Five days passed in a blur, and the emperor’s carriage finally reached the villa in the northern suburbs of the capital.

The villa was situated on high ground, with pavilions built against the mountain and water pavilions set around the lake. Duan Changchuan’s residence was located halfway up the mountain.

The mountain road was wide enough for carriages and horses to pass through. The temperature was just right, making it the most comfortable location in the entire villa.

The emperor’s palace was entirely paved with jade, and as soon as one entered, a cool breeze greeted them. The young emperor sat down on the couch with satisfaction and casually picked up the memorials submitted by the ministers to read.

During the summer, the wealthy and fertile regions were in the midst of harvest, and the memorials from the ministers were filled with joy and celebration. The plague in Huainan was nearing its end, and the flood issues were being handled by the newly appointed top scholar, which was reassuring. Therefore, he felt particularly relaxed.

Duan Changchuan would respond to the memorials he was interested in with a few words, “I am well.”

If he didn’t want to reply, he would directly put them back.

Now that he was pregnant, it was easy for him to get tired, so he didn’t push himself with these trivial matters.

“Your Majesty, the royal kitchen has presented a bowl of red bean and lotus seed soup to cool off, with some added ice. Would you like to try it?”

As he was reading the memorials, Chang Le brought over a blue and white porcelain bowl.

The aroma of the red beans was particularly sweet in the hall, which was filled with calming incense.

Duan Changchuan immediately sat up, took the bowl and spoon, and took a bite.

The red beans were cooked sweet and glutinous, the white fungus had turned into a gel, and the lotus seeds were fragrant and soft. Just one bite made him feel much refreshed.

“Does Your Majesty like it?” Seeing his relaxed expression, Chang Le smiled and asked.

The young man chewed on the lotus seed and nodded, “It’s good, very refreshing. Has there been any news outside these days?”

The eunuch’s smile widened, “If Your Majesty likes it, that’s the most important thing!”

Then he changed the topic and said, “But speaking of news, there has been an interesting event recently. A very skilled storyteller has appeared in Shengjing and has been telling stories in Shengjing every day. He tells stories daily about the corrupt officials hiding the corpses in Huainan, to the plague in Huainan. The stories are so vivid as if he had experienced them himself, and he’s been telling them for three days straight. Many people in the city are listening to him.”

Hearing someone telling stories about Huainan, Duan Changchuan became interested, “A storyteller? What has he been saying?”

“This servant heard this from Zhang Dehai. On the first day, he talked about Your Majesty sending the general to Huainan under the pretense of meeting with the prefect.”

As Chang Le spoke, he coughed lightly and imitated the tone of a storyteller, “Speaking of our Emperor, who has just turned eighteen, suddenly decided to send the general to visit the Huainan Prefect. Strange, isn’t it? Everyone, don’t be anxious. Let me explain. His Majesty dispatched the General, but with what reason for the sudden dispatch? Our emperor claimed the general was sent to commend the prefect for his meritorious deed in quelling the drought in Huainan. But then, something even stranger happened. The Great General set out as soon as he was ready. After a few days, the Prefect returned alone to Shengjing City. When he arrived at the imperial court, all the civil and military officials saw he was alone. On the court, everyone was puzzled and asked him, ‘Where is the general?’. The emperor also asked, ‘Where is the general?’. The prefect, equally confused, asked, ‘Where is the general? Why are you asking this lowly official?’. Just as everyone was puzzled, an announcement came from outside the palace, ‘The Deputy General has arrived!’ His Majesty immediately frowned. Why is it a Deputy General? But he still calmed down and said, ‘Announce him!’ Thus, a fierce warrior dressed in silver armor hurriedly entered the palace. This fierce warrior did not have time to change his armor. His feet were covered in mud and his clothes were stained with blood. With a loud sound, he knelt before the Emperor. With tears in his eyes, he said, ‘Your Majesty, our Great General is missing!’ In a split second, the court was in an uproar! How could the powerful Great General go missing?”

Chang Le’s impersonation was so vivid, almost like retelling the whole story.

Duan Changchuan was eating lotus seed soup with relish while listening.

Well, except for the small voice that didn’t quite match a storyteller’s, everything else was perfect. If he improved his voice, he could earn money outside.

He couldn’t help but ridicule, “You know the story so well, yet you claim you heard it from Zhang Dehai? It sounds like you went to listen for three days yourself.”

The little eunuch quickly pouted, feeling wronged, “This servant didn’t, I really heard it from Zhang Dehai. He went out for three days under the pretext of inquiring for Your Majesty. I can only listen to his recount and then relay it to Your Majesty.”

Duan Changchuan laughed and placed the bowl back on the table, “Then I have wronged you, my mistake … Quick get up.”

The little eunuch hurriedly lowered his head, “This servant is scared …”

“You mentioned the storyteller reached the part where I sent the Supreme Court to deal with the disaster, but discovered the plague and sent Elder Sun over?”

“Yes, he just reached the part about Elder Sun’s dispatch yesterday. I think today he will talk about how Elder Sun treated the plague in Huainan, but we’ll have to wait for Zhang Dehai to return to hear more.”

Speaking of Zhang Dehai, two days ago when Duan Changchuan was still on the road, Zhang Dehai and Nangong Jin’er came over at night to report that Bai Yanyuan had agreed to cooperate with the empress.

At the same time, they returned the token Duan Changchuan handed over to them in its original state. It turned out all of this was arranged by Bai Su … He was very touched at the time.

Later, Duan Changchuan sent Zhang Dehai to gather information on various factions outside the palace.

Zhang Dehai has been in the palace for more than a decade, so he’s the most suitable person for this task. This gave him the opportunity to go out and enjoy himself.

