Chapter 184 Death of Zhang Heng (2)
Emperor Jingwen mentioned the matter of establishing a crown prince in front of Prince Xuan's palace more than once.
Not to mention that Prince Xuan's Palace supports Meng Ze, even if they have second thoughts, as long as Meng Ze becomes the crown prince, once this fate is determined, the palace will completely side with Meng Ze. After all, this position is only one step away from ascending the throne.
If they support others, it would be suspected of usurping the throne. How could the royal palace take this risk? As long as they have the military power in their hands and protect Meng Ze, it would be a meritorious service to the emperor, which is far simpler than risking the disapproval of the world.
Whether it is King Xuan or Zong Si, they will take risks with the future of the royal palace.
Emperor Jingwen said: "The matter of establishing a crown prince still needs the presence of the prince."
Zong Si said calmly: "Your Majesty, just rest assured."
"It's not just the Fourth Brother who is stirring up trouble behind the scenes." Emperor Jingwen said with a half-smile, "There are always people with wolfish ambitions who hide themselves very well. It's hard for me to believe it."
The third brother, Meng Yuan, might not be an easy person to deal with, but we still have to give it a try.
Zong Si's expression did not change. He did not seem to try to guess the Emperor Jingwen's deeper meaning, and did not seem to care about the person whom he called "ambitious".
"You and I know what happened today." Emperor Jingwen waved his hand tiredly.
Only after Zong Si left the Yangxin Palace did his face darken.
Zhang Heng's death was probably not that simple. It might be a test of Meng Yuan by Emperor Jingwen. And telling me about this was undoubtedly a test to see if there was any connection between Prince Xuan's Mansion and Meng Yuan.
Emperor Jingwen was obviously not afraid that he would be involved with Meng Yuan. Even if he was, he was sure that once Meng Ze was made the crown prince, Prince Xuan's Palace would be able to distinguish between the more important and the less important.
If Zong Si told Meng Yuan the news, it would prove that Meng Yuan was not an ordinary person.
This incident happened suddenly, so Zong Si could not act rashly. Meng Yuan also returned to Beijing that afternoon.
Meng Yuan brought a woman with him. The woman was ragged and skinny, and it was obvious that she had been wandering for a long time.
Emperor Jingwen frowned and asked: "Who is this?"
Meng Yuan said: "The death of Lord Wei Xiao may not be simple. When I was in Chaozhou, I accidentally heard this woman talking about the death of Wei Xiao. She said that Lord Wei did not die of drunkenness and drowning, but was very sober. I checked it out and found that Lord Wei went to see Zhang Heng that day, and there were many new faces in Zhang Heng's mansion that day."
Emperor Jingwen glanced at the woman and said, "How can you prove that Lord Wei didn't drown because of drunkenness?"
The woman kowtowed and said nervously, "That day, Lord Wei clung to the river bank for a long time. If he was drunk, he would not have such strength. Lord Wei also asked me for help and was conscious. It's just that I have been hungry for a long time and I don't have the strength to save him. There are traces of serious injuries on Lord Wei's head."
Meng Ze's expression changed slightly.
Emperor Jingwen glanced at him, then smiled faintly twice: "In this case, Wei Xiao died at the hands of others, and it was faked as an accident."
Meng Che was puzzled: "Didn't Lord Wei go to control the floods under the order? Why did he still have the heart to see Zhang Heng when the third brother was missing? Was he afraid that someone would send him there? Not long after, Zhang Heng came to the capital. I don't know if it was related to Wei Xiao's death. Not long after, Zhang Heng was selected as the person to set the questions for this year's palace examination..."
Emperor Jingwen rubbed his forehead and suppressed his anger and said, "Investigate."
However, Wei Xiao went to find Zhang Heng only because he heard a fake imperial edict and thought that Emperor Jingwen asked him to find the person. Now Wei Xiao is dead and there is no evidence. As long as part of the truth is found out, the blame will fall on Meng Ze.
Meng Ze also knew that something was wrong. He got rid of Wei Xiao only because Wei Xiao was threatening him with the fact that he had kidnapped Ning Fu. He never expected that it would be implicated in the subsequent incident involving Zhang Heng.
If anything were to be found out about Zhang Heng's matter, he would never be able to clear himself even if he jumped into the Yellow River. And how could Meng Che let him go when he had such a good opportunity?
That night, Meng Ze secretly went to see Emperor Jingwen and told him everything about Wei Xiao's death.
"Asshole!" Emperor Jingwen slapped him in the face, his eyes wide open, "Lady of the Duke's Mansion, you dare to have such thoughts, and Zong Si even noticed it. If the Prince's Mansion was not on the same side as you, do you think you can escape this disaster?"
Meng Ze knelt there, not daring to move: "I was wrong."
“Where’s the mistake?”
"My mistake is that I am still immature and I am thinking about things I shouldn't be thinking about." Meng Ze said, "Even if I want Ning Si, now is not a good time. I just can't keep my temper."
Emperor Jingwen glanced at him. In court struggles, anyone would use any means necessary. To Emperor Jingwen, as long as it was not treason, no matter how dirty the means were, it was understandable.
But the prerequisite is to be under control.
Meng Ze's words satisfied him. Instead of hypocritically saying that he shouldn't touch Ning Si, he might as well tell the truth about his ambitions.
No one is a saint, and no one is without selfishness.
Therefore, it is not wrong to desire a woman as long as you have the ability to possess her. The only mistake is not having the ability.
"Father, Zhang Heng's death has nothing to do with me." Meng Ze swore, "He was the one who reminded me to use him. How could I have the intention to kill him?"
Meng Ze also calculated that Emperor Jingwen favored him, so he dared to come to him to plead, "If Fourth Brother finds any clues, he will definitely push it onto me. Now I... can't sleep or eat well."
"Then who do you think was responsible for Zhang Heng's death?" Emperor Jingwen asked back.
"Your son dare not make random guesses." Although Meng Ze was talking about Meng Che, he also knew Meng Che's attitude. He did not feel guilty at all, so it would not be him who did it.
Emperor Jingwen said nothing more.
For several days in a row, people were in panic.
Meng Che soon found something suspicious in the list of palace examination results. Many of them were from Meng Ze's faction, and the scores given by Zhang Heng were not low either.
Meng Che couldn't help but sneer. What a bold Meng Ze was. He said, "Go search their house."
This search actually turned up relevant test questions. It's not surprising that a person who set the questions could be planted there, but it would be unbelievable if the questions were leaked.
As for why these test questions appeared in various prefectures, it was all thanks to Meng Yuan. The source of these questions was Ning Fu, a person who had lived a lifetime. She wrote them down based on her memory and then Yaoyao gave them to Meng Yuan.
At this moment, Meng Che's heart sank. If Meng Ze had this ability, then this opponent would not be a simple one.
Meng Che immediately went into the palace and handed the evidence to Emperor Jingwen.
Even Emperor Jingwen couldn't help but frown.
"Sixth brother really has some skills." Meng Che said, "When I found this leaked question, I couldn't help but shudder."
Meng Ze was confused and said hurriedly: "Father, how could this be done by me? If I did it, I would have destroyed the evidence after they finished the examination. Why would they wait for someone to search for it? It's obvious that someone is trying to frame me."
Meng Che said: "Father, we have obtained both witnesses and evidence. The death of Lord Wei and Zhang Heng were both caused by my sixth brother in order to avoid any evidence against him."
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