After finishing their business at the girls' academy, Madam Sun and Old Man Lu prepared to take Lu Xiaoyang and the others back to Jingzhou.
Because the eldest and second eldest sons' families would be coming soon, Lei Zi and the other students didn't go back. Instead, Lu Baichuan went to the palace to ask the emperor to allow them to continue studying at the Imperial Academy. They also paid a certain amount of grain and money according to the rules, so they could study at the Imperial Academy openly and legitimately.
Given this opportunity, Lu Guilan's son, Xiaohuzi, decided not to go back home. He wrote to ask his mother for her opinion, and Lu Guilan agreed to let him stay in the capital.
The Zhang brothers, Zhang Song and Zhang Yong, have already returned from the grasslands, bringing back a lot of good products. They currently run a shop in Jingzhou, and business is booming.
Lu Guilan's idea is that once things are more stable next year, she will open a shop in the capital city. This way, she can keep in touch with her family and also take care of her son who is studying in the capital.
He Jiuniang thought it was feasible, but as she had said before, she needed to train her subordinates well, to ensure they were trustworthy and capable, so that the foundation could be stable.
This time, only Lu Xiaoyang and her cousins Liu Yuexiang and Zhang Lanxiang went back with the two elders. There weren't many people, and there wasn't much to pack. A carriage was enough for just a few people.
Before leaving, He Jiuniang gave Liu Yuexiang a gift as an elder and said, "You are a very smart child, and I have high hopes for you. I hope you can always use this intelligence in the right way. If you stay with Xiaoyang and support each other, your life will definitely be good."
Although they are not engaged yet, she couldn't go with them, so she could only send the gift first and say her private words in advance.
Liu Yuexiang knew that He Jiuniang was very shrewd, and she was inevitably startled when she heard these instructions.
She thought she had been very careful in getting close to Lu Xiaoyang, but she still couldn't escape He Jiuniang's eyes.
However, seeing her current attitude, which seemed to indicate she was satisfied with herself, she felt relieved.
"I know, thank you for the reminder, Auntie."
She accepted the gift from He Jiuniang without hesitation.
He Jiuniang disliked those who deliberately made excuses, and Liu Yuexiang's way of doing things actually pleased her, so she nodded in satisfaction.
After watching them get into the carriage and leave, she and Lotus stood there watching the carriage disappear into the distance, and suddenly felt that the future was bright.
She watched the children in the family grow up, becoming more and more outstanding every day. When Lu Xiaoyang liked Lianhua, she felt sorry for Lu Xiaoyang, thinking it was a pity that such a tragic love story had happened right under her nose.
Fortunately, Liu Yuexiang's appearance quickly filled this void, giving Lu Xiaoyang a companion and someone who cared for him and would always be there for him.
Lotus could also sense He Jiu Niang's feelings, and she added, "I hope Brother Xiao Yang and Sister Yue Xiang can always live happily ever after."
Yes, it will.
He Jiuniang smiled and took Lianhua's arm. The two walked back side by side like good sisters.
"How's the training going for your subordinates lately? Are they obedient? Are there any with bad intentions? Let me tell you, if there are any with bad intentions, you need to kick them out as soon as possible, otherwise there will be endless trouble later..."
She's been busy with the girls' academy lately and hasn't been able to look after the business much; Lianhua has been doing all the work.
"Everything is fine, Auntie, don't worry!"
The two returned chatting and laughing, followed by their servants, all with faint smiles on their faces.
Within a few days, the hidden dangers left by the Eastern Court were cleared away, and these people were put into the Heavenly Prison where the Third Prince of the Eastern Court had been imprisoned, just waiting to be used as weapons when the two armies clashed.
The Eastern Court is restless; this battle is inevitable.
However, before that, we need to solve the problem of finding the king.
After confirming that the Dongting people had been captured, He Jiuniang made arrangements with the Emperor a day in advance, saying that she would go to court the next morning to personally expose Xun Wang's ugly face.
This matter could have been handled by Lu Baichuan, but He Jiuniang still felt it would be better for her to handle it herself, after all, she was of the Jiang family bloodline, and Xun Wang was related to her by blood.
The emperor also felt it would be better if she spoke in person, so he naturally agreed.
So on that morning, He Jiuniang got up with unwavering determination and went to court with Lu Baichuan.
When the court officials saw her go along, they were angry and felt that this was improper, but when they thought of the recent rumors outside, they guessed her purpose and chose to ignore her without saying anything.
Upon arriving at the main hall, He Jiuniang, who held no official rank or title, stood with Lu Baichuan. After the ceremony, she was to stand in the center of the hall to discuss official business.
Indeed, when the emperor arrived, all the officials bowed, and a eunuch would shout, "If you have something to report, speak up; otherwise, the court is adjourned!"
"Your Majesty, I have something to report!"
As he spoke, he stepped out from the crowd and handed over the memorial he had written.
The young eunuch came over, took it, and respectfully presented it to the emperor.
Although the emperor had heard about it before, he still couldn't help but get so angry that his veins bulged when he saw the contents of the memorial.
It turns out that King Xun had discovered the mine long ago and had been ordering people to mine it. After the incident involving the Jiang family, King Xun was worried that the matter would be exposed prematurely, so he staged a play to get the old emperor to exile his whole family, so that he could mine and raise troops in peace for many years.
In retrospect, it was the old emperor's incompetence that led him to not thoroughly investigate such a strange matter from back then.
"Your Majesty, these are evidences related to what happened back then. Among them are correspondence between Xun Wang and his cronies such as Dong Ting and Zhuo Wei. Even all of the Jiang family's wealth, which was supposed to be used as military pay for the soldiers on the frontier, was embezzled by Xun Wang."
The Jiang family was a military family, and they could receive a large share of the spoils from every battle they fought, which was permitted by the imperial court. Therefore, military officers were always wealthier than civil officials.
Back then, Xun Wang relied on that wealth to quickly manage everything in the border exile area, all of which was bought with the lives of hundreds of people from the Jiang family.
"Your Majesty, the Prince Xun has been committing evil deeds for many years and has now been apprehended and brought to justice, awaiting Your Majesty's judgment!"
Lu Baichuan also stood up to speak in his defense, and many people in the court began to break out in a cold sweat; they were clearly not clean.
Coincidentally, the evidence submitted by He Jiuniang included a list of these people.
The emperor slammed the memorial to the ground, and the young eunuch hurriedly picked it up and read out the list on it.
"Chen Qian, Li Chao, Zhang Zhihao, Li Hongzhao..."
In a short while, he read out the names of more than twenty people.
Those whose names were called all collapsed to the ground, their legs giving way. Just moments ago, they thought they had hidden themselves well all these years and that it was impossible for them to be found out, but unexpectedly...
"Your Majesty, I am innocent!"
"Your Majesty, it was this wicked woman who framed me!"
"Your Majesty, have mercy! Your Majesty, have mercy!"
...
They were in tears, as if they had truly been misunderstood.
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