Chapter 120: Silencing
Every time Marquis Cheng'en asked Earl Yongyi to do something, he would remember to take care of the aftermath.
He had once tested Yong Yibo and confirmed that Yong Yibo had no backup plan, so he could abandon them so readily.
The reason why Earl Yongyi was chosen as the scapegoat was not only because of his relationship with the Cheng'en Marquis Mansion, but also because of his trust in him and he would not doubt his arrangement.
The more important point is that the Yongyi Marquis's Mansion has become disloyal and is secretly looking for other backers.
If he helped his political enemies to deal with him, he would suffer serious consequences, so he thought of getting rid of Earl Yongyi.
He looked at a letter on the desk, which was just sent by the wife of the Earl of Yongyi.
Who knew that there was still a loophole in the plan, and the wife of the Earl of Yongyi fell into the hands of a handle.
According to his original plan, it didn't matter whether there was any evidence in the Yongyi Marquis's mansion.
The important thing is that the wife of the Earl of Yongyi was able to get the news so quickly. It must be that the imperial envoy sent by Emperor Jing'an did not arrest the Earl of Yongyi's entourage, but deliberately released them to the capital to tip off the news!
It's simply unprecedented.
In any case, the entourage of the person involved will be controlled to prevent the news from leaking out and subsequently destroying the evidence.
"Sister-in-law, you misunderstood me. Even if I'm a jerk, I wouldn't frame my brother-in-law. As you just said, we're tied together. If my brother-in-law can't get well, I can't escape either."
Marquis Cheng'en sighed, "I was once smart, but I was foolish for a moment. I was actually tricked by the brother I trusted for many years, and ended up with my brother-in-law being thrown into prison."
After a pause, he said, "Don't worry, I will do my best to protect my wife's brother."
The wife of the Marquis of Yongyi didn't believe a word he said. The Marquis of Cheng'en and his wife were cruel and ruthless. They were saying these soft words just to calm her down and prevent her from going all out in her impulse.
If she believed what Marquis Cheng'en said, she would go back and wait for news.
Within a few days, she would be brutally murdered, and might even be accused of committing suicide out of fear of punishment!
"My Lord, I will go back and wait for good news." Lady Yongyi reminded him, "I have entrusted this evidence to someone I trust. If anything happens to me or my children, that person will give the evidence to Tan'er."
Marquis Cheng'en's face darkened.
"As the saying goes, a cornered dog will leap over the wall, and even a cornered rabbit will bite." Lady Yongyi straightened her sleeves and smiled slightly. "My Lord, don't you agree?"
The veins on Marquis Cheng'en's forehead throbbed, and his eyes looked coldly at the back of Marquis Yongyi's wife as she left. When the person disappeared at the door, he suddenly swept the books on the desk to the ground.
"Bitch!"
At this time, Madam Shen came over after hearing the news. As soon as she arrived at the door of the study, she heard the furious roar of Marquis Cheng'en, which frightened her heart.
She cautiously stepped into the study, saw the books scattered on the floor, and asked, "My Lord, are you still going to send a letter to my sister-in-law today?"
The people who had originally planned to meet them received news from Guanzhou, so they sent a letter to the wife of the Earl of Yongyi, inviting her to go out for an outing in the mountains to enjoy the flowers, have lunch, and then go back home.
She made two preparations for this lunch.
The white flowers have a fragrant aroma and a refreshing taste, making it a floral delicacy.
The petals and leaves of white azalea are poisonous.
It just so happened that the two flowers looked similar, so she planned to ask the cook to make a white azalea dish for Lady Yongyi.
If Lady Yongyi did not want to eat it, then he would wait until Lady Yongyi returned home and then arrange for a servant she bribed to put the pollen of the heartbreak grass into the nectar.
Mrs. Yongyi likes to drink sugary drinks, so she would definitely not be suspicious.
If he died from eating the pollen of the heartbreak grass in the mansion of the Earl of Yongyi, it would be suicide out of fear of punishment.
If the wife of the Earl of Yongyi died of poisoning after eating white azalea flowers, the blame could be put on the fact that the wife of the Earl of Yongyi had eaten them accidentally.
Mrs. Shen would also eat a small amount according to the situation, not a lethal amount, to clear her suspicion.
After all, there have been several cases of poisoning from accidentally eating white azaleas.
