Chen Pingping looked at him without a trace of pity. "You have followed me for 12 years. Before you die, I will give you a chance to say one last thing."
The head of the First Bureau paled slightly, but quickly recovered his calm smile. Looking at the man who had promoted him from an ordinary worker to the third most important person in the Overwatch Council, he said sincerely, "Do not trust women. They are all crazy, and they are not suited for politics."
Having said this, he slapped the top of his head. With a crack, his body went limp, and he collapsed onto the wooden table, no longer breathing.
These were his heartfelt words. Even if the conversation between the Eldest Princess and Zhuang Mohan had not been overheard by Fan Xian, Chen Pingping's expression showed that the Eldest Princess had long been the focus of the Council's attention. From the moment the Eldest Princess madly betrayed Yan Bingyun, Zhu Ge, the head of the First Bureau, was destined to die.
The corpse was dragged out. Naturally, there were rules to deal with the aftermath. Chen Pingping looked at the paper in front of him again and shook his head. "Continue the analysis. Who would be so crazy as to reveal everything?"
He could be as calm as an ancient well, but when the other seven heads saw a colleague they had worked with for more than a decade meet such a tragic end, they could not help but feel a little emotional. After a moment, they recovered and said, "The Dongyi diplomatic mission was the last to leave the day before yesterday, and today this happened. I think Dongyi has something to do with it."
"That's right. According to the results of the palace's investigation, the assassin who entered the palace on the night His Majesty invited the envoys of both countries to a banquet must have something to do with Dongyi."
"It was also that night that the assassin appeared in Guangxin Palace and killed one of the Eldest Princess' serving girls. It was probably at that time that he overheard the conversation between the Eldest Princess and Zhuang Mohan."
"The reason Dongyi is releasing this information now is that they hope the court will be thrown into chaos for a while. After all, this time, the two countries did not reach an agreement with Northern Qi, so Dongyi is afraid that the court will send out troops."
"And if this matter is exposed, His Majesty will be shocked, and the agreement with Northern Qi will probably be torn apart. The two countries will go to war again, and Dongyi, who has always been caught between the cracks, will probably be happy to see that happen."
"Regardless of whether it is in terms of motive or final effect, Dongyi is the most likely to act. It is also the target that could benefit the most from this matter."
"The only question is, how could Dongyi write so many copies in one night for the papers that the Xishan Paper Workshop just lost last night? You have to know that most of their people hidden in the capital are being monitored by us. There shouldn't be that many people who are not under our control." Yan Ruohai analyzed, "To do this in one night, they would need at least forty well-trained people."
Chen Pingping listened to his subordinates' methodical analysis and smiled without saying anything. The room suddenly became quiet.
After a while, someone suddenly asked, "What about the exchange agreement?"
"Continue," Chen Pingping said calmly.
"In order to capture Xiao En, you destroyed a pair of legs. Now, because the Eldest Princess sold him out, you want Xiao En to be released. I cannot accept this."
"Unwilling? Do you have any way to bring Yan Bingyun back alive? " Chen Pingping laughed coldly. "The exchange must be made. We will deliver Xiao En alive into the hands of Northern Qi, but we can only let him see the sky of Northern Qi's Shangjing."
Everyone knew that the Director had a plan. They nodded slightly. No matter what, these people did not want Xiao En to be returned to Northern Qi. That old man had been the head spy of Northern Wei, and who knew how many Qing spies he had killed. Furthermore, the information in his mind, even to this day, posed a great threat to the Kingdom of Qing. If it weren't for the fact that the person captured by Northern Qi was the son of the Fourth Bureau's Yan Ruohai, these ruthless spies of the Kingdom of Qing would certainly have written to the Director to persuade His Majesty to let the unfortunate man captured by Northern Qi sacrifice himself for the country.
Yan Ruohai also knew this, and so he was extremely grateful to the Director. Suddenly, he asked, "What about the Eldest Princess?"
"We are loyal to His Majesty. We do not know what His Majesty has not said. We will not do it." Chen Pingping made his final decision.
"Should we capture the Dongyi diplomatic mission?"
"What for? Admit that the royal court has lost face? Let the Eighth Bureau handle this matter. Say that the remnants of Gu Yue in the south, unwilling to accept the fall of their country, spread rumors in the capital. They have all been captured. Take a few of them from prison and kill them in the market. Before you kill them, make sure that all the people of the capital come to see the spectacle, "Chen Pingping said lightly.
The subordinates took their orders and left, disinfecting, spreading rumors, and arresting people. Only Yan Ruohai stayed until the end. He looked at the Director and said calmly, "There is no poison in this world that can keep Xiao En alive and then kill him in front of the Emperor of Northern Qi."
"What do you mean?" Chen Pingping asked.
Yan Ruohai frowned. "I know my son. He would not agree with His Majesty's methods. I think he would be happy to exchange Xiao En's life."
