Chapter 72 Confrontation in the Court
Shen Changhe helped Shen Wen get off the carriage.
Immediately, many officials saluted and greeted Shen Wen. Shen Wen responded one by one and stood at the palace gate not far from the Fourth Prince's carriage.
"Fourth Prince," the father and son bowed, without any intention of keeping their distance like other officials.
A faint smile appeared on Xiao Yuan's lips, "General Shen, you seem to be particularly late today."
Shen Wen had his signature smile on his face. "It's not too late. The emperor hasn't summoned his ministers to give advice yet."
"Captain Shen is right. As long as it doesn't interfere with important matters, the time and process are not important."
As he spoke, his eyes swept over the father and son of the Shen family, but to Shen Wen and Shen Changhe's ears, his words had a completely different meaning, a double entendre.
Shen Changhe looked at Xiao Yuan deeply, then withdrew his gaze without leaving a trace. It didn't matter whether it was early or late. It seemed that he had made up his mind and was unwilling to let An An and Zhang Yeyang leave.
Shen Wen thought that he was talking about today's events. He smiled but said nothing. He put his hands in his sleeves to keep warm, waiting for the eunuch to ring the bell so that he could go to court.
Xiao Yuan did not speak any more. He glanced at the ministers who were avoiding him one by one, and then withdrew his gaze expressionlessly.
After serving as an official for several years, his eyes are so shallow and pitiful. No wonder no one can surpass the old fox Shen and sit in a high position.
"As expected of a skilled person who has been working hard for several years." Ling Chenyi looked at Shen Wen and laughed softly, "Xiao Yuan, it may not be easy for you to snatch the fox cub from this old fox."
Xiao Yuan's smile actually revealed a hint of gentleness. He and Shen Wen looked towards the direction of the palace gate without saying a word.
Ling Chenyi wanted to say something else, but Xiao Yuan suddenly turned his head and stared at him with a slightly cold expression, "Who are you scolding?"
"..." Ling Chenyi was confused for a moment before he realized the meaning of his words.
He curled his lips and said, "I'm not yours yet, and you're already protecting me. It's a waste of my time and effort, risking my life for you."
"Shut up." As soon as Xiao Yuan finished speaking, the long-awaited bell finally rang.
The palace gate was wide open, but the ministers stood still. Shen Wen tilted his head to glance at them, smiled silently, and took the lead to follow Xiao Yuan towards the Fengtian Palace.
"They say that when a tree falls, monkeys scatter; when a wall falls, everyone pushes it. Now that the outcome is still unknown, they are afraid of getting too close and getting into trouble." Shen Changhe's tone was full of sarcasm.
Shen Wen glanced at Xiao Yuan who was walking in front of him and smiled faintly, "If everyone is clear-headed, the position of Grand Commandant may not be my turn."
In the officialdom, everyone has had opportunities for promotion to a greater or lesser extent, but most people do not have the courage and insight.
In the end, he was mediocre, but he regretted that he did not know how to flatter people. The officialdom was dark, and no senior official would value a fence-sitter.
In the Fengtian Hall, the ministers all stood consciously in their positions, their eyes looking at their noses and their noses looking at their hearts. The atmosphere was terribly depressing.
The officials headed by Xiao Ze had the exact opposite atmosphere. They held their heads high and looked determined to win.
Xiao Yuan received Xiao Ze's sinister and mocking look and just returned it with a faint glare. That arrogant attitude that didn't take the world seriously made Xiao Ze so angry that he almost vomited blood.
"Oh, I want to see how long Fourth Brother can hold on. I hope you can be as steady as you are now."
Xiao Yuan looked straight ahead and didn't give Xiao Ze any response. If he had said a few words back, Xiao Ze would have felt better, but he saw this dead look that he hated so much.
"Second Prince," a minister whispered, "I feel like this is going too smoothly. Looking at the attitude of the Fourth Prince, do you think there is a trick going on?"
The cruelty in Xiao Ze's eyes froze for a moment, and he turned his head to look at the old minister who was speaking.
At this moment, he was full of hope, wanting to completely trample Xiao Yuan under his feet. He was so overwhelmed with joy that he could not listen to any flattery.
He sneered, "He always pretends to be calm and composed even when the sky is falling. This is just his last struggle."
Besides, he got the clues from Ling Chenyi, so it was normal for his subordinates to make some omissions.
More importantly, the emperor flew into a rage after hearing his advice, and he will definitely investigate the matter at the morning court today.
"I have already told my father, and you are telling me that this is a trick?" Xiao Ze's eyes were sinister. "Don't even think it's a trick. Even if it's burning fire, you have to swallow it today and bring that evil creature down."
The arrow is on the string and he has no way back.
The adult stopped talking awkwardly, looked at Xiao Ze cautiously, and frowned slightly.
How can a prince speak dirty words like a common woman? It is really unbecoming of his status.
Following the eunuch's loud shout, all the ministers immediately stood up straight and lowered their heads slightly to welcome the emperor's arrival.
The emperor sat on the dragon throne, his gloomy eyes swept over his two sons below, his face extremely majestic.
All the ministers knelt down and saluted, and with the eunuch's light shout, the ceremony between the monarch and his ministers ended.
The hall was unusually quiet today. All the ministers lowered their heads and brows. The emperor's cold voice sounded faintly, "My dear ministers seem to be unusually silent today. Why, don't you want to see the abilities of my two sons?"
