Su Xiaoqi realized she had been overthinking.
She had only considered the plot of the original novel and hadn't taken the current court situation into account, making her judgment too hasty.
She should have made her judgment based on the current court situation.
However, she was not involved in officialdom and was not very clear about the political maneuvering within the court.
Therefore, she couldn't offer much advice.
She could only rely on Shen Yun himself.
She was merely reminding Shen Yun based on her own experience.
Shen Yun actually understood what Su Xiaoqi meant.
Seeing her worried expression, he knew that if he didn't explain things clearly today, she wouldn't be able to let it go.
He said, "Wang Enze is different from his father."
Although Wang Enze had many ideas, he still had basic principles.
No matter how much he desired power, he wouldn't let himself and his family fall into crisis.
Although Prince Zhou had high support in the court now, it was mostly from the old aristocratic families supporting him.
In reality, few of the truly powerful people in the court, like those in the Grand Secretariat, favored him.
After all, compared to those aristocratic families, the ones actually doing the work were the people in the Grand Secretariat.
"Ai, it's as husband says. I don't understand any of these matters," Su Xiaoqi said, seeing that Shen Yun had a plan and not saying anything further.
Meanwhile, Wang Enze, who was investigating, sneezed violently.
Mo Wen, his attendant, asked worriedly, "Young Master, did you catch a cold last night?"
Wang Enze glared at him, "It's June, and it's so hot that I'm sweating just sitting here. You say I caught a cold? A cold my foot."
Mo Wen was reprimanded and dared not speak. He wiped the sweat from his forehead. Indeed, it was quite hot.
Especially in this underground dark prison, which was not well-ventilated and stifling.
Wang Enze scanned the interrogation records, all of which were about Prince Zhou.
It stated that relatives of Prince Zhou's concubines, claiming to be legitimate relatives of Prince Zhou, had led the forceful enclosure of land in the suburbs.
It also mentioned that the matter of Prince Zhou managing the grain transportation had been exposed.
He had sold the intact grain and replaced it with spoiled, moldy grain from other granaries.
He had made a difference of 100,000 taels this way.
And that grain was meant to be transported to the battlefields in the western and northern regions.
One could imagine what the situation would be like for the frontier troops in the military camps if they ate that grain.
"Bang..." Wang Enze was furious.
Prince Zhou was too detestable.
He had forgotten how the Northern Di often harassed the borders of Da Liang, allowing cavalry to burn, kill, and loot, and slaughter the people of Da Liang.
How long had it been since then, that he dared to target the army's grain?
And then there was the matter of arbitrarily abducting young girls from the common people into his residence and wantonly abusing them...
One by one, where was the slightest bit of responsibility of a ruler of a nation?
Wang Enze, angered, threw down the dossier and ordered Mo Wen behind him to copy it exactly as it was and return to the mansion immediately.
When he arrived home, Wang Cheng Yi happened to be in the study.
He was admiring a paperweight carved into a pixiu from a piece of glass-like, icy-bottomed jade.
Wang Enze entered the room with his anger boiling, and Wang Cheng Yi was very surprised.
His son was very much like him.
He had always been expressionless, rarely showing his anger so directly on his face.
"What's wrong?" Wang Cheng Yi asked calmly.
Wang Enze said, "Father, I've come to show you something."
He immediately took out the dossier copied by Mo Wen about Prince Zhou's wrongdoings and let Wang Cheng Yi see it for himself.
Wang Cheng Yi only glanced at it without reaching out to take it, shaking his head, "What is this? No gold is pure, and no man is perfect."
In this court, among hundreds or thousands of officials, who dared to say they were innocent?
That they had committed no wrongdoing?
As long as a person held power, they would think of seeking personal gain.
Prince Zhou, as a prince, held great power and could mobilize more resources, so it was hard to avoid him having some thoughts.
After all, if one does not act for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them.
"Father, it's one thing for him to indulge his concubine's family in land enclosures.
But the army's grain concerns the safety of the frontier troops. How could he reach out and touch it?"
Wang Enze knew the saying, "Water that is too clear has no fish."
He just disliked that Prince Zhou was so selfish that he completely disregarded the foundation of Da Liang and began to tamper with the frontier troops' grain.
If a war were to break out, this would be the ruin of Da Liang's foundation.
Wang Cheng Yi then cast a glance at it and began to read it seriously.
By the end, he didn't slam his hand on the table but sighed heavily.
"Sigh!" Truly, wood that cannot be carved cannot be used, and young people who cannot be taught cannot be taught!
