Chapter 151 Second Rank Minister
When the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace said this, there was an uproar in the Golden Palace.
"When did Wen Anbo return from Shaoqing Prefecture? How did she become the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works?"
"This matter spread yesterday. Lord Huang retired due to illness a few days ago, and many people in the court were eyeing his position. Then, someone suddenly appeared and snatched it away to Wen Anbo. It's really infuriating."
"So that's how it is. Su has been out on business for the past few days and only returned to the city around 12:00 last night."
"This woman, conceited by her achievements and relying on Your Majesty's favor, has always been arrogant and domineering, looking down on everyone. I long ago predicted that she would one day cause a catastrophic disaster, and my prediction has indeed come true!"
"Women often act impulsively, without regard for the consequences. Small fights in the inner chambers are fine, but in the court, every word and action can affect the lives of the people. If they make a serious mistake, there's no one to clean up the mess."
"If you ask me, she should be punished with a life for a life. Your Majesty should punish her the same way she treated the Young Master of the Liang family."
"Master Zhu, this is a brilliant plan!"
They acknowledged that Du Qingtang was capable and had made contributions to Daxia and the people, but they were still not convinced in their hearts.
Du Qingtang is just a woman, why should she be on equal footing with them, or even have a higher official rank than them?
Here, the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace impeached Du Qingtang with such conviction that some officials pounced on him like sharks smelling blood.
They seemed to have witnessed Du Qingtang committing a crime in the street for no reason, and personally visited Liang Yixing, who was seriously injured and unconscious, and spoke harshly and accuse him.
Contemptuous glances came from all directions, almost piercing through Du Qingtang.
As one of the only two people in the center of the storm, Du Qingtang stood tall and graceful, with lowered brows and eyes, without a trace of panic or guilt on her face.
"She's quite patient."
"She probably thinks that because of her outstanding achievements, His Majesty will show some leniency to her, just like he did last time."
"If Du Qingtang continues to use his merits to atone for his crimes this time, countless others will surely follow suit. Wouldn't the court be in chaos?"
"A country has its own laws, and a family has its own rules. Don't let her off easily!"
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace did not miss the officials' calls for severe punishment of Du Qingtang, and a triumphant smile quickly appeared on the corner of his mouth.
If you offend him, you will have to pay the price. Even if I can't get Du Qingtang dismissed from office today, I will still tear off a layer of skin from her!
He banged his head on the ground, sobbing and whimpering. "When my son was carried back, his nose and face were swollen and his body was covered with wounds. According to my son's personal servant, Wen Anbo whipped him dozens of times with a horsewhip in public. My son screamed and begged for mercy, but she didn't stop until his skin was torn and flesh was exposed."
"My son was frightened and has had a high fever since returning. He has been in a coma for seven consecutive days and has not woken up once. Your mother, my wife, and I are worried day and night, fearing... fearing..."
At this point, the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace burst into tears and sobbed uncontrollably, portraying the image of an old father who loves his son deeply to the fullest, which was very moving.
"I know that Earl Wen'an has worked hard and made great contributions, and is a loyal minister to Your Majesty. I have thought about settling the matter peacefully, reducing major issues to minor ones. I thought that if Earl Wen'an came to apologize, the matter would be over. However, so many days have passed, and Earl Wen'an has not come to visit."
"Whenever I think of my son, who is bedridden and whose life is uncertain, my heart aches and I am overcome with grief."
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace kowtowed again, choking with sobs, and said, "Your Majesty, please understand my deep love for my son and stand up for me and seek justice for him!"
The singing, reciting, acting and fighting made those who heard it sad and those who saw it cry. All the unbearable feelings turned into dissatisfaction with Du Qingtang, and they glared at him.
As soon as the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace finished speaking, an imperial censor stepped forward and knelt, his voice resounding with indignation, "Wen Anbo is arrogant and domineering, committing violence in the streets and killing innocent people. This is a serious crime. Your Majesty, please punish Wen Anbo severely!"
After that, more than ten people came out one after another.
"Du Qingtang knowingly broke the law. He is unfit to be an official, let alone a super-class earl. Your Majesty, please revoke his title and dismiss him from office for investigation!"
"Your Majesty, please punish Du Qingtang severely!"
"I second the motion!"
"I second the motion!"
Yan Tiande's ears were filled with voices of seconding opinions, a mixture of anger and helplessness.
Who in the capital doesn’t know that the youngest son of the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace bullies boys and girls and does all kinds of evil?
Du Qingtang would probably teach him a lesson only after he caught him doing evil in the street.
The hateful Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace confused right and wrong and even impeached Du Qingtang at the morning court. His words were full of tears and attracted countless people's sympathy, which also made Du Qingtang full of hatred.
