The Double-Chapter 351 - 125: Furious_4

Ye Shijie said, "His Majesty has already ordered the Ministry of Punishment to review the case. Honestly, I did not expect the Drum of Injustice to achieve such an outcome, prompting the emperor to personally supervise the matter."

"What’s so surprising about that," Ye Mingyu replied nonchalantly, "Shijie, you didn’t see it. The citizens of Tongxiang are in a terrible plight. Feng Yutang is truly a despicable man. The emperor must stand up for the people. We risked the penalty of fifty strokes to beat the Drum of Injustice; now that the emperor has heard it, of course, he should step in to uphold justice for the common folk, shouldn’t he?"

"Third uncle, you’re thinking too simply," Ye Shijie said gravely, "many things cannot be achieved just by being justifiable. If mishandled, even His Majesty could lose the people’s support in this case, which is quite tricky. I suspect it’s not because of the case itself, but because of the person involved in it, right?" He looked at Jiang Li.

Jiang Li smiled. Ye Shijie was maturing quickly; from the start, she had believed that this young man was extraordinary. Although his tenure as an official was still brief, he had already grasped some of the rules of officialdom.

She said, "Yes."

"What exactly did you write in that petition?" Ye Shijie asked, "You said that there’s someone behind the Xue Family’s case—someone with power and influence. This person must be the key to the emperor’s personal supervision of the case. Who is it?"

The petition to the emperor was not written by Ye Shijie, but by Jiang Li, who had asked Ye Shijie to present it on her behalf. Ye Shijie hadn’t read the petition and was unaware of who else was involved in the Xue Family’s case. However, he could feel that the crux of the matter hinged on this person.

"Yeah, Jiang Li," when Ye Shijie put it this way, Ye Mingyu also remembered, "You told me before that there is a powerful and influential person behind the Xue Family’s case, the real mastermind. You mentioned that when we got to Yanjing City, I would naturally understand. Now can you tell me who this person is? I want to see which influential person is so shameless, harboring such deep hatred for the Xue Family that they would go to such lengths to target them."

Jiang Li looked at the two men, sighed softly, and uttered a name.

"Princess Yongning."

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At the Princess’s Mansion, Princess Yongning slammed the cup in her hand, shattering it.

She must have been extremely angry. The shards from the broken cup cut her hand, and the servants around her were immediately terrified. If anything happened to Princess Yongning, it would be their misfortune.

Shen Yurong beckoned, "Fetch the wound medicine."

Only then did the servants breathe a sigh of relief and went to fetch the medicine, grateful. Princess Yongning’s temper was terrible, and no one could control her. Only in front of Assistant Head Writer Lord Shen Yurong would Princess Yongning show some restraint, which made life easier for the servants. Lord Shen was gentle and kindhearted, never troubling the servants, and would even defend them to Princess Yongning if they made mistakes. The Princess’s Mansion’s servants all felt that if Lord Shen truly became Princess Yongning’s Prince Consort, it would be a happy event for them.

The medicine was quickly found. Shen Yurong signalled for the servants to leave and took Princess Yongning’s hand onto his lap, carefully applying the medicine for her.

Princess Yongning was touched by his tenderness. He was always like this, sometimes cold, sometimes considerate, making her unable to see through him clearly. Yet, anger still simmered in her heart as she spat out venomously, "Jiang Li!"

By now, the entire Yanjing City was abuzz with the story of Second Miss of the Jiang Family leading the Tongxiang County Citizens to seek redress for Xue Huaiyuan. Princess Yongning had been unaware, her heart set on Empress Dowager Liu facilitating her marriage with Shen Yurong. The Empress Dowager was not particularly fond of Shen Yurong, who had been married before, and despite his rising status, he lacked family support. The Empress Dowager preferred that Princess Yongning marry someone from a prestigious family, suitable to her status.

Fortunately, Prince Cheng had also spoken on Shen Yurong’s behalf, and it took some persuasion before Empress Dowager Liu finally agreed. She planned to discuss the matter with Emperor Hongxiao after some time. Although Emperor Hongxiao detested Prince Cheng and his mother, he would not publicly break ties with them. Knowing that Princess Yongning had always been headstrong, as long as she insisted that she only desired Shen Yurong, Emperor Hongxiao would have no good reason to intervene.

The matter seemed foolproof; Princess Yongning was joyfully preparing her wedding dress, too preoccupied to concern herself with the situation in Tongxiang. It wasn’t until Jiang Li returned to the capital yesterday, beating the Stone Lion’s Drum of Grievance in Changan and the decision for the Ministry of Punishment to review the case came out, that the news reached the Princess’s Mansion and Princess Yongning finally learned of the affair.