Chapter 121 – Expose the Ensavory Background

Miantang didn’t quite agree with Cui Fu’s statement “My younger brother is the most serious”, but it was all about the affairs in the inner room bed and quilt, and she couldn’t tell the elder sister in detail how her younger brother was not serious.

 

So she could only continue to follow her topic and say, “Lord Li is quite good, and he can be considered as well known. Even though his family background is lower, his official position is not very good now, and he is not very suitable for you. If you don’t like him, I will search for you again. There are so many Marquis mansions in the capital, and I can always find a suitable one.”

 

Cui Fu didn’t agree with this and sighed, “Let alone I didn’t mean to remarry. Even if I want to marry, I don’t want to marry any more princes. If I could find a simple family, it might be more satisfying.”

 

Miantang smiled and said, “Sister, there’s no need to think too much. Just take care of yourself now. Servant Li has also prepared moisturizing cream for you. When giving birth, your face will inevitably become swollen. It’s best to use this cream to hydrate and nourish your face. After a month or so, when Sister goes to the tea banquet again, it will still be radiant and charming.”

 

Cui Fu thinks that Miantang’s mindset was too simple, only thinking about how beautiful and charming they are. She doesn’t want to go to any tea party and let them talk behind her back. However, no woman can refuse to become beautiful. After dinner, she will try the cream.

 

Miantang felt relieved when she saw that Cui Fu was distracted and had something to do.

 

When she returned to the inner courtyard, Cui Xingzhou and Li Guangnian also drank and dispersed. After returning, Cui Xingzhou didn’t sleep either. He lay half in bed, reviewing the copy delivered by Li Guangnian, while patting Miantang’s back to coax her to sleep.

 

Miantang’s body has gradually become heavier, and when lying on her back, she always presses her stomach. She needs to lean against Cui Xingzhou to sleep comfortably, so even if Cui Xingzhou needs to sleep late, he must first coax Miantang to sleep.

 

In a moment, the sound of sleeping breathing came from around. Cui Xingzhou put down the dossier in his hand and looked at Miantang’s sleeping face with a picturesque eyebrow. She was truly obedient, so he smiled and kissed her face, hugging her to sleep.

 

On the second day, just as the morning light shone, Cui Xingzhou was about to get up. These past few days, Miantang had become accustomed to holding him to sleep until dawn, but when she suddenly lost his strong arms, she woke up without having to call. She only asked drowsily, “Where are you going?”

 

Cui Xingzhou said, “Didn’t I tell you? It’s even harder to accompany you when I get busy. There’s going to be a major change between the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue recently. I’m going to meet the emperor today, and I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

 

Although Miantang still disliked Cui Xingzhou for being too clingy yesterday, when she suddenly realized that he couldn’t accompany her anymore, she couldn’t bear to let him go. She only hung on his body and rubbed his cheek, saying, “Then you should come back early. I’m waiting for you to have dinner.”

 

Prince Huaiyang felt that Miantang’s performance today was quite good, so he hugged the sticky cat in his arms and said, “I will try to come back early, but when I’m not here, you can’t wander around the street buying messy things to eat anymore. Spend more time at home with your sister, and if you’re too bored, invite a troupe to sing.”

 

Miantang nodded obediently, then stood up to help Cui Xingzhou wash and tidy up, and then personally escorted him out of the residence.

 

In the early morning light, Cui Xingzhou’s tall figure looked agile and composed. After jumping onto the horse’s back, he smiled at her and galloped away.

 

When Cui Xingzhou arrived at the palace gate, the officials of the early court had already gathered in groups of three or five.

 

Prince Sui has recently freed himself from the involvement of his former nephew in causing trouble in the countryside and has gone to serve in the Ministry of Personnel. As the uncle of the emperor, he was backed by the palace family of the Empress Dowager and had a deep foundation that cannot be compared to a king of a different surname like Prince Huaiyang.

 

So Prince Sui was surrounded by a large group of officials speaking to him, including some from the military department.

 

On the contrary, there was almost no one around Prince Huaiyang.

