Chapter 160 The Emperor's Order
His meaning was the same as Shen Anan's. The Shen family already owed him a lot and couldn't let him get into trouble again.
Xiao Yuan nodded lightly without saying anything.
The bell rang, the palace gate opened, and the imperial censors carrying memorials walked in quickly and heroically. Their attitude was so grand, as if they were going to die with great generosity.
Xiao Ze sneered and walked past Xiao Yuan, "Why is your face so dark? Did you not sleep well last night?"
Xiao Yuan was already in a bad mood, so how could he look at him in a good light? "I didn't get enough rest."
He tilted his head and glanced at Xiao Ze, "Second brother married a concubine yesterday, shouldn't he have been enjoying music and dancing until dawn? Why do you look so happy? Is it because you have the will but not the ability?"
After saying this, without waiting for Xiao Ze to run away, he quickened his pace and entered the Fengtian Hall.
Xiao Ze glared at him fiercely and stood in his position.
After a while, the emperor came with the eunuch's loud shouts.
After going through the procedures, the chief eunuch said, "If you have a petition, please submit it. If you don't, please leave the court."
The censors immediately stood up in a row and began to file complaints one after another.
When the emperor saw this, he looked at Xiao Yuan with an unfriendly gaze.
He is the only one who can make such a big scene and mobilize all the censors. Looking at the court, he is the only one who has the ability to do so.
Sure enough, it is inseparable from him.
"The Lin family broke the law, so just arrest them and interrogate them. What does it have to do with the Fourth Prince?" the emperor said in a deep voice.
"Your Majesty, you don't know this," said a white-bearded imperial censor.
"The military power of East City is now in the hands of Shen Changhe, the eldest son of the Shen family and the fourth prince's brother-in-law. The Lin family girl is Shen Changhe's future wife, so the situation of officials protecting each other as mentioned by the civilian who was hit by the car would occur!"
The emperor naturally knew that Xiao Yuan gave the 10,000 troops to Shen Changhe. He looked at Xiao Yuan and asked, "What do you want to say?"
His face was very cold. He had not agreed with him marrying the daughter of the Shen family in the beginning. Now it seemed that he was right. Look how many troubles had arisen after only a few days of marriage.
She repeatedly disrupted the balance he had worked so hard to create and caused trouble for Xiao Yuan. A woman like this would be a disaster if he married her home. It was a pity that he would repeatedly disobey her for such a woman.
The emperor felt a pang of anger when he recalled that he had closed the door of his palace yesterday and threatened to carry the girl from the Li family into the palace.
Xiao Yuan's face was cold. "Whether it's the Dali Temple or the Zongrenfu, even if you, Father, are trying, you need witnesses and physical evidence, petitions, and confessions. Now there is nothing. You just convict me. Since when did the laws of Daliang rely on words alone?"
"Fourth Prince, you are clearly making far-fetched arguments," the censor said boldly.
"The person has crashed into a wall and died. What kind of evidence do we need? Would someone joke about his own life?"
"Besides, the deceased Lin Hengsheng and Lord Lin were brothers, and all his belongings after his death were in Lord Lin's name. Isn't this considered physical evidence?"
Lord Lin immediately stepped out of the line and knelt down, "Your Majesty, please be aware that Lin Hengsheng and I are indeed brothers, but we have never met. He was born to a concubine and was not tolerated by my family. Later, he married into another family and we have never met before. Because of this, my mother and the concubine had a grudge. Lin Hengsheng is clearly framing me to take revenge."
"Humph, you are the one who says both good and bad things. How can you trust the words of a criminal?" said the censor with a sneer.
Xiao Yuan replied calmly, "Then what do you think is credible, Lord Chen?"
"I will deposit some money in your name, and then hire someone to kill you at your doorstep. Can I convict you? If it's credible, I'll make arrangements when I get back. In the future, I'll do the same to any minister I don't like in the court."
"Second brother," he looked at Xiao Ze, "Why don't we two brothers give it a try and see who will frame and kill whom first."
"..." Xiao Ze glanced at him fiercely and didn't respond.
"Fourth Prince, you are making specious arguments and defending the Lin family." The censor said loudly.
Xiao Yuan glanced at him and said, "If it was you, Master Chen, who was killed today, I would say the same thing."
"..." Lord Chen was silenced and looked up at the emperor sitting on the dragon throne, "Your Majesty."
The emperor's eyebrows twitched.
If he can't argue, he comes to him for help, as if that rebellious son listens to him so much!
"Then according to your opinion, how should this matter be handled? Can the Lin family be made to account for the mistake by just saying it was a frame-up?"
Xiao Yuan's tone remained unchanged, "I did not say that the Lin family is innocent. We need to investigate further to find out what happened. Lin Hengsheng had been working for a man named Gu Tan before. Now that the truth has been revealed, that man has disappeared without a trace. It's hard not to suspect that there is something fishy going on."
The emperor frowned, "Who is Gu Tan?"
Xiao Yuan took out a memorial from his sleeve and had the eunuch hand it to the emperor. "This is a memorial written by the local government office, proving that Lin Hengsheng has been in cahoots with that Gu Tan in recent years. Whether the Lin family is involved or not will be known once Gu Tan is arrested and tried in the first instance."
