Seeing that Chu Feiyang always appeared unexpectedly, Yun Qianmeng pouted secretly in annoyance, but she knew in her heart that her skills were really no match for Chu Feiyang's!
Seeing her unconvinced expression, Chu Feiyang guessed what she was thinking at the moment and couldn't help but laugh. He pulled Yun Qianmeng up and then sat down in the same place where she had just been. He placed Yun Qianmeng on his legs and put his arms around her slender waist. He admired the lively expression on her face from a close distance and teased her, "What are you thinking about? Look at your little face, it's all wrinkled. You look like an old lady!"
When Yun Qianmeng heard the first sentence he asked, she instinctively wanted to answer, but she didn't expect that the next sentence would be "old lady". The expression on her face suddenly froze, and her eyes were full of questions and dissatisfaction. She stared straight at Chu Feiyang!
Unexpectedly, this expression immediately made Chu Feiyang laugh heartily. He thought Yun Qianmeng was calm enough, but he didn't expect that this girl would change color because of a single sentence!
Just an analogy, she was so nervous, I'm afraid she must be comparing herself with the old lady in her mind!
At this moment, two soft hands caressed his cheeks, straightening Chu Feiyang's laughing face. Yun Qianmeng said seriously, "If I were an old lady, my husband would definitely be an old man, hum!"
"Yes! Whatever my wife says, that's what it is!" Not daring to anger Yun Qianmeng again, Chu Feiyang immediately straightened his expression. A deep smile was hidden in the depths of his black eyes. He pulled down her right hand and placed it on his lips, pecking it lightly a few times before saying seriously, "What were you thinking about just now? Why were you so absent-minded?"
Seeing Chu Feiyang bring up serious matters, Yun Qianmeng put aside her joking heart, took the account book from him, and flipped it open. Pointing to the detailed plan recorded on the blank page, she slowly expressed her concerns, "Rong Yunhe's plan is perfect! But there are still omissions! Even if they use a trick to get merchants from other places to come and compete for the mining rights of the jade mine, Emperor Yugan will definitely be suspicious. Why does the Rong family always interfere? If that were the only problem, it would be easy to solve! However, the jade mine is extremely profitable, Youzhou is far away from the capital, and the Rong family is already the richest family in Western Chu. If that happens, Emperor Yugan will definitely take advantage of the situation to suppress the Rong family. By then, the life of the imperial concubine and Rong Guifei in the palace will be difficult!"
Seeing Yun Qianmeng worried about Rong Rong and the others, Chu Feiyang slowly tightened his arms, letting her press against his chest, and whispered, "Even if this hadn't happened, the Rong family wouldn't be able to exist forever! The emperor doesn't trust anyone now, and he's secretly expanding his power! Although the Rong family has no descendants serving as officials, they are wealthy and powerful, and they control the lifeline of the Western Chu merchants! If the Rong family wanted to rebel, the silver in their hands would be enough to bribe many ministers! So the emperor has been trying to subdue the Rong family for a long time! Instead of handing such an important matter to the Rong family, it would be better for him to hold it in his own hands! It's just that the power of the kings is basically equal now, and the situation of the four major families has not yet been broken. The emperor also needs time to find out everyone's family background, which is why he can barely maintain the current balance! However, instead of dealing with Concubine Rong's matter later, it is better to act as soon as possible, lest the emperor's power becomes stronger and it becomes difficult to deal with in the future!"
Hearing Chu Feiyang say this, Yun Qianmeng immediately sat up straight in his arms, looking at the calm Chu Feiyang with surprise in her eyes, "You mean..."
The shock in her heart made Yun Qianmeng swallow the next words, but she got a positive answer from Chu Feiyang's smiling eyes!
Yun Qianmeng stared at the slightly raised corner of Chu Feiyang's mouth, lowered her head and slowly closed the account book in her hand, but she had to agree with his point of view!
"Meng'er!" Chu Feiyang spoke softly at this time, then put his lips next to Yun Qianmeng's ear and whispered something in her ear!
"Really?" She didn't expect that the reason Chu Feiyang came back late was to meet Chu Pei. She was even more surprised after hearing what he just said!
