After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

"He was kept in the palace by the Emperor for a meeting," Gu Ce said, a look of admiration in his eyes. "Your wife is truly perceptive."

"Haha, you're doing bad things, and the Emperor is helping you stop people. It's a perfect match." Rong Yingluo was secretly delighted. "I just wonder if the Prefect dares to handle the Mingyue Tower matter fairly."

"Don't worry, Prefect Tan Xingchen is Princess Pingyang's brother-in-law, and he himself is married to the daughter of the former Prime Minister Luo family. He doesn't need to associate with the Crown Prince; he is only loyal to the Emperor," Gu Ce explained to her.

"I see." Rong Yingluo understood.

The Prefect of the Capital is of utmost importance; the Emperor will surely appoint someone he trusts.

"Mrs. Gu, how was my acting today?" Li Xuanye asked, seeking praise.

"Your singing and songwriting are both excellent," Rong Yingluo praised. "By the way, when did you two become so close?"

"I am now Lord Gu's right-hand man." Li Xuanye looked as if he was proud to be doing errands.

The group dined at Honghao Restaurant, chatting and laughing.

Zhou Haitao and Gu Qingyin ate their meals quietly, listening attentively to the three of them chatting.

Li Xuanye was a talkative man, not at all like a military general who had been on the battlefield.

Gu Ce was steady and rarely smiled.

Rong Yingluo is also a talkative person, and she has been to many places and has a wide range of knowledge.

Zhou Haitao also chimed in with his own insights later on.

They enjoyed the meal to the fullest, but before it was over, Zhong Sheng arrived.

"How is it?" Gu Ce asked.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Lord Tan acted swiftly, beginning the trial in front of all the diners. The innkeeper remained defiant, refusing to plead guilty."

Following his master's advice, Lord Tan lit a stove in the main hall and boiled a pot of poppy seeds. Anyone who didn't confess honestly was given a bowl of strong poppy seed soup.

The shopkeeper drank one bowl and still refused to confess, but when he was given the third bowl, he became afraid and had no choice but to confess.

This shows that he knew about the dangers of poppies.

However, he did not implicate the Crown Prince, indicating that he was the one who opened Yue Lou, and that it had nothing to do with the Crown Prince.

But when Lord Tan revealed the relationship between his wife and Du Liangyu, the tutor of the Crown Prince's residence, he still refused to admit it.

Lord Tan then sent men to his house to kidnap his wife and children, intending to feed them medicinal soup. Only then did the shopkeeper admit that the owner behind Mingyue Tower was His Highness the Crown Prince. Zhong Sheng recounted this in great detail.

"Serves him right, let him taste the power of poppies himself." Rong Yingluo was indignant.

After listening to the trial proceedings, Zhou Haitao felt a deep sense of admiration.

Being an official is not just about being good at studying and passing the imperial examination; it also requires a clever mind and the ability to outwit and outmaneuver others.

"Just as I was about to leave, the Crown Prince finally arrived. He completely absolved himself of any responsibility, claiming that it wasn't him who instructed the manager to use poppies to attract business, but rather that the manager had used harmful substances without authorization for the sake of Mingyue Tower's business. On the spot, the Crown Prince killed the manager with a single sword stroke," Zhong Sheng continued.

"Hmph, the Crown Prince is twenty-five years old, isn't he? Yet he acts so recklessly." Li Xuanye scoffed.

"Young Master Li, why do you say that?" Gu Qingyin rarely spoke. She felt that it would be better if the Crown Prince had killed the man with a single sword stroke, so that Lord Tan would have no chance to extract more information. The Crown Prince could also shift all the blame onto the deceased shopkeeper and absolve himself of all responsibility.

"Miss Gu, the human heart is the most unpredictable thing since ancient times, but it is also easy to predict."

I'm currently working as an errand boy for your elder brother. If I accidentally do something wrong one day, he'll push me out to take the blame in order to shirk responsibility.

