Qin Huaiyuan was still deeply shocked. He was as dumb as a wooden chicken, as if he didn't notice Li Qitian's anger at all. Instead, he knelt on the ground. After a while, he stood up and asked, "What did Wang Ye do when he left the capital? Did he leave alone, or did he leave with someone? What about the rest of the people in the prince's residence? Are they in the residence? "
Li Qitian looked at Qin Huaiyuan suspiciously.
His shocked and helpless appearance wasn't fake. The confusion and astonishment in his eyes were also very real. Li Qitian had never seen Qin Huaiyuan like this. Even when he had just arrived in Da Zhou as a surrendered official, he hadn't been so flustered when the other officials in the imperial court made things difficult for him.
Perhaps Qin Huaiyuan also knew that Pang Zhixi's departure would place all the blame and pressure on him, his father-in-law's shoulders, so he was flustered?
Li Qitian's suspicions lessened a bit.
But even so, he still wouldn't trust Qin Huaiyuan.
"The servants of Prince Zhongshun's residence said that before Pang Zhixi left with the soldiers, Pang Zhixi's maternal family and mother left with a bundle, saying that they were going to visit relatives. From what we know, that family's relatives are all dead, except for the Family Qin. Let us ask you, did they come to your residence? "
"Your Majesty, this subject doesn't dare to deceive you. This subject is on leave today and hasn't left the residence. I definitely didn't see the in-laws come to my residence. Your Majesty can ask the servants in my residence at will, and you can also order your subordinates to investigate at will. This subject has no objections. "After expressing his loyalty emotionally, he kowtowed heavily.
Li Qitian saw Qin Huaiyuan's sincerity, so his suspicions lessened a bit.
But it was only a bit less.
"Since my beloved subject is so sincere, how can we not give you a chance to prove your innocence? If we don't thoroughly investigate the residence, people will say that there is something wrong with the Qin Residence. Why don't we personally take charge today and have them investigate? What do you think? "
"Your Majesty is merciful. This subject is deeply grateful." Qin Huaiyuan continued to kowtow.
Li Qitian chuckled and looked at Li Guanwen.
Li Guanwen immediately turned around and went to the door to summon the Imperial Bodyguards. Soon, the small courtyard of the Qin Mansion became noisy.
Because Li Guanwen had specifically instructed that Your Majesty was not here to search the Family Qin's residence, and that Your Majesty wanted to continue to put Minister Qin in an important position. Therefore, the bodyguards did not dare to go too far. First, they did not want to damage the family's belongings. Second, they did not want to offend the womenfolk.
But even so, the womenfolk led by Old Madam were so scared that their faces turned pale. They stood in the courtyard of the inner residence with a few servants serving them and watched those Imperial Bodyguards search the rooms one by one.
The womenfolk did not know what had happened, but the womenfolk who had experienced a lot of Family Qin in Da Zhou felt cold in their hearts. It was as if they had returned to the time when they were ambushed and forced to abandon their family and work to come to Da Zhou.
The old madam wiped her tears and sobbed, "Truly sinful, sinful! What kind of sin have we committed to have such a thing happen again?! "
Eighth young miss and Qin Huining supported the old madam on the left and right.
Han second young mistress hid in the crowd with her child in her arms. When she saw the Imperial Bodyguards come out of the room, they didn't take any of the family's belongings. They didn't seem to be taking advantage of the situation to rob. She gathered her courage and asked, "What is everyone looking for? Tell us. Perhaps we can help. "
The members of the Sun Clan, second old madam, and old madam all turned around and glared at her.
Provoking this group of fiends at this time, were they afraid that they wouldn't notice this family's womenfolk?
Han second young mistress felt wronged by the glares, so she moved behind her husband, Qin Han.
Qin Han, Qin Yu, and Qin Xian all stepped forward and shielded the womenfolk behind them.
Because of Li Guanwen's instructions, the Imperial Bodyguards didn't want to make things difficult for the Family Qin, so they asked, "Have you seen the old master, old madam, and old madam of Prince Zhongshun's manor?"
Old madam was stunned when she heard this, "You came to our manor to search for the in-laws' family?"
Second old madam said, "Of course, we saw them when we visited relatives in the past, but we haven't seen them for a long time."
The Imperial Bodyguards didn't say much to the womenfolk and went to the front hall to report.
Seeing the men coming out in a single file, the whole family breathed a sigh of relief.
Qin Han reprimanded second young mistress in a low voice, "In the future, we can't talk too much. You're the daughter-in-law and can let go, but can you also let go of your younger sisters?"
Han second young mistress was reprimanded until her face and ears turned red. She lowered her head and didn't dare to say anything.
Seeing that Qin Han had disciplined his wife, old madam didn't say anything else. She turned around and instructed Mammy Qin in a low voice, "Quietly go to the front and see what's going on. Why did they come to our manor to search for the in-laws' family and make it seem like they're raiding our manor? "
"Yes."
"Yes," Mother Qin replied and carefully walked towards the second gate.
In the front hall, Li Qitian heard the Imperial Bodyguards' report and saw the reactions of the rest of the people in the Qin Manor. His suspicions disappeared a lot. Although he was still suspicious and felt that Qin Huaiyuan would definitely protect his son-in-law, he didn't have any solid evidence now. It was hard to pin any charges on Qin Huaiyuan.