Thinking of this, the youth pursed his lips thoughtfully, “In that case, then let him continue to listen. At the same time, investigate the storyteller to see if there are any forces behind him. Listening to the direction of this story, they shouldn’t be an enemy.”

If it’s not an enemy, then it’s very likely to be an ally. But who this “ally” was remained unknown.

Hearing this, Chang Le hurriedly replied, “Yes, I will tell him tonight.”

As Chang Le spoke, his collar felt a little itchy so he casually scratched it. Moreover, he kept bending his body, and a small red mark under his neck was exposed.

It looked like a mosquito bite, but it wasn’t swollen, more like a dark red mark. It looked more like … a hickey?

Duan Changchuan was startled by the thought and quickly dismissed it: It shouldn’t be. Changle was with him every day, except for delivering messages, he had no contact with others.

Hmm, it might be a mosquito bite.

He sighed inwardly, “I’ve really been paranoid lately …”

–

While the master and servant were chatting, a knock on the door was heard, followed by Yiman’s low voice, “Your Majesty, the princess from the Regent’s Mansion requests an audience.”

The two of them looked at each other in surprise.

The princess of the Prince Regent’s Mansion … Duan Qinxue?

When it came to this young lady, Duan Changchuan was cold to her at first because of the Regent, but due to the Regent’s influence, he never showed it outwardly. Later, without any notice, the Empress Dowager arranged for the two to meet, and despite his reluctance, she insisted on matching them. This made him resent the young lady as well.

But a few days ago, he heard from Elder Huang that it was Duan Qinxue’s good nature that he urged her to go to the northwest border … This changed his view of her a little.

Forget it … Since Elder Huang vouched for her as the only good person among the many scumbags in the Regent’s household, there’s no harm in meeting her.

Thinking of this, Duan Changchuan put on his wide robe and ordered, “Let her in.”

Soon, the young lady in a light-yellow dress hurriedly entered the door as she spoke and knelt before the young emperor with a thud.

She directly kowtowed to Duan Changchuan, “Your Majesty … Qinxue has something to report … and, also a favor to ask!”

Even Duan Changchuan, who had seen many situations, was taken aback, “What is it that you need to report? Changle, help the princess up to speak.”

However, the girl kneeling on the ground bit her lower lip tightly and shook her head vigorously,
“Your Majesty, please let Qinxue speak while kneeling …”

Her voice was filled with uncontrollable sobs.

Chang Le half-knelt on the ground, was at a loss, looking to Duan Changchuan for guidance.

The young man waved his hand helplessly, “Very well. If you have something to say, say it first.”

Only then did Chang Le silently retreat.

After that, Duan Qinxue began to recount her story truthfully, “Qinxue heard that my father had lost his temper this morning, so I wanted to console him … only to find out he secretly sent my brother and sister-in-law to the plague-stricken area in Huainan. Recently, he heard about a woman named Bai who appeared in Huainan and made significant contributions to fighting the plague. He then had the malicious idea of sending my sister-in-law to replace her…”

As she spoke, she kowtowed deeply to Duan Changchuan and said, “Although Qinxue grew up in the northwest and lived in a barren land for more than ten years without much education, I can still distinguish right from wrong. Lady Bai saved the people from calamity and contributed greatly. Qinxue cannot allow such a righteous person to die due to my father’s political schemes … However, Qinxue is powerless. Therefore, I have come to report this to Your Majesty and beg for your protection of this meritorious person.”

Her words left Duan Changchuan in a brief silence.

Prime Minister Bai had completely revealed Duan Jingan’s intention to send his son and daughter-in-law to Huainan on the day he pledged allegiance to him. In the small locked drawer of his desk, there were even letters and evidence written by Prime Minister Bai.

However, he hadn’t expected Duan Qinxue to rush into the palace the moment she found out about this.

She didn’t even find out the cause and effect before directly reporting it to him.

“Do you realize the consequences of reporting this to me? Your father will face serious accusations: intending to kill a meritorious person, replacing them, deceiving the court and the people. Do you understand the gravity of this crime?” He questioned her sharply.

The girl who was kneeling on the steps was startled … and tears streaming down her face.

The first thing she said was, “Father, he … is really muddle-headed!”

She then knelt forward and moved to his feet, “Your Majesty, this is also what Qinxue is asking for … My father was muddle-headed and was blinded by political power … I beg Your Majesty to spare my father. Considering … for now … it has not yet resulted in a grave mistake … I beg Your Majesty to be lenient beyond the law …”

After saying that, he kowtowed three times at his feet.

[Lenient beyond the law …]

The girl kneeling on the ground cried until she was out of breath, but in Duan Changchuan’s mind, there were only the words ‘lenient beyond the law’.

He wanted to ask, “Lenient beyond the law for the Regent, then what about the countless people he harmed? The lives of the nobles, generals, and ministers were important, but were the lives of the tens of thousands of people in Datong not important?”

Was poverty really despicable?

But he knew the girl before him was too naive …

She didn’t know the full extent of her father’s schemes, nor the depth of his crimes on the court.

In her eyes, Duan Jing’an was merely a father momentarily blinded by ambition.

[Fine …]

The young man took a deep breath and swallowed back the words he wanted to say.

He gestured for Chang Le to help her up, “Alright, I won’t discuss your father’s crimes with you now… I’ll give you three days. Investigate further. After three days, whether you find more information or not, I will be here waiting for you. How does that sound?”

The young girl was confused at first, but she soon understood the meaning behind it. She kowtowed deeply to him again and said, “Yes … Thank you, Your Majesty. Qinxue will return in three days.”

After that, she left in a daze.