Dong Biquan pondered thoughtfully. Military power had always been viewed with suspicion, and unless necessary, they wouldn’t antagonize the imperial court.

Regarding the military provisions, he had examined the accounts – the various regions hadn’t withheld excessive amounts, otherwise the current stability wouldn’t exist. The court’s loss of autumn grain wasn’t a secret either. At this juncture, if it could be resolved calmly, everyone should be willing to cooperate.

He could send people to smooth things over and pacify, promising to make up the difference, and first compensate the troublemakers. This matter should be manageable. Once the autumn grain situation was resolved, they could slowly figure out how to dissolve this issue.

This was already the most advantageous solution for him, but his trusted subordinate thought differently: “Lord Dong, this matter is suspicious. Prince Kang should serve as a warning example.”

If Prince Kang had earlier confessed to the Emperor about the weapon forging matter, at worst he would have faced dismissal from office. But he had insisted on concealing it, ultimately resulting in immediate execution, with his descendants reduced to commoner status. If he hadn’t been the Emperor’s blood relative, it likely would have meant disaster for the entire family.

The steward glanced at him and said: “What Assistant Minister Xu says is right. My lord must carefully consider. If you report to the Emperor now, His Majesty might show leniency considering your loyal service. If Assistant Minister Xu had shown such caution when he discovered the Emperor’s grain had been intercepted, and reported it to you, things wouldn’t have reached this point.”

At this mention, Dong Biquan wanted nothing more than to flay his trusted advisor alive!

He fell into endless struggle. Both Assistant Minister Xu and the steward silently waited for his decision. Just as Dong Biquan had made up his mind, the steward spoke again: “My lord, in this humble servant’s opinion, the autumn grain matter is extremely urgent right now. If my lord reports to the Emperor at this time, though His Majesty will be angry, he can’t do without my lord right now. Why not take this opportunity to confess, then devote yourself to the autumn grain matter to make amends? This could be a way out.”

The wavering Dong Biquan’s eyes lit up: “Indeed, this is an excellent plan!”

He strode toward the door while giving orders: “Tell them to prepare, I’ll seek an audience with the Emperor immediately.”

Before Dong Biquan had even left his residence, Xiao Huayong received the news. He rubbed the black chess piece between his fingers: “Dong Biquan is heading to the palace. Arrange the show for him.”

“Rest assured, Your Highness, everything is prepared,” Tianyuan smiled with particular innocence. “I guarantee when Lord Dong sees His Majesty, he won’t be able to utter a single word.”

Shortly after Dong Biquan left his residence in his sedan chair, there was a sudden jolt. After steadying himself, he lifted the curtain and demanded: “What happened?”

The sedan bearer replied: “My lord, someone fleeing after stealing medicine nearly collided with us.”

“In the capital, committing theft, they deserve to be beaten…” The word “killed” caught in Dong Biquan’s throat as he saw the medicine thief caught by the yamen runners – it was Prince Kang’s once-prominent third son.

“My mother is ill, it’s just a few doses of medicine. Please, you can take me to the yamen afterward, I beg you…”

“Move along, save your words for the yamen!”

“My mother is waiting for life-saving medicine, I beg you, I’ll kowtow to you…”

“Stop talking, or your bones will suffer!”

Dong Biquan watched as Prince Kang’s third son pleaded with tears streaming down his face, watched as the minor officials impatiently pushed him around. His emotions became a jumbled mess until the sedan bearer said: “My lord, please sit properly, we’ll continue.”

“Ah? Oh, oh, yes, proceed…” Dong Biquan sat uneasily.

Once he had considered marrying his daughter into Prince Kang’s household. He had always thought highly of this filial third son and had privately inquired about Prince Kang’s attitude. Prince Kang hadn’t been opposed. Who could have imagined that the noble young master of the prince’s mansion would end up so miserable?

If Prince Kang’s household hadn’t fallen…

At this thought, Dong Biquan’s mood grew heavy. If one day he ended up like Prince Kang, what would become of his children?

Just thinking about it made Dong Biquan shudder involuntarily.

He arrived at the palace in a daze and made his way to Mingzheng Hall, where Liu Sanzhi informed him someone was already meeting with the Emperor, so he should wait outside.

His waiting place was far, but he could still occasionally hear Emperor Youning’s furious rebukes.

Dong Biquan quietly asked: “Eunuch Liu, please give me some guidance.”

Liu Sanzhi, being Emperor Youning’s confidant and knowing of Dong Biquan’s audience, said: “Lord Dong, His Majesty is currently seeing Inspector Zhao. Inspector Zhao concealed from His Majesty how he used his position as Imperial Inspector for personal gain and has come today to beg forgiveness.”

“Who reported Inspector Zhao?” Dong Biquan asked.

“No one reported him. Inspector Zhao felt guilty and came to confess,” Liu Sanzhi said in a lowered voice.

Dong Biquan’s heart skipped a beat. When Zhao Zhenghao emerged covered in tea stains and bleeding from cuts caused by the teacup, his face grew pale.

Liu Sanzhi had no time to attend to him, as he needed to comfort His Majesty’s subordinate: “His Majesty is angry about the autumn grain, he’s bound to be somewhat temperamental. Inspector, please don’t take it to heart.”

The stone-faced Zhao Zhenghao took the clean cloth Liu Sanzhi offered: “Both thunder and dew are the Emperor’s grace.”

After wiping the tea stains from his face, he handed his sword and Imperial Inspector’s token to Liu Sanzhi: “His Majesty has ordered me to reflect behind closed doors. I am temporarily not to serve as Imperial Inspector.”

“Inspector Zhao, His Majesty has always relied heavily on you. He cares that you work day and night and wants the Inspector to rest for a while,” Liu Sanzhi accepted the sword and token while speaking for the Emperor.

Zhao Zhenghao didn’t respond, but silently cupped his hands in farewell before striding away.

Dong Biquan watched from the side, his throat dry. When Emperor Youning finally summoned him, his mind was blank, especially feeling the Emperor’s obvious lingering anger. When Emperor Youning asked why he sought an audience, he didn’t dare utter a single word.

His mind was filled with the miserable fate of Prince Kang’s son and the狼狈 (desperate) state of the once-imposing Imperial Inspector Zhao Zhenghao.

Finally, he rambled about some trivial matters that needed reporting and was impatiently dismissed by Emperor Youning.

Returning to his mansion dejectedly, after long contemplation and under the persuasion of his trusted steward, he still decided to take the risk one more time.

“Tianyuan, Lord Dong wants a grain merchant,” Xiao Huayong sat in a courtyard where maple leaves were falling, rocking in his chair.

“It’s arranged, everything is properly arranged,” Tianyuan responded.

As he raised his hand, a light leaf fell into his thick, powerful palm. Xiao Huayong’s gaze was gentle: “This time’s smooth progress is thanks to Youyou’s influence.”

Originally, he had planned to set up a different trap for Dong Biquan. Shen Xihe had used her relationship with Bu Shulin to give a hard push forward, accelerating Dong Biquan’s defeat and death.

This move could only have been made by Shen Xihe. If he had approached directly, Bu Tuohai absolutely wouldn’t have believed him and wouldn’t have made such a risky move.

If Bu Tuohai wouldn’t, others certainly wouldn’t. They wouldn’t even dare to be the first to stick their necks out, let alone openly unite with others while secretly revealing their conspiracy to Dong Biquan.