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Chapter 1434: Debate at the court, Emperor Qing proposes marriage, and listens to music in the brothel
Some of the people who had come to the Anyuan Marquis’ Mansion to raise the flag left that night, while others rested for a night before leaving.

What Zhou Chen asked Tong Quan to convey received everyone's response, but everyone's choices were different.

The vast majority of people agreed to join the Anyuan Marquis' Mansion and work for it in the future, and then took a small amount of silver and went back to prepare.

But there were also a small number of people who declined Zhou Chen's recruitment, and there were many reasons for this.

Some were used to the lives of ordinary people and just wanted to live in peace and stability; some felt that they were already old and could not help much even if they came to the Earl's Mansion, and might even cause trouble to the mansion, so they were unwilling to be parasites; and some...

Zhou Chen naturally would not force these people. He asked Tong Quan to give them a considerable sum of money each and then sent them away.

In a slum area in the south city, Zhang Ju hid in a house, secretly watching his three old brothers who were moving, feeling extremely ashamed.

The three old brothers have already discussed and decided to move to the Anyuan Earl's Mansion with their families, and they will move today.

They have been brothers for twenty or thirty years, but now he doesn't even have the courage to meet them. Although he did not go to the Anyuan Marquis's Mansion yesterday against his own will, what his wife and children did was equivalent to what he did.

Zhang Ju's wife and children did not have the same complicated feelings as him. They were full of regret. If they had known that going to Anyuan Marquis' Mansion would not be dangerous and would instead help them prosper, they would not have stopped Zhang Ju from going there no matter what. Now it was too late to regret.

The three old brothers actually came to look for Zhang Ju, but Zhang Ju refused to meet them. They could also understand Zhang Ju’s complicated feelings, so they did not look for him again before moving away.

People often end up with different results because of one choice, just like these four brothers. From now on, they will probably never have any contact with each other again.

The four members of Da Liu's family were the only ones who came to the Anyuan Marquis' Mansion with their family yesterday, and they stayed there that night. Today, Tong Quan even began to arrange work for Da Liu and his wife, which made their family extremely happy.

The ninth-rank swordsman and 'gambler' He Qin also stayed behind. He had originally planned to leave Kyoto after this incident, and go wherever he went and die wherever he died.

But the rise of Zhou Chen made him choose to stay. He was already a ninth-rank swordsman and thought he could not make any further progress. However, the existence of the great master Zhou Chen gave him hope for further progress, so he became Zhou Chen's close bodyguard and was proud of it.

…………

The day after Zhou Chen caused a big disturbance in Kyoto was the day of the Qing Kingdom's court meeting.

Emperor Qing likes to hold meetings in the Imperial Study, but today is a grand court meeting, so the location is naturally in the most grand hall in the imperial palace.

At today's morning court, basically all the officials who could attend the court had arrived, including the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, as well as important officials such as the Prime Minister, all of whom arrived early.

Everyone was present, but Emperor Qing had not yet arrived. All officials were standing in their respective positions. Some perceptive officials had already noticed that the atmosphere in the hall was not right today.

Many people secretly looked in the direction of Chen Pingping, the Censor of the Metropolitan Censorate and the Inspection Office. If nothing unexpected happened, there would definitely be an impeachment today for the incident from the night before yesterday. They just didn't know how much of a commotion it would cause.

After two nights and one day, the news had already spread throughout Kyoto. The officials present might not know the specific circumstances of that night, but they all knew one thing: Zhou Chen was a grandmaster, and a domineering, cold, and unscrupulous grandmaster. Such a person must not be offended.

In front of all the officials, the three most important ministers, Prime Minister Lin Ruofu, the first military official Qin Ye, and the President of the Inspection Institute Chen Pingping, were the only three sitting.

But at this time, Lin Ruofu lowered his head, Qin Ye was snoring, and Chen Pingping had a blank expression on his face, and there was no movement.

Instead, the Crown Prince and the Second Prince, who were standing in front of all the officials on the other side, were engaged in a verbal confrontation.

"Second brother, I heard that you almost fought with Grandmaster Zhou Gongzi the night before yesterday?"

"Where did the prince hear these rumors?"

Of course, the Second Prince Li Chengze would never admit it: "Mr. Zhou and I just met by chance that night, and we hit it off right away. We even agreed to meet again."

