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Shen Yijia’s tuneless singing sounded intermittently in the forest again. Song Jingchen looked at the person sitting on Furball’s back and smiled.

More than three months had passed. The people Emperor Chong’an had sent to investigate the disappearance of the young girl had also returned one after another. Just as Shangguan Han had said to Lord Zhou back then, this kind of thing did not only happen in Xunyang City.

The results of the secret investigation by the Shadow Guards were the same. As long as it was a remote town, many young girls would disappear every year. Dead or alive, they were nowhere to be seen, and their whereabouts were still unknown.

Because most of the missing girls were children of poor families, many people felt that it was fine to lose a good-for-nothing. They could not even be bothered to report the disappearances to the authorities.

Even if some people went to report it, they would end up with nothing. Moreover, there had been a saying since ancient times that the government office didn’t welcome anyone with no money.

How many of those officials who lived in remote areas would do anything?

Emperor Chong’an looked at the secret letter sent by the Shadow Guards and was furious. “Alright, because a county magistrate took over this case, he died at home in less than three days. If I investigate, will I also die while working on this case? Is this world still my world?”

The disappearance of young girls everywhere was actually within Emperor Chong’an’s expectations. However, he did not expect an official to lose his life because of this. He could not help but feel furious.

When an official died in office, it was usually reported by his superiors. After the report changed hands many times, the Ministry of Official Personnel Affairs reported it to Emperor Chong’an and arranged for an official to replace him.

When this report landed in Emperor Chong’an’s hands, the truth behind it had long been changed. If he had not asked the Shadow Guards to investigate this time, he would probably still be in the dark after being usurped.

“Your Majesty, it’s time to go to court.” Eunuch Li’s voice came from outside the hall.

Emperor Chong’an suppressed his anger and burned the secret letter before letting them in.

In the past, Emperor Chong’an had always ignored the matter of the court officials appointing a crown prince. However, this time, he took the initiative to mention it in the court, allowing the court officials to express their opinions.

After the ministers finished arguing below, Emperor Chong’an glanced at the princes standing at the front and said with a fake smile that he would consider it.

In the minister’s opinion, this simple sentence meant that Emperor Chong’an had relented. It was only a matter of time before he appointed a prince as the crown prince.

After the court session, Emperor Chong’an called the princes to the imperial study.

Emperor Chong’an did not have many children in his life, especially in recent years.

Excluding those who had yet to grow up, there were still six princes and three princesses left.

Apart from Shangguan Han, who had been demoted to Xunyang, there were five other princes in the capital.

Among them, the Sixth Prince was still young and had yet to leave the palace. The other four already had their own residences and would more or less participate in some government affairs.

Emperor Chong’an had always been afraid of the deposed empress. There was actually another reason why the Bulwark Duke’s Residence was destroyed.

After the disinheritance of the fifth prince, Shangguan Han, a few princes were born in the harem one after another. However, all of them died inexplicably in infancy.

It was hard not to suspect that it was done by the deposed empress.

Inaction before having children could be understood as a bargaining chip without competition.

However, things were different with Shangguan Han around. The existence of another prince was an additional threat to Shangguan Han.

It was not difficult to understand why she would attack the other princes for the sake of her son.

These doubts made Emperor Chong’an even more convinced that if Shangguan Han continued to sit on the throne and allowed the Bulwark Duke Residence to grow stronger day by day, he would sooner or later be forced to abdicate.

He would never allow such a thing to happen.

This thought became stronger and stronger as Shangguan Han grew up. Therefore, when Grand Tutor Zhao reported it, he knew that something was fishy, but he still attacked.

Things were originally within his control. He did not expect that when he placed all his suspicions on Shangguan Han, he would overlook his other sons.

They had grown up and had developed their own ulterior motives.

Emperor Chong’an looked at his sons kneeling on the ground with a dark expression. Even the youngest Sixth Prince had been brought over by Emperor Chong’an.

The atmosphere in the imperial study was a little oppressive. Since Emperor Chong’an did not speak, the few of them did not dare to stand up. They only bowed their heads respectfully and knelt without daring to make a sound.

“Where’s the Second Prince?” Emperor Chong’an suddenly said.

Eunuch Li lowered his head in fear and replied, “The Second Prince suffered from a serious illness a few days ago. Didn’t Your Majesty allow him to recuperate at Hidden Spirit Temple?”

Emperor Chong’an frowned. “He hasn’t recovered yet?”

After a moment of silence, he said, “Make a trip personally later and bring a few imperial physicians to take a look at him. If there’s anything missing, take it from the palace.”

“Yes sir.”

Emperor Chong’an’s concerned words made the Eldest Prince’s eyes flash.

“All of you, get up. Why are you kneeling?” Emperor Chong’an glanced at them and picked up the memorial on the table.

“Thank you, Father.” They stood up.

“Look, look. These people are all urging me to appoint a crown prince.” Emperor Chong’an flipped through a few petitions in a row. None of them could avoid discussing the matter of appointing a crown prince. It was as if Great Xia would fall if he did not appoint a crown prince.

He threw the memorial aside and looked up at them. He seemed to have sensed something and said, “In the blink of an eye, you’ve all grown up. I’m old. Tell me, what do you think about this matter?”

He looked like an easygoing person when he said that.

The Fourth Prince, Shangguan Yao, was about to speak when the Eldest Prince, Shangguan Pu, beat him to it. “Father, you’re wise. I definitely wouldn’t dare to have such thoughts. Besides, Father is in good spirits. There’s no hurry.”

“Oh?” Emperor Chong’an raised his eyebrows and did not comment on Shangguan Pu’s words. He looked at the Third Prince, Shangguan Heng. “Third Prince, what do you think?”

“I only want to be an idle prince. As for the rest, the world belongs to Father, so Father naturally has the final say.” Shangguan Heng looked serious. He had a baby face and looked innocent and harmless, but he was the one who loved to fool around the most among the princes.

Countless women had fallen in love with him because of his face.

Apart from the crown prince, in Great Xia, the princes could usually start participating in government matters when they reached the age of tying their hair. The fourth prince had already started taking on some jobs in the Ministry of Revenue last year, but the third prince was only forced to do so at the beginning of this year.

Apart from the Third Prince, there was another exception, the Second Prince. Firstly, he did not have his biological mother to support him, and secondly, he did not have any external support. Naturally, he was more transparent in the imperial court.

Emperor Chong’an was a little resentful towards the Third Prince for his behavior. He pointed at him and scolded, “If your mother hadn’t begged me, do you think I would have cared about you? The next time an imperial censor comes to me to impeach you for going to those brothels, I’ll throw you into Taipu Temple to raise horses.”