Three days ago, an old official who had participated in the calculation of the river embankment reinforcement fell into the water and died after getting drunk. Huaihe suspected it was not an accident and was secretly investigating the last person the official had contact with before his death.
Evidence is being collected intensively. Testimony, copies of account books, and land deeds have been secretly sent to the capital by a reliable caravan and will arrive soon! The wicked Xue is still in Yuncheng, while I am in the capital. We can proceed according to plan! Please take care! Your sister, Yao.
The letter trembled slightly in Xin Jiuwei's hand. It was anger, but even more so, excitement! Her sister and brother-in-law! They had done it! Right under Xue Mingyi's nose, they had actually unearthed such crucial evidence! Li Gui, this key minor official, forcibly seized land deeds from disaster victims, falsified procurement expenses, and that suspicious "accidental death"... each and every one of these points pointed directly to the core of Xue Mingyi's conspiracy to frame her father!
"Good! Good! Good!" Xin Jiuwei exclaimed three times, her eyes gleaming with dazzling light. Xue Mingyi, your death is near!
“You Ye! Mr. Fang! Mr. Qin!” Xin Jiuwei’s voice carried an barely suppressed sharpness. “The evidence escorted by the Qi family’s caravan will arrive soon! We also need to speed things up! We need to integrate the Xue family’s long-standing bad debts regarding river works and disaster relief funds, along with the evidence of Xue Mingyi’s recent price gouging and spreading rumors, and the new evidence sent from Yuncheng, into a complete indictment! The target—Zhou Zhengqing, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate!”
Zhou Zhengqing, one of the leaders of the Qingliu faction, was upright and incorruptible, hating evil as if it were his enemy. Unlike Shen Wei's smooth-talking conservatism, he was also sworn enemies of the Xue family's faction. More importantly, he had been a student of Xin Jiuwei's grandfather, and although he had not shown any special favor to the Xin family, he still held a sense of kinship. His impeachment carried significant weight and was unlikely to be counter-accused by the Xue family of being a frame-up by the Sixth Prince's faction!
"The complaint must be clear and logical, with a complete chain of evidence, and every word must be sharp as a knife! It must be a fatal blow, ensuring the Xue family never has a chance to recover!" Xin Jiuwei said resolutely.
The entire western garden of the Prince's residence was operating at high speed, like a sophisticated war machine. Collecting, organizing, verifying, copying… every task was being carried out against the clock. Xin Jiuwei, stationed at the central command, acted like the most composed commander, coordinating all parties and filling in any gaps.
Meanwhile, good news also came from Lin Jingshu's side. Xin Jiuwei's "luring the snake out of its hole" plan had worked! Xue Mingyi's trusted confidant in the capital, who was in charge of the pharmacy, saw that the Sixth Prince's residence was offering "sky-high" prices, 30% above market value. Blinded by greed, he dumped all the large quantities of mugwort and atractylodes (many of which were inferior medicinal materials) he had stockpiled. The pharmacies contacted by the Lin family "accepted everything," paying in cash, allowing the Xue family to make a hefty profit.
Just as Xue's trusted confidants were gloating, thinking they had Xin Jiuwei's life in their grasp, a shocking piece of news spread throughout the capital like a thunderclap!
"Good news! Good news! The officials and pharmacies of Jiangzhou and Yuezhou, in gratitude for the benevolence of the Sixth Prince's Consort and her concern for the disaster victims of Yingzhou, have specially collected 100,000 catties of top-quality mugwort, 50,000 catties of Atractylodes lancea, and 30,000 dan of quicklime! The Qi family's caravan has been traveling day and night and has already crossed the Huai River. They will arrive in Yingzhou soon!"
"The Marquis of Anguo's residence and the Sixth Prince's residence jointly issued a letter of thanks, praising the officials of Jiangzhou and Yuezhou and the righteous merchants. Their names have been presented directly to the Emperor!"
The news caused an uproar throughout the city! Those "righteous merchants" who had previously responded to Xin Jiuwei's call to sell grain and donate goods at low prices were overjoyed, their reputations soaring even higher. Meanwhile, the Xue family pharmacy, which had just sold a large quantity of inferior medicinal herbs to Xin Jiuwei at a high price, instantly became the biggest laughingstock!
The expensively stockpiled medicinal herbs were now a sitting duck, their poor quality rendering them unusable. Their earlier price gouging was exposed, making them the target of public criticism! The enormous losses and overwhelming infamy plunged the Xue family's businesses in the capital into turmoil. Upon hearing the news at the Ministry of Revenue, Xue Chongyi fainted on the spot from shock!
And this was just the beginning of Xin Jiuwei's counterattack!
A few days later, a strongly worded impeachment memorial, with evidence so detailed it was outrageous, was presented to the emperor by Zhou Zhengqing, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate!
The memorial listed numerous major crimes committed by Xue Chongyi, the Vice Minister of Revenue, and his daughter Xue Mingyi:
I. Embezzlement of river works and disaster relief funds over the years, amounting to a huge sum (detailed accounts of suspicious points and related witness files attached).
Second, under the guise of inspecting the disaster situation in Yingzhou, he fabricated charges to frame a loyal and virtuous official (Xin Shouye, the prefect of Yingzhou), interfered with disaster relief efforts, and disregarded human life.
Third, they manipulated the Beijing Zhongyao Pharmaceutical Store to drive up the prices of epidemic prevention medicines, hoarded and speculated, and made a fortune from the national crisis (with transaction records, samples of substandard medicines, and witnesses and physical evidence of spreading rumors).
Fourth, he formed cliques for personal gain, advocated for the remnants of the Second Prince, and undermined the foundation of the state (highlighting his connection with the former subordinates of the now-fallen Second Prince).
The charges are numerous and irrefutable! Every word is filled with blood and tears, striking straight to the heart!
This memorial was like throwing a block of ice into a boiling pot of oil, instantly igniting the entire court! The upright officials were invigorated and unanimously seconded the motion. Those who had been observing, seeing the irrefutable evidence against the Xue family, turned against them. Even the emperor, though ill, was enraged upon hearing the report! The accusations of "interfering with disaster relief," "profiteering from national crisis," and "undermining the foundation of the state" particularly struck a nerve with the emperor!
"Investigate! Investigate thoroughly for me! Don't let a single one escape!" The emperor, lying on his sickbed, unleashed his thunderous fury.
Imperial edict issued: Xue Chongyi is to be dismissed from his post and investigated, and imprisoned in the imperial jail! Xue Mingyi is to be immediately arrested and brought back to the capital for joint trial by the three judicial departments! All his "inspection" duties in Yingzhou are to be terminated immediately, and the imperial envoy appointed by Princess Rongchang will take full control of the matter!
When the news reached Yingzhou, Xue Mingyi was in the prefectural government office, behaving arrogantly and making things difficult for Xin Shouye and a group of Yingzhou officials, trying to force them to sign a forged "confession." The imperial envoy, holding the imperial edict and Princess Rongchang's token, burst in like a god and read the edict aloud to everyone.
Xue Mingyi's arrogance froze instantly, replaced by ashen despair and disbelief. Looking into the imperial envoy's icy gaze, at the barely suppressed glee and relief in the eyes of the surrounding Yingzhou officials, and at Xin Shouye's weary yet upright back, she finally understood: she was finished! The Xue family was finished! Everything she had meticulously planned had crumbled under Xin Jiuwei's seemingly weak yet thunderous counterattack!
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