"Really? Hahaha."

The prince did not expose it, but just laughed.

"I also heard that Master Zhou destroyed the Huang Mansion with one palm, and my second brother was so scared that his legs went limp, and he was carried away by the retainers. Could this also be a rumor?"

The second prince looked gloomy, but still replied calmly: "Of course, I was caught in the wind that night and caught a cold."

The prince nodded seriously, "That's right, second brother doesn't like to wear shoes and socks, it's normal for him to catch a cold, but if he catches a cold, he should stay at home to recuperate, why is he running outside, aren't you afraid that his condition will get worse?"

The second prince smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I have seen the imperial physician and taken medicine, and I am much better now."

"That's good, then I'll feel relieved."

The two men exchanged words constantly, but on their faces they looked like brothers in harmony and caring for each other.

Suddenly, with the sound of a bell, everyone stopped talking and straightened their appearance. Then Emperor Qing walked into the hall and everyone turned around and saluted.

After Emperor Qing sat down, he announced the official start of today's court meeting.

When the court meeting began, the ministers began to report their affairs to the emperor. There were many national affairs, but most of them were memorials. The main things discussed at the court meeting were major and difficult issues.

As the court meeting came to an end, what was supposed to come finally came.

Lai Mingcheng, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, straightened his court robes and suddenly walked out.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report."

Sitting on the dragon throne, Emperor Qing's eyes gleamed.

"allow!"

"coming!"

When all the officials saw this scene, they were all shocked. What does the Censor of the Censorate do? He is a censor, and his duty is to impeach others.

Everyone is familiar with Lai Mingcheng. Once he takes action, it is definitely not a small matter, and everyone knows what major events have happened recently.

Lai Mingcheng looked straight ahead with a serious and solemn expression.

"Your Majesty, I want to impeach the only son of the Earl of Anyuan, Zhou Chen."

There was an uproar in the hall, and everyone looked at Lai Mingcheng with admiration.

He is worthy of being the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, so powerful. Grandmaster Zhou Chen had already established his authority that night, and this Lai Mingcheng actually dared to stroke the tiger's beard. So awesome.

Emperor Qing was not surprised, and asked calmly: "Zhou Chen, the only son of the Marquis of Anyuan? He has no official position, and he has not inherited a title. What do you want to criticize him for?"

Lai Mingcheng held up the memorial and shouted, "I accuse him of ignoring the law, abusing private punishment on court officials, bullying the weak, and taking human lives lightly, causing the deaths of more than 60 people. This case is a rare major case in Qing State. Please make a holy judgment, Your Majesty."

The eyes of countless officials in the hall twitched. Most of them did not expect Lai Mingcheng to be so cruel. He used his ultimate move right from the start and even counted the number of people who died that night. Was he trying to accuse Zhou Chen to death?

Many people were in mourning in their hearts. That was a great master. You, a powerless imperial censor, are you looking for death? Zhou Chen dared to attack Huang Shilang and the other two. Did he really think he didn't dare to kill you?

There was silence in the hall. Emperor Qing looked down at Lai Mingcheng in front of him.

"Is there any evidence?"

Lai Mingcheng immediately said, "Yes, the Huang Mansion became a ruin overnight, and the ground in front of the gate was stained red with blood. People from the Huang, Ma, and Wei families were killed. These are all physical evidence and witnesses. In addition, the Second Prince was also at the scene that night, so he can also serve as a witness."

The second prince, who had always kept aloof and remained silent, suddenly heard Lai Mingcheng mention him and his expression changed drastically.

"Li Chengze, Censor Lai said you are a witness, are you? Is what he said true?"

The second prince immediately knelt down and loudly retorted: "Your Majesty, I am not the witness that Censor Lai said I was, and I don't know what happened that night. Father, please understand."

Lai Mingcheng was anxious: "Your Highness, you were clearly at the scene that night and saw the tragedy in front of the Huang Mansion. Even when Zhou Chen destroyed the Huang Mansion, he almost hurt Your Highness..."

"A bunch of nonsense."

The second prince turned to Lai Mingcheng and said, "I did pass by the Huang Mansion that night, but I didn't see any tragedy. As for Mr. Zhou almost hurting me, it's nonsense. Mr. Zhou and I only met for the first time, and we just said hello and left. I didn't see what Censor Lai said at all."

