On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

late at night.

The study in the Regent's Palace was brightly lit.

Lin Yi sat in a grand chair, holding an account book in his hand.

The grain purchases are almost complete, the granaries in the capital have been taken control, and money is plentiful.

As things stand, feeding an army of 100,000 for a year shouldn't be a problem. As long as we hold out for a year, we'll have fresh food again.

A person who does not plan for the future will have trouble in the present.

Lin Yi sighed, put down the account book, picked up his teacup to drink, and then Nangong Min came out from behind the screen.

She came in through the back door, carrying a bowl of porridge.

"My husband."

"Hmm." Lin Yi paused, his hand holding the teacup still. "Why are you here so late at night?"

Nangong Min smiled virtuously, "My husband is still staying up late, how can I go to sleep first? This is lotus seed porridge that I personally cooked in the small kitchen. It's too late, drinking tea will affect my sleep, porridge is better."

Lin Yi nodded.

Nangong Min stirred it with a spoon, blew on it, took a bite herself, and then scooped up a second spoonful to feed Lin Yi.

"My husband, would you like to try some?"

Seeing that she had eaten, Lin Yi felt relieved; otherwise, he really wouldn't have dared to eat.

And even if you eat it, you have to taste it to see if there's any strange flavor or anything. You don't want to poison yourself with a bowl of porridge, that would be terrible.

"Tsk... Hmm, it tastes good." After smacking his lips for a while, he still couldn't figure out what it was, so he figured it probably wasn't poisonous and ate it without worry.

Nangong Min fed Lin Yi spoonful after spoonful, and Lin Yi ate bite after bite, finishing the entire bowl of porridge. Finally, Nangong Min put down the empty bowl, wiped Lin Yi's mouth with a handkerchief, and smiled knowingly.

"Husband, aren't you asleep yet?"

"I'm waiting for someone right now."

Nangong Min did not press further: "Then I will go to the back hall to wait for you."

"No need, just sit here. From now on, we will not hide anything from you about anything in the Prince's mansion."

"Yes, that's right."

Lin Yi's words warmed Nangong Min's heart, and she sat down beside him with a sweet smile.

Just then, Lin An's voice came from outside the door.

"Your Highness, the person has been brought."

"Enter."

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The study door was pushed open, and a gust of night wind blew in, causing the candlelight on the table to flicker twice.

Lin An led a person completely wrapped in a black robe into the room, then turned and left, closing the door tightly behind him.

The person stood in the middle, seemed to glance at Nangong Min, but said nothing and made no move.

Lin Yi said, "We're not outsiders, so let's speak frankly."

Upon hearing this, the man in black reached out and removed his straw hat, revealing a thin face.

It was Li Chengfeng, the censor who, during the day, in the Ninth Prince's mansion in front of Nangong Xiong and all the officials, proposed that "Lin Yi, in a desperate move, has taken the emperor hostage."

Nangong Min didn't know him or what he wanted to do, so she sat quietly to the side.

Lin Yi put down the account book and leaned back in his chair.

"Lord Li, you've worked hard."

Li Chengfeng gave a bitter smile, then knelt down with a thud and kowtowed deeply.

"Your humble servant Li Chengfeng pays his respects to the Regent."

"Tell me, what did Nangong Xiong do to you all in the middle of the night at the Ninth Prince's residence?"

Li Chengfeng dared not hide anything and recounted everything that had happened in the Ninth Prince's mansion in detail.

"Your Highness, news of the Crown Prince Nangong Ao's deposition has reached the palace. His Majesty is furious and has secretly issued an edict ordering Duke Zhang Zenan to leave the city overnight to mobilize the vassal kings and local troops from various regions."

According to Sun Fu, there are currently 200,000 troops that can be mobilized from the area surrounding the capital.

"His Majesty intends to use this army of 200,000 to launch a strong attack on the capital and raze the Regent's Palace to the ground."

