After fighting with the Crown Prince for so long, King Duan had a deep understanding of the politics in the courts. As such, he understood what Chi Hou was trying to say.
The Crown Prince had the most influence in the courts.
It was almost impossible to snatch the position of Minister of Law from the courts. As such, the only way was for the Emperor to appoint a Minister of Law himself.
As for having the Emperor's heart, it did not mean that the Emperor would listen to him. It meant that he trusted him from the bottom of his heart.
As such …
Just as Chi Hou had said, there were less than three people in the capital who could be trusted by the Emperor. More accurately, there were only two and a half.
One of them was Marquis Xing Yuanguo of the Stabilisation Constabulary. As the leader of the 13 Constabularies and the pillar of the dynasty, the Emperor trusted him greatly.
However, Xing Yuanguo had never been involved in politics. This had to do with his character, but more importantly, he did not need it.
No matter who ascended the throne, they would not treat the Stabilisation Constabulary as a threat. The Stabilisation Constabulary would only be loyal to the person who ascended the throne.
However, this meant that it was almost impossible to gain the support of the Stabilisation Constabulary before ascending the throne.
As for the remaining one and a half …
The other half was also unobtainable. That half was Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping. As the Chief of the Cabinet, Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping knew the Emperor well and would naturally gain the Emperor's trust.
However, Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping had been too deeply involved in politics. As such, the Emperor would only believe half of Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping's words.
As for the last one …
"Do you think it is too late for me to leave now?" King Duan asked again after he understood this point.
After fighting with the Crown Prince for so many years, Lin Xinjue knew his brother all too well. If everything went according to plan, his brother would be recommending the new Minister of Law tomorrow morning.
"I don't know, but moving is better than not moving at all." Chi Hou shook his head and took a sip of his tea.
"I understand, I will make the preparations now." King Duan Lin Xinjue looked at Mr. Hua and Old Wen. Seeing that both of them nodded, he quickly said.
"Thank you, Your Highness." Chi Hou acted as if he did not notice Lin Xinjue's actions and continued to drink his tea.
…
The next day, in the early morning.
The Crown Prince, Lin Tianrong, was already dressed in the official robes of the Eastern Palace. Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping and the other officials had also arrived early.
All of them were discussing in low voices.
King Duan Lin Xinjue and Chi Hou arrived one after the other. Naturally, they saw this with one glance. However, their expressions didn't change.
Following that, the civil and military officials all stopped their discussions and began to walk over to greet Chi Hou one by one, issuing all sorts of invitations to him.
There were some who invited Chi Hou into their houses for a chat, some who invited Chi Hou to race horses and hunt, and some who invited Chi Hou to taste wine and tea …
Time passed in the midst of invitations and invitations.
The time for morning court was getting closer and closer. Just as everyone stopped and waited for the morning court to begin, Eunuch Wei, who was dressed in palace attire, walked in.
"His Majesty is unwell. There will be no morning court session today!" A slightly shrill voice instantly caused all the officials to show various expressions.
"Eunuch Wei, the Emperor was fine yesterday. Why is he sick today?" One of the officials asked Eunuch Wei softly after receiving a signal from Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping.
"Illness comes like a landslide. Who can say for sure? Am I right, Official Li? " Eunuch Wei looked at Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping and hesitated for a moment before replying.
"Yes yes yes, Eunuch Wei is right. However, we have something important to discuss with the Emperor today. Is the Emperor's illness serious?"
"The imperial physician's diagnosis is that it will take at least two to three days, and at most five to six days."
"Oh, that's a relief. I wonder where the Emperor is recuperating. If it is convenient for Eunuch Wei, could you please help us …"
"The Emperor is currently in Imperial Concubine Hua Fei's palace. If Daren Li wishes to hand in memorials, you can kneel at the entrance of Imperial Concubine Hua Fei's palace." Eunuch Wei didn't wait for Daren Li to finish and waved his hand.
