Chapter 296 This is simply outrageous and too much!
In front of the government office in the capital.
Xun Yuanliang raised the mallet high with both hands and beat the drum with all his strength.
The dull sound of drums was heard instantly, and soon attracted many people to stop and watch.
"Hey, aren't those the runner-up and third place winners? I had the honor of meeting them once before. Why are they running to the government office to beat the drum and complain?"
"Who's beating the drum?" A bailiff walked out of the government office.
Xun Yuanliang bowed and saluted, and said in a loud voice, "Student Xun Yuanliang!"
Xun Yuanshan followed closely behind him, "Student Xun Yuanshan."
"We are suing a maid in the Taifu Mansion. She lied and maliciously accused the current top scholar of molesting her. We have come here today to file a complaint. We beg you to be discerning and report the matter to the emperor truthfully, so that we can be cleared of all charges!"
Xun Yuanshan's words were sincere and every word he spoke was powerful.
As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd watching was suddenly in an uproar.
"The third place in the imperial examination molested a maid in the house of the Grand Tutor? What on earth is going on?"
"I don't know. Looks like there's going to be something interesting to watch!"
On the way here, the two brothers had already reached an agreement on how to present the matter, and this was mainly for the people to hear.
Xun Yuanshan spoke again, "Today we went to the Taifu's house for a banquet. During the banquet, a maid accidentally spilled tea on me. After that, I went to change my clothes, but was suddenly knocked unconscious. When I woke up again, the maid insisted that I had molested her! But from beginning to end, I never touched her at all! This is clearly a deliberate murder! I studied hard for many years and finally got on the list. How can I be slandered like this? So I must report to the authorities and beg the emperor and the adults to do me justice!"
After hearing this, the people roughly understood the whole story.
"This scholar is so handsome, what's that maid? How could the scholar molest her?"
"You can't say that. You forgot that Mr. Zhou's son only likes ugly women."
"This maid is not ugly, she can be considered a beautiful girl from a small family."
"She must have been framed. She was just a maid. Would the top scholar have the nerve to molest her? And in the house of the Grand Tutor."
Hearing the people's discussions, Xun Yuanliang and Xun Yuanshan looked at each other, feeling slightly relieved, and then stepped into the government office.
Soon, Xun Mingzhi learned about this.
He was furious and immediately got into the carriage.
At first he planned to go to the government office, but on second thought, he decided to go directly to the palace!
The carriage galloped and soon arrived at the palace gate.
Xun Mingzhi hurriedly got out of the car, knelt on the ground with a plop, and cried with tears in his eyes, "Your Majesty! I beg Your Majesty to clear Yuanshan's name!"
As an official appointed by the imperial court and the father of Concubine Zhao, he was now crying like this at the palace gate, which really scared the guards on duty and they quickly reported the matter to the authorities.
The news soon reached Zhang Chengyan's ears, and he immediately ordered, "Let Xun Mingzhi come in! Prepare a sedan chair for him!"
Half an hour later.
Xun Mingzhi stumbled into the Yangxin Palace, and upon seeing the emperor, he fell to his knees and burst into tears, "Your Majesty, this is simply outrageous, this is too much!"
While crying bitterly, he recounted the whole process in detail.
After listening to this, Zhang Chengyan had roughly guessed the truth of the matter.
This is obviously a malicious slander.
If Xun Yuanliang had not reported the matter to the authorities and brought the matter to his presence, but had chosen to resolve it privately at the Taifu's residence, I'm afraid that the news that Xun Yuanshan molested a maid and forced himself on a decent woman would have spread throughout the capital tomorrow.
By then, even if he wanted to use Xun Yuanshan, he could only send him away first, and then consider transferring him back to the capital after the storm subsided.
"Come here, send someone to tell Xun Yuanshan and the others to come to the palace gate immediately. I want to go there myself!"
The third place in the imperial examination was slandered, and as the emperor, he must take action!
Only in this way can we make students all over the world see our fairness and win their hearts.
If this matter can be handled properly, perhaps students will write articles praising it.
Bai Wutong also heard about this and rushed over, "Your Majesty, the Xun family would never do such a thing!"
"I know what's going on."
Bai Wutong was relieved to see that the emperor really intended to inquire about this matter personally. She held her belly and said, "Your Majesty, can I go with you? I will not show up, I will just listen inside the palace gate."
"Okay." Zhang Chengyan stood up and said decisively, "Let's go!"
At the gate of the palace.
Xun Yuanliang and Xun Yuanshan were already waiting here.
Behind them was a densely packed crowd of people.
The royal guards and imperial guards had already deployed nearby, forming a solid human wall that kept the vast majority of civilians out.
Although there was a long distance between us, fortunately I could still catch some sounds.
Xun Yuanliang and Xun Yuanshan knelt on the ground in an orderly manner. The maid beside them still had a handkerchief stuffed in her mouth. She was so scared that her face was pale and bloodless, like a wax figure that had lost its life.
She originally thought that this matter would come to an end quietly in the Taifu Mansion, and that once she died, everything would be over.
Who would have thought that the situation would get out of control and even come before the Emperor!
Not long after, Zhang Chengyan appeared in front of the palace gate in a dragon chariot, looking majestic.
"Long live the emperor!"
In an instant, everyone knelt on the ground and shouted at the top of their lungs. The sounds gathered together and reached the sky.
The dull sound of drums rang out, and the people fell silent instantly.
Upon seeing this, Xun Yuanshan hurriedly knelt down again and kowtowed heavily. Then he methodically and carefully recounted the whole thing from beginning to end.
Zhang Chengyan stood tall and straight, looking down at everyone. "You are all students who have studied hard for many years and are dedicated to learning. If you are really framed by someone and wronged, I will definitely uphold justice for you and clear your name!"
The eunuchs around him passed the message one after another.
Soon, someone shouted at the top of his voice, repeating the emperor's words word by word in the direction of the people, making sure that everyone present could hear it clearly!
The royal guard stepped forward, held the maid down, and removed the handkerchief from her mouth.
The maid was so frightened that she was shaking like a sieve, and even her voice was trembling, "Emperor...Emperor!"
Zhang Chengyan looked down at her with sharp eyes, "Did Xun Yuanshan really do anything indecent to you? You must tell the truth in front of me! If there is a bad guy who is threatening you, just speak up, I will definitely arrest him!"
The maid bit her tongue as soon as she opened her mouth, "Your Majesty, this servant... this servant was threatened!"
After saying this, she kowtowed heavily.
How could she dare to tell a lie in front of the emperor?
Looking around, there are the majestic and ferocious Royal Guards.
Such a strong sense of oppression made her dare not lie at all.
In the face of absolute authority, all the courage in her heart disappeared instantly.
It's not fear of death, but the awe and fear of imperial power that comes from the bones.
Xun Yuanshan's heart finally settled down after hearing this, "You...why did you frame me!"
"It was a servant from the mansion who came to me and threatened the lives of my family members, forcing me to do such a wicked thing. I had no choice but to do it. Please spare my life, Your Majesty!"
Zhang Chengyan didn't expect her to let go so quickly, and asked, "Who is that person?"
"It's Fatty Wang from the Taifu Mansion."
"Come here, go to the Taifu Mansion immediately and bring Fatty Wang here as soon as possible!" In order to show his generosity and kindness in front of the people, Zhang Chengyan added, "As for your family, I will also send someone to bring them here to ensure that they are safe and sound. You can speak freely, but don't hide anything!"
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