And Du Qingtang, even if he saw injustice, he couldn't take action in public. Wouldn't that give evidence to his political enemies?
Even if we take a step back, Du Qingtang could have put the Liang family's youngest son in a sack in private...
wrong!
What is he thinking?!
Yan Tiande took a deep breath, thinking that he had been upright all his life and had always disdained shady means. How could he encourage others to do something shady behind his back?
Stop the brain!
Stop the brain!
"Your Majesty!" The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace prostrated himself on the ground, howling like a ghost. "Please, please help me!"
Yan Tiande: “…”
The old guy is really good at pretending. Just put him in a sack and give him a good beating.
Emperor Qingyuan sat on a high seat, looking down at the chaos below, and rubbed his brows with a headache.
"Lord Du, what do you say?"
With Du Aiqing's shrewdness, he must have come up with countless countermeasures at the moment of action.
I might as well pass the buck to Du Aiqing and let her solve it herself.
He just stood by and watched the lively show.
Du Qingtang woke up as if from a dream, blinked slowly, and refocused his scattered vision.
I stayed up late last night to give Jun Jieer a set of questions. I didn't close my eyes until the second half of the night. Now my eyelids are heavy and I'm extremely sleepy.
Unfortunately, the officials around him kept chattering, which was like a lullaby to his ears, and he almost fell asleep in the throne room.
Of course, sleeping is impossible.
She was thinking back to the evidence of the Liang family's crimes that Du San had sent her yesterday, and was choosing her words carefully so as not to let the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace take advantage of any loopholes, and to try to bring him down in one fell swoop.
There are indeed no vacancies above the second rank, but it is not a big problem. If there are no vacancies, they can be created.
This was a ready-made sucker, so she had to seize the opportunity.
The official who was very close to Du Qingtang and clearly saw the change in her eyes: "......"
The Minister of Works was speechless for a moment, then whispered, "Master Du, His Majesty is asking you a question."
Du Qingtang nodded imperceptibly, then stepped out of the group and knelt before speaking slowly, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Emperor Qingyuan raised his hand: "Approved."
"What does she have to report? Instead of making polite remarks here, why not kowtow and apologize? Perhaps His Majesty will be moved and show leniency."
"This woman is treacherous and cunning, and is extremely skilled at confusing right and wrong. If she does something wrong, she will be punished. Your Majesty must not be deceived by her, and certainly not be lenient with her."
"Everyone, keep quiet and listen to what Wen Anbo has to say."
The whispers in the Golden Palace stopped, and everyone's eyes wandered between Wen Anbo and the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace, mentally estimating who would win and who would lose in this invisible war.
It was originally thought that Du Qingtang would defend herself, but unexpectedly she kowtowed and impeached the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace and his young son.
"This humble servant wishes to report the youngest son of the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace, Liang Yixing, for bullying men and women and taking human lives with disregard. As an official appointed by the imperial court and a member of the cabinet, the Grand Secretary not only knew about this but also aided and abetted Liang Yixing's atrocities, allowing him to destroy the bodies and kill people to silence them!"
As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar again in the Golden Palace.
"Are you serious? Do you have any evidence? Are there any witnesses? Is the evidence conclusive? If not, then stop talking nonsense and blaming others!"
"The Seventh Young Master of the Liang Family is a tyrant in the capital. For many years, relying on his father, Sir Liang, who holds a high position in the government, he has been able to walk all over the Xiajing City with impunity. Zhang believes that what Wen Anbo said is not entirely impossible."
"But Wen Anbo didn't deny that she had committed the crime in the street. She said it definitely happened, and these words were most likely slanderous words she made in a fit of rage."
All officials held their own opinions and there were many different views.
Only the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace had a sudden change of expression and his breathing became disordered after hearing Du Qingtang's words.
Fortunately, he bowed his head and the throne room was in chaos, with everyone talking about their own things, so no one noticed his misconduct.
Cao Yuan, the first civil official, lowered his eyes, his disappointment disappearing in an instant.
waste.
He couldn't even handle such a small matter, no wonder he could only come up with bad ideas, causing great harm to the Fourth Prince and the Cao family.
Emperor Qingyuan slowly turned the jade ring, revealing a faint dragon pattern on his finger. His tone was calm, and no emotion could be heard: "Does Minister Du have any evidence to support what he said?"
Du Qingtang pulled a piece of paper from his sleeve, held it high above his head, and said respectfully, "This is the evidence of my crime. Your Majesty, please review it."
Emperor Qingyuan raised his hand, and Fu Rui flicked his whisk, walked down the stairs, personally took out the so-called evidence, and presented it to Emperor Qingyuan.
The expressions of the officials were somewhat subtle.
