Chapter 252 Evidence of the Yong Palace's Crime
Qi Yanzhou took the pile of evidence handed over by Kong Zhizhou and counted them roughly.
Nearly a hundred sheets of paper, an astonishing number.
Whenever Zhao Sirui found out that a shop was doing good business, he would take it over as his own.
Whenever he took a fancy to a girl, he would take her into the palace as a concubine, regardless of whether she was willing or not.
When he was in a bad mood, he would take out his anger on innocent people and beat and kill them at will.
The most hateful thing is that in order to give his son enough money to live a life of luxury, Prince Yong used the court's disaster relief money.
“Bang!”
Qi Yanzhou slammed a thick stack of evidence on the table, his handsome face filled with anger.
"I didn't expect that what Lord Kong reported was just a tiny fraction of the evil deeds done by Prince Yong's Mansion."
Governor Liu quickly explained: "Prince Yong is a relative of the emperor. If Lord Kong writes too much in his memorial, it may be suspected of disrespecting the emperor's authority and he will be punished."
Qi Yanzhou knew very well that a foolish emperor was capable of doing such a thing.
He drank the tea in front of him.
"The emperor wants to win the hearts of the people now. This is a great opportunity for Lord Kong to submit a memorial. Submit all the evidence, and add to that Prince Yong's assassination of me. The emperor will definitely deprive him of his title and make him pay for his evil deeds."
Qi Yanzhou's argument made sense, but Kong Zhizhou refused.
"Master Qi, I hope that the person who overthrows King Yong and wins the hearts of the people is you."
The emperor doesn't care about Jizhou at all. Even if things change in Jizhou, he won't know!
Qi Yanzhou was somewhat surprised by Kong Zhizhou's idea.
He thought that the three people in charge of Jizhou just wanted to use him to deal with King Yong.
I didn't expect they were standing in line!
"It is hard to refuse the kindness of Kong Zhizhou, so I will do as you wish."
In fact, Qi Yanzhou had never intended to let the emperor interfere in the matter of Prince Yong.
With the imperial seal in his hands, he only needed to stop the memorial submitted by Kong Zhizhou and write an imperial edict to deprive King Yong of his title and demote him to a commoner.
When the theft of the national seal is exposed in the future, the credit given to the emperor can be taken back.
But Kong Zhizhou's words made him think of a better way.
"Please ask Lord Kong to send someone to the inn to call Lord Han over."
The emperor has been very worried recently and did not take back the "as if I am present in person" token from Han Chong.
This token is enough to make King Yong lose everything and get the punishment he deserves.
Even if the emperor knew about it, he would not do anything to Han Chong, after all, he did nothing wrong.
Kong Zhizhou looked at his advisor and said, "Send someone to invite Lord Han."
Now, everyone knew that the officer escorting the exiled prisoners was Qi Yanzhou's man.
When Han Chong does things, he is not representing the emperor, but Qi Yanzhou!
After the master left, Qi Yanzhou asked, "What ending do the three adults plan to give to Prince Yong's Mansion?"
Kong Zhizhou answered without hesitation: "If the emperor breaks the law, he will be punished just like the common people!"
Governor Liu and General Zhang nodded in agreement.
"Without rules, there is no order."
"Then prepare tonight and hold a public trial tomorrow."
After Qi Yanzhou finished speaking, he returned the pile of evidence in front of him to Kong Zhizhou.
"There are so many cases that it is impossible to review them all and pick out the three most serious ones."
Kong Zhizhou was very familiar with these cases and quickly took out three pieces of paper.
"I will prepare the witnesses and physical evidence tomorrow."
Several people discussed the details of the trial.
Before they could finish the discussion, the police came with Yuan Wei, who was in contact with the gangsters.
He is Mr. Yuan's legitimate son and Princess Yong's favorite nephew.
Yuan Wei had done many shady things for Prince Yong's Mansion and also received many benefits.
Even if he fails occasionally, the Prince Yong's Mansion will protect him.
Therefore, even though he was brought to the prefectural government by force, he was not panicked at all.
"Master Kong, you caught the wrong person..."
Before he could finish his arrogant words, he was interrupted by Kong Zhizhou.
"You are such a rude and unruly person. You refuse to kneel before an official. You are showing contempt for the court. Come, give me 20 lashes of the cane!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the bailiff kicked Yuan Wei in the knee.
Yuan Wei's knees fell to the ground with a thud and he screamed in pain.
The next moment, he was kicked to the ground again.
The board fell heavily.
Bang bang bang!
The skin and flesh were torn.
When Princess Yong was brought to the court by the officials, Yuan Wei's clothes were already stained with blood and he had fainted.
The last board fell, and blood splattered everywhere.
A few drops fell on Princess Yong's gorgeous clothes, like red plum blossoms blooming in the snow.
The air was filled with a strong smell of blood, which made her feel nauseous.
"What are you doing? Are you trying to force a confession out of me?"
Kong Zhizhou explained expressionlessly: "Princess, you misunderstood. Yuan Wei refused to kneel before the officials and showed contempt for the court. I am only punishing him severely according to the law."
These words made Princess Yong clearly realize that the three people in charge of Jizhou City were going to break off relations with Prince Yong's Mansion!
She immediately looked at Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang who were sitting next to each other in the court.
It must have been instigated by these two people!
Aren’t those gangsters very powerful? Why couldn't I kill them!
Ye Chutang met Princess Shangyong's resentful eyes and asked, "The princess is very angry because she failed to kill us."
Princess Yong's thoughts were exposed, and a flash of panic flashed across her eyes.
"Mrs. Qi offended someone and suffered misfortune. What has this got to do with me? Do you know how serious a crime it is to slander the royal family?"
