Drive a RV and go farming in ancient times.

The gossip about the eldest prince's mansion, due to the intervention of someone with ulterior motives, spread widely and became known to everyone. The eldest prince became an object of sympathy, and Concubine Meng's reputation was almost ruined. Not to mention being promoted to the position of legitimate wife, not rewarding her with a white silk was considered a sign of loyalty and righteousness by the royal family.

Concubine Meng was also very interesting. Although she attempted suicide several times, she managed to survive every time. However, she no longer had the glory and confidence to dominate the harem as before.

From beginning to end, the eldest prince just watched coldly. Even though he was jealous, he did not ask anyone to find a way to clarify it and just let everyone watch the fun.

Such self-debasement will certainly damage his reputation, but from another perspective, it may be a means of saving his life. In this way, those officials who had originally tried to please him are somewhat discouraged.

After all, for a prince like this, the possibility of seizing the throne is really worrying.

At night, the couple met again. Gu Huanxi talked about these things and concluded, "The eldest prince's actions don't seem like he is going to fight for the throne. It's more like he is just playing badly. Originally, when he came back from the imperial mausoleum and had the support of the Pingyuan Earl's Mansion, many officials were ready to make a move. But now that this has happened, who would dare to invest in him? He can't even handle the inner quarters properly. With this ability... can he be a rival to other princes?"

Xu Huaiyi leaned back on the sofa and said lazily, "He has figured out Emperor Jianxing's intentions. He doesn't want to be manipulated as a pawn, but he doesn't dare to resist directly, so he allows others to cheat on him. In this way, he weakens his role as a pawn. In this way, other princes won't take him too seriously, and they can calculate less against him when they fight for the throne."

Gu Huanxi sighed, "He made a huge sacrifice to save his life. I don't know how many people laughed at him behind his back. His first wife died early, and his second wife is about to die. His concubine cheated on him. Who in the capital wouldn't sigh with misery now?"

Xu Huaiyi snorted and laughed, "After all, it's all his own fault that he ended up in this state. There's no need to sympathize with him. Besides, compared to his life, what does a bad reputation matter? It's a rare chance for him to become smart..."

After a pause, he asked, "Did he really not ask anyone to investigate the matter between Concubine Meng and the guards?"

Gu Huanxi shook his head. "The people you arranged in the Grand Prince's Palace sent out news that he has been staying out of it all the time, and he doesn't seem to care at all about being cheated on. He doesn't care about the noise made by Concubine Meng. He sleeps in the study room in the front yard every day and doesn't even go into the backyard."

Xu Huaiyi murmured to himself, "I didn't expect that he could be so ruthless."

Gu Huanxi said in an ambiguous tone, "He is the prince after all..."

What does a woman's life or death matter? Anyway, if she dies, you can always remarry. If you are in power, you will have three palaces and six courtyards, and as many concubines as you want.

Xu Huaiyi felt that it was dangerous to continue talking about this topic, so he asked, "Is there no movement from the Meng family? At least we should pretend to do something."

Gu Huanxi said, "We have to do some good things to keep up appearances. We investigated for a while and found a few people who were gossiping, but it didn't have much effect. Now, because of Concubine Meng's scandal, the reputation of the Meng family's daughters has been affected. Some married daughters have even been disliked by their in-laws..."

At this point, she frowned, "Tell me, have they gone too far this time? Even if the Chu Palace doesn't want Concubine Meng to be promoted to the first wife, and doesn't want the Pingyuan Marquis's Palace to be completely tied to the First Prince, it's really too much to go to this extent. The Pingyuan Marquis's Palace has also suffered a big blow to its reputation. How can they not be angry?"

Too much is as bad as too little. If you are not careful, you will end up shooting yourself in the foot.

Xu Huaiyi pondered and said, "The Chu Palace is not stupid, and they should not do such a stupid thing. It is very likely that they started it, but someone intervened later and things got out of control."

This statement sounded credible. Gu Huanxi asked, "Who do you think was involved?"

Xu Huaiyi asked back, "What do you think?"

Gu Huanxi thought for a moment, "Emperor Jianxing?"

Xu Huaiyi laughed, "Well, I guess it's him. He has the motive and can benefit from it. It's a two-birds-at-one deal. Even if the Chu Palace doesn't offend the Pingyuan Marquis's Mansion, the two families will inevitably have some grudges. Can they still be close to each other in the future? Even the Chu Palace doesn't dare to believe that the Meng family will treat them the same as before. This is human nature. I guess that even Meng Yao will resent the Chu Palace. After all, she is also a daughter of the Meng family. If her aunt loses her reputation, what good can she get? She is afraid of losses!"

"The Prince of Chu's Palace has done something wrong this time. They have lost not only their wife but also their troops!"

"I guess so. If the emperor hadn't intervened, they would have succeeded in their plan. Now, humph, it would be best if they could just fight each other in the future."

