The Prodigal Son

The imperial city, the imperial court.

As Zhao Luan began wearing clothing made of long-staple cotton from the Yan state, she was subjected to verbal and written criticism from ministers who were unaware of the truth.

"Your Majesty, as the Empress of Great Ning, it is already inappropriate for you to wear clothing made of long-staple cotton from Yan Kingdom every day!"

"Now even His Majesty's imperial robes are made of long-staple cotton, which is simply beneath the dignity of our Great Ning Kingdom!"

"If this continues, our officials and wealthy merchants will inevitably vie to imitate it, which will not only create a culture of extravagance but also hinder the development of our sericulture industry!"

"If Emperor Xiaowu and the late Emperor were alive, they would surely be furious at Your Majesty's actions today..."

The Imperial Censor Cui Xu was in charge of leading the charge, while the other censors of the Censorate provided assistance.

Occasionally, when an official stood up to speak in Zhao Luan's defense, he was immediately and thoroughly criticized by a group of censors.

They can't win a fight.

But when it comes to verbal sparring, they've almost never lost, except when they encounter a completely unreasonable old rogue like Qin Fumeng.

Zhao Luan sat on the throne, his face revealing neither joy nor anger.

Although Zhao Luan was mentally prepared for this, he was still somewhat annoyed by the advice of the censors.

If you're going to offer advice, then offer it, but don't drag Emperor Xiaowu and the late emperor into this!

They were practically saying that when they reached the afterlife, they would have no face to face Emperor Xiaowu and the late emperor!

But Cui Xu was also completely loyal, and what he said was reasonable and well-founded.

Even if she was angry, she couldn't punish Cui Xu.

She was even considering whether or not to tell Cui Xu the truth.

Otherwise, it would be quite troublesome if Cui Xu led this group of censors to offer frank advice all the time.

Just as Zhao Luan was pondering this, an urgent voice came from outside.

"Urgent report! Express delivery at breakneck speed..."

As soon as the voice rang out, the censors, who had been firing on all cylinders, suddenly fell silent and all looked toward the palace entrance.

Urgent dispatch?

Could it be that the Northern Qi have really launched an attack?

In an instant, the court was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Zhao Luan sat there, her face completely expressionless.

Especially in times like these, she, as the empress, must remain composed.

Soon, Yun Ying quickly walked in with a letter tube. Shangguan Youyi hurriedly stepped forward, took the letter tube, took out the urgent report inside, opened it, and presented it to Zhao Luan.

Upon reading the contents of the urgent report, Zhao Luan couldn't help but frown.

The Duke of Wei actually entrusted Qin Yu with the crucial task of eradicating the Holy Fire Cult?

"There's no war breaking out anywhere, gentlemen, there's no need to worry! I have important matters to attend to, so today's court session is adjourned! Chancellor Song, please come with me to the Imperial Study for a discussion!"

Zhao Luan made a decisive decision and quickly ended the court session.

Well, this is a good opportunity to end the court session.

To avoid being pursued relentlessly by the Censorate.

Song Zhuo glanced at Zhao Luan with a puzzled look, then quickly followed.

Upon arriving at the Imperial Study, Zhao Luan immediately handed the urgent report to Song Zhuo for review.

Upon seeing the contents of the report, Song Zhuo frowned slightly.

He automatically ignored the fact that Lü Si had been beaten.

Let them fight. It's not like Qin Yu and Lü Si have never fought before. It's good that no one died.

But the other content made him somewhat uneasy.

All indications suggest that Qin Yu is indeed a man of great talent.

But Qin Yu was young and inexperienced.

Is it a bit too frivolous for Qin Fumeng to entrust such a major task as eradicating the Holy Fire Sect to Qin Yu?

Furthermore, Qin Fumeng actually sent three ninth-realm experts to protect Qin Yu?

They even killed a ninth-realm expert from Northern Qi?

Although Lü Si did not explicitly state this in his report, the implication was quite clear.

The Qin family harbors a powerful, unknown force, and may harbor rebellious intentions!

Three experts at the ninth realm!

Add to that Qin Fumeng, the number one person below the Grandmaster level, and this power is indeed quite terrifying!

That old fellow Qin Fumeng is really willing to go to great lengths to protect the only son of the Qin family!

"What does my mentor think?"

Zhao Luan asked the question.

After pondering for a moment, Song Zhuo replied, "Lu Si and Qin Yu have always been at odds, and his report may be exaggerated! Even if the Qin family truly harbors three ninth-realm experts, I believe Qin Fumeng has absolutely no ulterior motives!"

