After picking up the White Cut Black Prince

A few days passed, and no one knew when, but rumors about Guan He being a witch were spreading in Kyoto.

These words were passed around until they reached the ears of Emperor Linghui, who was furious. Over the years, Emperor Linghui never cared about being scolded, but Wen Chu had just returned and encountered this incident. How could he feel comfortable? He wished he could kill those gossipers as soon as possible.

But things have come to this point where killing is no longer the solution. There are even ministers in the court who wrote a letter to the emperor, saying that an order should be issued to behead the evil woman. And it is not just one person who said this, more than half of the officials are talking about this.

As soon as Emperor Linghui opened his eyes, he saw Fang Xiu reading a memorial beside him.

"Your Majesty, this is the will of heaven! If the evil woman is not eliminated, how can our Great Zhao have a peaceful day!"
"Your Majesty, please obey God's will!"

Emperor Linghui couldn't stand Fang Xiu, so he looked at him dimly and said, "If you want to die, go find a wall to bang your head against, and don't bother me."

Although Emperor Linghui said this, Fang Xiu was sure that he could not move him. He swallowed his saliva and continued, "This is not just my opinion, it is the opinion of everyone in the world!"

"The world? Didn't you all say that the whole world belongs to the king? This world is mine. When did it become your turn to rule? Can you tell me?"

Fang Xiu was choked by these words and fell silent instantly.

Emperor Linghui couldn't kill Fang Xiu, but Fang Xiu couldn't stand what Emperor Linghui did. He knew that Emperor Linghui's argument was doomed to fail, and if he continued, he might go crazy and slap him.

After Fang Xiu left the Qianqing Palace, he went to look for He Hong.

The sky was only slightly bright in the morning, with a little mist. The two walked in the imperial garden to discuss matters.

Fang Xiu said, "Don't even think about the emperor. He won't listen even if you tell him. He loves her so much that he doesn't know what to do. Don't even think about talking to him about this."

He Hong said, "What should we do? Can we let her live? She has such a relationship with the crown prince. If she is involved, you can imagine that the second prince might be crowned a king and move to the capital. Can we delay this matter for a while? Can we delay it forever? Believe me, as long as Huaihe lives, the eldest prince will always be able to hold his head up in front of the emperor! As long as the emperor doesn't let go of the throne, you and I can only watch helplessly like this forever!"

How could Fang Xiu not know these things? Even if he knew, what would happen? Would he just pick up a sword and kill her?
What a joke!
He didn't want to make Emperor Linghui crazy. Even a rabbit bites when it is angry. Fang Xiu didn't want to be bitten by Emperor Linghui.

He can't do this, he has to let someone else do it.

Fang Xiu said: "It's not impossible."

Seeing him hesitating, He Hong said directly: "If there is any way, just tell me, and hide it like a treasure and do something with it!"

Fang Xiu didn't hesitate to listen to him and said directly, "What else can we do? Even if the emperor protects her, what can he do? Our emperor wants to protect too many people, Concubine De, Imperial Tutor. Tell me, which one will have a good ending. Since he is so useless, there are many things we can do."

He Hong still didn't understand what he meant, so he said, "Please explain it more clearly."

Fang Xiu said: "It's not difficult. Just go and kill Huai He the same way as how the Grand Tutor died."

Having said this, He Hong understood what Fang Xiu meant.

At the beginning, the Taifu was forced by a group of ministers who wrote to the emperor together to pressure him. People from the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial College were all mobilized by them. Even a mouthful of spit from one person could drown a person, not to mention that they were all Confucian scholars. If these people united to persuade him, it would be enough to make people suffer. The emperor did not withstand the pressure, or perhaps the Taifu did not want the emperor to be constrained by them, so he ended his life.

Although civil servants and students are servants, they are actually their masters.

One civil servant is a servant, but what about the huge civil servant group?
Even the emperor could not influence their will.

So now, they wanted to repeat the same old trick and kill Wen Chu using the same method that they used to kill the Grand Tutor.

After the two of them had discussed this matter, Fang Xiu reminded him again, saying, "Don't let the witch incident make you have bad thoughts these days. Qi Mo has also been taken away by Song Yusheng, and there's no guarantee that he will find out something else. You should be quiet for a while, don't rush into this."

