Chapter 73 Get Out of Here
"I would like to recommend the Minister of Justice, Mr. Zhou."
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience was in an uproar.
Almost half of the Ministry of Justice is controlled by the Zhou family, and the Minister Zhou is the biological brother of the Second Prince's wife. Is the Fourth Prince crazy?
If the eldest son of the Zhou family is allowed to go, even if the Fourth Prince is innocent, he will become guilty.
Xiao Yuan's expression remained unchanged as he accepted the surprised looks from all directions. Even Xiao Ze looked at him with incredible eyes.
"Are you sure?" the emperor asked with a frown.
"Your son is sure that Lord Zhou has always enforced the law impartially and will give you justice."
Xiao Ze sneered softly when he heard this. This man was really at the end of his rope and had gone crazy.
He gave Zhou Yunfeng a meaningful look, the meaning of which was very clear. Even if the Zhou family was dissatisfied with him because of Wang's affairs, they could only stand on the same side with him on important matters in the court.
Thinking of this, the second prince was completely relieved and waited coldly for Xiao Yuan's fate.
"Okay, then it's as you say." The emperor looked at Xiao Yuan deeply and raised his hand to give the order.
Shen Changhe and Zhou Yunfeng stepped out at the same time and left the Fengtian Hall.
Shen Wen stood at the very front and did not speak a word from beginning to end. In a trance, he seemed to see the emperor giving the second prince a look of pity. He immediately perked up, thinking that the opportunity would come soon.
The Fengtian Hall was unusually quiet and no one spoke. The emperor looked back and forth between his two sons with gloomy eyes and asked in a low voice.
"Second brother, you said that your fourth brother captured Wang just to make you an extinct family?"
Xiao Ze was stunned for a moment, then immediately came to his senses and replied, "Yes."
"Fourth Brother, is this the case?" the emperor asked Xiao Yuan again.
"Absurd." Xiao Yuan just sneered, his eyes full of ridicule.
"As for kidnapping a woman, I don't even bother to do that. Only my second brother marries women one after another and has children one after another." He turned his head to look at Xiao Ze beside him.
"Why, you blame me for your second brother's lost woman, then you can't give birth to a son, so you should also blame me."
As soon as these words fell, a very small laugh was heard in the hall.
"Whoever is laughing, stand up." said the emperor in a deep voice.
Ling Chenyi touched his nose, stepped out from the crowd of ministers, lowered his head, and said, "Your Majesty, it is you, my humble servant."
The emperor glanced at him and said in a deep voice, "I knew it was you."
Ling Chenyi sniffed but was not afraid at all. His mother and the emperor were siblings, and he was the emperor's nephew who grew up under his care, so there was some affection between them.
"Your mother is really indulging you more and more. You are still so unruly in the court." Although it was a reprimand, there was no sign of anger.
Ling Chenyi curled his lips, "Your Majesty, I just think that what the Second Prince said is a little ridiculous."
The emperor glared at him. All the civil and military officials knew that he and the fourth prince Xiao Yuan were in the same boat, so what they said would definitely be in Xiao Yuan's favor.
But he still asked, "What's so funny?"
Ling Chenyi straightened his face slightly, "I have said this, I am sure the Second Prince will be angry, but I still want to say, Second Prince..."
He looked at Xiao Ze, chuckled and said, "You said that the Fourth Prince did it when your woman was lost. According to the Fourth Prince, your inability to give birth to a son is also related to him. So... is it you, the Second Prince, who is incapable of giving birth, or is it the Fourth Prince..."
"Ling Chenyi." Xiao Ze was furious, his eyes and eyebrows began to turn red, and the emperor felt that he could faintly see flames coming out of his head.
He coughed lightly, "Ling Chenyi, what nonsense are you talking about? Why don't you go back?"
"Yes." Ling Chenyi smiled and retreated back to the team. Xiao Ze was so angry that he was fuming and his body was shaking slightly.
In public, in front of all the civil and military officials, he dared to say that he was not capable! !
The emperor rubbed his forehead and felt a little tired.
"Your Majesty, from this we can see that Wang's disappearance should have nothing to do with the Fourth Prince. If we dig deeper, could it be that someone is behind this, trying to alienate the two princes?"
Shen Wen, who had been silent all the time, suddenly stepped forward and spoke.
A hint of surprise flashed across the emperor's eyes, but he sat up a little straighter. Shen Wen has always been loyal, and this is his first time participating in a fight among princes. How could he not be curious?
"So what does Yi Aiqing mean?"
"I am just suspicious. If someone is plotting something bad behind the scenes, then the Hu Bank is probably just a cover to bring down one of your princes."
The emperor narrowed his eyes and said, "So, according to what you said, even if some evidence is found in the bank, it may be intentional and cannot be trusted."
"That is what I mean, but Your Majesty is wise and I think he will make a decision."
Xiao Yuan glanced at Shen Wen and raised his eyebrows slightly. Even Ling Chenyi stuck his head out to look, surprised.
Could it be that Old Man Shen was planning to marry Shen Anan to Xiao Yuan, and was helping his son-in-law?
No one understood what Shen Wen meant by trying to smooth things over, but Xiao Ze's expression changed.
With just a few words from Shen Wen, wouldn't all his efforts have come to naught? Even if the evidence was placed in the Fengtian Palace, it would be useless as his father would not believe him!