"I also trust the Duke of Wei."

Zhao Luan nodded slightly. "I wanted to ask you what you think of the Duke of Wei entrusting Qin Yu with the power of decision-making."

If others don't know what's going on, how could she not know?

Two of the three ninth-realm experts were his own ghost guards!

This wasn't Qin Fumeng spending a fortune; it was himself who spent a fortune!

Of the four elite guards left to him by his father, he sent out two of them at once!

After pondering for a moment, Song Zhuo smiled and said, "It's clear that Qin Laohu wants to take this opportunity to train Qin Yu!"

"Even if Qin Yu lacks experience, with three ninth-level experts backing him up, there shouldn't be any major problems."

"I guess Qin Laohu took this into consideration, which is why he dared to confidently hand over the decision-making power to Qin Yu."

"Your Majesty might as well go with the flow and give Qin Yu a chance to hone his skills! Let's see just how capable he really is..."

To be honest, if it weren't for these three ninth-realm experts backing him up, he would still be a little worried about Qin Yu.

He believed that among those three ninth-realm experts, there must be someone who had fought alongside Qin Fumeng for half his life.

If Qin Yu makes a mistake, someone will surely correct him.

Hearing Song Zhuo's words, Zhao Luan couldn't help but smile bitterly.

She suddenly realized that she had done something very stupid.

Even my mentor is unaware of the truth, so how meaningful is it for me to ask for his opinion?

That's it!

Don't use people who are suspicious, don't use people!

Qin Fumeng definitely knows his grandson better than he does.

Since he dared to do this, he must believe in Qin Yu's abilities!

Just as my mentor said, this is a good opportunity to see just how capable Qin Yu really is!

Besides, it's just eliminating a weak cult, not some kind of national war. There's no need to be so afraid of everything.

If Qin Yu can handle this matter well, he can be promoted as a result.

To prevent this bastard from running around again!

If Qin Fumeng dares to treat such an important matter as a joke, I will not only take back Qin Fumeng's military power, but also imprison Qin Yu!

Yes, that's it!

"My teacher is right!"

Zhao Luan nodded, then asked with a slight headache, "Regarding the long-staple cotton, what does Master think? Should we tell Cui Xu?"

"cannot!"

Song Zhuo's attitude was firm: "Cui Xu has always been known for his uprightness and willingness to speak out. If even Cui Xu stops speaking out, I am worried that someone will notice something amiss and then guess the purpose of our dynasty."

"I have also considered this."

Zhao Luan nodded in agreement, "But it's not good for these censors to keep giving advice! I'm thinking of imprisoning two censors so that the spies in Yan will think I'm a foolish ruler, and then they won't think twice. What do you think, my mentor?"

"this……"

Song Zhuo frowned. "From a public standpoint, I fully agree with Your Majesty's actions! But personally, I do not recommend that Your Majesty do this! It is not easy for a woman to be emperor, and Your Majesty should consider your reputation..."

In recent years, Zhao Luan, who had just regained power, carried out a thorough purge of the court. At the most extreme time, he killed more than a dozen ministers in a single day.

Among them was a regent minister left to her by the late emperor.

Because of these things, there are many rumors circulating among the people that she was a bloodthirsty tyrant.

Moreover, the late emperor left an ancestral instruction: censors should not be killed unless they have committed a serious crime, nor should they be imprisoned for speaking frankly and offering advice.

If she were to imprison any censors who dared to speak out, her reputation would certainly suffer even more.

They might even be branded as unfilial for "violating ancestral teachings".

He worried that if Zhao Luan's reputation got too bad, the Empress Dowager would make a comeback.

"I don't care about my reputation!"

Zhao Luan's gaze was resolute. "I only wish to complete the great undertakings left unfinished by Emperor Xiaowu and the late Emperor! History will judge my merits and demerits!"

Hearing Zhao Luan's words, Song Zhuo couldn't help but feel gratified.

Having such students is a blessing.

That's it!

I'll take the blame for her!

With this in mind, Song Zhuo said in a deep voice, "Leave this matter to me! I guarantee that those censors will be silenced at tomorrow's court assembly!"

"What does my mentor plan to do?"

Zhao Luan asked with some concern.

She also didn't want her mentor to take on too much responsibility for her.

"Inspecting local governance!"

Song Zhuo smiled, "Your Majesty, I will petition you tomorrow to send people to inspect local governance! Your Majesty only needs to agree, and the rest is up to me!"