After all, Fang Xiu was a man who had made a name for himself in the previous dynasty. Having been a eunuch for decades, he was more cautious about these matters.

But He Hong didn't care at all, and just replied impatiently: "I know, I know, do I need to remind you of this?"

Seeing that he seemed unwilling to listen, Fang Xiu stopped talking and left.

*
Wen Chu had been living in Kunning Palace since she was shot by an arrow last time. Firstly, it was safer, at least there were many guards watching over her, and secondly, Xiaoyi always wanted Wen Chu to stay by his side, always fearing that something would happen to her if she was not by his side.

On the tenth day, Wen Chuzheng and Qi Ziyuan left the palace, and Li Weiyan finally found time to look for Xiaoyi.

He asked, "Recently, the people from the Imperial Academy took advantage of the fact that it didn't rain and wanted to put all the blame on Xiao Chu. What do you think, mother, should we do?"

The two sat face to face, and Xiaoyi could clearly see the expression on Li Weiyan's face. His face was full of worry.

Xiaoyi just glanced at him, then picked up the cup and took a sip of tea. She said, "I'm afraid they are going to do what they did back then. Your father is useless and no one can protect him. The Queen Mother is just asking you if you can protect Xiao Chu."

Ever since Wen Chu decided to be Wen Chu, they all changed their way of addressing her. They no longer called her Xiao Xi, but Xiao Chu.

When Li Weiyan heard this, his eyes dropped. After hesitating for a moment, he nodded and said, "Mother, I will."

Xiaoyi heard the words, and for some reason, her frown could not be relaxed. She said, "You..."

She didn't know what to say for a moment, and after a pause, she just said, "It's good that you can do it. You must remember that it was Concubine De and Xiao Chu who saved you. Xiao Chu suffered a lot, so you must treat her well, understand?"

Li Weiyan chuckled and bowed his head, saying, "Mother, I will. I remember how she saved me and how much she suffered for me. You and Father have talked about this many times over the years, and I will not forget it."

*
Wen Chu and Qi Ziyuan left the palace together.

Qi Ziyuan is on vacation today. For some reason, things in the Governor's Mansion have been extremely busy recently. Every time he wanted to go to the palace to find Wen Chu, he never had the chance.

Today he finally had some free time to go to the palace to look for her.

Wen Chu felt uncomfortable staying in the palace, so he left the palace with Qi Ziyuan. Besides, with him around, the Queen and the others would feel more at ease.

Qi Ziyuan and Wen Chu were walking on the street. Wen Chu was wearing a veil on her head. After all, there had been a lot of rumors about her in the city recently. She might be in trouble if someone recognized her.

Wen Chu didn't really care what they said. After all, she had heard a lot of these words over the years. She wasn't afraid of being scolded. She was just afraid of being recognized and beaten.

The two walked in the city and vaguely saw that some places had already set up disaster relief tents. Many people were affected by this drought. Without water, the farmland was cracked and the crops dried up. There were countless victims.

Qi Ziyuan sighed and said, "When will it rain here? How can we bear the drought?"

The sky was blue and there was no sign of rain.

After hearing what Qi Ziyuan said, Wen Chu reached out her hand to touch the sky. The blinding light shone through her fingers and through the veil into her eyes. She said, "Is it raining? Who knows."

Qi Ziyuan didn't understand what she meant, so he just said, "How do you know? Have you ever told a fortune?!"

Wen Chu did not answer him, but turned to ask him, "How do you know I can tell fortunes?"

Wen Chu remembered that she had never told fortunes in front of Qi Ziyuan. Even when she was caught telling fortunes at the Song family last time, although Qi Ziyuan was there, he was just passing by. He shouldn't have known the whole thing just at that time, right?
Qi Ziyuan didn't expect Wen Chu to ask this suddenly. He even showed some shame in his eyes. He lowered his head and said, "I'm sorry. After I recognized you, I asked someone to check you out."

Wen Chu said with a smile: "What's there to say sorry for? Why do you always apologize here? I know you don't have any bad intentions."

Qi Ziyuan was different from Song Yusheng. When Qi Ziyuan checked on her, he was at most just curious about how she had lived all these years. There was really nothing to apologize for.