He raised his eyes and glanced at Shen Wen with a sinister look. He gritted his teeth and immediately said to the emperor, "Father, I have something else to report. There is another reason why my fourth brother kidnapped Wang."
The emperor glanced at him sideways and said, "Speak."
Xiao Ze glanced at Shen Wen and Xiao Yuan who were looking at him, and a cold arc appeared on the corner of his lips, "That night, Ling Chenyi actually exchanged Wang for Li Huaiyan, the illegitimate son of Li Guogong Mansion!"
"Father, you know the relationship between my fourth brother and Ling Chenyi and Li Huaiyan. Li Huaiyan disappeared a few days ago, and they suspected that it was me who did it, so they threatened Wang."
This reason was indeed somewhat convincing to the emperor, but he only glanced at Xiao Yuan indifferently and then asked, "Then why did you imprison Li Huaiyan?"
Even if he was a small official, he was still an official appointed by the court. The emperor's eyes were slightly cold. Was his great country of Daliang going to be ruined by them like this?
"It's not me." Xiao Ze explained immediately, "Li Huaiyan is a bastard. He is not liked by Duke Li. Duke Zhang hates him very much. He is imprisoned in Duke Li's mansion. It has nothing to do with me. I hope your Majesty can understand."
"Perhaps a few days ago, Fourth Brother saw me and Duke Li leaving the court together and misunderstood something. Wang disappeared on the second day of that incident."
"This is such a mess, it's getting further and further away!" The emperor was furious. He slammed the imperial desk and asked in a deep voice, "Where is Duke Li? Get out here!"
"Your Majesty, Duke Li is feeling unwell today and has requested sick leave." An official from the Ministry of Rites stepped out and reported carefully.
"Is he sick?" The emperor sneered. "He got sick at the right time. I was in a mess, and he was lying at home sleeping soundly. He is really doing very well."
While his two sons were fighting each other, he was at ease.
The emperor looked at the court officials with a cold expression, and said, "Have you heard about the Second Prince's statement that Duke Li's mansion abused the illegitimate son?"
"Your Majesty..."
A middle-aged official came out in a hurry and wanted to explain, but the emperor coldly rebuked him, "Shut up!"
Lord Zhang felt a little embarrassed. He lowered his head silently and dared not say anything more.
Now that the emperor had spoken, the ministers naturally stopped hiding anything and began to tell the rumors in groups of three or four.
Ministers are the most likely to go with the flow. Now that I think about it, Li Huaiyan’s life was hardly that of a human being.
The emperor was even more furious. "How can I allow you to treat my officials like this?"
"Your Majesty, I have heard something else." The speaker was Shen Wen.
The emperor's expression softened a little, "My dear, please speak."
"A few years ago, I heard something about this. It is said that when Duke Li's mansion was in decline, Duke Li married a distant relative. Later, he met the girl from the Zhang family and demoted his wife to a concubine. Li Huaiyan is the son of the demoted wife. It is understandable that the current Duke's wife dislikes him."
After hearing this, the emperor was shocked for a while, staring at Shen Wen with a strange look. When did this old man become so gossipy? Even he, the emperor, had never heard of it before.
Lord Zhang was anxious again, "Your Majesty..."
"Shut up." The emperor's face was filled with anger. "I don't even know when the term of demoting a wife to a concubine began to be used in Daliang!"
He turned his head and ordered the eunuch beside him, "Send someone to investigate immediately. If it is true, then the old man's title of Duke is unnecessary."
"Yes." The eunuch went to do it immediately.
Lord Zhang's face was mixed with black and white, and his gloomy gaze was cast towards Xiao Ze, who was silent in the front.
Xiao Ze pretended not to know. Compared with overthrowing Xiao Yuan, sacrificing a mere Zhang family was nothing. He didn't care about the fate of the Zhang family and Duke Li's Mansion at all. The crime of kidnapping Wang must fall on Xiao Yuan's head.
This morning court was thrilling at first, and then like a farce. Ling Chenyi in the crowd had a smile on his lips the whole time, and his eyes were filled with anticipation for the show.
Only one person stood there uncomfortably, with sweat pouring down his body as if he had been showered with cold water.
Wang Ganzhi didn't hear what happened just now. The only thing on his mind was the eldest son of the Zhou family who went to Hu's Bank to look for evidence.
No one in the world wants the Wang family to fall more than the Second Prince's wife. As long as there is any clue, the Zhou family will definitely convict him. This time, he is afraid that he will not be able to escape.
Wang Ganzhi raised his head and looked at Xiao Yuan who was standing in the front, his lips tightly pursed.
He recommended the Zhou family because he already knew that he was colluding with the enemy in the Western Regions!
Therefore, all of this was the scheme of the Fourth Prince. He was really cunning. This move monopolized a lot of power of the Second Prince in one fell swoop.
Wang Ganzhi was so disheartened that his legs could barely stand. He had already prepared for the worst.
The chief eunuch came back before Shen Changhe and Zhou Yunfeng, and whispered something to the emperor. The emperor became furious and slammed the desk. Lord Zhang immediately knelt down.
"That's good, very good. I didn't know that my court had become so corrupt and rotten to the ground."
He stared at Mr. Zhang with a cold gaze, "For a marriage, you dare to take human life lightly. You are really very courageous."
Lord Zhang was shocked. "Your Majesty, it was Duke Li who took the initiative to ask for marriage. I, your humble servant..."
"Shut your mouth, the evidence is here. If you dare to quibble again, I will execute you today."
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