A group of ministers were all bewildered by the imperial censor's bold move.
Emperor Gengshi also glanced at Imperial Censor Yan with surprise before nodding at Wei Kun, "Present it."
The chief eunuch presented the letter submitted by Imperial Censor Yan, and everyone's hearts tightened. They all knew that few of them were completely clean while serving in the imperial court. But no one knew if the person beside them was colluding with the King of Qingzhou. Imperial Censor Yan's heavy hammer might just shatter the court, spilling blood among the officials.
Unexpectedly, after reading the letters, Emperor Gengshi made no relevant comments. Instead, he said in a surprisingly calm tone, "Alright, the King of Qin, the King of Rui, and the King of Xian shall remain in the palace to entertain the King of Qingzhou on my behalf. Everyone else may return to their posts and await summons from the palace." With one sentence, he dismissed everyone.
Lu Qingwan and Feng Xiwu were also sent to a side hall. Lu Qingwan was stunned, "What's going on? The Emperor knows the Lan and Fan families have already allied, yet he acts as if he knows nothing, allowing Grand Commandant Lan to retain his military power, and Fan Jiang making no significant moves. Is he that patient?"
Li Jin stood by the door. Li Yang and Ru Yue were guarding the entrance. Lu Qingwan was not afraid of eavesdropping, wanting only to clarify all the situations while the King of Qingzhou was entering the palace.
Feng Xiwu looked directly at Li Jin. The latter stepped forward to explain, "Your subordinate has investigated. After Your Highness and Her Highness left the palace yesterday, the Emperor did indeed fly into a rage at Empress Lan and Concubine Li, even ordering Ming Ji to be beaten to death. He even summoned the Grand Commandant and the Prime Minister into the palace. However, the Grand Commandant, upon entering the palace, reported the King of Qingzhou's impending arrival in the capital. Therefore, as of now, the Emperor has only placed Empress Lan and Concubine Li under house arrest in their respective palaces, forbidding them from seeing anyone from outside. Besides this, no punishment has been meted out to the Lan or Fan families."
Hearing Li Jin's explanation, Lu Qingwan understood. However, "The Grand Commandant controls the military and political affairs of Great Qin, and Fan Jiang holds the position of Prime Minister. They should have known about the King of Qingzhou's arrival in the capital long ago, right? How could it be such a coincidence that just as Emperor Gengshi was about to hold them accountable, Lan An reported the King of Qingzhou's imminent arrival?"
Feng Xiwu understood her meaning, "This can only mean that the Grand Commandant and the Prime Minister were also waiting for an opportunity, and the King of Qingzhou's rebellion is the opportunity they needed."
"Isn't that a coincidence? That's what I thought too," Lu Qingwan narrowed her eyes at him. "So, the Emperor, constrained by the unresolved threat of the King of Qingzhou's rebellion, has no choice but to endure, even if he intends to deal with the Lan and Fan families. And our Grand Commandant and Prime Minister likely want to stir up some trouble while the King of Qingzhou is rebelling?"
At this point, everyone's stance was transparent. It was just that for the moment, the two of them couldn't quite figure out what the Lan and Fan families intended to do by using the King of Qingzhou.
As they were contemplating, the door was pushed open. Li Qing walked in, bowed to them with a clenched fist, and then said with a complex expression, "Your Highness, Your Highness, news just came from the main hall. The King of Rui has been dispatched to entertain the King of Qingzhou along with the Crown Prince. The King of Xian has been ordered to assist the Grand Commandant in defending Zhongzhou. Furthermore, the Empress Dowager has summoned the families of the ministers into the palace. All the young masters and ladies are among them and have now gathered at Yangquan Palace."
The two of them stiffened slightly. Then, Lu Qingwan uttered a guess that she herself couldn't believe, "They, they wouldn't be planning to use the King of Qingzhou to eliminate Emperor Gengshi's two princes, would they?" After saying this, Lu Qingwan shook her head repeatedly, "Impossible, absolutely impossible. Si Fengchi, perhaps. Lan An, wanting to ascend himself, might use him as a stepping stone. But Si Fengqi..."
