Ning Liangcai then asked, "Help the Marquisate compensate Fang Qingyue? Then, Your Majesty, have you ever asked whether the Marquisate is willing to compensate Fang Qingyue?"
As he spoke, he bowed again and said, "Your Majesty, before the court session today, I sent someone to find the people from the Marquis' Mansion and wanted them to explain this matter. They are waiting outside the palace now. I wonder if Your Majesty would allow them to enter."
Having said this, the emperor pretended to glance at Shen Yuhan casually before saying, "Then order someone to call them up."
Soon, the palace servants brought the person in.
It was Shen Yu'an and his family who entered the hall.
Shen Yu'an took the lead, and with Li Junyi and Shen Qiu Nian, they knelt on the ground and said in a trembling voice: "Long live the emperor."
"No need to be polite." The emperor raised his hand and said, "The Shen family and the prince's family are close. Do you know that Shen Yuhan has a concubine?"
Hearing this, Li Junyi looked up and exchanged glances with Ning Liangcai.
It didn't take her long to understand what Ning Liangcai meant. "I'm not very clear on this matter. Since Prince Jian'an moved out of the Marquisate, we haven't had any contact, so I'm not very clear on the details. I just heard that he was quite close to Fang Qingyue."
She seemed to be making excuses for Shen Yuhan, but one sentence almost nailed Shen Yuhan to the bone of keeping Fang Qingyue.
"But I heard from Prince Jian'an that it was because Fang was previously Shen Qiu Nian's fiancée, but lost her virginity for some reason and broke off the engagement with Shen Qiu Nian. Prince Jian'an renovated Fang Qingyue's old house to make up for it?" The emperor continued without changing his expression.
"Maybe my uncle was worried that the emperor would be angry about this, so he concealed some of it. Qingyue did lose her virginity that day, but after all, the Shen family had already made an engagement with her. I don't want to break off the engagement with her because of these trivial matters." Li Junyi looked innocent, as if the letter that forced Fang Qingyue into a desperate situation and publicly admitted that she had lost her virginity was not sent by her to the Fang family's old house.
"She was the one who insisted on breaking off the engagement, and for this, I even gave her some compensation. I know that my uncle may have had good intentions, but in my eyes, the matter is indeed over. No matter what, I would not let my uncle, who has already established his own family, compensate her on behalf of the Shen family."
Everything she said seemed to be for Shen Yuhan's benefit, but in fact, she was just putting Shen Yuhan on the spot.
Shen Yuhan was keeping his eyes and ears open, and just now he saw the quarrel between Ning Liangcai and Li Junyi. He knew very well that the two of them wanted to join forces to bring him down.
He bowed respectfully and said, "I didn't know that my sister-in-law had previously subsidized Fang. I just felt that it was too pitiful for her to live alone in that old house with leaks, so I couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for her."
"Compassion?" Ning Liangcai looked as if he was greatly surprised. "Prince Jian'an, as the head of the Inspectorate, you actually felt compassion for the daughter of a criminal. Imagine if you meet another criminal's daughter in the future, and if she seems pitiful, will you also let her go out of your compassion?"
"Your Majesty, it appears that Prince Jian'an not only keeps a concubine and denies her identity, but also has an affair with the daughter of a guilty minister, and even develops an undue compassion for her. It seems he is indeed no longer fit to be the head of the Inspectorate."
Shen Qiunian had always been dissatisfied with Shen Yuhan's decision to stop him from taking revenge on Fang Qingyue. Upon hearing this, he said, "That's right. Uncle, you always taught me that in the Inspectorate, I need to distinguish right from wrong and be impartial. Only in this way can I handle the affairs of the Inspectorate well. Now, for the sake of Fang Qingyue, you have completely overturned what you said before. Isn't that too inappropriate?"
"What's more, after I apprehended the flower thief, I had him interrogated. He claimed he had never been to the Fang family's old house, but both Fang Qingyue and my uncle insisted that it was indeed the flower thief who broke into Fang Qingyue's boudoir and caused her to lose her virginity. I don't want to question my uncle about this matter, but many things just don't stand up to scrutiny."
With just a few words, they wanted to completely turn Shen Yuhan into a person who couldn't tell right from wrong.
Shen Yuhan narrowed his eyes and looked at the mother and son who stabbed him in the back, but he didn't say a word.
For a while, the court officials were also discussing it.
"That's right. No matter what Fang Qingyue's character is, she is the daughter of a criminal, and there are often bad rumors about her in the capital. As the head of the Inspectorate, how can Shen Yuhan get too close to such a person?"
"Once the news gets out, others will naturally doubt the Inspectorate's ability to handle the case. It's truly wrong to have put officials in this crisis."
"What Li said is indeed correct. Fang Qingyue has lost her innocence and should ask to cancel the engagement with the Marquisate. This is a matter between her and the Marquisate. Although Prince Jian'an also has the surname Chen, he has no significant relationship with the Marquisate after moving out. How can he compensate Fang Qingyue on behalf of the Marquisate?"
Seeing that many court officials stood on his side, Ning Liangcai couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
He took another step forward and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, this matter is of no small importance. Please handle it impartially."
The emperor rubbed his brows with a headache, but he was also a little angry in his heart.
Fang Xifu was guilty of the heinous crime of treason and should be executed along with his entire clan. He was already showing some leniency by letting Fang Qingyue go, as he definitely didn't want a minister he considered a meritorious official to have anything to do with a woman like this.
"Since all the court officials believe that Prince Jian'an is at fault, then let's dismiss him from his post and investigate. You should return home and reflect on your actions for a few days. You must not have any contact with Fang Qingyue without permission. If I find out, I may not be able to save the life of the daughter of this guilty minister." He spoke sternly, his eyes fixed on Shen Yuhan. "My dear Shen, do you have any objection to my decision?"
"Your humble servant dares not." Shen Yuhan knelt respectfully and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."
The palace maid walked to Shen Yuhan's side and took the jade token he handed over.
His official uniform was also taken away.
Shen Yuhan didn't even raise his head, looking extremely respectful.
Ning Liangcai's anger finally subsided a little when he saw Shen Yuhan swallowing her anger.
It was worth it that he had been investigating secretly these days. After losing his status as the head of the Inspectorate, Shen Yuhan was just a prince.
There are quite a few princes in Dazheng. Although Shen Yuhan was personally named Prince Jian'an by the Emperor, he has no real power compared to other princes with royal blood.
But later the emperor ordered him to supervise the Inspectorate, and only then did he have the power.
Now that the first jade token of the Inspectorate has been handed over, he is nothing more than an idle prince.
If he died quietly, no one would notice it in a short time.
After the morning court session, before leaving the hall, Ning Liang turned around and glanced at Shen Yuhan, his eyes full of malice.
This time, he will definitely kill Shen Yuhan.
Shen Yuhan originally wanted to leave, but was stopped by the palace servants beside the emperor: "Your Majesty, the emperor is looking for you."
Shen Yuhan raised his eyebrows and rushed to the imperial study.
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