Even so, the thousand-household still dared not be negligent. He came before Yu Qian, bent down, and whispered, "Director Yu, your subordinate has led men to search the study, secret rooms, and bedrooms, and indeed found quite a few things."
Yu Qian's expression remained unchanged, as if he had expected this. He asked unhurriedly, "Speak, there are no outsiders now. What did you find?"
"Apart from some gold and silver treasures, in the hidden wall, your subordinate and his men found a large stack of secret letters. Because your subordinate felt they were confidential, he dared not read them. He requests that Director Yu make the decision himself."
As he spoke, the thousand-household took out a stack of secret letters from his怀, about thirty to forty in total, and presented them to Yu Qian with both hands.
Yu Qian took the stack of secret letters and casually pulled one out. After a brief glance, he gasped and his hands and feet felt slightly cold.
This was because the content of this secret letter was not about Yang Xian and his cronies plotting, but rather evidence of Li Shanchang, Hu Weiyong, and Lan Yu colluding with each other.
"The struggle between factions in the imperial court is indeed a matter of succeeding quickly and failing slowly. If Yang Xian had handed over this evidence to His Majesty earlier, perhaps he wouldn't have died so tragically..."
Over the years, there had been rumors of the powerful officials of the Huaixi faction colluding with each other and privately associating with court ministers. It now seemed that these rumors were true...
"I never expected to find evidence of their interactions this time. These secret letters are a double-edged sword for me..."
"If they reach His Majesty, I have a fifty percent chance of promotion, and a fifty percent chance of death..."
Thinking this, Yu Qian dared not look any further.
After all, secrets like these, if one saw too many, could truly be fatal.
He silently put the secret letter into his怀, then turned to look at the East Factory centurion in charge of the search, a flicker of an unreadable expression in his eyes.
He asked in a seemingly careless tone, "Did anyone else find out about these secret letters?"
This thousand-household was also astute. He had seen the change in the Director's expression earlier.
He understood that he seemed to have discovered something extraordinary.
For the sake of his own life, he quickly replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, apart from the few centurions who searched the study with your subordinate, no one else knows."
Yu Qian nodded in satisfaction, then sternly warned, "From now on, forget all about these secret letters. Just pretend this never happened..."
"And I will never mistreat you in the future. Do you understand? As for those hundreds of men, you need to make it clear to them as well."
Seeing Yu Qian's serious demeanor, the thousand-household nodded repeatedly, indicating he understood.
Yu Qian, the Director of the East Factory, was around forty years old. He appeared kind-faced, but his eyes were dark and he always had a smile that didn't reach his eyes, making people feel a chill.
As the head of the East Factory, his status among the palace eunuchs was second only to the Grand Eunuch Huang Minghao, thus he held considerable power.
However, today, Yu Qian entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation with a cautious and fearful demeanor.
He quickly approached Zhu Yuanzhang, not daring to look at Zhu Yuanzhang's face. He simply kowtowed in greeting and loudly announced, "Your humble servant Yu Qian, greets Your Majesty. The East Factory has urgent intelligence to report."
Saying this, he took out thirty to forty secret letters from his怀.
After reading these secret letters, Zhu Yuanzhang could no longer restrain himself. He threw the letters fiercely to the ground and roared, "Li Shanchang, Hu Weiyong, and Lan Yu dared to collude in secret, to be arrogant! Insolent! Rebellious! Treasonous!"
Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang's furious outburst, the surrounding eunuchs and palace maids were all terrified and quickly knelt down, begging Zhu Yuanzhang to calm his anger.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang's rage was too immense this time, and it was not so easily contained.
Zhu Yuanzhang then smashed another teacup, sending everything on the imperial desk crashing to the ground, roaring and bellowing for the time it takes an incense stick to burn.
It was no wonder Zhu Yuanzhang was so furious. The contents of these secret letters were exceptionally terrifying.
"Li Shanchang, Hu Weiyong, and Lan Yu actually intended to rebel and had contacted some military officers, preparing to take action..."
It was no wonder Zhu Yuanzhang was so enraged.
After Zhu Yuanzhang finally vented his anger, he finally regained some composure.
He swept a cold gaze over Yu Qian, who was kneeling on the floor, and said in a chilling voice, "Get out!"
Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's command, Yu Qian quickly scuttled out.
Now, only Zhu Yuanzhang remained alone in the entire hall.
Meanwhile!
Wu Tao's current body, the original Qingyunzi, was about to celebrate his one hundred and twenty-seventh birthday!
Legend had it that a significant reason Zhu Yuanzhang valued Qingyunzi was because Qingyunzi was skilled in the art of health preservation and rejuvenation.
And it was to obtain the secret techniques for extending life and prolonging youth from Qingyunzi that Zhu Yuanzhang showed him such importance and favor.