"Ahem, since the Emperor is in Imperial Concubine Hua Fei's palace, we will not disturb him. We will wait for the Emperor to recover before submitting the memorial."
"The Emperor is waiting for me to take care of him. I will take my leave first!"
"Take care, Eunuch Wei!"
As Eunuch Wei left, Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping frowned. He seemed to be deep in thought. "Hua Fei …"
…
Since the Emperor did not attend the morning court session, the nomination for the Minister of Law had to be put on hold. Wan Chong's case was also put on hold.
After all, Wan Chong was a Minister. Even though there was evidence, the case could not be closed without the Emperor's approval.
This also caused the Flame Capital City to appear peaceful on the surface. However, everyone knew that under this calm surface, there was an undercurrent surging.
As long as the new Minister of Justice was not decided, the officials related to Wan Chong's case could not rest easy. The officials who had been eyeing the position of Minister of Justice for a long time also began to move around.
Countless carriages traveled through the capital. From time to time, two carriages would collide with each other. Then, the servants would start to argue with each other.
"Move aside, how dare you block the Li Residence's carriage! You must be tired of living!"
"Li Residence? What is the Li Residence? Open your dog eyes and see who is sitting in the carriage. If you don't move aside, I will tear the wheels off your carriage! "
"Aiyo, what arrogance! Tear it off if you dare!"
"Alright, I will show you the Zhang Family's power. What are you all waiting for? Tear the wheels off his carriage! "
"How dare the Zhang Family be so arrogant? Attack! "
"… …"
Amidst the countless carriages, there was one particular residence that was unusually spacious. There was no commotion, and no carriage dared to stay in front of this residence for too long.
This was because there was a golden plaque hanging above the entrance of this residence. There were three words written on it.
Ping Yang Residence!
This was right in the center of the capital, right next to the walls of the palace. However, it was a place where all the officials would rather take a detour.
However, at this moment, an average-sized horse carriage slowly approached from afar. Finally, it steadily stopped at the entrance of the mansion.
Immediately after, a young man dressed in a luxurious silk robe also jumped down from the carriage. After looking around with a pair of shifty eyes, a smile quickly flashed across his face.
"Hi, little brother. Could I trouble you to report that I'm here to see Lord Fang?" The young man walked briskly to the entrance of Tranquil Sun Manor and spoke to the golden-armored soldier standing guard at the entrance.
Then, the youth shook his hand and produced a silver ingot the size of a fingernail.
"Official Fang? Which Official Fang?" The golden-armored soldier did not even look at the silver ingot in the young man's hand as he replied directly.
"Of course it is Fang Zhengzhi, Official Fang!" The youth replied matter-of-factly.
"I understand." The golden-armored soldier nodded. Then, he shot a look at another golden-armored soldier in the mansion gate. Clang! A loud sound was heard.
Like a flood, more than 20 golden-armored soldiers rushed out of Tranquil Sun Manor. Without any hesitation, the golden-armored soldiers grabbed the young man and pinned him to the ground.
The youth was completely stunned.
However, when the punches landed on his body like raindrops, he was no longer in a daze. Instead, he became extremely clear-headed, and his eyes shone brightly.
"I was wrong. I am here to see Fang Zhengzheng. My name is Wen Dabao!"
"Oh, you are here to see Young Master Fang? You should have said so earlier! "The golden armored guards stopped when they heard the youth's words.
Wen Dabao's heart was filled with bitterness, but he did not say anything. He wiped away the tears in his eyes and climbed up from the ground.
"Can you report my arrival now?"
"Of course. Please wait a moment, Young Master Wen." The golden armored guard nodded. Then, he picked up the silver ingot that had fallen from Wen Dabao's hand and stuffed it into his pocket.
"…" Wen Dabao felt even more bitter in his heart when he saw this.
However, the golden armored guard did not linger after taking the silver ingot. After telling Wen Dabao to wait a moment, he hurried back to the residence.
