After obtaining confirmation from Li Ming about secretly establishing a supervisory bureau, Li Rong waited idly for ten days in the Princess Mansion.

However, these ten days were not spent in leisure—she investigated potential personnel from all directions, pondering which people to bring in after the Supervisory Bureau was established. At the same time, she secretly trained a theatrical troupe and staged a court drama that subtly referenced the Qin family case.

Most of these matters were handled by others on her behalf. She simply managed the general direction, occasionally visiting various places, sometimes finding Shangguan Ya for a game of leaf cards. Her days passed quite pleasantly.

Ten days later, the verdict for the Qin family came down. The evidence was conclusive—execution after autumn was confirmed. News of the Qin family case verdict quickly spread throughout Hua Jing. Li Rong immediately had the prepared theatrical troupe set up a stage, and they began performing the very day the Qin family case was finalized.

The moment the Qin family case was decided, this drama subtly portraying how the Qin family was framed began playing. In an instant, rumors spread everywhere.

By the next day, Li Rong arranged for Qin Zhenzhen to kneel at the Princess Mansion entrance.

Early in the morning when people were coming and going, everyone saw a young lady kneeling motionless at the Princess Mansion entrance.

More and more onlookers gathered. Inside the mansion, Li Rong finished applying her makeup when she heard Jing Lan enter and say, “Your Highness, it’s about time.”

Li Rong stood up, saying cheerfully, “Let’s go then.”

With that, Li Rong led her people out. The moment she opened the door, she saw Qin Zhenzhen kneeling at the entrance, who immediately shouted, “Your Highness!”

Li Rong looked at Qin Zhenzhen with a surprised expression: “You are…”

“This common woman is Qin Zhenzhen, the second daughter of the first branch of the Qin Mansion.”

Qin Zhenzhen reported her name according to the script they had previously rehearsed. Li Rong feigned surprise: “Oh my, what are you doing here?”

With that, she quickly had someone help her up, saying urgently, “Stand up first. Why are you kneeling at my entrance?”

“My family has suffered injustice,” Qin Zhenzhen raised a blood petition and fiercely kowtowed to the ground, calling out loudly, “I beg Your Highness to seek justice for this common woman!”

Li Rong stepped back, flustered: “You… what justice do you want me to seek?”

“Your Highness,” Qin Zhenzhen lifted her head, tears in her eyes, “When the Rong Nation invaded, my uncles and brothers fought bloodily on the battlefield. Now that the border has achieved victory, the aristocratic families in court compete for rewards and actually framed my father and brothers for colluding with the Yang family, betraying the country and selling out to enemies! I beg Your Highness to seek justice for this common woman!”

“Why would you come to me for this matter?” Li Rong hesitated, “I’m just a princess…”

“Your Highness bears the Li family bloodline, born from the legitimate empress,” Qin Zhenzhen interrupted her, speaking passionately, “Now the Censorate and the Ministry of Justice collude to frame my entire family. No one dares accept this blood petition, no one dares intervene. Apart from Your Highness, this common woman has no other way out. If Your Highness does not accept this blood petition today, this common woman will dash her head to death before the Princess Mansion and follow my Qin family!”

“Miss Qin, don’t…”

Before the words were finished, Qin Zhenzhen suddenly stood up and, amid Li Rong’s startled cry, rushed headfirst toward the stone lion at the entrance!

Qin Zhenzhen had already prepared a blood bag in her sleeve. The moment she stood up, the blood bag slipped into her palm. Before hitting the stone lion, she used her hand to slightly block and burst the blood bag, then quickly smeared it on her forehead before collapsing.

When Qin Zhenzhen struck the stone lion, Li Rong rushed over with her people, blocking the common people’s line of sight. After Qin Zhenzhen fell, she hurriedly turned her over, calling out anxiously, “Miss Qin!”

“Your Highness…” Qin Zhenzhen gasped, trembling as she handed the blood petition to Li Rong, “I beg Your Highness… help me… help me…”

As Qin Zhenzhen spoke, her eyes closed and her head tilted to the side.

Li Rong raised her hand to check her breathing, then her expression changed. Her hands trembled as she remained silent.

The crowd murmured among themselves.

“Is she dead?”

“Must be dead.”

“The Qin family is truly pitiful. If they weren’t wrongly accused, would this young lady dash herself to death at the Princess Mansion entrance?”

“Why didn’t she go to the Crown Prince?”

“The Crown Prince is in cahoots with those aristocratic families in court. How could he possibly intervene?”

“Will Princess Pingle intervene?”

“Who knows?”

Everyone spoke in low voices, all waiting for Li Rong’s decision.

After a long while, Li Rong took the blood petition from Qin Zhenzhen’s hand and slowly stood up.

“Carry Miss Qin inside and find a place to give her a proper burial.”

Li Rong’s voice trembled slightly. Then she raised her eyes, gritting her teeth: “Prepare the carriage. I’m entering the palace!”

