Xia Yuanji has been in the Jinyiwei prison for almost two months.

The reason is very simple. When Liu Sheng brought sweet potato and other crop seeds here, Xia Yuanji discovered this blank document at the same post station and felt that there might be something wrong.

After returning to the Ministry of Revenue to report on his work, he reported the matter.

Immediately afterwards, the Jinyiwei came and took him to the imperial prison.

However, so much time had passed since this incident, but no one came to interrogate him, and no one told him what crime he had committed.

"Sir, it's time to eat."

The young jailer came over with a few plates of food and rice, and spoke politely.

"Can you help me pass on the message that I have been wrongly accused, and there must be something wrong. This is a matter of great importance and cannot be delayed any longer."

Xia Yuanji did not take the food immediately, but said with a heavy face.

"Sir, please don't embarrass me. Don't say I'm just a small jailer. Even if I can really tell, you have been here for such a long time, you should understand the rules of this prison."

"Don't go hungry, eat the food as soon as possible."

The young jailer said helplessly that such conversations had actually happened many times in the imperial prison.

In other words, this young jailer had a good temper and would answer a few words every time.

If the old jailer came over, he would put down the food and leave.

Xia Yuanji took the food helplessly and started eating in the cell.

The conditions in the imperial prison are much higher quality than those in ordinary cells outside.

At least the smell is not so pungent and the sanitary conditions are much better.

Firstly, those who came here were basically officials, and secondly, the emperor would also come here in many cases.

If it was so bad that it disgusted the emperor, it would be a crime of disrespect.

"I have to live well. Only by living can I have hope. The power behind this is very strong. I am a sixth-rank official who was arrested and no one has paid any attention to me until now. This is a clear example of their power."

"Only by letting His Majesty know about this matter can the hidden dangers be completely resolved."

While thinking about this, Xia Yuanji began to eat his food vigorously.

The food in the imperial prison was not very appetizing, but every meal basically contained some meat. Apart from looking dirty, Xia Yuanji actually gained a little weight after staying there for two months.

At this moment, in the Jinyiwei Yamen, Song Zhong came to the lobby with several boxes of files.

"Your Highness, Duke Liang, here are the files of all the prisoners currently in custody, a total of 272 people."

"These three boxes contain those who have been convicted, those who are currently on trial, and those who have not yet been convicted or interrogated."

In other words, there are currently about three hundred officials involved in the Jinyiwei prison.

This is the imperial prison under normal circumstances. If there is a major case, more officials will be involved.

For example, in the case of Guo Heng, the imperial prison was full to capacity.

Zhu Ying nodded slightly upon hearing this and asked casually, "What is the highest official rank in the imperial prison now?"

Song Zhong hesitated for a moment, then replied: "Your Highness, it is the head of the Ministry of Revenue of the Sichuan Administrative Department."

Zhu Ying had no interest at first, but when he heard that it was from Sichuan, he couldn't help but ask, "How come the head of the Ministry of Revenue in Sichuan was arrested and brought to the capital? How much money did he embezzle?"

The Ministry of Revenue was the purse of the Ming Dynasty. Generally speaking, 99% of all crimes were related to Baochao.

This aroused Zhu Ying's slight interest.

Song Zhong said somewhat awkwardly: "Your Highness, earlier, Xia Yuanji, the head of the Ministry of Revenue of the Sichuan Provincial Administration, came across the sweet potatoes and other crops that Your Highness brought from the Western Regions on his way back to the capital to report on his work."

"Then there might be a problem with the empty seal document, which led to Xia Yuanji's conflict with him."

"After returning to the capital, Xia Yuanji secretly inquired about the sweet potato, and was reported by the Jinyiwei secret line, so he was directly detained in the imperial prison."

In fact, at that time, the Jinyiwei did not know that those goods were sweet potatoes. It was just because the person Xia Yuanji provoked was a disciple of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, so they did not need to worry too much and just detained him first.

It is easy to get into the imperial prison, but difficult to get out.

When you come in, you don’t need any procedures or approval documents.

But if this is to be released, the process approval stamp must be present, and anyone who fails will be held accountable.

After all, it is related to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Who wants to be involved in such a thing? Naturally, everyone tries to avoid it. It's just a matter of you dragging me and I dragging you.

The official from the Ministry of Revenue knew that Xia Yuanji had been captured by the Embroidered Uniform Guards, so he didn't dare to ask any more questions.

So the story was successfully staged that a sixth-rank official of the Ming Dynasty was imprisoned in the Jinyiwei prison, neither being released nor imprisoned until today.

If Zhu Ying hadn't asked this casually, I really don't know how long he would be imprisoned.

"Natsuhara Yoshi?"

Zhu Ying was slightly stunned when he heard this. The name seemed somewhat familiar.

It's just that the impression wasn't very deep.

As a result of living two lives, Zhu Ying's memory has improved a lot. He can even remember some minor things from his previous life after thinking about them for a while.

'Zhu Di's Money Bag' Xia Yuanji.

Such a word popped up in Zhu Ying's mind.

The name suddenly became familiar to me.

"Your Highness, do you know him?" Song Zhong asked cautiously.

Zhu Ying smiled and said, "It's OK. I have read the memorial from Sichuan before. This person is in the Ministry of Revenue in Sichuan. He is a good and capable official who can really get things done."

"Go and release the man and bring him here to see me."

Song Zhong said quickly: "Your Highness's order."

In the imperial prison.

Even though he was in prison, Xia Yuanji did not stop learning. However, without books, he could only rely on memory most of the time.

The walls of this cell are covered with words.

These words are none other than the famous Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art from ancient times to the present.

The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art is a classic of mathematics studied by scholars in the Ming Dynasty. It consists of nine chapters: Square Fields, Millet, Decline and Degree, Small Width, Commercial Merit, Equal Distribution, Surplus and Deficit, Equation, and Sentence.

What Xia Yuanji is studying now is the annotated version of "Nine Chapters" made by Liu Hui in the fourth year of Jingyuan of Emperor Yuan of Wei during the Three Kingdoms period, which is considered to be extremely complete.

Compared with later generations, although the level of Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art is not very high, it is above the comprehensive level of junior high school and close to the level of high school teaching.

At a time when the Renaissance in the West had not yet emerged, the Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art was considered the most advanced applied mathematics in the world.

This classic book is also a must-read for officials of the Ministry of Revenue.

Just when Xia Yuanji was thinking about a difficult problem for Shang Gong, the young jailer suddenly came over happily and said, "Sir, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has asked to see you. Come with me to take a bath and change clothes."

Xia Yuanji was stunned when he heard this, and then asked in surprise: "Really?"

"This is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, how can it be fake?"

The young jailer said as he quickly opened the cell door.

Xia Yuanji immediately followed.

Of course, at this moment, Xia Yuanji did not know that the current Crown Prince was Zhu Ying, and thought it was Zhu Yunwen.

Because he was imprisoned too early, this cell is isolated from the outside world.

It is naturally impossible for the jailer to tell the prisoners about the current situation outside.

This also resulted in Xia Yuanji's impression remaining unchanged from before.

At this moment, Xia Yuanji made some estimation in his mind and found that the enthronement ceremony of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had indeed passed.

While bathing, Xia Yuanji suddenly remembered that he had a good relationship with Huang Zicheng.

Perhaps through His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, we can find out who is behind this empty seal document.