There should be nothing.

Chapter 463 Jiajing Guessed the Yan Family's Conspiracy

At night,

Zhu Mo and Lü Kun chatted for a while, both feeling that the current peace was only temporary and that trouble would arise again before long.

Under Zhang Yu, the reform had been overturned by three to four tenths, and it was currently frozen. It wasn't that Zhu Mo didn't want to push it, but that any further forceful push would put Yin Shidan and Zhao Zhenji in a dilemma. Once a division arose, Yan Shifan would inevitably stir up trouble again. Therefore, the best approach was to push slowly. For instance, Zhang Yu's prohibition of the study of the philosophy of the mind in academies was easy to implement; it could be restored immediately.

The most difficult issue was the clearance of "workshop mergers." This matter involved enormous profits. The day Zhang Yu issued his decree, people like Xu Yang and Shen Yishi had already begun to act. Currently, a rough estimate indicated that nearly one-third of the small workshops had been merged.

The proprietors of these small workshops were now eagerly awaiting Zhu Mo to abolish their merger contracts. The larger workshops, however, feared that Zhu Mo might adopt a blanket approach, rendering their investments worthless. Although they had already driven down prices to the extreme, they had still spent a considerable amount of money.

If the merger were to be abolished with a single decree at this point, not only would Yin Shidan and Zhao Zhenji not necessarily agree, but the larger workshops were directly backed by Yan family factions, inevitably leading to a confrontation. After several in-depth discussions, the two decided to put the matter aside for the time being.

Besides these, there was another tricky issue—

At Jingde Town and Xiangshan Salt Field, these two industries frequently encountered problems due to the lack of competent personnel like Zhang Juzheng to manage them. Yin Shidan and Zhao Zhenji, unwilling to get involved in disputes, had been merely mediating. However, these problems were deeply rooted, and constant mediation would always lead to further issues.

After observing for a few days, and finding no immediate solution, they had no choice but to first focus on the matter of the trading groups and systematically weed out the fake merchants Zhang Yu had brought in.

Station: -Ta.dū Novel, Welcome to Download

Several days later,

In the capital, Yuxi Palace.

Jiajing had not personally reviewed case files for a long time, but now he was reading through them word for word.

These had been investigated and compiled by people sent by Huang Jin during this period. There were a total of eight former retainers of the royal household, with the highest official being a Right Chief Clerk and the lowest a Si Shen, or head cook. Their testimonies essentially confirmed that they had all received money from Yan Fu, ranging from thirty thousand taels at most to two thousand taels at least. For these individuals, this was already a fortune, enough to buy a house in the capital. Such a substantial sum was naturally meant to request significant favors.

However, it was regrettable that these individuals only stated that Yan Fu had instructed them to monitor Prince Jing and report on his daily life every ten days, detailing everything from his toilet habits, meals, and sleep, even his snoring.

Even Jiajing, a seasoned master of political intrigue, was perplexed by these findings. After pondering for a long time, he still found no clue. However, a growing sense of resentment festered in his heart… After all, this was his son, who had been treated with such disrespect!

At this moment,

He suppressed his anger, brushed aside the case files with his whisk, and said mockingly:

“After so much effort, this is all you’ve come up with?”

Koukou Wuliu Shanqi Sanshiliu Qi Wu

Lü Fang and Huang Jin stood by his side. Lü Fang tugged at Huang Jin’s clothes and said, “Your Majesty is asking you, speak up quickly…”

Huang Jin knelt and said:

“Reporting to Your Majesty, this servant has inquired, and these individuals genuinely do not know why they were tasked with such trivial matters, nor why Yan Shifan gave them so much money… This servant speculates that Prince Jing was most likely driven to madness by these people! Who could endure this? Seven or eight people watching him every day? Prince Jing is very clever; how could he not know someone was trying to harm him? This is a situation where heaven does not hear and earth does not respond. Over time, one simply cannot bear it…”

Lü Fang shared the same view. After all, Prince Jing was indeed very intelligent, and in such circumstances, the more intelligent a person was, the more suspicious they would become. Over time, they would naturally go mad. Moreover, those under house arrest, unable to see the outside world, would inherently develop issues. But even so, Yan Shifan had still plotted against a prince!

Lü Fang immediately said:

“Your Majesty, this servant believes that Yan Shifan is so heinous, plotting against a prince, that he cannot be let off… This servant will, will send Zhu Qi to apprehend Yan Shifan now?”

Jiajing’s greatest hatred in his life was being deceived. The matter of Qiu Luan’s deception of the emperor had later led to his corpse being exhumed and mutilated. And now, with concrete evidence, Yan Shifan had sent so many people to monitor his son!

He let out a long sigh and said calmly:

“What’s the rush? Can he possibly escape?”