My death would end everything, but Lord Gu wouldn't be alone; he would have many other subordinates, officials, and followers. These people would reconsider their actions because of my fate.

"Their master doesn't care about their lives, do you think they'll still be loyal to your elder brother?" Li Xuanye spoke very frankly, and even stretched out his arm and put his hand on Gu Ce's shoulder, making a friendly gesture like two brothers.

"Oh, I understand. It means that whoever wins the hearts of the people wins the world." Gu Qingyin understood immediately.

The crown prince disregarded the lives of his loyal subordinates and even killed one with a sword. This shows he has lost the hearts of the people, and those around him should have some doubts.

"Second sister, you shouldn't say such things carelessly." Rong Yingluo rubbed her forehead.

These words were meant for the monarch, but Li Xuanye just used Gu Ce as a metaphor. How can he misuse these words?

"I..." Gu Qingyin realized she had used the wrong word, and her face turned pale instantly.

"Second sister, your sister-in-law likes to read. You can come to Silver Willow Courtyard to borrow some books to read at home," Gu Ce casually reminded her.

He did not blame him.

"Yes, Big Brother." Gu Qingyin lowered her head, but before doing so, she secretly glanced at Zhou Haitao across from her.

"Although Miss Gu misspoke, her meaning was correct," Zhou Haitao couldn't help but say in support of Gu Qingyin.

Gu Qingyin suddenly raised her head again, her eyes filled with emotion.

Zhou Haitao blushed under her gaze.

"The Crown Prince's actions will chill the hearts of those who follow him, but the Emperor only has one son who can inherit the throne, so those people will still remain loyal to him. After all, the Crown Prince will ascend the throne sooner or later. Those people who want to become the Crown Prince's loyalists can only keep today's events to themselves and downplay them," Zhou Haitao continued to analyze, trying to hide his blush.

"The Crown Prince has only lost a shopkeeper who made money for him; he's just an insignificant nobody and won't cause much of a stir," Gu Ce concluded.

However, Gu Ce would not let this matter pass.

The next morning at court, the emperor threw several stacks of commemorative documents at Yuwen Yi's face.

"Take a good look at yourself. You are lax in managing your subordinates, disregard the people, and are greedy for money and lustful. You are the crown prince, how can I give you this position?"

"Do you think I can do whatever I want just because I only have one son? Do you want to ruin my Southern Xia dynasty?" Emperor Taikang roared.

The court officials all lowered their heads, not daring to utter a sound.

Yuwen Yi knelt on the ground to listen to the reprimand, his expression changing several times.

He picked up a folded book of impeachments by censors, glanced at it quickly, and found that the words were sharp and almost completely condemned him.

Well done! Those old fogies in the Censorate, let's see how he deals with them.

"Your subject knows his mistake. It was because your subject failed to manage his subordinates properly. Your subject begs for punishment." Yuwen Yi was not stupid; now was not the time to make excuses.

That damned Gu Ce actually teamed up with Li Xuanye to frame him.

He can't touch either of them right now.

At this moment, Gao Qiliang, the Minister of Revenue, stepped forward, bowed, and pleaded: "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. His Highness the Crown Prince was deceived. Fortunately, the manager of Mingyue Tower has already been punished, which is an explanation to the people. Mingyue Tower is just a small restaurant, and it is understandable that His Highness the Crown Prince was negligent in his management."

Following Gao Shangshu's lead, officials from the Crown Prince's faction stepped forward to plead for the Crown Prince's release.

Only when no one else stepped forward did Gu Ce step forward: "Your Majesty, I have something to report."

"What is it?" Emperor Taikang's face was gloomy. He had been listening to the officials from the Crown Prince's faction pleading for him, but he remained unmoved.

"I have an experimental record here, Your Majesty, please take a look." Gu Ce took out a folding book that had been prepared in advance from his sleeve.

He and the Crown Prince had long been at odds in court. When he took out the folding tablet, the eyes of the officials from the Crown Prince's faction shot towards Gu Ce like sharp arrows.