Chương 554

Ye Chutang took a step back, focusing her gaze on her nose and then on her heart. “I dare not speak rashly about matters of the court.”

Emperor Wudi said, “If it were some other matter, I wouldn’t ask you either. But since you happened to be there last night and are therefore aware of the whole sequence of events, you may speak freely without having to worry too much.”

Ye Chutang paused for a moment before giving a helpless smile.

“Your Majesty’s words put me in a difficult position indeed. Last night, some belongings of the crown prince were lost, and I went to return them to him. Unfortunately, I happened to witness a major fire at the Ministry of Justice, which led to a series of subsequent events. However, as for the details of that fire, I really don’t know much about it, so I dare not make any judgments rashly.”

Emperor Wudi looked at her with his aged eyes, their weight seemingly pressing down heavily on her shoulders.

Ye Chutang maintained that posture, motionless, neither humble nor arrogant.

After a long while, that inexplicable sense of pressure finally dissipated.

Emperor Wudi sighed.

“It was my fault.”

Only then did the tension in Ye Chutang’s heart relax.

Even though Emperor Wudi was old and ill, his status remained that of an emperor. Emperors are naturally suspicious by nature.

With so many things happening last night, he surely couldn’t trust anyone.

What he said earlier was merely a test.

If Ye Chutang were to comment on the people involved, it would only lead Emperor Wudi to suspect her as well.

No matter how much the outside world praised and envied Ye Chutang for being the “favored one” by Emperor Wudi, she was well aware that she was just a “healer.”

Fan Chengzhuo, being a high-ranking official in the court with great power, even if he was at fault, how could it be her responsibility to deal with it?

“Continue,” Emperor Wudi said, closing his eyes and leaning back in his chair as if lost in thought. “I’ll think about it some more.”

“Yes.”

Ye Chutang replied and then stepped forward again.

Time passed slowly; the tea in the hall cooled and then warmed up again.

Once the incense stick was finally burned out, Ye Chutang began to put away her needles.

“After you take the medicine in a moment, rest for a while more, calm your mind, and you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

After the acupuncture treatment, Emperor Wudi’s spirits had greatly recovered, and his complexion also improved considerably.

He pressed on the corner of his forehead and said with a smile, “You’re truly talented; my headache has eased a lot, and I no longer feel chest tightness.”

Hearing this, the Crown Princess couldn’t help but say,

“It is indeed fortunate to have Chutang around. But if Your Majesty doesn’t take care of your own health, it will still cause trouble in the end.”

There was a rare hint of reprimand in her words, yet Emperor Wudi’s smile grew even broader.

“What my sister says is true; I have indeed been too negligent. But… there are so many matters to attend to; I really can’t help it!”

With a long sigh, he pointed outside and said,

“Just dealing with those people from the Ministry of Justice is already a big problem.”

The Crown Princess frowned.

In fact, she was also aware that what Emperor Wudi said was the truth.

“Those who deserve punishment should be punished, and those who deserve rewards should be rewarded. That’s all that’s needed. Why should Your Majesty worry too much?”

Emperor Wudi remained silent for a moment, then suddenly turned to ask Xiao Chengqi:

“Đoàn sứ Wa Zhen sẽ đến kinh thành vào ngày nào?”

Tiêu Thành Kỳ lập tức đáp: “Báo cáo với Hoàng thượng, theo thông tin, họ chỉ còn hai ngày nữa là có thể đến kinh thành.”

“Nghĩa là ngày kia họ sẽ đến.” Vua Mục Vũ cười nhẹ và lắc đầu, nhưng trong mắt không hề có vẻ vui vẻ nào, ông nhìn về phía Công chúa Trưởng: “Chỉ cách đó một quãng đường ngắn thôi, chỉ cần có chút động tĩnh gì ở kinh thành, e rằng họ sẽ lập tức biết ngay.”

Công chúa Trưởng muốn nói thêm nhưng lại thôi lại.

Trong lòng bà cũng có những lo lắng tương tự.

Trước đó, khi bà đã ép buộc phải dập tắt cuộc ẩu đả giữa Tiêu Lan Tịch và Tiêu Thành Huyền, bà cũng lo lắng về điểm này.

Tình hình rất căng thẳng, không thể không suy nghĩ kỹ lưỡng hơn.

