This son-in-law is wicked in a good way!

Zhang Ping'an is not a pedantic person and hates being morally blackmailed.

Sun Miaomiao was an egoist who couldn't distinguish right from wrong, and he didn't mind sending her to her death himself.

Looking at Zhang Ping'an, who had rejoined the team, Wang Qisheng patted him on the shoulder.

"Good job. I was worried you would feel guilty, but now I'm relieved."

Zhou Weidong also said, "Keeping this kind of person around will only bring harm to others; the sooner they die, the better."

Seeing that Zhang Ping'an had finished dealing with the situation, Zhao Qianshan shouted, "Back!"

At noon, after finishing his shift, Zhang Ping'an returned to the academy and told Chen Zhishi and the academy's great scholars about the Sun family's confiscation of property and extermination.

Upon hearing this news, Chen Zhishi's arrogant face turned unusually serious, and his eyes gradually reddened.

"Thanks, Ping An!"

All the emotions can be summed up in one sentence.

Zhang Ping'an knew just how much weight the word "thank you" carried in Chen Zhishi's heart, even though it was only one word.

"Alright, I'll go tell the dean this news."

Zhang Ping'an punched Chen Zhishi in the chest, then turned and walked towards the dean's courtyard.

Upon learning this news, Dean Zhao Kongcheng and the great scholar Yang Tai were immediately overjoyed.

"Ping An, you've worked hard."

"Now that the case is closed, have you considered leaving the Night's Watch?"

Yang Tai stared at him with a beaming smile.

Zhang Ping'an shook his head: "If that's really the case, then that's just awful. Besides, I don't think there's anything wrong with being a night watchman."

"At least you don't have to worry about the infighting and deceit in the imperial court all the time."

Yang Tai nodded: "That makes sense."

Zhao Kongcheng personally refilled Zhang Ping'an's teacup and said gently, "You are welcome to return to the academy anytime you wish."

"Thank you for your kindness, Dean!" Zhang Ping'an clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

On the way back from the courtyard, I happened to run into Lu Han.

"Brother Lu!" Zhang Ping'an waved and greeted him.

As soon as Lu Ruoxue saw Zhang Ping'an, she immediately turned and ran.

This made Zhang Ping'an question the meaning of life.

"I don't think I've offended Brother Lu, have I?"

Zhang Ping'an shook his head: "Forget it, all people with the surname Lu are weirdos."

"Uh, my stomach hurts, I need to go to the toilet."

As Zhang Ping'an emerged from the outhouse, he suddenly froze.

He saw many white crystals forming on the earthen walls of the outhouse.

As someone who has mastered the art of nine-year compulsory education, he certainly knows what this is.

Then, he naturally thought of gunpowder.

"If gunpowder could be produced in this world, it would definitely shock everyone!"

As a modern person, it would be a lie to say that I am not interested in technology.

However, due to the backwardness of many ancient technologies and low productivity, there was simply no opportunity for modern science to play a role.

Once detected, Zhang Ping'an's chemical cells were instantly activated.

"What was that formula again? I think it was one part saltpeter, two parts sulfur, three parts charcoal... Yes, that's it."

"Of these three, the most difficult to deal with is saltpeter, but I've actually managed to find it."

Zhang Ping'an immediately became excited.

Gunpowder—it's incredibly useful.

If this thing can be made, then the Northern Barbarian cavalry's advantage will be completely lost.

"Hey, Ping An, you've soiled your pants? What are you doing groping around on the mud wall of the outhouse all by yourself?"

A young scholar who happened to know Zhang Ping'an asked with a curious look.

"Get lost, you're the one who pooped your pants."

He quickly took out a piece of paper, found a thin wooden stick, and carefully scraped off the white crystals on the wall.

"What do you know? This is a treasure!"

The young man scoffed, "Pshaw, I think you're out of your mind. Treasures growing on the walls of a latrine?"

