The playboy county magistrate

Li Xuanzhi walked slowly in, the morning light following his figure into the hall. He exuded an aura of solemn authority, his cold gaze sweeping across the entire magnificent hall, dimming all its extravagance.

Consort Shu's expression changed abruptly, and her heart sank. She instantly stood up, forcing herself to remain calm, and sternly rebuked:

"Li Xuanzhi! As an official from outside the capital, you have trespassed into the forbidden area of ​​the inner palace without being summoned! Who gave you the audacity?!"

She took the initiative, invoking palace rules and etiquette in an attempt to preemptively force Li Xuanzhi out.

Li Xuanzhi's expression remained unchanged as he raised his hand and revealed the bright yellow imperial edict.

"The imperial edict has arrived, ordering a thorough investigation into the plot by the empress dowager to assassinate the crown prince. I am acting under orders; how can this be considered overstepping my bounds? Your Highness, you colluded with remnants of powerful families, raised assassins, and attempted to assassinate the crown prince at night, wreaking havoc on the court. The evidence is irrefutable; why do you still try to deny it?"

"Nonsense!" Consort Shu's eyes showed panic, but she still stubbornly defended herself and argued sharply.

"I reside deep within the palace and never interfere in court affairs. How could there be any accusation of colluding with rebels to assassinate the Crown Prince? It is clearly you who deliberately framed me and eliminated dissidents. Relying on your immense imperial favor, you wantonly fabricated charges against me!"

"A deliberate frame-up?" Li Xuanzhi's lips curled into a cool smile as he raised his hand in a gesture of apology.

The emperor's chief eunuch naturally didn't come along, but he did send his beloved apprentice.

The young eunuch immediately stepped forward and laid out all the confessions, witness statements, and fragments of secret letters that had been compiled overnight, displaying them on the table in the hall.

"The assassin confessed that he was secretly dispatched by your personal maid in the palace to deliver the secret orders. The handwriting on the tattered pages of the secret letter is identical to the handwriting on your private notes in the palace. This proves that you have been secretly colluding with noble families and privately discussing court affairs for many years."

Li Xuanzhi stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a knife, staring directly at the pale-faced Consort Shu.

"The evidence is irrefutable, piece by piece. How can Your Majesty deny it any longer?"

Consort Shu stared at the table laden with evidence of her crimes, her body trembling slightly. Her forced composure shattered completely, and her tone suddenly became sharp.

"So what if it's me!"

Now there's no room for argument. Even knowing that her maternal clan treats her like a pawn to be discarded at any time, her eyes are filled with madness and resentment.

But no matter how unwilling she was, she knew she was definitely not going to survive.

She didn't care how her maternal clan had fallen on hard times, but she couldn't abandon the child she had raised with such difficulty and effort!

"I come from a noble family, with generations of honor and privilege! How dare you, Li Xuanzhi, a man suppressed by the Earl's Mansion, betray our noble lineage? Now that you've risen to power, you want to overturn centuries-old rules and crush the foundations of our family!"

"The Crown Prince holds the throne securely, while you wield immense power in the court. The relationship between ruler and subject is harmonious, firmly suppressing all former officials and nobles! My son is intelligent and quick-witted, yet he will spend his life subservient to others, with no hope of advancement! I am not reconciled!"

She spoke with a hoarse voice, every word filled with selfish desires and obsessions, yet she did not say a single bad word about her mother's clan.

It's a pity about someone like that. But...

"You're not reconciled?"

Li Xuanzhi's gaze grew even colder, his tone indifferent yet incredibly sharp.

"The rules of the court have never been a private tool for hereditary aristocratic families. Those who have rendered meritorious rise to power, and those who are incompetent step down. The honest stay, and the corrupt go. This is the foundation of the new policies and the justice of the nation."

"You, as a concubine, enjoy all the riches and honors, yet you do not think of being grateful for the emperor's favor or maintaining peace in the harem. Instead, for your own selfish desires, you collude with rebels, assassinate the crown prince, stir up the court, and even get involved in the case of the emperor's deadly poison."

Consort Shu stared at him blankly.

The emperor has been poisoned?

How is that possible!

