The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

Kunning Palace was not far from Qianqing Palace, and Zhu Shou arrived quickly.

Upon entering Kunning Palace, Zhu Shou saw a middle-aged noblewoman sitting in the upper seat; that was his mother.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty."

Zhu Shou bowed to the Empress Dowager.

After Zhu Shou entered, the Empress Dowager remained silent until he finished his greetings, at which point she said, "Your Majesty, please rise."

Zhu Shou stood up.

The Empress Dowager looked up at Zhu Shou and said, "I haven't seen the Emperor recently. He must be very busy with state affairs, as he has lost a lot of weight."

Zhu Shou's eyes flickered.

This is to blame him for not coming to pay his respects to his parents at dawn and dusk.

"Your Majesty, I have been very busy since I ascended the throne. I am overwhelmed with state affairs. Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I will pay my respects to Your Majesty every day from now on."

Zhu Shou smiled and said.

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager did not press the matter further; she had something to say.

"I heard that you reprimanded your uncle in court yesterday and even wanted to strip him of his title?"

Zhu Shou's smile remained unchanged upon hearing this, and he showed no panic. Instead, he asked, "Which gossipy maidservant spread this rumor to the inner palace?"

The Empress Dowager looked displeased.

Is this implying that she, as a member of the imperial harem, is interfering in state affairs?

The Empress Dowager's tone turned serious: "Who else needs to gossip about this? The lady of the house has come to the palace to complain to me. Do you think I can just pretend I didn't hear her?"

Zhu Shou chuckled upon hearing this: "Uncle is really something, having to bother Mother with something like this."

The Empress Dowager ignored his evasive answers and asked, "Did you say this in court yesterday?"

Zhu Shou couldn't avoid the topic, so he could only say, "I did say that."

The Empress Dowager's face darkened: "He's your uncle, how can you be so heartless?"

Zhu Shou chuckled and said, "Your Majesty, you're exaggerating. We haven't stripped him of his title, have we? We're just trying to scare him so he won't do anything that would offend both heaven and man and ruin the reputation of our imperial family."

The Empress Dowager ignored his explanation.

"What do you mean by 'divine wrath and popular resentment'? Is it really that exaggerated? I know you don't like Yanling and Heling, but they are my own brothers and your own uncles. Blood is thicker than water, so why are you being so harsh on them?"

Zhu Shou's smile faded slightly.

"It's not that I don't care about family ties, but does Mother know what they've done? I've heard that they've seized farmland, bullied men and women, and allowed their servants to beat up commoners in the streets. Just a few days ago, they even threatened to throw the civilians who blocked my horse into the Ministry of Justice's prison. The Ministry of Justice is the court's authority over criminal law; it's a public institution. Does he think he owns the Ministry of Justice for himself?"

The Empress Dowager, however, disagreed.

"It's just taking some land, what's the big deal? As for those words, they were just said in anger. Your father was very tolerant of them when he was still alive, why do you have to make things difficult for them?"

My father is my father, and I am me.

Zhu Shou felt a chill in his heart when he saw that the Empress Dowager spoke so casually and without any concern.

They prioritize their own small family over the greater good.

This is his mother.

She only cared about her two younger brothers, and she loved them even more than her own son.

Seeing that Zhu Shou remained silent, the Empress Dowager knew what he was thinking and lost interest in speaking. She had originally intended to have Zhu Shou stay for dinner at Kunning Palace, but now she simply said she was tired and left.

Only Zhu Shou remained, sitting quietly.

"emperor."

"A eunuch said cautiously."

Zhu Shou glanced at him and stood up.

"Return to the palace."

Upon returning to the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Shou learned that Mu Bin had already gone to the Imperial Study to await an audience, so he went directly to the Imperial Study.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty."

Mu Bin waited in the Imperial Study for a while, and knelt down on one knee after seeing Zhu Shou.

"No gift."

Zhu Shou waved his hand, sat down at the imperial table, and gestured for Mu Bin to rise.

"How's the matter I asked you to investigate going?"

Mu Bin quickly took out a small notebook from his pocket and handed it over with both hands.