Imprinting Yun Qianmeng's rare surprised expression in his mind, Chu Feiyang reached out and pinched the tip of her nose, smiling, "Of course it's true, so I'll have to trouble you, my lady! However, I've been back for quite some time, but why haven't you prepared dinner yet?"
Yun Qianmeng glared at him, put down the account book in her hand, stood up, and told Mu Chun to go to the kitchen and bring the dinner that had already been prepared!
The next morning!
After Chu Feiyang finished breakfast with Yun Qianmeng, he took Xi Lin and Han Shaomian to the yamen!
Han Shaomian had spent the entire night compiling his confession. What he presented to Chu Feiyang at this moment were the most crucial parts. After reading through the confession in his hand, Chu Feiyang ordered, "Go and bring Xie Yingping over!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" Han Shaomian stood up from his seat and personally led the bailiffs to the prison!
"Xie Yingping, come out!" The light in the prison was dim, and since there were so many members of the Xie family, they could only squeeze into this small prison. The jailer could not find Xie Yingping at a glance, so he could only shout at the top of his lungs!
Hearing the jailer's shout, a tall figure slowly stood up from a group of sitting people. Xie Yingping slowly walked to the door of the cell, looking at Han Shaomian standing outside with sarcasm in his eyes. Just as he was about to speak, several elders of the Xie family rushed up from behind. They threw themselves on the wooden pillars of the cell. After seeing the official seal on Han Shaomian, hope immediately flashed in their eyes, and they rushed to speak, "Master Han, you must try this case carefully! Although we are elders of the Xie family, all the business of the Xie family has been handed over to Xie Yingping over these years. We don't know anything. Master Han, you can't wrongly accuse us!"
"Yes, Lord Han! We are both dead, so how could we manage the affairs of the Xie family? Xie Yingping is in charge of everything, and it has nothing to do with us!"
"Elder, how can you do this? How can you deny yourself of anything at this time? You..." Xie Yingping looked coldly at the people standing on both sides of her who were putting all the blame on her. She sneered but did not speak immediately. Instead, Manager Mo, who was imprisoned in the same cell, spoke with a hint of anger!
"Humph, everyone knows that you are Xie Yingping's servant, so you are naturally speaking for him!" Little did they know that this group of elders, who were only concerned about their own survival, would not even let go of Manager Mo. They turned their spearhead and began to attack Manager Mo again, "Master Han, this man is also Xie Yingping's servant. He knows everything about Xie Yingping! We stay in Xie's house all day long to retire, so how could we know about business matters? It is even more impossible for us to know what they do in secret!"
"You..." How could Manager Mo win the argument over the people in front of him? His face turned red with anger, but he couldn't refute too directly in front of Han Shaomian, otherwise Han Shaomian would catch him. Not only would he harm the clan leader, but he would also be unable to clear himself of the charges. He could only swallow his breath and sit back on the haystack, not wasting his breath arguing with this group of cowards!
Han Shaomian looked at the disagreements within the Xie family indifferently, but did not say anything to mediate. His eyes were just fixed on Xie Yingping who was approaching him. He felt that even though this man was in such a miserable state and looked so embarrassed, there was still a hint of pride in his eyes. It was obvious that Xie Yingping had either expected this day to come, or had already accepted this reality, or maybe Chu Pei said something in front of him yesterday, which made his eyes show a look different from his appearance!
"Open the door!" Han Shaomian spoke calmly, took three steps back, and asked the jailer to open the door!
"Sir Han, is there anything important that cannot be said in this cell?" The sound of unlocking the door drowned out the arguments of others. Xie Yingping asked after the cell door was wide open, but she did not move her feet at all!
"Come out!" However, Han Shaomian was not a servant of the Xie family, so he didn't need to answer Xie Yingping's question. He just glanced inside the cell, then turned around and walked towards the sunlight coming in from the stairs!
Staring at Han Shaomian's back, Xie Yingping frowned, but his eyes looked around him, remembering all the people who had just framed him. Then he stepped out of the cell at the urging of the jailer and followed Han Shaomian to the lobby, only to find that just as Chu Pei said yesterday, Chu Feiyang really came back from Nanxun, and was still sitting behind the desk trying the case!
