Inside the study.
Shen Baozhu was playing with the little golden dragon. The emperor got straight to the point and told Prime Minister Sima that the secret letter was sent by Shen Qingshan. Along with the letter, there was also an account book. Moreover, Shen Qingshan clearly stated that both the letter and the account book were related to Xu Zeyuan.
Prime Minister Sima's mind went blank. He knelt straight on the ground on his knees. "Your Majesty! When the corruption case occurred back then, I was still serving in the Ministry of Justice. Xu Zeyuan was just a minor county magistrate. How could he have meddled in the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue?"
Due to the corruption case, the minister of the Ministry of Revenue was ransacked. Prime Minister Sima was transferred from the Ministry of Justice to be the minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Not long after, Shen Qingshan "retired to his hometown," and only then did Prime Minister Sima become the prime minister.
As for Xu Zeyuan, he was stubborn by nature and was not favored by the late emperor. He was demoted to be a minor county magistrate.
One was in the Ministry of Justice, and the other was a minor county magistrate in a remote area. This was simply a false accusation.
The minister of the Ministry of Justice also had a good relationship with Prime Minister Sima. He was quick - witted. "Your Majesty, perhaps it's Shen Qingshan who is playing the thief crying 'Stop thief!'."
Prime Minister Sima immediately echoed and pleaded for himself. "Yes, Your Majesty. I'm wronged. Shen Qingshan is deliberately framing me by taking advantage of my relationship with the Xu family!"
"What's the relationship between the prime minister and the Xu family?"
A childish voice suddenly came from the side. Prime Minister Sima subconsciously looked over, and a sense of unease rose in his heart.
The emperor explained, "The Xu family is an old acquaintance of Prime Minister Sima. Xu Yutang's great - grandfather had a very good relationship with Prime Minister Sima."
Shen Baozhu asked curiously, "Is it like the relationship between Sister Yutang's grandfather and the bad guy Chen Liang's grandfather?"
"Of course not!" Prime Minister Sima didn't care about the difference in status. His tone was urgent and hasty. "Brother Xu and I are good friends, real good friends!"
"How can it be the same as Xu Zeyuan and Chen Bumian? Ours is a brotherly bond, and theirs is love!"
The minister of the Ministry of Justice was first shocked, and then he got angry. "Prefect Xu has a fondness for men? And he still got married and had children? Isn't this ruining that poor girl?"
The Dragon King, who was on his way, almost fell from the sky when he heard this gossip.
So Chen Liang liked men. He took after his elders!
The minister of the Ministry of Justice reacted even more violently than Prime Minister Sima. The emperor kindly told Prime Minister Sima, "Xu Zeyuan's wife is from the same clan. Back then, he was able to go to school and pass the imperial examinations only because of the relief from Xu Zeyuan's father - in - law."
However, the provincial governor had passed away many years ago. His descendants didn't have the talent for reading, so they lived off the family property. Therefore, not many people knew about this relationship.
Involved with his own benefactor, the minister of the Ministry of Justice didn't care about Prime Minister Sima's old age and started to be sarcastic. "Prime Minister Sima knew that Xu Zeyuan had a fondness for men but still watched him harm that girl. What a great elder he is."
Prime Minister Sima wiped the sweat off his forehead. "The Xu family said that Xu Zeyuan was just curious for a while, but in his heart, he still liked women..."
The emperor poured a cup of tea for Shen Baozhu. The big one and the small one watched as the minister of the Ministry of Justice and Prime Minister Sima engaged in a war of words.
Qingyun the Real Man: [It's getting dark. Aren't you going home yet?]
Seeing this message, Shen Baozhu snapped out of watching the show. She tugged at the emperor. "Uncle Emperor, Baozhu should go home."
The emperor still wanted to persuade Shen Baozhu to stay in the palace, but Shen Baozhu still remembered the tonic pills at home and refused repeatedly.
Mentioning the tonic pills, the emperor didn't try to persuade Shen Baozhu anymore.
...
The Princess Mansion.
Chen Miaochun and the others were sitting together, waiting for Shen Baozhu to return home.
