21 Chapter 021
◎Understanding the People's Feelings (Third Update)◎
The late emperor had three brothers and four sisters, all of whom were half-sisters. The youngest was Princess Jiashan.
Her biological mother was a talented woman of low rank. As a princess, she was not favored. After she came of age, she married the son of a minor official. Not long after the marriage, her husband died unexpectedly. She never remarried and lived in seclusion for many years.
If Xie Mingzhuo had not happened to go to Fenglin Garden, Manager Li would not have dared to hide the secret from her. She would not have known that the real owner of this famous curio shop in the capital was the Grand Princess of Jiashan.
Since then, she has done some research.
The investigation actually revealed some things. Not only was Fenglin Garden the private property of Princess Jiashan, but she was also behind many famous restaurants, tea houses, cloth shops and other businesses in the capital.
Being able to control so many industries, Princess Jiashan must have many capable people under her, or she herself must be well versed in business.
It shouldn't be a problem to check the accounts of the Ministry of Clan Affairs.
It was a good opportunity for her to use this incident to test the other party's attitude.
Li Jiuyue could have pretended not to know her and not revealed the owner behind her, but she still invited her to the private room and introduced herself.
She always felt that Li Jiuyue's act of revealing her identity to her was quite deliberate, and that there might be some unspeakable secret hidden behind this deliberateness.
15:30 at the hour of Hai, at Princess Jiashan's residence.
The light in the study was still on. Xie Kui leaned back in the Huanghuali Zen chair, looking down at the wooden box in his palm, frowning slightly.
The box was open, and a few copper coins and silver ingots were contained in a red silk bag. It looked like just a box for storing change, nothing special.
Li Jiuyue stood behind her and massaged her shoulders and neck.
"Tell me again what happened when you met Rong An that day." Xie Kui spoke slowly.
"Yes." Li Jiuyue recounted the entire incident word for word, and concluded by saying, "I heard that Princess Rong'an has participated in court meetings these past few days. His Majesty holds her in high regard."
Xie Kui nodded: "In that case, I should give it a try."
"Tomorrow, the three judicial officials and the Imperial Guard will jointly try Zhang Xiaofu. Your Majesty and the Princess may not have time to attend to other matters. How about we go to the palace the day after tomorrow?"
"Um."
However, early the next morning, someone came to the palace and said that the emperor summoned Princess Jiashan.
Xie Kui ordered his maid to fetch some silver and handed it over, then asked, "Why did the emperor summon me?"
The official from the Pedestrian Department smiled and refused the money, shaking his head and saying, "I don't know either. Grand Princess, please."
Xie Kui had no choice but to change into the princess's regular clothes and follow the carriage into the palace. Before leaving, he returned to his study to get the wooden box and ordered his personal maid to keep it safely.
Over the years, she rarely appeared in public except at royal banquets.
The last time I entered the palace was during last year’s Emperor’s Birthday.
The emperor led her all the way to the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
This is the emperor's living quarters. The emperor summoned her here, which must have nothing to do with state affairs or a matter of life and death.
The heart that had been weighing on her all the way slowly settled down, but when she stepped into the main room and saw the emperor sitting at the top, Princess Rong'an at the lower left, and Prince An with his head bowed at the lower right, her heart couldn't help but rise to her throat again.
The atmosphere is wrong.
She was the emperor's aunt, so she didn't need to kneel down. She just bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I wish you good health."
"No need to be so polite, Auntie. Please take a seat." Xie Changfeng said casually, "Is breakfast ready?"
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I have used it." Xie Kui continued respectfully, "I wonder what instructions Your Majesty has for me?"
Xie Changfeng waved his hand: "It's not an order, but there is an important matter that needs your help. Rong An, you go ahead and tell me."
Xie Mingzhuo said succinctly, "A member of the imperial clan has written to my father, complaining that Prince An has deliberately withheld their salaries, causing them hardship. My father has no choice but to give them an explanation and also to clear Prince An's name. After much deliberation, I think it's most appropriate to ask my great-aunt to intervene."
"This..." Xie Kui was surprised and couldn't help but glance at Prince An. "Your Majesty, do you want me to check the account books of the Imperial Clan Court?"
"That's right."
Xie Kui: “…”
Just after entering the palace, you received such a big hot potato?