 

Well, there was no other choice. The direction of the officialdom was so clear. Prince Huaiyang cannot borrow the driving force of revolution, and he has not made any achievements in the military department, so naturally there was no one supporting him.

 

However, Prince Sui walked over and warmly exchanged greetings with Prince Huaiyang, saying, “Isn’t Prince Huaiyang staying with your pregnant wife in the residence recently? Why did you come to the morning court today?”

 

Prince Huaiyang glanced at Minister Ma standing behind Prince Sui and said with a faint smile, “I can’t help it. A group of fools under my command took advantage of my absence to make trouble and didn’t tidy up properly. It’s really a shame for the emperor’s kindness.”

 

Minster Ma was said and his complexion turned red. Prince Sui glanced at the group of soldiers in the military department and said with only a smile on his face, “What do you think of your colleagues who have been busy with the military department for more than a month? If all of them go back to the residence to accompany their wife without doing anything, naturally there will be nothing wrong. But the people, who are too busy to rest, has become a sinner. I think according to Your Majesty’s wisdom, he wouldn’t make such a judgment.”

 

Prince Huaiyang closed his eyes slightly, only pretending to keep his eyes closed and maintain his composure. He was too lazy to argue with Prince Sui.

 

But Prince Sui did not comply. Now, when he saw this son of a bastard, Prince Huaiyang, he was filled with anger and continued to expose the shortcomings of the Huaiyang Prince’s Residence with a smile, saying, “The Prince’s backyard is a bit messy, and no wonder you are lazy in your business. I heard that your sister has also been divorced and has been hanging out with your princess consort all day. In that case, she doesn’t worry about getting married again. There are many strong men in the Mountain of Yang thief’s den, so you can let your princess consort lead the way.”

 

If it weren’t for being in front of the palace gate, Cui Xingzhou would have punched and flown the emperor’s uncle with a single punch. With a cold face, he said, “Prince Sui, learn some oral morality. By speaking the woman in the harem, are you still a man?”

 

Prince Sui smiled and whispered, “Of course, I don’t have the same spirit as you. You can abandon past grievances and marry Lu Wen of the Mountain of Yang…”

 

Before he could finish speaking, the collar of his clothes had already been picked up by Prince Huaiyang and he asked word by word, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

 

To be honest, these two always argue and take advantage of each other’s words when they meet. Prince Sui himself believes that what he said today was not too much.

 

After all, Liu Miantang used to be a subordinate of Liu Yu, and it was an undeniable fact that she once served as the female bandit leader of the Mountain of Yang. He didn’t expect Cui Xingzhou’s reaction to being so strong. In those handsome eyes, besides anger, there was a look of shock.

 

Prince Sui was stunned and suddenly looked up with a smile full of meaning. He then goes near Cui Xingzhou’s ear and said, “Oh my goodness! The wise and powerful Prince Huaiyang, don’t you know who you’re marrying? Let me tell you, Liu Miantang is Lu Wen from the Mountain of Yang. If you don’t believe it, you can ask the emperor today. After all, before she married you, she was spending all her time with the emperor on the Mountain of Yang. They are being lovey-dovey and she’s willing to go through fire or water for the sake of my nephew.”

 

Before Prince Sui could finish speaking, Cui Xingzhou had already swung his fists, but he was separated by Li Guangnian who rushed in.

 

Li Guangnian urgently grabbed the infuriated Prince Huaiyang and whispered, “For today’s layout, we have been working hard to arrange it for a long time. We must not let the provocation of Prince Sui lead to unnecessary consequences, or else our success will fall short.”

 

Prince Huaiyang clenched his teeth tightly, his hands open and closed, and for a moment, countless thoughts flashed through his mind. Many details that he had always thought were inappropriate in the past were all rolled over in an instant.

 

However, in the end, he finally restrained his anger and slowly regained composure in the puzzled eyes of the officials beside him. He ignored Prince Sui and went straight to court.

