Live broadcast shocked the ancients, and the baby returned to the modern era to be the group's

Chapter 189 Summoning Lin Lan and Others
The palace was quiet and solemn. Even before seeing the emperor, the people of Shangliu Village were so intimidated by the majestic atmosphere that they dared not even breathe.

They followed the eunuchs with their hands and feet tucked behind them. Before they arrived, the guards had told them not to look around. How could they dare to look around? They didn't even dare to lift their heads.

After finally getting into the main hall, the group was trembling.

The eunuch stopped, and Lin Lan and the others also stopped and stood quietly.

I don't know how much time had passed when a sharp voice suddenly rang in my ears, "The Emperor has arrived."

Several people's hearts skipped a beat, and they knelt down with a 'plop'.

Emperor Jingxuan paused involuntarily, but then casually walked up the steps and sat on the dragon throne.

His gaze swept over everyone in the hall, finally settling precisely on the little girl on his left.

"Are you Lin Lan?"

Upon hearing her name, Lin Lan subconsciously raised her head, but then, remembering the instructions of the guard leader, she quickly lowered it again. As a result, she didn't even get a clear look at what Emperor Jingxuan actually looked like, only noticing the bright yellow dragon robe he was wearing.

She quickly replied, "My name is Lin Lan."

Emperor Jingxuan chuckled. “Don’t be nervous. I’ve summoned you here just to ask you some questions. Tell me, what was it like when you first met Chaochao? What did she say to you? Also, before Chaochao left, you had the most contact with her. Tell me what she said and what she did.”

"Yes, Your Majesty." Lin Lan was very nervous, and her voice trembled slightly. "I first met Chaochao two years ago. Actually, Chaochao helped me first."

Two years ago, when Chaochao first arrived at the Hu family in Shangliu Village, Hu Fulai and Zheng Shi treated her very well at first. They even took her around the village to let the villagers know that they treated Chaochao as their own daughter, hoping that when Chaochao's family came looking for them, they could give them more benefits. Therefore, she ate and used well at that time.

On the contrary, Lin Lan was still living at the Lin family home at the time, where the patriarchal Lin family treated her like a beast of burden, doing more work than she ate. When Chaochao saw that she was so hungry that she was drinking water, he even gave her the coarse flour bun he was holding.

By the way, back then, Chaochao had actually told her that she couldn't drink unboiled water.

But she couldn't explain why she couldn't drink it. Later, Chaochao struggled to make ends meet, and she didn't care about whether the water was raw or cooked; she was just grateful if she could fill her stomach with water.

Emperor Jingxuan actually knew all of these things.

Upon arriving at Shangliu Village, Liang Wei had already thoroughly investigated the interactions between Lin Lan and the others with Chaochao. This information had long been compiled into a booklet and sent to Emperor Jingxuan by express messenger.

He listened to it again now simply to see if there was any missing information.

Unfortunately, what Lin Lan said was no different from what he received.

Emperor Jingxuan was somewhat disappointed. After Lin Lan finished speaking, seeing that the emperor had not said anything, she immediately became a little uneasy.

Fortunately, Emperor Jingxuan quickly waved his hand and called others forward to reply.

Everyone was talking about everyday matters, and Liang Wei's memorial could not possibly explain all the details clearly, so there were some things that Emperor Jingxuan was indeed unaware of.

The more he listened, the more his brows furrowed, and the more disgusted he felt towards Hu Fulai and his wife kneeling behind him. How could these two greedy, stupid, and wicked bastards have had to encounter Chaochao first? If any of Lin Lan or any of the others had picked up Chaochao, the little girl wouldn't be living such a miserable life. Perhaps they would have realized Chaochao's extraordinary background much sooner and reported it to the authorities.

The magistrate of Huaiping County is Gao Hongfei. With his ability and insight, he probably sent Chaochao to the capital two years ago. Perhaps things have already changed in Daqi.

At least, Emperor Jingxuan believed that he could have lifted the sea ban two years ago.

The more Emperor Jingxuan thought about it, the angrier he became. His gaze towards Hu Fulai and his wife was icy cold.

Perhaps the aura emanating from him was too terrifying, for Granny Zhou, who was replying, stopped speaking and began to tremble uncontrollably.

Emperor Jingxuan could only suppress his resentment and said to her, "Old lady, don't be afraid. You have done a great job. If it weren't for you, Chaochao wouldn't have persevered until now, wouldn't have waited for that person named Ashan to awaken, wouldn't have seen the appearance of the Heavenly Curtain, and wouldn't have let me know about the high-yield grain and other things that benefit the people of Daqi. I remember your merits, and the people of Daqi remember them too. Very good, I will reward you handsomely later."

Lin Lan and the others were pleasantly surprised. This was the first time the emperor had spoken so much to them, and in such an approachable manner.

They suddenly felt less nervous.

Scholar Guo led the crowd in expressing their gratitude.

Emperor Jingxuan, seeing that it was getting late, intended to have them dine in the palace. Just then, Cao Qing quickly walked to his side and whispered, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager knows that Miss Lin Lan and the others have entered the palace and wishes to invite them to have a chat."

Emperor Jingxuan raised his eyebrows and immediately thought of the girls' academy that the Empress Dowager was preparing.

He nodded. "Since it is the Empress Dowager who has summoned them, you may take them there."

However, while women from the imperial harem could go, men were not allowed to follow.

Therefore, Cao Qing led Guo Xiucai, Lin Tian, ​​Da Shan, and others to the side hall next door for tea and snacks, while Lin Lan and the other women were led by their nannies to the inner palace.

For a moment, only Hu Fulai, Zheng Shi, Jiang Laosan, and Kuangzi remained in the hall.

The hall was eerily quiet. The four of them felt as if the gazes above them could freeze them to death. A cold wind blew in, and they couldn't help but shiver violently.

Before Hu Fulai and Zheng Shi arrived, they didn't think there was anything to be afraid of. The emperor clearly intended to punish them, and no matter how much they said, it would be useless. At worst, they would just die. Anyway, their precious son was already like this, so they didn't care about anything else.

But when they actually faced the majestic emperor, they lost all their backbone and wished they could hide themselves so that the emperor could not see them at all.

Emperor Jingxuan sneered, his calm voice suddenly ringing out, "You all heard what Lin Lan and the others said just now? Do you have anything else to say?"

Jiang Laosan was the first to lose his temper. He crawled forward two steps and kowtowed heavily several times. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, spare my life! I, this humble subject, know I was wrong. As long as Your Majesty spares my life, I will do anything you ask. Please, Your Majesty, give us a chance to atone for our sins."

His words made the other three realize what was happening, and immediately, the sound of kowtowing echoed one after another.

"Your Majesty, spare our lives! We can atone for our crimes with good deeds. Your Majesty, spare our lives!"

Emperor Jingxuan watched them kowtow, and when they had kowtowed enough, he coldly asked, "How do you intend to atone for your crimes?"