Ji Yunshu’s smile eased the originally tense atmosphere in the room by several degrees.

Only then did Liu Qian cup his hands and say, “Not knowing Your Highness would come, this official was unable to receive you in time. Please forgive this transgression, Your Highness.”

That demeanor was as sincere as a military general bearing thorns to plead guilty!

Yet he was clearly a military man, but wearing civil official’s robes and putting on a civil official’s airs—to look at him and listen to him pulled one right out of the scene.

It was like a robust gorilla insisting on wearing a rabbit’s skin.

Awkward and ill-suited from every angle!

Jingrong finished the tea in his hand and, setting aside his earlier words, instead exclaimed in praise, “Indeed, Jinjiang’s tea is still the best to drink. It enters the throat sweet and clear, refreshing one’s spirit. When this prince returns to the capital, I must recommend Jinjiang’s tea to the Ministry of Rites so it can be listed as tribute.”

“As long as Your Highness likes it, all is well.”

Flattery!

“This is the batch of tea leaves that Liu Qingping left behind originally, isn’t it?”

The corner of Liu Qian’s eye twitched. “Precisely so!”

Jingrong smiled. “Though Liu Qingping was muddled, his taste in selecting tea has never changed. Not bad, not bad.”

“…”

The next moment, he met Liu Qian’s gaze and got to the point. “Last night, this prince visited the yamen at night without notifying Magistrate Liu. That was presumptuous of this prince. However, rules cannot be broken—what should be punished must still be punished.”

Punishment?

You must be joking, right!

If I dared to punish you, I might as well give up being an official. Who knows, I might even be blacklisted by you, ending up with neither man nor fortune.

Besides, I have elderly parents above and young children below.

He quickly said, “Though rules cannot be broken, Your Highness brought Master Ji to the yamen at night to clear the name of an innocent person. It should be this official thanking Your Highness and Master Ji instead.”

He bowed deeply!

Yes, he used the word “entered” instead of the “barged in” he had repeatedly insisted on saying before.

Interesting!

These were the two characters that emerged in Jingrong’s mind at this moment.

He hadn’t expected that Liu Qian was not only greedy but also an extremely cunning and smooth person. The way he put it actually managed to smooth things over.

However, Jingrong wasn’t so easily fooled.

He said, “Since Magistrate Liu no longer pursues the matter, then this prince would like to pursue Magistrate Liu’s errors instead.”

“This official’s errors? What does Your Highness mean?”

“Aren’t you knowingly asking?”

“This official truly doesn’t know.”

A completely bewildered expression.

He had been conscientious and diligent as an official—how could there be any errors? Every case that passed through his hands had been solved without exception, and the case-solving efficiency was extremely high.

But Jingrong just smiled slightly, glanced at him indifferently, then spoke leisurely, “Magistrate Liu, as soon as you took office, you withdrew all the original people in the yamen and replaced them one by one with people you brought yourself. This action is indeed something that military generals like you would do. Though you’ve transitioned from military general to civil official, you still carry out that same set of practices from the military camp, habitually using force to control and oppress others. Most people dragged into the prison probably came out lying down horizontally, right? Those who couldn’t endure the beatings and gave in must have all pressed their seals, but those who could endure would be dragged to the yamen’s public hall for another trial, tried until they couldn’t endure it anymore and confessed. This is probably the reason why Magistrate Liu’s work efficiency is so extremely high, isn’t it?”

These words were not at all tactful.

It was as if a sword had been thrust into Liu Qian’s chest—if he moved, that sword would pierce his chest and tear through his flesh and blood.

So much so that at this moment, he could only hold his breath.

Lowering his head slightly, “Your Highness, regarding Fu Bo’s matter this time, this official was indeed reckless in handling it, but absolutely had no intention of forcing a false confession from him. Only because both witness and physical evidence were present, yet he still firmly denied it, did I resort to punishment. It was this official’s error, and I should rightfully accept punishment.”

“How will you accept it?”

“All according to Your Highness’s instructions.”