"Your Majesty, this is all the information about Jiangning."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Shou took the notebook, opened it, and browsed the information inside.

"Huashan Sect, Jiangning?"

Chapter 422: Spontaneous Combustion

Upon seeing the words "Huashan Sect," Zhu Shou understood immediately.

It seems he's a member of the martial arts world.

But how could a mere江湖人士 (jianghu shishi, a person of martial arts and chivalry) command such respect from Chen Qingyuan, a vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue?

Zhu Shou frowned slightly and continued reading.

"The Great Hero of Guanzhong?"

Zhu Shou raised an eyebrow, discovering that Jiangning actually had a gold medal title awarded by the imperial court.

"Yes, Your Majesty, it has been checked. The gold medal was awarded last year."

Mu Bin quickly replied.

last year?

That was during his father's reign.

Zhu Shou nodded and continued reading.

However, there wasn't much information after that. It only recorded some things about Jiangning, such as the bandit suppression in Shaanxi a few years ago, the siege of Mount Hua by a group of unorthodox people last year, and some other major events in the martial arts world.

That's all the information; it'll be gone soon, and there won't be any more.

After all, the time to investigate information is only two or three days. Even the Imperial Guards couldn't find out the life story of someone thousands of miles away in such a short time. Mu Bin had already done his best to find out this much.

After reading these, Zhu Shou looked at Mu Bin.

What kind of sect is the Huashan Sect?

Mu Bin quickly replied, "It's a sect in Shaanxi, established on Mount Hua, so it's called the Huashan Sect. It seems to be a branch of the Quanzhen School, a Taoist sect."

He had already thoroughly investigated the Huashan Sect before reporting back to Zhu Shou.

Taoist sects?

Zhu Shou nodded.

No wonder he could sense that Jiang Ning was very familiar with Taoist scriptures when they talked.

After reading it, Zhu Shou closed the notebook. At this moment, his mind was not on Jiang Ning, but on other information.

"I never imagined that these martial arts practitioners would become so arrogant, completely disregarding the imperial court."

Zhu Shou thought to himself.

The Ming Dynasty is currently facing serious internal problems. The civil officials in the court are corrupt, the army is decadent, the national treasury is empty, and the court can no longer control other places, leaving those Jianghu people to run rampant.

Zhu Shou never expected that he would inherit such a mess as soon as he ascended the throne.

The Ming Dynasty is now on the verge of collapse.

"You did very well."

Zhu Shou was lost in thought, but he didn't show it on his face. He said to Mu Bin, "Continue to investigate Jiang Ning. At the same time, pay attention to what those Jianghu people outside are doing and keep track of their movements."

Mu Bin accepted the order.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

……

After seeing Chen Qingyuan off, Jiang Ning went back to his room to rest. The next morning, Zhu Shou arrived as promised.

Jiang Ning couldn't help but admire Zhu Shou's persistence.

He said he would take him to tour the capital, and he meant it.

For the next two days, Zhu Shou arrived early every day without fail, which even impressed the eunuchs who were secretly following him.

"Brother Jiang, it's getting late. Let's tour the capital together again tomorrow morning."

As it approached dusk, Zhu Shou glanced at the sky and prepared to take his leave.

These past few days, Zhu Shou has been returning home close to dusk, and then coming to find Jiang Ning early the next morning, always on time.

However, Jiang Ning shook his head and said, "I'm already preparing to leave the capital."

"what?"

Zhu Shou was surprised.

"So fast?"

Jiang Ning smiled and said, "I only came to the capital for a few days to visit, and I don't plan to stay any longer. I am very grateful to Brother Zhu for taking me around the capital these past few days."

"Brother Jiang, what are you saying?"

Zhu Shou said unhappily, "Brother Jiang and I hit it off immediately, and I feel that we share the same interests. I have long regarded Brother Jiang as a friend. Are you trying to be distant with me?"

Jiang Ning smiled and said, "It is my good fortune to have made a friend like Brother Zhu in the capital."

Zhu Shou then laughed and asked, "Brother Jiang, where are you planning to go?"