During the routine court assembly, in the vast hall, the emperor stared intently at the trembling Zhu Xian and said coldly, "What do you have to say?"
Zhu Xian's forehead was covered in cold sweat. He had no idea how he, a sinecure who was only in charge of miscellaneous matters such as the supply of local specialties from various prefectures, could be impeached by the censor as neglecting his duties and responsibilities.
Zhu Xian bowed to the ground, listening to the admonition, while the officials standing on either side held their ivory tablets, like old monks in deep meditation.
Half an hour later, the emperor finished his rant and ordered Zhu Xian to go back and reflect on his actions, and fined him three months' salary as a punishment.
As the emperor left, the crowd dispersed. Zhu Xian staggered to his feet, wiping away cold sweat with trepidation.
Someone nudged him lightly from behind, winked at him as he turned around, and then quickly walked away.
Zhu Xian was taken aback. He looked around and, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, quickly followed.
Once outside the imperial city, Zhu Xian caught up with his superior in a few quick steps.
The Minister of Revenue glanced at him coldly, then silently climbed into the sedan chair.
Zhu Xian knew he had something to say, so he directed the sedan chair bearers to follow.
The two sedan chairs swayed and came to a stop at Fengle Tower.
Minister of Revenue Lü Zhengyu stood at the door for a moment before following the servant into the private room.
Zhu Xian got out of the sedan chair, looked around, and hurriedly followed.
Once inside the private room, Lü Zhengyu had already ordered the food and drinks. After Zhu Xian sat down, Lü Zhengyu stared at Zhu Xian for a moment with a serious expression. Seeing that Zhu Xian's face had turned pale, he slowly asked, "Has Xuzhi offended anyone?"
Zhu Xian shook his head and said, "I'm so idle every day that I could swat flies, how could I possibly offend anyone?"
Lu Zhengyu pondered for a moment and said, "Although Mu Xianchen is an imperial censor, he has always been good at observing people's words and expressions. Since taking office, every memorial he has submitted has been based on solid evidence, and he has also tried to figure out the emperor's intentions before submitting it. Today's matter is a bit strange. Think about it again. There must be something that you have overlooked, but others have taken a grudge against you for."
Zhu Xian thought it over carefully. He had been staying in the yamen recently and nothing much had happened. As for the manor, the only thing that happened was the Shi family's daughter falling into the water. But he had already apologized for that, and although he hadn't accepted the money, it wasn't his fault.
Zhu Xian then cut out the beginning and end of the story, only saying that the lady had some disagreements with the third lady of the Shi family.
Lu Zhengyu stroked his beard and sighed, "Xuzhi, do you know who the wife of the Shi family is?"
Zhu Xian shook his head; how could a man like him know about the inner quarters of other people's homes?
Lu Zhengyu asked, "Do you know the Jiangling Wang family?"
Zhu Xian looked blankly at them. He came from a noble family and didn't think much of those literati and officials.
Lu Zhengyu, though also of noble birth, was a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). He valued the backgrounds of these scholars much more than Zhu Xian, who had obtained his position through hereditary privilege. Seeing him shake his head, he offered a suggestion: "The Wang family has been a family of scholars for generations and has also been involved in education. It seems that the previous censor before Mu Xianchen came from Jiangling."
Zhu Xian stared at him wide-eyed in disbelief.
Lu Zhengyu nodded and said, "Sometimes matters of the inner quarters are closely related to the court. I advise you to go back and ask if there are any hidden reasons behind this. If it is not a deep-seated hatred, then settle it privately." His eyes were deep and his meaning was profound. "The tricks of the scholar-officials are hard to guard against."
The current emperor values civil officials more than nobles, and Zhu Xian is aware of the implications of this. Otherwise, he wouldn't have forced Qian to apologize. However, he just can't understand why falling into the water and not losing his life has escalated to the point of being discussed in the imperial court.
After bidding farewell to Lü Zhengyu, Zhu Xian returned to his residence and the first thing he did was to summon Madam Qian.
Madam Qian sat listlessly in the armchair, her personal maid Yi Hong carefully warming her stomach, while Granny You served her warm brown sugar ginger tea.
As soon as Zhu Xian entered the room and saw her behavior, he snorted coldly and shouted, "Get out of here!"
Yi Hong pursed her lips and quietly glanced at Madam Qian. Granny You, having seen much of the world, noticed Zhu Xian's unfriendly expression and cleverly placed the ginger tea on the table, giving Yi Hong a wink.
Madam Qian frowned, weakly supporting herself on the small table, and waved her hand.
The two immediately left.
Zhu Xian strode forward, grabbed Qian Shi, and said sternly, "I asked you about the Shi family's affairs. Are you hiding anything?"
Qian's wrist was gripped so tightly by him that it hurt. She wanted to explain, but when she saw the icy glint in Zhu Xian's eyes, she knew things were going badly. Her mind raced, but at that moment, her back and stomach ached, and her brain seemed to have rusted away. After a long while, she still couldn't come up with a solution.
Seeing that she didn't speak, Zhu Xian's aura of violence intensified, and he couldn't help but shove her hard, saying, "If you don't talk, I'll have the manager investigate. I don't believe we can't get an answer today."
Qian was very anxious and struggled to get up from the Luohan chair.
"My lord, please wait. I will tell you."
She was only in charge of the inner quarters of the mansion. If even this power was taken away by the steward, what face would she have left in this mansion? Besides, although this matter was related to her, it was caused by her niece's mischief. She wanted to protect her, but now that Zhu Xianming clearly knew something, she had no choice but to tell the truth in order to avoid being implicated.
Madam Qian stammered as she recounted what she had heard at the Shi residence about Zhu Yi's rescue. Zhu Xian's face turned ashen with rage. Not only had she caused someone to fall into the water, but she had also ruined their reputation and offered no explanation. This was tantamount to putting someone to death. Or perhaps Madam Qian intended to destroy him and Yi'er. Their daughter, whom they had raised with such care for over a decade, was being abandoned without explanation. Yi'er was destined to inherit the Marquis's mansion; if a bad reputation were to spread, how would they survive? The Wang family was only sending an imperial censor to impeach him, which was already a sign of leniency. Zhu Xian could imagine the storm that would rage against him and his mansion if the Shi family were to spread rumors about their daughter.
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