Chapter 173 Investigation (3)
Seeing that Meng Guanqi remained silent, Minister Meng said with a hint of sarcasm, "What? Are you surprised to hear that someone younger than you has achieved a higher ranking in the exam?"
He sighed again, "If Zheng Chuyang were still alive, he would definitely have been the top scholar that year. However, more than ten years later, his son fulfilled this wish for him. Truly, like father, like son!"
A genius scholar at the age of sixteen, no wonder Zheng Mian is already a high-ranking official in his early thirties. Given time, it's only a matter of time before he is transferred from the local government to the central government and joins the cabinet.
Meng Guanqi said, "Since Grandfather also knows Zheng Chuyang, do you know Zheng Jingwen?"
"Zheng Jingwen?" Minister Meng was taken aback. "Could he also be a member of the Zheng family?" He pondered for a while before shaking his head. "I have never heard of such a person from the Zheng family. Perhaps he has never served in office?"
Meng Guanqi said, "He may not necessarily be a member of the Zheng family. He is more likely to be Zheng Chuyang or Zheng Fuyang's page or attendant."
Minister Meng was taken aback: "It's already quite an achievement for me to know the scholars in their family, how could I possibly know their servants?"
It seems that although they were from different departments, Minister Meng had never met Zheng Chuyang and Zheng Fuyang in person, only heard of their reputations, which is why he was unfamiliar with the people around them.
We still need to find Yuan Zhigang.
Minister Meng frowned: "Who is this Zheng Jingwen? What do you want with him?"
Meng Guanqi thought for a moment. If what Minister Meng said was true, then going directly to Yuan Zhigang would probably not yield any results. To get him to speak up, Minister Meng would have to do him a favor.
He explained his conjecture to Minister Meng, whose pupils dilated in shock: "You suspect that this was done by Zheng Mian?"
Meng Guanqi said gravely, “If it can be confirmed that Zheng Jingwen is related to the Zheng Chuyang brothers, then this matter is almost certainly true.”
Minister Meng remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking: "Have you ever considered that the Zheng family is a prominent clan with hundreds or even thousands of members? If Zheng Mian is the one who plotted against the Crown Prince, then he has committed a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of his family. This crime is too serious and could wipe out the lives of thousands of people."
Meng Guanqi also fell silent for a long time before saying, "Therefore, without solid evidence, I dare not draw any conclusions, much less reveal my thoughts to Your Highness."
Minister Meng said, "This is the first major event you will undertake before the new emperor ascends the throne. It may directly affect your promising future and even the life and death of a noble family. It is a matter of great importance. Your grandfather will personally accompany you to find Yuan Zhigang."
Meng Guanqi was a junior and held a low-ranking official position, so Yuan Zhigang shouldn't have bothered with him. However, since Minister Meng was involved, and the two had a past relationship as officials in the same court, Yuan Zhigang was likely willing to do him a favor if he wanted to inquire about some information.
When Meng Guanqi got home that night, she couldn't sleep.
Minister Meng's words kept echoing in his ears: exterminate nine generations of the family, thousands of members... In other words, if he could get confirmation from Yuan Zhigang tomorrow, the Crown Prince could directly issue an edict to exterminate the Zheng family's nine generations after ascending the throne.
On one hand, he gained both fame and fortune, successfully becoming a meritorious official of the new emperor; on the other hand, there were thousands of lives lost. These two matters were placed on opposite ends of a scale, leaving him confused and in pain.
He heard Li Xiaoxiao's breathing as she slept soundly. He quietly turned over, got up gently, and went outside to sit on the parallel bars, staring blankly at the dark sky.
The moonlight tonight is beautiful and bright, casting shadowy patterns on the flowers and trees in the yard.
In the stillness, he fell into deep thought.
The Crown Prince lost three children in succession. He witnessed the pain firsthand and at that time, he wished he could find the culprit behind the scenes and tear him to pieces. However, when the culprit's true face was only a thin veil away from him, he was losing the courage to lift it.
Did the Crown Prince suffer from losing his child? He certainly did. But Zheng Mian was only one or two years old when he lost his father. Wasn't his long period of hiding and seeking revenge because he was living in the pain of losing his father? He became the top scholar at the age of sixteen and a second-rank official in his early thirties. How could someone like him lose the lives of his entire family because of seeking revenge?
Wrong, wrong from the very beginning. Zheng Mian should never have attacked the Crown Prince. Two people who originally had no direct hatred became entangled because of a momentary lapse in judgment. The scales have already tipped in favor of the Crown Prince. The moment he reveals the truth will be the day the Zheng family is destroyed.
Meng Guanqi felt like an executioner, wielding a large sword to hack at the entire Zheng family.
He stared blankly at his hands, his vision suddenly blurring.
A pair of hands patted his shoulder, the parallel bars beneath him wobbled, and someone sat down next to him: "Still up in the middle of the night, looking at the moon?"
