Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

Could it be that Yongzhen heard me make a sound I couldn't help but make?! Madam Zhen panicked, and stammered:

"I think so, there seems to be such a thing, but I can't remember clearly."

Yongzhen examined her mother again. Her pulse was steady, her breathing was even, and her complexion was rosy—all signs of good health.

"That's good. Mother, you've sweated a lot. Wash yourself before having breakfast. I'll go back and wash up too."

"Yes." Madam Zhen nodded.

Yongzhen left her mother's room and returned to her own boudoir, pondering:

"If we judge by dreams, Mother must have had a dream last night that was subtly romantic, but was it really that intense? Did she enjoy being rolled up and pressed like that?"

Setting aside the suspicious events of the previous night, Yongzhen then began to examine her gains in the cultivation technique.

"I still can't control the exchange of souls. The soul communication last night was still barely possible. It seems that this level of cultivation is not yet at the point of taking the initiative. It's mostly just shortening the time of forced soul exchanges."

A little disappointed.

"We need to find some time to call Chu Mingkong over and ask him."

------------

Chu Mingkong woke up suddenly in bed, opened his eyes, stared at the top of the curtains for a long time, and then sat up with a start.

"Chao! Wasn't I planning to go to court today to discuss leaving the capital? I completely forgot... Maybe we should just forget about it, since we're already late anyway."

This mentality is like the "I've already overslept and missed half of the morning class, I'll just go during the next class" attitude – a kind of give-up mentality.

Last night, out of a protective instinct, Chu Mingkong secretly practiced his internal energy while embracing Madam Zhen, circulating all three of his internal energy techniques once. He managed to operate all three techniques simultaneously without interfering with each other.

With the healing and restorative effects of the *Su Nu Jing*, Madam Zhen should be fine after waking up. This technique is remarkably effective at erasing evidence of injuries such as hickeys, scratches, spanking marks, bruises, and knee marks. A single session with the *Su Nu Jing* can eliminate all physical injuries and even provide some conditioning effects.

"Before I left, I made sure to clean up the mess properly, and I didn't forget to create a soundproof barrier. Yongzhen shouldn't have had a chance to discover anything. The simultaneous operation of the three cultivation techniques almost completely depleted my kidney essence. Even if Zuo Qiuchi came, he wouldn't be able to sense any residual energy from me."

The more I think about it, the more I feel that the *Su Nu Jing* (Classic of the Plain Girl) existed solely to cover up evidence and cover up past wrongdoings.

Taoist sexual techniques are terrifying!

Unfortunately, he only had an incomplete copy of the "Mysterious Woman Scripture," and he would need to find a true disciple of the Daoist sect to have the opportunity to practice it.

After lying in bed for a while, Chu Mingkong still felt that his whole day yesterday was a bit outrageous, running around the film set non-stop.

The intense work was so demanding that even courtesans would weep at the sight of it.

"I can't afford to be lazy. I'll still go to court. I'll just say I was late because I was recuperating from my injuries. The court session shouldn't be over yet!"

After getting dressed, Chu Mingkong went to the Cui residence and found a maid who knew how to do makeup. She gave him a makeover that made him look like he was seriously ill, with heavy dark circles under his eyes and sunken cheeks.

Then I went to the stables in the academy's library, took the royal mare, and rode comfortably into the palace.

......

The sun was high in the sky, and today's court ceremonies were about to conclude.

Many elderly ministers breathed a sigh of relief. Apart from the key figures and leaders in the factional struggles, most ministers didn't have many opportunities to speak in court; they were just there to join in the atmosphere.

These ministers, to some extent, had a "work is over" mentality; now that the court session was about to end, they wanted to go home and rest.

Just then, the messenger eunuch's loud voice came over, announcing that Chu Mingkong had arrived at the last moment of the court assembly.

Chapter 126 Are You in a Hurry? (23/26)

Empress Pei had heard Chu Mingkong mention yesterday that she would be attending court, so today when she went to court, she again used the excuse of feeling unwell to turn her back to the officials below the stage. The curtain was lowered, and the outline of Empress Pei's plump back was vaguely visible.

