Chapter 29: Have you heard about the three women's confessions? Imperial examination fraud...

Soon, government officials surrounded the street and detained everyone in the restaurant opposite for questioning.

"Two brothers, do you want to see what's written on this paper? Maybe it will be helpful to the case." Qin Yuqing put the paper on the table. Qin Junyi and Qin Youqian were shocked when they saw it.

The paper was filled with evidence of many crimes, each of which was punishable by death.

"I came prepared." Qin Youqian calmed down completely. He went to investigate privately the moment he learned of his teacher's death. The paper his subordinates sent him also listed various pieces of evidence.

However, the teacher died at night and not many people saw it, but now it was daytime, and even though the streets were blocked by soldiers, the paper still reached the hands of the people.

For a time, the crowd was outraged.

"People like this deserve to die. Why are you investigating them?"

"Aren't the lives of ordinary people important? Those who forcibly seize ordinary women should go to hell!"

"I heard that the man who died yesterday deserved to die. They said he murdered the newly crowned number one scholar a few years ago."

"Could it be that those murdered students are here to seek revenge?"

"If you don't do anything wrong, you don't have to worry about ghosts."

The rumor grew more and more intense, and then someone in the crowd shouted.

"Another death!"

Not far away, at the entrance of East Street, a senior official from the Ministry of Revenue died in a teahouse in the same way. What was even more bizarre was that this time the teahouse was empty except for the deceased.

The streets were suddenly dead silent. Three people died in one day, all in the same bizarre way. This made people suspect that it was revenge killing.

"Have you heard? Those officials who cheated in the imperial examination will all die!" After these words were spoken, the originally frightened crowd became excited again.

Countless students traveling to Beijing for the imperial examinations angrily denounced these people, accusing them of the vile things they had encountered while studying. Some also claimed to be victims, recognized the deceased, and mingled with the crowd to publicize their actions.

Qin Junyi and Qin Youqian couldn't sit still anymore. They looked at each other, pushed the door open and walked towards the opposite building.

Qin Yuqing sat by the window, looking coldly at the Crown Prince and the Second Prince who were giving orders to the officers and soldiers. This was far from enough, and they had to be completely put off from this idea. These people deserved it, and since the law couldn't suppress them, they would act like ghosts and gods.

"This imperial examination will definitely be the fairest one." Qin Yuqing placed the paper in his hand on the candle flame, watching the flame consume it bit by bit. "At least, everyone in the world should get a chance."

Qin Yuqing had just finished eating and was about to go downstairs when the door was opened and Yao Yu found Qin Yuqing, panting.

"Why do you do this?" Yao Yu asked back.

Qin Yuqing smiled, looked at Yao Yu in confusion, and asked, "Why? Did you receive the money for the painting?"

Yao Yu looked at the woman sitting by the window against the light. Although she had a cold smile on her face, his heart stopped for no reason.

"Did you do that to those officials who died?" Yao Yu took a deep breath to suppress the strange emotions in his heart, and continued, "Is there anything I can help you with? Can you be sure to clear yourself of this?"

"It wasn't entirely my doing. I just went with the flow." Qin Yuqing didn't lie. She and Lu Jingchuan were originally ready to take action, but when they arrived, they saw that the president of the Hanlin Academy was already dead. They just cleaned up the scene and made some casual arrangements.

"What are these?" Yao Yu was a little bit unbelievable. If it wasn't the Sixth Princess, who else would dare to do these things.

"Maybe it's really those candidates who died unjustly who came here to seek revenge?" Qin Yuqing's gaze fell on the crowd. A young girl looked at Qin Yuqing, nodded vigorously, and then disappeared into the crowd.

Yao Yu stopped talking. He looked at the person kneeling opposite him in a penitent manner. He suddenly felt that it didn't matter who did it or why they did it.

What’s important is that it is enough to make the imperial examination fair once.

The successive deaths undoubtedly sounded a wake-up call to the capital. Many timid adults have withdrawn the matter and will wait until next year.

Many students who were afraid of death asked to cancel their qualifications on their own initiative, as they were afraid that the death would happen to them.

But there is still a large number of people who are not afraid of evil, and even put pressure on the emperor in the court, claiming that it was because the Sixth Princess Qin Yuqing participated in the imperial examination that the gods were angry, and this was an ominous sign, and that God was going to destroy the Great Yin.

His Majesty was very angry, but there was nothing he could do because Qin Yuqing and Lu Jingchuan had communicated and negotiated with His Majesty about this matter.

The imperial study at night.

"Nonsense!" His Majesty slammed the table and stood up, pointing at Lu Jingchuan and saying to Qin Yuqing, "Lu Jingchuan doesn't know the seriousness of the matter, don't you? Qing'er, why are you following him and making such a fuss?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down." Lu Jingchuan said without any emotion, "I know I was wrong."

"You know you're wrong? I don't think you think you're wrong at all! You say this every time. When have you ever changed?" His Majesty was so angry that his temples hurt.

Qin Yuqing, with great foresight, stepped forward and massaged His Majesty's temples. "Father, those on the list are legally liable to be executed, and General Lu has the power to execute first and report later." Qin Yuqing patted the Emperor's shoulder and continued, "Besides, didn't I come here to ask Your Majesty first?"

"You call this asking?" Although he said so, the emperor's anger subsided a little. He has always been troubled by this group of people, but there is nothing he can do about it. These people have taken root in the court and cannot be touched.