"Then the emperor got what he wanted..." Gu Huanxi asked curiously, "Do you think the Meng family can guess the truth?"

Xu Huaiyi nodded, "We can both figure it out. That Lord Meng is not stupid, so he can think of it. Besides, the Chu Palace will definitely send someone to explain. But it's useless to figure it out. Can we go to Emperor Jianxing to settle the score? We can only suffer this loss in silence. This is also a warning from the emperor to the Meng family. The Meng family will definitely take the opportunity to distance themselves from the Chu Palace in the future."

"Will Meng Yao be willing?"

"Even if she doesn't want to, there's nothing we can do about it, unless she can arm wrestle with Mr. Meng."

"So, the Chu Palace has lost another supporter, and it won't be long before it becomes a commander without any supporters..."

Xu Huaiyi's two letters of denunciation had already wiped out many of the Chu Palace's cronies. Those who had recently been imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice's prison were also sentenced to exile and sent to the border as soldiers. This greatly deterred some people who secretly supported the Chu Palace.

Xu Huaiyi said, "Don't be too optimistic. Emperor Jianxing did this because he thought that by cutting off all the cronies of the Prince of Chu's Palace, he could shake the foundation of the Prince of Chu's Palace. But he didn't know that the real foundation of the Prince of Chu's Palace is not those cronies, but private soldiers. With military power in hand, they have the confidence to force the palace. If the Prince of Chu's Palace is really angered, there might be a fight in the capital before the eldest prince can take advantage of the opportunity."

Hearing this, Gu Huanxi immediately became worried, "Isn't that bad?"

Xu Huaiyi sighed helplessly, "If it really comes to that, it will be beyond our control. It all depends on what Emperor Jianxing will do. If he makes too much trouble, the Chu Palace will not be able to tolerate it, and war will be inevitable..."

"I hope he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Let's wait and see."

This wait lasted for more than ten days. During this period, the capital city was peaceful and tranquil for a rare half month. The war in the south was suspended and there was no bad news from the north. In the court, all the civil and military officials kept a low profile and no one was willing to show up unless it was absolutely necessary.

Everyone is waiting and watching!

Weighing the pros and cons!

As the emperor grows older and the crown prince is not appointed, this situation will continue until one side can no longer hold on.

But the strange thing is that no one proposed to appoint a crown prince. No one wanted to be the first to stand out, and the princes did not dare to instruct people from their own faction to test the waters. At this critical juncture, being honest and obedient was the best way to go.

Because those with a keen sense of smell can smell the unusual odor and are waiting for it to explode at some point.

At the end of November, Emperor Jianxing suddenly launched an uprising and sent imperial guards to surround the Marquis Zhenguo's Mansion. The commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard personally led people to break in and search. After a lot of chaos, they found several letters in the study, and they were overjoyed.

The letter was quickly delivered to the emperor. After reading it, the emperor was silent for a while and summoned several important officials in the court to discuss the matter. As one of the cabinet ministers, Shangshu Sun naturally had a seat in such a small court meeting.

After reading those letters, he had only one thought: the Marquis Zhenguo Mansion was doomed.

Of course, some people questioned the authenticity of the contents of the letter and said a few fair words under pressure.

Emperor Jianxing was not angry either, as this was all within his expectations. After all, the Marquis of Zhenguo Mansion was the Empress Dowager's maiden family. In the previous dynasty, it was a wealthy and powerful family with a profound foundation and flourishing branches. It was related to many families in the capital by marriage, and they prospered and suffered together. It would be strange that no one came to plead for them.

Just like the Sun family, Sun Yu and Liu Haoran are brothers who have a good relationship.

However, Minister Sun did not say anything. The current situation was unclear and he did not want the Sun family to get involved. No matter who won or lost in the internal strife of the royal family, as a helper, there would be nothing good to come of it.

Soon, Emperor Jianxing issued an edict. For the sake of the Empress Dowager's face, the women in the marquis's mansion were not affected. Only men over the age of seven were arrested and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice, awaiting trial.

At the same time, a team composed of the Imperial Guards and the Embroidered Uniform Guards rode at full speed, braving the wind and snow, left the capital, and headed straight for the Prince of Min's Palace in the south.

The imperial court did not cover up these things, so within a few days, even the common people knew about the scandal that the Marquis of Zhenguo's Mansion and the Prince of Min's Mansion were secretly colluding with the Japanese pirates. One can imagine the uproar caused.

The news had not yet spread to the south, but with the RV there, Xu Huaiyi knew about it first.

Even he was surprised. "If Emperor Jianxing didn't take action, it would be fine. But once he did, it would be a trump card. He was going to wipe out the Empress Dowager's family. Involving the Japanese pirates is no different from treason. No one can protect him. Even if the Empress Dowager used filial piety to pressure the emperor, the emperor could ignore it and not let anyone blame him..."