"Your Highness, Xie Yingping has been brought here!" Seeing Chu Feiyang buried in a pile of memorials, Han Shaomian reminded him softly, then stepped aside and sat down quietly!
Xie Yingping stood in the center of the lobby, looking calmly at Chu Feiyang not far away. Just like the man in her memory, Chu Feiyang always gave people a sense of majesty and dignity, but people hated his dignity!
It was precisely because of Chu Feiyang's identity that he and even Chu Pei suffered such a huge setback at Chu Feiyang's hands. The Xie family also fell from its heyday to the bottom in an instant, and there is no chance of recovery!
"Your Highness asked me to come here, didn't he just want to admire your calligraphy practice?" Seeing Chu Feiyang still holding the brush and writing, Xie Yingping sneered at his pretentiousness in her heart, and then started to ridicule him!
Chu Feiyang, however, took his time to organize all the confessions and evidence he had just read, and even drafted a memorial. He then put down his brush and waited until the writing on the memorial was completely dry before closing the memorial and putting it in his sleeve. He slowly said, "This king believes that you should know why I called you here!"
A sneer instantly appeared on Xie Yingping's face. Staring at Chu Feiyang's calm expression, Xie Yingping asked, "Now that the prince is in charge of Youzhou's affairs, my life is also in his hands. Is there anything that the prince dare not say or do? Or does the prince want the Xie family to bear all the responsibility this time so that Master Chu can escape this disaster?"
Hearing the arrogance in Xie Yingping's tone, Han Shaomian's eyes suddenly darkened, but he turned to Chu Feiyang with some confusion. He also didn't understand why he met Xie Yingping today, but he still didn't believe the hypothesis Xie Yingping had just said!
With Chu Feiyang's ability, if he didn't want to involve the Chu family, he wouldn't have thoroughly investigated the Xie family's affairs. I believe that someone as smart as Chu Feiyang would never do such a thing that would only end up hurting himself!
"I'm just curious about your decision!" Sitting back in his chair, Chu Feiyang looked at Xie Yingping calmly, with no sarcasm or contempt in his expression!
But because of this overly normal look, Xie Yingping felt a surge of anger in her heart!
Some people can still achieve their dreams no matter how others try to sabotage them!
But some people, despite trying so hard, still end up losing miserably!
Looking at Chu Feiyang in front of her, Xie Yingping thought of Chu Pei in her mind. Chu Pei had such an outstanding son, but he didn't cherish him at all!
It was obvious that convincing Chu Feiyang alone could gain a huge army, but Chu Pei exhausted all his energy and ultimately failed! He came to see me yesterday, just hoping that I would take on all the responsibilities to protect everything he had!
"Hahaha……"
Suddenly, Xie Yingping raised her head and laughed loudly!
He was doomed to die, but Chu Pei was able to keep his life and survive!
However, with Chu Feiyang in this world, I am afraid that all of Chu Pei’s plans will come to nothing!
He wanted to see what kind of expression Chu Pei would have when he lost everything!
"King Chu, all of this was done behind my back! I am willing to take full responsibility for everything. I hope Your Highness will spare the Xie family!" After a hearty laugh, Xie Yingping slowly spoke. Although she despised the elders' cowardice, most of the Xie family were innocent. Moreover, if she hadn't been tempted by Chu Pei's ambitions, how could she have ended up like this?
Although Xie Yingping is arrogant, he will not drag others into the water because of the things he has done. Since he is the patriarch of the clan, he will naturally take responsibility for everything!
Hearing Xie Yingping's frank words, Han Shaomian's eyes flashed with surprise. Thinking of the series of things Xie Yingping had designed not long ago to clear his name, and then looking at his actions today, it was really surprising, and he even doubted his intentions!
However, Han Shaomian quickly picked up the brush in front of him, dipped it in ink, and wrote down all of Xie Yingping's confession!
"Lord Han, why do you look down on others like this? Since I am the patriarch of the Xie family, I will naturally take responsibility for my own actions! I think that the old King of Chu's reputation has spread far and wide. The King of Chu must have a convincing side to get the throne! I hope that Your Highness can swear to this patriarch in the name of the King of Chu to let my Xie family members go!" Seeing the disbelief in Han Shaomian's eyes, Xie Yingping sneered, but his serious and solemn eyes were staring at Chu Feiyang, forcing Chu Feiyang to swear in front of him!