 

As Li Guangnian said, to eliminate the borers in the military department, they have already planned very carefully. Based solely on the mistakes made by the military department in the past two days, many old cases have been implicated one after another, along with a group of officials including Minister Ma, all of whom can be traced from the bottom of the case.

 

Minister Ma and his team had thought that there had been a mistake in their recent accounts, so they had already asked Prince Sui to mobilize their connections and cover it up almost completely. Even if the emperor were to punish them, it was just trivial punishment.

 

But they didn’t expect that Prince Huaiyang, who had hardly come to the official office all day, suddenly raised a question, and the evidence listed their previous privacy.

 

Minister Ma and his team were caught off guard, and they couldn’t think of words to defend themselves for a moment. Moreover, these old cases are complex and even implicated in the Ministry of Revenue.

 

The Emperor was enraged upon hearing this, and immediately ordered the removal of Minister Ma’s official hat and to be dragged down for interrogation by the Criminal Justice Department.

 

No one among the officials presents expected that Prince Huaiyang would dare to suddenly raise an issue without a word, causing a huge tsunami in the official arena of the capital. Most of the personnel from the military and revenue departments have been dismissed and reviewed.

 

The background of those cases was too deep, and anyone who got involved was covered in a foul smell. Some of them are implicated, and their thoughts are all about killing so that there won’t be any eyewitnesses left. For a moment, there was no one in the court to defend them.

 

Everyone with a clear eye knows that this was because Prince Huaiyang couldn’t bear to be ignored and personally cleared up the military department. It was also a warning to those high ranks who were hiding behind. The military department was the territory of his Cui Xingzhou, and outsiders should not stir up trouble.

 

Prince Huaiyang, who had just punished them as a warning to others, didn’t seem to have much joy on his face. When he came down from the court, he repeatedly demanded to see the emperor alone.

 

Prince Sui fought against Prince Huaiyang in the court this time, which was almost a move behind in chess, but he was actually in a happy mood.

 

Because he knew that a bloody storm might be brewing in the backyard of the Huaiyang Prince’s Residence soon! For this reason, he deliberately waited in front of the palace gate, hoping to see Cui Xingzhou’s exasperated virtue.

 

Unexpectedly, Prince Huaiyang did not seem to have had a long conversation with the emperor and quickly came out of the imperial study. Seeing Prince Sui sitting on a chair under the canopy in front of the palace gate, he stopped and smiled, “You are so carefree, Prince Sui. Are you here to bask in the sun?”

 

Prince Sui looked at his usual expression and couldn’t help but question tentatively, “How did your question go? Did the emperor tell you the details of Liu Miantang?”

 

Cui Xingzhou said with a calm expression, “Since I married her, how will I not know her background? You should be careful, Prince Sui. You’re not letting go of my wife’s past, and you’re trying to stir up the old scandal. What’s the matter? Are you trying to rebel and gain momentum?”

 

Prince Sui did not expect to be countered by Prince Huaiyang and immediately frowned.

 

Looking at the appearance of Prince Huaiyang, it was indeed not like being cheated into marriage and losing his soul. He cannot help but felt suspicious, and it was unclear whether Cui Xingzhou was angry or unaware of the truth this morning.

 

Cui Xingzhou ignored him no longer and got on the carriage with his usual expression. However, the moment he got on the carriage, his whole face was as terrifying as a hell’s wheel. A pair of handsome eyes were also filled with towering anger.

 

Just now in the imperial study, he almost asked Liu Yu.

 

But whether Liu Miantang is a demon or a monster, she was already his wife. If it must be known from her ex’s mouth, it was actually a great shame!

 

So, words rushed to his lips, but Cui Xingzhou hastily stopped speaking and only consulted His Majesty about the subsequent personnel appointment and dismissal arrangements before turning around and leaving the palace.

 

As for whether Liu Miantang was the thief Lu Wen, he will personally, meticulously, and thoroughly investigate and uncover the truth!

 

That day, Miantang was waiting in the residence for Cui Xingzhou to come back for dinner. But he didn’t come back after waiting for a long time.

TL/Notes: OMG! OMG! Does this consider that her identity has been revealed?