“If His Majesty does not return to the capital soon, I fear the blame for the Liu Liu and Liu Qi incident will fall on the Su family and on Wanwan,” Xiao Bin said bluntly.
Lu Xingjian gave Xiao Bin a deep look.
His feelings for Xiao Bin were quite complicated.
Dislike, resentment, and aversion are all present.
However, it must be admitted that Xiao Bin's protection and loyalty to Wanwan far exceeded that of her husband.
If it weren't for Xiao Bin's intervention outside the tiger cage last time, he might have killed Xiao Bin out of jealousy.
The reasons were readily available; some officials impeached Jiang Bin for killing innocent people and claiming credit for them.
But.
If it weren't for Xiao Bin, Wanwan would have died long ago.
He intended to die while in the tiger cage that time.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Bin gave him hope and awakened his will to live.
He still has a son, and Wanwan is not dead yet. How can he give up so easily?
After going through so many hardships, the family was finally reunited, only to almost be separated by death again.
Lu Xingjian's expression gradually darkened.
All my thoughts have faded.
Xiao Bin pursed his lips and said after a long while, "When Wanwan was shot by an arrow and fell to the ground, her first words were still to ask me to find medicine for the Emperor."
Lu Xingjian froze, feeling as if his heart had been squeezed hard.
The pain was unbearable.
He shook his head, his face pale: "Doctor Luo is dead, I have no other thoughts."
Fortunately, thanks to Dr. Luo's meticulous treatment, Wanwan had very little of the remaining poison left.
Xiao Bin said, "The youngest daughter of Doctor Luo found her father's treasured manuscript, which recorded the detoxification process for this poison and also mentioned other doctors who could detoxify this poison."
"Whether it's the lingering poison in Wanwan's body or the Emperor's own health, both require continued medical attention."
"Your Majesty, you should return to the capital to take charge of the overall situation. As for finding a doctor, I will take care of that."
Lu Xingjian took a deep look into the room.
The curtains in the room were drawn low, and one could vaguely see the person on the bed move slightly.
She should be able to hear their conversation, right?
They were so close, just a few steps apart.
These few steps seem as far as thousands of mountains and rivers apart.
Yet it felt as if they were right next to each other, as if they had never been apart.
"Wanwan, I'll be waiting for you in the capital."
...
In September, the imperial court ordered the corpse of the bandit leader Liu Qiqi Yanming to be mutilated and his head to be displayed in Bazhou.
Zhao et al., Liu San et al. were still sent to the capital in chains.
Liu San was reduced to a corpse, but Zhao was still alive.
Li Dongqian was terrified, like an ant on a hot pan.
The emperor was no pushover; with solid evidence, he could really execute his entire family.
"Master, news has come from the palace that the Imperial Lectures will be held on the twelfth of September," the steward reported as he entered.
Li Dongqian was startled.
His expression grew even more fearful.
Originally, the Imperial Lectures were just a brainwashing course for the emperor to receive education and learning from his ministers. It was the civil officials who forced the emperor to hold these lectures, especially young emperors who had just ascended the throne.
Lu Xingjian had long since stopped listening to the clamor of the civil officials and was too lazy to hold any lectures.
Why are they suddenly holding a lecture? What kind of medicine are they trying to sell?
Li Dongqian's expression shifted between light and dark. He hardened his heart and said, "The Emperor should still be on his way back to the capital?"
"Let our secret agents lie in ambush along the way. If we're going to do it, we might as well go all the way!"
The butler trembled with fright. "Master, you mustn't!"
Why should we court death?
Li Dongqian's eyes were fierce: "With the new emperor's ascension to the throne, I can also claim credit for supporting the emperor. All past rights and wrongs will be covered up by a brocade quilt and will not amount to anything."
The steward swallowed hard, not daring to openly object, "Master, have you decided who you want to support to ascend the throne?"
Li Dongqian scratched his head.
The emperor had no princes whose identities were clearly defined, nor any brothers.
According to the rules of succession, the throne should fall to Prince Xing.
King Xing was in his thirties, in the prime of his life. How could things be as easy as supporting the young emperor to ascend the throne?
Are we going to have a prince adopted by the emperor or the late emperor?
This would require getting past the Imperial Clan Court, as well as the Empress Dowager and Empress Zhang, and coordination would be necessary.
Too many things to do, too little time.
Li Dongqian steeled his resolve, "That's a matter for later! Get it done now!"
The butler obsequiously agreed and went out, but was blocked in his way by Li Zhaofan, the adopted young master.
"Father is old and confused about many things. Do you want to follow suit and end up with your family being wiped out?"
The butler used to look down on this adopted young master.
But times have changed.
The old man is becoming increasingly erratic, and he is becoming more and more afraid.
"Young master, you must save the Li family!" The steward cried, tears streaming down his face.
...
Lu Xingjian held Li Zhaofan's letter of denunciation, looking extremely tired.
This emperor's reign was utterly boring.
If he hadn't publicly announced his son's birth, there would probably have been quite a few ministers who wanted to assassinate him and install a new emperor.
He followed the example of Emperor Taizu and adopted 127 sons in one go, bestowing upon them all the imperial surname.
These people all held military positions, which boosted morale.
On Halloween at the end of September, he rewarded his civil and military officials for their success in suppressing the rebellion.
Chou Yue, the Earl of Xianning, was promoted to Marquis of Xianning.
Among the civil officials, each of the four Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet was awarded fifty taels of silver, four sets of silk fabrics, and one of their sons or nephews was granted the hereditary title of Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
This is an extremely generous blessing.
Li Dongqian was completely stunned when he received the imperial edict.
Is the Emperor going to give us prison food before we die?
Li Zhaofan wept with joy.
He secretly pledged allegiance to the emperor, and succeeded.
...
"Your Majesty, this is Zhao's confession, which involves as many as a thousand officials."
Qian Ning solemnly handed over the list of officials and criminals colluding to embezzle and cover up their crimes.
Lu Xingjian read it through from beginning to end.
Most of these counties in Zhou County have been left in ruins and devastation due to the rampant banditry of the past few years.
Those who can engage in such collusion between officials and criminals are all corrupt officials.
How many good days can the people under his rule have?
Seeing the bandits rising up everywhere, many picked up hoes and joined the bandits in their rebellion.
He could certainly bring these people to justice and exile them to the frontier.
However, the court and its people had experienced several major calamities in succession, so how could they withstand any more storms?
Water that is too clear has no fish.
Lu Xingjian left the memorial in the capital and ordered the execution of the rebel Zhao Sui and others in the marketplace.
The remaining 37 bandit leaders were all ordered to be executed. Among them, six of the most heinous criminals had their hides made into saddles for the emperor to ride, as a warning to the world.
After the court assembly ended that day, Lu Xingjian specially kept Li Dongqian behind, had someone bring out a human skin saddle, and asked Li Dongqian with a smile.
"Why don't you guess, Grand Secretary, which of these saddles is made from Zhao's human skin?"
Li Dongqian's back was soaked with sweat: "This old minister is muddle-headed and incompetent, and cannot guess it."
Lu Xingjian didn't take it to heart and continued to joke, "It doesn't matter if you can't guess. I'm in a good mood today. How about I present the Grand Secretary with a saddle made of Zhao's leather?"
Li Dongqian retreated in fear, falling directly to the ground in a disheveled state.
Lu Xingjian laughed heartily.
"It's just a saddle, why are you so scared?"
Li Dongqian was already 65 years old; how could he withstand the young emperor's tormenting and scheming?
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