She hesitated slightly: "I am not proficient in this."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Prince An quickly agreed. "Sister Jiashan never leaves her house and is taciturn. How could she be good at these mundane tasks?"
Xie Kui glanced at him, picked up the teacup, lowered his eyes and took a sip.
The defensive look on Prince An's face was no different from those of the dishonest shopkeepers in the shop.
Even if she hadn't checked the accounts, she could have concluded that there was something wrong with the accounts.
Xie Mingzhuo couldn't help but laugh. "Don't worry, Prince An. We're just giving those royal family members an explanation. It's better for them to be convinced by having our own family members check the accounts than by having officials from the Ministry of Revenue who are proficient in accounting do it."
Prince An: “…”
That’s right, Jiashan knows nothing and will never get to the bottom of it even if he searches till he dies.
I guess Your Majesty is just annoyed by those royal family members who cry poor, and is using the audit to shut them up.
This matter should just be a formality. What matters is whether the arrow that hit Zhang Gao last night took his life.
Having wasted a night, he had to go back and clean it up.
He then pretended to be aggrieved and said, "I beg Your Majesty to clear my name."
"Of course." Xie Changfeng waved his hand. "By the way, at the beginning of the morning hour, Zhang Xiaofu's case will be heard at Fengtian Gate. Prince An should also attend the trial."
Prince An's heart suddenly sank.
He was kept in the palace last night and was asked to watch the trial today. He estimated that he would not know whether Zhang Gao was dead or not until tonight.
Xie Changfeng then instructed, "Aunt, please go to the clan residence. I have already asked someone to sort out the account books."
Xie Kui could only agree: "I will obey your order."
Let's check the accounts first and then talk about other things.
At the beginning of the Chen hour, the three judicial officials, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, as well as the six ministers and vice ministers, and other officials all stood quietly at the steps of the Fengtian Gate, waiting for the emperor to arrive.
Today the emperor is personally supervising the trial, and no one dares to be perfunctory. The officials of the three judicial departments all have expressionless faces, for fear of revealing the slightest emotion and giving people a handle. The people watching the trial are also restrained, whether they are nervous or gloating, they all keep it all in their hearts.
Soon, the emperor took his seat, and the empress, Prince of Qi, Prince of Jin, and Princess Rong'an all sat down to watch the trial, and Prince An was among them.
All the officials knelt on the ground and shouted "Long live the emperor".
Xie Changfeng said, "Stand up," and got straight to the point: "Today's case will be presided over by Dai Jiaxian. Mr. Dai, let's begin."
Dai Jiaxian was the Minister of Justice, in charge of criminal justice affairs across the country. Naturally, no one could interfere with the trial since he was the presiding judge.
Officials from the Censorate and the Dali Temple assisted in the trial, while the Jinyiwei was responsible for acting as the emperor's eyes and ears and carrying out the emperor's will, collecting secret evidence outside and maintaining order in the court inside.
"I obey your command." Dai Jiaxian saluted respectfully and turned to Yang Yunkai. "Commander Yang, please bring Zhang Xiaofu and Wei Dajiang."
The Jinyiwei were also responsible for handling the defendants and supervising the plaintiffs.
After a while, the Jinyiwei strongman escorted Zhang Xiaofu to the Fengtian Gate, and Wei Dajiang also knelt on the ground at the strongman's signal.
After a few days, both of them seemed like different people.
The previously arrogant Duke Jingguo now looks disheveled and miserable. Wei Dajiang's external injuries are gradually healing. Although he is not in high spirits, at least he is calm and peaceful.
Dai Jiaxian cleared his throat and said loudly, "Zhang Xiaofu, Wei Dajiang is accusing you of illegally occupying soldiers, withholding food and wages, fabricating false pretenses, extorting money, raising assassins, and taking human lives. Do you admit these crimes?"
"I am innocent, Your Majesty, and I beg for your forgiveness!" Zhang Xiaofu knocked his head to the ground, bruising it several times.
After all, he was once a powerful Duke, but now he has fallen into such a state. Many officials can't help but feel a sense of grief.
Xie Changfeng had never experienced such a scene, but when he thought about the possibility that Zhang Xiaofu might have contributed to the demise of the country three months later, he hardened his heart and said coldly: "I only look at the evidence."
He scanned the entire room, finally landing on Dai Jiaxian's face.
