Chapter 1003 - 1005: Impeachment of Jiang Yichun (1)
In the evening, when Little Dengdeng fell asleep, Bai Ruozhu finally had the opportunity to ask Jiang Yichun about his earlier return to the capital.
"Luckily, I was cautious enough this time. I indeed encountered an ambush on the road, but thankfully there were no grave consequences, and I successfully delivered the items to the Emperor," said Jiang Yichun, his explanation brief, but Bai Ruozhu knew the situation wasn’t as simple as he described.
"You were injured before, weren’t you? Where did you get hurt? Let me see!" Bai Ruozhu commanded with a sense of urgency, knowing that he would try to hide it from her to avoid worrying her.
Jiang Yichun laughed, rolled up his sleeve to reveal the sword wound on his arm which was neither deep nor unhealed.
"It was Mr. Yao who treated it, so you don’t need to worry," said Jiang Yichun as he touched her head. Suddenly reminded of the incident in the cave, he felt puzzled and shared a simplified version of the event with Bai Ruozhu.
"Mr. Yao said that if I hadn’t woken up, our whole group would have perished in that chamber, if not at the hands of the traitor. He mentioned that prolonged exposure to the poison could make a person become dull and even remain in a deep sleep indefinitely," Jiang Yichun concluded, rushing to reassure Bai Ruozhu out of concern for her worry: "It was just a momentary lapse on Mr. Yao’s part; afterward, he provided us with an antidote, and I happened to suffer the least from the poisoning."
"The detoxifying pills I gave you likely had no effect on that gas," Bai Ruozhu noted, deep in thought. If Jiang Yichun was poisoned, how did he wake up on his own? If it was the detoxifying pill that worked, why didn’t Yao Yuxuan wake up as well?
"Hence, Mr. Yao examined me and was quite baffled. I myself am clueless and thought maybe you had given me some poison-neutralizing treasure," laughed Jiang Yichun as he took his wife’s tender hand and kissed it.
But Bai Ruozhu pulled her hand back sharply, somewhat agitated, and said, "Quit it, I’m going to ask Furball."
Soon, Bai Ruozhu called Furball out and communicated with it through thought, inquiring about the matter.
Furball’s eyes were exceptionally cute and round, and as it turned them around, the eyes seemed devoid of emotion.
"You’re saying that he was once afflicted by the Poisonous Insect, and after getting cured, he developed some immunity to various poisons?" Bai Ruozhu asked. "Being poisoned would trigger a reaction, but he quickly developed antibodies, allowing him to regain consciousness."
Listening from the side, Jiang Yichun felt a wistful relief; the timing for the removal of the Poisonous Insect couldn’t have been better. If he had been under its curse when poisoned, the toxicity would have doubled, and he might have died there. But since he had been cured of the Poisonous Insect, he was the first among the poisoned to awaken, not only sparing himself but also saving the others.
"This really is a stroke of good fortune," remarked Jiang Yichun feelingly.
Meanwhile, Bai Ruozhu, overwhelmed by shock and fear, thought if Furball had awakened a day later, Yichun might not have been able to return this time.
With these thoughts in mind, she solidified her resolve to become stronger, whether as a kapok tree companion by his side or as a protective umbrella for her family, she had to become sufficiently powerful.
In the following two days, Bai Fu and Bai Lu stayed at the Bo Residence. Bo Zheng specifically came over to deliver a message, saying that the Old Master was especially pleased to see them, and had kept them for long conversations, asking many questions about Bo Jingru’s life.
However, the Old Master favored Bai Fu, always saying he looked the most like his second sister.
Bai Ruozhu gave Bo Zheng a glance, knowing that he had come behind closed doors to remind her, and she silently sighed within, thinking how the Old Master was getting on in years and must not become muddled, unable to fulfill Bai Fu’s request.
With this thought, Bai Ruozhu felt she could not delay any longer and handed Bo Zheng a note, stating her plans to visit the Bo Residence with her family at the earliest opportunity.
...
