Everyone's eyes were on Nie Zhongkun.

  But before Nie Zhongkun could speak, a furious female voice came from outside the door: "What's this about being shameless? Third Brother, you'd better tell me, how is my granddaughter being shameless?" Next, a pale-faced old woman was escorted in by a group of maidservants. However, after they helped the old woman to her seat, they all retreated and went out again.

  This is Nie's family meeting hall, no one else is allowed to stay here.

  Everyone in the house stood up, and Nie Zhongkun personally came forward to support the old woman, saying: "Mother, how did you come?"

  Old Lady Nie glared at Nian Zhongkun: "If I didn't come, our entire branch would be cursed to death."

  Nie Ruhai's face suddenly changed: "Eldest sister, what do you mean by this? Isn't this matter caused by your branch of the family? Being arbitrary and reckless, for the sake of a man, disregarding the interests of the family, to the point of being kidnapped and only revealing her identity after being humiliated... isn't that something your good daughter did? Originally, I instructed you to secretly investigate and report back immediately if anything happened, without taking any rash actions. But you ignored the master's orders, and in a fit of rage, you took it upon yourself to capture someone, even killing them, putting the Nie family on the defensive... isn't that something your good son did? Your branch of the family has caused such a huge commotion, bringing such great calamity to the family... can't I, as the uncle, scold you a few times?"

  "Was the girl willing to be sold and bullied by others? She ended up in such a miserable state, and you, as her uncle, don't speak out for her or take revenge. Instead, you're here complaining about this and that. Nie Lao San, when did you become so gutless? If it were your own granddaughter who encountered something like this, I wouldn't believe you could still sit at home! Your son would probably do something even more impulsive than Jiqi." Old Lady Nie's face was full of anger.

  Nie Ruhai's face turned so dark it seemed like water could drip from it, but he didn't make another sound. As the wife of the former master and Nie Guifei's mother, Old Lady Nie was fully qualified to scold him.

  "Besides, what's the big deal about killing a few people? Don't they deserve to die? Forcing good people into prostitution, which of those crimes isn't punishable by death? Even if we take it all the way to the imperial court, our Nie family will still be in the right. And let's not forget that Her Majesty the Empress is still in the palace! If she just pleads with the Emperor and explains the situation clearly, do you think he'll still punish our Nie family for dealing with those filthy bandits and brothel owners? You're all so flustered and panicked over such a small matter, look at yourselves! What a sight!"

  Upon hearing Old Lady Nie's words, the faces of those who were initially flustered and dimly lit suddenly brightened. Ah, what's the big deal about this? Isn't there still the Imperial Concubine in front of the Emperor? The eldest prince is also the Emperor's biological son! With them around, big matters become small, and small matters disappear, it's the easiest thing to do. Besides, those who were beaten to death were just a few extremely evil criminals, what's the big deal about that? They had it coming!

  Nie Ruhai thought about it and seemed to have a point, his face relaxed a lot. He was no longer annoyed by Old Lady Nie's scolding.

  It must be said that the Nie family has been in a remote and safe place for a long time, far away from the struggles of the capital city. In terms of political wisdom, compared to Ye Zhen who was once at the center of the political whirlpool and helped her husband fight for power, they are far inferior.

  Ye Zhuo was willing to take the risk of being discovered and push Nie Wei Yue, who was already standing on the edge of the abyss, because she knew this was the only chance for her to turn the tables and bring down the Nie family.

  Although she didn't stay in the Nie residence for long, she had a glimpse of their true nature and knew that the Nie family was used to acting like local emperors here. They were extremely arrogant and self-conceited, but on the surface, they put on a show of being humble and courteous. In reality, they were wildly arrogant, thinking they were the best in the world. In this small piece of land, anyone who dared to oppose the Nie family would be met with one word - death. So, she was 100% sure that when the Nie family found out that Nie Wei Yue had been defiled and rendered infertile at the brothel, they would be furious and do something drastic.

  As for the political situation in the capital, can it be analyzed as simply as Nie Lao Furen did? The Second Prince's swift and decisive move to promote Yang Jianxiu, who was about to be dismissed, to the position of county magistrate, and then also promote Yuan Chaolin, shows that the Second Prince has already occupied absolute discourse power in the court, with control over public opinion. As for the Nie family's private killing of someone, it can be whitewashed if needed, just as Nie Lao Furen said; but to be able to blacken it as well, by bypassing official channels and directly killing someone in prison, shows that the Nie family has become arrogant to the point of disregarding imperial authority. This kind of contempt for imperial power is exactly what the Emperor hates most. As soon as the Second Prince's mouth twitches, Nie Gui Fei and the Eldest Prince will not be able to clear their names even with ten mouths.