"The Lan family is too powerful. Si Fengqi is destined not to be emperor. Moreover, Emperor Gengshi is already suppressing the Lan and Fan families. But if Lan An were to ascend the throne, the Fan family would be newly appointed officials with the merit of assisting in the ascension. Knowing the entire process of Lan An's rise to power, the Fan family would be safe for at least three generations. Three generations of succession would be enough for the Fan family to completely reshuffle and re-establish themselves in Great Qin."
Lu Qingwan nodded blankly. She knew that the ultimate purpose of Feng Xiwu saying all this was that Lan An could sacrifice his grandson Si Fengchi for his ascent, and the Fan family could sacrifice Si Fengqi for their family's future.
"Too crazy!" Lu Qingwan knew that court struggles were always cruel, just like Emperor Jingyou and Lu Zhenting back then. Everyone was a victim of court struggles. But encountering such a situation again, she still found it hard to accept from the bottom of her heart.
"They are not only planning to use their own grandson as a stepping stone, but also to drag my imperial brother down with them." Feng Xiwu, being a victim of court struggles himself, was much calmer than Lu Qingwan in terms of emotions. "Si Fengchi and my imperial brother are entertaining the King of Qingzhou together, and Si Fengqi is defending Zhongzhou. If anything happens to them, my imperial brother, who is responsible for entertaining the King of Qingzhou, will not escape the charge of dereliction of duty. And if these two are unharmed, and my imperial brother dies at the hands of the King of Qingzhou, it will bring them nothing but benefit. A'wan, this time, not for Great Qin, but even for ourselves, we must not let the Zhongzhou Royal Army and the King of Qingzhou's soldiers clash. Even if both sides are going to fight, it cannot be when my imperial brother finds the King of Qingzhou."
Feng Xiwu's analysis was thorough, and Lu Qingwan understood that Si Fengming, by imperial decree, was responsible for entertaining the King of Qingzhou. If the King of Qingzhou caused trouble during this time, Si Fengming would be hard to escape blame. However, "But Emperor Gengshi summoned you and me into the palace, clearly intending to use us to threaten my imperial brother. He will not let you leave the palace. Are the arrangements at the Qingzhou border enough?"
Feng Xiwu shook his head, "If it is only to delay the King of Qingzhou for a while, it is acceptable for this king not to intervene. But if he wants to completely dispel the idea of rebellion, this king must intervene. Otherwise, Lan An and Fan Jiang will definitely force the King of Qingzhou to rebel. You know, if the King of Qingzhou does not rebel, they will be the ones to bear Emperor Gengshi's wrath."
Lu Qingwan nodded repeatedly, "I understand, but how could Emperor Gengshi possibly let you leave the palace?"
"He will," Feng Xiwu patted Lu Qingwan's shoulder. "Rest assured, and wait for my good news!" With that, he turned to leave. Lu Qingwan quickly grabbed his sleeve, "Whatever you plan to do, protect yourself. If I hear news of your death again, I won't wait for you."
"Don't worry, I won't give you the chance to remarry," he said with a flamboyant smile and strode out of the side hall. Lu Qingwan commanded Li Jin, "You and Li Yang must follow His Highness closely. I entrust his life to you." Li Jin, without a word, took the order and left. Li Qing and Ru Yue, who had been guarding the door, entered the room and silently accompanied Lu Qingwan.
The imperial palace was not as convenient as the outside. It was only after Feng Xiwu had left the palace that Lu Qingwan received the news. Frustrated, she gritted her teeth, "I should have brought a mouse into the palace earlier." Li Qing, hearing this, hesitated and then silently extended his hand, "Your Highness, is this acceptable?" Lu Qingwan looked in astonishment and saw a sparrow clutched in Li Qing's hand, its eyes rolling with difficulty.