It was Li Xiaoxiao; she got up too.
Meng Guanqi remained motionless in the same position. Li Xiaoxiao felt something was wrong and leaned closer to take a closer look. In the dim moonlight, she seemed to see tears in his eyes.
She was taken aback: "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
Meng Guanqi reached out and hugged her, burying his head in her shoulder.
He exuded a deep sadness, and Li Xiaoxiao felt extremely sorry for him: "Have you encountered any difficulties? Tell me, and I'll help you."
Meng Guanqi shook his head and remained silent.
Li Xiaoxiao became anxious: "How am I supposed to know how to help you if you don't tell me? Is it related to Zheng Jingwen? Right?"
Meng Guanqi calmed himself down and slowly told her about his conversation with Minister Meng that day. His tone was sad: "Xiaoxiao, do you know why Grandfather intervened? It's because he felt that this was my chance to make a name for myself in front of the new emperor. He was willing to give me a push. At the same time, he also clearly told me that this trip might lead to the destruction of the entire Zheng family. He told me to be mentally prepared and to accept the cruel fact that my achievements would be built on the lives of thousands of people."
Li Xiaoxiao was shocked.
Meng Guanqi looked at her: "This is politics, politics that my grandfather personally taught me. I must have a heart strong enough and ruthless enough to accept the consequences."
Li Xiaoxiao's heart instantly felt heavy: "Is it really necessary to exterminate the entire family?"
Meng Guanqi nodded seriously: "Definitely. This is the law of the court. Especially after the Crown Prince ascends the throne as the new emperor, if he plots to murder the emperor or kills the imperial heir, according to the law, his entire family should be exterminated. Even if the new emperor himself is unwilling, the Ministry of Justice and the Censorate will step forward to maintain the dignity and order of the imperial family..."
Li smiled and said, "I know you're very upset, but if Zheng Mian is really the mastermind, he can't escape the death penalty... but we'll work together to figure out what to do about the others in his clan."
"Is there any other way?" Meng Guanqi looked at her hopefully.
Li Xiaoxiao said, "We don't even know if Zheng Mian is the mastermind yet. You're just being sentimental here. What if it's not him? You've been heartbroken for nothing. Come on, let's go back to sleep. Once we've verified that it's him, we'll figure out a way to deal with this matter of exterminating nine generations of his family."
Meng Guanqi silently followed her back to her room. Strangely enough, even though he subconsciously felt that there was no solution to this matter, when he heard that she could find a way to resolve it, he seemed to be convinced that she would definitely have a solution. He felt much more at ease and fell asleep almost as soon as he lay down on the bed.
The next morning, he had Ah Sheng drive to the Meng residence to pick up Minister Meng and his entourage, and together they headed towards Yongzhou.
Yongzhou is only an hour and a half away from the capital. Because they set off early, the carriage arrived in Yongzhou at noon. The group spent some time inquiring and finally found out where Vice Minister Yuan lived.
When Yuan Zhenggang heard from his servants that Minister Meng had come to visit with his grandson, he was surprised. Although the two had served in the same court before they retired, they had never been on good terms. Moreover, Minister Meng had not even sent a visiting card in advance and had come directly to his door. He must have something urgent to say.
He quickly had someone invite the Meng family grandfather and grandson in: "Brother Meng, you are a rare guest indeed. What brings you to Yongzhou?"
Minister Meng quickly apologized and introduced Meng Guanqi to him before revealing his purpose: "To be honest, I came here on behalf of my grandson to inquire about an old matter from Brother Yuan."
They actually asked him about his past? Yuan Zhenggang joked, "Is it some ancient story you want to ask this old man?"
Minister Meng smiled somewhat awkwardly: "Brother Yuan is indeed very insightful. We have come here today to inquire about an old matter from many years ago."
Yuan Zhenggang adopted a posture of listening attentively.
Meng Guanqi bowed to Yuan Zhenggang and said, "This junior wishes to inquire about someone from Vice Minister Yuan. I wonder if Vice Minister Yuan knows a man named Zheng Jingwen?"
Zheng Jingwen? Yuan Zhenggang frowned slightly: "Was he a former official or someone who committed a crime?"
As a vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, Yuan had interrogated countless criminals. Meng Guanqi only gave him a name, so it's no wonder that Vice Minister Yuan couldn't remember it.
Meng Guanqi said softly, "I have heard that you were a Jinshi in the second year of Jian'an. Do you know Zheng Chuyang, the top Juren in the country back then? Did he have a person named Zheng Jingwen by his side?"
Zheng Chuyang? Yuan Zhenggang's expression changed drastically, a hint of anger flashing across his face. He said sternly to Minister Meng, "Brother Meng, you've brought your grandson here to inquire about the events of the second year of Jian'an? Although the late emperor has passed away, is it inappropriate to immediately bring up old grievances?"