Then, a series of sputtering and thumping sounds rang out.

Zhang Ping'an was so frightened that he quickly ran away.

He wasn't going to just stand by and watch; he wanted to hear the details.

Looking at the small packet of white crystals in his hand, Zhang Ping'an became worried again.

"This little bit isn't even enough to fill a tooth gap, let alone be used for experiments!"

"Unless we mobilize all the people in the capital to collect it, we probably won't be able to get enough saltpeter."

Zhang Ping'an shook his head; the gunpowder plan was about to die in its infancy before it even began.

"Forget it, I should stop thinking about taking shortcuts and just go to work honestly!"

The Imperial Palace.

The Hall of Mental Cultivation.

The empress lay half-reclined on the dragon throne, and Mo Yu gently massaged her temples from behind.

"Xiaoyu, who do you think would be the best candidate for the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel?" The Empress closed her eyes, her wide dragon robe unable to conceal her stunning figure.

The fruit is upright and round, hanging halfway to one side, like a large orange.

Without a second thought, Mo Yu replied, "The great Confucian scholar of the academy, Zhang Xiaoru."

The Empress nodded: "That's exactly what I was thinking too. Scholars from the Imperial Academy wield too much power in the court; they need to be checked and balanced."

"But looking at the entire Great Wu, only the Academy can check and balance the Imperial Academy."

"This is also thanks to Zhang Ping'an for writing the four lines of Hengqu, which broke the blockade of the academy by the inscription of the Second Sage."

Mo Yu said, "Your Majesty, it will likely face considerable resistance if someone from the Academy were to take over the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel."

"It would be best if Zhang Xiaoru could achieve something, thereby silencing the gossips of the scholars at the Imperial Academy."

The Empress nodded again: "That makes sense. But Zhang Xiaoru simply didn't have that opportunity."

"Recently, the only problem plaguing the court is the Yellow River floods. Should we assign Zhang Xiaoru to manage the floods?"

"Wouldn't this be harming him?"

Mo Yu thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, the Yellow River floods cannot be controlled overnight. We can have Zhang Daru start with the case of the River Conservancy Commissioner. If Zhang Daru can save Lord Wan, he can naturally convince the scholars of the Imperial Academy, led by the Left Chancellor."

The Empress pondered for a moment, then nodded: "That's a good idea, but the question is whether Zhang Xiaoru can save Lord Wan?"

"After all, even I haven't thought of a way to pardon Lord Wan."

"The breaching of the Yellow River's banks is always his inescapable responsibility."

The empress was also helpless.

However, her eyes suddenly lit up: "That's right, Zhang Ping'an has a lot of ideas, we can go ask him."

Mo Yu secretly rolled her eyes: thinking to herself, Your Majesty, do you really want to go to him for help, or do you simply want to see him?

"Your Majesty, before going to see Zhang Ping'an, I suggest we ask the Confucian scholar Zhang if he has any solutions?"

"Alright."

Soon, the two women, disguised as men, secretly left the palace.

The Night Watchman's Office.

"Zhang Ping'an, there's a young master surnamed Chu outside looking for you."

A gatekeeper ran into the cell to deliver the message.

Brother Chu has arrived!

Zhang Ping'an was overjoyed and said to the constable, "Thanks, brother!"

He immediately ran out and saw Chu Tian standing at the bottom of the steps with his page in blue robes and Zhang Xiaoru beside him, smiling at him.

"Mr. Zhang, Brother Chu... and also, little page!"

Zhang Ping'an greeted each person with a smile.

Mo Yu snorted and turned her head away.

The Empress clasped her hands in a fist and said, "Young Master Zhang, would it be convenient for us to find a place to talk?"

"Okay, I'll go ask the boss for leave! Please wait a moment!"

Zhang Ping'an turned and ran back to the yamen. A few minutes later, he changed into a long robe and ran out.

The group walked together toward the restaurant across the street.