Do Not Offend the Reborn Wicked Wife

Chapter 878: Chapter 878: The Supreme Emperor’s Test

Qi Junyi was reading a book.

The book he was reading was a supernatural novel he randomly picked up at a small bookstore during the day, and he was thoroughly enjoying it.

"Third Brother!"

Li Qingmu appeared in Qi Junyi’s room, startling him. He said gloomily, "Seventeenth Brother, you really come and go like the wind. I almost thought you were an assassin!"

Li Qingmu smiled faintly: "Sorry to have scared you, Third Brother."

Qi Junyi waved his hand, helpless with his brother. He asked curiously, "I thought you would give me the evidence of Liu Hui’s corruption early on, but you’ve delayed this long. What have you been up to?"

He understood this brother’s personality; he wouldn’t act without reason—there had to be another motive.

Li Qingmu said, "It’s nothing much. I just found the evidence of his corruption along with his accomplices. This is what I’ve sorted in the past few days."

Saying this, Li Qingmu handed a thick stack of papers to Qi Junyi. Qi Junyi was stunned by how much there was.

His brother’s capability was truly reassuring, and he worked swiftly like a thief.

"However, even with his evidence, a powerful dragon cannot crush a local snake. I can’t do anything to him with just that..."

Qi Junyi frowned as he spoke.

"Did Father not give you the Imperial Sword?"

"He did!"

"Then why can’t you deal with him?"

"Seventeenth Brother, you should know better than anyone. To take them down, with the few people I have, it’s likely impossible. After all, according to your list, the entire bureaucracy of Liuzhou City is rotten to the core. Even if I issue orders, how many will listen to me?"

After pausing, he continued, "Of course, I could call in the military, but doing so... Seventeenth Brother, you must understand, the current emperor is our Ninth Brother, not Father."

What Qi Junyi said was indeed correct. The current Emperor was Qi Junlian. If they casually ordered troops, how would Qi Junlian in Shengjing City perceive it?

Qi Yun had already overstepped by asking Qi Junlian to come and supervise. They should know their limits; Qi Junlian couldn’t blame Yun but could scold them!

"Hey, Seventeenth Brother, what are you laughing at? What’s so funny? What... what do you mean?"

Qi Junyi became annoyed when he saw Li Qingmu laughing quietly; what was this rascal laughing at?

Could it be that he said something wrong?

No, he was sure he wasn’t wrong about anything!

"Haha, don’t misunderstand, Third Brother. I’m actually laughing because we all misjudged. Father is using this matter to test the Empress Dowager Li!"

"Test the Empress Dowager Li?"

Qi Junyi was slightly taken aback.

Then, inexplicably, he felt a little panicked. He no longer lived in the Imperial Palace, yet still wanted to check on the concubines around him. Speaking of which, Consort Zhen, his mother, shouldn’t be tested, right?

Seeing his nervous demeanor, Li Qingmu was speechless: "Your mother is well-behaved in the harem. Father wouldn’t do anything to her. Besides, if you’re really worried, you can bring your mother out of the palace to live with you."

When Qi Yun completely left the Imperial Palace, he granted titles to all his offspring and provided residences, allowing them to move out with no requirement that the princes’ mothers had to stay in the palace.

So if living in the palace was worrisome, they could easily leave.

Qi Junyi’s eyes lit up, "That’s a good idea. But, will Father be angry?"

Li Qingmu was speechless: "Why would Father be angry? You know his temperament well. He himself ran off from the Imperial Palace; would he still care about you and others?"

Qi Junyi felt embarrassed; indeed, this Emperor genuinely only cared about this mother-son duo, and for others, at most he felt affection or guilt.

Shaking his head, Qi Junyi dismissed the tangled thoughts; it was time to bring his mother out and live with him. The harem was too dull.

"Wait, what does this have to do with the current situation?"

Qi Junyi scratched his head, feeling like his brother was leading him astray—they were supposed to handle Liu Hui’s matter!

Li Qingmu said, "Isn’t it obvious? We can act freely and observe the reaction from Lixiu Palace."

Empress Dowager Li lived at Lixiu Palace, which implied testing her.

Qi Junyi thought for a moment and said, "I have no problem, but doing so might affect your relationship with our Ninth Brother."

Li Qingmu remained silent for a moment.

Was it about the brotherhood between them?

Actually, it had already been mostly ruined during their mission to quell the rebellion in the Southern Territory. Junlian didn’t trust him, and with Empress Dowager Li causing trouble, what could he do?

Should he explain it, saying he had no interest in the throne, so there’s no need to worry about him seizing imperial power?

What is this?

No Silver 300 Taels here! Only someone with a guilty conscience would be eager to explain something, but the more you explain, the more it feels like you’re hiding something.

"Whatever, since Father asked me to help him oversee this world, I’ll do it. Once this issue is settled, I’ll go find Jingyu."

That kid is probably having fun somewhere right now.

Speaking of which, that kid is very smart and a clever little rascal, but his temperament and character, how should I put it, sometimes very sensitive and melancholy, and other times lively, cheerful, carefree.

I really don’t know how these two contradictory feelings coexist in one person.

"He... doesn’t even know where he’s gone, and because of him, the Imperial Palace is in chaos."

Qi Junyi was also frustrated, that boy was a troublemaker, only knowing to cause problems. In fact, this time Qi Yun even gave him a task—to find the Crown Prince.

Qi Yun was concerned that Li Qingmu wouldn’t handle it properly, so he sent another person.

A Crown Prince of a nation doesn’t just disappear without a trace, does he?

If he remains missing for a while longer, others might start discussing "changing the Crown Prince" in the Imperial Palace!

However, changing the Crown Prince isn’t as easy as it sounds—it could cause a court upheaval.

Qi Jingyu has been gone for nearly two months, and there’s still no news. Everyone is anxious.

"By the way, Seventeenth Brother, do you know where he might have gone?"

Li Qingmu shook his head: "I don’t know, just guessing. Once we handle this matter, we’ll go look for him."

"Mm."

Qi Junyi nodded, then perused the documents, considering how to proceed. Meanwhile, Li Qingmu was worried about when they could resolve the problems here.

After all, the issue here was not just about a few corrupt officials—there were historical problems like land annexation and usury.

Most critically, how should they deal with the underground mausoleum stretching across multiple states?

Everything was just a mystery, and only when they truly opened that mausoleum would they know what lay beneath.

They might even encounter danger!

Therefore, Li Qingmu thought that once the issues here were resolved, he would tell where Qi Jingyu might have gone, letting him search for him.