Seeing the sarcastic look on his face, Ning Liang was suddenly shocked: "Shen Yuhan, what do you mean?!"
He called Shen Yuhan by his given name, but Shen Yuhan acted as if he didn't hear him: "Master Ning, what can I mean? However, whether Shen Qiu Nian is my brother's son or not is still debatable. Why bother saying such ridiculous things as breaking bones and connecting tendons?"
After saying this, he turned to face the Emperor and said in a cold voice, "Your Majesty, I have already investigated this matter thoroughly and originally did not intend to bring it up again. However, so many officials believe that Shen Qiu Nian is my nephew. I am afraid that this will affect your judgment, so I will make the matter public today. Shen Qiu Nian is the child born from the affair between Ning Liangcai and Li Junyi."
His voice was not loud, and for a moment, everyone in the court was shocked.
This kind of ugly thing is really hard to listen to.
"Announce my decree. Other ministers may take their leave for now. Shen Yuhan and Ning Liangcai, you two stay and discuss this matter properly!" The emperor quickly dismissed the other officials and only kept Shen Yuhan and Ning Liangcai.
When he entered the Shangshufang, he immediately asked Ning Liangcai in a stern voice: "Ning Liangcai, is what Mr. Shen said true?"
Ning Liangcai quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times. His tone was a little flustered, but he had quickly thought of a countermeasure: "Your Majesty, the Marquis and his wife are deeply in love and have a son. How dare I, a humble minister, rape an official's wife? Your Majesty, you cannot make such a judgment just because I have impeached you several times. It is truly insulting to Your Majesty!"
He spoke in a high-sounding manner, and the emperor's brows relaxed slightly. He turned to look at Shen Yuhan and said, "My dear Shen, you should know that slandering officials in the court is also a serious crime. Do you have any evidence?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Yuhan took out the letter that he had found in the Marquis' Mansion that day from his sleeve and handed it to the emperor.
There were quite a few letters, most of which were private exchanges between Ning Liangcai and Li Junyi.
He specially selected those letters in order to find an opportunity to show them to the emperor.
When the emperor saw these letters, he was furious.
Seeing Ning Liangcai affectionately addressing Shen Qiu Nian as "my son", the emperor was furious.
"Ning Liangcai, is this what you meant by having nothing to do with the Li family?" As he said this, he threw the crumpled letter over, hitting Ning Liangcai hard on the forehead.
The paper ball flew out, but Ning Liangcai made no move to pick it up. He simply bowed and said, "Your Majesty, letters can be forged. Prince Jian'an was born in the Marquis's mansion, so he naturally has access to the paper used there. Furthermore, he has many talented people under his command, so they can also imitate my handwriting and that of the Marquis's wife. It's not worth mentioning."
He spoke clearly and logically, as if he had already thought of a solution.
"Really?" Shen Yuhan sneered, "I still have witnesses to testify."
While waiting for the maid to enter the palace, Shen Yuhan sat on a chair, while Ning Liangcai knelt on the ground.
His gloomy eyes kept sweeping over Shen Yuhan, with a hint of coldness in them.
Shen Yuhan seemed not to see it, and even took a sip of tea leisurely.
Soon, Fang Qingyue came in supporting Chunmei.
Although Chunmei was also a maidservant of the Marquis' wife before, she seldom entered the palace and had few opportunities to see the royal family.
Now is my first time to see the emperor, and I am terrified just by looking at him.
But she still remembered the etiquette and knelt on the ground with Fang Qingyue: "Your servant Chunmei pays homage to the emperor."
"I heard from Minister Shen that Li Junyi and Ning Liangcai are having an affair. Did you see that when you were serving beside the Marquis's wife?" The emperor said coldly, holding a teacup in his hand.
The emperor's voice was full of majesty. Frightened by him, Chunmei's legs suddenly went weak.
She trembled and said, "That's true. Moreover, when Li Junyi was pregnant with Shen Qiu Nian, Master Shen was away from home for a long time, so it was impossible for her to give birth to this child. During those days, I often saw marks on her neck. I'm afraid it was left by Master Ning."
"Moreover, the old lady once caught Lord Ning and Li Junyi having an affair..." She lowered her head, tears welling in her eyes, and she could no longer bear to continue.
But after a while, thinking about the old lady's experience, Chunmei gritted her teeth and continued, "The old lady was distressed that the Marquis was away from home all day, and Li Junyi was miserable at home alone. She had originally planned to talk to Li Junyi about this matter and try to cover it up. Unexpectedly, Li Junyi not only did not appreciate it, but also conspired with Ning Liangcai to kill the old lady! Your Majesty, please help the old lady!"
After she finished speaking, she kowtowed to the ground repeatedly.
Thinking of the old lady's look of having her eyes open when she died, Chunmei felt a pain in her chest.
The emperor's face suddenly darkened. "Come here, send Ning Liangcai back to the palace and have him reflect on his actions. Chen Qiu Nian remains a commoner and cannot continue to serve as an official in the court!"
After Ning Liangcai was taken away, the emperor's face was still ugly.
But he didn't say anything else.
Seeing this scene, Shen Yuhan felt a chill in his heart, but still asked: "Is this enough?"
His mother died tragically at the hands of Ning Liangcai and Li Junyi. His brother raised the son of this adulterer and adulteress for so many years. Did he just reflect on it?
The emperor frowned and sighed helplessly.
He stood up, walked up to Shen Yuhan, and said earnestly, "But Ning Liangcai has a large army under his command. Although Li Junyi did something shameful, she once saved the imperial concubine. She has done me a favor, so I really can't touch her now. Besides, you have no other evidence besides these letters and the maid's confession, so it's really difficult for me to convict you."
He spoke earnestly, but Shen Yuhan only felt a chill in his heart.
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