Chapter 112 The answer lies in human effort.
One sentence drained most of the color from Wang Zhou's face. He froze, even forgetting to refute.
"Oh?" Shen Yujiao leaned back slightly, raising an eyebrow as she asked, "Which Qian family?"
"Don't talk nonsense—"
"The family of Lord Qian, the Prefectural Magistrate of Jingzhao!"
The two people below spoke at the same time. When Wang Zhou stopped Xu Mingxing, he couldn't take back his words. And this was exactly what Shen Yujiao was waiting for!
Qiao Shida didn't give Xu Mingxing a chance to return. He immediately pressed, "Xu Mingxing, falsely accusing an official of the imperial court is a more serious crime. Can you take responsibility for what you said?"
"No—uh-uh-uh—"
Wang Zhou tried to say something, but before he could speak, someone covered his mouth from behind. Xu Mingxing gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and admitted, "I can take responsibility!"
Shen Yujiao's judgment of him was absolutely correct. Now that things had come to this point, Xu Mingxing was thinking that since he couldn't escape punishment anyway, if he reported Wang Zhou, given the Crown Princess's attitude, perhaps these officials would give him a break.
"Since you say this matter is related to the Qian family, then please tell me in detail..."
Qiao Shida had only spoken halfway when a commotion broke out outside the hall. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man in an official robe rushing in. The first thing he did upon entering the hall was to bow and greet the Crown Princess: "Your humble servant, Qian Tongzhi, the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture, greets Your Highness the Crown Princess. May Your Highness be well."
"Lord Qian, your timing is perfect. I am determined to personally preside over a case today. The suspect just said that the person who helped him commit the crime was a servant of the Qian family. Originally, this case should have been handled by the Jingzhao Prefecture, but now I must ask Lord Qian to recuse himself from the case."
Qian Tongzhi seemed not to have expected the case to involve his family. He was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what he didn't understand when he saw Wang Zhou. At this moment, he only blamed himself for being too slow and for assigning him the official business of going to the prison today.
The yamen runners usually regarded Yang and Qian as the top two leaders in the yamen, so even though the Crown Princess said that Prefect Qian should avoid suspicion, no one dared to step forward to ask him to leave. Zhu Yu hesitated for a long time and was about to walk over when he was stopped by a look from Shen Yujiao.
Zhu Yu looked up at the person opposite him and instantly understood.
Qiao Shida's hands were already sweating. When Lord Qian was not around, he could still try to fight for himself, but now that Lord Qian was in court, how could he preside over his family's case in front of his superior?
If the Qian family only suffers minor setbacks in this case, then his future prospects in the Jingzhao Prefecture can be foreseen.
"Lord Qian, please leave the court to avoid suspicion. If it is necessary for you to appear in court, I will send someone to invite you."
Without a moment's hesitation, Qiao Shida quickly made his decision. There was no turning back once the arrow was released; his future depended on this one gamble!
Qian Tongzhi was also surprised that it was his own subordinate who asked him to leave. When he looked at the stage again, he realized that the presiding judge was Zheng Jin, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who was also a fourth-rank official like him!
"Your humble servant obeys the decree."
Even though he was unwilling to face it, Qian Tongzhi recognized the current situation. As he retreated, he gave a wink to the servant hiding among the crowd.
Seeing him leave, Shen Yujiao gestured for Qiao Shida to continue.
If Xu Mingxing had impulsively revealed the Qian family behind Wang Zhou in a moment of passion, then after seeing Lord Qian in person, he was so frightened that his mind went blank. In addition, the Crown Princess was staring at him without blinking, and just looking at that majesty, he could no longer tell what he could and could not say. He could only answer Qiao Shida's questions one by one.
In less than fifteen minutes, he had revealed everything he knew.
The people Xu Mingxing brought to threaten his younger brother's house were from the Qian family. The people who fought during the dispute were also from the Qian family. Even Wang Zhou, who helped Xu Mingxing come up with this idea and used coercion and inducement, was related to the Qian family.
The situation was turned around in just a few words; Xu Mingxing's mistakes had now become the Qian family's mistakes.
Wang Zhou knelt there, his heart filled with despair.
At first, the high-ranking officials would ask Xu Mingxing "Do you admit it?" after he said something. However, the moment he denied it, the Crown Princess would send people to investigate. The speed was so fast that he didn't even have a chance to overturn his original statement or regret it.
