"Does this matter involve Prince Jing?" Shen Xihe furrowed her brows, a wisp of hair drifting down to flutter between her brow and temple in the breeze, adding a touch of soft radiance and liveliness to her countenance.
Xiao Huayong gazed at her with focused tenderness, his voice unconsciously softening: "The Pei family's ancestral home is in Mizhou, not far from Dengzhou. This drought has also affected Mizhou."
Shen Xihe raised an eyebrow: "Did the Pei clansmen cause trouble?"
The disaster in Dengzhou has now become a hot potato. Your Majesty's earlier prayers at Xiangguo Temple were widely discussed, though it was later revealed to be a heavenly warning, with rumors of an assassination attempt against Your Majesty that somewhat mitigated the situation.
Had the disaster in Dengzhou not immediately followed, the common people might not have speculated much. But now there's considerable public resentment in Dengzhou. Anyone who isn't a fool would avoid volunteering to lead relief efforts there, as a single misstep could make them Your Majesty's scapegoat.
Prince Jing is certainly no fool. Having just returned to the capital and suddenly been appointed Minister of War in one of the Six Ministries, he should be lying low. This is precisely why, despite suspecting that Pei Zhan's death was connected to the Shen family and Shen Xihe, he has remained inactive.
His sudden voluntary request to lead relief efforts in Dengzhou, taking on this universally avoided hot potato, must mean there are reasons compelling him to go personally.
Shen Xihe had also been thinking that the disaster had just begun - this wasn't wartime, so how could civil unrest suddenly erupt? Clearly, someone had manipulated the situation to instigate this unrest.
"Information from the Dengzhou area has been suppressed, with someone deliberately concealing it. I haven't received much news," Xiao Huayong smiled faintly. "But here in the capital, someone is using my prayers on behalf of Your Majesty as pretext to propose that I, being a person of abundant blessings, should go to Dengzhou in Your Majesty's stead to bring fortune to the people."
"The Pei family has completely blamed Pei Zhan's death on you and set a trap for you," Shen Xihe immediately understood the intricacies.
Although Xiao Huayong's influence spreads throughout the land, supported by Hua Fuhai's merchant networks and jointly managed openly and covertly by Tianyuan's younger brother Difang and another trusted aide Luling, it hasn't fully penetrated the government. The Pei family is a major clan. While Pei Zhan's direct line has dwindled to only Prince Jing Xiao Changyan's cousin Pei Ce, their clan members within five degrees of kinship remain, deeply rooted and flourishing in the Mizhou area.
Their glory comes from the capital's Pei family. Pei Zhan's death was a heavy blow to them - at the very least, with Pei Zhan gone, the power structure throughout Henan Circuit will be reshuffled, forcing the Pei family to endure humiliation and lie low.
It's understandable that they would resent Shen Xihe and Xiao Huayong, given how it affects their entire clan's rise and fall and their interests.
Thinking this, Shen Xihe couldn't help but sneer coldly: "The Pei family has quite the nerve."
Daring to set a trap for the Crown Prince without any evidence.
"Don't be angry." Xiao Huayong took her tender white hands in his. "It would be overestimating them to say they have great courage. Pei Zhan's death is just a thorn in their side. They suspect you and me but can't find evidence, which must frustrate them greatly."
"In the capital, Xiao Ba doesn't dare act rashly. But in Dengzhou or Mizhou, they have plenty of ways to test my depths."There was no need to even take action personally. Henan Circuit, besides Luoyang and Henan Prefecture, had twenty-four other prefectures and was adjacent to the capital. It was the most prosperous and bustling region outside the capital, with various forces converging. To kill with a borrowed knife or use another's strength to strike was all too easy.
"What a pity, Little Eight is too cautious." In the end, Xiao Huayong sighed softly with regret.
He was quite willing to go to Dengzhou for disaster relief, as it provided an opportunity to meddle in Henan Circuit—to remove the disobedient and eliminate those who should not remain.
The Pei clansmen wanted to share Xiao Changyan's burdens by sending Xiao Huayong to Dengzhou. However, Xiao Changyan was deeply wary of Xiao Huayong, or perhaps deeply wary of Shen Xihe. Recalling the recent turmoil in the northwest, he feared that if Xiao Huayong and his wife went to Dengzhou, the petty cleverness of the Pei clansmen would be no match for them. Instead, it might allow the couple to plant seeds of disaster in Henan Circuit that would harm the Pei clan.
Thus, he had no choice but to take on this task himself.
He wondered what expressions the Pei clansmen would have when they saw Xiao Changyan.
Their expressions were, of course, unpleasant. As soon as Xiao Changyan arrived in Dengzhou, the Pei clansmen secretly came to pay their respects. The two who had advocated sharing Xiao Changyan's burdens were Pei Guanxiang, a descendant of the Pei clan and Xiao Changyan's maternal uncle, nearly forty years old, and Pei Guanyan, the eldest son of the Pei clan leader and the head of the eighth branch, who controlled the Pei clan's economic lifeline.
"Your Highness, why did you have to come to Dengzhou personally?" Pei Guanxiang was very anxious. It was true that they had orchestrated the civil unrest in Dengzhou, but the actual situation was not good either—otherwise, how could it have sparked such turmoil so easily?
The original plan was to draw the Crown Prince into the fray, test his depth, and then use the unrest to eliminate the Crown Prince quietly.
"If I didn't come personally, would I have let you ruin the Pei clan?" Xiao Changyan's expression was cold and stern, his sharp gaze piercing the two. "Do you really think the Crown Prince and Shen Shi are easy to manipulate? The events in the northwest this time are full of peculiarities. On the surface, they seem unrelated to the Crown Prince, yet they are intricately connected. The Crown Prince is far from the weak and isolated figure the rumors make him out to be. This time, you acted on your own initiative. Considering your intentions to strategize for me, I will let it slide. But if there is a next time, do not blame me for disregarding our blood ties."
The two were startled. Despite Jing Wang being only just twenty, he had already proven himself on the battlefield, quelled internal strife within the Pei clan, and unified the fragmented Pei clan into a cohesive force. He had long become the de facto leader of the Pei clan. Since he spoke thus, they dared not question him.
"Your Highness, how should we deal with the Twelfth Prince?" Pei Guanyan could only change the subject.
Xiao Changyan twisted the jade ring on his thumb: "Test him."
Xiao Changyan's test was direct, brutal, and entirely unexpected by Xiao Changgeng. That very night, someone risked their life to deliver evidence detrimental to Xiao Changyan and the Pei clan directly into his hands.
"Prince Yan, please uphold justice for us!"
Xiao Changgeng held the evidence in his hand. It did not appear to be forged. If this evidence were presented to His Majesty, the Pei clan would be subject to the extermination of three generations, and even Xiao Changyan would be implicated—at the very least, he would lose his princely title, and at worst, he would be disqualified from the succession struggle.
"Aside from this, do you have any other evidence or witnesses?" Xiao Changgeng inquired gently, his expression calm.The two hesitated, so Xiao Changgeng said, "This matter involves my elder brother. Without solid evidence, how could I easily make a decision for you?"
In the end, the two revealed some information. Xiao Changgeng sent people to bring the evidence and the individuals involved. Under their earnest and hopeful gazes, he burned all the evidence to ashes and executed every person with a single strike of the blade.
Before coming, the Crown Prince had instructed him that gaining trust was the top priority. If he dared to oppose the Eighth Prince now, he might not even make it out of Dengzhou alive.
The Eighth Prince was truly not someone to be trifled with.
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