Chapter 292: Caught with evidence
Su Changhe and Pei Yuan were called over, and they forgot about the secret guards. They started from meeting Uncle Wu and following Cai Zhenglin. They
only said that they followed Cai Zhenglin to the Zhou family's villa, and found that Su Bohao brought Xiaoxiao into the villa.
They were worried that Xiaoxiao would get into trouble, so they climbed over the wall and went in. Who knew that they were caught as soon as they entered, and they were able to escape with the help of Xiaoxiao.
Because they were afraid that they would return too late and not be able to stop Su Bohao, they let Xiaohong go back first.
After listening to this, Su Bohao angrily said to Zhou Shian: "I knew that I didn't lead the people there, and I always have to take the blame."
Zhou Shian was stunned. Why did things turn out like this? At this time, Su Changhe, Pei Yuan, and the stinky girl Su Xiaoxiao should have been dead!
How could they stand in front of him intact? The guards clearly reported that they had been dealt with.
The emperor looked at Zhou Shian coldly and said to Lin Feng: "Since they all said there is such a rare garden, let Pei Yuan and Su Changhe take you to see it!"
Lin Feng took the order and took Pei Yuan and Su Changhe away.
Zhou Shian knelt on the ground, not daring to say a word.
Su Bohao was afraid of being punished by the emperor, so he pulled Su Bowen's sleeve and whispered, "Brother, I have betrayed Zhou Shi'an, which is considered a meritorious service. Can you please ask the emperor to spare my life?"
If Su Bowen had previously thought of the friendship they had grown up together, now that he knew Su Bohao had attacked his daughter, he wished he could cut him into pieces with his own hands.
Su Bowen took a step forward, bowed to the emperor, and said righteously: "Your Majesty, Su Bohao did not abide by military discipline, was disrespectful to his superiors, and even fled from the battlefield. This is disloyalty. He colluded with outsiders, framed his brother, and harmed his nephews. This is unjust. Such an unfaithful and unjust person should be executed according to the laws of Dashuo.
As a brother, I failed to manage him well, and I should also be severely punished. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"
Su Bohao saw that Su Bowen not only did not plead for him, but even preferred to be punished and put himself to death. He was so scared that he cried and shouted:
"Your Majesty, big brother, I was fooled by Zhou Shi'an and did this wrong thing. Please spare me!"
Seeing that the emperor was full of disgust, Eunuch Yang knew what the emperor meant, so he directly ordered:
"Someone, drag Su Bohao away, cover his mouth, and wait for your punishment!"
Su Bohao was taken away, leaving Zhou Shian alone kneeling on the ground.
He was no longer as panicked as before, but at this point, he would definitely not survive.
Now, the best outcome would be to take the blame on himself and see if he could save the rest of the family from the death penalty.
He was just waiting for the emperor to question him, but the emperor picked up Su Xiaoxiao and said to Su Bowen, "Xiaoxiao was frightened today, and she needs a good meal to calm down. You can come with her!"
After that, he took a group of people and left, leaving Zhou Shian alone in the hall.
Zhou Shian was puzzled. Your Majesty, what does this mean? Are you going to let his family go?
Thinking of this, he slowly stood up and bumped his head against the pillar.
If he died, perhaps the emperor would not pursue the crimes of other people in the family.
However, he made a mistake, and was stopped by the emperor's guards before he hit the pillar.
How could the emperor let him die so easily? The emperor was simply too lazy to care about him.
But after getting a little favor, he thought about rebelling. Was it too much for him to suppress the power of the Su family?
After leaving the hall, the emperor sent someone to call Cai Zhenglin. The Zhou family rebelled because of Concubine Zhou and the third prince, and Cai family followed suit to join in the fun.
Although the matter has not been investigated clearly, it is obvious that Zhou Shian wants to take advantage of the emperor's suspicion of Su Bowen to catch the three major families of Su, Zhao and Tang in one fell swoop.
In this way, the Zhou family can dominate the court and compete with the royal family.
Their next target must be Queen Qi and the crown prince.
The emperor appears calm on the surface, but his heart has long been turbulent.
Fortunately, there is Su Xiaoxiao, who exchanged letters in advance and exposed the conspiracy of Su Bohao and Zhou Shian. Otherwise, even if he had doubts in his heart, he would not show mercy to the Su family.
Fortunately, only the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion was searched. Su Bowen is loyal and honest, and he should not be separated from him!
Thinking of this, Emperor Xiaode felt guilty and became more amiable and approachable.
He waved to Su Bowen and said, "Bowen, why are you standing? Come and sit with us!"
Su Bowen replied timidly, "Your Majesty, there is a difference between the emperor and his subjects. I will just stand!"
The emperor advised, "Now there are no outsiders. Our two fathers can have a meal with Xiaoxiao. There is no need to be polite!"
Su Bowen still declined, "Xiaoxiao is different. She is favored by your majesty. After all, she is a princess. I will just stand." After
Su Bowen finished speaking, he stood aside respectfully.
Su Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes in her heart: [The emperor uncle is getting more and more annoying. Dashuo is a small country, who cares about his broken dragon chair? If I didn’t want to embarrass my father, I wouldn’t even want to eat this meal! ]
Su Bowen clenched his hands, Xiaoxiao, Xiaoxiao, you must be patient, otherwise they will fail! Fortunately,
Xiaoxiao only complained in her heart and didn’t say anything.
The emperor saw that Su Bowen was so tactful, and without any smile, he picked up some food for Su Xiaoxiao and said, "I'm sorry that you were wronged today. Don't worry, I will definitely give you an explanation after the matter is investigated!"
Not long after, Cai Zhenglin was called into the palace. When he saw Su Xiaoxiao, Cai Zhenglin was shocked.
Su Xiaoxiao thought he was not scared enough, so she deliberately walked to Cai Zhenglin and said sinisterly, "Master Cai, do you think you saw a ghost?"
Cai Zhenglin shuddered with fear and staggered back without paying attention to his manners: "You...what are you..."
"Why is he not dead?" The emperor's voice was full of majesty.
Cai Zhenglin realized that he had lost his composure.
The emperor continued, "Zhou Shi'an is dead. I called you here to give you a chance to speak. Tell me, what happened?"
Since Su Xiaoxiao was alive, Cai Zhenglin knew that he could not keep this secret.
Regardless of whether Zhou Shi'an had any tricks or not, he had no way out.
Cai Zhenglin knelt before the emperor and said with a defeated face: "Your Majesty, I deserve to die. I knew that forming a clique for personal gain was a serious crime, and I colluded with Zhou Shi'an. I knew I could not escape death, but I did it all by myself. I beg Your Majesty to spare my parents, wife and children!"
The emperor was really angry and kicked Cai Zhenglin. He
cursed: "Isn't the glory of your Cai family enough? Why do you want to form a clique for personal gain and covet the throne!"
Cai Zhenglin knelt on the ground and let the emperor scold him without saying
a word. At this time, someone said: "Because he has a handle in Zhou Shi'an's hands!"