After I was reborn, I was scumbag

Chapter 43

In the blink of an eye, it is late spring, and the stamens of star-pointed hydrangea have already appeared in the valleys outside Chang'an, swaying in the breeze with the heat of the sun, attracting many people to go out of the city to enjoy it.

Shao Guan has already been released from the foot restraint, but after all, because of this matter, Emperor Liang had some grudges against his beloved son-in-law.So he was arranged to be in charge of inspecting the construction of the palace.

This job is very leisurely, and there is leisure almost every day.The young man who was usually busy with various government affairs was free, so he put all his thoughts on the investigation of Murong Xing's case, and it was rare to find time to drive a horse to the countryside to relax.

Dong Jiu got off the horse with Shao Guan, seeing the tall and straight figure of the young man in front of him, and the slightly warm smile on the handsome and soft side face, he couldn't help feeling a little emotional.

"Young master finally smiled today, this slave really should have accompanied you out earlier to relax."

Because he went out of the palace to enjoy himself in a modest suit, Shao Guan only wore an ordinary crow-blue robe, and took off all the precious accessories that symbolized his royal status from his waist, leaving only an unremarkable white jade pendant.

To avoid revealing his identity, Dong Jiu naturally changed his name to call him "Young Master".

"The backlog of reports in the Eastern Palace is almost piled up into a mountain. It's easy to deal with most of them these days. How can there be time to come out earlier?"

Shao Guan stopped in front of a lake, but his eyes did not fall on the clear and clear lake water, but on a cluster of hydrangeas with several petals blooming beside it.

"Your Highness is not dealing with government affairs, he is clearly busy running for Prince Murong."

As soon as Dong Jiu finished speaking, the smile on Shao Guan's face faded a little, and he immediately realized that he had poked his Highness's sore spot again, and was so regretful that he wished he could slap himself.

"Your Highness, servant..."

"It's okay... Dongjiu, do you think there is a workshop in Chang'an City that can make hydrangeas into spices?"

Dong Jiu was stunned for a moment, watching Shao Guanwei leaning down, picking off the cluster of flowers with their roots, and quickly reached out to pick up the hydrangeas that were still covered with soil.

"This... Your Highness, I have never heard of a workshop that uses hydrangea flowers as spices. After all, this flower has a light smell, and it is not a commonly used spice."

"However, if His Highness wants to use this flower as a spice, it is naturally possible. The servant can just order the people in the palace to do it."

Shao Guan nodded: "Let's talk about this matter in June, the hydrangeas are only blooming now, you move all the flowers here to the flower bed of the East Palace, and ask the gardener to take good care of it—"

A rush of horseshoes suddenly broke the tranquility of the valley.

The clear lake water was reflected in Shao Guan's dark peach blossom eyes. The surface of the lake, which was originally as calm and radiant as glass, had been shaken by the "da da" horseshoe, and there were layers of ripples.

Riding horses galloping towards Shaoguan is a row of imperial guards with neat military appearance.

After seeing Shao Guan, the leading soldier reined in his horse, knelt down and saluted, and said, "I have seen His Royal Highness. Your Highness, there is urgent military affairs coming from Lingnan. I will follow His Majesty's orders, and please return to the palace immediately to discuss matters!"

As soon as the word "Lingnan" was uttered, Shao Guan's face became tense, and his dark and penetrating eyes suddenly became turbulent.

"Okay, I'll go back with you guys immediately——Does the commander know what the military affairs from Lingnan are specifically about?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, it was the Lingnan Army who rebelled and killed the commander-in-chief. They have already raised their troops and marched towards the north. All the officials have entered the palace. Your Majesty is in a hurry to find His Highness the Crown Prince. Please hurry up and leave with your ministers."

Shao Guan returned to the East Palace and hurriedly changed his court clothes, then headed for the Golden Luan Hall, his heart was already in a turmoil.

Obviously, I just sent someone to investigate in Lingnan not long ago, but there was no response yet, and the Lingnan Army suddenly changed.

It would be too much to say that this is a coincidence...

"You son! I entrusted you with such an important case, and the witnesses you found out for me are a group of rebels! Do you think that I dote on you, so you dare to deceive me like this?!"

As soon as Shao Guan walked outside the hall, he heard the Liang Emperor's almost furious stern voice, accompanied by the sound of a table of bamboo slips being smashed on the gold bricks.

The fourth prince Shao Ting knelt in the center of the hall trembling, weeping.

"Father, father, I dare not lie to my father, I dare not! I did find out that Pingxihou's son had an affair with the Wei people, but I don't know that this person's evidence was from the old Lingnan—"

"In such an important case, you dare to write a memorial without even checking the family background of the witnesses?"

"I was negligent for a while, and my son is guilty! But I beg my father to learn from me, my son has no intention of lying to my father!"

Emperor Liang couldn't help panting heavily, and pointed at Shao Ting who was kneeling underneath, his eyes were full of suspicion and anger.

"Are you negligent for a while, or do you want to use this case to help your partisan struggle, do you think I really don't know?"

As soon as these words came out, the ministers who wanted to come forward to defend the fourth prince couldn't help hesitating for a while, and no one dared to stand up and intercede for a while.

Partisanship has always been something that all emperors abhor.What's more, now that Emperor Liang is old, the various princes are fighting for succession more and more fiercely, and party disputes are even more taboo in the court.

If they came out to defend Shao Ting at this moment, they might not only be unable to dispel the anger of Emperor Liang, but also implicate themselves for no reason.

"Father, calm down."

As soon as the young man's clear and clear voice sounded, the eyes of the court officials all fell on Shao Guan.

Emperor Liang thought of something, but he looked at Shao Guan kindly, and his tone softened a bit.

"The crown prince is here. The Lingnan army's rebellion may have something to do with the case of Pingxihou Shizi. I heard that Guan'er has been quite concerned about this case recently. I don't know what he can gain from it?"

Shao Guan walked forward unhurriedly, not looking at Shao Ting, who was kneeling beside him and was so frightened that he burst into tears.

"Reporting to my father, I believe that since the key witnesses in the Pingxi Hou Shizi case are all former Lingnan rebels, their testimony is not credible."

"For the rebellion of the Lingnan Army, generals should have been selected earlier to lead troops to counter the rebellion so as to reassure the people."

"The case of Pingxihou's son should also be retried by the three divisions of Dali Temple, the Ministry of Criminal Justice, and the Procuratorate. I will leave it to the emperor to decide on the specific matters."

Emperor Liang glanced at Shao Ting coldly, nodded and said: "The crown prince is right. The fourth prince, Shao Ting, neglected his duty, deceived his father, lost his title of prince, and was demoted to county king. He was imprisoned in the mansion for a year!"

Shao Ting was stunned for a moment, and when he heard that his prince's title had been cut, he quickly kowtowed and begged: "Father, I know my mistake, I beg Father to show mercy, please forgive me this time!"

"Take the fourth prince down soon!" Emperor Daliang waved his hand, and the guards standing beside him led the crying Shao Ting away from the hall.

When the sound of crying and howling faded away, the hall was so quiet that there was almost only the sound of Emperor Liang's breathing.

"I don't know which general is willing to lead troops to suppress the rebellion in Lingnan?"