son, don't mess around

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Li Cining was somewhat at a loss for words, both amused and exasperated.

Lin Jiang raided the Lü family mansion at night during the annual meeting and secretly met with and harassed the young mistress of the Lü family.
He naturally didn't believe it.

But now that the former Minister of Personnel has personally gone to the Jingzhao Prefecture to report the case, the matter has suddenly become delicate.

Regardless of the truth of the matter, such an incident involving the Lü family is definitely a scandal. The question is, how could such a scandal be so easily exposed?

If this gets out, it will be a huge loss of face for the Lü family.

For the Lü family, this is clearly a lose-lose situation.

However, Lü Fusheng went to the Jingzhao Prefecture in a grand manner. Although he was no longer the Minister of Personnel, he still held considerable prestige in the capital, which was why Li Cining had placed him under house arrest there.

Even though the Lü family was involved in the Third Prince's rebellion, the forces behind the Lü family were complex and intertwined, and they also had close ties with his mother's family.

Although Li Cining was the emperor, his position was unstable after his ascension to the throne, so he naturally could not push the various forces too hard.

Therefore, after careful consideration, Li Cining did not pursue the matter to the bitter end. Stripping the Lü family of their power and consolidating it in his own hands was a tacit agreement reached between Li Cining and the Lü family lineage.

Now that such a thing has happened, Li Cining naturally finds it somewhat unbelievable.

"It seems this matter is not simple."

Li Cining squinted, lost in thought.

The chief eunuch cautiously inquired, "Your Majesty, do you mean...?"

"My brother-in-law is probably playing a long game!"

Li Cining gave a half-smile.

This news will not benefit the Lü family in any way. Therefore, it must not have been spread by the Lü family.

Behind this, Lin Jiangnian must be involved.

Therefore, Lü Fusheng's decision to report the case to the Jingzhao Prefecture was out of necessity.

He's putting pressure on us!

Everything Lü Fusheng did was entirely for his benefit.

Thinking of this, Li Cining coughed and sighed, "What an old fox!"

Lu Fusheng had served as Minister of Personnel for over twenty years, and his influence in the capital far exceeded Li Cining's control. His grand trip to the Jingzhao Prefecture to report to the emperor was a show for him.

It was also a way of forcing the emperor to abdicate!

The former Minister of Personnel was now being so humiliated by the Prince of Lin. The Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture dared not handle the matter and could only report it to higher authorities.

So, how Li Cining would handle the situation naturally became the focus of everyone's attention.

If not handled properly, it may provoke dissatisfaction from various factions.

The fact that a former Minister of Personnel suffered such humiliation is bound to cause other powerful factions to feel a sense of shared misfortune.

The chief eunuch standing nearby also realized that this matter was not simple, and cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, how do you intend to handle this matter?"

Li Cining remained calm and chuckled lightly, "He's trying to force me to intervene, but..."

Li Cining paused, then shook his head slightly: "This matter will be handled entirely by the Jingzhao Prefecture..."

Then, Li Cining suddenly changed his mind: "Forget it, let's leave this matter to the Secret Observatory."

"The Secret Celestial Bureau shall handle this matter with full authority."

"Yes."

The chief eunuch bowed his head, about to turn and leave, when footsteps sounded outside the hall again. The chief eunuch quickly went out, returned a moment later, and whispered something in Li Cining's ear.

Upon hearing this, Li Cining raised her eyes and looked in a certain direction outside the hall. Her originally indifferent eyes gradually became somewhat solemn.

After a moment of silence, Li Cining nodded in a deep voice: "I understand."

"His Majesty……"

"Let's prepare the carriage later."

"Yes."

"..."

The Imperial City, Jingning Palace.

The palace was quiet and secluded, like a cold palace.

The cold autumn wind raged through the palace, and the flowers, plants, and trees in the corners of the courtyard withered, creating a desolate scene. Only a few palace maids could be seen within the vast palace grounds.

It gives people a sense of oppression that is hard to describe.

Lin Jiangnian strode into Jingning Palace and stopped in front of a courtyard.

At the entrance stood two brightly dressed palace maids who bowed slightly upon seeing Lin Jiangnian: "Greetings, Your Highness."

"Her Majesty has been waiting for His Highness in the palace for a long time."

Lin Jiangnian nodded and stepped into the room.

The simply decorated room reveals little about its luxury; the antique style of the surroundings, elegant and refreshing, is enough to show the temperament of the owner of this place.

In front of the main seat in the room sat a beautiful woman, dressed in a gorgeous long gown, with a cool and elegant demeanor, exuding the aura of an empress.

She appears delicate, but her expression reveals unwavering resilience.

This beautiful woman was none other than the Empress Dowager.