Xu Mingxing continued to talk, piecing together fragmented details into a complete and detailed account. By the time Wang Zhou tried to deny it, it was too late.
Because the matter had become so big, the people the Crown Princess sent out to investigate had returned wave after wave, and their reports made his denial seem particularly ridiculous.
"Wang Zhou, do you admit to this or not?"
"This humble citizen...accepts."
What else is there to deny? The officers sent out to investigate the case were not yamen runners, but the Crown Prince's guards. They were not only well-trained, but also extremely fast at investigating. Although the Crown Princess said that the Jingzhao Prefecture could review the results at any time, what need was there for a review of a well-reasoned and complete investigation result?
Unlike the first half of the trial where Shen Yujiao patiently listened to their explanations and excuses, after Xu Mingxing gave his testimony about the Qian family, the entire case proceeded smoothly without any further delays.
"Bringing the prisoner Qian Chi—"
Qian Chi was the only son of Qian Tongzhi and a key figure in this case who connected Xu Mingxing, the Qian family, and Wang Zhou. It is said that he was arrested while on the run, and he and the messenger were caught red-handed.
When he was brought to the main hall, Qian Chi's clothes were half open, his expression was evasive, and his face and body were covered with scratch marks. He did not want to look up at people, and even the Eastern Palace guards who had arrested him had a rather unpleasant expression.
Qiao Shida knew perfectly well what was going on. This young master Qian usually preferred these brothels and red-light districts, which even he, a grown man, felt ashamed for. Therefore, he asked what was going on before the Crown Princess could speak.
The guard was initially hesitant, but when he saw Zhu Yu's gaze, he stopped being coy and revealed that Wang Zhou had been having fun with prostitutes on a pleasure boat with the Prefect of Jingzhao before his arrest.
These words caused an uproar in the hall. After the guard bowed and left, his face was still flushed red to the back of his ears. There was something even more embarrassing that he couldn't bring himself to say.
After Qian Chi went to court, it wasn't Shen Yujiao who most hoped the case would be decided in the Qian family; Qiao Shida was even more eager than her—if this case didn't bring down both the prefect and the vice prefect, then it would be him who had to step down.
Thus, under Qiao Shida's swift and decisive investigation, Xu Mingxing, Wang Zhou, the Qian family, and even the Yang family of the prefectural magistrate were all brought to justice. Qiao Shida's handling of each step was impeccable, and the cooperation between the Crown Princess and Zheng Jin in each step was seamless.
Normally, such cases allow the suspect time to struggle and maneuver between the conclusion of the case and execution. However, this time was different. With the Crown Princess's authorization, Zheng Jin pronounced the verdict on the spot:
Xu Mingxing was found guilty of being unfilial and disrespectful to his elders, giving birth but not raising children, and maliciously injuring people. In addition, because he arranged a marriage for Xu Wanzhen, who was forced to marry, he committed an even more serious crime and was sentenced to 30 years in prison, during which time he will have to perform hard labor in prison.
Wang Zhou was involved in crimes such as instigating assault, human trafficking, and oppressing the people. During the investigation, it was also discovered that he manipulated gambling games at the gambling table. He was sentenced to eight years in prison for the above crimes and ordered to surrender 3,612 taels of illegal gains.
The Qian and Yang families are more complicated. One is a key person involved in the case, and the other is implicated in crimes such as official misconduct. But in the end, they can't escape the word "crime".
After the case was closed, the Jingzhao Prefecture government underwent a major reshuffle. Recommended by the Ministry of Personnel and with a personal petition from the Crown Princess, Qiao Shida, the former judge of Jingzhao Prefecture, was promoted three ranks and succeeded as the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture. The speed of his promotion shocked the entire officialdom. Subsequently, the court transferred another official from outside the capital to serve as the Assistant Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture.
After the cleanup of all the corrupt officials in the Jingzhao Prefecture, the atmosphere in the capital's criminal justice departments became much more tense.
"Your Highness's actions have solidified the reputation of our Crown Prince's Palace for integrity in the court."
Chu Rou carefully arranged the ground tea powder in her hand, then handed the tea scoop to Shen Yujiao. Shen Yujiao smiled as she took it, and as she turned her head, she didn't miss the hint of envy in Chu Rou's eyes.
