Tuisi Garden in the east of Huating City, on the stage.

Lord Xu was still on the stage, rehearsing "The Washing Silk" with the music troupe.

The piece sung today is the sixteenth act "Visiting the Sick", and Mr. Hu Zhi from Lushan also joins in, playing the role of the clown Bo Pi.

I only heard the tune of "Ti Yin Deng" and Bo Pi singing in a slick voice:

"Laughing at the king's aging appearance. Exhausting his energy for no reason. Holding her beauty all night long. Buying and selling. Now you look thinner. Laughing at your chicken-skin drum, how many times can you withstand it?"

Then he shook his head and said proudly: "I am not bragging, I have dozens of women around me every night. The more energetic I am, the more miserable my master is..."

Just as he was about to greet the King of Wu who had been drained dry by the bearded Xi Shi, he saw Xu Fan hurriedly walking onto the stage.

"My son is finally back." Elder Xu was waiting on the side. When he saw him coming up, he smiled softly and said, "Hurry up and play the flute for your father. No one else can play as well as you."

"All of you go away." They were all doomed, so how could Xu Fan still have the mood to play the flute? He drove the band away with a gloomy face, and only Hu Zhi stayed.

"Father, something big has happened." Mr. Lushan was Xu Jie's think tank. He had been involved in countless shady things, so Xu Fan naturally didn't need to avoid him.

"What's wrong again?" Lord Xu was displeased when he heard this. He thought to himself, why is it so difficult for me to enjoy my golden old age?

~~

"Let me go, I want to kill this rebellious son!"

After the meal, the furious voice of Lord Xu could be clearly heard from Wanhe Songfeng Hall.

He drew the sword from the wall and was about to strike his youngest son.

Xu Jie had been in the political arena for most of his life. How many storms and waves had he experienced? He had never been as shocked and angry as he was now.

Hu Zhi and Xu Fan, one holding his waist and the other holding his hand, tried their best to prevent a human tragedy.

What? Why didn't Xu Ying run? He had been beaten with eighty sticks and couldn't even get up.

Xu Jie was really angry, and he was definitely not acting. If the two hadn't stopped him, he would have really killed this evildoer who had ruined his reputation!

"Father, even if you kill my little brother, Lin won't survive." Xu Fan hugged his father's legs and urged him: "Think about how to get through this disaster."

"You're not a good guy either!" Xu Jie responded by slapping him in the face. "Why didn't you tell that person not to hurt Lin Run's life?!"

Xu Fan covered his face and bowed his head to confess: "Yes, my son took it for granted and forgot to tell me this."

"You are always like this, unable to accomplish anything, but always causing trouble!" Xu Jie recalled how he had fallen from the clouds, and said angrily, "I was sent into exile because of you good sons!"

"Father, it shouldn't be that necessary, right?" Xu Ying, who was lying on the ground, trembled with fear. His father was the prime minister of two dynasties. If he was exiled, wouldn't he be beheaded in public?

"Why not? It's not that the governors and governors-general cannot be killed. I don't know how many governors and governors-general in Jiangnan have been beheaded!" Xu Jie sneered and said, "But they are all convicted first and then killed with public tools. It doesn't matter how many they are killed! But there has never been a direct assassination without following the procedures! Once it is exposed, who in the government and the public will dare to speak for us?!"

"We didn't mean to kill him, it was an accident..." Xu Ying muttered.

"Who are you going to tell this to?!" It would have been better if he didn't say anything, but once he opened his mouth, Lord Xu's anger was aroused again.

Xu Jie grabbed the plum vase on the table and threw it hard at Xu Ying. Hu Zhi and Xu Fan looked at him and felt that there was no danger to his life, so they did not stop him.

We have to let the old man get rid of this anger, right? Otherwise, he will get sick. Who will the Xu family rely on to get through this?

With a scream, the vase broke on Xu Ying's head, and blood immediately flowed all over her face.

Xu Fan finally understood that whoever spoke would be beaten. Fearing that the next vase would be thrown at him, he quickly gave Mr. Lushan a look for help.

"Master Cun Zhai, calm down. Things have already come to this. It's useless for you to be angry." Hu Zhi sighed secretly and had to persuade him: "Let's think of a solution. We can't just let it go and wait for the truth to come out, right?"

"Hmm..." Xu Jie was also tired of his outburst, so he took the opportunity to sit down slowly on the chair. He asked in a cold voice, "Who knows about this?"

"Besides my brother, there is only Zheng Yuanshao and the servant who killed someone." Xu Fan replied quickly: "The servant has been dealt with. Now there is only Zheng Yuanshao left."

"Don't touch Zheng Yuanshao yet, lest someone use him as bait." Xu Jie closed his eyes and suppressed his anger, saying, "This matter is too big, so big that we can't even abandon the car to save the king. Either the whole family survives together, or the whole family is finished."

"Alas." Xu Fan glared at Xu Ying fiercely. This beast finally got what he wanted and dragged his whole family into the water.

"Guankou must treat the case as if it were a fire." Hu Zhi whispered, "Who does Master Cun Zhai think the court will send to investigate this case?"

"It doesn't matter who comes, we will treat it as a fire." Xu Jie said expressionlessly: "The governor of Yingtian was killed. Whether it was murder or manslaughter, the court can't afford to lose that person. To put it more seriously, it may even shake the foundation of the court. So no matter who it is, they must treat this case as a fire."

"So when something goes wrong, we have to cover it up first." Hu Zhi nodded and smiled, "It has always been like this."

"That's good..." Xu Ying whispered in relief.

"Bullshit!" Xu Jie spat fiercely, "The so-called closure of the case is just a trick to appease the government and the public, and also to give the real investigators enough time to get to the bottom of the case. By then, no one will be able to escape!"

"Father means that the person who actually investigated the case was not the imperial envoy who came first, but the one who came later..." Xu Fan suddenly realized, "The governor of Yingtian?"

"Yes." Xu Jie nodded and said, "Whoever takes over as the governor of Yingtian will secretly investigate the case. This is the usual procedure of the court. It is the same no matter who is in charge."

"It seems that the candidate who will take over as the governor of Yingtian is a matter of life and death." Xu Fanhuan whispered.

"That's right. If it's Gao Huzi's men who came, they will definitely pursue them relentlessly, and if they can't find any evidence, they will try to pin it on us." Hu Zhi pulled his beard and said, "So no matter what, the new governor of Yingtian must be one of ours, and it's best if he owes Master Cun Zhai a favor."

"It's not hard to find such a person. Father has helped many people get their rights rehabilitated and their positions reinstated over the years." Xu Fan immediately said in a deep voice, "I think Wu Shilai and Zou Yinglong are both suitable."

"Do you think I'm still the Prime Minister?" Xu Jie snorted coldly, "Who do you want to appoint?"

"Father, it's already very late, please do it with all your might." Xu Fan advised respectfully.

"Yes, Master Cun Zhai, we cannot have any more reservations at this critical moment of life and death." Hu Zhi also advised.

"Dad..." Xu Fan looked at Xu Jie pitifully.

"Ah..." Xu Jie closed his eyes listlessly, nodded helplessly and said, "At your command, I will give it a try."

ps. The first of three consecutive updates, please give me your monthly votes!