As everyone listened to 001's account and watched the scene on the screen, some fell silent: If you say Consort Lin is guilty, then she really is guilty, for cuckolding the Emperor. But if you say Consort Lin is innocent, then she is also truly innocent. After all, she has been in the palace for so many years and has only met the Emperor a few times. Anyone would be terrified in that situation. After all, to die alone in the harem is too tragic.
Qin Qianluo also felt sorry for Consort Lin. "Isn't the Emperor abusing his power? Uh… that doesn't seem quite right. He is the Emperor, but this matter is truly difficult to judge. Who is right and who is wrong? The main responsibility lies with Minister Lin. Consort Lin clearly has someone she loves, yet he still sends her to the palace. Wouldn't Minister Lin treat his illegitimate daughter badly?"
The court officials appeared to be discussing state affairs, but in reality, they were all secretly watching Minister Lin. The Emperor also looked at Minister Lin, wondering if this man was really mistreating his concubine's daughter. "How can one sweep the world if one cannot even sweep one's own house?" If it were true, the position of Minister of Justice should be given to someone else.
Lin Fu: I'm innocent, Princess Qingyun! I really didn't know! My daughter didn't tell me at the time. If I had known, how could I have sent her to the palace?
Lin Fu was filled with grievances, and seeing the doubtful looks from his colleagues made him feel even more aggrieved. When he met the Emperor's gaze and saw the Emperor's obvious questioning of his abilities, he felt so wronged that he almost cried.
Fortunately, 001 spoke up at this moment: "Minister Lin is indeed a good person. Although he has concubines, his family is harmonious, and his wife and concubines don't engage in any infighting. Minister Lin also pays attention to the affairs of the household. He is a decent official, fair and just in his dealings, and he won't wrong ordinary people, even if the perpetrator is related to him. He won't bend the law for personal gain. He is also very devoted to his children."
The court officials silently shifted their gaze back to the good official certified by 001, who seemed to be considerate of his family as well. They couldn't stand the excitement anymore and focused on listening—no, on the matter at hand.
The Emperor withdrew his scrutinizing gaze. It seemed she was a good person, and there was no need to replace her. But what was the matter with Consort Lin?
Lin Fu: Thank you 001 for proving my innocence. It was no easy feat. He silently wiped the sweat from his brow.
Qin Qianluo was also confused. "Then why did he still send Consort Lin into the palace? Didn't he know that Consort Lin already had someone she liked?"
001 said leisurely, "Minister Lin really doesn't know that the head maidservant who serves Consort Lin closely is actually a spy from the Xuanyuan Kingdom in disguise. Unfortunately, Minister Lin is the kind of person who never brings official business home; he always handles it at the Ministry of Justice and then goes home to spend time with his family. So the spy has hardly obtained any useful information, which is why he got anxious. Knowing that the Emperor was selecting concubines, he started to scheme and coax Consort Lin, preventing her from telling Minister Lin that she has a lover."
Qin Qianlu frowned. "No, why is it this Xuanyuan Kingdom again? That dog of an emperor has sent so many spies, it's never going to end! And that Consort Lin was so stupid to believe it? Didn't she really tell Minister Lin? How did that maid manage that?"
The court officials were startled, and Lin Fu also listened intently. This concerned the affairs of the state; personal feelings were trivial matters. Could the spy have really followed them into the palace?
The emperor was also getting annoyed. This Xuanyuan Kingdom was really going to never end. The previous three spies had not been found yet, and now another one had appeared. Where did the emperor of Xuanyuan Kingdom find so many people who were suitable to be spies?
001's childish voice also carried annoyance. After all, the emperor of Xuanyuan Kingdom was still thinking about capturing Luo Bao and bringing her back to Xuanyuan Kingdom. The repeated appearances of spies were truly annoying.
001 flipped through the documents and suddenly stopped being angry. "That dog emperor kept many boys and girls, training them from a young age. When he got tired of them, he sent them to various countries as spies. Tianxuan has become increasingly powerful in recent years, so it has the most spies. That maidservant told Consort Lin all the rules of her country—the prohibition against men and women having private relationships, the strict separation of men and women, and the rule that women cannot meet strange men in private, or they will bring shame upon their families. Over time, Consort Lin was brainwashed, which is why she didn't dare tell Minister Lin at the time, fearing he would think she lacked the propriety and shame of a woman."
Qin Qianlu was speechless. "Isn't this just a distortion of Confucius's words? Is this how the Xuanyuan Kingdom is? Did that maid really follow us into the palace?"
The court officials exclaimed: What is all this nonsense? So many of these are aimed at women? Is this how the women of Xuanyuan Kingdom live? Is the Emperor of Xuanyuan Kingdom out of his mind?
The female officials exclaimed: "What? What do you mean by 'private exchanges'? Does this mean we shouldn't be together before marriage, but only after? If there are any problems later, can we just get a divorce? That would be so troublesome! And what about the strict separation of men and women? Men and women can't be in the same room? How are they supposed to attend court? And what about not being able to meet men in private? What kind of nonsense is this?"
Emperor: What kind of nonsense is this? Where did all these rules and regulations come from? Are the people of Xuanyuan Kingdom even normal?
001 echoed, "That's right, it's the kind of distortion of Confucius's words that existed during the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. The Xuanyuan Kingdom was even worse than those periods. However, Consort Lin wasn't completely stupid; she herself sensed something was off about that head maid. So, when she learned she was going to the palace and there was no way to change the situation, she distanced herself from the maid. She didn't bring the maid with her when she went to the palace. That maid is still in Minister Lin's residence, guarding the empty courtyard where Consort Lin was born."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. It was good that she hadn't entered the palace, otherwise they would have had to go through the trouble of searching for that spy again. Lin Fu was also relieved, as long as she was still in his own residence, he would send that maid to the imperial prison when he returned.
The Emperor was relieved. Romantic feelings were no longer a concern. As long as no spies entered the palace, that was good. It seemed he would have to be careful about the women entering the palace in the future. If one of them turned out to be problematic, he would only have one life left.
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