The Hidden Beauty

Chapter 57: Murderous Intentions

Seeing Jiang Shiwan's solemn expression, Meng Tingzhou shook her hand and said, "Wait for me in the mansion. I will come back as soon as possible."

Although he had anticipated that the emperor would urgently summon him because of the theft in the Dali Temple, and he also knew that he should have a plan to deal with it, Jiang Shiwan still felt uneasy.

"Be more careful."

Looking at her earnest gaze, Meng Tingzhou's heart moved: "Okay."

Normally, the palace gates would not be opened late at night without an imperial decree.

The emperor suddenly summoned Meng Tingzhou tonight, and an eunuch was already waiting at the palace gate. As soon as Meng Tingzhou arrived, he led him in with a palace lantern.

Inside the Jiade Hall, the emperor stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the moon. He turned around only when he heard the palace servants' footsteps.

Although Meng Tingzhou was born a military general, his wheat-colored face is actually handsome upon closer inspection. No wonder he can attract the hearts of so many women.

There was no emotion on his face at this moment, and he bowed to the emperor as usual.

The emperor called him up and asked directly, "My dear, do you know why I summoned you to the palace so late at night?"

Meng Tingzhou pondered for a moment and said hesitantly, "But is this related to the theft at the Dali Temple today?"

The emperor snorted coldly and said, "Now is the time for the three departments to merge. Liu Yuhai knows that he has committed a heinous crime, so he came to the palace to apologize and is willing to take all the responsibility on his own."

Meng Tingzhou said solemnly: "I was also in the Dali Temple at that time. A thief broke in in broad daylight. Do we need to strengthen the defense?"

"Of course." The emperor snorted coldly, "I have decided to remove Liu Yuhai from his position as the Minister of the Dali Temple and demote him by two ranks."

He added: "This matter concerns the reputation of the Ministry of War, the Dali Temple, and the Military Governor's Office. To avoid suspicion, I have decided to send Song Huaizhi, the commander of the imperial guards, to investigate the case."

"Your Majesty is wise, and I will obey your orders."

Seeing that Meng Tingzhou did not behave abnormally, the emperor felt that he had been accustomed to the ups and downs after years of experience and was able to conceal his words and actions.

"Liu Yuhai confessed all his faults for his dereliction of duty. He only begged me to show some leniency for one thing. I even asked the Queen for her opinion on this."

Meng Tingzhou lowered his eyes, knowing that he was going to get to the point next.

"Liu Yuhai is guilty, but his daughter Liu Huining has been ordered to be your second wife. He asked me to marry his daughter to the governor's office before sentencing him."

The emperor said in a clear voice: "The queen also feels that she is not guilty of anything, and feels that it was I who personally granted the marriage. I would like to ask your opinion on whether the wedding date can be moved forward."

Before this, Meng Tingzhou only dared to boldly guess that the emperor in front of him was the mastermind behind the scenes, but he never faced it squarely.

Because in his heart, the emperor and he have a relationship that outsiders don't know.

At that time, the emperor had just ascended the throne, and the court was mostly controlled by old officials, so he was restricted in his work. When the foreign enemy attacked, he boldly sent himself to fight the enemy.

"Tingzhou, you are out there defending me against foreign enemies, and I will stay here to clear the obstacles."

"I will do my best."

The king and his ministers, who once respected each other, now have their own considerations.

But now, he can conclude that he may be the real mastermind behind Jiang Xingyuan's death.

Even though he was a military general, he felt a chill down his spine at this moment.

"Your Majesty..." He hesitated, "I am afraid that this is a sudden event and the Governor's Office has not yet prepared everything."

The emperor sneered: "Since Liu Yuhai has been convicted, it is inappropriate to show any courtesy. If you agree to let Liu Huining enter the gate of the Governor's Mansion in advance, the Liu family will be grateful, so why would they be so picky?"

"If you are picky, you will bring sin to your family."

It seemed like His Majesty had given him a reassurance, but in fact it was also a warning.

Meng Tingzhou knelt down and cupped his hands: "As an important official of the court, I must obey the holy order."

"I wonder when the emperor and the queen will meet?" The emperor looked at him and said, "Tomorrow."

"I will first send Song Huaizhi to intervene in the theft case at the Dali Temple today, and then I will convict Liu Yuhai in the court the day after tomorrow morning."

The speed is so fast, which shows how urgent it is.

"The minister obeys the order."

After coming out of the Jiade Hall, Meng Tingzhou spotted Song Huaizhi who had been silently guarding the hall door.

Song Huaizhi bowed his head with a smile on his face: "Congratulations to the Governor."

Meng Tingzhou looked back and patted him on the shoulder: "I have not yet congratulated Commander Song. You have won the emperor's favor."

Song Huaizhi said calmly, "You are too kind, Governor. I feel that I have a heavy responsibility on my shoulders and I dare not slack off in the slightest."

Meng Tingzhou stood there and looked at him coldly. For some reason, he suddenly had a feeling that the jaw of the person in front of him was quite similar to that of someone else.

Especially the graceful posture on her body...

"It's getting late, isn't the governor in a hurry to return home?"

Seeing the deep meaning in his eyes, Meng Tingzhou wanted to tease him, and then leaned close to his ear and said, "Last time, my wife and I heard from the next door that Mr. Song was accompanied by a beautiful woman. I think it must have been very exciting..."

Song Huaizhi stood there, his lips tightly pursed, his hands clenched into fists, trying his best to suppress the anger in his heart.

"The governor is afraid, right?" Song Huaizhi raised his eyebrows. "No matter how much effort you put in, even if she gave birth to a child for you, even if the child's surname was Jiang, she would not accept you. Because you were wrong from the beginning. Not only did you force her, you also killed her last relative in this world."

"The deep hatred between you and her is right in front of us. How can there be a good ending?"

He said with a pearl in his mouth: "So you are afraid that I will have any contact with her, because in her eyes, I came to Beijing for her, I climbed up for her, and even when she was drugged, I did not do anything to let her down. In her eyes, I am still the big brother Song in her mind."

Meng Tingzhou naturally saw his provocation and gnashed his teeth: "I don't know why you came to Beijing. No matter what the reason is, you shouldn't take advantage of Meimei's trust in you."

"If so, you'd better curb your ambitions. Because you don't know her."

Meng Tingzhou saw Song Huaizhi's serious expression of surprise, and finally smiled: "Okay, my wife is still waiting, and I am in a hurry to return home. I will chat with Commander Song when I have time."

That day, from dawn to dusk, Jiang Shiwan felt like he had experienced a lot.

Feeling uneasy, she came to see Ayou who was sleeping soundly.

Only by looking at him could she temporarily forget the tension.

When Meng Tingzhou came back, he saw that no one was in the study and Shiyun Pavilion. He was startled: "Yufeng! Where is the Madam?"

"You're back?"

He shouted, and Jiang Shiwan was alerted and walked out without waiting for Yu Feng's response.

The two looked at each other in silence, not knowing what to say for a moment.

Meng Tingzhou walked towards her: "I thought you were not here."

"I can't sleep, let's go see Ah You."

"As expected, you guessed it right. Liu Huining will move into the Governor's Mansion tomorrow."

"Ah."

Even though her heart was in turmoil, her appearance was calm as water.