Chapter 19: Showing Off His Talent
Holding the portrait drawn by Su Shengsheng, Chief Envoy Fang sent people to inquire around the nearest area, and it turned out that someone had actually witnessed the criminal.
He was startled and without hesitation, he immediately ordered people to block several important roads.
He then led the team personally, asked the person who identified the portrait to lead the way, and rushed to arrest the criminal.
The streets and alleys were in chaos.
…
"Oh no, General."
Mu Ze ran in panting, "The subordinates lurking outside Liang Qi's residence have reported that Lord Fang from the Mint has led his men to surround the residence of Liang Qi and the other two."
Xie Xuan raised his slender phoenix eyes slightly, "What's going on?"
Mu Ze was so panicked that he didn't even have time to wipe the sweat off his face. "Out of curiosity, I went to listen to Miss Su's class in front of the bookstore today..."
Chu Zhao frowned and urged, "Get to the point."
"That's the point!" Mu Ze wailed bitterly, then quickened his pace, "Who knew Miss Su wasn't teaching, but was holding a fake copper coin raffle in front of the notice board."
Chu Zhao frowned as if he could pinch a fly to death, but the fly was still buzzing around without knowing whether it was alive or dead.
"But I don't know what happened. Miss Su and her group actually followed Lord Fang to Changping Lane to arrest the criminal with the portrait..."
Chu Zhao was no longer in the mood to listen. "General, I'm afraid we've alerted the enemy."
Xie Xuan's brows turned cold, "Chu Zhao, you take this king's order and seal off the Tianqian Pass. No one is allowed to enter or leave."
When Mu Ze heard that even the checkpoint was closed, he realized the seriousness of the situation and became even more depressed.
How did Miss Su get involved in this?
…
Liang Mansion
The candidates looked at the two bodies on the ground with pale faces. Su Shengsheng also took a step back feeling uncomfortable.
Who could have expected that even though they acted so quickly, the culprit still noticed it.
"Liang Qi was killed with a sword in the chest, but the wound was stabbed from the back, which was obviously an attempt to silence him."
"It must be the work of an accomplice." Fang Sishi's face darkened. "Wu Er, take your men to the city gate to post the portraits. Don't let them escape."
Wu Ergang accepted the order and left, but was forced to retreat.
He shouted, "Sir, King Xuanming has led his troops to surround the Liang Mansion."
The sound of weapons is getting closer and closer.
Fang Sishi was startled, and before he could go out to greet him, he saw a corner of a dark red dress with floating cloud patterns enter the house.
His expression was stern, and he immediately led the others to kneel down and kowtow, "Greetings to King Xuanming."
The others also knelt down hurriedly, "Greetings, King Xuanming."
Everyone in the room knelt down, except Su Shengsheng, who stood there in shock.
Xie Xuan glanced over, and Ji Yanli noticed this and gently reminded Su Shengsheng, "Miss Su..."
Su Shengsheng had rarely knelt before anyone in her two lives. Although her grandfather was the emperor's teacher, she had lived in a secluded house for a long time and had never come into contact with men outside.
Only at this moment did she realize that from now on she would have to kneel whenever she met an official, no matter how insignificant he was.
Before she could move, Xie Xuan waved his sleeves and ordered the officials to stand up.
She froze and stood quietly aside, wondering in her heart what the purpose of Xie Xuan bringing his troops here was.
Mu Ze examined the body and sighed, "General, Liang Qi has been silenced."
Upon hearing this, Envoy Fang stepped forward and asked, "Is the prince also looking for this person?"
Mu Ze looked frustrated, "That's right, they were all..."
But before he could finish, Xie Xuan glanced at him and interrupted him.
Su Shengsheng's heart skipped a beat when she saw this, and she thought of a possibility.
Could it be that...
Xie Xuan was patrolling the study. Everyone in the room looked at each other, and no one dared to disturb him.
Soon, Xie Xuan found the trigger mechanism and opened the hidden room.
