Ouyang Weiyu collapsed to the ground, using the momentum to roll over and reveal her face. Her originally fair and full forehead had caved in, with fresh blood gushing out continuously.
The sudden turn of events left everyone stunned for a moment.
“Quickly call for a physician!” Yang Yunzhi, Vice Minister of Justice and Prefect of Shuntian, shouted.
Chi Can walked over, bent down to examine her carefully, then straightened up and said indifferently, “It’s no use.”
Soon, the still-warm blood began spreading toward everyone’s feet. Watching the young woman who had been full of life just moments ago suddenly become a cold corpse with such a gruesome death, everyone felt deeply disturbed and now fully believed Ouyang Weiyu’s accusations.
But what good did believing do? Based solely on a young woman’s accusations, without solid evidence, they still couldn’t convict Lan Songquan.
This girl died for nothing.
Many people thought silently, feeling secretly regretful.
Chi Can lowered his gaze to look at Ouyang Weiyu’s corpse, took out a snow-white handkerchief from his chest to cover her face, then straightened up expressionlessly.
Died for nothing? No, those who die will never truly die in vain.
When he found Ouyang Weiyu, he understood this girl wouldn’t live much longer. The belief that sustained her to keep living was to speak these words in the court hall.
A thousand-li dike can be destroyed by an ant hole.
His Majesty’s sacred favor toward Lan Shan was no longer what it once was, as could be glimpsed from His Majesty’s reactions to several incidents over the past two years.
Now was precisely when Prince Rui’s life or death was uncertain, and the blame for Prince Rui’s peril had been directed toward Lan Songquan. With the addition of Ouyang Weiyu’s tragic death, as long as the follow-up planning was proper, it would be Lan Songquan’s death warrant.
“Censor Chi, where are you going?” Seeing Chi Can walking out with a calm expression, Yang Yunzhi couldn’t help but ask.
“Naturally, to return and write a memorial.”
“Ah—” Yang Yunzhi called out, but couldn’t stop Chi Can’s steps, and could only look toward Lan Songquan.
Lan Songquan glanced disdainfully at Ouyang Weiyu’s corpse and sneered coldly, “Now that the person is dead, does Minister Yang still want to continue the interrogation? I recall that consorting with prostitutes doesn’t fall under the Ministry of Justice’s jurisdiction, does it?”
Yang Yunzhi opened and closed his mouth.
Lan Songquan stepped over Ouyang Weiyu’s corpse and strode out.
“Truly going too far!” Only after Lan Songquan’s figure could no longer be seen did Yang Yunzhi mutter.
Soon Chi Can wrote a memorial fiercely denouncing Lan Songquan and submitted it.
After reading it, Emperor Mingkang threw the memorial onto the dragon desk, his heart full of irritation.
This father and son pair of the Lan family were becoming increasingly tactless. He was already troubled, yet they kept creating incident after incident.
Could the Fifth Prince’s accident truly be related to Lan Songquan?
This thought flashed through Emperor Mingkang’s mind. He raised his hand to rub his temples and said wearily, “Wei Wuxie, summon the Celestial Master.”
Emperor Mingkang kept a group of Taoist priests in the palace, so Celestial Master Zhang arrived quickly.
“Celestial Master, I have frequently encountered troubles during my recent seclusions. I sent Prince Rui to Lingtai Mountain to pray for blessings, hoping to resolve this, but who knew Prince Rui’s life and death would become uncertain? What exactly is happening?”
“Your Majesty, don’t panic. Allow this poor Taoist to calculate.” Celestial Master Zhang slightly closed his eyes, his fingers moving continuously, presenting the appearance of an otherworldly master.
After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Celestial Master Zhang opened his eyes and looked at Emperor Mingkang with a grave expression.
“Celestial Master, what do you see?”
Celestial Master Zhang sighed softly, “Your Majesty, the situation is indeed not optimistic.”
“How so?” Emperor Mingkang relied on Celestial Master Zhang more and more, especially after that seclusion went smoothly following Celestial Master Zhang’s guidance, making him value the Celestial Master’s words even more highly.
