Chapter 160

Chapter 160

The second the Crown Prince walked out of Qianqing Palace, the Eastern Palace's orders hit the Ministries of Works and War right away. All the case files on military equipment were rounded up and shipped over to the Censorate, and officials who'd come to file complaints against the Ministry of Works got picked up by the Jinyiwei the moment they showed up. By the time the Eastern Palace's troops started moving, court officials had already caught a whiff that something was off.

"He came straight out of Qianqing Palace and got right to it."

"Shouldn't the Dali Temple be the ones to enforce the law fairly?"

"Are you forgetting? The Crown Prince was a Dali Temple judge before he ever set foot in court!"

The Crown Prince had only rolled into the capital that morning, and before sundown, his orders had already hit all six ministries.

Back at the Yun estate in the capital, the family head shot to his feet the second he got the news. They had no word from Qianqing Palace, but lately they'd heard through Consort Yun in the harem that the Emperor's health seemed to be slipping—he kept secretly calling in imperial physicians. That's why they'd decided to make their move.

For the Yun family, the Jiangnan case had already gutted a big chunk of their people in the Ministry of Revenue, and the Emperor had even temporarily sacked the Minister of Revenue, promoting someone else to take his spot. The Yun family had served the Dayuan royal house faithfully since the previous Emperor's reign, and it was only when the Yun family's former Grand Secretary came out of retirement that disaster barely missed them. The Emperor's warning had kept the Yun family on a short leash for a while.

The eldest prince, who should've headed out to Western Shu, had been stuck in the capital for now because of the unrest there. But with his disability and the Ministry of Revenue's serious crimes, the eldest prince was out of the running. The Yun family's only hope, the Seventh Prince, was a mediocrity and hadn't managed to stand out in front of the Emperor lately. The Yun family knew the writing was on the wall—the Crown Prince's reputation had spread across the whole court, and unless something unexpected happened, he'd be the next Emperor.

"Master, what about what we've done..." a subordinate asked.

"If we let the Ministries of Works and War keep all the power while the Ministry of Revenue loses its say, then once the internal and external messes get sorted out, the cleanup's going to land right on our Yun family." The head of the Yun family's eyes darkened. He could guess why the Crown Prince had come back—to back up the Ministries of Works and War and to lock down his own authority.

The Yun family had countless noble houses behind them, covering most of the capital's power players. With the Eastern Palace going after corruption, they were exactly who the Crown Prince was whetting his blade for. To keep their footing, the Yun family had to come out looking like loyal, deserving officials.

They couldn't let the Eastern Palace run roughshod over everything. They had to take back the power that was rightfully theirs.

"Send word to..." Before he could finish, word came from outside the estate.

"Master, something's wrong!"

A servant rushed in: "The Crown Prince is here with the Three Judicial Offices and the Jinyiwei—they're already at the gate!"

The head of the Yun family's face twitched. They were coming straight for the Yun family! He scrambled to lead his people out to greet them, but the Crown Prince didn't even head for the main hall. The Three Judicial Offices, citing unresolved Ministry of Revenue accounts from the Jiangnan case, demanded to search the Yun estate.

"Your Highness!" The head of the Yun family couldn't stay calm any longer. Even the Emperor had never ordered a search of the Yun estate. The Yun family were founding heroes—the late Emperor had given them special privileges. Going after the Yun family would be like spitting on the late Emperor's decree. "Does Your Highness have His Majesty's order? What crime has the Yun family committed that you'd bring the Three Judicial Offices and the Jinyiwei to search us?"

The Crown Prince, still in his court robes, stood with a few Jinyiwei behind him, not even bothering to look at the head of the Yun family. "Someone's accused your Yun family of framing court officials. There are problems with the Ministry of Revenue's stone procurement accounts. Got a problem with me looking into your family?"

The head of the Yun family was about to demand proof when the Crown Prince chucked a written accusation right in his face. It laid out how the Ministry of Revenue had swapped in subpar stone during procurement—the exact crime that had been pinned on the Ministry of Works was now being flipped back onto the Ministry of Revenue. Sure, the Ministry of Works handled military equipment, but the Ministry of Revenue controlled procurement and funding—they ran the national treasury.

