In the dead of night, the autumn wind whistled. Li Ziqi slumped to the ground. A white figure perched on his sedan chair. He saw it clearly.
It was none other than Fan Renmei!
"Dear Li, how cruel you are! Why did you harm me?"
The sobbing voice of the white figure pierced Li Ziqi's heart. "Harm you? You were just too pushy!"
"I've done so much for you, almost sacrificing my whole life. How could you be so heartless?" Fan Renmei's voice was faint and unreal.
Li Ziqi smelled a strange fragrance and gradually fell into madness. "Hahaha! Who asked you to do it?"
"Who asked you to blackmail me with fake banknotes?" Then, like a possessed evil spirit, Li Ziqi rambled on, exposing all the dirty secrets of the Minister of War's mansion.
Finally, he went crazy and tried to catch Fan Renmei. "I'll kill you!"
"Even in death, do you want me to be buried with you?"
Tears welled up in Fan Renmei's eyes. So in his heart, she was just a lowly actress.
She regretted that she had once fallen head - over - heels into the love net he had woven and done so many wrong things for him.
She had printed fake banknotes and used various opportunities such as performing on stage and receiving rewards to exchange for silver, which helped his father and him get promoted and make fortunes.
She had thought that her efforts would be reciprocated. But in the end, it was all in vain!
Zhongli Mingye and the Prefect of the Capital walked out together. Li Ziqi was still lost in the illusion.
"Take him away!"
Song Jinyu walked out. "Even though much of the evidence has been destroyed, with the testimony of Young Master Li and the eyewitness account of Miss Fan, the Minister of War's mansion can't escape the law."
Zhongli Mingye gently hugged her. "Thanks to you, my love. The Soul - charming Powder is really useful." Then he whispered in her ear, "Did you also give this powder to me?"
"… How could I?"
"Then... why am I so infatuated with you?" Since he met Song Jinyu, no other woman had ever caught his eye. If it wasn't the Soul - charming Powder, what could it be?
"Fine! I not only gave you the Soul - charming Powder but also the Heart - breaking Powder!" Song Jinyu gave him a reproachful look. "Go and get busy!"
The rest of the matter was just a matter of tying up loose ends.
If they dug deeper into the big fish and small fry in this net, it might cause quite a stir in the court.
Her prince would be busy for some days.
Zhongli Mingye hugged her. "It's my greatest fortune to have you!"
The banknote case involved many people. All the adult men of the Li family, the Minister of War's family, were beheaded, and the opera troupe was completely razed.
Fan Renmei was no exception.
"Actresses can corrupt the country. Such an end is not unjust," Zhongli Mingye said to Song Jinyu when talking about this. "At least they can be a ghost couple."
Song Jinyu sighed. Fan Renmei's experience was even more extraordinary than the stories in the scripts. "It's a pity about Li Zichao."
She opened her mouth, wanting to ask about the Prince of Pingnan that Li Ziqi had mentioned that day, but Zhongli Mingye didn't give her the chance. "When this matter is over, I'll ask for leave."
"In autumn, the fruits in the manor are all ripe, and there are also fat crabs." His words made Song Jinyu yearn for it. She excitedly started to plan the trip and completely forgot about this case.
Zhongli Mingye was happy to see her so excited.
The day before, when the Prince of Pingnan knelt in front of him and begged for mercy, Zhongli Mingye only put forward one requirement.
"The candidate for the Minister of War should be decided early."
Some things didn't need to be said clearly. Smart people would understand! Military power was of utmost importance!
The banknote case not only cleared the moths in the court but also brought him other gains. He looked at Song Jinyu thoughtfully.
She probably knew it all.
After Rong Shuang'er heard the news that the opera troupe was abolished, the three of them gathered at the Prince Yu's Mansion again. "It's really a pity. She was such a beautiful woman."
He Yi also sighed. "She was really good at singing opera."
Song Jinyu smiled faintly. Was Fan Renmei really dead? She might have been saved by someone, for she knew many secrets of the officials.
It would be a pity not to make good use of such a person.
Zhongli Mingye didn't say, and she didn't need to ask. Even if she knew the truth, it would only add to her troubles.
Many years ago, by chance, the Li father and son met an official in charge of the national treasury and banknote printing. They had evil intentions. After getting him drunk, they stole one of the printing molds. Then they found a descendant of Lu Ban to make an identical one and returned it the next day.
The official was timid and pretended that nothing had happened.
More than a year later, seeing that no one knew about it, the Li father and son printed a large number of banknotes and exchanged them for silver. To cover their tracks, they used Fan Renmei's performances to clean the source of the silver.
Such a money - embezzlement case in the capital naturally enraged the emperor. For a while, almost no relevant official in the court could escape punishment.
At first, they were just playing around, but later Li Ziqi became more and more greedy. He printed many large - denomination banknotes, which attracted the attention of the court.
Then Song Jinyu noticed something unusual and exposed the case.
He Yi frowned. "In the future, we won't be able to see such wonderful operas anymore." Rong Shuang'er laughed. "Even without Fan Renmei, there will be Chen Renmei."
"Actresses and famous singers can still rise to prominence as long as they work hard."
Song Jinyu thought so. Thinking of the people behind Fan Renmei, she suspected that the royal family might be involved. Otherwise, no matter how bold Li Ziqi was, he wouldn't have dared to do such a thing so openly.
Sure enough, the waters in the capital were deep. Compared with this, the Jianghu was nothing!
When the queen heard the news, her hand trembled. There was a slight shock on her face, but it soon returned to calm. Since the emperor had made a conclusion, this matter wouldn't involve the crown prince.
Li Ziqi had not only bribed his father, the minister.
Ming Ruyi was playing chess with Zhongli Mingye, fanning himself. "Your princess is really smart. It's hard to imagine that she could notice something different from such an ordinary thing."
"She has always been meticulous. However, Uncle, you must keep this a secret."
"Why? Princess Jinyu has made great contributions to the banknote case and should be rewarded." Ming Ruyi knew in his heart that Zhongli Mingye might have other plans.
Zhongli Mingye calmly placed a chess piece. "I don't want her to be the target of everyone's arrows."
"As long as I'm here, she can live well without rewards."
"Tsk tsk, you're a real wife - protector. There's no one like you in the world." Although Ming Ruyi was quite jealous, he had to admit that Zhongli Mingye really doted on Song Jinyu.
"What about Fan Renmei?"
"Uncle, you should break through one by one according to the names in this booklet. You'll surely have good results!"
After saying the last word, Zhongli Mingye bowed. "I'm flattered!"
Ming Ruyi was stunned on the spot. Without realizing it, he had actually lost?
What a divine couple they were! Their schemes were so well - planned that they could easily control the whole situation.
Gradually, Ming Ruyi gave up his intention to target Zhongli Mingye. He shook his head. This nephew was far more complicated than he thought.