Chapter 343: Division (1)

The case of Shen Yuan's accidental murder of Sun Cainan in Dingjing was handled with unprecedented vigour. First, Sun Tianzheng submitted a memorial to the court demanding that Shen Yuan pay with blood. If he refused, he would retire due to his age and frailty, effectively threatening to resign from his position.

Compared to Shen Gui, the Minister of Personnel was clearly more important. Sun Tianzheng had been in office for many years, and if he were suddenly replaced by someone else, it would likely lead to chaos. Emperor Wenhui naturally wanted to appease Sun Tianzheng. Secondly, the censors, who routinely pointed fingers at court officials for their mistakes, would certainly not let this case of manslaughter go unpunished. Thinking of Sun Tianzheng's loss of his only son, the censors focused their impeachment on Shen Gui.

What was surprising was Chen Gui's attitude. He knelt in front of Emperor Wenhui, and with tears in his eyes, he assured that it was because he had failed to educate his son well. He was willing to sacrifice his own life for the sake of justice and let Chen Yuan pay with his own life.

It is said that these words shocked all the civil and military officials in the court at that time.

While this sounded impartial and just, it was rather inhumane to treat his own son with his own life instead of fighting for his own life. Even though Chen Gui was usually very smooth-talking, even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs. This action still made his colleagues, who were usually on good terms with him, stay away from him.

The ministers all sided with Sun Tianzheng. When Emperor Wenhui asked the princes for their opinions, all nine princes unanimously sided with Sun Tianzheng. Even if they didn't express their opinions, everyone knew where the case would lead.

The order to execute Shen Yuan was issued three days later, which was probably the fastest order since the founding of Ming Qi. There was almost no attempt to overturn the verdict or resist, and he was convicted directly. This was certainly due to the instigation of the Sun family, and the inaction of the Shen family was also a big factor. As for whether there were other people secretly pushing the issue, it is unknown.

In the dark cell, Chen Yuan sat at the very back. His hair was disheveled, and his clothes, unwashed for days, had already given off a sour, foul smell. A closer look revealed a hint of panic, even a hint of despair, in his usually calm eyes.

Someone had sneaked into the place last night and given him a mute drug. He couldn't say a word. Who would do this? Who had such a powerful ability to break into the prison? Chen Yuan knew it all.

Fu Xiuyi wouldn't come to his rescue. Initially, he'd harbored a lingering hope, but after careful consideration, he realized Fu Xiuyi's rescue would only do more harm than good. The man, skilled at seeking advantage and avoiding harm, wouldn't risk his life for him. On the contrary, Chen Yuan's existence had become a restless pawn for Fu Xiuyi, and Fu Xiuyi would naturally eliminate him without mercy.

Feeding him a mute drug didn't necessarily mean they didn't want to kill him, but Fu Xiuyi was cautious by nature, and he was probably afraid that his death in prison would arouse suspicion.

A bitter smile slowly formed on Chen Yuan's lips. The victors are the kings, the losers are the bandits. He knew what kind of person Fu Xiuyi was from the beginning. Working under Fu Xiuyi, he should have expected this outcome, but he didn't expect it to come so quickly.

There seemed to be the sound of footsteps in the darkness, slow and different from the somewhat hurried voices of the jailers. He raised his head and looked in the direction of the footsteps. Under the dim light, he saw a purple dress approaching.

Further up, the girl with a pretty face looked at him and smiled slightly: "Second brother."

Chen Yuan felt a lump in his throat.

The moment he saw Shen Miao's face, strong hatred and unwillingness surged from his heart, making Shen Yuan want to kill Shen Miao right now.

Even though he didn't understand why things had turned out like this, there was one thing that Shen Yuan was very clear about: Shen Miao had to be involved in this matter.