesty."

"All the witnesses are dead?"

Li Mingzhen was shocked and asked back, "They are all dead?!"

The author has something to say: [Small Theater]

Xie Lanqing: "Your Majesty, if Your Majesty insists on favoring His Majesty Pingle, I will resign today! You decide."

Li Ming: "Hurry up, I'm annoyed just looking at you."

Li Rong: "Oh? Very good, thank you, sir. Please go ahead so that I can let my people take over. I think the prince consort is quite good."

Xie Lanqing: "...Am I not a respectable person? Why don't you even consider trying to keep me?"

Everyone: "Goodbye, goodbye."

Xie Lanqing: "Well, since everyone wants me to stay, I'll stay."

Everyone: “…”