"Don't make a big fuss." The emperor finally relented. If it was done this way, it would be fine. Some of the termites should be cleaned out.

But what the emperor didn't expect was that the person in charge this time was different, and it was no longer Qin Yuqing and Lu Jingchuan.

When he was sitting in the court of the Dali Temple, if he had not wanted to maintain the emperor's dignity, he would have arrested Lu Jingchuan and the Sixth Princess Qin Yuqing and questioned them thoroughly. What was going on?

The three women knelt upright in the court. Although their hair was disheveled and their faces were unkempt, they still maintained their dignity.

"I, the wife of Li Bin, a commoner, admit to killing the president of the Hanlin Academy." The petite-looking woman in the middle said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"I, the wife of Sun Ran, a commoner, admit to killing the Minister of Rites." The woman on the right revealed her natural charm and grace as she spoke.

The person she killed was from the restaurant across the street.

"I, Bi Ran's wife, admit to killing the Minister of Revenue." The woman on the left habitually raised her index finger when speaking, and her voice unconsciously took on a petty tone.

And the person she killed was the one at the entrance of East Street.

"Your Majesty, look." The sweat on the forehead of the Dali Temple Minister was about to fall. Before they went to arrest the man, these three people knocked on the door of the Dali Temple and said that they had killed the man.

"Why kill people?" His Majesty looked at Qin Yuqing who was drinking tea beside him. He really wanted to ask what this good thing was!

"Li Bin's wife, you speak first."

The woman in the middle kowtowed three times to the emperor, then looked at him with a sorrowful gaze and asked, "I have something to present to the court."

"Your Majesty, you can't do that!" The Dali Temple Minister spoke out to stop him.

"Allowed." The emperor glanced at the Dali Temple Minister and approved the request of the woman in the middle.

The bodies of the two children were brought up, and because they had been dead for some days, they already had a foul smell.

"How dare you! The emperor is here, how dare you..."

"The Supreme Court Judge," Qin Yuqing interrupted with a smile. She stood beside the three women and looked at him. "Since there's a case, it should be carefully examined. I believe the Emperor thinks the same."

"Go on." His Majesty's face showed no emotion. He looked at the two corpses on the ground and already had the answer in his mind.

"Not long ago, the head scholar of the Hanlin Academy came to my husband and said that if he didn't agree to take the exam for me, he would kill our whole family. But my husband didn't want to do that. He studied so hard to get the qualification to take the imperial examination, and he didn't want to be a scapegoat for others."

At this point, the woman in the middle could no longer control her tears. She suppressed her emotions and continued, "So they kidnapped my husband and cruelly killed the two children who were still sleeping..." Perhaps because she couldn't speak, more and more tears welled up in the corners of the woman's eyes, and she continued with a sob.

"They also committed indecent acts against me. My husband was forced to agree to take the exam for us, and only then did they let me and my husband go. But my husband was a loyal and brave man. He was speechless before his ancestors, so he committed suicide."

The woman in the middle pulled out a bloodstained piece of paper and said, "This is the note the then-President of the Hanlin Academy gave me." She kowtowed vigorously, "Every word I say is true!"

Before the Supreme Court Judge could act, Qin Yuqing handed the note to the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, please read this." Qin Yuqing stood in front of the Supreme Court Judge and said, "I believe a mother would not lie about her child. Besides, the evidence is here."

The Emperor nodded. He had already made up his mind. His eyes were deep and his brows were furrowed as he asked, "Then why are you doing this?"

The woman on the right who killed the Minister of Rites said, "Last year during the imperial examination, Sun Lang said that he would come to the brothel to redeem me after he passed. But I waited anxiously that day, but never saw any trace of Sun Lang. I only found out about him when I went to ask around." The woman on the right wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand and continued.

"Sun Lang did pass the imperial examination, but he was unwilling to be a disciple of the Minister of Rites and become their lackey. So he was beaten to death on his way to redeem a commoner. He had brought money to redeem a commoner. We should have lived together and supported each other, but now..."

The woman on the right spoke, her eyes becoming fierce. She looked at the emperor firmly and said, "I reported the matter to the authorities but to no avail, so I decided to kill this bastard official to avenge Sun Lang. I know that killing is a sin, and I have committed a grave crime, but I have no regrets. I hope Your Majesty will make a fair judgment on right and wrong."

The whole place was silent. A brothel girl turned into a sharp blade to avenge the man she loved. What could be wrong with that?

The woman on the left who killed the Minister of Revenue said, "As a concubine, theoretically the Madam should come forward in this matter, but both the Madam and the master have been killed, so I have no choice but to clear their names." The woman continued, unconsciously pausing as she spoke.

"The eldest lady and the master were honest men. Although their official positions were low, they enjoyed a harmonious marriage. The eldest lady was also very kind to the common people. During this imperial examination, the master served as a co-examiner behind the curtain. He refused to falsify the exam papers for the Minister of Revenue and instead tried to expose him, and was killed."

"Every word I say is true. If there is even a single lie, I will be struck by lightning and die a miserable death!"

The whole audience fell silent again. As a concubine, she could have started over in hiding, but she didn't. She resolutely took revenge for those who had been good to her.

"I am aware of my grave sins, and I hope Your Majesty will make a wise judgment and restore a fair and just imperial examination to all students in the world!" The three women said at the same time. They all stood up and bowed to the emperor.

Then they all crashed into the pillar beside them, looking at the emperor and the chief judge.

Die with eyes open.