"Yes," Chen Pingping respectfully acknowledged the order.

"Those two female assassins, were they really from Si Gu Jian's school?"

"Yes."

The Emperor suddenly frowned and asked, "Wouldn't Si Gu Jian actually try to kill Fan's son for revenge?"

Chen Pingping respectfully replied, "A grandmaster of his generation always has some airs. He is currently in secluded training in the East Yi Sword Pit. As long as Fan Xian doesn't go to East Yi City himself, it should be fine. Moreover, this matter is being handled by your subject."

"Understood. We didn't finish those matters the night before yesterday; let's continue them today." The Emperor closed his eyes halfway to rest and asked, "You've dragged your feet for so long before returning to the capital. Even if you're not afraid of the censors submitting memorials, I have to consider the opinions of the subjects of the realm. I know you're being petulant and dissatisfied with the arrangements for him."

Chen Pingping gently rubbed the nail of his right ring finger, unsure whether it was out of nervousness or excitement, but his face, full of wrinkles, remained calm: "After this matter, it is estimated that the Prime Minister will hold a grudge. Although he will believe that Si Gu Jian was the one who acted, he will always think that his son died because of Fan's son. This marriage...let's just forget about it."

The Emperor quietly said, "It doesn't matter. Prince Jing has already entered the palace. I don't know why, but he likes that little guy very much. Don't look at him as if he doesn't care about anything, but if he really wants to protect someone, no one in this court would dare to move him. As for Lin Ruofu, he is a smart man. After Lin Gong's death, he should know who to trust. Twenty years later, there should be a truly smarter decision."

"Prince Jing?" Chen Pingping was somewhat surprised.

"Of course, he didn't recognize him, so he doesn't know where his affection for that little guy comes from." The Emperor sighed, "Perhaps everything is destiny."

It seemed that this sentence touched upon some long-standing pain, and the Emperor and his subject simultaneously fell into a taciturn silence.

Chen Pingping suddenly said, "Four years ago, I opposed it. Today, I still oppose this marriage."

The Emperor opened his eyes and looked at him, saying, "You are younger than I am, but you have worried yourself so much over the years that you have aged a lot. You should worry less about things in the future. These little fellows' affairs, where do they have the right to make you worry?"

Chen Pingping smiled and replied, "Once this matter is over, I will retire."

"What matter?"

"Your Majesty, the matter of that child."

The Emperor's tone became indifferent: "In order to leave his mother's things to him, I took so many detours, feigning to dote on Chen'er, bestowing upon her the title of Princess of the Commandery, letting this property serve as dowry, and then asking the Empress Dowager to bestow the marriage, only then could he rightfully obtain these things. I have taken great pains, so what dissatisfaction could you possibly have?"

"Your subject dares not." Chen Pingping knew very well that His Majesty had used many methods to allow Fan Xian to regain the Ye family's assets, and he said solemnly, "It's just that I always think, if I were to pass away one day, how should the Supervisory Council be handled? If the Council is handed over to an outsider, it would be a very dangerous thing."

Unlike the succession of imperial power, the Supervisory Council was a somewhat deformed existence, relying entirely on the Qing Kingdom Emperor's supreme trust in Chen Pingping, and on Chen Pingping's supreme loyalty to the Emperor. If Chen Pingping were to die, no matter who took over the Supervisory Council, it could have unimaginably terrible effects on the Qing Kingdom's political situation. Giving it to a courtier could create a powerful minister who threatened the imperial family, while giving it to a prince could create an overly powerful prince, affecting the succession to the throne.

The Emperor closed his eyes again, seemingly thinking about something: "You believe that I should hand over the Council to him?"

"That's right. Since that child is not an outsider, he naturally won't threaten the palace. However, his background also dictates that he cannot participate in the struggles of the Emperor's family, so he is best able to remain neutral." Chen Pingping slowly replied.

The Emperor seemed somewhat tempted: "Let me ponder over it. You should take good care of your health. You still have ten or twenty years to live. There's no need to rush this matter."

"Yes." Chen Pingping saw that today's objective had been achieved, respectfully bowed and withdrew. A palace maid in the distance saw him and came over to help him, walking towards the road outside the palace.

The Emperor stood up, closed his eyes for a long time, then suddenly opened them and watched the wheelchair heading out of the palace. He had never doubted Chen Pingping's loyalty to him, but he had always been somewhat apprehensive. Why was this old dog so nostalgic for that woman, sparing no effort to fight for all the power he could get for that child? Thinking of that child, a trace of tenderness suddenly flashed across the face of this supreme ruler, thinking that he had not seen him since he came to the capital, and that he should go and take a look sometime.

—————————————————————————————

The palace maid pushed the wheelchair out of the inner palace, and a guard took over, then slowly pushed it in the outer palace. When they reached the palace gate, the people from the Supervisory Council took over, helping the old Chen to get into the carriage. The carriage traveled forward on Zhuque Avenue, crushing the stone slabs, making a rhythmic sound, but it still had not left the inner city after a long time.

