With a wave of his hand, the Prince's Mansion's fortune exploded throughout the entire cap

Xiao Shulang's heart tightened, and he gripped his long sword tightly, secretly preparing for defense—this person had sneaked into the Prince Jing's residence late at night, dressed in black, and acting suspiciously. He was most likely sent by Liu Ruyan or Marquis Yongyi, with the aim of either seizing evidence or assassinating him.

Just as Xiao Shulang was about to make his move, the black-clad figure walked towards his door with light, silent steps. Reaching the door, the figure stopped and gently knocked. His voice was low and hoarse, tinged with wariness: "Shulang, it's me, Lin Song. I've come so late at night with important matters to discuss; I mean no harm."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Shulang was taken aback, but immediately relaxed his guard considerably. Lin Song, the Marquis of Dingyuan, was an elder of both him and his elder brother Xiao Chengyan, and also a childhood friend of his father Xiao Qi, with whom he had practiced martial arts in his youth—they were like brothers. However, in recent years, as the political situation at court had stabilized, the Marquis of Dingyuan had reduced his contact with the Prince of Jing's residence to avoid suspicion, but their friendship had never been severed. Especially since the Prince of Jing's residence had deliberately kept a low profile and sought to protect itself for the past three years, Xiao Shulang knew that the Marquis of Dingyuan had already secretly sided with the Crown Prince's faction, though he had never openly stated it. Xiao Shulang quickly sheathed his sword and said in a deep voice, "Uncle Lin? Why would you be dressed in black and sneak into the Prince of Jing's residence in the middle of the night?"

Marquis Dingyuan, Lin Song, who was standing outside the door, sighed softly and said, "Shulang, I understand your surprise. Coming here so late at night is truly out of necessity. This matter is of great importance. If we were to come openly, we would probably be noticed by Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi's people, alerting them. Not only would we be unable to inform you and Prince Jing, but we might also face a deadly disaster, implicating your Prince Jing's mansion."

He paused, then continued, "I know you've returned from Jiangnan and found irrefutable evidence of collusion between Liu Ruyan, Marquis Yongyi, and the Jiangnan salt merchants. Your father, Xiao Qi, and I grew up together, learning martial arts side by side. He died in battle three years ago, and I've always kept the Xiao family in my heart, always wanted to avenge him, and always wanted to protect the Great Qi Empire. I've come here today to provide you with some additional evidence. This evidence can further prove Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi's crimes and uncover more of their conspiracies, greatly helping you, Prince Jing, and me in punishing Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Shulang's wariness vanished completely, replaced by warmth and gratitude. He knew of the bond between Marquis Dingyuan and his father, and he also knew that although Marquis Dingyuan hadn't been very outgoing in recent years, he had always secretly looked after the Prince Jing's residence. Now, he had even risked his life to deliver the evidence, demonstrating his sincerity. Xiao Shulang quickly stepped forward, opened the door, and said, "Uncle Lin, please come in. I'm sorry for my rudeness, keeping you waiting outside."

Marquis Dingyuan, Lin Song, removed the black cloth from his face, revealing a resolute face, tinged with weariness but unable to conceal the solemnity in his expression. He entered the room, and Xiao Shulang quickly closed the door and bolted it to ensure no one was eavesdropping before taking Lin Song's arm and saying gently, "Uncle Lin, please sit down. I feel truly sorry for troubling you so late at night. What is this additional evidence you mentioned? Also, given your current allegiance to the Crown Prince's faction, isn't it too dangerous for you to come here so abruptly?"

Lin Song waved his hand and said solemnly, "Shulang, there's no need for formalities. Your father and I are like brothers. The affairs of the Xiao family are my affairs. I am now standing with the Crown Prince's faction in order to secretly accumulate strength and wait for the opportunity to punish treacherous officials like Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi. They are ambitious and have long since stopped taking the Crown Prince and the court seriously. If I don't make arrangements in secret, they will surely become a great threat in the future."

He pulled a small oil paper package from his pocket and handed it to Xiao Shulang, saying, "This is the extra evidence I'm giving you. Inside are letters between Liu Ruyan, Marquis Yongyi, and the Hanyu tribe in the Northern Border, as well as evidence that they secretly funded the Hanyu tribe and instigated them to invade the Northern Border of Daqi. Over the years, while secretly assisting the Crown Prince, I've been keeping an eye on Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi's movements. I know they are ambitious and secretly colluding with various forces, plotting a rebellion."