Hearing Li Rong’s call to prepare the carriage, the crowd immediately erupted.

Someone seemed extremely pleased and shouted loudly, “Your Highness has accepted the blood petition! Your Highness will handle this matter!”

For the common people, Li Rong accepting this blood petition was like a ray of light splitting through Hua Jing, which was dominated by aristocratic families.

No one had expected Li Rong would actually accept this blood petition. Thus, after Li Rong boarded the carriage, the surrounding common people only grew in number. They followed behind Li Rong’s carriage, shouting loudly, “Your Highness, we support you!”

Li Rong held the blood petition without speaking. She sat properly in the carriage. The common people beside her followed her carriage, which was tightly sealed, making it impossible to see the person inside. Only when the curtain occasionally lifted could one glimpse the vague appearance of the person inside, who looked solemn and dignified, inspiring awe.

Li Rong’s carriage went straight into the palace city. Upon reaching the imperial palace, court had not yet adjourned. She had someone announce her arrival directly.

A eunuch ran into the great hall, conveying news of Li Rong’s arrival to Li Ming’s ears. Li Ming had been waiting for her all along and directly raised his hand: “Summon her.”

Li Rong held the blood petition and stood at the entrance of the great hall, hearing the eunuch’s resonant summons from inside: “Summon Princess Pingle to enter the hall—”

Hearing this summons, Li Rong walked into the great hall holding the blood petition, then knelt in the center of the hall and declared, “This daughter-subject greets Father Emperor. May Father Emperor live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years.”

“It’s morning court right now,” Li Ming sat on the high seat, asking despite knowing the answer, “What are you here for?”

“Reporting to Father Emperor, this daughter-subject has come to redress an injustice.”

“For whom?”

“The Qin family of Liangzhou.”

“What is the injustice?”

“The Qin family are all loyal martyrs, yet they were falsely accused of colluding with the Yang family to betray the country. The Censorate, the Ministry of Justice, and the Secretariat—three departments—have violated the law, extracted confessions under torture, and wrongly handled this case. Today, a daughter of the Qin family dashed herself to death before this daughter-subject’s vermilion gate to redress the injustice. This daughter-subject could not bear it in her heart. Though knowing the road ahead is perilous, I must still seek a measure of justice for the Qin family!”

Hearing these words, no one in the entire court spoke. Shangguan Xu looked over, smiling: “What words is the Princess saying? This case was verified by the three departments and cannot be wrong. The Princess doesn’t understand the true situation and has likely been misled by petty people.”

“Lord Shangguan,” Li Rong raised her eyes to look at Shangguan Xu, “Would someone stake their own life to make me misunderstand?”

Shangguan Xu remained silent.

Qin Zhenzhen’s death was the most difficult thing to refute.

From an emotional and logical standpoint, with Qin Zhenzhen’s death, the Qin family held a natural advantage in this matter.

Seeing Shangguan Xu remained silent, Li Rong turned her head and raised the blood petition in her hand, saying respectfully, “Father Emperor, this is the blood petition of grievances that the Qin family’s daughter gave to this daughter-subject. If this case is truly a false accusation by others, it may be an injustice for the ages. Father Emperor’s illustrious reputation for a lifetime cannot be destroyed by an ant hole.”

As Li Rong spoke, the blood petition was delivered into Li Ming’s hands. Li Ming opened it and after reading for a while, slapped the table with a palm, angrily saying, “How outrageous!”

With that, Li Ming looked toward Shangguan Xu: “Lord Shangguan, you must strictly investigate this matter. The Qin family case must be reassigned for retrial. The officials who previously tried this case must also be investigated thoroughly to determine whether there was deliberate framing.”

“Yes.” Shangguan Xu answered steadily and diplomatically. Li Rong, however, declared loudly, “That won’t do.”

The entire hall turned to look at Li Rong, who said seriously, “Father Emperor, this case involves numerous people, many of them children of aristocratic families. Aristocratic families have close marriage ties. If this case is handed to Lord Shangguan, I cannot trust it.”

“Then this subject…”

Su Rongqing suddenly spoke. Li Rong looked coldly at Su Rongqing and immediately said, “I cannot trust you either!”

“You can’t trust this one, you can’t trust that one,” Li Ming seemed annoyed, “What do you want?”

“Father Emperor, the Qin family’s daughter died in this daughter-subject’s embrace. This daughter-subject promised her I would definitely investigate this case clearly. I request Father Emperor’s permission for this daughter-subject to personally investigate this case!”

“How can this be allowed?” Shangguan Xu immediately spoke out, urgently saying, “The Princess is a woman of the inner palace. Court matters…”

“Haven’t I handled them before?”

Li Rong raised her eyes to look at him, saying seriously, “Our Great Xia has no rule saying princesses cannot participate in government. The Yang family case was investigated by me in the first place. Now the Qin family case is implicated by the Yang family case. For me to investigate it, what’s wrong with that?!”