The latter hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, I present the evidence."
"allow."
"Evidence one is the roster of troops sent to the capital from various places. The troops sent to the capital were generally divided into two shifts, spring and autumn, and they took turns on duty. However, the roster shows that many officers went to the capital two, three, or even four times in a row, which is consistent with what Wei Dajiang said.
"Evidence two: the testimonies of the troops sent to Beijing and some of the young and strong soldiers who came to Beijing, all stated that they had been or were being forced to work as laborers by the wealthy families.
"Evidence three: The high-ranking officials in the capital privately bribed Zhang Xiaofu under various pretexts, forcing officers to serve as slaves for free or at low cost. This is the detailed list of bribes.
"Evidence 4: The confession of the killer in the pig farm assassination case. He admitted to being raised by the Zhang family and following Zhang Xiaofu's orders to kill to silence the witness.
"Evidence Five..."
Dai Jiaxian listed more than a dozen pieces of evidence in one breath, all of which were evidence jointly found by the three judicial departments and the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the past few days. With both human and material evidence, Zhang Xiaofu had no way to defend himself.
Zhang Xiaofu shouted, "Your Majesty, someone is trying to frame me and put me to death! I have devoted my life to the court, yet I am being harmed by such treacherous officials. I am heartbroken!"
"Who wants to harm you?" Xie Changfeng asked.
Zhang Xiaofu cried, "I don't know. I've been busy with military affairs and training diligently, so I really didn't know about these things. Maybe some people couldn't bear the hardship of training and secretly accepted jobs to earn some pocket money. As for the continuous entry of the troops into the capital, I really didn't know about this. Maybe someone was greedy for the few bonuses, deceiving their superiors and subordinates, and did such a stupid thing!"
King Jin Xie Mingshuo rolled his eyes on the spot without caring about his image.
"Father, I left the palace yesterday and encountered a strange thing."
Xie Changfeng pretended to be displeased: "I'm currently trying a case. We'll talk about anything unusual later."
"But this matter is related to the Zhang family."
Everyone present knew that the King of Jin must be talking about the incident where a hundred people filed a complaint.
Xie Changfeng: "Tell me about it."
"I saw with my own eyes that over a hundred victims packed the county government office, all suing members of the Zhang clan. This matter is known throughout the capital, and I did not deliberately fabricate it to harm the Zhang family!"
"Is there such a thing?" Xie Changfeng frowned. "What's the current status of the case?"
Xie Mingshuo spread his hands: "I only heard the general idea, I don't know the specific details."
Xie Changfeng turned to Yang Yunkai.
"I have asked someone to copy 106 petitions. Please have a look, Your Majesty." Yang Yunkai immediately asked someone to bring up a box as long as his arm.
Everyone: As expected of the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he is fully prepared.
Wu Shanqing went down the stairs, took the box, took out a hundred or so petitions, and carefully presented them to the imperial desk.
Xie Changfeng glanced at it for a few times, then suddenly slammed the imperial desk with a loud bang and threw the petition to Wu Shanqing, "Read it!"
Everyone was startled and knelt down, shouting, "Your Majesty, please calm down."
Wu Shanqing calmed himself down and read the indictment on the spot.
His tone was smooth and level, but every word and sentence on the petition, like lines of blood and tears, appeared clearly before everyone.
Wei Dajiang resonated the most with this. Although he looked tough, he burst into tears.
Even if the officials felt nothing in their hearts, they had to show anger and sympathy on their faces. Of course, there were many good officials who truly cared about the people, and their angry expressions were real.
"What a Duke Jing! What a Zhang!" Xie Changfeng was furious and stood up. "I didn't even know when you, Zhang Xiaofu, became the king of this world!"
Zhang Xiaofu collapsed to the ground, saying in fear, "This old minister dare not."
"The people have nowhere to turn, and you still say you don't dare?" Xie Changfeng pointed at him. "For the crimes you've committed, I wouldn't mind executing your entire family!"
Zhang Xiaofu burst into tears: "Your Majesty, please understand!"
"Your Majesty, please think twice!" Some officials also pleaded.
There was absolutely no problem in beheading Zhang Xiaofu, but executing his entire family was really too much. Putting aside political stance, all the officials present were subjects just like Zhang Xiaofu, and no one wanted to be executed along with his entire family if he made a mistake in the future.