Xiao Shulang took the oil paper package, opened it, and found several letters and a detailed list of donations inside. He quickly flipped through it, and the more he read, the darker his expression became, and the coldness in his eyes intensified.

It turns out that Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi not only colluded with salt merchants in Jiangnan to smuggle salt and make huge profits, but also secretly trained assassins, stockpiled weapons, and plotted a rebellion. They also secretly colluded with the Hanyu tribe in the north, providing them with large amounts of food, medicine, and weapons, and instigating the Hanyu tribe to invade the northern border of Daqi. Their purpose was to create chaos so that the court would not have time to deal with their conspiracy, and seize the throne.

The heavy snowfall in the northern border has caused food shortages for the Hanyu tribe, who already harbored intentions to invade the northern border of Daqi. After learning of this, Liu Ruyan and Yongyi Hou secretly sent people to contact the Hanyu tribe, promising them more aid so that they could quickly launch an attack on the northern border of Daqi and create even greater chaos.

"What a Liu Ruyan! What a valiant Marquis!" Xiao Shulang trembled slightly with rage, gritting his teeth as he said, "They are so treacherous and ambitious! To seize the throne, they have colluded with foreign enemies, endangering the Great Qi's land and its people. They deserve to die! If it weren't for the evidence you, Uncle Lin, brought us, we would never have known they had such a vicious scheme!"

Lin Song sighed and said, "Shulang, Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi's ambitions are far greater than we imagined. Over the years, they have secretly cultivated their power, bribed officials, colluded with salt merchants and foreign enemies, and laid out their plans step by step, all so that one day they can seize the throne and control the country of Daqi. Your father died in battle back then, and although it was ostensibly a death on the battlefield, it was actually inseparable from their machinations. The reason I found this evidence is to avenge your father and give the Xiao family justice."

"Uncle Lin, thank you so much!" Xiao Shulang bowed deeply to Lin Song, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you for always remembering my father and the Xiao family, and for risking your life to find this evidence for us! With this evidence, we can more effectively prove the crimes of Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi, bring them to justice more quickly, avenge my father and the soldiers of the Xiao family army, and protect the land and society of Daqi! I, Xiao Shulang, will never forget this kindness!"

Lin Song quickly helped Xiao Shulang up, patted his shoulder, and said gently, "Shulang, there's no need for such formalities. As I've said before, your father and I are like brothers, and this is what I should do. As a subject of the Great Qi, it is my duty to be loyal to the Emperor, the Crown Prince, and the court, to punish treacherous officials, and to protect the Great Qi's land and people. Moreover, your father died on the battlefield to protect the Great Qi, and I cannot let his sacrifice be in vain, nor can I allow treacherous officials to hold power and harm the loyal and good."

He paused, then continued, "These letters and lists of donations were obtained by my men at great personal risk from Liu Ruyan's private residence. Her residence was heavily guarded, and my men suffered heavy casualties before finally obtaining this evidence. I know this evidence is extremely important to you and Prince Jing, which is why I disguised myself in the dead of night and infiltrated Prince Jing's residence to deliver it to you, fearing that Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi's men would discover it, seize the evidence, and kill you to silence you."

Xiao Shulang nodded and said, "Uncle Lin, you've considered things very thoroughly. My elder brother and I have also discussed this matter. We can't rush things. Liu Ruyan and Marquis Yongyi have a lot of influence in the court. They've secretly bribed many officials and have a lot of assassins and weapons at their disposal. If we rashly present the evidence to the Emperor, they might become desperate and launch a rebellion. In that case, the Great Qi's country will fall into chaos, and the people will suffer."

"You and Prince Jing are right," Lin Song said with a hint of approval in his eyes. "This matter must be considered carefully. Currently, the Pingxi Marquis's army is in the northern border, and the crisis there has not yet been resolved. Liu Ruyan and the Yongyi Marquis are unlikely to cause trouble at this time. They will wait for an opportunity, and when the northern border is in chaos and the court is too busy to deal with it, they will take the opportunity to launch an attack."

"So what should we do now?" Xiao Shulang asked. "My elder brother and I plan to secretly contact ministers who are loyal to the Emperor and the court, accumulate strength, and wait for the right opportunity to present this evidence to the Emperor and wipe out Liu Ruyan, Marquis Yongyi, and their cronies in one fell swoop."