Prince Bei Jing of the Red Chamber, starting from saving Qin Keqing

Inside the main hall of the Prince of Beijing's mansion, the stove was burning brightly, but it couldn't dispel the chill that Shui Rong felt in her heart.

When the palace eunuch stepped into the mansion gate with the transfer order, summoning him to the palace immediately for a meeting, and specifically mentioning that the four princes and eight dukes and other hereditary nobles needed to accompany him, Shui Rong's fingers holding the teacup paused slightly, and a hint of surprise and vigilance flashed in the depths of his pupils.

"Please wait a moment, Your Majesty, I will rise immediately."

Shui Rong gently placed the teacup on the table, his tone calm, his face expressionless, but his heart was already churning. He had heard a little about the Shuiyue Nunnery case, but he never thought it would escalate to the point of summoning all the nobles and important officials.

Such filthy matters involving official corruption and harming children have always been handled jointly by the cabinet and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Why would they specifically summon the hereditary relatives such as the Four Kings and Eight Dukes?

He stroked the jade belt at his waist with his fingertips, thinking to himself: The Prince of Xiping is far away guarding the northwest border, and his reach is limited; he certainly cannot come in time.

The Prince of Dongping is nearly seventy years old and frail. He rarely participates in daily court assemblies and will likely send a young prince from his household to attend on his behalf.

The remaining princes and dukes were either idle and did not concern themselves with politics, or their power base was still shallow. In the end, the only ones who could take charge were myself and Prince Zhongshun, Zhang Shixun.

"Master, it's time to set off."

Zhao Zhong walked in carrying a dark fox fur coat and whispered a reminder. Shui Rong nodded, took the coat, and put it on. The warmth of the fox fur enveloped him, but it did not relax his tense nerves in the slightest.

His gaze swept over Qin Zhong, who was standing to the side, and he said in a deep voice, "You will come with me into the palace and wait in the outer room. You are not allowed to move around at will."

Qin Zhong bowed and replied, "Yes, Your Highness." He knew the situation in the palace was dangerous, especially since the summons was urgent in the middle of the night, which must be extraordinary. He dared not be negligent in the slightest and silently followed behind Shui Rong, stepping into the carriage sent by the palace.

The carriage sped through the snowstorm, the crunching of its wheels over the snow mingling with the howling wind outside the window, making one's heart sink.

When we arrived outside the Qianqing Palace, the palace lanterns were already lit up one by one, reflecting the snow falling all around.

As soon as Shui Rong stepped off the carriage, he saw that many carriages and horses had already stopped in front of the palace gate. The patriarchs of the eight noble families had all arrived—Duke Ningguo Jia Zhen, Duke Rongguo Jia She, Duke Zhenguo Shi Guangzhu, and others. They were all dressed in court robes, standing solemnly under the corridor, talking in hushed tones, their brows full of anxiety and unease.

"Prince Bei Jing has arrived—"

As the eunuchs announced their greetings, everyone in the corridor turned to look. Jia Zhen and Jia She were the first to step forward and pay their respects: "Greetings, Prince Bei Jing."

Shui Rong nodded slightly in return, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. He understood immediately—as expected, all eight dukes were present, indicating that the seriousness of the matter far exceeded expectations.

Before long, all thirteen cabinet members arrived.

Zhang Shi'an walked at the front, his aged face full of fatigue. Behind him followed Wen Zonghan, who looked pale, and Qin Zhongxun, who still had a cold face. Although the two walked side by side, they were like strangers, and their auras were at odds.

As is customary, the ministers of the six ministries often concurrently serve as members of the cabinet, and this time they naturally arrived with the cabinet. The number of people outside the hall increased, and the atmosphere became increasingly oppressive.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, several newly appointed princes arrived one after another. They were all young men who were new to the court. Faced with such a grand occasion, they inevitably showed some fear and unease.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, everyone's gazes turned in unison to the hall, where Prince Zhongshun, Zhang Shixun, stood beside the imperial desk, his head bowed as he sorted through stacks of documents, his expression solemn, exuding an aura that kept strangers at bay.

"His Majesty has arrived!"

As the eunuch's shrill announcement rang out, all the officials outside the hall fell silent instantly, bowing respectfully in unison.

Emperor Zhu Yiheng walked slowly into the hall, the hem of his dragon robe sweeping across the floor, stirring up a gust of cold wind.

His face was ashen, his eyes bloodshot, and his anger was almost overflowing. As soon as he reached the dragon throne, he slammed his fist on the imperial desk and shouted angrily, "Look! Let me see them all!"

He swept the documents off the imperial desk and scattered them on the ground, the dense characters on them particularly glaring under the candlelight.

"These are the despicable things you, my loyal subjects and my relatives, have done! Kidnapping children, trampling them wantonly, you are worse than pigs and dogs!"

The emperor's voice was hoarse and furious as his gaze swept over the crowd. "Today I will not handle this personally. You will find them yourselves! Find the unfilial sons and scoundrels in your respective families, and then tell me how you intend to deal with them!"

Shui Rong lowered her eyes and glanced at the documents on the ground. Her gaze quickly swept over the names and she instantly understood—these were the incriminating documents that Zhang Shixun had found at Shuiyue Nunnery, which recorded the names of all the officials and relatives involved.

