All the high-ranking officials in the capital dared not gather or socialize anymore, keeping their doors tightly shut for fear of being implicated in Hongshi's affair. After some time, it seemed as if the Fourth Prince suddenly remembered Hongshi and instructed the Court of Judicial Review to interrogate him.
The path of righteousness is fraught with hardship, and perhaps Hongshi had his own reasons, but in any case, he should not have gone against reason and violated the established moral order. Looking at history, how many rebels actually succeeded? Hongshi did this simply because he was unwilling to accept his defeat. He considered himself the legitimate son of Empress Ulanara, yet the Fourth Prince favored Hongli, which made him extremely resentful.
The victor is king, the loser is villain; throughout history, dynasties have come to an end. Hongshi today has reached its dead end and is no longer the Hongshi of the past.
When the Dali Temple began interrogating Hong, he initially insisted that he was a prince and that ordinary officials were not qualified to interrogate him. He kept shouting that he wanted to see the Fourth Prince and refused to cooperate with the interrogation.
"Who do you think you are? You think you're qualified to interrogate me? Let me out, I want to see Father Emperor!" Hongshi thought that even if he had made such a big mistake, as long as he had a chance to see the Fourth Prince, the Fourth Prince would spare his life out of consideration for their family ties.
Hongshi kept shouting that he wanted to see the Fourth Prince, and he endured this back and forth for more than ten days. His voice was almost hoarse from shouting, but there was no response from the Fourth Prince. Hongshi finally became disheartened, knowing that his crimes were unforgivable and that his father, the Emperor, would not see him. Unable to withstand the interrogation, he began to confess to his collusion with foreigners.
The judge interrogating Hongshi was Qiu Fu, the iron-faced judge of the Dali Temple and Lanqin's half-brother. Qiu Fu was known for his impartiality and incorruptibility. Although he was not as upright as Bao Gong, he was still one of the few honest officials in the court. It was already a mercy from the Fourth Prince to hand Hongshi over to Qiu Fu for this trial. If it were not, and if it were handed over to any other person, given Hongshi's misdeeds over the years, it would inevitably be biased.
Qiu Fu rose through the ranks from a local official to the chief judge of the Dali Temple, demonstrating his ability and the Emperor's high regard for him, much like Emperor Wu of Han's regard for Wei Qing. Even if the Emperor's intention to promote Qiu Fu was due to his connection with Lan Qin, it was still because Qiu Fu himself possessed the ability to reach his current position.
Hongshi, however, did not think so. He knew that he had a deep grudge against Ulanara and Niohuru Lanqin. He was sure that Niohuru would let Qiufu handle the case and deliberately let him convict him of more crimes. So he began to talk nonsense and distort the truth.
Unexpectedly, Qiu Fu was neither angry nor upset during the trial. Instead, he patiently helped Hong Shi organize his testimony and did not deliberately distort the facts or induce Hong Shi to take on unfounded charges.
This surprised Hongshi, who asked, "Didn't you want me to die immediately so that there would be no more obstacles in front of Hongli?"
"Second Prince, I am the Left Judge of the Court of Judicial Review, appointed by His Majesty himself, not a lackey of the Niohuru clan. The crimes you have committed are laid bare before you; you cannot deny them, nor can I add anything to them. I will not betray His Majesty's trust. You should confess the truth. If His Majesty learns that you are not cooperating with the interrogation to escape punishment, it will only be more detrimental to you," Qiu Fu said to Hongshi with a stern face.
Hongshi was speechless after hearing his words.
"Second Prince, can you simply stay in the Dali Temple prison without saying a word? If so, I will have to torture you, because I need to report to the Emperor. If I still cannot obtain your confession, and the Emperor blames me, I will not be so lenient." Qiu Fu said sternly when he saw Hong Shi trying to resist with silence. He was only being polite at first, but his words clearly told Hong Shi that if he didn't comply, he would suffer. Once inside, no one cares whether you are a prince or a commoner.
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