The current emperor's biological mother, Li Piaomiao's biological mother, and... Lin Jiangnian's nominal future mother-in-law.

At this moment, the Empress Dowager was sitting quietly in the main seat, with another woman of exquisite beauty standing beside her, smiling at him.

It was Zhao Xi.

Lin Jiangnian caught a glimpse of the elation and teasing in Zhao Xi's eyes, but ignored her and stepped forward slowly, cupping his hands in greeting, "Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

"This isn't the first time we've met, Jiang Nian, there's no need for such formality."

Inside the room, the Empress Dowager spoke softly, a faint smile on her face.

Indeed, this is not the first time we've met.

A year ago, when he was still in the capital, Lin Jiangnian had met this Empress Dowager. Strictly speaking, at that time, this Empress Dowager was still the Empress.

A year has passed in the blink of an eye. When I saw the Empress Dowager again, she seemed to have changed a lot. Although she still looked radiant, there was a hint of weariness in her eyes.

The Empress Dowager looks much worse than she did a year ago.

Lin Jiang withdrew his gaze and heard the Empress Dowager's voice: "I heard from Xi'er that you want to see me?"

Lin Jiangnian glanced at Zhao Xi and nodded: "Exactly."

"I have some questions about my trip to the capital and would like to ask Your Majesty for advice."

The Empress Dowager sighed softly: "We're all family now, why be so formal? Just ask whatever you need to ask."

This Empress Dowager was as easy to talk to as ever, without any airs of being an empress dowager, and always gave people a sense of closeness and friendliness.

This contrasts sharply with her daughter.

If it weren't for the chance encounter with a resemblance to Li Piaomiao in the Empress Dowager's demeanor, Lin Jiangnian would have even doubted whether Li Piaomiao was truly her daughter.

However, upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, "We're all family now," Lin Jiangnian subconsciously glanced at Zhao Xi again, only to see Zhao Xi, standing next to the Empress Dowager, roll her eyes at him.

She looked a little angry, which was kind of cute!

Lin Jiangnian withdrew his gaze, looked at the Empress Dowager, and thought for a moment: "In that case, I apologize for my intrusion..."

"I have heard that Her Majesty the Empress Dowager's family is from the Xie family of Yuzhou?"

The Empress Dowager seemed somewhat surprised, but still nodded: "Indeed, I am from the Xie family of Yuzhou."

"The Empress Dowager's family, the Xie family, has a very deep relationship with the Lü family?"

The Empress Dowager seemed to sense what Lin Jiangnian wanted to ask, chuckled, and did not deny it, nodding: "The Lü family and my Xie family are related. The two families once had a marriage alliance, and..." At this point, the Empress Dowager suddenly stopped, as if realizing something, and a smile appeared on her face: "Jiangnian, you came here because of the Lü family?"

Lin Jiangnian hadn't expected the Empress Dowager to bring it up so directly, and nodded: "It is indeed because of this matter."

The matter of the Lü family remains something Lin Jiangnian has never been able to clarify.

He needed to find out more from the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager sighed softly, and after a long while, she said, "Indeed, I abused my power for personal gain in this matter..."

"The Lü family and my Xie family have a deep connection and are related by blood. It was at my behest that the Lü family became close to Yuan'er."

"I originally intended for the Lü family to take good care of Yuan'er, but I never expected it to lead to such a disaster. I also bear an unshirkable responsibility for this matter..."

When the Third Prince was mentioned, the Empress Dowager's expression became somewhat sorrowful.

She was clearly very remorseful.

It was her soft heart back then that led to this disaster, causing turmoil throughout the land and widespread suffering among the people.

Her two sons are now fighting each other, causing chaos throughout the land!

For the Empress Dowager, this was undoubtedly the most painful and difficult decision.

"This matter is entirely my fault..."

The Empress Dowager's voice turned low, as she sank into grief. Zhao Xi, standing beside her, softly offered words of comfort, and a somber atmosphere filled the room.

Lin Jiangnian didn't ask any further questions; he had more or less gotten the answer he wanted. The Lü family's escape from disaster was indeed inextricably linked to the Empress Dowager.

But the reason was not quite what he had expected.

So……

The answer is obvious: the problem lies with Tao Ya and the Sixth Prince.

He narrowed his eyes. Who exactly was behind Tao Ya and the Sixth Prince?

Where does the hidden force behind this come from?
Is it that Prince Xu from the north?
After much back and forth, suspicion seems to have returned to Xu Hong.

The only people capable of orchestrating such a major assassination attempt in Jiangnan, besides the current emperor, would probably be the Xu Prince's Mansion in the north.

Having ruled out the current emperor, it seems only the Xu Prince's Mansion remains?
but……

Lin Jiangnian frowned even deeper, feeling that he had overlooked something.