Xie Mingzhuo looked around at everyone for a moment and advised, "Father, the Zhang family is, after all, the descendants of loyal martyrs, and they have made great contributions to our Great Qi. Zhang Xiaofu has committed a crime and should be dealt with according to the law. However, there are also members of the Zhang family who have never committed any crime. Although they enjoy honors, their crimes do not deserve the death penalty."
"The princess is absolutely right!" Many people agreed.
Xie Changfeng glared at her: "Listen to the complaint just now, are there any innocent people in the Zhang family?"
"Father, please calm down," Xie Mingzhuo said slowly, "At least young children are not capable of doing such evil things."
"That's right."
The Prime Minister Chang Wei had been observing Xie Mingzhuo from the very beginning. At this moment, he couldn't help but look up at Xie Mingzhuo, and a look of understanding flashed in his eyes.
This is indeed a good opportunity to win people's hearts, as everyone wants to serve a benevolent monarch.
"Chang Wei," Xie Changfeng suddenly looked at him, "What do you think we should do with the Zhang family?"
With both witnesses and evidence present, it is useless for Zhang Xiaofu to refuse to plead guilty. The current task is to discuss how to make the verdict.
Chang Wei said slowly, "Your Majesty, the cases of the Zhang clan members have not yet been concluded. It would be better to wait until all the cases are concluded before sentencing them all together."
Give the emperor some time to buffer, otherwise if he gets angry and sentences the entire family to death, there will be no way to take it back.
All the ministers followed suit and made suggestions.
Xie Changfeng calmed down a bit and nodded, saying, "I'll do as you say, my dear."
After returning to the Palace of Heavenly Purity and sending all the palace servants away, Xie Changfeng collapsed onto the couch and muttered, "I'm so tired. Acting is so tiring."
He just wanted to paint, write and play chess at home, and had no energy to argue with the ministers.
Meng Qi massaged his Taiyang acupoint and said with a smile, "Once the crisis is over, you can semi-retire and be called Shao Shao Regent."
"That's right!" Xie Changfeng clapped his thigh excitedly, "Why didn't I think I could become regent?!"
It is unlikely that he would abdicate directly, but if the emperor doesn't want to be in charge, why not order the princess to be regent?
Xie Mingzhuo shook his head: "Then it may be that Father will have to shoulder the heavy responsibility for a while."
"What's wrong?" Xie Changfeng suddenly sat up.
"Living in the imperial palace, I'm too closed-minded." Xie Mingzhuo was very clear-headed. "Even the Imperial Guards don't necessarily report everything."
Meng Qi sighed: "You still haven't given up?"
"What do you mean by not giving up?" Xie Mingshuo's eyes widened. "What are you going to do?"
Xie Mingxuan frowned. "You feel like you're being deceived in the palace. Do you want to leave the capital and understand the people's sentiments?"
Xie Mingzhuo nodded: "I still know very little about Daqi. Without having been to the grassroots level, it is difficult for me to truly understand the needs and desires of the people."
"You have a point, but now is not the same as before. This world is too dangerous." Xie Mingshuo advised, "Besides, you still have me. I can go out and report news. I will tell you everything you want to know."
Xie Mingzhuo smiled and said, "That's different."
Power can easily deceive people. In the past, people would use any means to grab the position of a director in a company, let alone the throne of the emperor who holds the power of life and death?
She was afraid that she would be lost in the vortex of power in the future.
Look more at the outside world so that you won't be easily swayed by power.
"Since you've made your decision, I won't stop you. But we have to wait until the situation stabilizes before we discuss this matter." Meng Qi changed the subject. "By the way, today we're only addressing the Zhang family's crimes. Are we ignoring those who bribed officials at the Duke's Mansion and the officers at the various garrisons who collected pay cuts?"
Xie Mingzhuo explained, "These implications are so widespread that they could easily trigger an earthquake. Once the Zhang family's affairs are resolved, they'll slowly demote him under various pretexts."
She kept a record of all the officials who had previously argued for Duke Jingguo in a small notebook.
Meng Qi nodded: "That's fine."
The sun was at its zenith and the five people's stomachs were growling. They were about to ask someone to serve the meal when Wu Shanqing came in outside the door to report.
"Your Majesty, the Grand Princess requests an audience."
【Author’s words】
Turn down, there is more~
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