As autumn arrived, the capital suddenly turned cold.

Initially, rumors circulated in court that the Secretariat was preparing to memorialize the Emperor regarding the selection of an Empress and consorts. But perhaps due to the gravity of the matter requiring careful consideration, the ministers of the Secretariat delayed submitting a formal memorial with their signatures, seemingly still deliberating. The entire court had been stirred with curiosity, privately speculating about the imperial intentions, wondering who would be chosen as Empress.

Almost simultaneously, rumors began to spread through the streets and alleys of the capital.

No one knew where these rumors originated, but their content and weight resounded like thunder across the land. Whether it was the busybodies in the city or commoners idly listening to strange tales in teahouses and restaurants, everyone was whispering about this rumor with their loose lips.

The current Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and Imperial Secretary, Gu Qin, was having an affair with Shen Zhili, the eldest daughter of Grand Tutor Shen.

“Having an affair” was a particularly clever phrase that could be interpreted however one wished.

And so this single rumor evolved into numerous variations in the mouths of the capital’s citizens, spreading like wild vines into thousands of households.

But rumors were merely rumors, and those high-ranking ministers at court naturally wouldn’t truly concern themselves with so-called sensational stories fabricated by commoners in their idle moments.

Before long, several ministers of the Secretariat, led by Left Chancellor Gu Qin, jointly submitted a memorial. With the Emperor having been on the throne for over a year, they requested that His Majesty establish an Empress.

The memorial stated that Shen Zhili, the eldest daughter of the current Director of the Secretariat Shen Wuchen, possessed virtuous character, humility, kindness, and many talents, and could serve as a model for women throughout the empire. They requested that she be established as Empress.

It was reasonable for the senior ministers of the Secretariat to request Shen Zhili as Empress. Throughout the court, no family held a more prestigious position than the Shen family, and Shen Zhili had grown up alongside the Emperor since childhood. In terms of understanding palace protocols and the Emperor’s mind, no woman could compare to her.

Within half a day of the memorial reaching the inner court, a censorial document impeaching Gu Qin emerged from the Censorate as if right on cue.

The impeachment concerned none other than the matter that had recently been circulating through the capital’s streets and alleys.

But this document, drafted by Supervising Censor Qiao Bo, was far more pointed than the private discussions among commoners, directly specifying the exact nature of Gu Qin and Shen Zhili’s “affair.”

Such rumors would normally be insufficient to be credible, but since this impeachment came from the Censorate and listed several instances of Shen Zhili visiting Gu’s residence at night on specific dates, it suddenly made the matter seem eighty percent more believable.

Everyone in court knew that the Censorate had monthly “assignments” to fulfill, and if the Supervising Censors failed to submit impeachments, they would face criticism. But no one had expected that this time, the Censorate would target Gu Qin!

Supervising Censor Qiao Bo was a fellow graduate of Right Remonstrator Deng Tong, who was the most promising young talent favored by Left Remonstrance Official Cao Jing. Cao Jing was a close associate among the group of talented young officials led by Meng Tinghui. Sharp-eyed observers immediately understood who was backing Qiao Bo’s impeachment. No one at court dared to act rashly, as the matter had come too suddenly, and no one could speak out rashly without certainty.

Since his wife’s passing three years ago, Gu Qin had not remarried, and Shen Zhili, at twenty-two, had not been betrothed. Although there would be no harm in them “having an affair” given that both were unmarried, the problem was that this was entangled with Gu Qin’s memorial requesting the Emperor to establish Shen Zhili as Empress.

This made Gu Qin appear extremely malicious!

As the current Left Chancellor, how could he request that a woman with whom he had an intimate relationship be made Empress? Where would this place the Emperor’s authority? And what would it make of the inner palace? If Shen Zhili became Empress, she would certainly become his supporter within the inner palace. With communication between the inner and outer courts, wasn’t he simply seeking personal gain?

With Xu Ting dismissed from his position as Chancellor, the officials of the Western Faction watched helplessly as the Eastern Faction grew increasingly powerful without being able to resist. Now suddenly hearing that Gu Qin had also been impeached for such shocking matters, they hastily drafted memorials. A series of accusations piled up as they sought to take advantage of this opportunity to thoroughly humble the Eastern Faction. Even if they couldn’t bring down Gu Qin, they could at least cause his standing in the Emperor’s heart to plummet.