"Your Highness, as a prince, how can you speak nonsense like this?"

"Your Majesty, I am only telling you the truth. I am not making up stories. Please understand."

Emperor Qing did not comment and asked again: "Censor Lai, do you have any other evidence?"

Lai Mingcheng's face turned pale because of the Second Prince. He has always been upright and incorruptible. The Second Prince's behavior of confusing right and wrong made him very dissatisfied. However, the Second Prince refused to admit it, so he had no choice but to suppress his anger.

"Your Majesty, the Huang, Ma, and Wei families can all testify that Zhou Chen ordered the killing of the three sons of the Huang, Ma, and Wei families. Censor Wei could not accept the murder of his children and died on the spot. These are all solid evidence. Your Majesty can summon the people of the Huang, Ma, and Wei families to the palace to investigate."

Lai Mingcheng's words were well-organized and logical, but Emperor Qing did not give any order immediately.

At this moment, one of the officials suddenly walked out.

"I have my heart and I want to report it."

This person is the Dali Temple Secretary. His rank is not high within the palace, but the Dali Temple is also a powerful department.

Emperor Qing said succinctly: "Speak."

The Dali Temple Secretary held up a memorial and said, "Your Majesty, the family of Ma Wan, a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel, came to report yesterday that Ma was assassinated in his sleep. The assassin was one of his concubines. The reason why his concubine killed him was because Ma was a ruthless person who killed her and her son. That's why the concubine held a grudge and assassinated Ma Wan."

Another person stepped forward and reported, "Your Majesty, I, Tao Fang, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, have something to report."

"allow."

"Just this morning, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Mr. Huang, hanged himself at home and left behind a suicide note. The note said that he knew he had committed serious sins and had no face to live any longer, so he just wanted to die. According to the note, everything that happened in the Huang Mansion was caused by him alone and had nothing to do with others. The collapse of the Huang Mansion was not caused by human effort, but because of his serious sins, the heavens sent down thunder as punishment."

Someone from the Censorate also came forward to report that Censor Wei's eldest son had reported that his family had suddenly been hit by an epidemic and that Censor Wei and several of his family members had fallen ill and died.

"you you you……"

Lai Mingcheng was shocked by the words of these three people, especially the last words of the censor who was also his colleague in the Censorate. He was even more traumatized. He pointed at him, trembling all over, but could not utter a complete sentence.

The wind direction in the hall suddenly changed, catching most people off guard. The Huang, Ma, and Wei families took the initiative to take responsibility. No one would believe them if they said there was no one putting pressure on them from behind.

Except for Lai Mingcheng who was shaking with anger and glaring at the three men, the rest of the officials kept their heads down and remained silent, not wanting to get involved at all.

Emperor Qing spoke.

"Censor Lai said that Zhou Chen was responsible for the affairs of the Huang, Ma, and Wei families, but you three said that the affairs of these three families were their own internal problems. Tell me, who should I believe?"

Lai Mingcheng shouted, "Your Majesty, everything I said is true."

"From what you said, you were at the scene when the incident happened. Otherwise, how would you know all this?"

"this?"

Lai Mingcheng was dumbfounded. Of course he was not at the scene. If he was there, how could such a ridiculous thing happen? But what he said was true.

"Your Majesty, I will never speak falsely. If I tell a lie, I will be punished by heaven, Your Majesty."

"Well, you have no witnesses, and no physical evidence. How can I believe you just based on your words? If you don't agree, wait until you find solid evidence, and then submit a memorial."

Emperor Qing waved his hand and made a direct judgment. Then he immediately announced the adjournment of the court and everyone left quickly.

As soon as Emperor Qing left, all the officials slowly dispersed with their own thoughts. Only Censor Lai could not accept this result. He stood there in a daze, still holding the memorial in his hand.

But most people didn't look at him, but there were some who looked at him with sympathy.

In fact, the matter is very clear. His Majesty does not want to punish Zhou Chen. What happened the night before, plus what just happened in the court, could not have happened so smoothly without His Majesty's tacit approval.

As a grandmaster, it's normal for him to have some privileges.

It’s not like the royal family hasn’t done similar things before, but who was severely punished in the end?
The status of the Grand Master is even higher than those of the royal relatives.

Just as Chen Pingping was about to leave the palace, Eunuch Hou suddenly caught up with him and said that the emperor had summoned him.

