Ch 147: Dog Eat Dog
The following day.
Meng Tingyue had stayed up late listening to stories the previous night and woke up after the third quarter of Chen.
While doing her hair, Qingdian whispered in her ear, “As the Crown Princess predicted, something happened to Qiao Lige, but our people have been secretly watching and have already apprehended the thief.”
Hearing this, Meng Tingyue glanced sideways, a faint smile playing on her lips, “How is Qiao Lige doing now?”
Meng Tingyue nodded gently, her gaze passing through her reflection in the bronze mirror, softly asking, “What about the thief?”
“He is being held in the dungeon, waiting for the Crown Princess to finish breakfast before going to deal with him,” Qingdian respectfully said.
After Meng Tingyue finished breakfast, she went to the dungeon.
Under the dim light, a familiar silhouette suddenly appeared, causing Meng Tingyue to raise her eyebrows slightly, surprised, and softly open her lips, “Ling Qi? How could it be you?”
Ling Qi, hearing her, softly called out, “Crown Princess.”
This unexpected event seemed somewhat expected. After all, in the Crown Prince’s Mansion, every move is difficult to escape the Crown Prince’s observation, how could she easily hide anything?
Meng Tingyue’s thoughts turned a thousand times in an instant.
Ling Qi had respectfully bowed, performing a courtesy, “Crown Princess, the person has confessed.”
“The person’s background has also been investigated.”
Speaking, Ling Qi presented a small booklet with both hands.
Meng Tingyue reached out to take it and read it carefully.
Ling Qi stood to one side, his voice low and clear, slowly stating, “This person is actually a close confidant under Zheng Steward’s command…”
Meng Tingyue’s gaze swept across the detailed account in the booklet, the person’s past experiences unfolded like a scroll, along with those weaknesses that could be exploited, all listed clearly and without omission.
This thoroughness undoubtedly revealed that last night’s events had already caught the Crown Prince’s eye, and he had secretly lent a hand to help her.
After pondering for a moment, Meng Tingyue’s eyes flickered, and she softly asked, “When did His Highness begin to suspect Zheng Steward?”
Hearing this, Ling Qi’s expression became even more respectful, replying, “When the Crown Princess began to suspect him, His Highness began to suspect him as well.”
Meng Tingyue nodded slightly, holding the booklet lightly in her hand, her heart already understanding that Shen Yunheng handing her this booklet was tacit approval for her to take action against Zheng Steward.
As the thought fell, Ling Qi’s voice rang out again, “His Highness the Crown Prince said that since Zheng Steward has made a mistake, he should be punished. The Crown Princess only needs to punish him according to the law, His Highness will not interfere, and the Zheng family has no right to interfere.”
Hearing this, Meng Tingyue’s chest suddenly felt open, as if the clouds had parted.
The Zheng family relied on the Empress’s power, and Ling Qi’s words meant that the Empress would not interfere in this matter. Even if the Zheng family went to the Empress, they would only humiliate themselves and ultimately leave in resentment.
Understanding this key point, the worries in Meng Tingyue’s heart dissipated, allowing her to fully focus on dealing with Zheng Steward.
Holding the numerous pieces of evidence she had collected, she walked to Zheng Steward, mercilessly throwing the irrefutable evidence at his feet like falling leaves.
At first, Zheng Steward tried to argue and quibble. However, when Qingdian brought the witness before him, all his defenses crumbled.
Meng Tingyue quietly watched as the guards escorted Zheng Steward, step by step, towards the Ministry of Justice, her eyes profound and calm.
At this time, Qinglan quietly approached and whispered in her ear, “Crown Princess…”
Meng Tingyue’s expression was as calm as water, her tone carrying an unquestionable steadiness, “Let him go. Only by letting Zheng Steward completely give up hope will he stop making trouble. Perhaps, in despair, he will reveal more inside information…”
Before she finished speaking, Meng Tingyue suddenly paused.
She knew that the Zheng family was by no means a clean family. In this bustling Jingdu, which noble family doesn’t have some dirty secrets, it’s just a matter of degree.
The reason why Zheng Steward dared to act like this was undoubtedly because the Zheng family was a strong backing for him, silently cleaning up the mess for him.
However, Meng Tingyue couldn’t help but secretly ponder, if this matter really involved a wide range and implicated the Zheng family, would the Empress still be as compassionate and unmoved as before?
Meng Tingyue’s thoughts were swirling, gradually turning to worry.
This worry didn’t last long, like a gentle breeze blowing past, she gently exhaled a breath of pent-up air, and her mood calmed down.
Oh well, things have come to this, the only thing to do is to meet challenges head-on and deal with things as they arise.
The news of Zheng Steward’s imprisonment, as if winged, quickly spread throughout every corner of the Zheng family.
The Zheng family eagerly sought out Shen Yunheng, but were met with a closed door, not even seeing his face.
Reluctant to give up, the Zheng family then prepared a thick gift and attempted to enter the palace to meet the Empress.
Unfortunately, the Empress also refused to see them, leaving them to wait outside anxiously, but the Palace Gate remained closed.
After much effort, the Zheng family could only reluctantly put aside their arrogance and leave dejectedly, filled with resentment and helplessness.
The moment Zheng Steward learned that he had been abandoned by his family, a burning resentment ignited in his heart, his past loyalty turning into anger, he poured out the Zheng family’s unknown private matters as if they were commonplace.
The officials of the Ministry of Justice, hearing this, all looked troubled, they dared not easily take on this hot potato, and secretly sought out Shen Yunheng.
The Zheng family was after all Shen Yunheng’s maternal grandfather’s family. Shen Yunheng, although angry at the Zheng family’s actions, could not help but consider the Empress’s face, and still reported the matter to the Empress.
The Empress learned that they were using her name to do evil behind her back, and angrily smashed many exquisite teacups.
But in the end, she still remembered that it was her maternal family, and the bond of blood was hard to sever.
After a struggle, she finally made a decision, allowing the Zheng family to compensate those innocent people who had been harmed by their evil deeds with gold and silver treasures.
But this still made the Zheng family bleed a lot, and the Zheng family gradually declined.
This farce lasted a long time.
Until the day of Mr. Meng’s birthday arrived, things finally calmed down somewhat.
At that time, Meng Mansion was bustling with people, guests coming and going, almost breaking down the threshold of Meng Mansion.
Mr. Meng couldn’t stop smiling, his face overflowing with joy.
The gloom of the previous period, when the shop had suffered losses selling Ningxiang Pills with Meng Qingjiao, had now been thrown to the back of his mind, disappearing without a trace.
A servant quietly approached Mr. Meng’s ear and whispered, “Sir, news has been received, it is said that because the Ministers learned that His Majesty will personally arrive, they all prepared thick gifts, wanting to use this birthday banquet to congratulate Sir.”
Upon hearing this, Mr. Meng’s eyes flashed, and a look of surprise crept onto his eyebrows.
“Is this news reliable?” he asked softly.
How could he not have heard a single rumor.
The servant nodded firmly, “Absolutely reliable.”
Mr. Meng’s heart was immediately filled with an indescribable joy. If His Majesty could truly arrive on his birthday, this would undoubtedly be a great affirmation and appreciation of him.
Recalling the last time, even at Madam Pingyang Hou’s birthday, His Majesty had not appeared, and he was merely a mere official, this favor was truly rare.