The road to the east city was very quiet. By this time, the sky was already half dark. The carriage made a turn diagonally and stopped in a secluded place, where another carriage was already waiting. The officials of the Supervisory Council and the guards beside that carriage did not seem familiar, but they tacitly left the carriages at the same time and scattered around, forming a relatively concealed defensive circle.

The two carriages were very close to each other. At the same time, the people in the carriages lifted the side curtains and looked at each other. It was Chen Pingping and Fan Xian's father, Fan Jian, the current Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Chen Pingping was very annoyed when he saw this righteous face: "While I was not in the capital, you coaxed His Majesty into finding a good marriage for your son!"

When Fan Jian saw him angry, he was neither frightened nor nervous, and replied with a slight smile, "Four years ago, you ruined my affair, and I'm just trying to fix it now."

Chen Pingping coldly said, "What's so commendable about getting a pile of stinky money?"

Fan Jian shook his head and said, "Money is the most important thing. Don't forget that when the Council was first established, if it weren't for Xian'er's mother, you would have been eating the northwest wind."

"Today's Internal Treasury is no longer the Ye family of the past. If your Fan family takes over, I'm afraid you'll be in a terrible mess. The Emperor forced the Lin family to recognize an illegitimate daughter because he wanted you and the Prime Minister to be able to get along peacefully, and also for future consideration. Otherwise, what kind of statement would it be if people knew that a princess of the commandery married a prince?" Chen Pingping sneered, "Listen to my advice, cancel this marriage. It's good for both you and him."

"You think I don't know what you're planning." Fan Jian frowned and said, "You have always believed that the Eldest Princess is related to the events of that year, but after so many years, you have not found any evidence."

"It's not just this reason." Chen Pingping said with a cold face, "Even if His Majesty feels indebted to him, think about it, if His Majesty really listened to you and returned the Ye family to him, what would happen to the Council? His Majesty is ambitious and talented, and he will absolutely not allow anyone in the world to control these two national treasures at the same time, not even him."

Fan Jian frowned even more: "Since you know this, why are you still letting my son get involved in these things? Wouldn't it be better for him to be a wealthy man?"

"Is it so easy to be a wealthy man?"

"With you and me in the capital, and the Eldest Princess having learned a lesson, the next few years should be very peaceful."

Chen Pingping coldly said, "Don't forget that your...son, was almost killed a month ago."

Fan Jian stared into his eyes: "This is my negligence, and it's also your problem. If you hadn't been sulking and not returning, there wouldn't have been these disturbances in the capital."

Chen Pingping quietly said, "If your son had died like this, would you and I need to be so careful?"

...

...

After a moment of silence, Fan Jian opened his mouth and said, "In this matter, the price I paid is much greater than yours, so if there is no way to choose between the two sides, I hope you respect my opinion." Chen Pingping thought for a while and agreed with the other party's statement. As the saying goes, "It's a waste of words to talk to someone who doesn't understand." Fan Jian coldly put down the car curtain, gave an order, and the two carriages parted ways.

The night enveloped the imperial city. In this ink-like background, people gathered together for interests, and some gathered for ideas, and then they often separated because of the same two words, only waiting for a certain day and a certain coincidental reason to come together again. At the foot of the imperial city, beside the tall vermilion palace walls, a sedan chair slowly moved along, followed by a few attendants in the distance. The imperial guards at the palace gate in the distance saw this sedan chair walking around the palace walls, but no one stepped forward to ask questions.

That was the Prime Minister's sedan chair, and this was the Prime Minister's habit. Whenever the Qing Yu Nian Kingdom fell into some kind of problem, he would always have people carry his sedan chair around the palace walls. Some people said that he was thinking about problems in a solemn and quiet environment, while those who despised the Prime Minister believed that this strange habit showed some kind of morbid fanaticism for power. In the second year of the Qingli reign, the great river in the south flooded. The Prime Minister was sitting in a sedan chair and circled the palace walls many times. The next day, he submitted a memorial, detailing the division of labor and processes for disaster relief, with clear and powerful details. However, on the most crucial issue of silver and money, there was a shortage. The Ministry of Revenue was somewhat unable to support itself. At this time, several large sums of overseas trade silver were credited to the Internal Treasury, providing a dangerous guarantee for the Prime Minister's plan, and His Majesty was overjoyed.

People often say that the Prime Minister is a treacherous minister, judging by his mansion. The Prime Minister is a capable minister, judging by the realm. But whether he is a treacherous minister or a capable minister, in certain specific times, he will always return to the most primitive role, such as a father. Today, the Prime Minister was "strolling" around the palace walls in his sedan chair, and no one dared to disturb him, precisely because everyone knew that his second son had died and the adult was in a bad mood.

The night was gradually deepening, and red candle lanterns were lit in the palace. The faint yellow light spilled over from the high walls, but the palace walls were still pitch black. The sedan chair slowly walked to a secluded side of the palace wall, and a lantern swayed from far away, coming towards them. Only when it got closer did they understand that it was also a sedan chair.