As soon as Emperor Qing saw Chen Pingping, he suddenly said, "Yesterday, I asked Eunuch Hou to bring an oral order to Zhou Chen, asking him to attend the morning court today, but he said that his old injury from the previous fight with Si Gu Jian relapsed and he could not attend the court. Chen Pingping, you just met him that day, did you see that he was injured?"

"Your Majesty, Young Master Zhou is a Grandmaster, and I am just a disabled person. How can I tell whether the Grandmaster is injured?"

"So what you mean is that he might be deceiving the emperor?"

"That's not what I meant, Your Majesty. Perhaps Young Master Zhou is really injured."

"Injured? Haha."

Emperor Qing sneered disdainfully, "Well, if he is injured and cannot attend court, you can't blame him."

"Zhou Yin's skills on the battlefield are good, but he is not so good in other aspects. I didn't expect that he would have a son who is so outstanding. There is no second one in the world."

Chen Pingping smiled apologetically: "Your Majesty must be extremely blessed to have such a genius like Young Master Zhou."

"So, I also have a role to play in his becoming a Grand Master, hahahaha..."

Emperor Qing laughed a lot, and then suddenly changed his expression: "I heard that when he was in the capital of Northern Qi, he was always in a relationship with the eldest princess of Northern Qi. Is this true?"

"It is true, but Young Master Zhou is still young, and it is normal for young people to admire Ai."

"That's right. He is about to be crowned and inherit the title, but he hasn't yet decided on a marriage. I heard that there are no elders in his family. I have to pay close attention to this matter. The Inspection Bureau monitors all officials and knows everything about each family. Which girl do you think is worthy of our little Grandmaster Zhou?"

Chen Pingping lowered his head with a gleam in his eyes as he pleaded guilty in fear and trepidation.

"Your Majesty, I am guilty. Please punish me."

Emperor Qing was amiable again: "What are you doing? I am just asking you, what crime have you committed? You are not guilty."

He said so, but his eyes were filled with anger as he stared at Chen Pingping.

What made him dissatisfied with Chen Pingping was that Chen Pingping had clearly known Zhou Chen's identity for a long time. However, when Zhou Chen came back that day, Chen Pingping did not report it to him at all after meeting Zhou Chen.

The Grand Master's return to Kyoto was so important, but he didn't report it. What did Chen Pingping want to do? Whose Inspection Institute was it?
Chen Pingping lowered his head and didn't say a word to defend himself. Since Emperor Qing thinks there's something wrong with you, then stop talking nonsense and just acknowledge it.

"The old minister is guilty."

"okay."

Emperor Qing snorted coldly but did not pursue the matter any further.

"Send me all the information about everyone who went to Zhou's mansion that day. Don't miss a single detail."

"Old minister, I obey."

…………

Zhou Chen soon found out what happened at the court meeting, but he just smiled indifferently.

He naturally knew what kind of person Lai Mingcheng was. He was a stubborn censor. He was an upright person and didn't fit in with others, but he couldn't dislike him either.

Naturally, he would not have any intention of targeting or retaliating against Lai Mingcheng for his report, as he was not that petty.

On the contrary, in the court, there was no need for him to appear in person to explain himself, as someone automatically excused him for everything. This was the deterrent power brought by the Grand Master.

If he wasn't a grandmaster, after what happened the night before, even Fan Xian, who had many fathers, would have suffered a lot.

Emperor Qing's attitude was not beyond his expectations. Even though Emperor Qing was extremely disgusted and dissatisfied with the Grand Master, he would never take action against him unless he was absolutely sure.

He is different from Ye Liuyun. Emperor Qing can use the Ye family to restrain Ye Liuyun, but it is difficult to threaten him with the Anyuan Marquis' Mansion.

"Tong Quan."

"Master."

"By the Liujing River, which courtesan is the most beautiful?"

"what?"

Tong Quan was confused by Zhou Chen's question: "Hua, Oiran? Master, are you going to a brothel?"

"Why, I can't go to the brothel?"

"No, Master, aren't you suffering from a relapse of an old injury? Wouldn't it be bad if you went to a brothel at this time and it got out?"

"You said it was an old injury, and it has healed now. Stop talking nonsense, prepare the carriage, and go to the biggest and best brothel."

"Yes, Master."