Chapter 342: The Lady of the Marquisate vs. the Younger Prince 85
The entire Ji family was alarmed. Ji Yunhuan was in a coma. When Mrs. Ji heard the bad news, she vomited blood and became seriously ill.
Prime Minister Ji was furious, and in a rage he surrounded the Fugui Casino with an entire group of guards, threatening to avenge his daughter and son-in-law!
The prefect of Jingzhao did not even put on his official hat as he hurried over to maintain order. He did not dare to offend Prime Minister Ji, nor did he dare to offend the wealthy gambling house backed by the Second Prince. Before he could figure out how to smooth things over, Prime Minister Ji rushed in with his men.
The guards of the Ji residence went crazy and arrested everyone without thinking.
Liang Yunye appeared out of nowhere, and joined the battle with Uncle Fang and several brothers who followed him. They were all highly skilled in martial arts, and from time to time they would hit the people from Fugui Casino with a club and then throw the club to the guards of the Ji family.
When the prefect of Jingzhao saw the ferocious Liang Yunye, he didn't dare to approach him at all. This was a man who didn't care about his life, so he didn't dare to do anything about it.
After beating to death the owner of the Fugui Casino, Ji Shoufu finally "recovered" his sanity. He took off his hat and hair, covered in blood, and ran to the palace to ask the emperor for forgiveness.
Inside the Golden Palace.
Ji Shoufu knelt on the ground, crying, "I am guilty. The wealthy gambling house was rampant in the capital, burning, killing and looting, just like evil bandits. As the prime minister, I failed to detect such evil deeds, which led to such a tragic situation. This is one of the reasons."
"The old marquis fought for the country and the people with great military achievements. Although Liang Wanzhou was not very capable, he was the only blood of the old marquis. Now that he is dead, only Liang Yunye is left to avenge his brother. He cannot do it alone. I am sorry for the old marquis! I am sorry for the trust of your majesty! This is the second reason."
"My wife is seriously ill and has only one daughter, Huan'er, whom I love like a treasure. I don't know whether Huan'er is alive or dead. In a rage, I rushed into the Fugui Casino and committed murder. I failed to distinguish between public and private affairs and disrupted the law. This is the third offense. I beg Your Majesty to punish me."
The emperor was caught off guard.
Normally, whenever any government affairs were reported to him, Chief Minister Ji would have read them first and put forward a proposal. He only had to agree or reject it.
If he is not satisfied with the result, he can just reprimand Ji Shoufu or the officials under him. He is the emperor and he is never wrong. The ones who are wrong are the officials.
His mind was a little confused, and the first thing he thought of was to appease Prime Minister Ji first.
"Ji Aiqing, please stand up quickly. This matter has nothing to do with you. You just loved your daughter so much that you killed a wicked man in anger. How can you be guilty? If you are guilty, then no one in this court will be clean."
The emperor was still very satisfied. There were so many nobles in the capital who took advantage of their power to bully others. Not to mention killing a merchant in a gambling house, there were many who would kill ten or eight people in a rage.
Ji Shoufu is honest and old-fashioned, and it is rare for someone to come to him specifically to apologize.
You can feel more at ease working with such people without having to worry about them doing evil behind your back.
Ji Shoufu kowtowed and said loudly: "I dare not, I am guilty. I killed the evil man before I found out what he did. It is wrong. Your Majesty, I am grateful for not punishing you. I am ashamed to be the Prime Minister. I beg Your Majesty to allow me to retire and return home."
The emperor didn't expect Prime Minister Ji to be so stubborn, so he naturally tried every means to keep him.
He did want to restrict Prime Minister Ji, but he couldn't let Prime Minister Ji resign. If Prime Minister Ji left, the cabinet would be in chaos, which would be enough to give him a headache.
Pei Ci Fu went to the palace immediately after hearing the news. He felt that he had finally caught Ji Shoufu at fault, and he and his followers continued to impeach Ji Shoufu.
Now that Prime Minister Ji is gone, the position of Prime Minister will be his.
The more the emperor listened, the darker his face became. After Pei Ci Fu's criticism, he became more defensive of Ji Shou Fu.
"Alright! Pei Aiqing, there is no need to say more! Since the villain has been executed, we will close the Fugui Casino and hand it over to the Ministry of Justice to investigate the matter. No one from the Fugui Casino will be spared!"
This was exactly what Prime Minister Ji had been waiting for, and he quickly began to try the case.
Once the owner of the casino died, the other people in the Fugui Casino became a mob and couldn't even get to the Second Prince's door. Moreover, they were locked up in prison and had no way to get help.
The investigation uncovered many cases, and soon the clues led to the second prince.
Prime Minister Ji acted so fast that the Second Prince had no time to destroy any traces. His intelligence network consisted mostly of gambling houses and brothels, and he was almost wiped out.
And those spies he had trained seemed to have betrayed him overnight, making him deaf and blind. He didn't even know how many strongholds he had worked so hard to build were left.
The whole capital was buzzing with discussions about the Second Prince, with people saying that he was greedy for money and lustful. Not only did he open a gambling house to make money, but he also killed so many people.
In the Golden Palace, the emperor was very angry.
The second prince knelt in front of his father, crying, "I really don't know, it was others who used my name to make money outside. I will divorce that concubine who did evil things and will never have any contact with her family again."
With both witnesses and evidence in hand, Prime Minister Ji did not take the initiative to attack the Second Prince, but just kept begging to return home.
"I feel so sorry for my late mother. She loved her eldest daughter the most when she was alive. Now that she is in a coma, I am afraid she will not live long. I still have the dignity to serve as an official. I only wish to return to my hometown to guard my mother's grave and spend the rest of my life there."
The emperor was quite troubled. Usually, Prime Minister Ji was very considerate to him, but today he refused to give in. He was really obsessed with his daughter.
Jinghui is such an idiot. Why did he have to pick on Ji Yunhuan when there are so many people he could pick on. Liang Wanzhou's death is a small matter, but Ji Yunhuan is seriously injured and unconscious. Isn't Ji Shoufu a madman?
The emperor kicked the second prince and cursed, "How dare you quibble! It's all because I've been too lenient on weekdays, allowing you to be so ignorant of the heavens and the earth, so bold and reckless, and have no regard for the law!"
"Go back and reflect on your mistakes. You are not allowed to leave the house without my permission! And Concubine Liang, you taught such a bastard. You must be demoted to a noble lady as a warning to others."
The emperor pretended to reprimand the second prince and dragged Concubine Liang to share the blame. He thought he had handled the matter properly and covered his face with sighs:
"Prime Minister Ji loves his daughter dearly, and I cannot bear to blame my eldest son. My dear minister, you should understand my painstaking efforts."
What else can Prime Minister Ji do? He can't personally take the second prince and put him in jail. In the eyes of the emperor, the common people and justice are not as important as balancing the court.
Even if the second prince was a rotten piece of wood, the emperor would still treat him as a treasure. The eldest prince died young, and the emperor seemed to have forgotten about him. He called the second prince the eldest son in order to raise the second prince's status.
Ji Shoufu pretended to be unwilling and said sternly: "This case involves a wide range of people, even the prince of the current dynasty. I dare not make a decision on my own. I ask Your Majesty to send someone of equal status to preside over the case. My daughter is in a coma, and I am also a victim. I should avoid suspicion."
When the case was halfway investigated, Chief Minister Ji got angry and quit his job!
The emperor was also helpless. After arguing in the court for a whole day, no one was willing to give in. In the end, after many twists and turns, Jing Yu was pushed to be the chief judge.
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