Qin Huaiyuan remained deeply shocked, sitting there like a wooden chicken, as if he hadn’t noticed Li Qitian’s fury at all. Instead, he knelt on the ground, and only after a long while did he straighten up and ask: “When the Prince left the capital, what was he going to do? Did he leave alone, or did he take people with him? What about the rest of the people in the Prince’s mansion? Are they still in the residence?”

Li Qitian looked at Qin Huaiyuan suspiciously.

His shocked and bewildered appearance wasn’t fake – the confusion and astonishment in his eyes were very real. Li Qitian had never seen Qin Huaiyuan like this before. Even when he first came to Great Zhou as a surrendered minister and was made difficult for and ostracized by the court officials, he had never been so panicked.

Perhaps Qin Huaiyuan also knew that with Pang Zhixi’s departure, all the blame and pressure would fall on his shoulders as the father-in-law, which was why he panicked?

Li Qitian’s suspicions lessened somewhat.

But even so, he wouldn’t trust Qin Huaiyuan.

“The servants at Prince Zhongshun’s mansion said that before Pang Zhixi left with the mansion troops, Pang Zhixi’s maternal relatives and mother had already left with their bundles, claiming they were going to visit relatives. As far as I know, that family’s relatives died out long ago, except for the Qin family. I ask you, didn’t they come to your home?”

“Your Majesty, this subject dare not deceive the sovereign. This subject took leave today and stayed home all day without going out. I absolutely did not see my in-laws’ family come to my residence. Your Majesty may freely inquire of the servants in my home, and may also command your subordinates to investigate at will. This subject has absolutely no objections.” After expressing his loyalty excitedly, he kowtowed heavily.

Seeing Qin Huaiyuan so sincere, Li Qitian’s suspicions lessened a bit more.

Though only a bit.

“Since my beloved minister is so sincere, how could I not give you the opportunity to prove your innocence? If I don’t have people thoroughly search your residence, there will be people saying there are problems in the Qin mansion later. Why don’t I personally oversee today and have them search thoroughly? What does my beloved minister think?”

“Your Majesty is benevolent, this subject is infinitely grateful.” Qin Huaiyuan continued kowtowing.

Li Qitian chuckled lightly and looked toward Li Guanwen.

Li Guanwen immediately turned to go to the door to transmit the imperial decree to the imperial guards. Soon, the not-too-large Qin residence became noisy.

Because Li Guanwen had specifically instructed that His Majesty was not here to confiscate the family property this time, and would continue to rely heavily on Minister Qin, the searching guards didn’t dare go too far. First, they didn’t damage the Qin family’s belongings, and second, they didn’t dare offend the women.

Even so, the several women led by the Old Dowager were frightened pale, attended by the few servants and standing in the middle of the inner courtyard, watching those imperial guards search room by room.

The women didn’t know exactly what had happened, but the Qin family women who had experienced much in Great Zhou felt cold in their hearts, as if they had returned to the time when they were intercepted and killed, forced to abandon their homes and belongings and come to Great Zhou in hardship.

The Old Dowager wiped her tears, sobbing and crying: “What sins we’ve committed, what sins! What evil have we done to encounter such things again!”

Eighth Miss and Qin Huining supported the Old Dowager on the left and right.

Second Madam Han held her child hiding in the crowd. Seeing imperial guards come out of rooms without taking any household items, unlike opportunistic robbers, she boldly asked: “What exactly are you all looking for? Tell us, perhaps we can help.”

Sun Shi, Second Madam, and the Old Dowager all turned back to glare at her fiercely.

At this time, provoking these fierce and malevolent gods – was she afraid they hadn’t noticed this family of women?

Second Madam Han felt wronged by the glares and squeezed closer behind her husband Qin Han.

Qin Han, Qin Yu, and Qin Xian all stepped forward to shield the women of the family behind them.

Because the imperial guards had received Li Guanwen’s instructions, they didn’t want to make things difficult for the Qin family at this moment, so they asked: “Have you seen the Old Master, Grand Madam, and Old Madam of Prince Zhongshun’s mansion?”

Hearing this, the Old Dowager said in surprise: “You’ve come to our residence to search for our in-laws’ family?”

Second Madam said: “We’ve naturally seen them when visiting relatives before, but it’s been a long time since we’ve seen them.”

The guards didn’t speak much with the women and went to the front hall to report.

Watching the men file out, the whole family breathed a sigh of relief.

Qin Han then quietly scolded Second Madam: “In the future, you mustn’t be talkative. You may be bold as a daughter-in-law, but can all the sisters at home be so bold?”

Second Madam Han was scolded until her face turned red, lowering her head and not daring to speak.

Seeing Qin Han discipline his wife, the Old Dowager said nothing more, instead quietly instructing Nanny Qin: “You quietly go to the front to investigate what exactly is happening. Why did they come to our home looking for our in-laws’ family, making such a commotion like they’re confiscating property?”

“Yes.” Nanny Qin responded and carefully went toward the second gate.

In the front hall, Li Qitian listened to the guards’ report. Seeing that the rest of the Qin residence reacted that way, his suspicions lessened considerably. Although he still harbored doubts, feeling that Qin Huaiyuan would certainly protect his son-in-law, without solid evidence, it was difficult to forcibly pin any crime on Qin Huaiyuan.

