Evil of all ages

Chapter 273 You've Come to Send Me on My Way

When Li Xuanqing left his birth mother's place, his face was extremely pale.

Because of his birth mother's attitude, he knew that what the empress said might be true.

At this time, the people sent to Consort Ouyang's side also returned, confirming that Consort Ouyang was indeed not a virgin.

There's no doubt about that.

it is true!
The Empress Dowager was telling the truth.

There really was such a person who defiled the three most honored women in the palace.

This was unacceptable to Li Xuanqing. Upon learning that Prime Minister Gao had not yet left the palace, he went to find him.

Gao He was arranging tasks for his students when he saw the young emperor arrive. He waved for his students to leave.

After everyone else had left, Li Xuanqing voiced his concerns.

He was afraid that the scandal would get out and make him, the emperor, a laughing stock.

They feared that someone who treated the empress as a plaything would be too lawless, not only causing chaos in the harem but also potentially undermining the foundation of the Great An.

They even said things like they would find the other person and put them under control.

"Your Majesty, I suggest we stop here regarding matters concerning Him."

Gao He suggested.

"That's it?"

Li Xuanqing was puzzled; why would Prime Minister Gao make such a suggestion?

"Your Majesty, if someone can render the Empress helpless, we will also be helpless in the face of them."

"Rather than that, it would be better to pretend that the Empress never said anything about it."

Gao He said.

"But she didn't just say it; many other people heard it. Once the news gets out, the impact will be unimaginable."

Li Xuanqing said through gritted teeth.

"If the news leaks, there's nothing we can do about it; we can't just kill everyone who hears it."

Gao He didn't care. So what if the news was leaked? He wasn't the one being laughed at anyway.

Li Xuanqing could tell that Gao He didn't take the matter seriously, which made his heart sink, and he cursed Gao He inwardly as an old bastard.

"Has Prime Minister Gao already determined whether the other party is an extraterrestrial demon or a ghost king?"

Li Xuanqing asked.

"no"

"I cannot determine it."

Gao He didn't want to cause trouble for himself, so even if he guessed something, he wouldn't say it.

Li Xuanqing could tell that Gao He was hiding something from him, but he couldn't do anything about it; he couldn't force Gao He to answer questions he didn't want to answer.

"What should be done with the empress dowager?"

Li Xuanqing had no choice but to change the subject.

“Send her to the South City Prison to keep her two older brothers company.”

Gao He knew that the Ghost King liked collectibles, so he was sure it was the Demon Queen's collectible.

"Wouldn't it be better to kill her and give the world an explanation?"

Li Xuanqing asked.

"The chaos in the world is not determined by a single woman."

“If we kill her now, others will have other reasons to cause trouble.”

Gao He replied.

Seeing that Gao He had said this, his insistence on killing the Demon Queen would incur Gao He's displeasure.

"Are there suitable candidates for the positions of Minister of Revenue and Minister of War?"

Li Xuanqing moved on to the next topic.

"There is no Minister of War yet, but there is a suitable candidate for Minister of Revenue."

Gao He replied.

"Who?"

Li Xuanqing was just asking casually; he didn't expect Gao He to have someone chosen so quickly.

"Shen Zhonghe"

Gao He replied.

"Prime Minister Gao, are you joking with me?"

When Li Xuanqing heard that Gao He had chosen the notorious corrupt official Shen Zhonghe, he was taken aback.

Although Shen Zhonghe's actions were not entirely of his own choosing, and he became a corrupt official because his superiors required it, his image was already fixed in the eyes of the people. He was a major corrupt official.

This resulted in his infamy being only slightly less than that of the empress dowager.

If the common people knew that they had appointed a notorious corrupt official as Minister of Revenue, it would cause a great uproar.

"Currently, the only people in the court capable of serving as Minister of Revenue, besides Shen Zhonghe, are Di Qingtian."

“But Di Qingtian is already the Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review. We can’t let him also serve as the Minister of Revenue.”

"Shen Zhonghe has a bad reputation, but his abilities are beyond doubt."

"He is absolutely capable of being appointed Minister of Revenue."

"Moreover, the Ghost Emperor is his backer, and his becoming the Minister of Revenue is entirely beneficial to us."

For reasons unknown, Gao He did not appoint his protégé as Minister of Revenue, but instead handed over this important position to someone else.

"Since Prime Minister Gao says he's capable, then let him take the position."

Li Xuanqing couldn't think of a suitable candidate for the time being, so he agreed to let Shen Zhonghe take office.

At this moment, the palace maid who served Consort Ouyang arrived.

It is said that Consort Ouyang wanted to move out of the palace and live in her brother's general's mansion.

"Prime Minister Gao, what do you think of this matter?"

When Li Xuanqing heard that Consort Ouyang wanted to move out of the palace, he immediately knew that Consort Ouyang had received the news through some channel.

Feeling ashamed to remain in the palace, he wanted to leave.

"Under normal circumstances, imperial concubines would grow old and die in the palace."

"However, her brother is Ouyang Yetian, our Great General who protects the country, so we treat her differently."

"If she can receive the news, I believe her brother can receive the same news as her."

"Upon learning that his only sister has been bullied, Ouyang Yetian will likely return from Shanhaiguan."

“Ouyang Yetian has made great contributions. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to give him face and let his sister leave the palace.”

Gao He replied.

Li Xuanqing heard that Ouyang Yetian would most likely return to the capital. For an ordinary person, leaving their post without permission would be a capital offense.

But Ouyang Yetian is no ordinary person; he is a Grandmaster-level expert, and he has special privileges.

Although Shanhaiguan needed him to be stationed there, with Li Xunhuan present, minor frictions between countries were possible, but a major war was unlikely to break out.

In addition, Shanhaiguan is easy to defend and difficult to attack, so Ouyang Yetian's absence for some time will not have a significant impact.

This made his mind active.

In the imperial court, Gao He held absolute power, and even with the help of Di Qingtian and others, no one could contend with him.

Because Gao He is a master of supreme strength.

In terms of force, they lost by a significant margin.

To maintain balance in the court, each side needs a Grandmaster-level expert.

He had tried to win over even the most powerful grandmasters.

However, neither Ye Wuji of the Zhenwu Division, nor Li Tianwu of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, nor any other grandmasters or supreme experts in the capital were able to win them over.

Now, the only one he hasn't tried to win over is Ouyang Yetian.

If Ouyang Yetian is willing to assist him, then he is confident that he can weaken the power in Gao He's hands.

In order to win over Ouyang Yetian, he not only agreed to the request of the Dowager Consort Ouyang to move out of the palace.

They even sent people from the Eastern Depot to assist them, fulfilling all of Consort Ouyang's needs.

After leaving the palace, Di Qingtian did not seek confirmation from Huang Taichu.

In his view, there was no need for proof; it was Huang Taichu who did it.

What would be the point of going to Huang Taichu? It would be a waste of breath, and you might even get angry at his nonchalant attitude.

While he was reviewing case files at the Dali Temple, his subordinates suddenly reported that someone had leaked the Empress Dowager's words.

This led to widespread rumors throughout the capital that the three most honored women in the palace were merely playthings of others.

This made Di Qingtian shake his head slightly, but he didn't want to get involved.

Or perhaps he already guessed who did it.

Who else could have made the news spread so quickly, besides his wife, Princess Pingyang?

Cold Palace
"Are you here to deliver this book before you leave?"

Xu Yunxue, who was under house arrest here, saw Fan Hongyan lead a large number of Imperial Guards in and break in.

Suspecting that the young emperor couldn't wait any longer and wanted to send her on her way now.

(End of this chapter)