“Good!” Jingrong’s voice rang out forcefully—these were exactly the words he wanted. He raised his chin. “Then this prince shall dismiss you from your post. How about that?”

What?

Liu Qian was certain he hadn’t misheard.

Dismissal?

You must be joking.

Ji Yunshu on the side was not at all surprised, but rather looked forward to the drama that would unfold next.

The yamen runners in the room all stared at Jingrong in disbelief.

Jingrong displayed a half-joking, half-serious demeanor, even smiling leisurely again, then said, “Magistrate Liu, this prince now wants to dismiss you from your post. What are your thoughts? Don’t you want to say something?”

“Your Highness, the matter of reassigning officials has always been… the responsibility of the Ministry of Personnel.”

“Are you using the Ministry of Personnel to pressure this prince?”

“This official wouldn’t dare. It’s just that the Ministry of Personnel regarding the matter of reassigning officials…”

He was interrupted.

“When did this prince say anything about reassigning you?” Even Jingrong himself was puzzled.

Liu Qian was bewildered again!

“This prince said to dismiss you from your post!” He put away that earlier smile, his face serious. “Liu Qian, this prince knows you fought on battlefields for our Great Lin for several years and established illustrious military achievements. By rights, military generals becoming civil officials is not without precedent. But since you became a civil official, you still carry those bad habits from when you were a military general. If you’re unwilling to change, so be it, yet you’ve become even worse.”

“Your Highness, what do you mean by this?”

“You needn’t prevaricate. This prince has already ordered people to investigate clearly. When you were an official in Liaojiang, you were already a well-known reckless official. The common people didn’t respect you—they feared you. Cases that entered the yamen were closed within two days. Put nicely, it’s high work efficiency. Put harshly, it’s treating human lives as worthless grass. I imagine the number of people wrongly imprisoned in Liaojiang is not small. Rest assured, very soon the Ministry of Personnel will send people to Liaojiang to re-examine all the cases you’ve handled over these years, including the cases you’ve handled in these few months in Jinjiang—all will be thoroughly investigated. Once confirmed, Liu Qian, forget about being a civil official—if you want to be a military general again, that too will be a pipe dream.”

Every word and sentence was delivered forcefully, making those who heard them tremble with fear.

Liu Qian, who had maintained a hard stance earlier, now seemed like a chicken stripped of its feathers, trembling with only the few remaining feathers on his bare body.

Then, with a thud, he knelt down!

“Please investigate clearly, Your Highness. This official absolutely did not abuse the law for personal gain or wrongly accuse good people. Every single case had solid evidence.”

Jingrong’s brow furrowed like a needle, coldly saying, “Whether you did or not, we’ll know once the Ministry of Personnel sends people to investigate!”

“Your Highness…”

“Enough. In this prince’s view, you probably won’t be able to remain an official much longer. As for how to deal with those people under you, you’d better prepare early, lest you become a disgraced official and still cause chaos everywhere.”

Having finished speaking, he rose to his feet, and at the same time, without any regard for others’ gazes, he grasped Ji Yunshu’s hand and led her out the door.

In that instant, before Ji Yunshu could react, she had already been pulled out of the room.

Outside.

Tang Si was still bantering with Lang Bo.

That woman’s words always left others speechless. Lang Bo was truly exasperated.

Seeing them emerge, Lang Bo immediately stepped forward.

“Your Highness, are we leaving?”

Jingrong squinted at Tang Si and nodded slightly. “You escort Miss Tang back first. This prince will take a walk with Master Ji, now that the rain has stopped.”

“Why don’t this subordinate…” follow along.

Before he could finish speaking—

His prince had already pulled Ji Yunshu away from the county yamen.

As soon as the two went out, Ji Yunshu withdrew her hand and hid it in her sleeve, glancing around warily.

“What are you afraid of?”

“Nothing!”

“Oh?” Jingrong curved his lips in a mischievous smile.

He reached out again to take her hand, only his speed was a step too slow.

She simply hid her hands behind her back!