Moreover, the court was in turmoil now. The aristocratic families and the old officials of Beiji had seen what happened to Grand Secretary Lu and were more cautious about the court. The second son of the Lu Family trusted the patriarch, but his rallying power and ability were limited. The nobles were keeping an eye on Pang Zhixi and Ji Zeyu. Once he made a move on them, the nobles would be alerted and it wouldn't be easy for them to make a move. The surrendered officials' faction was already following Qin Huaiyuan's lead. Ever since the Yuchi Yan and Gu Shixiong were captured and imprisoned in the imperial prison, the surrendered officials' faction was also in turmoil. If they made a move on Qin Huaiyuan now, the surrendered officials' faction would also be in chaos.
On top of that, the Tatan was eyeing covetously and trying to start a war.
Li Qitian was already in a terrible fix.
He had been under so much pressure for the past few days. The next day, Pang Xiao left with his soldiers without saying goodbye. Li Qitian couldn't control his temper anymore.
However, looking at Qin Huaiyuan, who was kneeling on the ground and listening to his orders, Li Qitian weighed the pros and cons. In the end, he sighed and personally helped him up. He said with a pleasant expression, "It's just a misunderstanding. Please don't take it to heart."
Qin Huaiyuan seemed to be very moved. He shook his head and said, "Your Majesty has to deal with a myriad of affairs every day and is truly overworked. The state's affairs are complicated. This subject is incompetent and can't share the burden with Your Majesty. Your Majesty's actions are understandable. This subject only hates myself for being so useless. The Tatan's affairs are so troublesome. This subject is a useless scholar and can't help relieve Your Majesty's worries."
Qin Huaiyuan's words truly touched Li Qitian's heart.
It's lonely at the top. As an Emperor, what he hoped for the most was to be understood by others and not simply to be feared.
Apart from the fact that Qin Huaiyuan's son-in-law was very troublesome, he actually liked Qin Huaiyuan very much.
"Forget it." Li Qitian let out a long sigh and said, "This Emperor was really angry. It seems like Pang Zhixi knew that we would ask you, so he didn't dare to tell you about his arrangements and where his family members are hiding. You have always been intelligent. Why don't you analyze what Pang Zhixi was doing when he took his mansion troops out? Is it possible that he went to contact the Dragon Stallion Army? "
Qin Huaiyuan remained silent for a moment before saying, "In my opinion, Wang Ye doesn't seem like someone who would do such a thing for no reason. He must be young and impetuous."
At this point, Qin Huaiyuan's face blushed a little.
Li Qitian raised his eyebrows and asked, "Oh?"
"Even heroes have a weakness for the charms of beautiful women. Wang Ye is a sentimental person. In the past, he obeyed Your Majesty's every word. The things he did were all because he couldn't handle the charms of love. It's my fault for not teaching my daughter properly. "Qin Huaiyuan was about to kneel down again as he spoke.
"My dear minister, there's no need for that."
Li Qitian helped him up and ordered Qin Huaiyuan to sit down.
Qin Huaiyuan was so grateful that he shed tears of gratitude. Then, he sat down on the chair and lowered his head to listen to orders.
At this point, Li Qitian's anger subsided a little. Thinking back, he realized that whenever Pang Xiao didn't listen to him, it was for the sake of beautiful women. This included the last time when he disobeyed the imperial edict more than thirty times.
Therefore, Pang Xiao was no longer the flawless person he used to be. Now, he had a weakness that no one could touch. This was indeed a good thing for him.
After all, with a weakness in hand, the tool would be more useful.
Li Qitian sighed and said, "He was also reckless. With Tatan's current situation, what's the point of him bringing those troops? Does he really think that his troops are all celestial soldiers? For the sake of today, he should think about how to make peace. "
"Your Majesty is right." Qin Huaiyuan saluted and said, "Right now, Tatan is clearly using this as a pretext to make a fuss. They want to invade Da Zhou's borders. If we start a war, we'll cause misery and suffering. If we have money to support the war, it's better to use it on the common people. Repairing bridges, paving roads, trimming dams, or reducing taxes on the common people can also be used. In short, it's better than wasting the money in the national treasury."
Li Qitian nodded repeatedly as he listened, "You're right. However, the Tatan people don't think so."
Qin Huaiyuan and Li Qitian began to discuss state affairs again.
After Mammy Qin watched from a distance, she went back to report to the Dowager Duchess, "The person who came might be one of Master's colleagues. He came in a threatening manner. When he found that our family is fine, he started to discuss business with Master."
Only then did the Dowager Duchess's suspended heart completely fall back to its original position.
However, after thinking about it for a while, she still felt that there was something strange about this matter.
"Send someone to search the Prince's Mansion again. Where did Madam's family go? The person who came to search the inner residence just now was looking for Madam's family. Did something serious happen? "
Mammy Qin heard this and immediately retreated to do as she was told.
Not long after Li Qitian left, Qin Huaiyuan had just returned to the inner residence when the Dowager Duchess, who was frightened by the news that Mammy Qin had inquired, grabbed his hand and exhorted, "Don't pay attention to the Pang Family. Their life and death have nothing to do with our Family Qin. Your Majesty is looking for them. If we intervene in this matter, I'm afraid our Family Qin will be implicated."
Qin Huaiyuan had already guessed what the Dowager Duchess would say. He didn't want to make the Dowager Duchess think too much, so he agreed gently.
The Dowager Duchess then pulled Qin Huaiyuan to discuss the marriage of the two daughters in the family.
Qin Yining had been married for so long, but there was no news of any children. In fact, the Dowager Duchess still hoped to send Miss Tao Junior to Prince Zhongshun's Mansion as a noble concubine.
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