Qi Ziyuan still hung his head. Wen Chu walked up to him and said, "Hey, Qi Ziyuan, it's really okay. I'm fine. Why are you still feeling wronged? I told you it's okay. Why are you feeling upset?"

The two of them walked like this, Wen Chu walked in front of him. Qi Ziyuan suddenly stopped, and Wen Chu also stopped. He raised his eyes, looked at her, and said: "And I'm sorry for making you suffer so much."

"After I came back, I heard that you were dead. I didn't believe it, but they all said so. I wanted to look for you, but I couldn't find you. The emperor said you were dead, and my aunt also said you were dead, so I thought you were dead too. If I had insisted on looking for you, do you think you would not be so miserable?"

Wen Chu was stunned for a moment, but saw that Qi Ziyuan's eyes were already red. It turned out that he had been brooding over this matter.

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault."

Wen Chu couldn't help but feel sad after hearing this, but she still smiled and said, "You always have to say these things, Qi Ziyuan, you don't owe me. Besides, I'm not miserable, really not. Except for the incident with Song Yusheng, I was really unlucky for eight lifetimes, but the days I spent with Old Man Wen were very good, very happy, and very happy. He taught me fortune-telling, and I followed him around to sell talismans. Think about it, I've only been with Song Yusheng for less than half a year. From now on, I think he has let it go and won't bother me anymore. Thinking this way, I'm not miserable anymore."

Qi Ziyuan knew that Wen Chu was always like this, and she could not complain even if she suffered a great injustice.

She used to be a person who would cry whenever she was wronged, but now she has become like this.

How could Qi Ziyuan not feel heartbroken?

He always felt that he owed her something, and always felt that all the suffering she was going through was because he was not useful enough.

But Wen Chu had said this, if he continued, it would be too hypocritical. He rubbed his eyes, smiled and said, "Yes, good days are ahead, and things will get better in the future. You are good, I am good, and everyone is good. As long as people are alive, life will get better and better."

Wen Chu patted his shoulder and nodded with satisfaction, "Yes, this young man is teachable! Why would we want to do such old things at such a young age?"

In a restaurant not far away, Song Yusheng stood by the window and had a panoramic view of their actions.

One of them was wearing purple clothes, and the other was wearing a goose yellow long skirt. The two of them walked side by side, looking so well matched.

The waiter's voice rang out from outside the door, and he said, "Sir, the person you're waiting for has arrived."

After hearing this, Song Yusheng turned his eyes away from them and stopped looking.

She was always happy when she was with Qi Ziyuan, but every moment with him was like torture, as she said.

And now he could only spy on them like a thief, not even daring to get closer.

Song Yusheng quickly regained his composure. He walked to the table, looked at the person who came, bowed and said, "Lord Liang, long time no see."

The Lord Liang mentioned by Song Yusheng was named Liang Xu. He was the current Minister of War. His ancestors had inherited the title of Marquis. Although he was slightly inferior to the Song family, his status was also one of the most noble.

Liang Xu hurriedly said, "My Lord, please forgive me!"

Song Yusheng did not take his flattering words to heart, and just replied: "Your Excellency, you are embarrassing me by saying this."

After exchanging pleasantries and speaking some official language, the two men sat down.

The dishes had already been ordered on the table. Song Yusheng handed a pair of chopsticks to Liang Xu and said, "Enjoy your meal, sir."

If Song Yusheng did this to anyone else, they would probably think he was trying to please them. But this person was Song Yusheng, a person in a high position, so even if he did this, it would only make others feel terrified.

Liang Xu didn't know what kind of evil spirit had possessed Song Yusheng today. The two of them didn't often meet each other on weekdays. He couldn't tell why he suddenly came to him today. Looking at his behavior, could it be that he had some ulterior motive?
Liang Xu was also a shrewd man. He waited and watched what was going on. When Song Yusheng spoke first, he reached out to take the chopsticks and then said a few polite words to him.

Song Yusheng didn't say anything, just smiled, poured him a glass of wine, pushed it in front of him, and then said: "My lord, I think you have had a good life these years, playing with your grandchildren and enjoying the happiness of family life. It's a comfort to think about it."

When Liang Xu heard Song Yusheng say this, he thought he was just being polite, but when he thought of his own children and grandchildren, he couldn't help but smile. He said, "Of course not. Isn't this also the age? If the prince can get married earlier, the Duke can also hold his grandchildren."