The accusation described Ministry of Revenue officials working hand-in-glove with former procurement officials from the Ministry of Works. There wasn't any evidence mentioned, but the names listed made the head of the Yun family jerk in alarm. He was about to say something when he looked up and met Ying Fusheng's sharp stare. The Crown Prince's voice dropped: "From this moment on, no one in the Yun family comes in or out. Until this is fully investigated, you all stay put in this house."

The Yun estate was locked down tight. Nobody was getting out.

The Crown Prince's grip kept spreading elsewhere. When Liu Yunshi, always the smooth operator, heard the Crown Prince had slapped a lockdown on the Yun estate, his head started pounding. He didn't dare go to the Eastern Palace and rushed to find Hu Buyu instead: "What is His Highness doing! That's the Yun family!"

Hu Buyu knew the military equipment mess had hit the Crown Prince's sore spot. If the Crown Prince wanted to clean out these corrupt types, he could've gone about it differently. Going straight at the Yun family might solve the military equipment problem fast, but it would definitely tick off every powerful noble at court. "This is trouble."

Over the years, they'd rooted out plenty of Secret Faction agents, and Meng Jinyuan had been robbing Peter to pay Paul just to keep the court steady.

Taking out a few noble families was no big deal, but the Yun family was untouchable. If the Yun family fell apart, the other noble houses would close ranks.

The day the Yun family got locked down, grumbling started at court. Officials were calling out the Eastern Palace for acting without proof. The Yun family's Grand Secretary sent a letter begging to see the Emperor, other noble families scrambled to get people into the palace, and Consort Yun was sobbing in the harem—it all blew up to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.

"I used to think the Crown Prince was sharp, but he's been reckless with this one!" Many senior officials discussed among themselves. Even when the Ministry of Revenue had its great scandal, His Majesty hadn't moved against the Yun family. Besides, the military equipment issue might have been the fault of the former Ministry of Works. The Crown Prince had exhausted his authority to protect Hu Buyu and Liu Yunshi!

The news reached the Eastern Palace.

"I understand." Before Ying Fusheng lay the military equipment case files. The matter wasn't difficult to investigate—or rather, he didn't need to investigate it himself. The evidence Ji Wuming had provided was sufficient. The Ministry of Revenue and the former Ministry of Works had colluded, substituting stone materials that compromised the quality of forged military equipment. With the Secret Faction covering up and altering records, and the Xu Faction shielding them for power, these matters had been buried in the shadows without anyone the wiser.

But now, with the Northern Barbarians invading, it had all been exposed.

Zhou Bingjun, Grand Secretary Xu, and others were already dead. These crimes could easily be blamed on the deceased—after all, the Xu Faction had been corrupt before; a bit more corruption wouldn't matter.

"Have Liu Yunshi mobilize military equipment. I'll handle the court matters. I want the Ministries of Works and War to gather craftsmen at the fastest speed and send equipment to the front lines." Ying Fusheng said.

Weng Yanqing understood and immediately went to carry out the order.

Ying Fusheng lowered his gaze. The front lines must already know about the military equipment situation.

The Qi Family Army could hold on for now, but after that, it was uncertain.

"Has Chu Taiyi entered the palace?" Ying Fusheng asked.

Song An came over and handed him the Imperial Medical Academy's case records. When he read about the Emperor's condition, Ying Fusheng frowned slightly: "Have Miss Chen pay extra attention."

With that, he sealed a finished letter into a message tube.

The plump falcon stared at him with its round eyes. Ying Fusheng stroked its head and said softly: "This time, you must fly faster."

The falcon fluttered its wings as if in acknowledgment, then turned and flew out of the palace.

Ying Fusheng watched it disappear into the distance, his eyes gradually dimming. "Have the Eighth Prince come see me regarding the Ministry of Rites."

In the palace, the Emperor ordered Consort Yun confined to her quarters, his gaze cold as he reviewed battle reports from various fronts.

But after a moment, his vision began to blur. Chu Taiyi entered the palace to administer acupuncture. When the Emperor removed his outer robes, old wounds from years past crisscrossed his body—injuries sustained in his youth, compounded by years of overwork that had brought on sudden illness. The Emperor was wary of secret medicines from the previous dynasty because during the campaigns, the Northern Barbarians had used poison in battle.