Needless to say, Meng Tinghui’s faction, along with the young officials in the Two Departments, the Censorate, and the Three Ministries, wouldn’t miss this golden opportunity. They took turns submitting memorials denouncing Gu Qin’s crimes, which flew into the palace like snowflakes, landing directly before the Secretariat.

Even the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial University, which typically maintained a stance of lofty detachment, engaged in discussions, considering Gu Qin’s actions to be treasonous.

The court was suddenly in turmoil. The officials of the Eastern Faction didn’t dare defend him, while others spared no effort in impeaching him vigorously, showing no signs of relenting after several consecutive days.

With the two senior ministers of the Secretariat, Xu Ting and Gu Qin, successively caught in impeachment storms, the remaining senior ministers were genuinely alarmed. Some even speculated whether the Emperor was secretly orchestrating this to demote the old, conservative ministers.

At this critical juncture, Meng Tinghui unexpectedly submitted a memorial to the Emperor, stating that as a senior minister who had served three reigns with great merit, Gu Qin could not possibly commit acts that disregarded the sovereign. She requested that the Emperor not believe the Censorate’s impeachment and earnestly asked that Supervising Censor Qiao Bo be sent to the Censorate prison for interrogation on charges of using false accusations to mislead the sovereign.

Given how much suffering Meng Tinghui had endured from the Eastern Faction in the past, who could have imagined that today she would “stand up” to exonerate Gu Qin? And even requested that the Emperor imprison Qiao Bo for questioning—this was a hard slap in the face to those officials who had suspected her of being behind this matter!

The upheaval was tremendous. In the more than twenty years since the founding of the Great Ping Dynasty, the court had never experienced such chaos. Everyone was waiting to see how the Emperor would ultimately decide this matter.

Shen Zhishu returned to the capital amid this turmoil.

When he departed from Qingzhou Prefecture, the court in the capital had been peaceful. Who could have imagined that upon his arrival in the capital, instead of being warmly welcomed by the entire Shen household or receiving a special imperial summons to the palace, he would be confronted with this political disaster involving his sister Shen Zhili?

Moreover, the source of this calamity was precisely Shen Zhili’s years of unrequited admiration for Gu Qin.

Others might view this matter entirely as factional strife, but Shen Zhishu knew that these rumors couldn’t have emerged from anything. If Shen Zhili hadn’t been so careless and flamboyant in her actions, how could those with ulterior motives have seized the opportunity to cause trouble?

Upon entering the city, Shen Zhishu heard the detailed account from the servant who came to welcome him. After returning home, without even paying respects to his parents, he went directly to Shen Zhili’s quarters in the rear courtyard.

Shen Zhili had locked herself in her room, crying inconsolably. Hearing that Shen Zhishu was outside, she finally unbolted the door to let him in. Without hesitation, she threw herself into his arms and sobbed, “Brother… I… I’ve truly ruined him this time!”

Shen Zhishu gently held her with one arm while patting her back with the other, comforting her as he had done countless times since they were children. “What use is crying now… What did Father and Mother say?”

Tears streaming down her face, she shook her head and said between sobs, “I only heard Mother say that Father was furious with me, feeling too ashamed to go out. He hasn’t entered the palace to see the Emperor for more than ten days. I don’t dare to see Father either, I…”

His brow grew heavier. Hearing that his typically calm father had become so angry this time, he realized how serious the situation was. After a moment of silence, he finally said, “I’ll enter the palace tomorrow and plead for you before the Emperor.”

She pushed him away forcefully, tears flowing unstoppably. “What’s the use of pleading for me? Don’t you know he can’t even keep his position as Chancellor anymore? I… I’m not crying like this because I’m worried about myself…” She wiped the corners of her eyes with her sleeve and said chokingly, “Several times I wanted to ask Meng Tinghui to speak for him before the Emperor, but I feared that going to the Meng residence privately would cause more trouble. Your return is timely—quickly send someone to deliver an invitation to the Meng residence, saying you’re hosting a banquet to celebrate your return to the capital, inviting old friends from the court. This way, I can take the opportunity to beg Meng Tinghui for help!”

Shen Zhishu was left speechless, unable to hide his surprise.

She wouldn’t let him plead with the Emperor, but instead wanted to beg Meng Tinghui—did Meng Tinghui now hold such weight in the Emperor’s heart?