The two of them talked back and forth, Song Yusheng was polite, so Liang Xu followed him. It was really unusual that Song Yusheng came to see him today, who knew what it was about.

Seeing that Liang Xu was so defensive, Song Yusheng stopped probing and said directly, "Your Excellency has lived a comfortable life. You have been sitting in the position of Minister of War for many years, which is also convincing. After all, you were the Grand Tutor back then. If something happens to the Grand Tutor, the remaining hot potato of the Ministry of War will fall into your hands."

At that time, Taifu Wen Lilian served as the Minister of War and concurrently held the position of Taifu. The Minister of War was one of the six ministers, a second-rank civil official, in charge of national military deployment.

The crime of corruption committed by Wen Lilian was the military pay.

There were frequent invasions by Mongolian cavalry in the northern border, causing constant unrest, and a large amount of military pay went there every year. However, in the year when the performance evaluation system was introduced, Wen Lilian was reported by someone under the Ministry of War for the crime of embezzling military pay.

This was a premeditated act that caught people off guard. The evidence was presented to the emperor and his officials. There was physical evidence and witnesses as well. One of the witnesses at that time was Liang Xu, who was then the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War.

This matter would never have been accomplished without Liang Xu.

After all, Wen Lilian had stepped down, so Liang Xu could naturally take his place, so why didn't he do it? Liang Xu heard Song Yusheng mention what happened back then, and then he realized that this was why he came here today.

He had tried his best to conceal these things over the years, and was reluctant to let anyone mention it. When he heard what Song Yusheng said, his face turned a little ugly.

He said, "So, is this what you came here to talk about today, Your Highness? It's been 20 years since then, why bother talking about the past again?"

When Song Yusheng heard Liang Xu say this, he sneered and said calmly: "Why, the past is no longer a matter? Why can't we mention it again? How can we forget what people have done? People are always reluctant to forget some glorious pasts, but they are unwilling to mention some not-so-glorious pasts. Lord Liang, so, if you don't want to mention it, does it mean it didn't happen? If you don't want to admit it, does it mean you didn't do it? Qi'an thinks that people shouldn't be so shameless. If you did it, you have to admit it, even if you have to be beaten or punished."

Song Yusheng and Liang Xu said these words. On the surface, they were talking to him, but in fact, they were talking to themselves.

Since he had done those things to Wen Chu, he had to admit it. Even though she was avoiding him like the plague, he had to admit it.

Song Yusheng admitted it, but Liang Xu refused to admit it. He said it was no wonder that Song Yusheng was so polite. It turned out that he was thinking of using courtesy first and then force. Can he bring up what happened in the past? There is a god above us. He followed those people from the He family and caused the Wen family to end up being executed. How could he dare to bring it up?

He Hong had looked for him before. After all, he was also in the Ministry of War, so it was more convenient for him to handle things. Wen Lilian's so-called embezzlement of military pay was all Liang Xu's doing behind the scenes.

Liang Xu didn't know why it was necessary to bring up this matter after so many years. He had done something wrong in the beginning, but now he just wanted to live a peaceful life. Why was it so difficult?

Liang Xu picked up the wine glass on the table and took a sip. The strong liquor slid down his throat and he couldn't help but let out a "tsk" sound. After he put down the wine glass, he said, "What do you want to do by bringing up this matter? So many years have passed, and I want you to dig up these things."

Since Song Yusheng dug up all these things, didn't he want to threaten him?
Seeing that Song Yusheng had no expression on his face, he continued, "Besides, what happened back then was not entirely my fault. If you insist on bringing this up, why don't you go find Lord He? What are you looking for me for? My Lord, the dead cannot be resurrected. It's nothing for you to threaten me like this, but the death of the Grand Tutor was the result of a unanimous discussion among all the civil servants, and the emperor acknowledged it, so why don't you? What do you want to do by bringing up the past now? I, Liang, am not afraid of coercion. If you really want to bring this up, I'm not afraid. If you want to threaten me, I'm sorry, you've made a wrong calculation."

Liang Xu relied on the fact that He Hong was behind him, and that although what he did was not glorious, it was something that everyone did. He, Song Yusheng, was not afraid of offending everyone, so he just mentioned it and said it.