Several of these wounds were poison injuries, but in those days, the Qi family's military physicians had suppressed them. The Emperor had also instructed that this never be spoken of.

"Your Majesty." Chu Taiyi finished the acupuncture and said: "You should rest."

The Emperor closed his eyes. Chu Taiyi had come not only to examine him but also to report on Ying Fusheng's actions. When the words "difficulty with heirs" were spoken, the Emperor was silent for a long time.

He waited until the physician removed the needles before opening his eyes. "Bury this in your stomach."

Chu Taiyi quickly replied: "This minister understands!"

He rose and changed the incense on the Emperor's desk to a medicinal blend.

Eunuch Rong walked over, took the prescription Chu Taiyi had written, and handed it to the person behind him.

After giving his instructions, Chu Taiyi hurried back to the Imperial Medical Academy. Not long after he left, servants from Qianqing Palace brought the prepared medicine.

"Send it in." Eunuch Rong said.

In the outer hall, Meng Jinyuan and others who had been summoned waited, yet the Emperor had still not granted them an audience.

Just then, a military courier arrived from outside the hall, bearing urgent news from the northern border.

"How can this be reported to His Majesty!" Meng Jinyuan caught sight of the urgent report's contents—it concerned military equipment on the northern front. He immediately fixed the courier with a cold stare and stopped him: "His Majesty has been unwell these past two days. Hold this news for now and send it to the Eastern Palace."

The reporting servant hesitated: "But His Majesty specifically instructed that this must..."

Perhaps the discussion was too loud and was overheard by those inside. The Emperor's voice came: "What is it? Send it in."

The urgent report had barely been delivered inside when everyone saw it flung back out by the Emperor.

Followed by rapid, choked coughing. Meng Jinyuan immediately went inside and dismissed the courier.

The hall was silent, and the ministers outside the inner chamber exchanged glances upon hearing the coughing, hiding their shock.

In another mansion beyond the palace walls, within a luxurious residence, a man reclining in the courtyard waved away the singing girls around him. A man hurried in, knelt before him, and reported in a low voice on the situation inside the palace, "Your Highness, everything is ready."

Prince Yongjia looked up at him.

-*

Out in the northern desert, Qi Hanzhou's grain route with Western Shu was starting to pay off. He immediately swapped out the military supplies at Shayan Pass, since Western Shu's supplies could temporarily cover the northern desert's needs. But his father's Qi family camp was a different story—its supplies were probably in even worse shape than Shayan Pass's.

"Did the letters go out to the capital?" Qi Hanzhou asked.

Ye Xuanjiu nodded: "Sent, but it'll take time to reach the capital."

Getting from the northern desert to the capital is slower than getting to Western Shu. He wondered how the prince was doing back in the capital. Seeing the grim look on his young general's face, Ye Xuanjiu said, "Xuan Qi's with the prince—don't worry, Young General."

Qi Hanzhou's brow stayed furrowed. In front of him lay a hastily put-together set of accounts. Over the years in the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he'd secretly handled plenty of jobs for the emperor. The moment the supplies issue came up, he realized the embezzled amount was no small thing. "Who pocketed the military funds?"

"The Secret Faction?" Ye Xuanjiu asked after a moment of thought.

"If it were the Secret Faction, why would they need to smuggle things through the Ministry of Works?" Qi Hanzhou shook his head, worry gnawing at him. The Ministry of Revenue's purchasing and even the Ministry of Works' logistics showed no problems—you can't easily tamper with those without getting caught. To pin the blame squarely on the Ministry of War and Works, the books would have to be perfect: "I've gone over the Ministry of Revenue's books before. They did buy materials for forging northern military gear from stone merchants."

Ye Xuanjiu hesitated: "Then that means—"

"If the purchasing process could fool almost everyone, yet the supplies still came up short, then who swapped the materials, and where did the replacements go?" Qi Hanzhou asked.

Ye Xuanjiu's eyes went wide as it hit him.

Qi Hanzhou's eyes had gone completely cold. "Xuan Jiu, something feels off."