In the Chang’an Academy, Yang Hongwen blocked Fan Siniang, who was leaving school, and said, "My father said he will not apologize, not now, nor in the future, so don’t forget our bet!"
Fan Siniang revealed an annoyed expression and huffed, "Your father sure dares to offend people. Well, I, Fan Siniang, am not someone who can’t afford to lose. I’ll have someone send it over tonight!"
Yang Hongwen watched Fan Siniang leave in a huff, his lips curling into a lascivious smile. He was going to thoroughly enjoy that songstress tonight.
Before getting into the carriage, Fan Siniang sneakily glanced at Yang Hongwen in the distance, the corners of his mouth slightly lifted, uttering two words: Fool.
That night, a newly acquired songstress from the Fan residence was sent to the Yang Family. Old Master Fan finally managed to enter his wife’s room again, feeling extremely pleased with himself, thinking that his son had finally started to take some of his worries away. If his colleagues who sent him the songstress asked about it tomorrow, he would say his son was spurred on by the Yang boy and rashly agreed to the bet.
Many in the Capital knew about Yang Hongwen’s preferences, so his colleagues wouldn’t blame him for failing to appreciate their good intentions.
Most importantly, he could finally appease his wife, and the issue that had been giving him a headache for days was finally resolved.
That night, Liu Xiyu, the Imperial Concubine at Liuyun Hall, had the honor of the Emperor’s visit. After their passionate encounter, Imperial Concubine Liu leaned against the Emperor’s chest, panting softly, and said, "Your Majesty, I spent quite some time dealing with the Yang Family people for you the day before yesterday."
"Oh? What’s the matter with them?" A flicker of impatience passed through the eyes of Danliang Country’s Emperor Tang Yin, but he quickly concealed it.
"It’s said that Yang Hongwen was beaten up by Lord Jiang just because he exchanged a few words with Lady Jiang." Imperial Concubine Liu rubbed her cheek against his chest and continued, "I wondered why Lord Jiang would beat up Yang Hongwen for no good reason? It must be that the boy stirred up trouble again. But Mrs. Yang insisted Lord Jiang, having gained fame at a young age, was arrogant and insisted on lodging a complaint against him at the Censorate. It took me quite an effort to finally persuade her to drop the idea."
The Emperor glanced sideways at Imperial Concubine Liu with his slightly long, slanted eyes, the tips of which turned up at the corners, giving him a foxy look.
"Tell them to go to the Censorate. Don’t be polite," Tang Yin said indifferently.
A gleam of joy flashed in Imperial Concubine Liu’s eyes, and she softly acknowledged, not saying anything further.
She still remembered how Bai Ruozhu helped the Meng Family repair a screen, stealing the limelight from her sister, Lady Liu. She had asked her cousin Li Yuande to deal with Bai Ruozhu, but in the end, Bai Ruozhu escaped, resulting in Li Yuande and her uncle Li Xiuren being punished by the Emperor.
She had always remembered that account.
Early the next day, Imperial Concubine Liu had someone send a letter to Mrs. Yang, mentioning that although the Emperor seemed to favor Jiang Yichun, he was, in fact, foundationless and at loggerheads with the Jiang Family, and also somewhat impetuous due to his youth, so the Emperor probably wanted to take him down a notch.
Upon receiving the letter, Mrs. Yang was exceptionally pleased and immediately sent someone to inform Mr. Yang. Indeed, during the early court session that day, a Censor impeached Jiang Yichun.
"Your Majesty," the accuser began, "Lord Jiang of the Jinwu Guards has abused his status to assault people in the Capital, completely disregarding the law. Even though he has made contributions by quelling rebellions, he should not be allowed to act so arrogantly and domineeringly in the Capital. Please, Your Majesty, punish Lord Jiang severely, to serve as a warning to others."
----
Thank you to the Book Friends "if...", "Well-Behaved Child〆Silent and Calm," "Black and White Piano Keys゜Playing Sadness," and "Sky of Bright Moon" for their rewards, as well as to all the Book Friends who voted for Mouka, your support is the greatest encouragement to me~