Chapter 400 Obtaining Evidence
In the dead of night, Yu Chuan once again sneaked into Lord Wei's study.
As he expected, there was indeed a hidden room. The keyhole was the mechanism, and the key that Lord Wei always wore around his neck was the key to opening it. The identical key that he had someone make also worked.
In the dark room, Yu Chuan found three account books and some letters. After confirming that they were what his master was looking for, he took them away. As for the gold, silver, and banknotes in the dark room, he did not touch them.
After returning to the Gu residence, Yu Chuan went to find his master, but was stopped by Qing Qiu.
Yu Chuan said, "Miss Qingqiu, I have urgent business to discuss with the Marquis. I hope you will go and inform him."
Qingqiu replied softly, "Yu Chuan, the Marquis said that even if the sky falls, you shouldn't disturb him. If the sky really does fall, you should hold it up yourself first, and the Marquis will deal with it tomorrow."
Yu Chuan: "?"
What's the meaning?
Wasn't the Marquis very concerned about matters related to the case before? Why does he seem indifferent now? Such a big matter, yet you don't personally follow up on it all the time, and you just trust him to handle it?
Seeing that he remained silent and seemed to be deep in thought, Qingqiu asked, "What happened? Although the Marquis did not want to be disturbed tonight, he also said that if it is a major matter that you cannot handle, you can go and tell the Marquis immediately, and he will deal with it right away."
Yu Chuan replied, "It's nothing serious, just a small matter. We can deal with it tomorrow."
Qingqiu said, "Then please go back and come to see the Marquis again tomorrow morning."
Yu Chuan had no choice but to go back first. Although he successfully got what he wanted when he went to the Wei residence tonight, a small incident still occurred on the way. However, even if he told the Marquis about it now, it wouldn't solve the problem. He would have to deal with it tomorrow.
After sending Yu Chuan away, Qingqiu returned to the entrance of the main house to wait for her master's summons. Listening to the embarrassing noises coming from inside, she roughly knew why the Marquis did not allow others to disturb him. The Marquis's dark face in the morning was probably because his good time had been interrupted, and he was displeased.
inside the house.
Meng Jinyao looked at the man pitifully and whispered, "Husband, everything should be done in moderation. It's not worth it to harm your health. I've heard that people who have injured their health have to take medicine to make up for it. I hope you don't want to take tonics in the future."
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingxi felt as if thunder had struck him. He immediately intensified his teasing of the person in his arms, asking as he teased, "Does Ayao think your husband is useless?"
Meng Jinyao hurriedly shook her head: "No, no, my husband is very capable."
After that, Meng Jinyao didn't know how long he kept going, or when he finally drifted off to sleep.
-
The next morning, as the morning light shone down, the world was bathed in brightness.
Gu Jingxi had already woken up. He gently released the person who was still sleeping in his arms, then dressed and went to the bathroom to wash up so as not to disturb A Yao's sleep.
After he finished washing up and stepped out of the room, Qingqiu stepped forward, curtsied, and said, "My lord, Yu Chuan came by last night and said there was a small problem, but it's nothing serious, so I let him go back first."
Gu Jingxi nodded and went to the front yard to find Yu Chuan.
Yu Chuan got up early this morning. Upon learning that his master was looking for him, he immediately took the account books and letters he had found in Lord Wei's secret room last night to the study. After bowing, he presented the items and said, "My lord, I have fulfilled my mission. I found these three account books in the secret room of Lord Wei's study, as well as some letters."
After Gu Jingxi took the letter, he first looked at what it contained. After reading it, he frowned and his expression became serious.
When they arrived in Huzhou, they encountered the poor girl pleading for help. Although they didn't keep her, they later learned that the girl and the couple were acting. They weren't sure which side sent them, but they stopped worrying about it.
Now that I've read the letter, I'm finally certain.
So it's the Han family.
Lord Wei is corrupt, but so is Governor Han of Zhejiang. Even his own family, the Duke of Zhenguo, who lives far away in the capital, is corrupt. It was the Han family who initially tried to plant spies, but they failed.
If the Han family is involved, it's not a big case, but it will lead to a major case.
Zhejiang is a prosperous land, and such places are also prone to producing corrupt officials. As a high-ranking official in charge of a region, the governor has power and influence, and he is unlikely to be an absolutely honest official. It depends on how much he has done and whether he has reached the level that the emperor wants to eliminate. If he reaches a certain level, he will definitely be eliminated.
Afterwards, Gu Jingxi flipped through the account book again. He should have kept it in mind, because he found that Lord Wei's wealth was beyond his imagination. There were many large sums of money in the account book. These were Lord Wei's personal private accounts, all of which were money obtained through embezzlement and bribery.
The other two ledgers are the real accounts of Huzhou Prefecture. The amounts of tax collection and local governance and construction expenditures are all real. What is displayed in the prefectural office are perfectly fabricated accounts.
If these account books and letters are presented to the Emperor, the Wei family will surely suffer. As for the Han family, that depends on the Emperor's will, since they belong to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.
Gu Jingxi closed the ledger and asked, "Yu Chuan, what happened last night?"
Yu Chuan replied hesitantly, "I opened the secret room and retrieved the account books and letters without any problems. But after leaving the study, just as I was about to leave, I encountered a servant boy. He looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, and judging from his clothes, he was a low-ranking servant."
Gu Jingxi: "...And then?"
Yu Chuan truthfully replied, "Then, before he could react, I knocked him unconscious with lightning speed and put him in a pavilion, letting him sit on a stone bench and sleep with his head on a stone table. That way, when he wakes up, he might think he had a dream last night. Don't worry, my lord, I was masked and dressed in black last night. Even if he remembers what happened last night, he won't know who I am."
Gu Jingxi was not angry after hearing this. It was right that Yu Chuan did not kill to cover up the crime. Investigating the case was very important, but killing innocent people indiscriminately was unacceptable. Lord Wei deserved to die, but this teenager did not deserve to die, especially since he was a low-ranking servant. Such servants were used to cleaning and doing odd jobs. If they were killed just because they saw Yu Chuan, then they were not righteous. What was the difference between them and executioners?
Yu Chuan asked nervously, "My lord, what should we do now? I wanted to tell you about this last night, but you ordered me not to disturb you."
Gu Jingxi replied calmly, "Even if you told me last night, it could only be dealt with today. It was so late last night, the city gates were already locked. Anyway, we've already got what we needed, the other details aren't important, but we still need to plan ahead. Go and call Fang Xuan over first."
Seeing his master so calm, Yu Chuan breathed a sigh of relief and immediately went to fetch Fang Xuan.
After Fang Xuan arrived, Gu Jingxi handed over the account book and letters to Fang Xuan, instructing him to disguise himself and immediately take the evidence back to the capital before Lord Wei discovered it.
The twins Fang Xuan and Fang Ce did not come to Huzhou with them. They arrived earlier but did not show their faces, so Lord Wei would not notice them.
As for letting Fang Xuan take the account books and letters back to the capital first, it was because Fang Xuan was more mature and steady than Fang Ce, and handled things more reliably, while Fang Ce stayed behind to return to the capital with them the next day.
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