"Could it be that Earl Wen An had anticipated Lord Liang's impeachment and therefore had made preparations? If so, the evidence she presented to Your Majesty is most likely true."
"Then Mr. Liang Qi deserved the beating he received, didn't he?"
"Actually, based on what he did in the past, he deserved the beating. The people of Xiajing City would only applaud. But Wen Anbo shouldn't have used such harsh blows, leaving him unconscious for so many days. In my opinion, he's in great danger."
"Nothing has been concluded yet. Who knows if Wen Anbo fabricated this false evidence in advance as a precaution?"
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace was furious and glared at Du Qingtang who was kneeling with him in the palace, as if his family had been really wronged.
"Mr. Wen An, please stop talking nonsense. My son may be a bit naughty, but he has a kind nature. He wouldn't even step on an ant to death. How could he do such a thing as bullying men and women and taking human lives?"
Officials: "......"
However, everyone in the capital knows that Mr. Liang Qi is a playboy who is greedy for women and lustful. What he says and does has nothing to do with "pure character"!
The Grand Secretary of the Wenhua Palace faced Emperor Qingyuan and loudly pleaded his innocence: "Your Majesty, I have served as an official for nearly thirty years, diligently and conscientiously, never daring to overstep the line, fearing that I would succumb to temptation and fall into an irretrievable situation. How could I knowingly break the law and aid the tyrant in his evil deeds?"
He put his four fingers together and swore to the heavens with great force: "If I tell even a single lie, I will be struck by lightning and die without a burial place!"
"Boom—"
Just as the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace finished his words, a muffled thunder sounded out of nowhere in broad daylight.
Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace: “???”
Emperor Qingyuan and his officials: "..."
Du Qingtang raised his finger to the sky, with a half-smile on his face: "There is a god above us, Sir Liang, it is better not to swear casually."
"Could it be that Lord Liang really lied?"
"Today the sky is clear and sunny, there is no possibility of rain, so..."
"Lord Liang is foolish. He holds a high position and great power, yet he chooses to destroy his own future and seek his own death."
All the officials looked at each other with intriguing expressions.
"Boom—"
Another muffled thunder.
The Grand Secretary of the Wenhua Palace felt his legs tremble, his heart about to burst out of his throat, but he still pretended to be calm, swallowed his saliva and said, "Your Majesty, what I said is true. The thunder just now was just a coincidence. That's right! It was a coincidence!"
In just a few breaths, Emperor Qingyuan had already read through the evidence Du Qingtang presented. He tapped the silver-hook and iron-drawn handwriting on the paper with his fingertips and asked in an unclear tone, "Where did you get these so-called evidence, Lord Du?"
Du Qingtang bowed and spoke slowly.
"On May 18th, I left Shaoqing Prefecture and went to the capital to report on my work. I arrived in Xiajing eight days ago."
"At that time, after entering the city, I did not stay in the baronial residence that Your Majesty had given me, but went straight to my residence in the south of the city."
"Who knew that soon after entering the south of the city, I heard the guards come to report that a man was causing trouble in the street and trying to molest decent women."
"I couldn't stand it any longer, so I stepped forward to stop him. Unexpectedly, the man started to speak rudely to me, his words were vulgar and obscene, and I couldn't bear to hear them. I was furious, so I beat him up and then took him to the government office."
"Many people in the south of the city and the prefect, Lord Zhou, can testify to this."
"Afterwards, I thought about it and felt that this man was most likely a repeat offender. He had offended women before me, so I sent someone to investigate. This investigation actually led me to uncover some incredible information."
"Something extraordinary? How extraordinary is it?"
All the officials pricked up their ears secretly. Except for those who had close contacts with the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace, the rest of them were just watching the show, so as not to make it too obvious that they were just sitting there watching.
Cao Yuan's mind was racing as he recalled the past, trying to make sure that even if the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace was convicted, he would not be implicated. His hands hidden in his wide sleeves suddenly loosened, and his slightly raised heart fell back to its original position.
What a pity, despite the great opportunity, Du Qingtang still escaped and took the opportunity to turn the tables and dragged the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace into the water.
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace felt that the ominous premonition in his heart was getting stronger and stronger. He began to regret and feel afraid.
If he had known that Du Qingtang came prepared, even if someone pointed a musket at his head, he would never have impeached Du Qingtang at the morning court and dug his own grave.
But he still refused to admit defeat, and said in a stern voice, "Du Qingtang, stop talking nonsense. You know that framing an imperial official is a serious crime. His Majesty will not forgive you!"
"You've resorted to extremes to exonerate yourself. Your methods are so despicable that they truly impress me!"
Du Qingtang turned his head and caught a glimpse of imperceptible fear in the angry eyes of the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace.
Are you scared now?