Even though Liang Xu said so, Song Yusheng's smile did not fade. He said, "Did I make a wrong calculation? Lord Liang, do you understand what I want to do? Do you think that if something really happens, He Hong will really care about you? Who is He Hong? You have been with him for so many years, don't you know him? The civil servants who have always claimed to be righteous have done such dirty things, let the whole world see it."

Liang Xu obviously didn't expect Song Yusheng to dare to say such a thing. Isn't he just trying to drag everyone into this?
He looked at the man sitting in front of him, talking and laughing. Even when he said such words, he was still smiling, as if what he said was just a trivial matter.

Liang Xu said: "My Lord, your Song family has a century-old foundation."

Before he could finish his words, Song Yusheng interrupted him, "Ruined by me? I have never done anything wrong, so why do you say I ruined it? Or, as long as I go against you, you can send the Song family to jail and confiscate their property and exterminate their clan, just like you did to the Wen family back then?"

“Liang Xu, then you are also very capable.”

Liang Xu's heart trembled violently. The strong liquor he had just drunk took effect and almost burned his heart. He never thought that Song Yusheng would be so arrogant. But he also knew that they were not in the right in the past. Since Song Yusheng knew that he was the one who did it, he must have evidence in his hands.

If he really wanted to make a scene, would he be right? Besides, this person was Song Yusheng, and everyone naturally believed what he said. If he really wanted to argue with him,
Can you win against Song Yusheng?

Liang Xu was struggling with his inner thoughts and remained silent for a quarter of an hour.

He could see that Song Yusheng would definitely not let go of the past incident, so even if he really risked his life, he would still go and get an explanation.

Song Yusheng who doesn't care about his life.
Does he really dare to compete with him?

He dare not.

He really didn't dare to do that to Song Yusheng.

After today's conversation, Liang Xu could keenly feel that Song Yusheng looked like a modest gentleman, but if he got ruthless, he would not even give up his own life.

He has elderly parents and young children to take care of. How can he be as reckless as him?

Obviously not.

After a long time, Liang Xu finally spoke. He asked, "So, what do you want to do? Capture me all and then offer sacrifices to the gods to make amends?"

Song Yusheng knew that Liang Xu had compromised. He snorted softly, "There's no need to speak up and say whether to die or not. Why do you think I'm so cruel and ruthless?"

Seeing Song Yusheng being so nonchalant, Liang Xu's psychological defenses were broken. He finally couldn't help but ask harshly, "Then what on earth do you want to do!"

Song Yusheng looked up at Liang Xu and said calmly, "Lord Liang, can I trust you? What should I do if you tell He Hong about this as soon as you leave the house?"

When Song Yusheng finished speaking, a man came in hurriedly from outside the door.

He is a servant of the Liang family.

The servant looked panicked and whispered something into Liang Xu's ear.

After hearing what the servant said, Liang Xu was shocked. He slammed the table and stood up, angrily saying, "Song Yusheng! How dare you! How dare you touch the descendants of my mansion!"

What the servant told Liang Xu was that the grandson of the family and the wife of the young marquis went out and encountered some bad guys.

Liang Xu thought again about what Song Yusheng had just said. Who else could it be except him?
Liang Xu was extremely angry. If he hadn't still had a bit of rationality left, he would have probably taken action.

When Song Yusheng heard this, he also frowned. If it were in the past, he would indeed choose to use such means to control people. After all, human life is at stake, who can refuse to bow his head?

But now, he doesn't want this anymore.

He had always been a man with blood on his hands and a black heart. But now, he didn't know why, he wanted to make himself clean.

Be cleaner.

Be more normal.

Just like Qi Ziyuan.

Song Yusheng is a proud person, and it is true. How can a man like him not be arrogant?

But now, he actually wants to be someone else.

If he tries to become Qi Ziyuan, will Wen Chu ever look at him again?

Song Yusheng said: "It's not me."

"If not you, then who is it?!"

Song Yusheng also wanted to know who it was if not him.

He thought of something and said, "You and I met today, which made him anxious. I think he is the only one who could do this."

The two knew exactly who the "he" Song Yusheng was talking about was.

Who else could it be except He Hong.

This time, He Hong must have heard the rumor of their private meeting. Fearing that Liang Xu would tell about what happened that year, he simply took the initiative and kidnapped the man to force Liang Xu not to do anything he shouldn't do.

