051. Confrontation

Qiu Zihan's proposal of marriage being rejected soon became a laughing stock in Jinjing, especially the next day when Qiu Sinan came in person to seek reconciliation, but was sent away without even entering the door with his gifts.

But the Dali Temple Minister impeached Qiu Zihan for cheating in the imperial examination. In front of the Xuanzheng Hall, they selected a test question and asked Qiu Zihan to answer it on the spot. However, his words were incoherent and his talent was exposed immediately.

Rong Se ordered Qiu Zi Han to be dismissed on the spot and the case was still handed over to the Dali Temple for trial. Everyone thought that the matter would be settled, but who would have thought that the Minister of Revenue suddenly stepped out and said, "I have a petition to make. Qiu Sinan, the Minister of the Weiwei Temple, has repeatedly sold swords and guns from the armory without authorization, and has defied the emperor. This is really abominable!"

The Minister of Works immediately agreed. According to the two of them, Qiu Sinan had repeatedly asked the Ministry of Revenue to allocate silver to the Ministry of Works to speed up the forging of weapons, but the number of weapons currently in the armory did not match.

The two men came prepared. Qiu Sinan felt guilty and had no way to defend himself. He knelt on the ground and cried out that he was innocent.

Cao Lun said at the right time: "I remember that the battle report of the old marquis Liang Hanzhang mentioned that the swords and chariots used by the border guards were all rusted swords with blunt blades. If this is true, I am afraid that the death of the old marquis and the two sons of the marquis's mansion is also related to Lord Qiu."

Rong Jing was afraid that Rong Se would protect Qiu Shi, so he said first: "Whether it is true or not, we will know once we open the vault and test it!"

But Rong Se had no intention of defending him and just sat there indifferently.

As expected, just like in the original novel, Rong Jing used Qiu to please Liang Shenyu.

He met Liang Shenyu's gaze, and after just a moment he lowered his eyes, saying nonchalantly, "Then check it out."

Qiu Sinan and his son were not even able to return home and were directly thrown into prison.

The rift between the Prince Regent's Palace and the Qiu family was obvious to all the civil and military officials in the court. On the contrary, ever since Marquis Dingbei came back from Jizhou, he either went to the Jinbei Army's camp outside the city or stayed in the Prince Regent's Palace. Male homosexuality was not popular in the Jin Dynasty, and the Prince Regent and Marquis Dingbei were so famous, outsiders did not think much about it and just thought that the two were close and were about to join forces.

Because of this, the Cao party was in panic.

But the most flustered person was Rong Jing. Just now, he saw a little red spot on the side of Rong Se's neck when she tilted her head. It was very real and then covered by the Regent's royal uniform.

Although Rong Jing couldn't believe it, he couldn't help being suspicious, and his eyes fell on Liang Shenyu and Rong Se for a long time. He had feelings for Liang Shenyu, so he easily discovered the undercurrents beneath the calmness of the two.

Every time they looked into each other's eyes, and then looked away, there was an ambiguity that could not be ignored.

How could Rong Jing not understand what had happened? After the morning court session, he was so angry that he swept all the breakfast prepared by the kitchen to the ground.

Cao Haoyun happened to walk in. He had never seen Rong Jing so furious before. He was stunned for a moment before he shouted at the servants kneeling on the ground, "Useless things, who offended His Majesty?"

The servants were panic-stricken, bowed their heads, and kept saying, "We deserve to die, we deserve to die."

Rong Jing was so angry that he was shaking all over. He didn't care about Cao Haoyun at all. He picked up the celadon bottle beside him and threw it to the ground, shouting, "Get out of here!"

The palace servants immediately ran away. Cao Haoyun had been loved by the late emperor since he was young, and he was the only son of the Cao family. Rong Jing was also very kind to him and allowed him to enter the palace at will. Seeing Rong Jing so angry, he immediately stepped forward and said with concern: "Cousin, what's wrong with you? Who made you unhappy? Tell me, I will not forgive him!"

Rong Jing couldn't say it out loud, so he could only purse his lips and said, "Ah Yun, how do you think I look like an emperor? Among all the civil and military officials in the court, who treats me as the Son of Heaven?"

Cao Haoyun paused and said seriously, "But my cousin is the legitimate successor to the throne of the Jin Dynasty. My father and I do not recognize Rong Se, the evil and treacherous traitor. Not to mention us, his biological mother is so despicable that he will naturally be laughed at by the world. Sooner or later, the power will be returned to my brother."

After being recognized, Rong Jing's anger subsided a lot. He lowered his eyes to hide his jealousy and said in a deep voice, "Yes, his biological mother was born in Qinlou and Chuguan, and she was a womanizer. The son she gave birth to was also of the same character, shameless to the extreme. Tell me, why did Shuyun treat him differently?"

He would not normally say such things in front of Cao Haoyun, so Cao Haoyun just thought he was angry. After comforting him for a few words, he left the palace and inquired about Marquis Dingbei's movements.

"The Regent Palace?" Cao Haoyun didn't understand state affairs, and didn't take Rong Se seriously. Compared to him, the Marquis Dingbei, who was known as the God of War, was more respected. "Go there, I want to see the Marquis Dingbei!"

Rong Se was still in the palace. Liang Shenyu was the only one in the mansion. Most of his injuries had healed. He didn't need to take medicine for the next few days. After he changed his medicine, the servant of the Regent Palace came to report: "My Lord, the son of Cao Lun's family came to see you."

Dingbei Hou nodded casually, "Then let's meet."

Cao Haoyun was sitting in the reception room. When he saw Liang Shenyu coming, he frowned and said, "You are so carefree living in this brothel."