If I had known this would happen, why would I have raised Liang Yixing to be a useless person who did all kinds of evil things, helping him to destroy the body but failing to clean up the mess, and thus handing the evidence to her?
Du Qingtang calmly retracted his gaze and continued, "Liang Yixing not only oppressed the people and forcibly abducted women, but he also repeatedly injured and killed innocent people while riding his horse in the street. He even murdered the decent women and concubines he abducted into his mansion. His methods were extremely cruel and outrageous."
"As far as I know, Madam Liang, Lord Liang, and Madam Liang were fully aware of Liang Yixing's actions, yet they never stopped him. Instead, they assisted him and sent people to threaten the families of the deceased. Anyone who refused to accept hush money died in an accident shortly thereafter, leaving no one alive."
All the officials gasped.
"What a jerk Liang Qi is! Not only does he kill innocent people, he even doesn't spare their relatives!"
"Master Liang is truly... As a father, as the head of the family, he should have restrained his descendants. As early as the first time Liang Qi killed someone on horseback, he should have put justice above his own family and handed him over to the authorities to punish him severely according to the law!"
"People always cling to the hope that their crimes will not be exposed, but unfortunately, the law is long and unstoppable, and those who take human lives carelessly will inevitably pay the price."
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace had never imagined that Du Qingtang's few words could instantly reverse the tide of the situation. Veins throbbing on his forehead, he shouted angrily, "Nonsense! This is slander! Your Majesty, please do not believe Du Qingtang's one-sided words!"
Emperor Qingyuan: "Continue."
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace felt a black screen before his eyes and almost fell to the ground.
Du Qingtang replied yes and told the story slowly.
"My guards also noticed that two nights ago, a servant from the Liang Mansion came out of the back door pushing a cart. Seeing his sneaky behavior, the guards quietly followed him."
"Then I saw the servants of the Liang Mansion go to a private house in the west of the city. After entering, they dumped two bodies from the wooden barrels on the cart and buried them in the flowerbed."
All the officials cried out in shock.
"Is this what Wen Anbo meant by destroying the body and covering up all traces?"
"Who is the deceased?"
Du Qingtang bowed and said, "I dare to speculate that the deceased were either servants of the Liang Mansion or decent women who were abducted into the mansion. Before this, there must have been other bodies that were disposed of in the same way."
"However, to find out the exact truth, Your Majesty needs to send someone to the house in the west of the city to investigate, and then make a final conclusion."
"Furthermore, I am absolutely certain that I only used 20% of my strength when I attacked Liang Yixing that day. It is impossible for me to cause him serious injuries, and he is still unconscious to this day."
"Therefore, I, your humble servant, have the audacity to ask Your Majesty to send a royal physician to the Liang residence. He will be able to tell whether Liang Yixing is truly unconscious or just pretending."
"at last--"
Du Qingtang turned sideways and saluted the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace with neither arrogance nor servility.
"At first, Mr. Du was simply driven by justice, seeing injustice. Later, I discovered that your son's crimes were too numerous to count. To ensure the victim rests in peace, Mr. Du launched a thorough investigation."
"It is Du's fault for investigating your son without Sir Liang's permission. I apologize for any offense."
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace fell backwards in anger.
He had never seen such a shameless person who took advantage of others and still acted ungratefully.
What’s even more infuriating is that Du Qingtang sent people to investigate the Liang family, but he didn’t realize anything!
If he had been more cautious at the beginning, noticed it earlier, and cleaned up the mess before Du Qingtang, he would not have been caught by Du Qingtang and had not made the Liang family's secrets public in the Golden Palace.
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace swallowed the fishy and sweet taste in his throat and held his breath to prevent his shoulders from slumping and his back from hunching, which would make him look guilty and short of breath.
He covered his face with his sleeves, tears streaming down his face as he said, "I, your humble servant, have been admonishing my descendants daily to cultivate themselves and avoid doing anything crooked or unorthodox, lest it tarnish the reputation of our family. How could this happen... How could this happen..."
He seemed heartbroken, choking and unable to speak. Suddenly, his eyes opened wide, and a dry "ho ho" sound came from his throat. Then his eyes rolled back and he fainted from the pain.
Du Qingtang looked at the huge human character on the ground: "......"
Officials: "......"
Emperor Qingyuan was silent for a moment, then summoned the imperial guards. "Reach immediately for the house mentioned by Lord Du and thoroughly investigate the flowerbed to see if there are any remains."
Du Qingtang readily gave the address.
Emperor Qingyuan paused and added, "Except for the flower beds, the entire house must be thoroughly checked inside and out, leaving no corner untouched."
These words made all the officials' eyelids twitch wildly. It seemed that His Majesty was determined to punish the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace.