“Lời Hoàng thượng nói có lý, chỉ là, lần này Bộ Hình đã mắc phải sai lầm nghiêm trọng như vậy, nếu không trừng phạt họ thì thật sự không thể chấp nhận được. Một vụ hỏa hoạn suýt nữa đã thiêu rụi toàn bộ nhà tù của Bộ Hình, không những vậy, còn suýt gây ra bạo loạn của tù nhân, thậm chí, ngay cả Yên Xuyên cũng suýt nữa phải mất mạng trong đó.”

Nói đến đây, ánh mắt Công chúa Trưởng trở nên lạnh lùng:

“Fan Thành Châu dù có biết cách làm vẻ bề ngoài tốt, nhưng nếu thực sự có chuyện gì xảy ra, dù ông ta có đến mười mạng cũng không đủ để bù đắp!” Vua Mục Vũ suy tư lâu.

“Vậy thì tạm thời chuyển ông ta khỏi Bộ Hình đi, đợi đến khi vấn đề đàm phán với Wa Zhen được giải quyết xong, sau đó mới tiếp tục truy cứu trách nhiệm.”

……

Nhà họ Diệp.

Diệp Sơ Đường vừa trở về thì người hầu vội vàng báo tin rằng Công chúa Quận Qinyang đã đến thăm và đã đợi ở phòng khách từ lâu rồi.

Vì biết rằng mối quan hệ giữa Công chúa Quận Qinyang và cô con gái thứ hai của mình khá thân thiết, họ liền mời cô ấy vào ngay.

Khi Diệp Sơ Đường đến, cô thấy Công chúa Quận Qinyang đang nhàn rỗi với việc sắp xếp lại bàn cờ mà lần trước họ đã chơi dở.

“Hôm nay công chúa sao lại có thời gian đến đây vậy?”

Nghe thấy tiếng gọi, Công chúa Quận Qinyang lập tức quay đầu lại, vừa ngạc nhiên vừa vui mừng: “Sơ Đường! Cuối cùng cô cũng trở về rồi! Nếu cô không trở về nữa, tôi sẽ chết nhàm chán mất.”

Cô ấy đẩy nhẹ bàn cờ và phàn nàn: “Cô chơi cờ mỗi ngày cũng quá mất sức, sao lại khó như vậy? Có gì thú vị chứ?”

Diệp Sơ Đường nhìn qua và im lặng không nói gì, suy nghĩ rằng mình gần đây không dành nhiều thời gian cho việc dạy cô bé chơi cờ, nên cô ấy mới cảm thấy nhàm chán.

……

Ye Chutang understood immediately and smiled slightly, “It’s nothing more than me going to return his belongings and by the way, helping him out with a small favor.”

“Just that?”

The Princess of Qinyang’s face was filled with disbelief.

“Don’t tease me! I’ve heard about it all. You risked your life and charged into the fire to save my brother!”

Ye Chutang: “……”

Something didn’t seem quite right, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Well, it’s not so bad then.” Ye Chutang picked up her teacup and took a sip. “At that time, the fire hadn’t spread to that area yet. Although it looked intense, in reality, it wasn’t that bad—”

“What do you mean, ‘not so bad’?!”

The Princess of Qinyang widened her eyes.

“I saw it with my own eyes! Such a huge fire! Half of the entire capital’s people must have seen it!”

As she spoke, tears began to well up in her eyes.

“What merits does my brother have to make you risk your life like that for him?”

Ye Chutang: “……”

Something indeed didn’t seem right.

After pondering for a moment, Ye Chutang said, “The crown prince has also saved me before. This can be considered as a kind of—”

“A match made in heaven!”

The Princess of Qinyang looked as if she fully understood, and she tightly held Ye Chutang’s hand.

“Where else in this world could one find a woman who would treat him like you do?”

Ye Chutang: “……Well, maybe not really…”

She mentioned that later on, Zhou and the others also quickly arrived, right?

It seemed dangerous, but in reality—

“Of course it is!”

The Princess of Qinyang was so excited she couldn’t find words to express herself.

“You’re still so low-key about it. Now the whole capital knows that you’re willing to sacrifice your own life for my brother! Plus, before that, he sent people to protect your safety and even stood up for you to clarify the circumstances of the case. What is this?”

“This is… a mutual affection! A match created by heaven and earth! A perfect pair!”

Ye Chutang: “……?”