Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!-Chapter 521 Time to Get Married_1

Zhou Shuren embraced Zhulan and whispered into her ear with an especially soft voice, "The registration records of the exile’s land were mostly destroyed by a big fire last year, and the Emperor has been investigating the deaths of this year. Those who died were all in good physical shape, aged between twenty and thirty years old. The Emperor was furious and ordered me to look into the suspicious individuals."

Zhulan thought to herself that the current dynasty did not continue the previous one’s practice of branding criminals, and it seemed that this time, none of the officials from the exile’s land would be spared, "No one from the officials in the exile’s land will escape this time."

Zhou Shuren hummed in response, knowing the Emperor well, a major purge was inevitable, "But not now, the timing isn’t right and might startle the snakes."

Zhulan spoke softly, "I suspect it’s about to startle the snakes."

No matter how hidden the investigation was, traces would always be left behind.

Zhou Shuren fell silent, indeed it was so, the deeper the investigation went, the harder it became to trace the clues. He had found connections to the merchants, some of whom, although seemingly unrelated, were frequently in touch in secret, and a continued investigation would surely alert them.

Zhou Shuren closed his eyes; a power network years in the making was too vast. This time a clear thread was found, and if it wasn’t pulled out completely, it would be much harder to catch them again.

Inside the Palace, the Crown Prince had not gone back and was still helping the Emperor with state affairs. Thinking back on the morning’s events, the Crown Prince’s heart clenched—it was terrifying, the message received that morning seemed to release the ferocious beast in the Emperor’s heart, and although he was brave, he had wanted to flee!

The Emperor was lying back with his eyes closed, resting in the government hall, which was very quiet, but his mind was anything but calm. He was annoyed with himself; it had taken him over a decade to find such a big oversight, and the number of people who had been secretly taken away over the years must be significant. The mere thought of these people being held by a particular power stirred the Emperor to anger.

Eunuch Liu was shrinking at the door, doing his best to lower his presence; he really wanted to retire and enjoy his old age, he truly felt old, and sometimes struggled to keep up.

The Emperor opened his eyes and looked at the Crown Prince, who was earnestly reading the Zhezi, and felt somewhat better. He thought of Zhou Shuren and felt even more relieved, a stroke of luck indeed. Without Zhou Shuren, he would not have uncovered the truth.

The Emperor closed his eyes again, "The Fifth Prince should be arriving at Jinzhou City by now, shouldn’t he?"

The Crown Prince had been paying close attention to his father and responded, "He will arrive the day after tomorrow."

Regarding his young brother, the Crown Prince’s feelings were complex. He was not heartless; those he recognized, he would protect under his wing, and he would do so resolutely unless he was defeated or dead. But the Fifth Prince’s actions had profoundly disappointed him; the arms were too long and didn’t even regard him as a brother.

He was carrying so much on his shoulders: his wife, his mother, his son. He couldn’t give up his other responsibilities for a brother who saw him as an enemy. His heart was also hard, and once his tolerance was exceeded, he was unapologetically ruthless.

He knew the Fifth Prince was a target, he knew the Fifth Prince was severely injured, but what of it? When the Fifth Prince had poisoned his son, everything changed. His eldest son, his only son with the Crown Princess Consort, the son on whom they had placed great hope, the Fifth Prince had indeed struck!

The Emperor opened his eyes and looked at the Crown Prince, "The legitimate daughter of the Yao family has also gone."

The Crown Prince was aware, "Yes."

A pitiful woman indeed. Speaking of which, the Crown Princess Consort had a high opinion of the legitimate daughter of the Yao family, a pity that she was doomed to be a discarded piece on the board.

The Emperor spoke sorrowfully, "The Fifth Prince is of age; it is time for him to marry."

The Crown Prince knew clearly that it would definitely not be the legitimate daughter of the Yao family; he wondered who it would be!

Early the next morning, Zhou Shuren went to the government office. Minister Wang had prepared the documents, "Three days is not enough; this is what has been compiled in these three days."

Zhou Shuren picked them up for a review; three days were only enough to compile the records of the last two years, "You’ve worked hard."

Minister Wang touched his hair, which had been falling out during these stressful days, "The recent years’ records are still manageable, but the ones from over a decade ago are truly difficult to investigate."

These were not issues that could be resolved in a short time.

