The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Chapter 350 Self-Theft

Seeing that Qi Yongji did not hold his private behavior against him, Mo Cheng calmed down: "That is indeed the case. This servant originally intended to go to the Bamboo Room, but happened to see the red plum blossoms outside the Plum Room window, so I changed to the Plum Room on a whim. And the Plum Room happens to be right next to the private room where Mo Sheng is."

Qi Yongji raised an eyebrow, the suspicion on his face lessening slightly.

Mo Cheng lowered his head even further: "After Mo Sheng looked at the plum blossoms, he forgot to close the window. Perhaps he thought no one was next door, and with the effects of the alcohol, he didn't control his volume, which is why this servant heard him."

If he hadn't heard it with his own ears, he wouldn't have known that there was such a deep-seated resentment between this seemingly harmonious ruler and his subject.

The ruler, concerned with his reputation and stubborn by nature, actually harbored resentment because they had shared hardships.

Those who serve as ministers are wary and harbor treacherous thoughts, yet they feign ignorance because they have no other choice.

Mo Sheng is usually so steady and loyal; who could be faking it all?

"It's all coincidences, as if someone pushed you to hear Mo Sheng's words."

If it were truly a scheme, and someone could anticipate Mo Cheng's every whim, that would be far too terrifying.

Moreover, Mo Sheng was using his position for personal gain. If he were to conceal what he saw and heard today for fear of being blamed by Mo Sheng, then all the schemes of the person behind it would come to naught.

Qi Yongji tapped the tabletop lightly, seemingly lost in thought.

Mo Cheng knew that he had passed this test.

Just as Qi Yongji thought, he could indeed conceal the truth, but as a slave, he couldn't be completely without making any mistakes if he wanted to put his master at ease.

The emperor must always be aware of his weaknesses, believe that he is under the emperor's control, ensure that the emperor has an excuse and leverage when he needs to be removed from power, and give the emperor the opportunity to show him favor...

For a suspicious person like Qi Yongji, a meticulous subordinate is far more trustworthy than a subordinate with weaknesses.

Mo Cheng had served two emperors, and no one understood this better than him.

that's the truth.

Qi Yongji didn't care at all about the small mistake he made.

He was pondering the motives of the person behind it all.

Although this seemed like a perfect coincidence, he didn't believe it.

He felt uneasy at the thought that a force could so accurately grasp his and those around him's thoughts.

In particular, the origins and purposes of this force are unclear.

He thought for a moment and then split his men into two groups to investigate: one group centered on the first building, and the other following Mo Cheng's activity trajectory.

The results of the investigation were still unknown, so he began to ponder the purpose of this scheme.

"Mo Cheng, what do you think they want to do?"

Qi Yongji's words seemed cryptic, but Mo Cheng understood perfectly.

"This servant believes there are two possibilities: either it's instigation, or it's to prevent His Majesty from sending General Mo to the border."

Qi Yongji said with his hands behind his back, "These two possibilities are not entirely out of the question."

He chuckled.

The person behind this has achieved half of their goal.

His vigilance towards Mo Sheng had indeed reached an unprecedented level.

But so what?

He had no one else at his disposal, and Mo Sheng had no other choice. No matter how much Mo Sheng hated him, he didn't dare to cause trouble at this moment, and that was enough.

Zheng Xun, standing outside the light screen, touched his chin.

[The Moon Goddess actually managed to make it happen!]

[Qi Yongji must be incredibly frustrated, disliking Mo Sheng but unable to get rid of him.]

However, it seems that Qi Yongji was just lucky, but it doesn't seem so. Power-hungry aristocratic families, factional strife among court officials... there are so many factors that it makes one wonder if he came here to undergo a tribulation.

Zheng Xun had long had doubts about this.

However, the situation was different in the Brown Kingdom. The aristocratic families were already in decline, and it was clear to everyone that this was their last moment of glory.

It's strange that people from humble backgrounds occupy half of the positions in the imperial court, even though they haven't even gotten a piece of the pie yet, but it's not unreasonable for people who are blinded by greed.

However, the first two emperors of the Brown Kingdom were not particularly skilled or ruthless in their methods, and it is unknown how people from humble backgrounds were elevated to power.

The thought flashed through his mind and then vanished completely. Zheng Xun's attention returned to the light screen, and he completely forgot his doubts.

Inside the light screen, Qi Yongji had already made his plans.

He knew that the rift that had been created could not be repaired, and his top priority was to purge the court as soon as possible and cultivate his own confidants.

These things cannot be accomplished overnight, so he calmed down and continued to handle government affairs.

After waiting a while longer, and seeing that he couldn't get any more information from Qi Yongji, Zheng Xun turned the view from the light screen.

Yue Niang and Jiao Lian stood by the window. It was snowing outside again. As the snow fell, the strands of hair of the passersby disappeared into the snow.

Despite the freezing cold, the streets remained bustling, with most people hurrying along and their faces showing little expression.

Jiaolian reached out and broke off an icicle hanging from the windowsill: "Qi Yongji is quite bold."

"Hold the courageous to death, starve the cowardly to death."

"Unfortunately, his audacity was built on the bones of countless people. This heavy snow is beautiful, but who knows how many houses it will collapse and how many lives it will take."

The snow-white light reflected on her delicate face, making her sorrowful expression even more pronounced.

Outside the light screen, the emperor's expression turned serious.

It's no wonder he reacted so strongly; he's experienced so many natural disasters that he becomes wary whenever he hears about calamities or disasters.

In that instant, countless measures and solutions had already popped into his mind.

He quickly realized that the problem wasn't with Da Yong, and his body slowly relaxed.

The eldest prince sighed, "It's the common people who suffer."

The Third Prince rubbed his arms, unable to contain himself: "Instead of sympathizing with the people of the Brown Kingdom, you should sympathize with us. They've had such good weather for so many years..."

The eldest prince wisely shut his mouth.

The second prince asked in surprise, "Why aren't you defending yourself?"

"My wife said we should listen to our brothers and sisters more."

Second Prince: ...

Okay, it's good that someone can keep him in check.

Inside the light screen, Jiao Lian and Yue Niang finally got down to business.

“I knew Qi Yongji was a beast, but I never imagined he could be this beastly. He coerced merchants, powerful families, and officials into contributing money under the guise of donations, and most of the money ended up in his own pocket. No wonder he dared to start preparing for war; ill-gotten gains come so quickly.”

Jiao Lian's words caused the crowd in Fengqin Hall to let out a unified uproar.

Lord Jiang couldn't contain his indignation and exclaimed, "You...you beast!"

He rolled his eyes in anger, looking like he might faint at any moment.

Duan Yunfeng reached out and supported him without expression.

Liao Hongsheng's smile vanished: "This Qi Yongji... he's a bit strange."

Cen Wan sneered: "His strangeness didn't just appear overnight. People from the Brown Kingdom have been praising him a lot for being blessed by the heavens and destined to be the human emperor."

How ridiculous.

If there truly were a human emperor, he would never be like Qi Yongji.

He treats human life like dirt and is selfish and self-serving. What kind of emperor is he?

However, the Moon Goddess in the light screen had a different opinion from Jiao Lian.

“Coercion? I think it was consensual,” she said, seeing Jiao Lian’s nose red from the cold. She reached out and closed the window before continuing, “Merchants need protection, officials need to curry favor, and aristocratic families need reputation. It’s more like offering tribute than coercion.”