Cheng Bei Zheng looked sternly at his sister, "Jiao Jiao, you must understand that in all those hero-saves-the-beauty scenarios, the hero is the biggest scoundrel. You can't let the Young Duke trick you."
Cheng Jiao Jiao was speechless, "Third Brother, don't talk nonsense. The Young Duke has any woman he wants, why would he need such a cheap trick to fool me? Besides, heroes save beauties to chat them up. The Young Duke and I already know each other."
"You're actually defending him?"
"Isn't it Third Brother who's being unreasonable?"
"In any case, you should stay away from that womanizing bachelor. Old men have too many tricks, don't let him fool you."
"Third Brother, the Young Duke was kind enough to help me drive away thugs, yet you badmouth him behind his back. How will I face him later?"
Cheng Bei Zheng's eyes widened, "Why would you see him?"
Cheng Jiao Jiao: "......He helped me, shouldn't I give him a return gift to express my gratitude?"
"I'll handle such matters. You just stay home honestly from now on," Cheng Bei Zheng said forcefully. Fearing that being too firm might make Jiao Jiao rebellious, he softened his tone, "Jiao Jiao, be good. The Young Duke is not suitable for you."
Cheng Jiao Jiao: "......Forget it, as long as you're happy."
Anyway, there was nothing between her and the Young Duke.
The Imperial Palace
After Ji Jin finished checking the Emperor's pulse, he quietly retreated to the side to write his notes. He used the wings of a Gu insect as medicine, specifically for headaches. By chance, he was lucky to have encountered the Emperor's illness.
Naturally, such medicine could not be given directly to the Emperor. Ji Jin had spent a long time experimenting. Fortunately, the Emperor's illness had led to strong support for his Gu worm breeding and even provided him with patients suffering from headaches to practice on, with significant results.
The Emperor, tormented by headaches, did not directly use Ji Jin's medicine but began to frequently summon him for pulse checks.
Ji Jin actually preferred to dedicate himself to researching his beloved little Gu worms, but he had no choice. Even within the Imperial Medical Academy, without the Emperor's support, he could at best study ancient texts and could not access precious medicinal materials. Things were different now; as long as he didn't go too far, he could access a variety of rare medicinal herbs from all over the palace.
Therefore, the Emperor's illness had to be cured, as it was directly related to the unimpeded progress of his future research.
"Your Majesty, Prince Ning requests an audience," Li Fu Rui's voice echoed. His hand holding the brush paused, and a beautiful face involuntarily appeared in his mind.
If she really killed Prince Ning, it would be troublesome for the authorities to track it back to him. However, it wouldn't matter. As long as there was no intimacy, the poison wouldn't affect Prince Ning. He would just administer a drug to make Prince Ning impotent. He figured that compared to his life, Prince Ning wouldn't mind a minor physical ailment.
Prince Ning entered and paid his respects to Emperor Chang Wu. The Emperor waved his hand, "What business do you have?"
"Father Emperor, this son heard that you have appointed Meng Chang Dong as the new Director of the Bureau of Silver Affairs."
"What, do you have an opinion?"
"This son would not dare. It is just that this position has better candidates." Saying this, he presented a memorial, "Please examine it, Father Emperor."
On it was the person he recommended, whom he believed to be far superior to this Meng Chang Dong in all aspects.
Emperor Chang Wu's headache had just begun to subside, and he was very impatient. He waved his hand, "No need, the order has been issued."
Prince Ning's heart sank. His Father Emperor must have felt pity for Situ Yan after he had donated a mine, and thus compensated him with the position of Director of the Bureau of Silver Affairs. After all, in such a position, how much could one embezzle? If he had known, he would have gritted his teeth and donated a mine. It was all the Jian family's fault for being so stingy and only contributing eight thousand taels of silver, not even outperforming Situ Sheng.
He conjured a pile of thoughts, completely unaware that a small object had already been attached to him.
The Crown Prince returned to the capital, but Situ Yan began studying a map of Shanxi. He paid particular attention to Tong Lin County, where Chihuo Village was located.
Lu Nian Fu saw him studying the map without avoiding her, realizing that his trip to Shanxi was unavoidable. Seeing him start to sketch on the map with a brush, she went over to help him grind ink, "Know yourself and your enemy, and you will win a hundred battles. Would you like to invite Third Young Master to your residence? He can tell you more about the situation in Shanxi."
"No need. Merchants and soldiers have vastly different perspectives, and his information would likely be useless. Father Emperor has already sent Meng Chang Dong to be the Director of the Bureau of Silver Affairs, and he will scout the route in advance."
"Father Emperor has agreed to let you suppress bandits?"
"The imperial court cannot let that three hundred thousand tons of yellow copper be lost in vain."
"After so long, it is likely that all that copper has been consumed."
"It's alright. If we suppress a few more bandit nests, we can always make up for it with other things." Situ Yan's eyes sparkled, "Suppressing bandits is the fastest way to make money."
Lu Nian Fu: ......
In the end, who was the bandit?