“Last winter’s continuous heavy snow indicated a high minister monopolizing power, causing many to suffer injustice. This spring’s frequent disasters indicate treacherous ministers holding sway, causing unrest throughout the realm. Your Majesty, this is an evil star causing trouble, affecting the radiance of the Purple Forbidden Star…”
Emperor Mingkang’s expression turned ugly. “Celestial Master, on whom does this evil star manifest?”
Celestial Master Zhang shook his head without speaking.
Emperor Mingkang was quite disappointed.
He understood this meant heavenly secrets could not be revealed, but without eliminating the evil star, he truly couldn’t eat or sleep peacefully.
“Your Majesty, this poor Taoist is currently refining a furnace of Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pills to help Your Majesty increase fortune and longevity. Right now we’re at the crucial moment of pill formation—”
“Celestial Master, go attend to your duties.”
After Celestial Master Zhang left, Emperor Mingkang repeatedly pondered his words when he suddenly heard Wei Wuxie report, “Your Majesty, Grand Secretary Lan requests an audience.”
“Grand Secretary Lan?” Emperor Mingkang’s heart sank, inexplicably thinking of the evil star.
“Summon him in.”
Lan Shan came at this time to speak well of his son Lan Songquan.
He had already learned of the news that Censor Ouyang’s daughter had died by crashing into a pillar in the court hall. On one hand, he was angry that Lan Songquan had swaggered away, and on the other hand, he was troubled by Chi Can’s accusation.
He understood Emperor Mingkang well.
In the past, even if there had been solid evidence of his son’s plot to harm Ouyang Hai, His Majesty would still have suppressed the matter to protect them father and son. But now was different—His Majesty had already shown impatience with them, father and son, so news of Ouyang Hai’s daughter’s dying accusation reaching His Majesty’s ears would worsen His Majesty’s poor impression of them, father and son.
Rather than wait for His Majesty to summon his son tomorrow and fly into a rage, it was safer for him to come first to apologize. At least for the time being, His Majesty would not punish them, father and son, considering his devoted service over more than twenty years.
After hearing Lan Shan’s apology, Emperor Mingkang remained silent for a long time, just looking down from his high position at Lan Shan prostrated on the ground, deep in thought.
Evil star causing trouble, treacherous ministers monopolizing power—could this be speaking precisely of the Lan father and son?
The more Emperor Mingkang thought about it, the more he felt this was the case.
No wonder he was suspicious. These years, he had been busy with Taoist cultivation, leaving almost all court affairs to Lan Shan to handle. If speaking of a minister monopolizing power, who else could it be besides Lan Shan?
“Very well, I understand. You may withdraw first.” Having connected Lan Shan with the evil star, Emperor Mingkang found looking at Lan Shan increasingly disgusting.
Seeing Emperor Mingkang’s expression was wrong, how could Lan Shan dare say more? He hurriedly apologized and took his leave.
“Wei Wuxie, go ask if the Celestial Master’s Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pills are ready yet.”
Before Wei Wuxie could respond, Emperor Mingkang changed his mind again, “Never mind, I’ll go see for myself.”
How annoying—he had just shared a room with the evil star!
Emperor Mingkang walked to the pill refining room and saw Celestial Master Zhang rush out, covered in soot and ash.
“Celestial Master, what happened?”
“The pill formation failed!”
Emperor Mingkang became anxious, “How could this happen?”
Celestial Master Zhang patted his singed beard, “When opening the furnace just now, this poor Taoist felt unsettled in mind and spirit. It must have been disrupted by the evil star!”
Emperor Mingkang’s heart suddenly sank.
The evil star was Lan Shan!
At this time, several ministers had quietly gathered at Vice Grand Secretary Xu’s residence, all deciding to join Chi Can tomorrow morning in severely impeaching Lan Songquan, but they were stopped by Xu Mingda.
“Vice Grand Secretary Xu, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring down Lan Songquan.”
“Yes, Lan Shan is already aged. In recent years, he has relied on his son to maintain the imperial favor. If we eliminate Lan Songquan, then Lan Shan’s downfall is just a matter of time!”
“Qiao Mo, what do you think?” Xu Mingda suddenly asked Qiao Mo, who had been quietly listening.
“This student believes we should not join Censor Chi in impeaching Lan Songquan tomorrow, but rather should plead for his mercy.”