Chapter 77 What is a man compared to a severed arm and a kingdom?

"This is the Pang residence... Who are you people?"

As Pang Qingyuan watched the soldiers rush in, he was still shouting defiantly, but a sense of foreboding was creeping into his heart.

"We are here on orders to arrest you and bring you to justice."

Yu Liu didn't waste any more words with them. He ordered his men to take the kidnapped man home, tied up Pang Guoan and his daughter, and took them away along with the servants in the house who knew what was going on.

After listening to Yu Liu and the others' accounts, Xue Lang asked a question.

"So, Sun Shijun risked everything to switch the death row inmate for Pang Guoan for money?" she couldn't help but wonder.

This doesn't make sense. Sun Shijun has been the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel for many years. Is he really that short of money?

"This matter is related to His Highness," Zhang Xiaoju said.

"Oh? Why do you say that?" Yuan Yan raised his eyes.

"This brings us back to the case of the grain transport."

"When His Highness discovered the embezzled accounts, many officials were imprisoned, including Lord Sun's confidants."

"This man's greatest skill is making money. Every year, the grain tribute alone can contribute a large sum of money to Lord Sun. He is a veritable money bag."

Zhang Xiaoju smiled slightly.

"But Your Highness confiscated Lord Sun's purse in one fell swoop. Lord Sun and Prince Qi are short of silver, so they must think of other ways to make up for it as much as possible, right?"

The root of this problem lies with Yuan Jing. She was accustomed to extravagance and luxury, with enormous daily expenses at the palace, not to mention supporting numerous advisors and retainers. The meager funds allocated by the palace were simply insufficient.

Feng Qing and Sun Shijun often gave her financial support.

However, Sun Shijun himself no longer has a huge source of money, so he can only think of other ways.

Just then, Pang Guoan ran into trouble and sought help from Sun Shijun, offering to spend ten thousand taels of silver to save his life.

After careful consideration, Sun Shijun felt that although the matter was risky, it was still safer than selling official positions. Dealing with the Ministry of Justice was easy; once the person was replaced, as long as Pang Guoan hid well and didn't show his face, hiding in the countryside and not coming out again, who would find out?

So she agreed, took the money, and did the job of swapping the death row inmate.

"It's a pity that I wasn't in the capital when the case of embezzlement of grain was closed, otherwise I would not have let Sun Shijun get away so easily."

Yuan Yan felt somewhat regretful, as if she hadn't been assassinated, they could have traced the investigation further back to Sun Shijun.

"Then what should we do now, Your Highness?" Yu Liu asked.

The person has been apprehended. The next step for Yuan Yan will definitely be to report this to the Empress Dowager.

But this matter absolutely cannot be handled by her personally.

Otherwise, given the Empress Dowager's suspicious nature, she would surely think that Yuan Yan had been secretly plotting against Yuan Jing's faction, harboring great ambitions. Even if Sun Shijun were eventually brought down, Yuan Yan would definitely lose the Emperor's favor.

That would result in a lose-lose situation for both her and Yuan Jing.

"Then, host, if you can't do it yourself, why not find someone to help you?" The system sensed Yuan Yan's thoughts and immediately said.

"The key question is who to look for." Yuan Yan searched his mind, and a series of faces came to mind.

To distance herself from this matter, Yuan Yan needed to find someone who was ostensibly unrelated to her to act as a scapegoat.

"You don't need to worry about this anymore; I'll take care of the rest."

Yuan Yan spoke to Xue Lang and the others.

"Yes, I understand."

The officials obeyed and left. After they left, Zhang Xiaoju spoke at the opportune moment.

"Your Highness, is Your Highness satisfied with this pledge of loyalty that I, Zhang, have submitted?"

Yuan Yan: "If you can truly eliminate Sun Shijun for the court this time, then you will be a meritorious official of the Prince's Palace, and I will reward you handsomely."

