Since Hua Zhi did not hide it, the maids no longer had to worry about anything. They wiped their tears secretly and began to serve carefully.
Without thinking about it, he pressed Hua Zhi down on the bed and fell asleep, not caring about applying medicine or doing anything else. When the Fourth Madam came back with the news, all she could see was the wounds that had just been covered with medicine.
Not to mention how sad they were here, Gu Yanxi was far from relaxed. As soon as he returned to the capital, he went straight to the imperial study in his identity as a sword-bearing guard of the Imperial Guard.
The emperor was discussing matters with several old men. When he saw him, he said, "This time, the disaster relief will not go through the six ministries and local officials. I will appoint someone to be in charge of this matter. Tell those who are waiting to stretch out their claws that if they dare to use any means under my nose, I don't mind chopping them all off."
Several old ministers were all startled and responded in unison.
"I will see the rules tomorrow, please leave."
"Yes, I will take my leave."
After all the annoying people left, the emperor, who was becoming more and more moody, finally smiled sincerely, "You're back? Just in time to have dinner with me."
Lai Fu listened carefully and bowed, then stepped back to prepare.
Gu Yanxi stepped forward and saluted, "I pay my respects to His Majesty."
"Okay, sit down and talk." The emperor looked at his nephew's unremarkable face, "Change your face back."
Gu Yanxi tore off the human skin mask with such force that the emperor felt pain on his face just watching.
"Your Majesty, I have confirmed two things during my visit to Yinshan Pass."
Two things? The emperor raised his eyelids, "Besides the remnants of the Chaoli tribe around the boss, what else is there?"
"The Chaoli tribe has colluded with the grassland tribe."
The emperor's expression froze, and his body leaned forward slightly. "The Chaoli tribe is colluding with the grassland tribe?"
"Yes." Gu Yanxi explained the situation he had found out in detail. "The troops at Yinshan Pass are not enough to stop them. I promised Wu Yong that I would transfer at least 50,000 troops from other places. In addition, I asked Wu Yong to divide Yinshan Pass into two cities, the inner and outer cities. The outer city will be used as a barracks, and all other people who have nothing to do with it will be moved to the inner city. This will minimize the tying of Wu Yong's hands and feet. I acted without permission, please punish me, Your Majesty."
As he spoke, Gu Yanxi was about to kneel down and apologize.
"Sit down." The emperor stopped him, "I will go back and tell Wu Yong about the imperial edict."
The Qishusi had always done things like executing first and reporting later. This was a power given to them by emperors of all dynasties, but the Qishusi had never deceived their superiors or subordinates. Whenever such a situation occurred, they would write a letter to explain the matter in detail, and then the emperor would add an edict.
Do not underestimate this supplementary decree. Without it, all other actions would be unjustified and the emperor would not need to find a reason to do so.
Then Gu Yanxi explained Gu Chengde's situation.
The emperor looked at this boy who always managed to hold his nerve, "I am beginning to doubt whether the Chaoli tribe is really depopulated. Look how many people have been found out. If you continue to investigate, even if you find out that I am from the Chaoli tribe, I will believe it."
"Things are not that bad." Gu Yanxi looked at the emperor who was not sure whether he was mocking him or others, "I think the Chaoli tribe might be jumping up and down right now."
"What do you mean?"
"Whether it's the concubines and palace maids around you, the aunt around the third princess, or the fake eunuch around the eldest prince, they all chose to attack people in the royal family. Not to mention Yuan Shifang, I'm afraid the entire Chaoli clan can only raise such a person. These days, I have focused on investigating the other eight stewards. Although they all have some problems, there is no problem with their identities."
The emperor was too lazy to ask what some of the problems were. He knew very well what kind of people the officials were like. Since Yan Xi had endured it, it meant that it was still within the range of tolerance. If he had really done something wrong, he would have submitted a memorial to remove his official hat.
Gu Yanxi continued, "I have already ordered people to investigate the people around the royal family. Once the results come out, we will have a clear answer to this matter."
Isn't there a result? The emperor curled his lips. If a few people can be rescued from the royal family, then the people from the Chaoli tribe who sneaked in will not be a small number. If those cats and dogs are cleaned up, then it will be just as Yan Xi said, and the Chaoli tribe will probably be furious.
However, the emperor did not feel relieved. "There are floods in the south and droughts in the north. The Chaoli tribe is pressing forward step by step and is likely to make a comeback. Should I issue an edict of guilt?"
Gu Yanxi was silent.
The emperor didn't care and smiled gently. His increasingly old face showed some kindness. "I went to Fengxian Hall the other day and thought carefully about my life in front of all my ancestors. I found that although I didn't do anything bad to ruin my ancestors' foundation, I didn't do anything good either. I have lived a life of nothing. If I were an ordinary citizen, I would have starved to death long ago."
"You are the Son of Heaven."
Yes, the Son of Heaven, so even if he has accomplished nothing, he can still enjoy all the wealth and honor in the world, and he can make anyone live and die as he pleases, but he himself will also die!
The emperor's face twisted for a moment, then returned to its previous state in the blink of an eye. "Go ahead and investigate. I will take care of everything. You can deal with Gu Chengde yourself. Since he has been demoted to a commoner, he is no longer eligible to enter the palace. I don't want to see him."
"Yes." Seeing that his uncle was not going to continue speaking from the bottom of his heart, Gu Yanxi let out a long sigh without leaving a trace. No matter how close they were, he could not bear to hear the emperor's true feelings.
"The Tong family has been exterminated, and the second son has been imprisoned until his death. Even if the new emperor ascends the throne and grants amnesty to the world, it will have nothing to do with him." The emperor's eyes flashed coldly, "My blessing will not protect him."
"I obey your order."
"There is also Zeng Xian." The emperor looked at his nephew with a softer look in his eyes. "Since you brought his case to me, you are planning to overturn his conviction. I have approved it. The Ministry of Justice will review the case and will not let anyone involved in the case off lightly. Are you satisfied?"
"Your Majesty is wise. I will bring Zeng Xian's son Zeng Han back to the capital and have someone write a letter of apology for him and submit it to the Ministry of Justice."
The emperor nodded at him, feeling angry and amused, but in his heart he felt extremely relieved. There is no order without rules, and this is especially true for the Seven Stars Division. If Yan Xi was really the kind of person who didn't know his place because he regarded him with special favor, he would not give him these privileges.
Lai Fu came in just in time to report, "Your Majesty, dinner is ready."
"Come on, accompany me for dinner." The meal was placed in the side hall. Gu Yanxi had something on his mind, so he asked as he walked over, "Is there a severe flood in the south? Has the dike in Xiangyang burst?"
"You don't know?"
"Yes, I came directly to the Imperial Study when I returned."
The emperor nodded, feeling more satisfied. "Thanks to your previous preparations, Xiangyang didn't burst at the cost of Lingzhou, but the entire south was soaked by rain for a month. The extent of the disaster is the largest since I ascended the throne. The money required for disaster relief for such a large disaster is not a small amount. I don't intend to give them a chance to ask for it. You can give me a few reliable candidates later."
"Yes, I obey your order."
PS: I had an inexplicable reaction to the medicine, and the second chapter is not well written. I will post it tomorrow after I revise or rewrite it.