After these words were spoken, the ministers dared not even breathe, knowing that the emperor was really angry this time. However, no matter whether a prince was collaborating with the enemy or another prince falsely accused his brother of treason, it was a shame for the royal family.
Some ministers began to regret that they should not have come to court today and should have taken a sick leave.
As a memorial flew out of the emperor's hand and landed on the steps, the emperor's cold voice rang out, "This is the memorial of the Second Prince Xiao Ze suing the Fourth Prince Xiao Yuan. Everyone, take a look."
But no one dared to move. No one dared to be the first to stand out. What a joke! The royal excitement was not something they could watch.
The emperor sneered and turned to look at the fourth prince Xiao Yuan, "Do you know what your second brother is suing you for?"
"Your Majesty, I don't know." Xiao Yuan stepped out and said neither humbly nor arrogantly.
"I don't know." The emperor smiled wryly, "Xiao Ze, didn't you swear to sacrifice your relatives for the greater good in my study? Why are you so quiet now?"
Xiao Ze's expression was stiff for a moment.
Of course he was more anxious than anyone else, but in front of his father, he absolutely could not show any impatience. Instead, silence would make his father like him more.
But he never thought that his father would have such an attitude towards this matter.
"Your son..." He stepped out a few steps, glanced at Xiao Yuan, and seemed to be hesitant to speak.
The emperor rubbed his forehead, his tired face showing a hint of impatience, "Okay, stop pretending, I'm very busy and don't have time to play tricks with you, let's get straight to the point."
"..." An indescribable feeling slowly spread in Xiao Ze's heart, but he couldn't grasp the key point and couldn't tell what went wrong.
All the ministers could tell that the emperor was in a particularly bad mood today, and they became even more frightened and wished they could just disappear on the spot.
Xiao Ze met the emperor's gaze, gritted his teeth, and knelt on one knee on the ground, "Father, please make the decision for me. I have no choice but to come to you."
His gaze was fixed on the discarded memorial on the ground, and a vicious look flashed across his eyes.
"A few days ago, my concubine Wang disappeared for no apparent reason. I searched for her for several days but to no avail."
"Just last night, the prince of Yongning Marquis's Mansion, Ling Chenyi, came to provoke us, saying that they had kidnapped Wang. Afterwards, I sent someone to follow them, and indeed found Wang in a bank. After investigation, it was found that the owner of the bank was not a citizen of Daliang, but a royal family of the Western Regions!"
"Although my son and I are brothers, I can ignore the matter of Wang, but my son's collusion with the enemy concerns the foundation of the country, and I dare not fail to report it. Father, you also know that my son's wife has no children, and Wang has just been found to be pregnant with a boy, so..."
He did not finish his words, but his meaning was very clear, that is, the Fourth Prince Xiao Yuan was secretly plotting to make him exterminate his heir.
Xiao Ze bent over with a look of grief on his face. This was not a matter of indifference. By killing his brother's offspring, he clearly wanted to ruin Xiao Yuan's reputation and put him to death.
"Oh, all right, very good," the emperor chuckled, his face calm and intimidating, "Xiao Yuan, what do you say? Do you agree with what your second brother said?"
"Your son..."
"Father, I have evidence." Xiao Ze spoke first, his eagerness barely concealed, "I have witnesses and physical evidence that can prove that Fourth Brother is closely related to Hu's Bank."
He no longer dwelled on the matter of Wang. A woman, and a concubine at that, could at most damage Xiao Yuan's reputation. To kill him, he would have to be convicted of treason.
The emperor did not speak. Xiao Yuan stood up and looked at Xiao Ze with calm eyes. "Since Second Brother is so confident, then bring up the witnesses and evidence. We will confront each other in the palace."
Xiao Ze's face relaxed and he sneered, "That's not difficult. As long as my father gives the order to search the Hu's bank and summon the boss to interrogate him severely, the truth will surely come out if he has colluded with the enemy."
After these words were spoken, Xiao Yuan looked calm, but Wang Ganzhi, led by Xiao Ze, instantly changed his expression and began to tremble slightly.
He looked up at Xiao Ze in horror, and his lips began to tremble.
Impossible. He thought he had done it extremely secretly and neither the Fourth Prince nor the Second Prince should have discovered it. Especially the Second Prince, even if he knew that he had a deal with the Hu family, he would not expose him.
Wang Ganzhi comforted himself and tried to calm himself down.
The emperor looked at Xiao Yuan and asked calmly, "What do you think of what your second brother said?"
"Your Majesty, I have no objection." Xiao Yuan bowed in response. His calm appearance made Xiao Ze feel relieved.
“Okay, in that case, let the Imperial Guards lead the way, and Lord Shen take the men.”
The Shen family remained neutral, and it was most fair for Shen Changhe to go. Xiao Ze had no objection to this.
"Father," Xiao Yuan suddenly said, "We need to search the people in the prison and the bank. Lord Shen alone may not be enough. How about I recommend an adult to accompany Lord Shen?"
The emperor frowned, but before he could speak, the second prince immediately said, "Fourth brother, this matter is after all investigating you. I'm afraid it's not a good idea to let your people go."
"I haven't opened my mouth yet, how do you know who my younger brother would recommend?" Xiao Yuan had a half-smile on his lips.
"Then who do you want to recommend?" the emperor asked in a calm voice.
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