…
In the beautiful courtyard of the Ping Yang Residence.
Fang Zhengzhi, dressed in a blue robe, lay on his side on an expensive leather chair. He crossed his legs and squinted his eyes as he basked in the sun.
Beside Fang Zhengzhi was Ping Yang. She was dressed in a red dress and supported her head with her hands. She looked at Fang Zhengzhi quietly.
As for Yan Xiu, he sat quietly behind a desk nearby. He held a pen in his hand as he wrote on a piece of white paper.
It was a scene of sunshine and harmony.
However, at this moment, a golden-armored soldier appeared at the entrance of the courtyard in a flash. However, when the golden-armored soldier saw this scene, he immediately stopped in his tracks.
"Your Highness, Young Master Fang, Young Master Yan, Wen Dabao is here."
"..."
There was no sound.
Ping Yang, Fang Zhengzhi, and Yan Xiu did not seem to hear what the golden armored guard said. None of them spoke.
In fact, their movements did not even change.
The golden armored guard waited patiently for 15 minutes …
But still, no one bothered.
"Ahem, Your Highness, Young Master Fang, Young Master Yan, Wen Dabao is here." The golden armored guard raised his voice.
"..."
There was still no sound.
The golden-armored soldier looked at the three people in front of him again. He found that the three of them looked exactly the same as before. There was no change at all.
This caused the golden-armored soldier to look confused.
However, he was just confused.
He did not speak again.
The golden armored guard waited at the entrance like a statue.
Another fifteen minutes passed, and another golden-armored soldier appeared at the gate. His words were exactly the same as the first golden-armored soldier.
However, Fang Zhengzhi, Ping Yang, and Yan Xiu seemed to be in a different world. They did not seem to hear what the golden armored guard said.
As such, the other golden armored guard also became a statue.
Time passed very quickly.
An hour passed, then an hour …
The number of statues at the entrance increased. From the golden armored guard, to the servants and servants. Finally, even the housekeeper of Ping Yang's residence became a statue.
The sun rose slowly. Even though it was spring, it was still warm.
However, Ping Yang, Fang Zhengzhi, and Yan Xiu did not move. How would they dare to move? All of them stood quietly at the entrance, waiting.
After an unknown amount of time, Ping Yang finally made a slight movement. She slowly turned her head and looked at the servant girl who was standing quietly at the entrance of the courtyard.
She still did not open her mouth to speak, but she blinked her limpid eyes and shot a meaningful glance at the sun in the sky.
When the servant saw the look in Ping Yang's eyes, she immediately understood. She quickly turned around and left. After a while, she returned with a pot of warm tea.
Ping Yang's eyes lit up when she saw that. She snatched the cup of tea that the maidservant had brought over and gulped it down without hesitation.
"You lost." Fang Zhengzhi slowly opened his eyes at this moment and looked at Ping Yang, who was drinking tea from the corner of her mouth.
"Lost? How did I lose? I didn't say anything at all! "Ping Yang was unhappy when she heard that.
"You didn't?"
"Of course not. Which ear of yours heard me speak?"
"We were betting on who spoke first, not who spoke first. If you don't speak, how are you going to drink?" Fang Zhengzhi said scornfully.
"Does drinking count?" Ping Yang was indignant.
"What do you think?" Fang Zhengzhi asked.
"Alright, I'll take it that you cheated and won. Go ahead and ask your questions." Ping Yang pouted. She seemed a little angry, but she still said helplessly.
"Let's talk about the questions later. Wen Dabao has been here for almost four hours?" Fang Zhengzhi waved him off casually.
"Yes, Wen Dabao has been standing outside the residence for close to four hours." The soldiers replied respectfully when they heard Fang Zhengzhi's words.
However …
Their hearts were filled with bitterness.
Although they knew that Princess Ping Yang was very capricious and were already mentally prepared for it, they never expected that there would be a day when two capricious fellows would bump into each other.
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