Chu Feiyang, on the other hand, curled his lips into a smile. Although his eyes were calm, they were filled with a murderous aura. After hearing Xie Yingping's order, he sneered in his heart and then spoke loudly, "If they are truly innocent, with the laws of Western Chu, I will not wrongly accuse them! However, the Xie family's crimes are not something that Patriarch Xie can do as he pleases. If such a major incident angers the emperor, it is possible that they will be implicated! It's not as simple as Patriarch Xie thinks!"
Chu Feiyang easily blocked Xie Yingping's unreasonable request!
Chu Feiyang had never heard of such a cheap thing as wanting to exchange his life for the lives of all the members of the Xie family! If the Xie family members were to take revenge in the future, wouldn't he be sowing the seeds of evil for no reason?
Although Chu Feiyang would not wrongly accuse others, he would definitely not leave a malignant tumor behind. Moreover, he already had a wife, and he could not let Yun Qianmeng be in danger!
"Isn't the prince playing with this clan leader? Or does the prince think that he can cover the sky with one hand in Youzhou and has no scruples? Don't forget that there are also members of the Xie family in the capital! And the prince has a very close relationship with them!" Hearing the rejection in Chu Feiyang's words, Xie Yingping's face suddenly turned cold, and he threatened with a cold voice!
"These are my business! Lord Han, have you recorded them all?" Unexpectedly, Xie Yingping's fist landed on cotton, without any effect at all. Instead, all his efforts and words were wasted!
"Yes, Your Highness!" Picking up the rice paper in front of him, Han Shaomian blew on it. After it was half dry, he stood up and walked to Chu Feiyang and respectfully handed it to him for review!
Chu Feiyang took the rice paper from Han Shaomian's hand and glanced at it quickly. Then he handed it to Han Shaomian along with the cinnabar on the table. "Since Xie Yingping has pleaded guilty, let him sign it!"
Hearing this, Han Shaomian took the rice paper and spread it out in front of Xie Yingping, and the cinnabar in his palm was waiting for him to press his fingerprint!
Xie Yingping's face was pale, with deep regret in her eyes. If she hadn't lost her composure for a moment in anger, she probably wouldn't have signed the contract right there and then!
But judging by the current situation, even if he didn't sign, neither Chu Feiyang nor Chu Pei would let him go. By then, he was afraid that the Xie family would be even more miserable because of him!
"How do you want to treat the Xie family members?" After reading the contents on the rice paper, Xie Yingping suddenly raised her head and asked Chu Feiyang with a hint of urgency!
"I will definitely handle this matter impartially! But the crimes committed by the Xie family are too serious. Even if they are innocent, I am afraid they can only escape the death penalty, but they will not be able to escape punishment even if they are alive!" This is the maximum forgiveness Chu Feiyang can give!
After all, the laws of Western Chu are before us, and such private jade mining is likely to result in the punishment of the entire clan!
But if the nine clans were to be implicated in this way, I'm afraid Emperor Yugan would be brought in as well, and the Xie family would have to bear all the blame!
Xie Yingping stared at Chu Feiyang's expression. Seeing that he looked serious and his eyes were firm, she knew that he was not fooling her!
He slowly raised his right hand, extended his thumb and lightly stained it with red cinnabar, then forcefully pressed his fingerprint on the place where the signature was!
Seeing that Xie Yingping finally confessed her guilt, Han Shaomian felt relieved. He turned around and handed the rice paper in his hand to Chu Feiyang, and prepared to take Xie Yingping out of the lobby!
"Chu Feiyang, if the Xie family hadn't opposed you back then, would you have not targeted them?" As Xie Yingping was about to turn around and leave the hall, she asked the question that had puzzled him for a long time! Perhaps she shouldn't have tested Chu Feiyang in the first place. Now, she was pulling out a whisker from a tiger's mouth, only to be torn apart by it!
Chu Feiyang was looking at the handprint on the paper at this moment, and did not answer Xie Yingping's question...
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