When Lin Yi heard the number "two hundred thousand," he didn't even raise an eyebrow; he just found it somewhat amusing and shook his head.

Two hundred thousand?

That sounds pretty intimidating.

In reality, they were just a motley crew hastily put together.

Lin Yi knew perfectly well what kind of people the local garrison soldiers were.

They might be able to bully ordinary people normally, but if they really run into elite troops like the Shenji Battalion, who are armed to the teeth, they're just asking for trouble.

Moreover, the hastily assembled coalition was not of one mind and could not possibly share a common hatred for the enemy. Lin Yi did not even need to defeat them one by one; he only needed to kill a quarter of them, and the rest would naturally scatter like birds and beasts.

Seeing that Lin Yi remained silent, Li Chengfeng assumed that Lin Yi did not realize the seriousness of the matter and quickly continued speaking.

"Your Highness, I know that the Divine Machine Battalion is unparalleled in combat power, but two hundred thousand men is no small number. Moreover, Prime Minister Liu Wentao has already received the imperial decree and is preparing to contact those powerful families who are dissatisfied with you within the city, so that they can create chaos in the city when the army attacks, and coordinate with those outside the city."

Lin Yi smiled.

"Hehehe, that old dog Liu Wentao really hasn't given up his evil intentions. Fine, let them make a fuss. I've been looking for an excuse to wipe out these parasites all at once." After saying that, Lin Yi picked up the bowl of cold tea again.

Nangong Min immediately stood up: "Your Highness, shall I go and get you a hot cup?"

Call your job when you work.

No problem.

Lin Yi shook his head: "No need, don't bother, this is fine."

After finishing his tea, Lin Yi asked, "Besides that, I heard that you gave Nangong Xiong a good idea at the Ninth Prince's residence."

Li Chengfeng was so frightened that he trembled all over and quickly buried his head on the ground.

"Your Highness is wise! What I said was merely a delaying tactic! If I hadn't mentioned that you would take His Majesty hostage, His Majesty would have immediately ordered Zhang Zenan to lead his troops to attack. I was afraid that Your Highness would be unprepared, so I deliberately used those words to frighten His Majesty and buy some time."

"You're quite clever. How does Nangong Xiong plan to defend against this?"

Li Chengfeng quickly replied.

"Zhang Yong, the commander of the Imperial Guards, stepped forward and said that the palace walls were high and the gates were narrow, making it difficult for the Shenji Battalion's heavy weapons to operate effectively. He had set up hidden sentries and traps throughout the palace, and he was confident that if the prince led his men in, the prince would not return alive."

"Zhang Yong?"

Lin Yi went through the name in his mind.

The commander of the Imperial Guards is usually silent, but he can be quite adept at making a scene when it matters.

"Alright, I understand." Lin Yi waved his hand. "You did a good job on this mission. Go back now, just pretend you were never here tonight. Report back immediately if there's any movement from Nangong Xiong's side."

Li Chengfeng breathed a sigh of relief and quickly kowtowed to express his gratitude.

"Your humble servant obeys! Your humble servant takes his leave!"

Li Chengfeng put his bamboo hat back on, and Lin Yi said again, "I already know about your son's matter. It was self-defense, manslaughter. The reason those ministers are so persistent in pursuing you is simply because you always contradict Nangong Xiong. Don't worry, I will protect him and ensure his life is not in danger."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengfeng immediately knelt down again, kowtowing repeatedly in gratitude.

"This humble official... Your Highness, I thank you!"

"Alright, let's go. Be careful."

"yes!"

Lin Yi saw tears in Li Chengfeng's eyes, clearly indicating that he was completely devoted to him.

That's right, this undercover agent was really worth the bribe.

Sitting to one side, Nangong Min appeared somewhat nervous and said, "Husband, does my father really intend to confront you head-on?"

Lin Yi looked at her with amusement.

"Yeah, so you're planning to stand over there?"