On the military officials’ side, Huo Chang’an glanced at her.

She raised her eyebrows at him, suddenly remembering that this person also knew her gender, so she didn’t dare be too “presumptuous.” Huo Chang’an looked at her like this and seemed quite pleased, the corners of his eyes lifting with a hint of provocation.

Suzhen had no time to pay attention. Quan Feitong’s gaze turned toward her, and his peculiar expression of seeming to smile but not smile immediately made her feel a trace of wariness and tension. Had Zhaoting told him about the “Xia family orphan” matter?

Soon, several princes participating in government affairs also arrived—Third Prince, Fourth Prince, Lian Jie, and Lian Qin all came.

These two didn’t look at her much, their faces cold. Lian Qin even coldly sneered as he glanced at her.

It was also at this moment that Suzhen particularly deeply felt that Lian Qin, who usually seemed playful and frivolous, was actually Lian Yu’s right-hand man.

Shortly after, Qinglong and Mingyan led guards and eunuchs out from the inner hall. Suzhen tensed, knowing that morning court was about to begin.

Soon, Lian Yu emerged wearing a black dragon robe with gold embroidery. His expression was solemn, high and mighty, and every movement and glance carried imperial dignity.

At this moment, Suzhen could in no way connect him with the man in the suburban villa who had smiled gently while helping her remove her shoes and socks.

Many officials looked toward Suzhen, thinking Lian Yu would mention the previous case and praise this Lord Li a few words, but Lian Yu didn’t. He didn’t even spare an extra glance at where Suzhen stood.

After taking his seat, the Emperor narrowed his eyes, picked up a memorial from the dragon case, then slowly walked down the steps, stopped beside the civil officials, and flung it at Li Zhaoting.

All the ministers were shocked at this sight, especially the neutral faction. The court had been calm for several days—was the Son of Heaven finally going to move against the power faction?

After the Guixiang Tower incident, although Lian Yu had gained quite a few neutral ministers’ allegiance, the Prime Minister still held great power, and it didn’t seem to be the right time yet. But having seen the Emperor’s previous methods, the ministers didn’t dare judge whether their thoughts were necessarily correct.

At this moment, the Emperor said indifferently, “Minister Li, it’s said that this Minshan Prefecture Magistrate Huang Tianba is extremely corrupt and brutal in his abuse of power, treating human life like grass, and has already caused great public outrage locally. Minshan Prefecture is one of Great Zhou’s major prefectures, yet information has been blocked by Huang Tianba. It was only because a county magistrate from a neighboring prefecture couldn’t stand it anymore that this report was submitted.”

“Your Personnel Ministry oversees the transfer and appointment of officials in various prefectures. This impeachment letter first went through your Personnel Ministry but was reportedly suppressed by you. If Vice Minister Gao hadn’t extracted it and presented it to me, I wonder if this impeachment letter would have eventually disappeared as if it never existed? I’ve thought about it repeatedly but can’t understand—Magistrate Xia’s term is almost up. What, have you already decided on his successor?”

Lian Yu appeared not angry at all, even holding a slight smile in his eyes, but every word carried an implicit stick. His gaze briefly swept over Quan Feitong. Quan Feitong stood at the head of the ranks but showed no nervousness in responding, only watched quietly with a smile.

Although Personnel Minister Xia Yida was under Quan Feitong’s wing, when Lian Yu gently rebuked him at this moment, he thought of He Sai, who had once shown disrespect to Lian Yu and had forever disappeared from the court. His whole body shook, and he immediately knelt down, saying, “This minister doesn’t dare! Such major matters naturally require Your Majesty’s decision.”

Li Zhaoting glanced at Gao Chaoyi, who stood with his hands behind his back, smiling lightly.

The ministers watched, and though their thoughts varied, they all thought of one thing: as a favored subordinate of Quan Feitong, this Vice Minister Li had been pushed to the forefront this time!