Putting aside her identity as Shen Yujiao, she had to admit that Chu Rou and Shen Yujiao were not ordinary women. Their learning from childhood was not limited to the inner quarters of the house, but they were trapped in the high-level inner courtyard because of their identities.
She could only lament that they were born at the wrong time; if these two had been born in modern times, they would have shone brightly simply by walking among people.
My thoughts returned as the tea powder fell into the cup. Because of the Xu family case, there were all sorts of rumors circulating in the court. The nicer ones said that the Crown Prince was honest and wise, while the harsher ones said that the Jingzhao Prefecture would henceforth be under the control of the Eastern Palace, as if the Emperor was afraid that he would not notice the Crown Prince's factionalism.
Shen Yujiao lowered her eyes and smiled slightly, her hands moving smoothly: "The reputation of integrity is secondary. Since I made an oath in front of all the military families that day, I should keep my word. The current situation is delicate. The reputation of the Crown Prince depends entirely on how it is managed, but too much... is not good in the end."
“But I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it,” Chu Rou said with a playful smile. “After all, those two in the palace aren’t focused on the court these days. Even if Your Highness is making a big splash, they don’t do anything about it, do they?”
That's true... After such a commotion outside the palace, the Emperor and Empress should have reacted to it. In fact, Shen Yujiao's actions were somewhat like acting on behalf of the Crown Prince. The harem has never been allowed to interfere in politics, not even the Empress. Yet, no word of it has spread in the palace.
The most honorable couple in the Great Xia Dynasty are probably too busy arguing to care about anything else. Shen Yujiao shook her head with amusement and picked up the tea whisk to start brewing tea.
"Speaking of which... Your Highness and my brother should have already entered Beiding Prefecture. They've been gone for so long, so, have you thought it through?"
The day before his departure, the person who took Qi Zheng to see He Zhiju was none other than Chu Rou. Although she was the one who arranged this, if Chu Rou had not wanted to, she would not have needed to meet him if he was just a concubine raising Qi Zheng.
Chu Rou still has feelings for her brother.
Seeing Chu Rou's smile freeze, Shen Yujiao quickly said with a smile, "Don't say anything like 'I am a concubine.' If everything goes well in the future, I will still call you 'sister-in-law,' it just depends on whether you are willing or not."
This wasn't the first time this topic had been brought up, and Shen Yujiao hadn't forgotten that she and He Zhiju had both rejected this path back then.
But then was then, and now is now. Circumstances dictate people's actions. At that time, the Crown Prince's position was unstable, and his future was uncertain. She and Jiang Chen could not reveal their plans to outsiders too early. Therefore, the decision made by the two of them at that time was very much in line with their situation.
But things are different now. On the day Jiang Chen took command and went to war, too many things were completely changed. The Crown Prince's faction will not be defeated unless something unexpected happens, and among the army led by Jiang Chen, his left and right generals are the ones who will protect him from any mishaps.
There are some things that the crown prince cannot do, but the emperor can.
Judging from the current situation, the overall direction is still under Jiang Chen's control, and the emperor will not easily depose him. This can be seen from the current bickering between the emperor and empress—even though the couple is at odds, the emperor has not allowed the empress to lose face.
Once Jiang Chen takes real power, it will be too easy for Chu Rou to slip away unnoticed. She doesn't even need to worry about whether this "young and prematurely deceased Consort Chu" will cause the family to lose power. Even without this connection, Jiang Chen highly approves of the old Grand Tutor Chu. In addition, the Ministry of Works is full of the Crown Prince's direct descendants, and Jiang Chen will only give her a higher rank when posthumously honoring the Chu family.
Chu Rou was naturally aware of this as well. She was no ordinary young lady; from the day she got married, she had a clear understanding of the situation in the capital and was not confused by those involved. What she hesitated about was her own heart.
While she was pondering, Shen Yujiao had almost finished brewing a cup of tea. Chu Rou didn't answer, and she wasn't in a hurry. She simply immersed herself in the aroma of the tea and carefully observed the tea foam in the cup.
After a while, Shen Yujiao put down the tea whisk in her hand, admired the tea she had prepared for a moment, and then placed it in front of Chu Rou.
The fine, long tea foam sits quietly in the cup, lingering even when gazed upon. It is so delicate, like the first flutter of the heart in youth, refreshing and invigorating, lingering in the heart and not easily dissipated.
“Ah Jiao,” Chu Rou suddenly spoke up, “if he can return safely, I… am willing.”
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