Chapter 23 — Holy Order of Dowry

"You think if you can escape from the city, who else can protect you?" His eyes were a bit panicked. And at that very moment, Han Than jumped up like an animal, one arm embracing the long box. The man in the blue shirt pulled out his short knife and violently stabbed Han Than in the shoulder. My chest tightens. I don't know when, Tieu Thua Canh jumped from the shore onto the black boat. He swung his sword and cut off the blue-clothed man's blade. Immediately after that, he kicked him to the deck with another kick. The long box fell from his hand and flew toward the river surface. I almost didn't need to think, I jumped to the edge of the boat and reached out to grab it. His fingertips lightly grazed the corner of the box. In the next moment, from behind Tieu Thua Canh wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, his other hand grabbed the handle of the box. The small boat and the black boat crashed into the iron gate of the water gate at the same time. Under that terrifying shock, the whole person was thrown hard into his chest. He let out a soft groan of pain, his back hitting the boat pole hard. But that hand from beginning to end still did not let go. He pulled the long box and dropped it onto the deck of the boat. I immediately separated myself from his chest. He lowered his voice and whispered: "The box did not fall into the water." I reached out my hand to take it, my voice was calm. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for protecting the evidence." His eyes darkened slightly. No thanks to him for protecting me. It's just protecting evidence. The man in the blue shirt was controlled by the army and knelt down on the ground. Blood oozed from Han Than's shoulder, but he still kept his eyes glued to the box. "Open." I took the old piece of jade that my father left behind. The box's mechanism made a soft sound and then opened. Inside was a thick military notebook. The first page has a few big words written on it: "General register of Tay Canh". And the last page of the general ledger contained an unnamed secret letter. On the letter there was only a single sentence. "The Shen family has collapsed, the Regent of the Royal Palace can control the Western landscape, the palace will automatically agree." A long trumpet signal sounded on the shore. A group of soldiers rushed forward from the palace wearing a mist on horseback. The inner servant took the lead and loudly announced: "Your Majesty has an order to escort all those involved in the case to the palace." I closed the general ledger and looked up at the gradually brightening sky. It's morning. But this debt has only just reached its deepest point. 21 When the general ledger was brought to the Royal Library, the court bell had just rang. The civil and martial arts mandarins knelt down on the red steps, no one dared to raise their heads. The emperor opened the general books of the Western region in front of the mandarin, then ordered his inner servant to read aloud the supplementary book that General Tran Tham had risked his life to protect. Every piece of silver, every order, every seal, was read clearly. After hearing the news, the Lieu family in Vinh An alley immediately became weak and collapsed on the spot. The right wolf soldiers prostrated themselves on the ground, kowtowing to the point of bleeding, but could not get even a word of leniency in return. The Emperor only glanced at the will of the Thieu palace placed in front of the court, then coldly ordered the entire list of Thieu's disciples to be blocked. When the royal concubine was escorted into the palace, her bun of hair fell apart. She saw the total accounts, and finally could no longer maintain the nobility of all these years. She knelt down on the ground, her voice hoarse, saying that it was all for the royal palace. Standing in the main hall, I just found that statement ridiculous. For the sake of the royal palace, you can swallow all my wedding clothes. For the sake of the royal palace, you can destroy my body. Because of the royal palace, the dry bones in the Western world could be left in obscurity for so many years. The Emperor no longer wanted to listen to her excuses. The royal concubine was stripped of her title and exiled to the royal temple and palace

For the rest of your life, you cannot take a half step. The Lieu family in Vinh An lane had their property confiscated. Whoever appropriated Tham Thi's dowry must pay back the full amount. The shortfall must be converted into silver and compensated three times. Lieu Minh Chau fraudulently entered the government, plotted to usurp the position of concubine, was stripped of her title of concubine, and returned to the family to await trial. When she was being taken away, she cried and looked back at Tieu Thua Canh. Tieu Thua Canh did not look at her. He's always looking at me. But I don't stop because of his eyes anymore. The Emperor issued an order again, re-trialing the old case of Tay Canh, posthumously ordaining my father Tham Hoai Nhac as Trung Liet Marquis, preparing for the old subordinates of the Tham family to be restored to honor and position, and providing generous support to the families of the generals and soldiers implicated in the past. Han Than knelt in the middle of the palace, propped one hand on the ground, crying like a child. My nose stung, but I held back my tears. Mom once said that the Tham family can cry, but they are not allowed to bow to their enemies. Finally, the Emperor looked at me. He said, Tham Thi Van Chi, your request is absolutely correct, I will approve it. As soon as this sentence ended, Tieu Thua Canh suddenly raised his head. His face was paler than the morning mist outside the palace. I knelt down to give thanks. Very steady voice. From this moment on, I am no longer the Princess Regent. I'm just Tham Van Chi.