He Hong likes to do this kind of thing the most.

"Don't try to sow discord!"

Song Yusheng thought Liang Xu was a little ridiculous. Didn't he know about He Hong? He said, "Whether he is trying to sow discord or not, you can find out by going to him. You know he's not very smart. Just ask him a few words and everything will be clear to you."

Liang Xu saw that he was so frank, and he really had no reason to lie to him. Even if he really was the one who kidnapped the child, what could he do? Since Song Yusheng denied it, he was afraid that there was really someone else involved.

He also thought that as a human being, He Hong was capable of doing such a thing.

Liang Xu asked Song Yusheng, "What should I do? You saw that he kidnapped my grandson and even my eldest son's wife. Tell me, what else can I do?"

Song Yusheng's fingers tapped the tabletop, making a series of regular sounds. He was silent for a moment and said, "I will help you save your people, but what about the case of the Grand Tutor's embezzlement? What do you think?"

He paused for a moment, but Liang Xu understood what he meant. He followed up on his question and asked, "If what happened back then was really revealed, would I be able to recover?"

When the Grand Tutor ended up like that, Liang Xu wanted to get away with it. Song Yusheng sneered, "You did something wrong and you still want to escape. You have lived for so many years. Don't you understand the four words 'justice prevails'?"

“Then why should I go?”

If that's the case, then why does he still do those things?

Song Yusheng interrupted him before he could continue, "Because you have no choice."

"You know what kind of person He Hong is. As long as he's around, you and your family will be under his threat all the time. Can you feel at ease? But you don't have to be too scared about what happened back then. With He Hong standing in front of you, you can't judge much. It's up to you to decide."

Liang Xu also knew that Song Yusheng was not deceiving him. Moreover, even if he refused, Song Yusheng would probably find other ways. At worst, he would end up in a fight with them.

Since He Hong wanted to do this, why did he leave him some leeway?
Thinking of this, Liang Xu finally spoke. He said, "Okay, I'll listen to you. I'll do whatever you want me to do for you. As for my family, you have to protect them well."

When Song Yusheng heard Liang Xu agree, he stopped tapping the table.

He responded, "Okay, I'll listen to you. I'll send someone home tonight at the latest."

After saying this, Liang Xu decided not to stay here any longer and got up and walked out.

Song Yusheng calculated the time, thought for a moment, and then called for the spring breeze outside the door.

He asked, "Have you checked out the two extra bodies that were found last time?"

Two days ago, two more bodies were found, about the same age as the last body at the polo field. The bodies appeared in a very remote place on the outskirts of the city. Someone found them and reported the case to the Dali Temple. Song Yusheng then led people there.

It was strange, how could such a coincidence happen? Even if there were dead bodies, they would all be reported to him. Even if the case was reported to the Dali Temple, it would not make sense to skip the level and report it directly to Song Yusheng. It should be filed in the government office first, and then the case would be presented to Song Yusheng.

When the person who reported the case arrived, he specifically asked for Song Yusheng. Since Song Yusheng didn't come out, he didn't even report the case.

The bodies at the polo field last time, plus the two this time, seemed to be waiting for Song Yusheng.

Song Yusheng knew that the bodies this time were probably the same as the last ones, because the injuries on their bodies were similar.

The appearance of the corpse meant that He Hong had started doing these things again. He was afraid that he would think that since Huai He's affairs among the people had become so serious, no one could control him anymore, so he became restless again.

But every time something went wrong, Song Yusheng would be notified immediately.
That means there is a traitor in He Hong's side.

This is a good thing for Song Yusheng.

Since others have brought it to you, it is useless if you can't figure it out.

Chunfeng told Song Yusheng everything he had found out.

After listening to it, Song Yusheng nodded and said nothing more.

He added: "He Hong's men have captured the young master of the Liang family and the young marquis' wife. You go to Dongyue to rescue them. Be sure to send them back to the Liang family before tonight."

The spring breeze has come and we are leaving here.

But at this moment, Song Yusheng heard bursts of noise coming from outside the window. He got up and went to the window again. He thought Wen Chu and Qi Ziyuan should have left here, but he didn't expect that they were still downstairs.

But, it seemed like something happened.

(End of this chapter)