AUBTN -Chapter 289 Waiting for the Right Moment

Lu Yan also picked up two bowls of plain noodles that had just come out of the pot.

“I don’t know how to cook. Just make do and eat this.”

The two men placed the food they had prepared on the table in the outer room.

Yu Qing and Su Hewan exchanged a smile.

How could marriage be the same no matter who you ended up with?

Even though there were servants, they were still willing to personally wash their hands and cook for you.

At that moment, the two men sat in unison, resting their chins on their hands, each watching their own wife.

They looked as if they were determined to make sure the two women finished eating.

The scene was both absurd and warmly amusing.

Under the “watchful, doting husband” gaze of the two men, the girls finished this affectionate breakfast.

Su Hewan and Yu Qing both felt as if every cell in their bodies had come back to life.

Yu Qing sighed that the power of carbohydrates was limitless—and the power of being fed by powerful men was even more astonishing.

Afterwards, the two returned to the study, where their decoding speed soared dramatically.

Finally—

As the sky fully brightened, Su Hewan slammed her brush down heavily.

“It’s done!”

She took a deep breath and pushed the newly compiled dossier to the center of the table.

The four of them gathered around the desk, their eyes fixed tightly on the evidence.

On the thick stack of papers, every word was like blood dripping—shocking and horrifying.

Selling official positions and titles, with clear prices listed— even a local prefectural post was sold for one hundred thousand taels of silver.

Embezzling military funds, withholding grain supplies for the western border troops, causing thirty thousand soldiers to starve to death on the battlefield.

Colluding with foreign enemies, secretly leaking border defense maps in exchange for rare treasures.

Crushing lives without hesitation—ordering the massacre of three entire villages just to seize their fertile lands.

One crime after another.

All clearly recorded—dates, locations, handlers, and even the flow of silver through specific banks—without a single omission.

This was ironclad proof enough to sentence Zhou Wenhai to a thousand cuts.

Lu Yan’s veins bulged on the back of his hand, killing intent surging around him.

“What a Minister of War… what a pillar of the nation!”

Shen Jue’s smile grew wider, but his gaze turned colder.

“Good and evil will always be repaid.”

Zhou Wenhai’s death sentence had arrived.

Yu Qing was even more excited—she slammed the table hard.

“Great! With solid evidence like this, what are we waiting for? Lock up that old bastard Zhou Wenhai already!”

“Confiscate his property! Exile him! Execute his entire clan!”

Lu Yan, who had been lifting his teacup, paused slightly.

A trace of helpless indulgence flickered across his face.

Her world really was that simple—pure black and white.

But he still poured cold water on her excitement without mercy.

“No.”

“Zhou Wenhai has held the position of Minister of War for so many years. He is far from ordinary.”

“His disciples and followers are spread throughout the court. His faction runs deep.”

Lu Yan tapped the thick ledger with his slender fingers.

“If we act rashly now, he will only find a way to argue and escape punishment.”

“And once he gets wind of it, he will counterattack desperately.”

Yu Qing was left speechless.

Her burning excitement instantly cooled.

【Damn it! Is bureaucracy in ancient times this complicated? I thought having evidence meant you could just arrest someone!】

Shen Jue stood to the side, playing with his folding fan. Hearing this, he smiled faintly.

“Rarely do I agree with Lord Lu, but he has finally said something human.”

Lu Yan shot him a cold glance but did not respond.

Shen Jue ignored him.

“Besides, this ledger must never be exposed directly by the Eastern Depot or the Jinyiwei.”

His dark gaze passed through the window lattice, deliberately looking toward the direction of the imperial palace.

“The real question is—who delivers it to the one who will judge him. That is what determines life and death.”

Submit it to the Three Judicial Offices for trial?

Half of them were Zhou Wenhai’s people. The ledger might not even make it in before being quietly destroyed.

Give it to the Empress Dowager?

Doing so would be no different from openly clashing with the steadily growing power and prestige of the Empress Dowager.

Su Hewan sat quietly to the side.

She understood Shen Jue and Lu Yan’s concerns all too well.

“The current situation is like a powder keg that could explode at any moment,” Su Hewan said.

She lifted her head, her cold gaze sweeping across everyone present as she patiently explained to Yu Qing.

“We can’t act now.”

“Zhou Wenhai is a ravenous wolf. If we want to take him down in one strike, we need someone who can deliver a final, decisive blow.”

“The best way is to have someone with greater authority judge him.”

Although Yu Qing was not academically strong, her mind worked quickly.

Following Su Hewan’s gaze, she also looked toward the direction of the imperial palace.

“You mean… the young emperor?”

Su Hewan nodded.

“That’s right. Only the Son of Heaven himself can issue an imperial decree to legitimately strip Zhou Wenhai of his military power and ensure he never rises again.”

“Moreover, once the emperor awakens, not only can Zhou Wenhai be eliminated, but it will also directly break the Empress Dowager’s monopoly over court affairs!”

Listening to Su Hewan’s calculations, Shen Jue’s smile deepened.

His eyes were filled with unconcealed admiration and amazement.

This woman’s mind always aligned with his so precisely.

She was simply born to stand beside him.

“So, we must endure for now,” Su Hewan concluded firmly.

Although Yu Qing still felt frustrated, she understood the stakes.

Biting her lip, she let out an angry snort.

“Fine! Then let that old fox live a few more days!”

“Consider it… giving him time to prepare his funeral!”

With the plan decided, Su Hewan carefully took out a white porcelain bottle.

Inside it was the antidote she had previously obtained from the deposed empress Zhou Ruoyun—something that could awaken the young emperor.

“The most important thing now is to wake His Majesty,” Su Hewan said, gripping the bottle tightly, her gaze clear and resolute.

“Once the emperor awakens, the Empress Dowager can no longer use his illness and youth as an excuse to continue controlling the court.”

She raised her eyes, sweeping them across the two powerful men before her.

“Tonight, we act.”

Shen Jue and Lu Yan exchanged a look.

In that moment, they saw the same understanding in each other’s eyes.

Both nodded at the same time.

“Alright.”

The night was as dark as ink.

No stars. No moon.

Deep within the imperial palace, security was tight.

All guards outside the emperor’s bedchamber were men loyal to Zhou Wenhai.

Breaking in would not be easy.

But this time, they had no choice but to force their way in.

The Empress Dowager likely did not truly want the young emperor to wake.

So they could not risk seeking her help.

Shen Jue and Lu Yan changed into night attire, their figures blending seamlessly into the darkness like two ghosts.

They guarded Su Hewan and Yu Qing tightly, one on each side.

Fortunately, the emperor’s personal eunuch was loyal.

Eunuch Fu Hai used an excuse to dismiss all the palace maids and attendants on night duty.

He hid in the shadow of the doorway, trembling with nervous sweat.

Only when several dark figures silently landed before him did he finally exhale in relief.

“Lord Commander, Lord Lu…” Fu Hai lowered his voice, still shaking.

“It’s all arranged. The Empress Dowager’s people have also been lured away.”

Shen Jue said nothing and directly pushed open the palace doors.

Inside, only a dim ever-burning lamp remained lit.

Su Hewan quickly passed through layers of gauze curtains and arrived at the bedside.

Beneath the bright yellow quilt, the young emperor was still asleep.

Only his face looked even paler than before.

Su Hewan did not hesitate.

She instructed the little eunuch to help lift the emperor up, then took out the white porcelain bottle from her robes.

Grasping the emperor’s jaw, she gently forced his mouth open.

She tilted the bottle toward his lips.

The medicinal liquid slowly flowed down his cracked lips and into his mouth.