"Father, why don't we..." Wang Enze tried to persuade Wang Cheng Yi to switch support to Prince Chen.
But Wang Cheng Yi refused.
"Prince Chen is shrewd and capable. There is no place for my son and me with him," Wang Cheng Yi had to consider himself more.
As he was in his position, many things were beyond his control.
Once they changed their allegiance, let alone whether the other party would accept them.
They themselves would not be able to extricate themselves.
"But Father, I, I don't want to!" Wang Enze turned his head away.
He rarely argued with his father about court matters.
From the beginning, they were a father-son unit on the battlefield, never having disagreements.
But after seeing Prince Zhou's crimes,
He felt that if they continued to support him, they would be fostering the rise of a tyrant.
It would not only destroy them but also the Da Liang dynasty.
Unfortunately, he could not persuade his father.
He was even asked to keep silent about these matters, and even asked to find ways to help Prince Zhou cover them up.
Wang Enze, full of helplessness, could only suppress those thoughts and go out to drink in frustration.
Those who had been keeping an eye on Wang Enze sent the news to Shen Yun.
He sneered upon hearing it and secretly thought, hoping Wang Enze wouldn't choose the wrong path.
He did not wish to become his enemy.
Meanwhile, Shen Yun continued his busy work.
After Su Xiaoqi rested, she first went to see Madam Zhao.
Madam Zhao did not yet know Yu Jing's identity. She only knew that someone who needed medical treatment had come to the house.
She was staying in the front courtyard.
She had been curious for a long time, but Su Xiaoqi had been extremely busy for the past two days, so she hadn't had a chance to ask.
Now, she finally got her chance.
As soon as she arrived, she asked, "Xiaoqi, who is that person?"
"She is my birth mother!" Su Xiaoqi said, word by word.
Madam Zhao's eyes widened, and she almost dropped the teacup in her hand.
"Your mother, you found your mother." Madam Zhao was shocked and then filled with immense joy.
She immediately got up to go see her.
Su Xiaoqi did not stop her.
Because at this moment, she believed that Yu Jing would also want to meet Madam Zhao.
She led Madam Zhao to Yu Jing's room in the front courtyard.
There was already a slight noise from inside.
It was Mama Yu feeding Yu Jing, who was leaning against a pillow, millet porridge.
She hadn't eaten much for the past three days.
Now that her body was better, she had an appetite.
She finished a bowl of millet porridge with a plate of stir-fried potato shreds with vinegar.
"Mother," Su Xiaoqi stepped forward to wipe her mouth and introduced Madam Zhao to her.
Yu Jing looked up at the woman in front of her, who appeared to be about fifty years old, and was momentarily stunned.
Was this Madam Zhao, Shen Yun's mother?
As far as she knew, she was only forty years old.
She seemed to have aged too quickly.
It was evident that she had suffered a lot in her youth.
But she was tidy and refreshed.
Her smile was gentle, and her face was kind, making her seem very approachable.
Moreover, although she had not visited due to her physical suffering during her stay here, Mama Yu by her side had inquired a lot about her.
After all, as a mother of a daughter, facing her married daughter, the people she cared about most, besides her son-in-law, were her daughter's mother-in-law.
Especially in a place where one had to report to the mother-in-law in the morning and evening, and be called to set rules at any moment. She expressed great concern for her daughter.
However, the information Mama Yu had gathered indicated that Madam Zhao was a very good person.
She was kind and amiable, and treated Xiaoqi like her own daughter.
She had never been angry with Xiaoqi for any reason.
Nor had she ever spoken to her in a loud voice.
In any case, even her birth mother would be no more than this.
Although Yu Jing felt uncomfortable hearing this,
It was the truth, and upon reflection, she felt relieved.
She had lost this daughter for seventeen years.
Now that she had found her, even though she was already married,
Knowing that her husband was good and her mother-in-law was good, she could truly be at ease.
Yu Jing supported herself to sit up and enthusiastically reached out to hold Madam Zhao's hand, calling out, "Sister-in-law."
Madam Zhao looked at Yu Jing, who was lying on the bed recuperating.
Although her complexion was somewhat pale, her features were exquisite, her skin fair, and her bearing noble. Even without knowing her identity, she was certainly very distinguished.
She thought to herself, how should she behave in front of such a relative?
She never expected the other party to call her "Sister-in-law" so gently.
Her fear and panic instantly dissipated, and a gentle smile appeared on her face as she looked at Yu Jing, and she softly replied, "Hello, Sister-in-law!"