Up north, in the royal court of the Northern Barbarians.

When the Prince of Pingnan's Heir arrived, the Northern Barbarian King received him with all due courtesy, and his advisors and the rest of his entourage were properly settled in. But word of the defeat at Shayan also reached the Northern Barbarian King. As he sat with the Prince of Pingnan's Heir and brought up One-Eye's capture, the prince stayed perfectly composed.

"You don't seem worried about any of this," the Northern Barbarian King observed.

"A general who acts rashly isn't fit to be a general. One-Eye was my commander, sure, but after two straight losses, he's already a dead piece." The Prince of Pingnan's Heir set the battle report aside. "Thanks to One-Eye's recklessness, you should now know how many troops the court can pull from Western Shu."

The Northern Barbarian King let out a hearty laugh. Grabbing the court's grain at Shayan gives them a base to work with in the northern desert, and using seventy thousand troops to test the northern desert's strength was a real gain. But their original plan was to take Shayan—compared to that, this little gain was nothing. "When I made that deal with your mother—if we took the north, Yin and the barbarians would split the land and stay friendly allies. But now it looks like..."

"The north is already on its last legs. The Qi family, no matter how strong, are only human after all. The supply problem is a chronic weakness for the Qi family army, and Qi Shen's grain is about to run dry," the Prince of Pingnan's Heir continued. "I get your concerns. Dayuan's defenses are tough to crack, sure, but I made the Chen family army retreat before, and I can take Qi Shen's head now."

The Northern Barbarian King furrowed his brow slightly. He had to admit, with this man's help, the Northern Barbarians had bounced back fast after the war's devastation. Through Western Shu, they'd gotten intel on Dayuan's military gear and this man's backing. This man needed troops, and the barbarians needed land—mutual benefit all around. "What else do you plan to do? On the grain front, scouts say Dayuan's southern regions are shipping grain north. You've got no intel on the southern grain routes—how are you going to cut them off?"

"No need to cut them off. The Qi family can hold the north, but what if something goes down in the capital?" the Prince of Pingnan's Heir said.

The Northern Barbarian King's eyes narrowed: "You've still got people in the capital?"

The Prince of Pingnan stared at the delicacies in front of him, the wine splashing slightly like ripples spreading out.

People in the capital still remembered how the current emperor seized power through a coup. Back then, the Dayuan emperor had many sons, and when he fell gravely ill in his later years, many princes grew restless. Some were purged before the emperor's ascension, others like the Prince of Qin retreated to Western Shu and died under mysterious circumstances.

And others, under the guise of brotherhood, were never satisfied and prepared for years.

"It's not my people. Sometimes, a slight push is all it takes for others to serve my purposes." The Prince of Pingnan's Heir said softly. "Dayuan's forces are in Western Shu, in the Jiangnan region, and now mostly gathered at the northern border... At the critical moment, no one will return to defend the capital."

...

The Yun family affair grew increasingly heated at court. The Eastern Palace not only refused to let go of the Yun family but also brought related officials into the Dali Temple. The Crown Prince moved swiftly—almost every time the Censorate uncovered a trace, he would detain those involved.

Now the powerful families behind the Yun family grew nervous.

They had delayed military reports merely to gain power—if the Ministry of War and Works ceded authority, everyone could profit peacefully.

Now the Crown Prince had overturned the table, and at this critical juncture, he was shaking the foundations of the court to serve his purposes. It was then that the court factions realized how fast the Crown Prince moved—from the Ministry of War and Works to the Three Judicial Offices, even the Embroidered Uniform Guard, all obeyed his commands... The emperor couldn't have been blind to this, meaning he had tacitly approved and delegated authority.

The overly dramatic actions had every noble's heart in their throat.

The next day at court, several elder ministers led by the Yun family submitted a joint remonstrance.

"Your Majesty!! This old minister has served the court with utmost loyalty, yet the Crown Prince has pinned crimes on us without evidence and thrown my son into prison!" One elder minister wailed in court, tears streaming. Others echoed him—some accused the Crown Prince of recklessness, some indicted Minister of War Hu Buyu, and some even threatened death by remonstrance against the Eastern Palace.