Chen Pingping looked at him coldly. "You must avoid arousing suspicion. Do not participate in the discussion. As for what to do, that is my business. Indeed, there is no poison in this world that can be so miraculous. Even Elder Fei, who is currently in the capital, cannot do it. But Xiao En must die, and Yan Bingyun must return. "
He smiled. "Do not forget, four and a half years ago, I was the one who kicked your son to the north."
Yan Ruohai was about to say something, but Chen Pingping stopped him with a wave of his hand. "I had originally planned to wait for Bingyun to return, and then have him take Zhu Ge's place. Zhu Ge could have lived a few more days. But today, these pieces of paper are flying everywhere, and the capital is abuzz with discussion. I must give you an explanation. "
Chen Pingping sighed. "What was hidden in the shadows suddenly became known to everyone in the capital. Such an absurd and effective method will probably force His Majesty to give an explanation to the officials who know of this matter."
Chen Pingping coughed. "You should know that there is a commissioner in the Council. I told you last time that I am preparing to send him to Northern Qi."
Yan Ruohai frowned. "It is very dangerous." He understood that the Director wanted to give the task of killing Xiao En to the commissioner.
"If you don't think, you won't amount to anything." Chen Pingping's eyes seemed a little tired. "If he succeeds, I hope that one day in the future, you will be able to help him take care of this Council."
Yan Ruohai finally understood. He was slightly shocked, and didn't dare to say anything more. He knelt in front of Chen Pingping's wheelchair and nodded.
…
…
"Who did it?" Chen Pingping pushed his wheelchair to the window. His skinny fingers slowly lifted a corner of the black cloth, and like a child, he poked his head out the window. The autumn rain, which had lasted for several days, had stopped yesterday. Outside, it was a bright sunny day, and in the distance, the palace shone with golden light.
Half leaning on the wheelchair, he looked at the piece of paper in his hand with the help of the light from the corner of the black cloth. He couldn't help but shake his head. "It's fine to say that she colluded with Northern Qi, but why did you have to say that she kept three thousand men, and that she was promiscuous in the palace?" This matter involved the reputation of the royal family, and it was naturally inconvenient to discuss it in the previous meeting.
Chen Pingping looked at the words on the paper, which were as neat as matchsticks, and laughed. "What nonsense. These words are a bit too ugly … but, the handwriting and the style are really like that idiot from Dongyi City."
"Dongyi City, Dongyi City, is it really you?" He said to himself in his heart, and a trace of a smile rose to his face. "Sigu Jian back then was just an idiot, not this kind of lunatic. To deal with that crazy girl, the Eldest Princess, this method is quite effective. Who cares what kind of jade or porcelain it is? Just smash it and put it in a pile, and no one can tell it apart. But, you have disrupted His Majesty's rules, and His Majesty will not be happy. "
Whether it was the meticulous Chen Pingping, or the sinister and crazy Eldest Princess, none of them could have imagined that such a big matter had been caused by a pair of master and servant.
— — —
Fan Xian calmly, even coldly, watched the aftermath of this matter. It seemed that the erotic literature he had dictated was indeed an unbearable burden in this country. No matter what the Emperor's true thoughts were deep in his heart, and he did not care how much damage the Eldest Princess's true power would suffer because of this, what he wanted had finally happened.
Very quietly, the Eldest Princess moved out of the palace and returned to her own fief, Xinyang. As for what kind of conflict and power struggle there might be in the royal family because of this matter, it was not within Fan Xian's scope of consideration.
Just as Wu Zhu had calculated, before the Eldest Princess left the capital, His Majesty had indeed generously rewarded her. At the same time, Fan Xian had also received many benefits. Although on the surface there was no relationship, it seemed that His Majesty had only praised him for bringing honor to the country.
Once the edict came down, Fan Xian immediately went from an eighth-level functionary to a fifth-level functionary of the Imperial College.
In the Flower Hall, Fan Xian held the edict and scratched his head. He asked his father, "What does a functionary of the Imperial College do?"
"Teach the students of the Imperial College." Fan Jian also felt that this edict was too strange. He shook his head. "You haven't even taken the official imperial examinations, how can you be a functionary of the Imperial College?"
"Does that mean I don't have to take the imperial examinations next year?" Fan Xian asked with a smile.
"Yes." Fan Jian seemed to be in low spirits. He said lightly, "Not taking the imperial examinations is not the right path. Right now it looks very smooth, but in the future there will always be some obstacles." But then he thought about it again. Wasn't what he wanted for the Fan family to be safe, and for this beautiful young man in front of him to be able to live out the rest of his life in comfort?
This was also that person's idea, otherwise he would not have given the child the name Fan Xian. His courtesy name was An Zhi.
…
…
Hearing that he didn't have to take the imperial examinations, Fan Xian was overjoyed. With a face full of smiles, he returned to the study. He saw that Fan Sizhe had long been waiting in the room, grinding an ink stick and looking at him.
"What are you doing?"
"Inscribing."
"What inscription?"
"Banxianzhai Poetry Collection."
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