Suzhen secretly sweated for Li Zhaoting. She had never understood why, when the Personnel Ministry vice minister position was such an important vacancy, Lian Yu had still placed Li Zhaoting there, giving Quan Feitong even more power. At this moment, her mind suddenly brightened. Gao Chaoyi might not necessarily have submitted to Quan Feitong’s power, but with Xia Yida’s withdrawal and Li Zhaoting’s entry, two tigers couldn’t share one mountain… This had seemed to give Quan Feitong face while also preventing Li Zhaoting from entering other ministries. He wanted these two Personnel Ministry vice ministers to fight internally, making Gao Chaoyi switch to his side, because Quan Feitong valued Li Zhaoting more, so Gao Chaoyi would naturally choose another master. Whenever there was any disturbance in the Personnel Ministry, Gao Chaoyi would be the best informant! Lian Yu was truly cunning.

At this moment, Li Zhaoting still appeared calm and reported, “Your Majesty, this is not because your minister acted with favoritism or had any schemes. Since receiving Your Majesty’s great favor to serve in the Personnel Ministry, this minister has not dared to slack off since taking office. These past days, I have carefully examined the files of officials from all prefectures and counties, so I remember that this Magistrate Huang has served in Minshan Prefecture for several years with outstanding achievements—controlling floods, opening canals, promoting trade, prospering the entire prefecture, and delivering grain tribute in full every year. Now, barely one or two years later, a neighboring county presents such accusations. I fear there are hidden machinations.”

“Observing the county that submitted the impeachment letter, it’s not a barren place, yet it fails to deliver sufficient grain tribute year after year. Therefore, this impeachment likely involves colleagues fighting among themselves. Moreover, this Huang Tianba…” Li Zhaoting said, bowing to Minister of Revenue Huang Congyue before continuing his report to Lian Yu, “Your Majesty’s clear judgment—this Huang Tianba is Minister Huang’s nephew. Minister Huang has always been known for his integrity in office, and Huang Tianba, inheriting the family teachings… Therefore, this minister boldly detained that case file first, waiting to investigate thoroughly before reporting to Your Majesty. I feared this matter was orchestrated by someone with ulterior motives, and once spread in court and countryside, it would surely disturb court order and people’s hearts.”

“Oh? This Huang Tianba is actually Minister Huang’s nephew?” The Emperor slightly raised his eyebrows, seemingly thoughtful, glancing at the veteran minister Huang Congyue.

Huang Congyue sighed gratefully and returned Li Zhaoting’s courtesy. Seeing the Emperor looking at him, he tensed and replied, “Your Majesty, this old minister earnestly requests Your Majesty to let Vice Minister Li investigate thoroughly. If my nephew is indeed as the impeachment letter reports, please let the court severely punish him. If my nephew has been wronged, please let Your Majesty restore his good name.”

This Huang Congyue was also a veteran minister of three reigns, highly respected in court and one of the representatives of the neutral faction. At this moment, his emotions were stirred, which also won support from neutral party ministers. Wei Chenghui and Revenue Minister Cai Beitang were the first to express their positions, and ministers from the power faction also successively expressed agreement with Minister Huang.

Suzhen listened and initially breathed a slight sigh of relief, but unexpectedly, just as one wave settled, another round of storms arose.

This time, Lian Yu no longer retreated but began to advance! He seemed to want to act with thunder and lightning speed, using his previous victorious momentum to reshape the new court order. Previously, some neutral ministers had already joined him. Fortunately, Li Zhaoting was so watertight that if Lian Yu were to rebuke Li Zhaoting now, it would seem unreasonable.

Moreover, this case of true versus false officials actually involved Huang Congyue and completely clashed with the third neutral faction in court. Once the results came out, the court situation would be a new landscape, likely determining whether the third faction would support the power party or the imperial faction…

At this time, Lian Yu stared at Li Zhaoting for quite a while, and finally, a smile curved his lips, “Minister Li is indeed talented. I made no mistake in appointing you as runner-up.”