  But most importantly, the Nie family overlooked one person, and that is Gu Chen. Gu Chen was quietly unobtrusive in the palace, seemingly not favored. However, she could move freely inside and outside the palace, making a big name for herself among the people; The eldest prince and second prince were stuck in a fierce battle for several years, unable to gain the upper hand, but as soon as Gu Chen intervened, they quickly distinguished themselves, what does this show? It shows that this silent Gu Chen is actually the most crucial figure in the political situation, and also the person the emperor holds in his hands. Her status is not something that Nie Gui Fei can compare to. The two words "I like" are the hardest things to defeat in the world. Nie Gui Fei's coquettish behavior, crying and pretending to be pitiful in front of the emperor, cannot withstand a single glance from Gu Chen.

  So, this matter was taken advantage of by the Second Prince again, and Nie Gui Fei and the Crown Prince fantasized about using love and family ties to eliminate all traces, which is a foolish fantasy. The result of this struggle can only end with the defeat of the Nie family. What is the manifestation of defeat? That is, the mining rights of the jade mine in the south are rebalanced, the Nie family gives up part of the benefits of the southern jade mine, and the Second Prince passes through the bright road in front of the Emperor, holding the benefits given up by the Nie family, and openly enters Nan Yun City.

  Moreover, this move of hers has stirred up and triggered not only the power of the Second Prince, but also Du Haoran...

  In the Nie family's discussion hall, Old Lady Nie saw that everyone was looking at her with admiration and she became even more pleased. However, she didn't reveal anything on her face and coldly said: "As for how to handle things, you all discuss it yourselves, I won't interfere. It's just that..." She swept a stern glance over everyone, "In the past, when Du Haoran came to our estate, you all knew my daughter was a silly child, but you still wanted her to get close to Du Haoran, trying to use her to tie him down. Now she's ended up like this, isn't it also your doing? What qualifications do you have to say she doesn't care about shame? I won't say anything else, now that she's become like this, in the future, it'll be extremely difficult for her to find a suitable marriage. I only propose one condition: no matter what methods you use, bring Du Haoran back and let him marry my daughter!"

  This time, Nie Ruhai didn't say a word, glanced at Nie Zhongkun, and calmly sat there drinking tea. This trouble was brought back by the eldest branch of the family, or let Nie Zhongkun worry about it himself.

  A moment of silence in the room.

  Old Lady Nie was furious at the sight: "What's wrong with you all? Have you all become mute? Didn't you hear what I said just now? You say that the people on the side of the Second Prince are not to be trifled with, and that's fine. Now that I've told you to bring back a powerless commoner boy, you're still pretending to be deaf? Zhong Kun, is Yue'er still your daughter? Bo Wen, how can you be a brother like this? Did you hear what I said just now?"

  "Mother, things are not as simple as you imagine." Nie Zhongkun spoke up.

  "Why not just ask him? Speak!" Old Lady Nie's face was as calm as water.

  "Ever since Du Haoran and his master appeared in Nanshan Town, we had suspicions about his identity. Although his master said he was picked up as a child, how could he have the demeanor of a soldier? Moreover, he is knowledgeable, intelligent, and composed, with every move having the air of a noble. At the time, we tried to test him with many things, but this kid was very clever and never revealed any weaknesses. We had already planned to control both master and disciple at that time, and when his master went to the capital, we wanted to intercept Du Haoran halfway, thinking that if he didn't listen, we could use his master to threaten him. But unexpectedly, that old man was extremely cunning and set up a trap for Ji Kun on the way, disappearing without a trace. By the time they were found, they were already in the Iron Temple of the capital."

  Nie Zhongkun said, turning his head to glance at Old Lady Nie: "Mother, you've lived in the capital for a while and know what Tie Cang Temple is. It's not just an imperial temple, but also a place where monks possess martial arts skills. Du Haoran's master lives there, living a comfortable life, seemingly on good terms with the abbot. How could we dare to touch him? Furthermore, this makes us even more suspicious of the identities of these two masters and disciples. However, in the past half year, neither of them has made any moves, living peaceful lives in the south and north, seemingly unaware that we had planned to rob them. When the old man arrived in the capital, he sent a letter to Du Haoran through someone, telling him where to settle down. Du Haoran also occasionally sends letters to his master through us. But amidst this tranquility, many unusual things have been revealed: Logically speaking, if the old man could shake us off halfway, he should have known that we planned to rob him. Yet he says nothing and still lets Du Haoran stay here. What does this mean? However, from now on, they've had no further movements."

  Mrs. Nie snorted, "After saying so much, haven't you determined that Du Haoran has an extraordinary background? It's just that his master has some connections with the people of Tie Cang Temple, what's the big deal about this? I don't want you to kill Du Haoran, just catch him and let him marry Yue'er. Even if that old man finds out, what can he do? As the legitimate daughter of the Nie family, I am worthy of even royalty, let alone a vagrant who gambles on stones?"

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