He felt a little relieved; as expected, the name of the Prince of Beijing's residence did not appear on the list.

"Gentlemen,"

Zhang Shixun stepped forward, picked up the scattered documents one by one, and divided them into several piles.

"The list of all the princes is here. Indeed, no one in Prince Bei Jing's Shui Rong's mansion is involved. It's completely clean."

As he spoke, he handed a stack of documents to Shui Rong, his tone tinged with approval. He then distributed the remaining documents to the cabinet and the noble families, saying, "The rest are the lists of ministers and noble families. Look them up yourselves."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Shi'an picked up the documents and began searching through them. His old fingers trembled, and his eyes quickly swept over each name, as if afraid of seeing the names of his own descendants.

The other cabinet members also lowered their heads to read, and the only sounds in the hall were the rustling of papers turning and the occasional suppressed sighs.

Wen Zonghan picked up the document belonging to the family of a cabinet member with trembling hands. As soon as his eyes fell on it, he was struck dumb as if by lightning.

"Ziyu... my son..."

He stared at the appalling details following the name "Wen Ziyu"—the abduction of a five-year-old girl, imprisonment in the Shuiyue Nunnery, and the utter torture she endured… Tears welled up instantly, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees, clutching the documents tightly, weeping bitterly.

"What a tragedy! What a tragedy! How could I have raised such a beast!"

His cries were particularly jarring in the silent hall, drawing everyone's attention. Their gazes were filled with sympathy, but even more so with contempt and apprehension.

As the Second Grand Secretary, Wen Zonghan held a high position and wielded great power. Now that his son had committed such a heinous crime, even if he had a thousand mouths, he could not refute it. He could only kowtow and cry out for forgiveness.

"Your Majesty, I am guilty! I have failed in my duty to educate my son, allowing him to commit countless evil deeds. I deserve to die! I beg Your Majesty to severely punish my rebellious son to appease public anger!"

Shui Rong stood to the side, his expression calm, but he had his own plans in mind.

Since his arrival in this world, he has always been cautious in his actions. Apart from Qin Keqing and Wang Xifeng, no other women have come near him in the mansion. He strictly controls even the maids in the mansion, and there are very few young maids. Only the few people sent by His Highness the Crown Prince have already been sent away by him and have not been involved in any dirty things.

This cleanliness was not only for self-preservation, but also the foundation upon which he stood in the imperial court.

The other princes looked at Shui Rong with envy in their eyes.

The four princes and eight dukes were all hereditary nobles with many family members. It was inevitable that there would be a few unruly and immoral individuals among them. Although the Shuiyue Nunnery case did not involve the prince himself, some of his collateral relatives were involved. Only the Prince of Beijing's mansion remained clean and without fault.

The young prince sent by the Prince of Dongping was secretly relieved that his own prince was old and frail, and although some of the young men in his household were unruly, none of them were involved in this matter. At the same time, he also had more respect for Shui Rong.

The emperor looked at Shui Rong, and a rare smile finally appeared on his tense face. His tone softened slightly: "Shui Rong, not bad! You have indeed not disappointed me, and you have brought honor to the royal family!"

He paused, then turned his gaze back to the weeping Wen Zonghan. His smile vanished instantly, and his tone became icy and chilling.

"Wen Zonghan, how dare you stand here crying? Your good son, Wen Ziyu, didn't even spare a five-year-old girl! His methods are cruel and outrageous! Tell me yourself, how do you want me to deal with him? How do you want me to deal with you, this father who has failed in his duty to raise his son?"

Wen Zonghan wept even harder, kowtowing repeatedly: "Your Majesty, this rebellious son deserves to die a thousand deaths! I beg Your Majesty to execute him by slow slicing to comfort the souls of those innocent children in heaven! I am willing to resign from my position as Vice Grand Secretary, and retreat into seclusion to reflect on my mistakes and atone for my sins!"

The emperor snorted coldly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, then turned his gaze to the Jia family members and shouted sternly, "Jia family! Look for yourselves, Jia Lian's name is prominently listed!"

Jia Zhen and Jia She felt a chill in their hearts and quickly went to examine the document.

When the name "Jia Lian" came into view, and then he saw the following record that "twenty-four seven-year-old girls were purchased for entertaining guests, resulting in the deaths of all the girls," Jia She felt his vision go black and glared fiercely at Jia Lian beside him.

The latter was already terrified, his face ashen, his whole body trembling, hiding behind Jia She, not daring to raise his head.

"Your Majesty, I...I am guilty!"

Jia She immediately knelt down, and Jia Zhen followed suit, bowing and begging for forgiveness.

"My unfilial son, Jia Lian, is so unruly that he has committed such a shameful and disgraceful act. I have failed to discipline him properly and deserve to die! I beg Your Majesty to give me a chance, and I will certainly punish this rebellious son severely and show no leniency!"

Jia Lian was also pushed forward by Jia She, and he knelt down with a thud, crying and begging for mercy: "Your Majesty, spare my life! I know my crime! I will never dare to do it again! Please, Your Majesty, have mercy!"