It was the first time such a scene had occurred since the Crown Prince took office.

The noble families' networks were deeply intertwined. Unsure how much evidence the Crown Prince held, they could only use the merits promised by the late emperor to pressure him.

Ying Fusheng watched them coldly: "The military supply matter is of grave importance. Everything I have done is backed by evidence. I ask Your Majesty..."

Before he could finish, the remonstrating elder minister suddenly lunged toward the hall's pillar.

Just as the old minister was about to strike the pillar, the emperor, seated high above, suddenly gripped his dragon throne and ordered someone to stop him. But they couldn't—the man had already slammed into it. He was a founding minister, and his death by remonstrance shocked the entire court!

"Elder Wang!" Cries of alarm rang out.

Meng Jinyuan's expression shifted slightly, and Xiao Yan's brow furrowed.

Liu Yunshi hadn't expected things to come to this. He hurried forward to check on the situation, but before he could reach him, he noticed several courtiers' gazes turning toward him. He stopped in his tracks, realizing some looks were different—amid the anxious ministers, several watched coldly from the sidelines: "This..."

Prince Yongjia glanced at the Crown Prince. Ying Fusheng stood among them, his court robes stirring slightly, his expression unreadable.

In the chaos, court was dismissed, but the old minister could not be saved.

As the ministers filed out, everyone sensed something unusual.

The old minister's death was meant to force the Crown Prince to back off and halt the investigation into the military supply case.

The next morning at court, the emperor announced he was ill.

The news came suddenly. Before the ministers could grasp what was happening, the Crown Prince had already handled everything cleanly. With the emperor ill, the Crown Prince naturally assumed governance. But everyone at court sensed something strange. Many elder ministers recalled the late emperor—when he was gravely ill, the then-Crown Prince had staged a coup.

In the ministers' eyes, the emperor had grown visibly aged over the years, especially after returning from the campaigns.

After the emperor's illness was announced, news from the Imperial Medical Academy somehow spread. The fact that the emperor's health had long been failing could no longer be suppressed. Many ministers used this as grounds to demand an audience with the emperor, but the Grand Empress Dowager, Empress Xu, and even the Imperial Medical Academy all remained silent. The Crown Prince directly took over governance.

The emperor saw no one.

"Aside from the imperial physicians, no one else may enter the Qianqing Palace," Ying Fusheng said.

The Qianqing Palace's attendants were placed under control, leaving only Eunuch Rong and two other trusted aides to attend to him. That day, after court was dismissed, the emperor had vomited blood, and his condition suddenly deteriorated into unconsciousness. The physicians were now stationed permanently at the Qianqing Palace.

The Crown Prince ordered everyone to suppress the news and keep it quiet.

The noble families had been waiting for the emperor to rein in the Crown Prince, but with this turn of events, the Crown Prince's investigations became even more decisive.

Even Liu Yunshi and others couldn't resist going to the Eastern Palace to urge the Crown Prince to ease his grip at such a critical moment, warning against pushing these people too hard—the court still needed them to function.

No one could understand the Crown Prince's aims, but Ying Fusheng knew that to uproot this rotten foundation, sacrifices were necessary—and his goals went beyond this.

Three days into the turmoil, several elder ministers linked to the Yun family and the Ministry of Revenue suddenly stopped attending court.

The uproarious nobles suddenly fell silent. Instead, agitators among the common folk began stirring, trying to use the Crown Prince's role in the old minister's death as a weapon.

That day, Xiao Yan arrived at the Eastern Palace.

The two had long been secret allies, yet this was the first time Xiao Yan met Ying Fusheng openly. "The Empress Dowager says not to worry about matters in the palace."

"The force backing the Yun family has made its move."

At the same time, he handed over an intelligence report.

It was intelligence from the northern border—the Northern Barbarians had launched a full-scale assault.

"Your Highness, now we face troubles from within and without," Xiao Yan said.

Ying Fusheng looked at the urgent report, and as he took it, his gaze swept over a few words, lingering on them for a long while. After a moment, he set it down and looked up at Xiao Yan.

His eyes held a look of firm resolve.

"I have been waiting for them all to make their move."