The loyal minister was forced to marry the traitor

That night, before Bai Yan could sleep soundly, people from Huai Chun knocked on the door of Bai Mansion.

On an autumn night with continuous drizzle, Bai Yan felt cold in his bones, he put on a big cloak casually, and hurriedly stuffed a warm hand stove in his hand.

"My lord, a ghost has entered Dali Temple."

As soon as the visitor opened his mouth, Bai Yan knew that things were exactly as he expected.

Immediately ignoring the curfew, he hurried to Huaichun Mansion.

Sure enough, in the middle of the night, Huaichun's mansion was brightly lit, and there were three people kneeling in front of the flower hall. They were all dressed in black, but their tendons and hamstrings were cut off, and their jaws were also removed.

"People are here, it's not easy to do things in Dali Temple." Huai Chun's face was calm, but Bai Yan first saw Wei Chengdan who was beside him.

"Your Highness." Bai Yan was about to salute, but he waved his hand and refused.

"The Dali Temple is empty, and the people in your house can't stop them at all. Seven out of ten people were killed on the spot. These three people will be handed over to you."

Huai Chun didn't seem interested.

But Bai Yan also understood.

But Huai Chun had already expected that Huai Chun would intervene in it.

Speaking of which, Huai Chun and Xue Zhengming are also somewhat related.

The Empress Dowager's mother's family name is Xue, and she and Xue Liangfu belong to the same family, but one is from the direct line and the other is from the concubine line.

But what is lamentable is that although the Empress Dowager's mother's family relies on the royal family, it is not as successful as Xue Liangfu, a concubine.

But there are many descendants in the direct line, and there is only one Xue Zhengming left in the junior line of the common line.

Probably the same is true. Although the direct line and the common line are not close, they have assisted several times.Before Xue Zhengming was detained, the direct descendants used the empress dowager's name to plead with the emperor.

And Huaichun received a lot of care from the Queen Mother after the fall of the Princess Mansion, and now that something happened to Xue Zhengming, he also helped him several times, but this time, if it weren't for his people who were of great use, Bai Yan's people would definitely not be able to protect him Take Xue Zhengming's life.

"This time, I thank you on behalf of the teacher." Bai Yan bowed.

Huai Chun shook his head, "It's a little effort."

Although he said so, Bai Yan knew that Huai Chun was not at ease. He was in the palace, and there were eyes all over the place, waiting for him to be pulled down from the top one day.

Eunuchs are not taken seriously at all, let alone eunuchs with authority.

In ancient and modern China and abroad, foreign relatives and powerful eunuchs are both thorns in the emperor's eyes, and they are even more thorns in the flesh of courtiers.Just waiting for the day when the emperor's favor was no longer there, the courtiers stabbed him one by one.

With Wei Chengdan at his side, the two didn't say much, Huai Chun knew that Bai Yan's small house was inconvenient and there was no one to use, so he brought the assassin back to his house, and Bai Yan also came in tacit understanding.

Without further delay, after Wei Chengdan and Huaichun left, Bai Yan began to interrogate him.

People from Huaichun knew better than him how to use torture, and not long after, one of the three couldn't hold on anymore and recruited slowly.

Once a hole is torn from one person, the rest can't hold it anymore, and the three of them will confide everything they know in a short time.

"So Master Yun sent you here?"

Bai Yan frowned.

"Yes." The person who let go first fell on the ground, "Xue Zhengming blocked the Grand Master's way. He made too much noise in Chang'an Mansion. If His Majesty learns about what the Grand Master has done, he will naturally He was severely blamed, so..."

"Designed to frame him?"

The man's confession was flawless, including what Xue Zhengming did in Chang'an Mansion, who he had trouble with, and even the process of his being framed.

But the more flawless it is, the more uneasy Bai Yan feels.

He thought for a while and asked, "Xue Zhengming is just a small local official. Even if he is impeached, he has to go through layers of deliberations. Moreover, Grand Master Yun was not in Yingdu at that time. How did he get the news?"

"This..." The man paused, Bai Yan saw his reaction, "Are you biting others?"

Bai Yan narrowed his eyes, "Who the hell is that?!"

"Your Excellency, it is clear that Grand Master Yun is indeed the one who planned all this. He is eager to support the Second Prince to become the Crown Prince. If he is pulled down, how can the Second Prince have a chance to ascend the throne?"

Everyone in Yingdu knew about the relationship between the second prince Wei Chengdan and the Grand Master. From this point of view, there seemed to be nothing inappropriate.

But Bai Yan had an intuition that something was wrong, but fell into a bottleneck for a while.

"My lord, if the person behind the scenes is the Grand Master, the next step..." the people around him asked.

Bai Yan didn't answer, and ordered the assassin to be detained first.

He was thinking about something when he heard footsteps behind him.He didn't have to look back to know who it was.

"You don't believe what they say?" Huai Chun threw him a big cloak, and Bai Yan untied his half-wet one and put it on.

He didn't know what to say, but the uneasiness and suspicion in his heart deepened little by little, "What Grand Master Yun did in Chang'an Mansion is not a secret, and Xue Zhengming is just a small official, he will only treat Mrs. Yun if he is out of his mind. division."

"Then have you thought about it?" Huai Chun asked.

"what?"

"That teacher of yours," Huai Chun pointed out, "don't forget, Mr. Xue Ge and Grand Master Yun have been at odds for a long time."

Bai Yan was startled.

How could he not know!

But it was because he knew that he didn't dare to think about him.

"Actually, this case is not difficult to say, and it is not easy to say." Huai Chun handed him an account book, "Open it and have a look."