After Chu Mingkong was granted permission to enter the Golden Palace, his gaze first fell on the back of the woman behind the curtain. He loved voluptuous and beautiful women with their backs to him!

Empress Pei felt uneasy, a strange sense of unease creeping into her heart. Even without looking directly at Chu Mingkong, she could sense the brat's insolent gaze. But... surely he hadn't discovered her true identity yet?

Chu Mingkong stared at the Peach Queen for a long time before realizing that the surrounding officials seemed to harbor a lot of resentment towards him, and their gazes clearly wanted to drive him away.

'Sure enough, I have many enemies. These old fogies have a lot of grievances against me at this crucial juncture when Tianya City is choosing a new city lord!'

Empress Pei had always remained an outsider in the court, and no one had said a word about Chu Mingkong's arrival. A civil official, who was in urgent need of urination, originally had no opportunity to speak, but as his endurance was about to reach its limit, he had no choice but to boldly ask Chu Mingkong's purpose.

Chu Mingkong was already quite familiar with this place, and with the dog emperor absent, it was still in his familiar rhythm for the time being. His answer was quite concise and to the point.

"I'm leaving Beijing."

The court was in an uproar. Was Chu Mingkong planning a rebellion? He had already given such lenient conditions for his previous punishment of confinement, and now he was directly demanding to leave the capital? Was he going to demand to be emperor, empress, and princess next?

Everyone was waiting for his follow-up, but after waiting for a long time, Chu Mingkong didn't utter a second sentence.

The remonstrating official Shi Zheng, who couldn't stay up all night and fell asleep on the floor last time, said tactfully:

"Your Highness, is there anything else you wish to say?"

Chu Mingkong shrugged: "That's all. Do you have any questions for me?"

There are other princes and hostages in the capital, but none of them are as arrogant as Chu Mingkong, who goes his own way and leaves whenever he wants. He doesn't even explain his reasons, and they have to ask him.

But seeing Chu Mingkong's pale face, and how weak he had become in such a short time, she guessed that he was about to die, so she decided to be patient with him for a while longer.

Scholars value wisdom and avoiding confrontation. Although they dare not utter a sound while alive, their performance begins after death: slander, defamation, and heavy criticism in historical records.

Shi Zheng didn't want to speak anymore and wanted someone else to ask him. Shi Zheng's gaze swept over the civil officials around him, and wherever his gaze fell, everyone looked away. No one wanted to lower themselves in front of Chu Mingkong and lose face. It was obvious that they wanted Shi Zheng, the unlucky guy who spoke first, to continue asking.

Shi Zheng looked at the ashen-faced, sullen civil official: "You ask him."

The official, his face contorted with rage from holding back his excrement, muttered in a low voice, "Why should I!"

Shi Zheng's lips curled into a smile, and he said in a low voice, "I'm not in a hurry. If you're so capable, pull it now."

Chu Mingkong: "..."

Empress Pei: "..."

The official, struggling to maintain his composure, forced a smile and asked Chu Mingkong:

"Your Highness, why do you want to leave the capital? This is a major matter, and even the Empress may find it difficult to make a decision. It must be decided by the Emperor himself."

Chu Mingkong asked in a low voice, "Are you in a hurry?"

Could it be that the young master intends to give up today and be considerate of others' urgent needs?!

"Yes!!"

Chu Mingkong nodded: "Bear with it a little longer, I have a long reason to give."

The official, who was holding back his bowel movements, was utterly despondent and filled with despair.

Chu Mingkong then slowly and deliberately explained, word by word, that a secret realm within the Xiaoxiang Qin Academy was about to open, detailing the quality, variety, and age of the medicinal herbs within, but also the extreme danger posed by the area where these precious herbs grew. After rambling on for a long time, he finally got to the point:

"I am nearing my end, but I do not wish for Your Majesty to suffer from the Emperor's illness and affect your own health, otherwise I will not be able to rest easy! Therefore, I intend to do everything in my power to find medicine in the secret realm to heal the Emperor!"