"No need." Marquis Cheng'en said coldly, "The Yongyi Marquis's Mansion has received the news."
Madam Shen was startled and frowned, “She actually got the news?”
Marquis Cheng'en told Madam Shen all the threats made by the wife of the Earl of Yongyi.
Madam Shen’s expression changed: “Doesn’t that mean we can’t touch her?”
They did not act in advance in order to choose a time point so that people would not notice that there was something wrong with the cause of death of Lady Yongyi.
Now that Lady Yongyi knew the news in advance, she not only took precautions, but even threatened them.
Marquis Cheng'en's face darkened as he spoke, "There's something fishy about this. Lin Zhenxing deliberately let Earl Yongyi's followers go. I'm afraid he was deliberately letting him tip off the enemy and trying to lure them out."
Not only did he want to silence the wife of Earl Yongyi, he also arranged for someone to kill Earl Yongyi and make him "commit suicide out of fear of crime" in the dungeon.
Marquis Cheng'en said coldly, "Although I am wary of the evidence in your sister-in-law's hands, it is nothing compared to what happened in Guanzhou."
What if the evidence in Lady Yongyi's hand was given to Shen Qingtan?
Shen Qingtan is nominally the daughter of a marquis, but if her entire clan is executed, she will not be able to escape death!
There was a murderous look in Marquis Cheng'en's eyes. As long as the wife of the Earl of Yongyi died and could not come forward to accuse Shen Qingtan of not being the daughter of the Marquis, he was not afraid that Shen Qingtan would get the evidence and destroy the Marquis's Mansion.
He couldn't help but feel fortunate that he didn't reveal Shen Qingtan's true identity.
Marquis Cheng'en said in a deep voice, "Fortunately, we never personally intervened in the Guanzhou incident, and the evidence has been largely destroyed. As long as your eldest brother dies, the crime can be pinned on him. With no evidence to prove his guilt, I will have a way to protect myself."
As early as a few years ago when Prince Yu set his sights on the Guanzhou granary, he began to make plans and left a backup plan.
Madam Shen had already made the decision to abandon the Yongyi Marquis's Mansion in order to preserve the entire Cheng'en Marquis's Mansion.
But when she really brought up this topic again, she couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable.
After a long silence, she asked, "What does the Marquis intend to do?"
"I've already arranged for people to buy food to fill the granaries," Marquis Cheng'en pondered. "I can't let those officials down. I have to show them my determination to protect them."
Madam Shen asked in confusion, "My Lord, since you want to fill the granary, why do you want my eldest brother to take the blame?"
Marquis Cheng'en said with a gloomy expression, "Even if we simply fill the granaries, the disaster in Guanzhou is severe, and there are people starving everywhere. This is an indisputable fact. The emperor will still punish us, and we will not be able to escape. Someone must die in our place. Even if someone suspects us, as long as they don't have evidence, they can't do anything to us."
The granaries had to be filled, and the officials primarily implicated were likely to face confiscation of property and execution. As for the other officials involved, even though the grain had been recovered, they were guilty of negligence, having failed to properly manage the disaster and report the situation accurately. At most, they would be exiled to the frontier.
The only thing to be thankful for was that the silver was not given to Prince Yu, otherwise he would have to pay for it out of his own pocket.
Marquis Cheng'en wrote a few secret letters and prepared to leave the house to make arrangements.
He originally wanted to kill Earl Yongyi, and the appearance of Earl Yongyi's wife further strengthened his determination.
Marquis Cheng'en had just stepped out of his study when he saw his confidant hurried over and handed him a letter: "My Lord, this is from Guanzhou."
He took the letter, tore open the seal, took out the letter paper and read ten lines at a glance.
The more he looked down, the darker his face became.
The people he sent to buy grain initially found a grain merchant. Because they wanted a lot of grain, they offered him seven coins per dan. Later, another group of people appeared out of nowhere and competed with them for the grain, raising the price to two taels of silver per dan.
At first, they only sold it to merchants at the price of eight cents per stone, but now they have to pay twice the price, which will really empty the family fortune of the marquis.
Marquis Cheng'en was furious, but he was powerless and could only accept the consequences.
You can't risk your life and property for money.
He returned to his study and wrote another secret letter, in which he told the other party that there was a batch of silver hidden in the stable of the Liu family's ancestral home, and that they should dig it out to buy food for the time being.
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