"Father, this is a serious matter. If Gu Tan is really the mastermind behind this, he is definitely not just a wealthy man. He must be brought to justice for playing power games and framing court officials."
The emperor closed the memorial and looked at Xiao Yuan, "But the memorial says that he went to Jiangnan. How are you going to arrest him?"
"Fourth brother, do you want to go in person?" Xiao Ze added fuel to the fire.
The emperor glared at Xiao Ze coldly and gave him a look to shut up.
Then he added, "I heard that the Lin family and the Shen family have decided on a marriage."
Although it was a question, it was said with certainty. Lord Lin didn't know how to answer. Shen Wen stood out from the team and said, "Your Majesty, it is indeed so."
"Hmph," the emperor sneered lightly and stared at Xiao Yuan with deep eyes.
"Are you sure you want to investigate this matter?"
Xiao Yuan looked up and met the emperor's gaze. He had a bad feeling in his heart and was speechless for a moment.
"I am asking you, do you want to continue investigating? Do you want to capture the Gu Tan you mentioned?"
If the emperor wants to convict the Lin family, the evidence is sufficient. Xiao Yuan frowned and could only nod, "Yes."
"Okay then." The emperor agreed very readily, which caught everyone off guard. However, his next words made Xiao Yuan's expression change instantly.
"Since this is the case, and the Lin family is related to the Shen family by marriage, then let your princess consort, Shen, go and capture the person. Three months is enough. If you cannot capture the person and produce evidence, the entire Lin family will be executed, and all the branches will be exiled."
He didn't want the concubine he was given. If that was the case, then the main wife shouldn't stay at home every day and cling to him. He didn't believe that he could still be so devoted after not seeing him for several months.
The emperor was very annoyed with the Shen family, who kept causing trouble for him. His court had almost become a place for the Shen family to manage affairs.
"Gu Tan is cunning and has great means. My wife is just a woman, how can she arrest someone?" Xiao Yuan refused in a deep voice.
Jiangnan is thousands of miles away and there are so many dangers on the road. How can he feel at ease?
"A woman." The emperor curled his lips coldly, "A woman who can fascinate you like this must have some ability. Didn't she grow up in Jiangnan since she was a child? She is very familiar with the place. She is the most suitable person to go there."
He was clearly prejudiced against Shen Anan and was deliberately making things difficult for her. Xiao Yuan's eyes seemed to be filled with frost. "Well, I haven't been feeling well these days and would like to rest for three months. I hope your Majesty will grant me that."
The emperor smiled and didn't take it seriously. He didn't respond to Xiao Yuan's words, but immediately announced, "I have not been feeling well these days, and have been feeling powerless for a long time. So I want to go to Xiangjue Temple to recuperate for two months. All matters in the court will be temporarily handed over to the Second and Fourth Princes to handle."
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience was in an uproar.
It is obvious that the emperor had planned this long ago and it was not just a whim.
The fact that the two princes are regents means that the fight for the throne has reached a fever pitch and this is the most critical moment. The final outcome will be decided at this moment.
The emperor is planning to appoint a crown prince! !
Coming out of Fengtian Palace, Ling Chenyi looked at Xiao Yuan worriedly, fearing that he would be impulsive at this moment and ignore the overall situation.
"Xiao Yuan, now is the most critical moment. You can't act on impulse. If you leave the imperial city now, all our efforts over the years will be in vain. Even if we are not talking about us, if Xiao Ze takes that position, none of us will have a good ending."
Xiao Yuan said nothing with a cold face, and strode into the carriage, followed by Ling Chenyi.
"Why don't we let Li Huaiyan accompany my cousin's wife?"
The emperor has already spoken, so Shen Anan’s trip to Jiangnan is essential, otherwise he might immediately put the Lin family in jail.
Xiao Yuan didn't say a word all the way. The carriage stopped at the gate of the mansion. He strode out of the carriage without saying a word and walked towards the mansion with a threatening look on his face.
Ling Chenyi got out of the car and then shrank back into it.
"Forget it. He is upset right now." It would be boring for him to follow him, so he ordered the coachman to send him back to the Yongning Marquis Mansion.
"Prince Ling." Qing An stood in front of the carriage, "My master asked you to come in to discuss something."
"..." Ling Chenyi nodded, lifted the curtain, got off the carriage and entered the mansion.
In the study, Xiao Yuan was holding a wooden token in his hand and writing something. Ling Chenyi's face changed immediately when he saw it. "What do you want to do?"
"If Xiao Ze is in imminent danger, this matter will be easily resolved."
The emperor would not be confident in leaving the court to him alone, so he could follow An An to Jiangnan with peace of mind.
"What about your mother's death?" Ling Chenyi looked at him and said solemnly, "Are you not going to investigate? Just kill Xiao Ze like that? Concubine Ning is gone, so Xiao Ze is very likely the only person who knew about it."
Xiao Yuan paused for a moment, leaving a large stain of ink on the white rice paper.
"I won't let him die."
He just wanted him to get injured so that he could stay in the palace temporarily, thus giving up the emperor's plan to retreat behind the scenes and buying him a month. That was enough.
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