The birthday gifts he sent to Qingyunzi every year were not only unique but also extremely valuable.
Seven years ago, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Qingyunzi one hundred and twenty statues of the Taoist patriarch as his 120th birthday gift.
These included wooden, stone, jade, gold, and silver carvings. Qingyunzi was overjoyed and soon after reciprocated with a bottle of Yin Chuan Xue Dan.
Six years ago, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Qingyunzi a Taoist robe woven with silk threads. Qingyunzi cherished it immensely and soon after was appointed as the Imperial Advisor of the Great Ming Empire.
At least, in the eyes of many, Qingyunzi's current achievements and status were entirely due to Zhu Yuanzhang's support.
And this year, Qingyunzi had saved Empress Ma. Many were extremely curious about what birthday gift Zhu Yuanzhang would bestow.
...
This day, for many prominent figures in the Taoist sect, might be the most important day of the year.
For no other reason than that it was the birthday of Qingyunzi Zhenren, the number one Taoist in the world, who had held his position for thirty years.
It was rumored that a significant reason Zhu Yuanzhang valued the Taoist sect was because of Qingyunzi Zhenren.
Every year, when it came to matters such as worshipping gods and Buddhas, renewal, welcoming blessings, and praying for a good harvest, the imperial court would never use monks but always select Taoist priests.
In short, this day was the best opportunity for the great figures of the Taoist sect to flatter Qingyunzi Zhenren.
As the day was special, the sect leaders of various Taoist branches had long since taken carriages and were heading towards Qingyun Temple to express their respect and reverence for Qingyunzi, the number one Taoist in the world.
However, when the carriages reached the grand avenue of Qingcheng Mountain, they suddenly stopped, and there was no sign of them moving forward.
In the palanquin, a prominent figure in the Taoist sect was waiting patiently. However, after a while, the carriage still didn't move...
He finally lost his patience, lifted the curtain, poked his head out, and asked impatiently, "What's going on? Why aren't we moving? Can you bear the responsibility if I'm late for Qingyunzi Zhenren's birthday celebration?"
As soon as he finished speaking, upon seeing the scene in front of the carriage, this prominent figure was stunned. He finally understood why his carriage, which was stationary, couldn't move forward.
It turned out that a large number of carriages were heading towards Qingyun Temple from the turn in the grand avenue, one after another, without end. He roughly counted, and there were no less than a hundred.
Because these carriages were not just his palanquin; many other officials were also blocked, and the grand avenue of Qingcheng Mountain had become chaotic.
Just as this prominent figure was bewildered by the scene before him, a disciple who had gone to inquire about the situation hurried to the side of the carriage.
"What's going on with these carriages? Can so many carriages pass on the grand avenue of the national religion? And why is it so chaotic?"
This prominent figure asked again, frowning.
The disciple's expression was strange, but he still explained to his master, "Reporting to Master, I went to inquire. These carriages were all gifts bestowed by the current Emperor to Qingyunzi Zhenren. They are all filled with the birthday gifts from His Majesty to Qingyunzi Zhenren."
This prominent figure was startled and pointed at the hundred carriages moving in single file, asking incredulously, "Are all those carriages carrying birthday gifts?"
The disciple nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, I've asked clearly. They are indeed all birthday gifts from the current Emperor to Qingyunzi Zhenren."
Hearing this, the prominent figure glanced again at the densely packed convoy of carriages not far away and scoffed, "The current Emperor truly dotes on this old immortal Qingyunzi. This year is another grand gesture..."
"It looks like the Taoist sect will once again be dominated by him..."
"However, Qingyunzi is ultimately getting old. How many more years can he live? The future is uncertain..."
This prominent figure was Zhou Junwei, the sect leader of Longhu Mountain. His expression was one of a wry smile, containing both envy and a hint of malice.
As he mumbled to himself, the carriages loaded with birthday gifts finally all passed by.
After a moment of contemplation, Zhou Junwei ordered, "Follow them. We mustn't fall behind others."
...
At the same time, Wang Chongqing, the sect leader of the Quanzhen Sect, lifted the curtain of his carriage and looked at the peers blocked at the intersection.
Seeing that many were looking in his direction, he smiled slightly and nodded, returning their greetings one by one before pulling the curtain closed.
Sitting in the carriage, Wang Chongqing shook his head and muttered, "Isn't the current Emperor making a bit of a fuss? Seeing such a scene, the entire Taoist world will likely be discussing it..."
His disciple, sitting beside him, feeling that Qingyun Temple was stealing the limelight, scoffed a little, somewhat indignantly, "Master, our Quanzhen Sect, in the time of our ancestor Qiu Chuji during the Yuan Dynasty, was just as glorious as their Qingyun Temple."
"Qingyun Temple is ultimately a rising star. Our Quanzhen Sect has a long and profound heritage. I believe they will inevitably decline one day."