After Ruan Lang showed his loyalty to Emperor Yu, Emperor Yu quickly promulgated a new decree - Wang Jing was dismissed from his post for leaving his post without authorization, and Ruan Lang was appointed as the new commander of the Royal Guards Department, and he was rewarded with countless gold and silver.
This decree triggered countless discussions: because this was not only a promotion, but also Emperor Yu's announcement to the civil and military officials of the court that Wang Jing had fallen out of favor, and Ruan Lang was now his confidant!
After understanding the decree, people came to Ruan Lang's house to congratulate him one after another. When they saw Ruan Lang in the palace, everyone changed their previous attitude and became attentive and humble.
Even the government officials in the Imperial Guard Department, the losers who once curried favor with Wang Jing, began to curry favor with Ruan Lang.
As for those who had issues with Ruan Lang, they left quietly the day after Ruan Lang was promoted.
Ruan Lang's lifelong wish has finally come true!
He did not become complacent because of this, and he did not take it to heart at all, whether it was compliments or sarcastic remarks.
Because he understands that the real test has just begun!
He must seize this opportunity to stabilize his position in the government and not make the same mistakes again!
Of course, although he did not say it explicitly about King Yi's repeated help, he knew it well - from now on, he and King Yi will stand on the same front!
The weather was sunny and refreshing, and Ruan Lang felt refreshed after walking all the way. He stepped into the gate of the Royal Guards Department as usual, but was shocked: the yamen, which was usually filled with smoke and alcohol, suddenly became quiet and serious.
The gatekeepers were all in high spirits, with no trace of their usual sloppiness and laziness.
Even in the imperial prison, which has always been called a purgatory on earth, there is no longer that disgusting stench, and even the cries of agony are much less frequent.
It seems that after learning that Ruan Lang will be in charge of the imperial defense department from now on, these reformed government officials have thoroughly cleaned the place inside and out.
Seeing his colleagues who had neglected him in the past, their faces were now full of flattering fake smiles. Ruan Lang knew in his heart that they did not completely change their past, but they did this to please themselves and were afraid that they would settle accounts in the future!
But this is good, as it saves you from giving them official authority! They will be more knowledgeable, and you will be happy and leisurely!
"Lord Ruan."
A deep voice suddenly sounded from behind, and it sounded familiar.
Ruan Lang turned around and saw Tie Lin driving his car and stopping in front of the imperial guard's gate. He jumped out of the car and saluted him and said hello.
Ruan Lang smiled and returned the greeting with his hands, and when he raised his eyes, he saw Tie Lin opening the car door and helping King Yi get out of the car.
Ruan Lang hurriedly walked up to him in three steps and bowed deeply: "I didn't know that His Highness King Yi is coming to visit me. I am humbled by my humble duty and am not welcome at a distance! I hope you will forgive me!"
King Yi smiled and returned the greeting: "I came here uninvited. I hope I didn't disturb Sir Ruan!"
Ruan Lang knew that King Yi did not come to the Three Treasures Hall for no reason, so he must have something to say to him, so he raised his hand and respectfully said: "Where, where! Your Highness, if you have any advice, let's go in and have a cup of tea!"
With that said, he led him to the yamen's capital hall.
In the bright and solemn capital hall, the two sat across the table. Ruan Lang ordered someone to bring a pot of Yangxian tea given by the emperor.
"I know that Your Highness likes tea but not wine, so I specially ordered someone to prepare a pot of tea for you to try." Ruan Lang diligently poured tea for King Yi with a very respectful attitude.
King Yi picked up the tea cup, took a sip, and smiled appreciatively: "The emperor has not tasted Yangxian tea, and the herbs will not dare to bloom first. Lord Ruan is determined."
"As long as His Highness likes it." Ruan Lang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and finally had a smile on his face.
King Yi put down the tea cup, looked Ruan Lang up and down, and praised warmly: "Sure enough, people are in high spirits during happy events! Mr. Ruan is so majestic and energetic today, which is very different from the past!"
Ruan Lang lowered his eyes and said with a naive smile: "Thanks to His Highness's appreciation and support along the way, I have been able to turn misfortunes into dangers many times and get to where I am today step by step. Your Highness's kindness will never be forgotten by Ruan Lang!"
King Yi smiled faintly: "This is Mr. Ruan who is brave, loyal, unparalleled in intelligence, and dares to risk his life."
, the result of rushing into the fire to rescue the emperor. I didn’t do anything.”
After some pleasantries, Ruan Lang took the opportunity to pour tea and asked in a low voice: "Your Highness came here today for the Annan mission?"
"That's right." King Yi also lowered his voice: "I wonder if Lord Ruan has interrogated them personally?"
Ruan Lang proudly curled his lips and said with a smile: "How dare you forget what your Highness told you? As soon as I cleared away Wang Jing's lackeys, I interrogated the people from the Annan mission one by one and compiled the confessions overnight.
, please sit down for a moment, I will get it for you!"
With that said, he immediately stood up and left the capital hall.
After a while, he came over with a stack of confidential files and placed them gently in front of King Yi.
"These are all interrogated and sorted out by Beizhi personally. No one other than Beizhi knows about them. Please feel free to read them, Your Highness."