Bai Yan took it, turned a few pages, and his face became very ugly, "Where did this thing come from?"

"It's in Xue Zhengming's hand." Huai Chun clicked on one of the pages, "This is about taxes in Chang'an Prefecture. You have been playing Tai Chi with the Ministry of Households for the past two years. The emperor lowered taxes twice before, but you Look at the numbers written here..."

"Do you know where the problem is?" Huai Chun's face flashed with sarcasm, "You and my like try their best to make the living people happy, but don't forget, the most prone to problems are internal."

Bai Yan stroked the ledger with his fingertips, nodded for a long time, "I understand."

That night, Bai Yan returned home in the rain with the ledger, and the candles in Bai Yan's study were lit all night.

Early the next morning, Uncle Xiao came to look for him.

"Ayan, do you look so ugly?" Uncle Xiao was holding a tray in his hand, which contained a bowl of vegetarian porridge, two dishes of side dishes and some steamed stuffed buns.

Bai Yan took the tray and didn't even move to eat, "I'm fine, but I have accumulated too much from business."

It was inconvenient to talk about the affairs of the court and it was not clear for a while, so Bai Yan simply suppressed it.

Uncle Xiao was worried about him, and personally urged him to eat half a bowl of porridge, but none of the buns were touched.

Before he could say anything, Bai Yan had already called someone to hitch up the carriage and go out.

This morning the emperor still hadn't arrived, but Huai Chun was there, the courtiers looked at the second prince Wei Chengdan and the fifth prince Wei Chengju in front of them, and suddenly seemed to remember something.

Wei Chengfeng has already been demoted, and if there is no accident, it is impossible to recover in this life, but at this time the second prince and fifth prince are standing in front of his majesty, and those who are flattering are slowly moving their minds.

Bai Yan was thinking about something, and suddenly someone poked him.

He turned his head impatiently, the man was startled, and the words he was going to say were stuck in his throat.

Since the emperor didn't come, there was no need to stay in the morning court, some people went out one after another, Bai Yan and Huai Chun exchanged a look, bypassing most of the people, they left the palace and went to the restaurant they used to go to.

After a cup of tea, Bai Yan and Huai Chun sat opposite each other.

Several dishes and a jug of wine were placed in front of him. Huai Chun wanted to pour it for Bai Yan, but he blocked him, "Drinking is a waste of time."

Huai Chun didn't say anything, and only spoke after a while, "What do you think?"

"What?" Bai Yan asked lightly.

"Are you and I still playing charades?" Huai Chun was a little helpless.

Bai Yan shook his head, "It's not a riddle, it's just that I suddenly don't understand you, what is your position now?"

Huai Chun was stunned for a moment, and after a while he smiled, "I've always been in that position."

He looked at Bai Yan, "I haven't changed. I haven't changed since the moment I entered the palace, but you seem to be hesitating now."

"Why, once Xiao Jiuqin came back, you will be in shackles? Or do you really want to marry him?"

"Why not?" Bai Yan asked back.

"I thought you were just..." Huai Chun inevitably poured cold water on him, "You and Yun Qiyin cannot get married, but similarly, neither can you and Xiao Jiuqin."

"What if I want to marry him?"

"Then you're putting yourself on the fire." Huai Chun stared at Bai Yan, "Five years ago you were able to make the most rational choice, but now that five years have passed, why are you acting up your emotions instead?"

"It's not because of emotion." Bai Yan looked at the wine on the table, "Just treat me as if I was just a glass of plain water five years ago, and I want something to taste five years from now."

He smiled slightly, "Sensibility is not an easy word, I thought you understood what it was like."

"Are you trying to tell me that 'sensibility' is not the best choice?" Huai Chun took the wine pot and poured it on the cold wine and vegetables, "You and I are like the leftovers that have been poured with wine Cold burn."

"It looks beautiful on the outside, but inside it's full of decay and staleness."

"You don't need to say that." Bai Yan took a bite of the food and wine with chopsticks, the taste of wine and spices mixed in his mouth, the taste was unspeakable, Huai Chun looked at him, "Is it delicious?"

Bai Yan shook his head, "It's not delicious."

"So that's the reason. Why should you keep thinking about a dish that's been spoiled? Throw it away earlier, and ask for something more practical. At least you can feel better."

"It's hard to go from extravagance to frugality." Bai Yan sighed, "After I've experienced the taste of wine and meat, how can I get used to it if I eat some porridge and side dishes?"

He didn't want to continue to argue with Huai Chun, so he simply said, "You want to support the Second Highness to be the crown prince, but you can't do it alone, so you want to borrow the power of Grand Master Yun, right?"

Huai Chun said nothing.

Bai Yan continued, "You know that I want to save Xue Zhengming, and if I want to vindicate Xue Zhengming, it will inevitably touch Grand Master Yun's interests, so you saw the situation in your hands early in the morning, not to help me...but to protect Master Yun."

"Is it right?"

This sound was light and fluttering, but it was like a heavy stone hitting the two people's hearts.

"Bai Yan..." Huai Chun sighed, "In the past, everyone in Yingdu called me smart, but now I feel that the pearl is dusty, and you are the one who should be praised."

"Just as I can't let go of Xiao Jiuqin, I want to save Xue Zhengming!" Bai Yan looked straight into Huai Chun's eyes.

The atmosphere between the two was stagnant, and there was a trace of disappointment in Huai Chun's eyes.

Bai Yan never showed any weakness, and said again, "I want to kiss me, Xiao Jiuqin wants me, and Xue Zhengming wants to save."

"Then you and I will be in the same situation." Huai Chun's voice was slightly lowered.

"I know."

"Will you retreat?"

"will not."