Liang Shenyu didn't care about the provocation of this yellow-haired boy. He sat in the upper seat with the attitude of a host and nodded calmly: "Not bad."

Cao Haoyun was furious, his voice was raised: "Liang Shenyu! Have you forgotten that His Majesty is the emperor? Why do you think those old guys in the court today were willing to impeach Qiu Sinan? He sold swords from the armory and killed your father and brothers. His Majesty set up the conspiracy for you! You are still here entangled with the son of that whore. Are you worthy of your cousin?!"

Liang Shenyu had guessed it today in the Xuanzheng Hall. These old stories were not completely secret, but no one had mentioned them. The Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works launched an attack at the same time, and Cao Lun dragged the matter back to the defeat at Guzhuling that year, pointing the finger at Qiu Sinan.

Liang Shenyu remained calm, and gave Cao Haoyun a look calmly and generously, his tone gentle but cold: "My father and brother died in Guzhuling for the sake of the Jin Dynasty, the six ministries impeached Qiu Sinan for the sake of the Jin Dynasty, and the emperor investigated this case for his country and his people. How come, if it weren't for me, no one would investigate what Qiu Sinan did?"

Cao Haoyun was speechless for a moment: "This..."

"Master Cao." Liang Shenyu said calmly, "The sage has read a lot of books. If Your Majesty does this for me, is he still worthy of the dragon throne?"

"But..." Cao Haoyun said anxiously, "No matter what, he did it for you, so you have no right to criticize him!"

"Then I'd rather Your Majesty not do this for me." Liang Shenyu sneered, "I don't deserve this kindness. And, Master Cao, you may not know. When the Marquis of Japan set out from Jizhou, the people all shouted long live the prince. Now the prince's reputation is well known in the capital of Jin. His biological mother, Concubine Yan, was not a prostitute, but a concubine appointed by the previous emperor. You keep saying that you are humiliating the Regent Prince, but how could you know that the people who have received his kindness all regard him as a god."

Having said this, Liang Shenyu himself didn't even realize how gentle and soft his eyes were at this moment, and then suddenly became cold and fierce.

He opened his thin lips and sneered, "I don't know what Master Cao has done for the people of the world, but you dare to humiliate the prince by calling him the son of a whore. Who do you think you are?"

Cao Haoyun was a spoiled child, and he thought himself superior. Liang Shenyu's words "Who do you think you are?" made him so angry that his face turned blue. "Marquis Dingbei, don't go too far!"

Liang Shenyu smiled kindly and said to him: "Those who humiliate others will always be humiliated."

In addition to the gentle and easy-going Rong Jing, Cao Haoyun also admires Liang Shenyu very much. After all, he is still like a god today. But he feels sorry for Rong Jing in his heart, but he can't find any words to refute Liang Shenyu.

What did Rongser do?

It is true that his background was criticized, and he was cold-blooded and power-hungry, but the regent's reputation has improved a lot in recent times. Apart from the scandal of his biological mother, it is indeed as Liang Shenyu said, he seems to be a good prince who works hard and loves the people.

However, Cao Haoyun was not born to be a reasonable person. He was born in a high position and regarded himself as a superior. He was so angry that he slammed the table and shouted: "So what? Those fools don't even know a few words. How can they understand loyalty and treachery! But you are the Marquis of Dingbei, your family has been loyal for generations, and you are a subject of His Majesty! How can you be close to treacherous people!"

Liang Shenyu took a sip of the teacup, and when Cao Haoyun finished speaking, he knocked the teacup heavily on the table. His eyes were as indifferent as before, and his voice became colder: "Master Cao, please go back now that you have said enough. However, you must convey a message to your father for me."

Cao Haoyun's punch was as weak as hitting cotton. He talked for a long time, but Liang Shenyu remained indifferent and didn't even look at him.

Just as he was about to continue his outburst, he heard Liang Shenyu's cold and solemn sarcasm: "Tell your father that I know very well why my father and brother died in Guzhuling. Don't play these useless tricks in front of me."

Cao Haoyun looked up, but was shocked by Liang Shenyu's eyes. He instantly restrained all his calmness, and the ferocity and brutality in his bones lingered between his eyebrows. He looked fierce and cold, like a sword drawn from its sheath, with blood on the blade and the sword body as white as frost.

"You..." Cao Haoyun heard something from his words, and suddenly felt a little panicked. He stammered, "You, what do you mean?"

"Mr. Cao, just say it." Liang Shenyu said coldly, "As for your majesty, Mr. Cao, be careful of the people in front of you and keep your eyes open."

Cao Haoyun turned around and went out in a daze.

Song Yan, who had come to report military affairs and listened to the whole process, walked in and said bitterly, "What the hell, sir? What did the Cao family do again?"

Liang Shenyu roughly recounted what happened in the morning court, his eyes dark, "It's just dog-eat-dog."

Song Yan hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Why did you want to support the new emperor to ascend the throne? This emperor is nothing."

Liang Shenyu lowered his eyes and said nothing.

He wanted unrest in the capital, no matter which side dominated, it would be best if the regent and the new emperor Cao's family fought to the point of both suffering losses.

But he didn't expect that he would fall in love with Rong Se at that time.

Song Yan seemed careless, but he was a man of great wisdom. He had followed Liang Shenyu for many years and had noticed some clues. After a long silence, he could not help but whispered, "Master, have you softened your heart because of the Regent Prince during these years of planning? What about the old Marquis and the two young masters? And Madam, the blood feud of the Dingbei Marquisate is only yours to avenge."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liang Shenyu's eyes suddenly fixed.

Song Yan looked back and saw the Regent standing outside the door. He looked at them expressionlessly, then turned around and left silently.