"I do not need any reward of gold or silver. I only hope to assist Your Highness in ascending to the throne. If I can achieve this wish and be remembered in history alongside Your Highness, then my life will not have been in vain."

Zhang Xiaoju said sincerely.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yan scrutinized Zhang Xiaoju once more.

Ever since Zhang Xiaoju came to seek refuge there, Yuan Yan had people investigate his background.

Zhang Xiaoju was from Dengzhou. She came from a poor family; her father was the only one who supported her education.

This person loved reading from a young age and was quite talented. He passed the imperial examination at a young age and became a well-known child prodigy in the area.

However, fate seemed to be playing a joke on Zhang Xiaoju. She seemed to have bad luck in the subsequent imperial examinations, failing repeatedly.

To make a living and to realize his ambitions, Zhang Xiaoju became a staff member of the Prince of Qi, helping Yuan Jing to devise strategies.

Because of his exceptional wisdom and profound insight, he was highly regarded by Yuan Jing.

"Advisor Zhang, if I am not mistaken, it was your idea to have Yuan Jing propose marriage to a member of the Lu family, wasn't it?"

Yuan Yan's tone made it impossible to discern his true thoughts.

"..."

Zhang Xiaoju paused for a moment, then said frankly, "To be honest, Your Highness, it was indeed my suggestion. At the time, the Lu family was the best choice for marriage alliance from every perspective. As a staff member of the Prince of Qi at that time, I naturally had to consider the interests of my lord."

"So, you have a grudge against me for stealing your husband. After such a great humiliation, what makes you think I would forgive you and use you?" Yuan Yan's voice was slightly cold.

Under the oppressive aura of Yuan Yan, anyone else would probably have been so frightened that they would have knelt down and begged for forgiveness.

But Zhang Xiaoju remained standing, carefully considering his words.

"I am guilty of this matter, Your Highness. If Your Highness wishes to punish me, I am willing to accept it."

"But I privately feel that His Highness is not the kind of person who would disregard the greater good for the sake of a mere man."

"With Your Highness's magnanimity and tolerance, you can accommodate the country and its people, and naturally you can accommodate me as well."

Yuan Yan: "You certainly know how to flatter me."

"This is not flattery; Zhang had considered all sorts of possibilities before he came."

"Now that we have chosen Your Highness, we are willing to bear the consequences of this decision."

“If Your Highness still harbors resentment, I, Zhang, am willing to offer my head as compensation. If Your Highness can forgive and forget, I will be grateful and wholeheartedly serve Your Highness,” Zhang Xiaoju said.

She was absolutely right.

What is Lu Lingyue? In Yuan Yan's heart now, compared to a capable subordinate, he is nothing.

Yuan Yan smiled.

"Then I shall see if the lady-in-waiting is capable enough to make me forgive her."

This means that Zhang Xiaoju is being given a chance.

Zhang Xiaoju was overjoyed upon hearing this and bowed deeply, saying, "I, Zhang, will do my utmost to assist Your Highness!"

[Host, host, Zhang Xiaoju's loyalty has increased! Currently at 60 points. Congratulations, host, on gaining another strategist.]

[Ta-da! The host has reached the required number of capable civil and military officials under their command, triggering the achievement: Abundant Talents. 10,000 achievement points gained!]

[In addition, the host has gradually gained control of the Ruijian Camp in the past few days, and the degree of control has risen again, reaching 37.12%. We are one step closer to the final goal, congratulations!] The system happily broadcast the report.

Yuan Yan: "Okay, I understand."

[Host, who are you planning to ask to expose Sun Shijun?] The system really couldn't think of anyone.

"There is one person who might be able to."

A certain figure appeared in Yuan Yan's mind.

“But I have no connection with this person. If I want her to work for me, I’ll probably have to find someone else.”

"Who is it, host?" the system asked curiously.

“Du Heng,” Yuan Yan said.

...

In the imperial court.

"The real show is about to begin," Yuan Yan said to the system in his mind.

Jiang Bai, the Grand Counselor, stepped forward with his tablet in hand and said, "Your Majesty, I have a memorial to present!"