"Fu Rui, send a message to the Imperial Hospital, have the imperial physician go to the Liang family immediately and do their best to treat the seventh son of the Liang family."
"If he is really feigning unconsciousness as Lord Du said, then tie him up and bring him before the emperor. I want to ask him how it feels to deceive the emperor."
Fury and the imperial guards took the order and left.
Arriving at the Imperial Hospital, Fu Rui randomly selected a doctor and said with a smile, "Thank you, Sir Liu, for coming."
Doctor Liu: “…”
No, why is it him again?
Does he have some kind of unbreakable bond with the Liang family?
Last time, he was kicked more than ten times by Mr. Liang Qi, and he still remembers this grudge!
but--
"Mr. Liang Qi only suffered a minor wound, which will scab over in three to five days. Could it be that the wound was on his head, which is why he is unconscious?"
Doctor Liu was completely confused. He scratched his head and muttered a few words, then picked up his medicine box and headed straight for the Liang Mansion.
He wanted to see what strange disease Mr. Liang Qi had!
Fu Rui stood at the door of the Imperial Hospital. He was not sure what he was thinking about. He chuckled and walked briskly back to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
With Wen Anbo showing his great power this time, what changes will happen in the court?
He was a little impatient to watch the fun.
......
Because the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace fainted, the farce was temporarily stopped. Emperor Qingyuan ordered the eunuchs to carry him to a side hall and summoned the imperial physician to treat him to avoid him dying in the Golden Palace and adding bad luck.
Du Qingtang spontaneously returned to the ranks of civil officials, and the morning court continued.
An official stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty..."
"Master Du." The Right Vice Minister of Works leaned slightly to the right, his eyes etched with gossip, and asked in a whisper, "Is everything you just said true?"
Du Qingtang was silent for a moment: "The imperial guards and the imperial physician will be back soon, and then we will know the outcome."
The Right Assistant Minister was so curious that he opened his mouth, but ultimately did not ask any further questions, so as not to attract the attention of His Majesty and be remembered and punished later.
Ever since His Majesty took back the tiger talismans of the Three Thousand Camps and the Five Army Camps, his tactics have become more decisive and his style of doing things has become more tough.
He didn't dare to anger His Majesty at this critical juncture.
Half an hour later, Imperial Physician Liu was the first to return to the palace and headed straight for the Golden Throne Hall.
After entering, Imperial Physician Liu knelt and saluted, then said in a serious tone, "Your Majesty, Young Master Liang Qi is not unconscious."
He was protected by the imperial guards, and the people from the Liang Mansion did not dare to stop him, so he entered Liang Yixing's yard unimpeded.
Liang Yixing was having fun with his concubine, with wine in his hands and a beautiful woman in his arms. He didn't look like he was terminally ill at all.
Imperial Physician Liu ordered the imperial guards to hold Liang Yixing down and forcibly take his pulse.
The pulse showed that Liang Yixing was as strong as a calf, and the whip wounds on his body had already scabbed over.
The only problem is that he is too obsessed with women. Excessive sexual intercourse leads to insufficient kidney water, which may affect his offspring in the future.
However, having committed such a heinous crime and bearing the responsibility for countless lives, Liang Yixing might not even see the sun tomorrow.
Officials: "......"
"It seems that Wen Anbo is right. Lord Liang is exaggerating. Mr. Liang Qi is not as serious as he said."
"I really don't know what Lord Liang is up to. He has to impeach Wen Anbo on the first day of her appointment."
Although they also disliked Du Qingtang, they never thought of making up stories and maliciously impeaching him.
Young Master Liang Qi is also a fool. His own father is charging into battle at the morning court, so he has to pretend no matter what, right?
But he refused!
Not only did he not pretend to be unconscious, he also had an affair with his concubine and was caught on the spot by the imperial physician and the imperial guards.
When it comes to dragging one's feet, all the officials' sons in the capital of Xia cannot compare to this Mr. Liang Qi.
"Fortunately, Lord Liang is not in the palace, otherwise I would have dug a hole in the ground and crawled in right there."
Emperor Qingyuan was both angry and amused when he heard this. The sons of noble families were truly getting worse with each generation. Fortunately, he did not expect these people to help him govern the world or defend his country.
"Where are the others?"
Doctor Liu replied, "He's waiting outside the palace."
Emperor Qingyuan said, "Let him in."
At the emperor's command, the imperial guards immediately took Liang Yixing into the Golden Palace.
Liang Yixing was a dandy young man who only knew how to fight cocks and run errands. He had never seen such a scene before. He was already scared out of his wits when he was caught by the imperial guards. Now his legs were as soft as noodles and he was staggering as he walked.
“Kneel down!”
