Chapter 502: Angry and humiliated, killing Xiao Yan
Liang Guangyi hadn't felt so aggrieved in many years. He was speechless and had no way to defend himself.
He took a deep breath and didn't want to get entangled with Xiao Yan. He just ignored him and looked up calmly:
"Your Majesty, I truly knew nothing of what happened tonight, and I certainly never conspired with Minister Cui. I only spoke in agreement because I was concerned that the palace eunuchs and concubines would collude and endanger Your Majesty's safety. Now that it's an unjust case, I can let it go. However, the fact remains that Xiao Yan deceived the emperor."
Liang Guangyi didn't mention Cui Lin, Zheng Kun, or anything else. He just kept harping on Xiao Yan's identity.
"Back then, the He family joined the Crown Prince in rebellion, and the late Emperor personally issued an order to exterminate all nine members of the He family. If Xiao Yan is a He family member, he was disobeying the order in the first place. But by colluding with the Xiao family to have him change his name and hide in Jiangnan, he was deceiving the Emperor in the second place."
"He used excuses to get close to the Holy Emperor and exploited His Majesty's trust to repeatedly attack the Lu family. His previous actions against court officials may have been motivated by selfish motives. He is stirring up trouble in the court and causing unrest in the capital. This is undoubtedly a heinous act!"
Cui Lin's mind, which had been confused by the revelation of Madam Xuan's affair, became clear after hearing what Grand Tutor Liang said. He knew that it was futile to argue with Xiao Yan now, and he was doomed to be ruined. However, Emperor An would never allow the case of Crown Prince Li's treason to be overturned.
It's even better that Xiao Yan is a member of the He family. As long as he can be brought down and Emperor An can execute him, it doesn't matter if he loses some reputation.
The most important thing now is Xiao Yan.
Cui Lin had no time to care about his eldest son's indifference to him. He suppressed his physical discomfort and said loudly, "Grand Tutor Liang is right. If Xiao Yan is a member of the He family, and those people in the Xiao family have been hiding in Jiangnan for many years, they may have planned this all along."
"The tragic deaths of officials in the three regions of Shezhou, as well as the rumors about the flood incident twenty years ago, are probably all related to him and the Xiao family. He must have deliberately spread the rumors to mislead the people and the officials in the southern region in order to use the past incident to exonerate the He family."
Cui Lin's mind was clearer than ever before, and every word he spoke hit the nail on the head.
"The He family followed the Crown Prince in his rebellion, and the evidence is irrefutable. The late Emperor personally concluded the case and issued an order to execute all nine members of the He family. Everyone in the world knows this."
"Now, Xiao Yan has suddenly emerged, using the identity of a He family member, to spread slanderous words, stir up public sentiment, disrupt the court, massacre officials from the South, and use rumors to disrupt the government. He has fabricated old cases and past events in an attempt to obfuscate the truth."
"Your Majesty, regardless of whether he is a member of the He family or not, you must not let this lunatic who disregards the laws of the court lightly!"
Although the court officials from the aristocratic families also hated what Cui Lin did, they were even more unwilling to see the He family make a comeback.
When the He family fell, the few remaining aristocratic families all sucked the He family's blood. Now it seems that Cui Lin, Liang Guangyi and Xiao Yan are facing off, but once Xiao Yan wins and the Cui and Liang families lose, giving Xiao Yan an opportunity to turn things around for the He family, then none of the remaining aristocratic families will have an easy time.
After Cui and Liang spoke, they all stood up.
"Xiao Yan is truly audacious and presumptuous. He murdered an imperial official and deserves death!"
"Your Majesty, that so-called old story is most likely fabricated. Twenty years ago, things have long passed since then. How could such a coincidence suddenly surface again? Your Majesty, please understand."
"The He family's affairs have long been settled. If Xiao Yan is a member of the He family, he should be killed!"