King Yi nodded, opened the file and read through it carefully. The further he looked back, the tighter his brows furrowed and his expression became more solemn.
Ruan Lang observed the words and hurriedly explained: "As your Highness saw, although I interrogated them one by one, their testimonies were almost the same, as if they had been memorized in advance.
Moreover, after more in-depth testing in the humble position, I found that they even seemed to have memorized the customs and customs of Annan in advance. As long as they asked a little bit, they would reveal their flaws."
Closing the file, King Yi frowned and said in a deep voice: "My guess is good, there is indeed something fishy hidden in it. From this point of view, there must be something wrong with Prince Annan!"
He suddenly thought that Lu Ning was with Hu Qi at this time, and his heart tightened, and his face became a little darker.
Ruan Lang knew what he was worried about, and asked: "Your Highness, do you want to use some means to force them to reveal more things?"
"How did they behave in prison? Did they show any fear or anxiety?" King Yi felt a strong sense of uneasiness surrounding him.
Ruan Lang thought about it carefully, but shook his head: "Not only did they not show any panic, but they looked calm and content with the situation. Even if their humble position threatened them with torture, they were not afraid, as if they had already put their lives on the line.
Ignore it!".br
"As expected." King Yi was not surprised at all, but his mood became even tighter: "How dare they pretend to be the Annan envoy and do it so flawlessly. The people behind this must be quite powerful and have a huge conspiracy.
! If I guess correctly, the people in these prisons are dead soldiers, and they came here with the determination to die. Therefore, any torture is useless, and nothing can be said from their mouths..."
Ruan Lang also became a little uneasy after hearing this: "Then... do you want to report it to the emperor? Let the emperor send someone to Annan to investigate the matter thoroughly?"
King Yi immediately waved his hand and asserted: "No! The emperor not only sent people to investigate the matter many times and asked the Annan mission to confront the prince, but also recognized Hu Qi's identity at the court meeting. Unless we have conclusive evidence,
Otherwise, to report it directly will make the emperor admit that he made a mistake, which would be disrespectful to the world!"
At this moment, Ruan Lang was in trouble: "Then I wonder if your highness has any clever ideas?"
King Yi turned the ring on his thumb, pondered for a long time, and then opened his lips: "Arrange a strange face, arrange a random crime, and imprison him with the people from the mission, and record everything they say on weekdays.
, don’t miss a word!”
Ruan Lang raised his eyebrows and asked curiously: "What does His Highness mean by this? Is it possible that they will reveal their crimes to a strange prisoner?"
"Of course they won't disclose the crime." King Yi raised the corners of his lips slightly and said with a smile: "Disguising is not that easy. There are always times when they relax their vigilance. Maybe a few words unintentionally will
Reveal their true identities! When the time comes, as long as we follow the clues and investigate, we will definitely find something!"
Ruan Lang suddenly understood and immediately raised his hands and said: "Don't worry, Your Highness, I know what to do!"
After making arrangements, King Yi immediately stood up and walked out under the escort of Ruan Lang.
The two of them tacitly passed through the imperial prison. When passing by the cell of the Annan mission, King Yi took a deep look at the people in the cell.
At one glance, I immediately made a judgment in my mind:
Those few people have fierce faces, sharp eyes, and calluses on their palms. At first glance, they are people who have been practicing martial arts for many years, and they are definitely not courtiers who spend their days pampering themselves!
The two left quietly. Before they reached the door, King Yi stopped and turned to look at Ruan Lang: "By the way, has the emperor asked you about my whereabouts?"
Ruan Lang was obviously startled, and immediately replied without thinking: "The Emperor has never asked! But don't worry, Your Highness, I will never send anyone to monitor His Highness, let alone reveal His Highness's whereabouts to the Emperor!"
King Yi curled his lips and whispered softly: "It's good that you have such a heart. But don't forget, the duty of the Chief of Staff is to be the eyes of the emperor and monitor all the officials and generals for him. Naturally, I am no exception.
"
"But..." Ruan Lang frowned, with a bit of embarrassment on his face: "Is it possible...that His Highness really asked someone from a humble position to monitor you?"
King Yi patted him on the shoulder and said with a faint smile: "Although you are in the limelight now, the emperor is a suspicious person, and his testing of you will not stop because of this. Some superficial work still needs to be done. Anyway, I am not
There is no suspicious behavior, and even Wang Jing has never caught me. It’s just that you have to understand what should be said to the emperor and what shouldn’t be said."
Ruan Lang suddenly had an epiphany, and immediately raised his hands and said with a smile: "His Highness said it, I have taken note of it!"
After leaving the Yamen of the Imperial Guard, Tie Lin was already waiting outside the door in a carriage. Ruan Lang and a group of government servants stood at the door of the Yamen and respectfully saw King Yi off to the carriage.
Suddenly, a burst of sweet laughter came from not far away, attracting everyone's attention. King Yi held his hand on the car door and couldn't help but follow the sound.
The imperial street was crowded with people, and a girl in red with a slender figure and long flowing hair stood out among the crowd. Her silvery laughter also attracted the attention of passers-by.