The only thing he was uncertain about was this: what exactly were Yan Song and his son trying to achieve? If it was murder, then Prince Jing was still alive… If they had no malicious intent, then Prince Jing had gone mad, or at least pretended to be mad… What was the Yan family’s true intention at that time?

Reader ID - Wuliusanqi Sanshiliuwu Qi Wu

He paced a few steps, recalling Xu Jiu’s words. The Prince Jing in Anlu was clearly not fake; it was not that Yan Shifan had harmed him and then found someone to impersonate him. That flame-shaped birthmark was generally not well-known… Moreover, Xu Jiu believed that Prince Jing was likely feigning madness!

Why pretend to be mad?

What was he afraid of?

It couldn’t be him, could it?

Why was he concealing himself? Concealing himself from whom?

If Yan Shifan intended to harm him, why didn’t he send people to Anlu?

You must know,

Jiajing was a top-tier intellect. At this moment, a flash of light suddenly appeared in his mind, and he blurted out an exclamation!

Oh dear!

He was pretending for Yan Shifan!

Yan Shifan hadn’t harmed him and then found a substitute, but had substituted him long ago!

This child had been tricked!

He had posed as the substitute found by Yan Shifan!

Yes!

This must be it!

Otherwise, why would they report such detailed information?

Who was it?

Who did Yan Shifan find?

And where was that person?

It seemed that Zhen’er was still like his father; he had also navigated this perilous path and, moreover, had deceived Yan Shifan!

Tā@Dú@>* Novel, >No Ads.~*Online&Free Reading>~!

Thinking of this,

Jiajing felt both angry and overjoyed. He paced quickly for a few steps, then forcibly calmed himself, his mind now utterly clear—

Yan Shifan wanted to find a substitute for Prince Jing,

Naturally, it was for future usurpation…

Now that Prince Yu was likely no longer allied with Yan Song, the Yan family would naturally have to bring out this pawn that had been cultivated for seven or eight years…

If Yan Song wanted to support Zhen’er, then let him support him!

But would Prince Yu know about this?

What about Mo’er?

What should be done?

You must know,

Koukou Wuliu Sanqi Sanshiliuwu Qi Wu

He originally thought he only had Prince Yu as his son. In the past two years, two had suddenly appeared: one was the supposedly mad Prince Jing, who was actually feigning madness; the other was the lost Mo’er, who had found his way back on his own… His face flickered between smiles and sadness, appearing incredibly bizarre.

Lü Fang and Huang Jin exchanged glances, both terrified, kneeling down and not daring to look.

After an unknown period,

Jiajing had regained his composure, sitting calmly on the Bagua platform, and said lightly, “If you can’t find out, then investigate slowly. What’s the hurry? Lü Fang, go and summon Xu Jiu…”

Lü Fang, having served him for forty years, knew that Jiajing’s emotions must be very turbulent at this moment, which was why he was making irrelevant remarks.

He immediately grabbed Huang Jin, and together they kowtowed three times and hurried out of the palace doors.

At the same time,

Yan Mansion, Liang Jian Shan Fang.

Yan Maoqing detailed his trip to Anlu. Yan Shifan asked many questions, and he answered them all.

Station-:Ta.dū Novel@,Welcome.*<Download

Tonight,

Most people were absent. Only Old Luo, Zhao Wenhua, Zhang Yu, Liu Boyue, and a few others were present, all considered insiders of the inner circle.

Yan Maoqing had been with the Yan family for over twenty years and knew that important matters were likely to be discussed tonight. He was deeply involved and could no longer extricate himself. Zhao Wenhua had committed many sordid acts. Luo Longwen was notoriously treacherous. As for Zhang Yu, he had likely suffered a loss this time and was very disheartened. His presence here at this juncture meant he had given up all pretense.

He sighed inwardly, thinking: I, Yan Maoqing, always thought I knew how to be an official and wished to stop at the second rank, thinking I could maintain a distance from the Yan family. It seems I was too clever for my own good… The things the Yan family did would have no place in any dynasty… I originally only sought wealth, but I never imagined that a person would die for wealth and a bird would die for food, risking my entire fortune and life…

Indeed,

Old Yan Song pondered with his head lowered for a long time. Then he suddenly said:

“This Zhu Xue is not simple… He has been impersonating Prince Jing for seven or eight years, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard have visited twice, yet he has not been seen through… It is difficult… This shows that he is not an ordinary person…”

His implication was that such a person was not easily controlled, and one should be wary of being bitten back.

Luo Longwen, who understood his thoughts best, also sighed and said:

“Such a formidable person, such a bizarre event, is truly inconceivable… We are young and have not witnessed Prince Ning in the past. I wonder how he compares to Prince Ning of that era?”