Chapter 59: The Beginning of Investigating Ning City

  Zi Ruoye was leaning against the chair, knocking her knees, and her brocade robe was even more wrinkled. Her fingertips knocked on the small wine pot from time to time, occasionally glancing at Zi Yan sitting in front of her.

  "Eldest sister, my salary is indeed a bit higher than others, but I still have to support the entire royal palace. Can you bear it?" Zi Ruoye also raised an eyebrow, her half-closed eyes hazy and unclear, as if she didn't know whether she was speaking nonsense or not.

  "Ruò Yè, don't you think it's most suitable for you to go?" Zi Yanran's phoenix eyes flashed with a faint light as she rapidly wrote and reviewed the memorials.

  "Your Majesty, I have just married not long ago..." Zi Ruoye stood up decisively and walked to the front of Zi Yanran, her half-closed eyes directly gazing at Zi Yanran's calm phoenix eyes.

  With a raised eyebrow, he directly called out to the Emperor. Yet, it was still the old, calm and collected tone that spoke, "Besides you, who else is suitable? You, this Prince, have done nothing for Zi Xuan all these years, could it be that just one matter would make things difficult for you?"

  "Hmph...... you're ruthless!" Zi Ruoye gritted her teeth and said, what a king she had... not to mention Mu Jin, but rather her other identity, the idle and useless King Ye who spent his days eating, drinking, and having fun!

  "Heh heh, I knew you'd agree, Imperial Sister! So, about the disappearance of over a hundred tons of coal from Yicheng last month... that's now your responsibility. Hmm... would you like me to grant you a title?" Zi Yan'er lowered her head in thought, seemingly considering what title she should take.

  "There are less than a hundred officials in the Imperial Court, and there are even more talented individuals beyond count. Why must I be the one to go? Isn't it better for me to remain idle?" Zi Ruoye pressed him for the first time, her eyes lightly opening, the intoxication gone, replaced by clear and inquiring pupils.

  Ziyan suddenly said with a pained expression, "You don't know... those officials who eat and use me, when it comes to the crucial moment, they're useless... I can only rely on you." Ziyan almost covered her face and wept, her eyes glanced at Ziruo Ye, who had returned to her chair and was drinking again, and she lost interest in continuing the act.

  "Why don't you perform anymore. If you cry, I'll go." Zi Ruoye said coolly, not giving him any face at all. What did the disappearance of over a hundred kilograms of coal have to do with her? She lowered her eyelids, and her eyes sparkled with a clear and mysterious light.

  Coal is indispensable in any case, who is so powerful and great, more than 100 tons are not a small number, can actually disappear out of thin air? If those coals are not recovered, now Zixuan loses such precious coal after the war, I'm afraid the future days will be like walking on thin ice, plus another two countries' envoys will arrive in a few months.

  "Are you going to let Grand Councilor Liu go? Don't you know that he's already over fifty years old, can you bear to do that?" Zi Yan continued to persuade, "Or are you going to let General Li go? Don't you know that while General Li is good at fighting, but in other aspects..."

  Listening to Zi Yanran's incessant chatter, she had known all along that this woman was talkative, and now she felt that her words were truly not ordinary. How could she possibly let Liu Chengxiang go? Not to mention Liu Chengxiang's identity as a civil official, although the old fox looked very healthy, but from Yicheng to the imperial capital, even with fast horses, it would take at least a month. Civil officials going to the countryside would definitely be in a carriage, and this back-and-forth journey would take at least three or four months. Could she really let Liu Chengxiang go? How could she possibly let Liu Chengxiang suffer on the road for so long!

  "Queen, why don't you let Mugen go?" Zi Ruoye didn't refute, but instead looked up slightly, investigating the theft case at the coal mine. She could have let Ashin go, or even use Mugen's identity to do so, but why did she use the Prince's identity this time?

  The purple eyes flashed with a hint of light, looking at Purple Ruoye, the phoenix eyes also looked at Purple Ruoye, and said in a soft voice, "You're a big living person who hasn't been seen in the imperial city for several months, how should I explain?"

  Zi Ruoye, however, did not think so. "Can't I just go wherever I want to play? Isn't it obvious that I'll be beating the grass to scare the snakes?" She was waving a flag to tell others she had arrived, and then appeared in front of the suspects, telling those people that she was the one who wanted to catch them?

  "In short... just receive the imperial edict later. " Zi Yanran seemed to not want to continue talking with Zi Ruoye, but Zi Ruoye didn't think much of it and followed her out.

  In the grand hall, the ministers all lowered their heads, clearly feeling the heavy atmosphere of the day. However, they didn't dare to speak out, fearing to provoke the emperor's anger. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Zi Ruoye, who was the only one yawning in the entire grand hall. The quietness was so profound that even the sound of a needle dropping could be heard, and all that remained were the sounds of people's breathing and Zi Ruoye's yawning.

  Ziyan finally spoke up after a long time, her voice stern and puzzled. "Has there been any news about the coal mine disappearance case last month?" Just by looking at them with their heads hung low, she knew that there was no progress.

  The ministers below all looked at each other, and last month's coal mine disappearance has been searched for a month without any results. There is always a minister staring at Ziyuanran with a stern gaze, and he walked out, "I am ashamed of the imperial grace, and I have not found out who the mastermind is."