Li Rong spoke these words with force. Shangguan Xu had never expected Li Rong to speak to him like this. For a moment, he was so angry his face turned deathly pale, his beard bristling as he said, “Your Highness, according to generational seniority, this subject could be considered your elder. You should listen to this subject’s advice…”

“Then according to rank, Your Highness is His Majesty’s legitimate eldest daughter. Lord Shangguan should bow when seeing Your Highness. Lord Shangguan should be the one listening to Your Highness’s advice.”

Pei Wenxuan, standing in the distance, suddenly spoke. His cool remark drove Shangguan Xu into a towering rage, who shouted, “You thing who doesn’t know superiority and inferiority! Do you have any right to speak here!”

“What does Lord Shangguan mean?” Hearing Shangguan Xu’s words, Pei Wenxuan disregarded everyone else’s expressions, holding his court tablet with a calm demeanor. “Could it be that in this court, even people from the Censorate cannot speak before Lord Shangguan?”

Shangguan Xu dared not accept these words. No matter how low the Censorate’s rank, it supervised all officials. The Censor-in-Chief could even speak of the Emperor’s faults. Although Pei Wenxuan was merely a Supervising Censor, Shangguan Xu was also just a minister. His errors naturally had nothing that couldn’t be discussed.

Shangguan Xu remained silent. He stared at Pei Wenxuan, who treated him as if he didn’t exist and said respectfully, “Your Majesty, if this case is truly as Your Highness described, then it practically involves all the investigative institutions in court. It should indeed be supervised by a third party.”

“What you say is indeed correct.”

Li Ming tapped on the table, saying slowly, “How about this, Pingle. You handle this case first. The Qin family case will be reopened for retrial, and the officials who previously reviewed the Qin family case will also be investigated again. You handled the Yang family case before. I know your capabilities. If you can also handle this matter well, then from now on, the task of supervising all officials will customarily be entrusted to you.”

With that, Li Ming smiled: “You can see me at any time, and you’re my daughter. You can act more freely in handling matters. If there’s anything you cannot handle, it’s also convenient for you to report. The Censorate supervises all officials, but there must always be someone to supervise the Censorate.” Li Ming spoke while looking jokingly at Censor-in-Chief Shangguan Minzhi, “Wouldn’t you say so, Shangguan?”

Shangguan Minzhi bowed without speaking, as if tacitly agreeing.

Everyone’s faces showed nothing, but inwardly they were already experiencing tumultuous waves. Everyone understood Li Ming’s words clearly. A princess who supervises all officials, who acts more freely, who can report matters directly to the Emperor without going through the Three Departments—what a terrifying institution that would be.

“Your Highness,” Right Chancellor Su Minzhi hesitated before speaking, “The matter of supervising all officials already has the Censorate to handle. Now to have the Princess also supervise…”

“And what’s wrong with that?”

Li Rong turned her head, staring at Su Minzhi: “Does Lord Su think it’s unnecessary, or does he think I’m incapable?”

Hearing Li Rong’s question, Su Minzhi didn’t dare answer for a moment. He was carefully choosing his words when he heard Li Rong say, “If today the Censorate can replace me and directly handle matters, that would be best. But now the Censorate is also implicated in this. I wonder how Lord Su plans to proceed?”

Su Minzhi remained silent. What Li Rong asked was indeed the problem. Currently, there was no investigative institution in court not implicated in this case. Temporarily establishing an institution was reasonable and proper.

“As for thinking I’m incapable,” Li Rong smiled, “Whether I’m capable or not, don’t we need to try? Could Lord Su actually find someone with higher rank than me, who doesn’t belong to the three departments, and who has also investigated cases before?”

“Indeed… there truly isn’t anyone.”

Su Minzhi spoke hesitantly. Li Ming sat above, saying happily, “That’s settled then. Pingle has grown up and wants to share Father Emperor’s burdens, so let’s give her this opportunity.”

Li Ming smiled: “Choose five hundred people from the military camps in the city to help you. If you handle this case well, there will be rewards. Do your best.”

“Thank you, Father Emperor.”

Li Rong quickly responded. Li Ming propped himself up, seeming somewhat weary: “Alright, that’s it. Court is dismissed.”

With that, Li Ming walked out amidst everyone’s respectful farewells.

Pei Wenxuan walked against the crowd to Li Rong’s side, pursing his lips: “Shall we go back together?”

“Sure.”

Li Rong walked out with him, lowering her voice to whisper, “I performed well today, didn’t I?”

“First-rate.” Pei Wenxuan gave a thumbs up.

The two were happily talking when they heard Shangguan Xu’s voice from behind: “Your Highness, please wait!”

Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan stopped in their tracks. Pei Wenxuan imperceptibly shifted closer to Li Rong, whispering, “Trouble’s here.”