Zhou Shuren put down the investigation materials, "I understand, Minister Wang, do as much as you can."

Minister Wang, "Sir, I will take my leave now."

Zhou Shuren nodded; after Minister Wang left, Zhou Shuren rubbed his temples, feeling overwhelmed by the abundance of matters at hand.

In the back courtyard of the Zhou residence, Zhulan greeted Mrs. Qi as she came in, "Why the sudden visit today?"

Mrs. Qi smiled, "I haven’t had a chat with you for a long time, so I decided to come over today."

Zhulan’s heart curled into a sneer, what chatting with her, this was because she knew Miss Yao Er visited yesterday, and she specifically came over today to probe for information. Mrs. Qi was interested in the Third Prince, "How has Miss Ran been lately?"

The smile on Mrs. Qi’s face became much more sincere, her daughter was doing well. She had visited her last time, and her daughter seemed to have gained quite a bit of weight. She was grateful to the Crown Prince but also felt awkward - the Qi family supported the Third Prince. Mrs. Qi’s tone became somewhat downcast, "She’s been alright."

Zhulan fell silent and did not reply; she waited for Mrs. Qi to speak.

Mrs. Qi knew quite a bit, she had come to understand what role the Zhou family played in all this. Miss Yao Er’s visit to the Zhou family was truly strange.

Mrs. Qi frowned slightly, thinking of the princes in the capital, feeling troubled in her heart, "I heard yesterday that Miss Yao Er came over."

Zhulan nodded, "Miss Yao Er and An He have met a few times, they encountered each other at Miss Lin’s birthday, hence she came over to visit."

She had nothing to hide, so she might as well speak frankly.

Mrs. Qi smiled, "I see, indeed, An He has lived in the capital for a few years."

Zhulan smiled but said nothing; if Mrs. Qi wasn’t here to snoop for information, she might have found some topics to chat about, but now she wasn’t interested.

Mrs. Qi chuckled dryly and picked up her teacup to drink. She really didn’t want to probe Mrs. Yang for information, Mrs. Yang was a very astute person; she knew why Mrs. Qi was there the moment she stepped in the door, and fortunately, Mrs. Yang didn’t make things difficult for her.

Mrs. Qi sighed, she was reluctant to come; she felt she lived a very tiring life, a pawn in her father’s hands, with hot tea steaming up into her eyes, Miss Yao Er was no different from herself.

For a moment, Mrs. Qi didn’t feel like talking anymore, she just wanted to sit quietly and sip her tea.

Zhulan looked at Mrs. Qi surprised, such a long time had passed and she hadn’t said a word, when the sound of a zither being played reached them. Zhulan pricked up her ears – it wasn’t Xue Han playing, as her music was always lively.

Mrs. Qi set down her teacup, "Is this Miss Zhou playing?"

That shouldn’t be right, Miss Zhou was a child who grew up loved and cherished by both parents; how could she produce such a mournful, oppressive zither melody?

Zhulan said, "It’s not Xue Han playing, it’s Wu Ning."

Mrs. Qi fell silent; that Miss who was fostered in the Zhou family – her mood was unstable, and listening to this music, her heart felt even more stifled.

Mrs. Qi stood up, "I shall not disturb you any longer; I must take my leave."

Zhulan stood up, "I’ll walk you out." freewebnoveℓ.com

Mrs. Qi smiled, "Alright."

Zhulan escorted Mrs. Qi out of the house and, upon her return, followed the sound of the zither to the garden. Autumn had arrived, and last night’s heavy rain had brought down the temperature considerably; it was quite cold now, and Wu Ning was sitting in the breezy pavilion, playing the zither.

The oppressive sound of the zither, coupled with the autumn leaves, appeared all the more desolate.

A gust of wind blew by, and Zhulan with furrowed brows hurried toward the pavilion. Upon reaching it, she saw Wu Ning’s face was pale from the cold. She had been playing for quite a while, enough to redden and swell her fingertips.

Wu Ning felt her aunt’s anger and rose in a panic, "Auntie."

Zhulan looked at the stone seat. Wu Ning hadn’t even placed a cushion, and Zhulan asked sternly with a grave face, "How have you been caring for the Miss, Nanny Wei?"

Nanny Wei bowed her head in acknowledgment of her fault, "I have not taken good care of the Miss; I am willing to accept punishment."