sjar Chapter 561: To achieve something, there must always be sacrifices
Chapter 561: To achieve something, there must always be sacrifices
"Isn't it obvious? I am now a pawn beside Master Pei, just like you, following your Highness to do some trivial things."
Cheng Du leaned back against the pillar, still hugging his arms.
"Of course, there are some differences. I'm not as cautious as you. I have to guard outside even when the master goes in."
Lin Jie's face was gloomy. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Xiao Yi walking out of the room and fell silent instantly.
Xiao Yi obviously heard what Cheng Du said just now, "This prince would like to ask Lord Pei, is it possible that the Ministry of Justice does not have some rules for recruiting people? Such rudeness is rare."
Cheng Du immediately gave in. "Please don't, please don't. Your Highness the Fourth Prince is very generous. Why bother with me? It's not easy to find a job. Your Highness, please be merciful and forgive me when you can."
Although he begged for mercy, there was no trace of nervousness or fear in his attitude.
Xiao Yi snorted and laughed, then retracted his gaze and looked at Lin Jie.
"Let's go."
"Yes." Lin Jie responded immediately.
As he followed Xiao Yi out of the yard, he looked at Cheng Du who was left behind and whispered.
"Your Highness, this Cheng Du is very skilled. With such great skills, he would not be willing to be ordered around by the Ministry of Justice."
"He was already involved in Feng Yimin's affairs, so it's not surprising that he shows up again now. Maybe he's a spy sent by Jiang Suining and Shen Yanxi."
Now that he could enter and leave the Ministry of Justice prison at will, how could Jiang Suining and Shen Yanxi feel at ease?
It would be strange if they did nothing and made no arrangements.
"Your Highness, do you need me to find a way to tie him up and create an opportunity for our people?"
"No need. Today, this prince is just here to see Prince Chu. There will be plenty of opportunities in the future."
Xiao Yi left the Ministry of Justice. After Pei Zhaozhi received the news, he did not say much, but ordered people to guard Feng Yimin more closely.
At the same time, in the imperial palace, after Xiao Yue returned from the Fourth Prince's Mansion, she began to ponder what to do.
Although she promised in front of Xiao Yi that she would kick Jiang Suining out of his current position in order to prove her ability, she had not thought about how to do it specifically.
Qiaorong and Qiaofu had become more and more afraid of Xiao Yue during this period. Seeing that she looked worried, they dared not breathe a word. After serving the tea and snacks, they prepared to leave.
However, Xiao Yue stopped them.
"Do you know when the last banquet in the palace was?"
"Your Highness, it should be the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. According to the customs of previous years, the palace will celebrate Laba Festival and give out Laba porridge. Princes and ministers will come to the palace for a banquet and eat Laba porridge together." Qiao Fu replied.
"Laba, isn't it coming soon? Maybe it's a good opportunity..." Xiao Yue murmured to herself.
Qiaofu and Qiaorong didn't understand what opportunity she was talking about, but they didn't dare to ask more. They could only stand there respectfully.
Xiao Yue turned her gaze towards the two of them again and said, "Go and ask around to see if Jiang Suining and the others are also in charge of this Laba Festival banquet."
"Princess, yes." Qiao Fu replied, "I went to the imperial kitchen to get cakes two days ago and happened to meet Miss He. She was leading people to check the ingredients for Laba Festival with the imperial kitchen."
"He Qingrui..." Xiao Yue recalled the previous meeting with He Qingrui and frowned, "A young lady from an official family, hiding behind Jiang Suining, will never amount to anything."
The other party doesn't seem to be ambitious. If he wants to encourage He Qingrui to take his place and kill with a borrowed knife to pull Jiang Suining down from his position, it may not be easy.
Seeing Xiao Yue's frown getting tighter and tighter, Qiao Rong and Qiao Fu's hearts also became more and more nervous, until Xiao Yue noticed their presence again and waved his hand to let them leave. Only then did the two of them feel relieved and quickly left the room.
"Sister Qiaofu, what happened to the princess? She went to the Fourth Prince's residence yesterday and has been gloomy since she came back."
"I don't know either. The princess kept me outside at the time. Maybe the princess said something to the fourth prince."
"The princess can be with the fourth prince..."
Before Qiaorong could finish her words, she met Qiaofu's disapproving gaze.
"Have you forgotten what I said to you?" Qiao Fu looked at Qiao Rong helplessly.
Qiaorong immediately said, "Remember, do your job well, don't have any unnecessary curiosity, don't ask questions that you shouldn't ask, and don't say things that you shouldn't say."
"That's right, we just need to do our job well and serve the princess, and don't cause any trouble."
The two of them quickened their pace and walked away, and just after they left, the window was pushed open and Xiao Yue appeared behind the window.
Watching the two figures disappearing quickly, Xiao Yue couldn't help but recall what Jiang Suining said on the palace road that day.
Fifth Princess, do you remember what you said before about everyone being equal?
This sentence was like a nightmare, disturbing her for the past few days and she would always think about it in her heart.
Xiao Yue placed her hands on the windowsill and tightened them unconsciously, with her nails digging into the window frame. She felt like a huge rock was pressing down on her heart, making it hard to breathe.
Everyone is equal!
Everyone is equal!
She had heard such words too many times before and never thought they were anything special. However, when she was really in this feudal dynasty, she realized how thin and powerless these four words sounded.
She also hopes that everyone can be equal, but if she keeps talking about equality now, she will probably be regarded as a freak and an alien.
What she needs to do is to find a way to achieve her goal and make a great career.
And in this process, even if I have to sacrifice something or let down some individuals... I can only apologize!
After all, if you want to accomplish something, there will always be sacrifices!
After this thought prevailed, the feeling of depression in her heart seemed to have eased a lot. Xiao Yue took a deep breath and made a decision.
……
Compared with previous years, this year's New Year's Eve will not be as peaceful.
First, the third prince committed suicide out of fear of punishment, then officials formed cliques, and then the Li family fell, Shen Yanxi became the prime minister, and now the Chu Palace, which has been prominent for several generations, has been confiscated again...
One incident after another filled the entire court with a tense atmosphere.
Many court officials were terrified, and everyone was worried. Those who had done something shameful were afraid that it would be exposed at any time. And those who were relatively innocent were also worried about whether they would be implicated in other things.
There was a sense of panic in the court, and even the atmosphere in the harem became tense.
Emperor Xiao understood the panic and anxiety of his courtiers, and in order to calm and ease the atmosphere, he issued a special order that this year on Laba Festival, in addition to princes and ministers, anyone could bring their wives into the palace for a banquet to make the event lively.
As the number of people attending the banquet increased temporarily, the originally arranged seats also had to be increased. Jiang Suining and her colleagues immediately became busy again, and everything was arranged only when they got off duty on the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month.
It was already completely dark, and Jiang Suining finally checked all the arrangements for tomorrow before leaving the palace.
Just as I passed through the imperial garden, I saw Wei Yao, who had left work half an hour ago.