She did not poison the emperor as instructed by her maternal clan at all, so how could the emperor have been poisoned?

Those who dared to harm His Majesty were all eliminated by her with various reasons and excuses, so how could anyone possibly make a move?

"Take him away." Li Xuanzhi was too lazy to say anything more.

The imperial guards stepped forward and swiftly seized Consort Shu's arms.

The once favored and radiant Consort Shu is now disheveled, her face ashen. Bound by iron chains, she has lost all her former elegance.

As she was being escorted to the palace gate, she suddenly turned around, looked at Li Xuanzhi, and spoke in a mournful voice.

"Li Xuanzhi, today you have purged all the old nobles and wield immense power. But remember this! Throughout history, powerful ministers have never met a good end! Today His Majesty trusts you, but when a new emperor ascends the throne, you will ultimately face the fate of being discarded like a spent tool!"

Li Xuanzhi was helpless; this person was truly single-mindedly seeking death, not wanting any chance of survival whatsoever.

Based solely on those words, neither the current emperor nor the future one would give her a chance to live.

Li Xuanzhi remained unmoved, his gaze calm and unwavering, and replied indifferently:

"In my actions, I only seek to be worthy of the nation, the emperor, the people, and my own conscience. As for my merits and demerits, let the people of the world judge them; Your Majesty need not worry."

Immediately afterwards, the entire Imperial Guard was mobilized to thoroughly search the entire Chang Le Palace.

The sounds of running and shouting rose and fell.

All the palace maids, eunuchs, and other spies who had been hiding for many years, regardless of who sent them, were exposed and none escaped.

The palace was thrown into turmoil, and everyone was terrified. The concubines, unaware of what had happened, locked themselves in their respective residences, too afraid to go out.

……

As dusk fell, the farce at Chang Le Palace finally came to an end.

Li Xuanzhi returned to the Imperial Study to report back.

The emperor sat quietly by the window, gazing at the deepening twilight outside. Hearing footsteps, he didn't turn around but softly asked:

"Is everything cleaned up?"

"Your Majesty, all have been eliminated," Li Xuanzhi replied, bowing.

"All palace servants, informants, and remnants involved will be investigated and punished. Chang Le Palace has been sealed off, and Consort Shu has been imprisoned in the Imperial Prison pending trial. The two princes, as instructed by the Empress, have been properly settled in a separate residence by reliable personnel."

The emperor nodded slowly and let out a long sigh of relief, as if he had finally lifted a heavy burden that had been weighing on his heart for years.

"Okay, okay...it's clean now."

He slowly turned his head and looked at the young minister standing not far away, his eyes filled with relief and satisfaction.

"Xuanzhi, in my entire life, I have guarded the empire, stabilized the court, and fought against the powerful clans, yet I have ultimately failed to completely eradicate the deep-seated problems. I am ashamed!"

The emperor stepped forward slowly, raised his hand and gently patted his shoulder, his gaze warm.

"I am at ease entrusting the Crown Prince to you. However, I will need to trouble you and your husband to take care of him for a while longer."

Li Xuanzhi naturally wouldn't refuse, and seeing that the emperor had nothing else to instruct him on, he left the palace.

Inside the Zhixueyuan Study Room of the Li Residence, where the Crown Prince is temporarily residing.

The crown prince sat upright at his desk, holding a vermilion brush, and carefully annotated the classics on governance.

After last night's assassination attempt, the childishness in his eyes has faded, replaced by a maturity and insight far beyond his years.

Pei Qingyuan's elder brother, Pei Yuting, stood to his side, holding a book. He gently explained the essential meanings of the classics to him in a soft voice.

"The principle of 'eliminating private corruption and practicing public interest' in 'On Governance' is not only a guideline for officials, but also the foundation for rulers. The trouble caused by powerful families in the past was all because their private desires override the law and their privileges override those of the common people. This is the root of the problem that the new policies must eradicate completely."

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince nodded slightly, put down his vermilion brush, and looked up earnestly to ask:

"If all the remaining rebels are eliminated, and there are no more obstacles in the court and among the people, does that mean the court can enjoy long-term peace and stability, free from further turmoil?"