"Your Majesty, this man has infiltrated the palace and now claims to be a member of the He family. Who knows the truth? Perhaps Xiao Yan is a spy from another country or some traitor and bandit, using the name of the He family to destabilize the government. Your Majesty must punish him severely and uphold the law."
The court officials from the aristocratic families came forward one after another to make their comments, and the hall lost its previous quietness.
Although Qian Baokun was surprised by Xiao Yan's identity, he stood up without hesitation and angrily scolded, "You people are truly bizarre. There are rumors in the South, and Prince Zang has brought back witnesses. Xiao Yan was murdered by Cui Lin, and you all turned a blind eye."
"So what if he's a He family member? The He family's execution was sudden, so there's no guarantee there wouldn't be mistakes or omissions. Furthermore, the flood case from twenty years ago involved countless innocent people who died. You're going to execute Xiao Yan without a trial or investigation. What are you so afraid of?"
Cao Dejiang also frowned and said, "Your Majesty, if today's incident was just about the old matter between Xiao Yan and the He family, then he should be executed for concealing his identity and sneaking into the palace. But if there is a real reason, it also concerns the people of Rongjiang City and the hundreds of thousands of people who died in the flood that year."
"Back then, it was the Lu family and Your Majesty who took over the disaster relief efforts for Crown Prince Li and the He family. I believe Your Majesty is by no means a cruel and ruthless person who would do anything to achieve his goal. However, now there are rumors like this, and someone who knew about it has appeared."
"Until the old case from twenty years ago is solved, Your Majesty must not touch the He family's bloodline. Otherwise, if the news gets out, people will think Your Majesty is guilty and wants to kill him!"
"Cao Dejiang, how dare you slander the emperor like this?!" The people from the aristocratic family scolded angrily.
Cao Dejiang refused to retreat: "I am only speaking the truth. Unless all the people attending the banquet in this hall are killed, Xiao Yan's identity cannot be concealed."
"The rumors from the South have spread to the Northwest. Even people in Zhaohui and other places know about the disaster relief efforts. Not to mention the people in the South who were there and witnessed the tragic deaths of officials. Your Majesty, do you think that simply capturing Xiao Yan will solve the problem?"
"If you cannot uncover the truth, determine the authenticity of the Rongjiang Massacre, clarify the past events that have been circulated among the rumors, and make the facts public, Your Majesty will be unable to silence the world's gossip."
"By then, Your Majesty's reputation will be completely ruined, the royal family will lose its authority, and the people of Wei will lose all support. Will you, who instigated Your Majesty to execute Xiao Yan today, bear the brunt of the consequences?"
"You!" The court officials from the aristocratic families glared at him.
Cao Dejiang ignored them and looked directly at Emperor An: "Your Majesty, you should know that the new emperor of Beiling has ascended the throne and is eyeing the Great Wei with covetous eyes. The Southern Qi has always had evil intentions and has repeatedly harassed the border. The Lu family has escaped with Lu Jiuan, and your Majesty is also aware of his whereabouts."
"If things in Shezhou and other places become a big deal and the He family's past is brought up, and Your Majesty doesn't care and directly kills the He family's bloodline, it will definitely arouse suspicion and chaos among the people of the world. If those with ulterior motives, or Beiling and Nanqi take advantage of the situation and invade, our Wei Dynasty will be in chaos..."
"Cao Dejiang, stop exaggerating!" someone shouted.
Qian Baokun sneered beside him: "Are you exaggerating?"
"You all sit comfortably in the capital, sleeping comfortably on your high beds, oblivious to the crisis at the border and the chaos outside. If, as Cao Gong says, you kill the descendants of the He family and cause chaos throughout the world, will Lord Chen use your delicate skin and flesh to guard the capital?"
"Or did Lord Li send those spineless sons of your Li family to fight on the border battlefield? And Lord Dong, did you send your son, who spends countless dollars on prostitutes, to guard the gates of our Great Wei Kingdom and repel invaders?!"
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