Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

Li Yun had already found a seat. He didn’t stop the crowd’s discussions outside, instead turning to Ming Lingyi. "Do you want to settle this case now, or let it continue?"

If she didn’t want to waste time, he could have the people who started the trouble in the crowd detained now and interrogated later.

Ming Lingyi barely hesitated. "Let’s question them and get to the bottom of this. Lord Gongsun is here now, so I don’t think this will be too big of a deal."

Li Yun’s eyebrow twitched, a clear sign of his displeasure with her words.

’What does she mean it’s not a big deal just because Gongsun Liangce is here?’

’Aren’t these villains unable to cause any real trouble precisely because *I’m* here?’

’She hadn’t even considered his role in this. Had he not done enough?’

Li Yun, of course, couldn’t vent this subtle dissatisfaction on Ming Lingyi. But at some point, his grip on her hand tightened, forcing her to look up at him.

’He couldn’t allow himself to be so insignificant in her eyes. That simply wouldn’t do.’

Ming Lingyi had no idea that Li Yun was having such a complex inner monologue in such a short amount of time.

She thought Li Yun wanted to whisper something to her, but when she looked up, he pointedly avoided her gaze, acting as if he wasn’t the one who had just squeezed her hand.

Ming Lingyi: "???"

’What is his problem!’

Li Yun now signaled for the captain of the Black Armor Guards to bring the men they had caught into the restaurant.

He wanted to conduct the questioning himself, but since Ming Lingyi had already mentioned Gongsun Liangce, Li Yun turned and said, "Minister Gongsun, since it has come to this, you will interrogate these men in front of everyone. Find out who instructed them to cause this disturbance, give Boss Ming the justice she deserves, and let the people of Shangjing City know that in Dayan, everyone is subject to the law. No one can act with impunity on Dayan’s soil."

His voice carried an icy chill as he spoke the last sentence.

A sense of foreboding suddenly struck Xie Ruijing. He had a feeling this matter would not end well.

Li Yun was clearly planning to make an example of someone to warn the others. And in the drama Xie Ruijing had orchestrated today, Wangxian Building—or even the entire Xie family—was about to be cast in the role of the sacrificial chicken.

If only Gongsun Liangce were present, Xie Ruijing could have found a way to get the Lord Governor to help smooth things over.

But...

’Did he have the connections to influence Emperor Jing’an?’

The men who were brought before Gongsun Liangce had already been scared out of their wits.

Who wouldn’t be scared enough to wet themselves after falling into the hands of the Black Armor Guards?

Gongsun Liangce barely had to question them. Like spilling a bag of beans, the men rushed to confess everything they knew, each terrified that if he was a step slower than the others, he would be the one to suffer.

"I’ll talk, I’ll talk now! I was just following orders! I have no grudge against Ming’s Restaurant, I was just paid to do a job..."

"It was someone from Wangxian Building who found me! I... I didn’t know they were framing Boss Ming! I was tricked, My Lord, you must believe me!"

"It was all of them, the people from Wangxian Building..."

Of course, Xie Ruijing hadn’t used his own men for the job. Watching those spineless fools fold without even being put to the question—selling out Wangxian Building completely—he nearly choked, his face darkening to a thunderous black.

To make matters worse, he had a troublemaker right in front of him.

Young Master Xu, of course, had no idea how displeased Xie Ruijing was at that moment. All he knew was that he himself was feeling quite pleased.

"Second Uncle Xie, I told you so! The people from Wangxian Building are up to no good. Just listen to that! Isn’t this proof they were behind the whole thing? Tsk, tsk. So petty!"

Xu Qian, smug about his "profound insight," leaned back lazily in his high stool. The words "I’m pretty smart, aren’t I?" were practically written across his face.

This was Xu Qian’s first time dining in at Ming’s Restaurant. He used to look down on the place, but now? Now he thought these high-top tables and stools were actually quite nice. There was no reason he couldn’t come back in the future.

A restaurant graced by the Emperor himself was, by definition, an exceptional establishment in his eyes.

Xie Ruijing, who had just been all but called "petty" to his face by Xu Qian, tasted the coppery tang of blood in his throat. He forced himself to hide the sinister look in his eyes and let out a dry laugh. "It seems Young Master Xu is truly very clever..."

Xu Qian waved a hand, his smugness painfully obvious. "Oh, you know. Just your average genius. I’m well aware."

Xie Ruijing: "..."

’He once again questioned his own sanity. Why had he invited this person here, specifically to make his own life miserable?’

When Ming Lingyi heard the name "Wangxian Building," a flash of understanding went through her.

However, she knew that for now, proving Wangxian Building was the mastermind was enough.

The people *behind* Wangxian Building were another matter, one that couldn’t conveniently be interrogated in public. Besides, Ming Lingyi knew that getting Wangxian Building’s people to implicate the Xie family wouldn’t be a quick process. She still had a poetry competition to judge—how could she waste all her time on such unimportant people and matters?

When Li Yun heard the outcome, he remained silent, merely looking at Ming Lingyi.

He was waiting to see what she wanted to do, whether to press the interrogation further.

’After all, the men were in his hands. If he wanted to, there was no way the Xie family could escape responsibility.’

"In that case, I’ll have to trouble Lord Gongsun to take these men into custody. They can be properly sentenced after further verification," Ming Lingyi said.

At her words, the expression of the man beside her, Li Yun, darkened.

Li Yun knew this was the most prudent course of action. If someone implicated the Xie family in front of such a large crowd, the situation would become messy. Besides, the common folk wouldn’t understand the complex relationships involved.

But Li Yun couldn’t stop his gaze from falling on Jiang Yuchuan.

’He wondered if she had considered Jiang Yuchuan when making her decision.’

’Did she decide not to press the interrogation until it reached the Xie family because of him? Because of Jiang Yuchuan’s unusual connection to them?’

The thought grew in his mind, and his gaze darkened further.

’His heart felt as if it were submerged in vinegar, the sour sting of jealousy was almost unbearable.’

When Gongsun Liangce heard Ming Lingyi’s words, he inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

He had come to Ming’s Restaurant today in a personal capacity and hadn’t brought any Patrols with him. He would have to trouble the Black Armor Guards to transport these men to the Jingzhao Mansion.

"Effective immediately, Wangxian Building is to be shut down."

Just as everyone thought the matter was concluded, the man in the seat of honor suddenly spoke.

The meaning behind Li Yun’s words was not difficult to surmise.

Wangxian Building was, after all, a Xie family enterprise. No matter how capable Gongsun Liangce was as the Prefect of the Jingzhao Mansion, he would be at a disadvantage if he had to confront the Xie family directly.

Li Yun had no intention of putting the Prefect he had personally promoted in a difficult position. His imperial words were law; he had just pronounced a sentence from which Wangxian Building could never recover.

Even with all their power, could the Xie family truly overturn the verdict of the Emperor himself?

Of course not.

Ming Lingyi, for her part, was not surprised.

But for Xie Ruijing, hidden in the crowd, those words struck like a bolt from the blue.

Xie Ruijing never imagined things would escalate this far. When he heard Gongsun Liangce say he would take the men back for questioning, he had still harbored a sliver of hope.

At the Jingzhao Mansion, at least, he could have pulled some strings. He could have ensured the blame stopped at Wangxian Building. With enough maneuvering, he might have even saved the restaurant itself, allowing it to reopen in the West Market once the scandal blew over.

But now, that single sentence from the Emperor had cut off all his avenues of escape.