"I have recently heard rumors that there are irregularities in the execution of death row inmates by the Ministry of Justice. Pang Guoan, a serious criminal, should have been beheaded, but he was secretly switched and escaped death, remaining at large!"

"Such a thing has happened." Yuan Hao's expression suddenly darkened.

Jiang Bai continued: "This matter involves a large sum of embezzled silver. Upon verification, the mastermind behind it is a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Personnel. Because he accepted a bribe of ten thousand taels of silver from Pang Guoan, he did not hesitate to deceive the emperor and break the law, and switched the criminals."

Upon hearing this, the court officials began to speculate in their hearts.

In an instant, Sun Shijun's heart was filled with turmoil, and he could no longer hide his emotions, which revealed a hint of shock.

How did this matter get known? She had clearly cleaned up the mess, so how did the news leak out?

Yuan Hao's eyes were filled with anger: "Who is so audacious as to treat my Ministry of Justice as a place for buying and selling!"

“This man is none other than Lord Sun, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel,” Jiang Bai said.

The courtiers were immediately in an uproar, and even Yuan Hao's expression changed slightly, his eyes becoming sharp and intense.

Yuan Jing's breathing became erratic, and he couldn't help but look at his maternal grandfather.

"..."

Sun Shijun, as expected of a senior official for many years, was able to remain calm at this moment.

"Lord Jiang, as an advisor, you cannot arbitrarily slander someone's innocence. When has this old woman ever done such a thing?" she retorted to Jiang Bai.

System: [Even after all this, Sun Shijun still won't admit it?]

“With Pang Guoan alive, no matter how desperately she denies it, it’s useless; it’s just a death throes,” Yuan Yan said without any worry.

Jiang Bai remained calm and produced a prepared statement. "The Dali Temple has arrested Pang Guoan and brought him to justice. Pang Guoan has confessed to bribing Lord Sun. The statement is here with his seal. Your Majesty can judge for yourself whether it is true or false."

Upon hearing this, Sun Shijun immediately realized that he was being watched.

She was caught completely off guard and her affair was exposed in front of everyone in the imperial court. No matter how powerful her methods were, she couldn't erase the guilt she had committed.

Yuan Hao flipped through the confession, sneered, and slammed it onto the Phoenix Table.

"Very well. Since ascending the throne, I have worked diligently, day and night, handling affairs of the court. I thought the government was clean and efficient, and I had done justice to my ancestors. I never expected that I would raise the greatest traitor by my side!"

These words were extremely harsh, leaving no room for negotiation.

Upon hearing this, Sun Shijun knew his fate was sealed, and his heart sank, leaving him speechless.

how so……

Yuan Jing's face turned pale. Looking at his maternal grandfather, his lips trembled, but he still couldn't utter a word.

The sudden turn of events threw the Qi King's faction into a panic.

Jiang Bai: "Lord Sun, as a high-ranking official in the court, took the lead in accepting bribes, which has a profound impact. If this case is not severely punished, the court's discipline will be completely destroyed. I implore Your Majesty to severely punish him and uphold the law!"

The system was surprised. [Host, you made the right choice in hiring Jiang Bai for this. She's really outspoken… Isn't she afraid the Prince of Qi will hold her accountable later?]

"If you don't kill the snake, it will cause endless trouble. At times like these, you have to use someone like Jiang Bai," Yuan Yan said.

Yuan Hao: "Sun Shijun, as a prime minister, has been corrupt and embezzled, and has privately exchanged death row inmates. He has deceived the emperor and his crimes are unforgivable... He shall be stripped of his official rank and exiled to Qianzhou."

Other officials from the Ministry of Justice involved in the case were sentenced to either beheading or exile, depending on the severity of their crimes.

Officials from the Dali Temple who failed in their supervisory duties were also punished.

As for Pang Guoan, the original death row inmate, he was sentenced to death by slow slicing for bribing his way out of execution.