Zhu Tian: A journey of spiritual practice starting from Joy of Life

Chapter 197 Secretly Infiltrating the Palace to Conduct Investigations

"You haven't rested yet, Dean Chen!"

Leng Feibai pushed open the door and entered, looking at Chen Pingping behind the candlelight, and said, "You knew I was coming all along?"

Chen Pingping laughed, "I've been waiting for you at Chen Garden ever since you left Danzhou Port. I just didn't expect it to take you so long to come looking for me!"

"I just got back to Kyoto too!"

Leng Feibai calmly asked, "What did Li Chengze, Li Chengqian, and Li Yunrui do after His Majesty left the capital?"

"They're operating covertly, nothing major! I don't know the specifics."

Chen Pingping said calmly, "His Majesty took too many of my people with him when he left. Now the Supervisory Council can barely function, so it's quite difficult to find out any news about the princes' residences in the palace!"

"Terrible answer!"

Leng Feibai rubbed his head, trying his best to recall the relevant plot from the novel.

Leng Feibai had only read the novel version of Joy of Life once, and since there was no version of Joy of Life available in Twelve Towers, he only had a general recollection of this part of the plot.

After Emperor Qing severely injured Ku He and Si Gu Jian, Li Chengze and Li Chengqian rebelled simultaneously and imprisoned important officials.

Later, if the Ye family hadn't betrayed Li Chengze and helped Fan Xian kill Qin Ye, who belonged to the Crown Prince's side, the rebellion wouldn't have been so easily resolved.

Thinking of this, Leng Feibai continued, "Then let me ask another question. What have Ye Zhong, Gong Dian, and Qin Ye been up to lately?"

"them!"

Chen Pingping was silent for a moment after hearing this, but still told what he knew, "Ye Zhong and Gong Dian are still guarding the border, but before His Majesty left, he sent Ye Ling'er with several Ye family guards to Dingzhou to deliver an imperial edict to Ye Zhong and the others. No one knows what the edict is. As for Qin Ye, he became somewhat listless after his son died. However, he was personally invited to the palace by Eunuch Hou a while ago, and then he suddenly became energetic again."

"Eunuch Hou personally received them!"

Upon hearing this, Leng Feibai pressed on, "After His Majesty left the palace, has Eunuch Hou changed at all?"

"I don't know that?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Pingping couldn't help but ask, "What, didn't you leave any spies in the palace?"

"No, but..."

Leng Feibai quickly thought of someone, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips. "Let's put this matter aside for now, Dean Chen. Think about it from your perspective. If news came now that His Majesty has passed away and Li Chengze and Li Chengqian are going to rebel together, then who would follow them in their recklessness!"

Chen Pingping's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, but she quickly began to think about it.

Seeing Chen Pingping's expression, Leng Feibai found an empty spot to sit down and waited silently.

After a moment, Chen Pingping shared his guesses and what he knew.

"Li Chengze and Li Yunrui have been smuggling through the imperial treasury for many years, and have secretly raised a private army of about 5,000 men."

Chen Pingping pondered for a moment and said, "In addition, Li Yunrui also used the money obtained from smuggling to help Li Chengqian win over court officials. If they really want to rebel, then these people will be their helpers."

Leng Feibai frowned upon hearing this, turned and walked out, saying, "In that case, I'll go to the palace. But if my estimation is correct, Li Chengqian and Li Chengze shouldn't make any moves before news from Da Dongshan spreads."

After saying that, Leng Feibai continued, "By the way, Dean Chen, where are Shi Chanli and Li Chengping now?"

"They returned to Kyoto yesterday."

Chen Pingping looked at Leng Feibai and asked, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

"nothing!"

As soon as Leng Feibai finished speaking, he turned and walked out, but when he reached the door, he suddenly turned back and said, "There is one thing you can rest assured about, Dean Chen. Because Mount Dadong is destined to be the place where His Majesty returns to heaven."

As soon as he finished speaking, Leng Feibai's figure vanished from Chen Pingping's sight. Upon hearing this, a hint of doubt flashed in Chen Pingping's eyes, then he closed them and began to plot.

After a few breaths, Leng Feibai, who had left Chen Garden, turned into smoke, rose into the air, and flew towards the palace.

Right now, there is only one person who can tell him what Eunuch Hou has been planning to do all this time.

In a short while, Leng Feibai arrived directly at the small courtyard of a solitary eunuch in the palace.

The person in this small courtyard was none other than Hong Zhu, who had chosen to rely on Fan Xian to repay a debt of gratitude.

In a daze, Hong Zhu, who was resting, felt a large hand pushing her and opened her eyes groggily.

In an instant, Hong Zhu saw the face of a man with a full head of white hair staring at him.

"You are!"

Hong Zhu sat up abruptly, looked closely for a few moments, and said in a low voice, "If I remember correctly, you are my benefactor's sworn brother, Young Master Leng, right?"

Leng Feibai nodded and said, "Hong Zhu, I have something to ask you?"

After hearing this, Hong Zhu fought off his sleepiness and quickly said, "Please speak, young master. I will tell you everything I know."

Leng Feibai quickly asked, "Before His Majesty left the palace, did he give you and Eunuch Hou any instructions?"

"His Majesty didn't give me any instructions, but he did give Eunuch Hou some instructions."

Hong Zhu carefully recalled what had happened and quickly said, "After hearing this, Eunuch Hou looked terrified. After His Majesty left, Eunuch Hou locked himself in his room for a whole day. When I went to deliver his food, I found that Eunuch Hou had been crying for a long time for some reason!"

Seeing Hong Zhu's appearance, Leng Feibai nodded, indicating that he should continue to rest.

He turned and left, entering the Twelve-Story Tower the instant he stepped out the door.

"It seems there are some things that can only be confirmed by Eunuch Hou!"

As Leng Feibai spoke, his gaze fell upon a sandalwood brocade box in the corner.

"Since we still have some free time, let's take a look at what Old Mudfish wrote on the two remaining imperial edicts."

After speaking, Leng Feibai stepped forward and took out the four imperial edicts given to him by Emperor Qing, and opened the third and fourth volumes.

As Leng Feibai had expected, the contents of the imperial edict in the third volume were indeed related to him. It was an imperial edict from Emperor Qing, which bestowed upon him the title of Guardian God of War, equivalent to a marquis, and granted him and Haitang Duoduo a marriage.

The imperial edict also specifically stated that during the period of national mourning, Leng Feibai was not required to follow the rules and could conduct weddings and funerals as usual.

Looking at the handwriting on the imperial edict, Leng Feibai's lips twitched involuntarily. He said calmly, "What a great favor! It's exactly what I need right now!"

The national mourning system of Qing Kingdom is the same as that of the feudal dynasties in Leng Feibai's previous life. Whether it is the Empress Dowager or the Emperor, people throughout the country must wear mourning clothes for twenty-seven days during the national mourning period.

All activities were suspended during this period. After 27 days, entertainment was prohibited for 100 days and marriages were forbidden for one year.

Now that Leng Feibai has this imperial edict, he can get married normally without worrying about the marriage being affected by the national mourning period.

As for the last imperial edict, what it says is not important now.

The decree was issued to reinstate the Ye family officials to their original positions and to dissolve the engagement between Ye Ling'er and Li Chengze.

After reading the imperial edict, Leng Feibai put it away and muttered to himself, "Ye Ling'er is quite pleased with this edict!"

Because Leng Feibai disrupted the plot of the second season, the biggest impact was on the romantic relationship between Li Chengze and Ye Ling'er. The two had almost no interaction and no emotional connection whatsoever.

(End of this chapter)