Empress Pei was so angry that she pursed her lips and clenched her fists. She really wanted to go down and scold him. This brat's filial piety was just playing around with Jin Yu in front of her and even trying to break her wall.

The proverb says that filial piety comes from the rod and spoil the child. So this filial son of Xiling used a rod to show his filial piety to the mother of the nation, right?

She calmed herself down and made her voice a little hoarse so that the wicked thing wouldn't recognize her:

"This matter is of great importance, and I cannot make a decision. If I agree, what will I do if other princes and their sons also request to leave the capital?"

The official, who was holding back his bodily functions, nodded repeatedly, wanting nothing more than to finish quickly, and echoed:

"Yeah yeah!"

Chu Mingkong said, "So, does this gentleman mean you intend to just watch the Emperor get into trouble and do nothing? They say that in times of emergency, one should act expediently. You seem to be following the rules, but in reality, you are blocking the Emperor's access to medicine... Could it be that you have already found a new candidate for Crown Prince? Let me meet him?"

"So you're just letting me get to know you so you can kill me?" the ministers muttered to themselves.

But Chu Mingkong's words made sense.

Those sects that enter the secret realm and obtain medicine may not necessarily be willing to sell it to the Heavenly Extreme Empire. They will first satisfy their own sects with good things, and then consider whether to store them in their warehouses for future needs. Only medicines that are not important will be considered for sale.

Empress Pei spoke up again, saying:

"I would very much like to grant the Crown Prince's request, but it would be inappropriate for me to make the decision from my own standpoint. Who do you ministers think is capable of making this decision on behalf of His Majesty?"

If the emperor has not designated a crown prince in advance, then the emperor's brothers and sisters will make the decision. This is the same principle as when the emperor dies suddenly without leaving an heir and the question of who should succeed him is raised. The only option is to find the one with the closest blood relation, preferably the son of the previous empress. The offspring of concubines are not considered qualified.

The current emperor's path to the throne was paved with blood. He eliminated many of his brothers and sisters. In fact, most of the children left behind by the empresses who died unexpectedly before Empress Zhen were dead.

Because Empress Dowager Zhen was deposed by the late emperor, Princess Yongzhen was demoted to a county princess, thus missing out on the royal struggle ahead of time and escaping a calamity.

Now, if anyone is to say who is most qualified, it would only be Princess Yongzhen, who is also a descendant of the late emperor.

Shi Zheng said, "How about we ask Princess Yongzhen to make the decision?"

Chu Mingkong knew immediately that the matter was settled. He didn't expect his petition to leave the capital to succeed this time. If it didn't work the first time, he would try again. He would remember who opposed him and take care of them when he got out.

As a result, they immediately brought up Yongzhen.

The affairs of the court are ridiculous. When it comes to their own interests, they fight tooth and nail, while they try to shirk responsibility for things that don't concern them, so as not to be blamed. They even bring in Yongzhen, an outsider, to help them avoid trouble.

Of course, Yongzhen would be mentioned. Chu Mingkong felt that this was also the result of Empress Pei's guidance. She asked the ministers who could make the decision, and the only answer was Yongzhen. In other words, she used the ministers to express her decision, while she herself remained behind the scenes and distanced herself from the situation.

Good trick!

However, Empress Pei knows that I know Yongzhen. Last time "Yongzhen" stepped forward, I stood up for him. Is Empress Pei doing me a favor?

Soon, Princess Yongzhen attended court again because of Chu Mingkong's matter. The answer was obvious: she rambled on about her concern for the emperor and then agreed.

After the court session ended, the officials walked out of the court, exhausted.

As Yongzhen and Chu Mingkong walked out side by side, she said softly and calmly:

"Come find me later."

Chapter 127 Whose orders do you listen to?

Yongzhen came to find me on her own initiative? Chu Mingkong was unsure what was going on. Could it be that he had left some clues that had been seen through?

The princess's words were very brief, and her expression was indifferent. Chu Mingkong was unsure of her feelings, so he could only agree for the time being.

"Listen to Yongzhen."

This phrase seems to have become his catchphrase when he meets the two Emma brothers.

"You'll listen to me?"