  "Despicable!" Ziyanyan said heavily, her voice filled with obvious anger, causing the officials to hastily kneel down and beg for mercy. Even Ziyuoye was startled by Ziyanyan's angry shout, looking at her eyes that were indeed furious. After investigating for over a month without finding anything, it was indeed time to be angry. This one month had likely consumed a lot of resources for the obviously depleted national treasury of Mingguo, in terms of manpower, material resources, and financial resources.

  If she were to find out, she would probably be furious too. The silver would have sunk to the bottom of the water for nothing. Anyone would be angry in this situation. Zi Ruoye hung her head with a sincere and fearful expression, but her thoughts were completely different from what she showed on the surface.

  "How can I calm down?! You still want me to calm down?! How can I calm down now?!" Ziyuan's face sank, her eyes coldly staring at the officials kneeling on the ground. Indeed, no matter which dynasty it was, there would always be those who only knew how to talk but not act! Pressing her lips together, her phoenix-like eyes seemed to want to chop up these officials one by one.

  After a while, Zi Yanran said softly, "Lyuxiang, what do you think about this?" Her gaze shifted to Lyuxiang.

  "The old minister thinks that this case is not trivial, it's better to send someone alone to investigate." Minister Liu stepped out of the team and said after a slight pause.

  Everyone nodded in agreement after hearing what Director Liu said, but who was the person sent out? This person must have been clever to be able to investigate and find out. Everyone thought that Director Liu would recommend one of her own students, as she had many.

  "Oh? Then who does Minister Liu think is capable of taking on the task?" Zi Yan's tone took a big turn, with an inquiring and exploratory tone.

  Zi Ruoye's eyes narrowed slightly, this old fox... it seemed that he had already colluded with the Empress, gritting her teeth, she stared fiercely at the back of Liu Chengxiang, vowing to catch him in the act!

  Liu Chengxiang, however, was not in the least concerned. He seriously looked around at the officials present and paused for a moment on Ziyue Ye with a profound meaning. His wise eyes flashed slightly, "This old minister thinks that the person sent must be someone who can make the other party wary of her, but also not wary of her. In this way, the person will pretend to be harmonious on the surface, but will reveal their true intentions in private."

  Ziyan seemed to have taken an interest, slightly narrowing her eyes, indicating that Liu Xiang should continue, "Then who do you think I should send to investigate?"

  Liu Chengxiang paused for a moment before turning around and staring straight at Zi Ruoye, "Your Highness, who do you think should be chosen?"

  Zi Ruoye raised her head, her voice somewhat resentful, but still with a playful smile, "This... how would I know the emperor's meaning? Whoever the emperor chooses is who it will be."

  Then, Liu Chengxiang bowed his hands to Ziyanran again and said, "This old minister thinks that Ye Wangzi is the best candidate for this case!"

  As soon as the words of Grand Councilor Liu fell, everyone in the grand hall was stunned. Could it be that Grand Councilor Liu actually let Ye Wang go? Or perhaps his old eyes were dim and he had fallen ill, or maybe the Qing dynasty's dawn had not woken him up yet?

  "Hmm..." Zi Yanran thought seriously for a moment, then opened her mouth and said, "Although Ye has been a bit unruly these past few years, it's about time he did something for Zi Xuan..." Before she had even finished speaking, three officials stepped forward, their faces pale with fear as they looked at Zi Yanran.

  "Absolutely impossible!" This prince might be the mastermind behind the scenes! How can he send this person? Sending him would clearly be a waste of imperial rations!

  "How could it be?" Zi Yan raised an eyebrow, "Isn't it because you always think of replacing Ye Wang for this task?"

  The officials who were about to speak out were silenced, stuttering and unable to utter a complete sentence. If they had gone, they would have been killed nine times out of ten. The over 100 tons of coal would have disappeared for no reason, and their lives would have disappeared even faster in the past few days.

  "Why aren't you speaking, all of you?" The cold and eerie voice of Zi Yanran was transmitted to the ears of the various ministers, cold and pressurizing.

  When Zi Yanran asked this, the minister who was sweating coldly immediately changed his words, "I just made a slip of the tongue, I also think it's better to let Ye Wang investigate this matter."

  Zi Ruoye thought that Zi Yanran was quite intimidating, with her half-closed eyes gleaming with interest, and she didn't even need to draft a lie.

  "Is there anyone else who objects?" Zi Yanran slightly raised an eyebrow, and the officials present did not dare to utter another word. After a while, with a wave of her hand, the royal attendant stepped forward and unfolded the imperial edict.

  Zi Ruoye looked at the imperial edict and realized that Zi Yanran must have written it early this morning when they were talking.

  By the Emperor's decree, it is said that Ye Wang has been obstinate and unrepentant for years, but this time he volunteered to investigate the coal mine disappearance case. The Emperor, noting his intention to reform, hereby appoints Ye Wang as the Inspector General, with a deadline of four months, by which time the Qinglan Envoy will arrive at the Imperial Court. He is to thoroughly investigate the case and bring to justice those who would seek to harm the imperial dynasty!

  Zi Ruoye slowly walked forward, kneeling on one knee, her clear voice echoing through the grand hall, "Your subject... receives the edict."

  Ziyan looked at Ziruo Ye who was receiving the imperial edict, her eyes lightly flashing, it's time for the hidden dragon to emerge... Ruo Ye...

  Digression

  Don't shoot... escape with the lid on!