"After Baozhu entered the palace, Haiyan and I escorted the three people from the Xu family to the prison with the imperial guards and beat them until they knelt down and begged for mercy!" Yan Mingli leaned against Chen Miaochun, describing the scene vividly.
Originally, Chen Ruxia thought Yan Mingli was a good person and a good match for Chen Miaochun. But these days, she started to dislike Yan Mingli. As long as Chen Miaochun was in the mansion, he would always pester her, making the time for the two sisters to get along less and less.
Seeing Yan Mingli looking so proud, Chen Ruxia joked, "Really? How did you beat them? Where did you hit?"
Yan Mingli suddenly got stuck and started to stutter. He was busy collecting rent all day. At most, he was a bit stronger physically. He didn't know how to beat people at all. This time, it was Shen Haiyan who did the beating, and he just cheered on from the side.
Seeing Yan Mingli's discomfort, Chen Miaochun helped him out. "Okay, let's not talk about this. Yutang, are you okay?"
Xu Yutang was sitting alone in the corner, looking pale. After returning from the Xu family, she didn't even take a sip of water and just sat there in a daze.
Chen Miaochun called her several times. Xu Yutang looked up slowly, reacting sluggishly. "Huh?"
Everyone looked at each other. Chen Ruxia asked carefully, "Yutang, are you hungry?"
"I'm not hungry." Xu Yutang shook her head slowly.
At Chen Miaochun's signal, Yan Mingli walked a few steps to Xu Yutang. "Yutang, I'll buy you a mansion?"
Xu Yutang continued to shake her head. "No need. It's useless for me to have a mansion."
Chen Miaochun became even more worried. She pushed Yan Mingli away and sat next to Xu Yutang. "Yutang, one has to look forward..."
"But Xiaotao is gone." Xu Yutang's eyes were filled with tears, and the teardrops slid down her cheeks, breaking people's hearts.
Shen Haiyan coughed lightly. "Yutang, how about I take you back to your hometown? Maybe Xiaotao isn't dead."
"Didn't you say that your mother loved you very much and was afraid that the maid would mistreat you, so she deliberately chose a far - away place for the maid to live? Maybe she saved Xiaotao for you?"
These words successfully convinced Xu Yutang. She looked at Shen Haiyan with hope in her eyes. "Would my mother really do that?"
Seeing that Xu Yutang finally responded, everyone also looked at Shen Haiyan expectantly.
"Even if Xiaotao is dead, according to the rules of the Xu family, they definitely won't hold a memorial service or build a tomb for her. Can you bear to let Xiaotao be a lonely ghost?" Shen Haiyan patiently persuaded Xu Yutang.
Xu Yutang followed Shen Haiyan's words and thought about it. "No! I can't let Xiaotao be lonely!"
Shen Haiyan nodded and encouraged Xu Yutang. "That's right. We can't let Xiaotao be lonely. Let's go build a tomb for her first, burn some paper money for her, and then come back to do good deeds and accumulate merits in the hope that Xiaotao can have a good next life."
Xu Yutang's eyes gradually became firm. She still had a lot of things to do and mustn't waste time in a daze.
Even though Yan Mingli had seen Shen Haiyan's methods before, he couldn't help but sigh. As expected of Shen Heqing's younger brother. He was so smart!
"Third Brother! Sister Miaochun, Sister Ruxia, Sister Yutang, Brother Mingli, Baozhu is back!"
"Look at my new gift!"
As soon as Shen Baozhu entered the door, she activated the simulated launch of the little golden dragon and then threw herself into Shen Haiyan's arms.
Except for Shen Haiyan, everyone else was amazed by the colorful light and the little thing that they could see but couldn't touch.
Chen Miaochun even exclaimed that it was a miracle. Yan Mingli kept praising it and even wanted Shen Baozhu to lend it to him so that he could save on the cost of candles in the restaurant at night.
Only Shen Haiyan thought that although the colorful light was beautiful, it was a bit childish.
"Third Brother, quickly praise Baozhu's new gift!" Shen Baozhu wriggled in Shen Haiyan's arms.
Shen Haiyan praised, "It's very beautiful and matches Baozhu very well."