The imperial guards kicked Liang Yixing in the knee, and his legs went limp, and he fell to the ground.
Emperor Qingyuan secretly said that the father is a tiger and the son is a dog.
Although Liang Wangjin was in cahoots with Cao Yuan and became more confused as he grew older, he was still a big shot in his early years. Yan Tiande and Shi Zishan had both suffered at his hands.
Looking at his son, he is neither good at literature nor martial arts, and is simply a weakling who is not worthy of being in public.
This is good. Emperor Qingyuan hopes that all the descendants of Cao’s party will be like this.
"Liang Yixing, do you admit your guilt?"
Emperor Qingyuan's voice was majestic, like a thunderclap crashing down on his head, frightening Liang Yixing so much that his face turned pale and he trembled like a sieve.
"I know my crime! I know my crime!"
"The impeachment of Wen Anbo was the decision of my father alone. I was completely unaware of it. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to have so much fun at home."
No way.
It was his idea that the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace impeached Du Qingtang.
Once Du Qingtang regains his virginity, he will be hers.
Liang Yixing didn't know what had happened in the Golden Palace before this.
He was drinking and having fun with his favorite concubine when the imperial guards suddenly broke in, grabbed him without saying a word, and tied him up and took him into the palace.
Emperor Qingyuan raised his eyebrows and said, "Are you really completely clueless? Was it all your father's doing?"
Liang Yixing nodded vigorously, "Wen Anbo is a great contributor to our dynasty. I admire her so much, how could I possibly frame her?"
"He's my father. He's jealous of Wen Anbo's young age, so he's taking this opportunity to impeach Wen Anbo and bring her down... That's right! That's it!"
As he spoke, he nodded seriously.
Emperor Qingyuan tapped the armrest of the dragon throne with his fingers and turned his head to look at the small door leading to the side hall. "Lord Liang, is this really the case?"
Everyone - including Liang Yixing looked over. The man standing in the small door, his body shaky and his face as pale as ash, who else could it be but the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace?
Liang Yixing looked into his father's eyes, and could see shock, disappointment, pain and many other emotions in his father's eyes.
Liang Yixing felt a little guilty, but soon he became confident again.
His father failed in his impeachment of Wen Anbo and would definitely be punished. He didn't want to suffer with his father.
His father loved him the most, much more than his elder brother, second brother and several half-brothers. I believe his father would understand his difficulties and take all the blame.
And that is indeed the case.
Although the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace did not expect that his most beloved youngest son would betray him at this time and put all the blame on him, and he felt very disappointed, but as a father, how could he blame his child?
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace closed his eyes, his heart broken. "Your Majesty, none of this has anything to do with my son. It was all done by this humble servant alone."
Liang Yixing breathed a sigh of relief. Now he can leave, right?
Just at this moment, the imperial guards who went to investigate in the west of the city returned.
"Your Majesty, I and my men have discovered dozens of skeletons in several flower beds, and over a dozen bodies that haven't fully decayed. Preliminary inference suggests they died within the past two months."
"In addition, I and others found over a hundred skeletons in the pond, and dozens more under the willow trees beside the pond..."
The imperial guards knelt in the hall and reported several locations, each of them digging out a number of bones and corpses that had not yet completely decayed.
Du Qingtang made a rough calculation and found that there were as many as four or five hundred.
Turning to look at Liang Yixing, he saw that his face was pale and his lips were trembling. He was obviously terrified to the extreme, as if he was about to faint in the next moment.
"And based on the morphological characteristics of the bones and corpses, the majority of the deceased were women, with only a very small number being men."
"Among the bodies that had not yet fully decomposed, five were found to be heavily pregnant, indicating they were at least six months pregnant."
Before the imperial guards finished speaking, in order to hear clearly how many corpses were hidden in the houses in the west of the city, even though they were extremely shocked, all the officials still tried their best to suppress the screams on their lips.
After the report was completed, the entire Golden Palace was in an uproar.
"Liang Qi is truly not afraid of divine retribution for killing a woman who was six months pregnant!"
"It seems that Wen Anbo's guess was correct. Among the hundreds of dead, the vast majority were probably concubines, maids, and women from respectable families."
"Your Majesty, Liang Yixing has committed countless murders and his crimes are monstrous. Please sentence him to death to comfort the souls of the deceased."
"I believe he should be torn to pieces by chariots, a warning to all, a warning to all."
"Lord Liang is aiding and abetting the tyrant's evil deeds, knowingly breaking the law. Not only does he fail to serve as a role model, he may also undermine the government. He is truly unfit to be a cabinet minister."
"I second the motion!"
"I second the motion!"
......
