The Imperial Guard nodded and then quickly headed towards the entrance of the government office.

Zhu Yunwen glanced at the old man on the ground and then gave a wink to one of the Imperial Guards behind him.

After the old man was helped up, Zhu Yunwen spoke:

"Old man, your daughter has been captured by the Qin Prince's men, hasn't she?"

The old man nodded and said, "Yes, but the Prince of Qin's mansion is abusive and no one in the world can do anything to them... My poor daughter, I don't even know if she's alive or dead now. I've heard that few women who are taken to the Prince of Qin's mansion have a good ending..."

At this point, the old man began to cry.

Zhu Yunwen sighed softly and said:

“Old man, there’s no need to despair. Come with me to the government office first, and I will uphold justice.”

The old man glanced at Zhu Yunwen and then said:

“Young man, I know you mean well, but you shouldn’t get involved in this matter, lest you lose your life. Even the prefect in this government office doesn’t dare to interfere… Heaven is blind.”

Zhu Yunwen patiently explained:

"Don't worry, I'll handle this today!"

As he was speaking, he saw a fourth-rank prefect in a red robe rushing out of the government office with a group of officials.

He immediately went to Zhu Yunwen's side and knelt down:

"Your subject, the Prefect of Xi'an Prefecture, along with all the officials of the Xi'an Prefecture government, pays his respects to His Highness the Crown Prince."

As he spoke, he led a group of officials behind him to kowtow to Zhu Yunwen, a scene that attracted a large crowd of onlookers.

The old man, who had been helped up by the Imperial Guards, looked at Zhu Yunwen in surprise.

His lips trembled slightly as he said:

"The...the grandson of the emperor?"

Zhu Yunwen smiled and said to the old man:

"That's right, I am the current Crown Prince. Your Majesty, do you think I can intervene in this matter?"

The old man immediately became excited, but then frowned and said:

"But the Prince of Qin's mansion is, after all..."

Zhu Yunwen knew what the old man was worried about. After all, the Prince of Qin was the second son of the current emperor, and according to seniority, he was Zhu Yunwen's second uncle.

However, in the royal family, the relationship between ruler and subject comes first, followed by blood ties.

Zhu Yunwen, now the grandson of the emperor, is the heir apparent of the Ming Dynasty, a position second only to the emperor.

Regardless of whether they are uncles or elders, their primary and most important status in front of me is that of a subject.

Since they are subjects, I have the right to teach them a lesson.

So Zhu Yunwen said:

"No matter who it is, I will decide everything today. Guards, take the old man to the government office and help him beat the drum to appeal for justice."

Several Imperial Guards helped the old man to the gate of the government office to beat the drum. Only then did Zhu Yunwen look at the group of government officials.

He simply spoke:

"So many people have come to the government office to seek justice, and you not only ignore them, but even have your constables join forces with the Prince of Qin's men to beat them up. Don't you intend to give me an explanation?"

Upon hearing Zhu Yunwen's words, the prefect trembled with fear and stammered:

"Your Highness, this... I am also extremely heartbroken. They are all suing Prince Qin. Tell me, how dare I, a mere prefect, interfere with Prince Qin?"

"Let alone managing His Highness Prince Qin, even my superior, the Provincial Governor, is under His Highness Prince Qin's control. Before His Highness Prince Qin, I am merely a subordinate official; how dare I presume to interfere? I beg Your Highness, the Crown Prince, to understand..."

Zhu Yunwen understood that the prefect didn't not want to manage the matter, but rather he couldn't and dared not manage it.

Since he didn't want to make things difficult for him any further, he simply said calmly:

"Have someone bring in all those who want to file a complaint, and have someone write down clearly what they want to complain about and their demands, and then hand them to me one by one. Also, I will temporarily take over this government office. Today, I will hold a court hearing here."

With that, Zhu Yunwen waved his sleeve and swaggered into the government office.

He first went into the inner yamen and had the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) change into the uniforms of their Jinyiwei commanders.

After all, he was wearing the uniform of the Imperial Guard. The imposing flying fish robe and embroidered spring knife exuded an unparalleled aura.

Zhu Yunwen himself donned a four-clawed python robe. He then went up to the vast courtroom and sat in the seat of honor.

To the left and right of the lower left were some officials from the government office, followed by a group of Imperial Guards, who stood solemnly holding embroidered spring knives.

After Zhu Yunwen sat down, he slammed the gavel on the table and roared:

“Bring the aggrieved party to the court.”

A member of the Imperial Guard helped an old man slowly walk into the courtroom, followed by more than a dozen guards who had been at the entrance of the government office.

They each held a petition in their hands, which Zhu Yunwen had instructed the officials to have them state their demands, etc.

After these people entered the hall, Zhu Yunwen began to speak:

"Whom do you intend to sue?"

The elderly man at the head of the group spoke first:

"Your Highness, I, this humble servant, have filed a complaint against Zhu Shuang, the Prince of Qin of Xi'an Prefecture..."

The other group also spoke up, all accusing Qin King Zhu Shuang.

Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly and said:

"Very well, someone, go to the Prince of Qin's residence and summon the Prince of Qin to the court!"