"No wonder we didn't find the counterfeit mold. It must be here." Director Fang showed a happy expression, but Su Shengsheng felt nervous.
She bravely looked into the secret room, only to see that Xie Xuan was not paying attention to the fake mold, but was staring at the letters on the bookshelf.
Just at this moment, someone came to report that the other two had committed suicide out of fear of punishment by taking thiamin.
Minister Fang was shocked. "It seems they knew they had no way to escape, so they took their own lives."
Su Shengsheng was still uneasy, but she didn't see Xie Xuan rebuking the official, and she remembered his action of stopping Mu Ze from speaking.
She steeled herself and looked at the bewildered Fang Sishi.
"Master Fang, now that the three forgers have been confirmed, I wonder what the notice says..."
Minister Fang was somewhat surprised that a woman would dare to ask for a reward from him in front of King Xuanming.
However, considering that the candidates present might become his colleagues in the future, he did not reprimand them.
"How could the court betray a little girl like you? Go home and wait. Once the matter is verified and reported, the court will reward you."
How could Su Shengsheng retreat like this? She hasn't even revealed her ultimate goal yet.
"Master Fang, the list states that those who have made significant contributions can be exempted from military service. I wonder if this still holds true today?"
Noticing that King Xuanming was looking at her, Su Shengsheng didn't dare to meet his gaze and gritted her teeth and finished her words.
Impatient expression appeared on Fang Sishi's face, but because Xie Xuan was present, he could not show off his power too much.
"You provided clues, drew a portrait, and traced the criminals' movements, helping to locate the three. The reward for both combined totals 300,000 coins. As for your significant meritorious service... now that the criminals have all committed suicide, there's no question of it."
Su Shengsheng said quickly, "I am willing to hand over the three million counterfeit copper coins I collected today to the national treasury. I wonder if this will be considered a meritorious service?"
Envoy Fang was shocked when he heard this. "Three million fake copper coins? Really?"
They came here in a hurry to arrest people, and many details were not yet asked.
Although three million coins are only worth three thousand taels of silver, it is hard to imagine that such a large number of fake copper coins could be collected.
What's more, this woman actually wanted to hand it all over to the national treasury.
Only then did Ji Yanli understand Su Shengsheng's true intention, and couldn't help but sigh that such a weak woman could have such courage.
He stepped forward and bowed, "I can testify that the people of this town volunteered."
The other Juren students also stepped forward to help, "We can also testify."
Minister Fang no longer had any doubts, but still hesitated for a moment, then looked at Xie Xuan.
"You have come at the right time, my little girl. King Xuanming is here today, so I will ask for a favor for you."
I don’t know whether it is fortunate or unfortunate to meet an official with a pig brain.
Su Shengsheng sighed inwardly, but remained respectful on the surface. "I'm not asking for exemption from military service for my family..."
Nanling has been plagued by frequent wars in recent years, and even the elderly and the weak have been recruited to the battlefield, so the officials subconsciously thought that this was what Su Shengsheng was asking for.
However, the Nanling law not only exempted people from military service, but also required hard labor.
Most of the people who were forced to do hard labor were criminals, especially in Tianqianguan, where exiled criminals were everywhere.
The official looked at Su Shengsheng, his expression growing colder. "What did your family do wrong?"
Su Shengsheng took a deep breath and said under Fang Sishi's frosty gaze, "To be honest, my grandfather was the Emperor's teacher."
All the students were shocked.
Although they had heard that the imperial teacher had been demoted to this place, they did not know that the incredible woman before them was actually the imperial teacher's granddaughter.
Students all over the world respect the imperial teacher not because he once taught two emperors, but because the beneficial policies he proposed not only benefited the people's livelihood, but also gave them, students from humble backgrounds, the opportunity to realize their life ambitions among many children from aristocratic families.
The corners of Fang Sishi's mouth twitched visibly, as if he had epilepsy.
Mu Ze was still depressed about ruining the general's plan, but when he saw this scene, he couldn't help laughing out loud.
"Master Fang, please don't break your promise to a woman!"
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