Gu Huanxi nodded, "The Emperor's move of cutting off the fire is indeed a good one. The Empress Dowager originally pretended to be sick to protect the Chu Palace. It is said that she is really ill now and her condition is not very good. Emperor Jianxing has banned people from visiting her under the pretext of letting her rest, which is a disguised form of house arrest."

"In fact, she can be suppressed by saying that the harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs. The house arrest is to intercept the people from the Chu Palace and cut off the connection between the two sides..." Xu Huaiyi thought of something and asked anxiously, "All the men in the Marquis's Mansion have been imprisoned. Where is my fourth uncle?"

Gu Huanxi said helplessly, "Of course I can't avoid it."

Xu Huaiyi couldn't help but frown.

Gu Huanxi reminded, "This involves the Prince of Fujian's Palace and the Japanese pirates. This matter is too big. No one can plead for mercy. Besides, the emperor is watching, so there is more room for maneuver. Don't show off. This is not something we can handle."

Hearing this, Xu Huaiyi hurriedly explained, "I have no intention of interfering. With my limited ability, how can I intervene? Besides, I am still fighting in the south. I have no power to do anything..."

"Then who are you?"

"I'm worried about Master. They have always had a good relationship as brothers. Now that something like this has happened, he must be very anxious and angry."

"That can't be helped. The Sun family has always been neutral and definitely doesn't want to get involved in the royal family's affairs. Your master's wishes cannot influence the family's stance."

"Well, that's what I said, but it's really a bit cold-hearted to just stand by and watch..."

"Don't worry. I asked someone to find out. The men of the Zhenguo Marquis' Mansion were not treated harshly after being imprisoned. The women are still living in the mansion. Even if Emperor Jianxing wants to get rid of the mansion, he has to consider human relations and the dignity of the Empress Dowager. He won't do anything to humiliate them behind their backs."

After hearing this, Xu Huaiyi's expression softened a little, and he asked, "Is there any movement in the Chu Palace?"

Gu Huanxi said, "The father and son of the Prince of Chu went to ask for an audience with the Grand Empress Dowager, but were refused. They went to plead with the Emperor, but were reprimanded. In fact, anyone with a discerning eye can guess that this is the Emperor's way of making a show of force. Both the Prince of Min's Mansion and the Liu family, the Marquis of Zhenguo, are the Prince of Chu's power. How could the Prince of Chu not be involved in what those two families did behind the scenes? He can't even protect himself, and he's still trying to stand up for others. Now, the Emperor hasn't taken action against them because he has no evidence. Once the Liu family and the Prince of Min's Mansion are persuaded to speak out, the Prince of Chu's Mansion will probably be the next one to be targeted."

The fall of a family is often just a matter of a moment. No matter how powerful it is, it cannot resist the supremacy of the emperor unless it rebels.

Xu Huaiyi sighed, "That would be a big trouble..."

Gu Huanxi agreed with a wry smile, "Yes, Emperor Jianxing's thundering method is very good, but it is also very risky. I don't know if he has the ability to deal with the aftermath. The Chu family will definitely not sit idly by and wait for death. Once they resist and fight back... can the emperor withstand it?"

If we can't handle it, not only will the palace and the capital be in chaos, I'm afraid other places will also be affected, and then it will be a disaster for the people.

Xu Huaiyi was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "Do you think the letter found in the mansion is real?"

Gu Huanxi was stunned for a moment, and said uncertainly, "That should be it? I heard that someone from the Marquis' Mansion went to inform on the matter. That person works for the Marquis Zhenguo, and is quite capable and trusted. He must know a lot of the Marquis' Mansion's secrets. Since he dared to stand up, he probably has solid evidence. Otherwise, he would not be able to pass the Three Divisions. Even if Emperor Jianxing wants to eradicate the Liu family again, he will not do such a crude scheme."

Xu Huaiyi's eyes darkened. "So, the Zhenguohou Mansion is indeed not clean and has a connection with the Japanese pirates. How dare they do that?"

As the Empress Dowager's family, it was understandable that the Liu family secretly supported the King of Chu, and Xu Huaiyi could understand that. However, when they joined forces with the Prince of Min to collude with the Japanese pirates, the nature of the matter changed, and he could not accept it.

Gu Huanxi advised, "Let's wait and see, maybe there is something behind it."

Xu Huaiyi said nothing, feeling upset. He had a good impression of Liu Haoran before. When he became his disciple, he received a generous gift and gave some in return. Although the two did not interact much in the past year, they had some contact. He really did not want to end up with an opposing result.

Seeing this, Gu Huanxi couldn't help but remind him, "Don't think about those things for now. The people sent by the emperor to question the Min Palace have been away from the capital for five days. We don't know how the Min Palace will respond, whether they will surrender or simply overthrow it. This is a big deal, and I'm afraid it will also be involved in the war. You should pay more attention to it recently, so that you can be prepared in case the Min Palace suddenly makes a move."

Hearing this, Xu Huaiyi really didn't bother to think about Liu Haoran, and lowered his head to think about the current situation.