As expected! Yuan Zhenggang was very wary of them asking about this matter, and even scolded Minister Meng. He immediately stood up and pretended to see them off. If Meng Guanqi really came alone, he probably wouldn't even be able to get in the door.
Meng Guanqi hurriedly said, "Senior, please calm down. I was ordered by the Crown Prince to investigate the old case. However, during the investigation, I unexpectedly discovered that a man named Zheng Jingwen seemed to be related to Zheng Chuyang. Since most of the Jinshi from the second year of Jian'an had retired and returned home, I came here to find you. Please forgive me, senior. I had no intention of offending you."
Yuan Zhenggang frowned: "The Crown Prince hasn't even ascended the throne yet, why is he investigating this case? Kid, don't think you can fool me just because I'm no longer in court. If you don't have a legitimate reason today, don't even think about getting a single word out of me."
Meng Guanqi quickly replied, "I dare not. Everything I have said is true. Senior, have you heard that the Crown Prince overruled all objections and donated 100,000 catties of charcoal to help the candidates get through the cold weather during the Spring Examination?"
How could Yuan Zhenggang not have heard of such a momentous event? His expression softened slightly. It was precisely because of this action that the Crown Prince had moved scholars throughout the land, and countless people were hoping that he would ascend the throne: "I have heard of it, but what does this have to do with what you asked about the events of the second year of Jian'an?"
Meng Guanqi had no choice but to lie: "Actually, the Crown Prince only had a vague understanding of what happened back then. He had also greatly offended the late Emperor by donating charcoal to the candidates and was reprimanded. Therefore, he harbored doubts and always wanted to find out what happened back then..."
Yuan Zhenggang sighed deeply: "Is he trying to give an explanation to the scholars who died tragically back then? This is righteous for the people, but it is a great disrespect to the late emperor. Has the crown prince really decided to do this?"
Meng Guanqi lowered his head.
Yuan Zhenggang took it as tacit agreement.
He remained silent for a long time, a look of reminiscence appearing on his face: "Zheng Chuyang and I were both successful candidates in the imperial examinations in the same year. He was renowned far and wide, and I was no match for him. If he were still alive, it's hard to say who the Grand Secretary would be today! You're right, he did indeed have an extremely intelligent and quick-witted page named Jingwen. He was only two years younger than Zheng Chuyang, and he studied alongside him, achieving results comparable to a Xiucai (a lower-level scholar). If it weren't for his status as a servant, he could have passed the imperial examinations and returned with a degree..."
Minister Meng and Meng Guanqi exchanged a glance, and Meng Guanqi's heart sank straight into an abyss.
It's true! Zheng Jingwen really is Zheng Chuyang's pageboy.
At this moment, a look of pain suddenly appeared on Yuan Zhigang's face, as if the tragedy of that year had reappeared before his eyes: "After the first round of the imperial examination that year, Jingwen carried Zheng Chuyang's corpse and walked through all the medical clinics in the capital. His head was covered in blood from kowtowing, and he cried out in pain, begging doctors to save Zheng Chuyang's life. But Zheng Chuyang had already been dead for a day and a night. Even if Hua Tuo were alive again, he could not save him... Every doctor he begged to cried and told him to accept reality, but he still refused to give up. He walked through all the medical clinics, and his whole body was swaying... His cries even alarmed Prince Chun at the time. He secretly sent the imperial physician to run behind Zheng Jingwen to try to help save him, but it was too late. In the end, the Zheng family arrived and took them away. From then on, no one ever saw Zheng Jingwen again. There were rumors that he had died for his master. If you had heard his cries back then, you would believe it just like I did."
Meng Guanqi seemed to see that scene from years ago replay before his eyes: a frail pageboy carrying his most respected master on his back, crying and begging a doctor to save the young master's life, before disappearing into the vast snowy landscape... The scene shifts to the third year of Jian'an, where a frail boy who had voluntarily castrated himself carried a small bundle and lined up to enter the dark and desolate palace alley, never to return.
Meng Guanqi's eyes were bloodshot.
Yuan Zhigang was taken aback, then stroked his beard and laughed: "Brother Meng, your grandson is quite the sentimental one."
Minister Meng shook his head: "Being too sentimental is not a good thing. Fortunately, he is still young, so let him gain more experience..."
Yuan Zhigang made a few more jokes, then suddenly said, "By the way, I thought Jingwen had really died for his lord. Where did you see him? Now Zheng Chuyang's son, Zheng Mian, is a second-rank provincial official. If he knew he was still alive, he would surely have brought him home to support him, right?"
Meng Guanqi said in a low voice, "He is already dead."
Yuan Zhigang was stunned. Dead? When did he die?
Having received the answer he wanted, Meng Guanqi stood up, bowed deeply to Yuan Zhigang, and strode out of the Yuan residence.
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