Moreover, the court was currently in turmoil. The aristocratic faction and the old ministers from the Northern Ji Kingdom, after seeing Elder Lu’s fate, were taking an even more wait-and-see attitude toward court politics, while the second son of the Lu family, though trusted by the clan leader, had limited appeal and ability. The nobles were watching Pang Zhixi and Ji Zeyu – once he moved against these two, the nobles would become alert, making it even harder to act. The surrendered minister faction all looked to Qin Huaiyuan as their leader. Since capturing Yuchi Yan and Gu Shixiong and imprisoning them in the heavenly prison, the surrendered minister faction was also in turmoil. If he moved against Qin Huaiyuan now, the surrendered ministers would likely fall into chaos too.

Add to this that the Tatars were still eyeing them hungrily, intending to wage war.

Li Qitian could be said to be overwhelmed with troubles.

With so much pressure weighing on his mind for days, and now Pang Xiao had actually left with the mansion troops without notice. Li Qitian’s temper could no longer be controlled.

However, looking at Qin Huaiyuan kneeling on the ground with his head lowered, waiting for instructions, and weighing the pros and cons again, Li Qitian finally sighed, personally helped the man up, and said amiably: “It was all a misunderstanding. Minister Qin, don’t take it to heart.”

Qin Huaiyuan seemed very moved, shaking his head repeatedly: “Your Majesty manages countless affairs daily and truly labors hard. National affairs are complex, and this subject is incompetent and unable to share Your Majesty’s burdens. Everything Your Majesty does is understandable. This subject only hates that he is truly useless – the Tatar situation is chaotic, yet this subject is just a useless scholar who cannot relieve Your Majesty’s worries.”

Qin Huaiyuan’s words truly spoke to Li Qitian’s heart.

It’s lonely at the top – what an emperor most hopes for is to be understood by others, not simply feared.

Setting aside the point that Qin Huaiyuan’s son-in-law was very troublesome, Qin Huaiyuan himself was actually quite to his liking.

“Forget it.” Li Qitian sighed deeply and said: “I was truly agitated. It seems Pang Zhixi anticipated that I would question you, so he didn’t dare tell you his arrangements, much less tell you where he hid his family. You’ve always been clever – analyze for me what Pang Zhixi was going to do when he left with the mansion troops. Is it possible he went to contact the Dragon Cavalry Army?”

Qin Huaiyuan pondered silently for a moment without showing emotion, then said: “In this subject’s view, the Prince doesn’t seem like someone who would do such things without reason. He’s probably just young and impetuous.”

At this point, Qin Huaiyuan’s expression became somewhat embarrassed.

Li Qitian raised an eyebrow and asked: “Oh?”

“Heroes have trouble with beautiful women – the Prince is after all a man of passion. He used to obey Your Majesty in everything, and the outrageous things he did were all because he couldn’t get past matters of the heart. It’s this subject’s fault for not properly educating my daughter.” As Qin Huaiyuan spoke, he was about to kneel again.

“My beloved minister need not do so.”

Li Qitian made a gesture to support him and instructed Qin Huaiyuan to sit.

Only then did Qin Huaiyuan tearfully thank him for his grace, then sat sideways on half the chair with his head lowered, waiting for instructions.

At this moment, Li Qitian’s anger subsided some more. Thinking back, he found that whenever Pang Xiao disobeyed him, it was indeed for a beauty’s sake, including the previous thirty-plus consecutive acts of defying imperial decrees.

So to speak, Pang Xiao was no longer the person without any flaws or weaknesses from before. Now he had a soft spot that no one could touch. For him, this was indeed a good thing.

After all, with a handle in hand, a tool was easier to use.

Li Qitian sighed: “He’s also reckless. Given the current situation with the Tatars, what use is it for him to go with those few mansion troops? Does he really think his soldiers are all heavenly troops and divine generals? For now, we should think carefully about how to seek peace.”

“Your Majesty speaks truly.” Qin Huaiyuan bowed and said: “The Tatars are clearly using this as an excuse to invade our Great Zhou’s borders. If war breaks out, it will cause countless civilian casualties. If we have silver to support the war effort, wouldn’t it be better to use it all on the people – building bridges and roads, repairing dikes, or even reducing the people’s taxes? In any case, it’s better than wasting the silver in the national treasury.”

Li Qitian nodded repeatedly as he listened: “What you say is very true, but the Tatars don’t think this way.”

Qin Huaiyuan then discussed court affairs with Li Qitian again.

Outside, after Nanny Qin observed from afar, she returned to report to the Old Dowager: “The visitor was probably a colleague of the master’s. He came with great momentum, but after discovering there was nothing wrong with our family, he began discussing serious matters with the master.”

Only then did the Old Dowager’s anxious heart completely settle.

However, upon reflection, she still felt the situation was somewhat strange.

“Have someone go to the Prince’s mansion to listen around – where did our in-laws’ family go? The people who came to search the inner courtyard earlier were looking for our in-laws’ family. Has something major happened?”

Hearing this, Nanny Qin immediately withdrew to carry out the order.

Shortly after Li Qitian left, Qin Huaiyuan had just returned to the inner courtyard when he was pulled aside by the Old Dowager, who had learned of the news Nanny Qin had gathered and was frightened. She gave him a thorough lecture: “You absolutely must not get involved with those Pang family people. Whether they live or die has nothing to do with our Qin family. His Majesty is looking for them – if we interfere and manage this matter, I’m afraid our Qin family will be implicated.”

Qin Huaiyuan had already guessed what the Old Dowager would say. Not wanting to make her worry more, he gently agreed.

The Old Dowager then pulled Qin Huaiyuan aside to discuss the marriage affairs of the two girls in the family.

Qin Yining had been married for so long without any news of children. The Old Dowager actually still hoped to send Eighth Miss to Prince Zhongshun’s mansion as a noble concubine.

But given the current situation, Qin Huaiyuan probably wouldn’t agree.