If the Xu Prince's Mansion orchestrated all of this, how could it involve so many forces in the capital?

If the Xu Prince's mansion truly possessed such infiltration capabilities, the entire capital would likely have been his for the taking long ago.

That doesn't make sense!

If it's Li Cining...

Lin Jiangnian's case remains questionable.

This certainly doesn't seem like Li Cining's doing, unless... there's an even deeper, hidden force.

That force still hasn't shown itself; it lurks in the darkness, watching Lin Jiangnian's every move.

Inside the room, Zhao Xi gently comforted the Empress Dowager. After a while, the Empress Dowager gradually calmed down.

Her eyes were slightly red, and she sighed softly, "This matter is my fault. I know you have a grudge against the Lü family, and if you want to deal with them, I will not stop you. However, I still hope that you can consider Piaomiao's sake and not go so far as to wipe out the Lü family."

"At least, it will leave an heir for the Lü family."

This Empress Dowager clearly misunderstood Lin Jiangnian's meaning.

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiangnian shook his head: "Your Majesty misunderstands. I have no intention of taking action against the Lü family."

"then you……"

The Empress Dowager was skeptical: "Why would you target Xuan'er's wife...?"

Clearly, the rumors circulating outside had also reached Jingning Palace.

When the Empress Dowager heard the rumor that the Prince of Lin had broken into the Lü residence at night and harassed the young mistress of Lü, she naturally did not believe that Lin Jiangnian really had feelings for the young mistress of Lü, and took it as a means of revenge against the Lü family.

"This matter is a long story..."

Lin Jiangnian gave the Empress Dowager a brief explanation, without going into details.

But after the explanation, the Empress Dowager gradually understood.

"So, it was all a misunderstanding?"

Although she didn't know exactly what had happened, she had a vague understanding and didn't ask any further questions.

"So, why did you come here today to inquire about the Lü family?"

"To resolve some doubts in my mind."

Lin Jiang smiled and said, "Thank you for clearing up my confusion, Your Majesty. It was all a misunderstanding."

"That's good."

The Empress Dowager also breathed a sigh of relief.

"In that case, Your Majesty, I will not disturb you any longer and will take my leave now."

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Lin Jiangnian had no intention of lingering any longer and prepared to take his leave.

"and many more."

The Empress Dowager called out to Lin Jiangnian and said softly, "Jiangnian rarely comes to the palace, why don't you stay a little longer and keep me company?"

Hearing this, Lin Jiangnian was somewhat surprised, but he did not refuse. After all, she was his future mother-in-law in name only, and he had to give her some face.

And sure enough, the Empress Dowager immediately asked that question.

"I heard that Piaomiao left the capital for a long time this time because she went to the Prince Lin's residence with Jiang Nian?"

Faced with the Empress Dowager's sudden question, Lin Jiangnian was not surprised and nodded: "That's right. For His Majesty's health, the Eldest Princess accompanied me to the Ruyi Tower of the Prince Lin's residence to find medicine for His Majesty."

The Empress Dowager sighed, "Piaomiao is very kind. The Emperor is not in good health, and it is kind of Piaomiao to travel so far."

Lin Jiangnian wholeheartedly agreed.

It must be said that although that woman looked cold, she was actually quite capable when it came to getting things done.

"That……"

The Empress Dowager suddenly asked, "Piaomiao, you went to Prince Lin's residence with Jiang Nian. You must have met Prince Lin, right? Has he arranged your marriage?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiangnian was visibly taken aback and subconsciously glanced at Zhao Xi.

Zhao Xi was clearly also a little surprised. When she met Lin Jiangnian's eyes, she glared at him with annoyance.

But at the same time, there was a hint of scrutiny in his eyes, as if he were also asking and waiting for an answer.

Lin Jiangnian remained calm and said composedly, "The prince was previously assassinated and is currently recovering from his injuries."

"No arrangements have been made regarding the marriage."

The answer was given calmly and unhurriedly.

Upon hearing this answer, Zhao Xi, who had been staring at him with wide eyes, seemed to breathe a sigh of relief for no apparent reason.

The Empress Dowager sighed with regret, "Your marriage to Piaomiao was arranged by the late Emperor. You are already of marriageable age, and it is indeed time to get married soon..."

"I wonder if I will be able to hold my grandson in my lifetime."

Are they already pressuring us to get married and have children?

Noticing another unfriendly gaze seemingly fixed on him from the side, Lin Jiangnian felt even more pressured and let out a deep sigh.

Your Majesty, perhaps you should refrain from asking!
If you keep asking, he might really be kicked out of bed tonight!
"..." (End of this chapter)