Chapter 206 Please erase my information
When Zhuang Shuyang left Beijing to take up his post in a local area, Yunxuan was in Beijing, but Luo Zicheng returned to his hometown to visit relatives.
Yunxuan had once been taught by Luo Zicheng and had a mentor-student relationship with him, so he saw Luo Zicheng off on his behalf.
They were talking loudly and having a great time outside the city.
Zhuang Shuyang also said that when he returns to the capital after gaining experience, he will become an imperial censor, arrest all corrupt officials in the country, and restore peace and order to the people.
Unexpectedly, two years have passed.
Before the corrupt officials were even caught, he became a corrupt official himself.
How ironic.
"I want to know, what were you thinking? A person who aspired to be an imperial censor has become a corrupt official."
Yunxuan spoke coldly.
Zhuang Shuyang lowered his head, revealing a cryptic smile.
"Look, even if you weren't corrupt, you were still labeled a corrupt official. Since that's the case..."
Why not become a corrupt official? If you were to actually become corrupt, perhaps the Prince of Jin's mansion could still be saved.
That way, his entire family wouldn't be exiled to Lingnan, and he himself wouldn't be crippled.
"You seem to know a lot about this."
Yunxuan sneered.
"You should realize that I have others behind me. If you agree to this..."
"Protect my wife and children. I can cooperate with you and testify against them."
Zhuang Shuyang lowered his head, pretending that he did not understand Yun Xuan's sarcasm.
"Do you know that this embezzlement is of silver and grain intended to save the people of an entire city? It is a crime punishable by confiscation of property and execution!"
“I know, but they won’t release my wife and children.”
The "they" that Zhuang Shuyang was referring to were naturally the Marquis of Ningqian.
"The one behind you is Marquis Ningqian, right?"
Although his words were phrased as a question, they already implied a conclusion.
Zhuang Shuyang stared at him in shock.
How does he know everything?
"You don't need to wonder why. We're trying to capture Marquis Ningqian."
As you know, Lord Ding is a good official who hates evil. If this is verified,
Your wife and children are uninvolved in this matter and will naturally not be implicated, before Marquis Ningqian is apprehended.
We will ask the Zhenyuan Escort Agency to help take care of your wife and children.
But that depends on what information you can provide.
After all, they already had enough information, and with so many people arrested, there were bound to be one or two who couldn't withstand the punishment.
Without His Majesty's protection, it was only a matter of time before Marquis Ningqian was captured.
"Think about it, the fact that they hid the disaster relief funds and grain through me shows that I was very important in this."
I have access to many people; I can give you this entire list. Is that important enough?
After a moment of silence, Zhuang Shuyang looked up again, deciding to use these lists to protect his family.
To his surprise, as soon as he looked up, he met Yun Xuan's mocking gaze.
"Yes, it's very important. When did you become like this?"
Yunxuan stared at the person in front of him in disbelief.
"You are the Prince of Jin, how could you possibly understand what human relationships and social customs are?"
Zhuang Shuyang chuckled self-deprecatingly.
"Back in the capital, I had a mentor who took care of me, so I was unaware of the treacherous nature of officialdom."
Once you get there, you'll find that even the prefect of Yuezhou...
You're just a lowly fifth-rank official; they could crush you with a flick of their wrist!
Do you know how the previous prefect of Yuezhou died?
On his way to his new post, he was attacked by bandits, and his entire family was killed, but no one knew it.
He was killed by the Marquis of Ningqian's secret guards. Why? Because he no longer wanted to do those things.
He wanted to escape, but they wouldn't let him go. I only realized this after becoming the prefect of Yuezhou.
Who knows how many secrets, power, and money are hidden beneath this earth?
You won't know how good it is until you try it! But you wouldn't understand, you were born with it..."
After saying that, he lowered his head, chuckled, and then said nothing more.
He didn't want to be greedy; he was forced to be greedy.
To protect his family, he had no choice but to go along with the wrongdoing.
But after he had been in contact with him for a long time, even he himself couldn't tell the difference.
Was he forced to do it, or did he simply not want to?
But none of that matters anymore. What does it matter if it's voluntary or forced?
He was no longer that passionate scholar.
Yunxuan was a member of the royal family and felt he had no right to rebuke him for his greed.
"Go get some paper and a pen."
When Ding Yan had confiscated the dye house and arrived at the Zhuang residence through the secret passage, Zhuang Shuyang had already finished writing the list.
"They used the guise of being honest officials to deceive people, then secretly transported goods to the dyehouse, and used the dyehouse's shipment as a cover."
Sending them in batches to different corrupt officials—what a brilliant scheme!
Ding Yan looked at the list, which covered officials of all ranks in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
No wonder they're so bold!
"I have already ordered the silver and grain to be transported back. I will write this matter and the list into a report later."
"I will submit this matter, along with that of the Governor-General of Jiangnan, to His Majesty. Once news arrives from General Du's side, this matter should be resolved."
Ding Yan felt a pang of regret.
I never imagined Zhuang Shuyang would end up in such a state.
"Lord Ding, when you write your report, please remember to erase my message."
Yunxuan suddenly spoke.
Ding Yan was about to ask why, but the words caught in his throat.
His Majesty clearly sent him to Jiangnan, yet he did not allow him to investigate the Prince of Jin's corruption.
Who would have thought that the Prince of Jin's embezzlement case was probably orchestrated by His Majesty?
Since it was His Majesty's doing, there should be traces of the Prince of Jin in the report.
He'll probably be stripped of his official position before the case is even concluded.
"Lord Ding, please don't worry about it. The most important thing is to get the disaster relief funds and grains into the hands of the people."
Yunxuan didn't care about his reputation. Besides, his elder brother was about to take his life, so whether he could make a contribution or not was of no use.
"Your Highness is truly righteous, I admire you! Sometimes I don't even understand His Majesty's actions."
But in all these years, since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has been diligent and conscientious, and I believe that...
"His Majesty has simply not understood yet; in the near future, His Majesty will surely understand Your Highness's intentions!"
Ding Yan bowed deeply to Yun Xuan.
This emperor is not a wise ruler, but he is still quite diligent.
Only at certain times, such as when it involves imperial power, do they become particularly persistent.
If we were to ask why he was targeting the Prince of Jin, it would probably be because he didn't want anyone to overstep their authority.
Although the Prince of Jin did not hold an official position in the court, he often inspected the people's livelihood on behalf of the emperor when the late emperor was alive.
Before a crown prince was established, the court officials all believed that the Prince of Jin would ascend the throne in the future.
But no one expected that the late emperor would fall seriously ill in the prime of his life.
What was even more unexpected was that the late emperor had already secretly issued an edict to establish the second prince as the crown prince.
Perhaps for this reason, His Majesty has long been wary of the Prince of Jin.
However, the Prince of Jin was also very clever. After His Majesty ascended the throne, the Prince of Jin dismissed all his staff and never formed cliques or engaged in private affairs in court.
Until these past few years, with no one left in the court, the Prince of Jin had no choice but to resume his duties of inspecting water conservancy on behalf of the emperor.
This tour lasted for three years.
Ding Yan believed that His Majesty had secured his throne and would no longer be wary of the Prince of Jin.
But it turns out that the emperor's heart is unfathomable.
Yunxuan naturally didn't understand why his second brother hated him so much.
They are twins, and his older brother doted on him when they were young.
Unfortunately, we can't go back to the way things were.
Ding Yan still needed to oversee things in Suzhou, so he temporarily handed over all affairs in Yuezhou to the Yuezhou Prefect before leaving.
When the group returned to Suzhou, the people were already lining up to receive their grain rations.
As they entered the city, someone knelt down first.
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