From the impeachment of Du Qingtang by the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace, Du Qingtang became the target of public criticism, and then Du Qingtang impeached the father and son of the Liang family, provided evidence of their crimes and verified the facts, the situation was reversed and victory was turned from defeat to victory in less than an hour.
Liang Yixing was completely dumbfounded as he looked at the officials who were speaking in stern voices.
He couldn't understand what went wrong.
He clearly just had his eyes on a beautiful woman and wanted to make her his own, so why did things get so out of control now?
He had molested decent girls in the street before, and even took them into his house and forced them to be his concubines, but everything had gone peacefully.
No one dared to offend him. After learning his identity, many people flattered him and said that it was a blessing for their daughters to be favored by him.
As for those who would rather die than obey and whose family members are also stubborn, the grass on their graves is basically three feet high.
wrong.
Those people don't even have a grave.
Either die in the sea of fire or be buried in the three-courtyard house in the west of the city.
Liang Yixing suddenly looked at Du Qingtang and suddenly realized.
Because most of those women were of ordinary origin, and Du Qingtang was not only the Earl of Wen'an, but also a third-rank minister, holding power and favored by the emperor.
Those women care about their chastity and reputation, and dare not speak out when they are bullied, let alone fight back.
Du Qingtang was fearless, like a ball of flame, protecting himself while burning all those with bad intentions to ashes.
Although she is a beauty, she is extremely poisonous.
Once you touch it, you will fall into an irretrievable situation.
"Your Majesty, please execute Liang Qi as a warning to the rest!"
"Liang Wangjin is unfit to serve as a cabinet minister. Your Majesty, please dismiss him and investigate him, and punish him with the same crime as Liang Qi!"
The voices of condemnation were endless, like a sharp blade, tearing through his brocade robe, cutting open his flesh, penetrating his veins, penetrating deep into his internal organs. The moment it pierced his heart, Liang Yixing trembled uncontrollably.
But in a moment, a pool of liquid seeped out from under his body.
The officials standing around Liang Yixing all looked disgusted when they saw this.
"Tsk, I was actually scared to death."
"You're as cowardly as a mouse now. Why weren't you afraid when you killed someone before?"
"What a coward! He has brought shame upon the Liang family."
Liang Yixing was so ashamed and embarrassed that he wanted to dig a hole on the spot and bury himself in it.
Although he was filled with shame and anger, Liang Yixing calmed down instead.
He can't die.
He is only twenty-one and has many decades to live.
He still has many beauties and fine wines to enjoy.
Liang Yixing prostrated himself on the ground, his voice as resonant as a bell: "Your Majesty, please be clear! Those corpses have nothing to do with me. I know nothing. They were all killed by my father. My father killed those people. It has nothing to do with me, Your Majesty!"
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace was struck by lightning. He stared blankly at his most beloved youngest son, and slowly revealed an expression that seemed to be both crying and laughing.
It is true that he arranged his confidants to deal with those people, but the person who actually killed them was clearly Liang Yixing.
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace still remembers that one night six or seven years ago, Liang Yixing knocked on the door of the main courtyard.
He was covered in blood and couldn't stop crying: "Dad, I accidentally killed someone, please save me, I don't want to be arrested and go to jail, I don't want to die!"
Without saying a word, the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace sent his confidant to take the body of Liang Yixing's concubine to the third courtyard, which was registered under the confidant's name, and buried it on the spot to destroy all evidence.
Who would have thought that where there is one there would be two.
The blood from the concubine seemed to have activated a special habit in Liang Yixing's bones. In the next few years, he killed several people almost every month.
There were maids, servants, concubines, and decent girls who were abducted back to the mansion and had yet to make their way through life.
Every time he killed someone, Liang Yixing would come crying and ask the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace to clean up his mess.
The Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace loved his son dearly, but he could not bear to see his young son thrown into prison, so he could only hold his nose and clean up Liang Yixing's mess and deal with the body.
However, he never imagined in his life that his deep love for his son would become a knife that stabbed into his heart.
Facing Liang Yixing's eyes filled with pleading and fear, the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace softened his heart for some unknown reason.
This may be the love of parents.
Willing to die for his children.
The Grand Secretary of the Cultural Palace closed his eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "Yes, that's right. This humble servant did it. Your Majesty, please do not implicate innocent people. If you want to punish anyone, punish this humble servant alone."
The officials had different expressions.
"He's clearly shielding the culprit!"
"Then why did Liang Qiruo, if he had nothing to hide, piss himself on the spot?"
"Alas, pitiful are the hearts of parents in the world."
"What's there to be pitied? He's pitiful, but what about those people who were killed by Liang Qi?"
Emperor Qingyuan twisted his fingertips lightly and said in a deep voice, "Since that's the case, I will remove you from office and execute you on a chosen day. Do you have any objections?"
Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace...No, now we should call him Liang Wangjin.
Liang Wangjin looked at Cao Yuan, who closed his eyes slightly, as if he was staying out of the matter. He took a deep breath, prostrated himself, and kowtowed: "Your humble servant is willing to accept the punishment."
The imperial guards stepped forward, stripped Liang Wangjin of his official robe, and marched him out.
Seeing that everything was settled, Liang Yixing was ecstatic in his heart, and a hint of it showed on his face.
Just as he was about to smile, he heard Emperor Qingyuan issue an order: "Liang Yixing has deceived the emperor and harmed the people. He will be thrown into prison and executed on a later date."
Liang Yixing's smile was frozen on his face, his mouth was twisted, his eyebrows were raised, and he looked like a clown.
He was stunned and screamed hysterically: "When did I ever deceive the emperor? I don't accept it! I don't want to die!"
The imperial guards stepped forward, covered Liang Yixing's mouth, and dragged him out.
Many officials looked pleased.
"Fortunately, fortunately, he didn't get away with it."
"Your Majesty is a wise ruler."
"Liang Wangjin was foolish. He put himself to death for the sake of one son, and also ruined his other sons and the Liang family."
Liang Wangjin listened to his former colleagues' evaluation of him, thought about his elderly mother, wives and concubines, and his legitimate and illegitimate sons who were officials at court, and a feeling of regret welled up in his heart.
Maybe he shouldn't have taken the blame for Liang Yixing.
What's worse, he shouldn't have impeached Du Qingtang.
Liang Wangjin glanced to the side inadvertently and saw Du Qingtang.
New hatred and old grudges combined together, Liang Wangjin's eyes were filled with astonishing hatred, and his words were aggressive: "Are you satisfied now? You cold-blooded woman, if it weren't for you..."
If you hadn't rejected the Fourth Prince's solicitation, Cao Yuan wouldn't have been angry with me. He would never have stood by and watched coldly at a critical moment like today.
Du Qingtang knew what he wanted to say, but the fewer people who knew about this kind of thing, the better, so he interrupted him and said, "Isn't it all your own fault?"
Some officials couldn't help but stand up and speak fair words.
"It's not like Wen Anbo put a musket to your head and asked you to impeach her, nor did it mean that Wen Anbo asked Liang Qi to kill people. How can you have the nerve to question her?"
"If you ask me, the problem lies with you. You didn't raise your son well and raised a playboy who brought shame to the family."
Liang Wangjin was stunned on the spot, and he suddenly realized -
It was he who proposed to lure Du Qingtang with the position of queen, and he also sent people to Shaoqing Mansion to investigate Du Qingtang.
This time, he impeached Du Qingtang at the first morning court session after she took office in order to vent his anger for his youngest son.
In the final analysis, if Liang Yixing had not provoked Du Qingtang first, they father and son would still be alive and well, and the Liang family's secrets would not have been made public.
In just a moment, Liang Wangjin was like a punctured balloon, losing all his strength and collapsing. His eyes were blank, his back was hunched, and he burst into tears as he looked at Liang Yixing's back.
It was not a show, but genuine pain and regret.
If he had known this would happen, he would have strictly disciplined Liang Yixing and would never have spoiled him blindly.
Spoiling a child is like killing him. Excessive doting is tantamount to pushing children to a dead end.
Unfortunately, he realized it too late, and everything was already too late.
It's too late!
......
After Liang Wangjin and his son were taken away, peace returned to the Golden Palace.
Qi Cifu stepped out with a tablet in his hand: "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Emperor Qingyuan raised his hand: "Approved."
Qi Cifu leaned forward and asked respectfully, "Your Majesty, there is a vacancy in the cabinet. Who do you think would be the most suitable person to take over?"
Liang Wangjin's conviction meant that the cabinet lost a grand secretary.
According to regulations, only positions such as Assistant Grand Secretary, Minister of the Six Ministries and Left Censor-in-Chief can be included in the promotion candidates for the vacant first-rank Grand Secretary.
As soon as these words were spoken, the officials who were expected to be promoted were all cheered up, their burning eyes cast on the jade steps, their hearts filled with a mixture of excitement and uneasiness.
Emperor Qingyuan pondered for a moment, then spoke solemnly, "Lord Han has served as Minister of Works for over twenty years. During this time, he has performed his duties diligently and conscientiously. I am deeply pleased. I hereby promote you to the rank of Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace."
Minister Han was stunned for a moment, then stepped out and knelt to thank the emperor for his grace.
"Also, the position of Minister of Works will be taken over by the Left Vice Minister of Works. He will take office today and there must be no mistakes."
The smile on Du Qingtang's lips disappeared in an instant, and he stepped out and knelt down: "Thank you, my lord, for your grace!"
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