Prince Yong was not taken seriously and was only given the royal jade butterfly but no imperial edict.
They can only use the title of "royal relative" to highlight their status.
Ye Chutang doesn't even care about the emperor, so how could he care about his "relatives".
She looked at Kong Zhizhou, "Whether it is slander or the truth, Lord Kong will tell the princess the answer."
Magistrate Kong winked at the bailiff.
“Wow!”
A basin of cold water sprinkled with salt was poured on Yuan Wei's injured back.
Yuan Wei screamed and woke up.
His back felt as if it was being tortured, and the pain made him tremble all over and wail incessantly.
“Bang!”
Kong Zhizhou slammed the gavel hard.
"Yuan Wei, Master Qi and Madam Qi were assassinated in Jing'an Temple. Did you order it?"
Yuan Wei endured the piercing pain and looked at Princess Yong for help.
"Aunt, my nephew is innocent. You must stand up for him!"
He dared to refuse to admit it even if he died because people in the underworld abide by the rules and would not betray their employer even if they were caught.
Princess Yong comforted her distressedly, "Wei'er, if you are wronged, your aunt will definitely take care of it for you!"
After saying this, she glared at Kong Zhizhou.
"Master Kong, you have mobilized so many troops in the middle of the night. If you don't give me an explanation, I will not let it go!"
Kong Zhizhou nodded and said to the master, "Bring up those people who assassinated Master Qi."
"Yes, sir."
Soon, several people in prison were brought to court.
Kong Zhizhou then asked his lawyer to show the confessions of several people to Princess Yong.
"Princess, these prisoners not only confessed the tasks that Yuan Wei assigned to them tonight, but also explained their 'cooperation' with Yuan Wei over the years.
I have already sent someone to collect evidence, and we will soon know whether the testimony is true or false. Since the matter is related to the princess, I asked the princess to come here. ”
These words made Princess Yong's face change, her lips trembled, and she didn't know how to refute.
Yuan Wei was so frightened by Kong Zhizhou's words that he forgot the pain.
He looked at the prisoners kneeling on the ground and asked in panic, "Who are you? Why are you slandering me? Are you under Qi Yanzhou's orders?"
Qi Yanzhou looked at Yuan Wei who was slandering him and chuckled mockingly.
"Master Yuan, do you know what the price of slandering me is?"
The voice was soft and the tone was cold.
When falling into Yuan Wei's ears, every word turned into a heavy hammer, hitting his heart and making it impossible for him to breathe.
"I...I didn't..."
Before he could finish his stubborn words, Han Chong, who came quickly, interrupted him.
"Being stubborn won't change the facts, it will only lead to your eternal damnation!"
Yuan Wei was stunned by Han Chong's terrifying aura.
He didn't dare to quibble anymore, nor could he tell the truth. He was suffocating and couldn't breathe. His eyes rolled back and he fainted.
When Kong Zhizhou saw Han Chong coming, he quickly stood up and left the trial table.
"Sir Han, the attack on Young Master Qin involves Princess Yong. I am of low rank and unqualified to be the presiding judge. Please take your seat."
Han Chong glanced at Qi Yanzhou.
After he agreed, he sat down in front of the trial table with a serious face.
Then he took out the token given to him by the emperor.
When Kong Zhizhou saw this, he immediately knelt down and shouted, "Long live the emperor!"
Upon seeing this, Governor Liu and General Zhang also knelt down.
"Long live the emperor!"
Immediately afterwards, the bailiffs in the court also knelt down and saluted.
Princess Yong was a little confused.
She felt that she should kneel, but Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang just sat there without moving.
Kong Zhizhou reminded: "Princess Yong, seeing the token is like seeing the emperor, you need to perform the ceremony."
Princess Yong's mouth is faster than her brain.
“Why don’t they kneel?”
Ye Chutang chuckled, "If you want to break up with the emperor, you don't have to kneel."
Princess Yong certainly didn't have the courage to do that, so she knelt down immediately.
"Long live the emperor!"
As she bowed, her heart sank again.
Han Chong put away the token.
"Everyone, please stand up. I am following the orders of the Emperor to eliminate the injustices in the Road of Exile and restore justice to the people. I will never wrongly accuse a good person, nor will I let a bad person go."
Kong Zhizhou told Han Chong about the progress of the case.
"Master Han, my subordinates have gone to collect the evidence and will be back soon."
Han Chong looked at the unconscious Yuan Wei and said, "He is a key prisoner. Use pepper spray to wake him up. I want to interrogate him."
Just as Kong Zhizhou was about to agree, Princess Yong stopped him sternly.
"Do you want to force a confession?"
She felt sorry for Yuan Wei, but was also worried that he could not endure the torture and would tell the truth.
Han Chong looked at Princess Yong and asked, "Princess, are you willing to vouch for Master Yuan? Is he innocent?"
Princess Yong didn't know whether Kong Zhizhou could really find evidence or was just deceiving her.
So, she didn't dare to say too much.
"I can wake Wei'er up without pepper spray."
She squatted down, covered her mouth and nose to block out the nauseating smell of blood.
"Wei'er, wake up."
During the pushing and shoving, the long and slender nails dug into Yuan Wei's wound.
Yuan Wei was awakened by the pain again, and Princess Yong's whispered warning fell into his ears.
"Shut your mouth and don't say anything you shouldn't. If anything happens to me, no one will save you!"
Yuan Wei was in so much pain that he couldn't speak and nodded weakly.
He knew very well that his aunt was the pillar of the Yuan family.
If she falls, the Yuan family will be destroyed!
After getting Yuan Wei's assurance, Princess Yong hid her long blood-stained nails in her sleeves and stood up.
"Wei'er has woken up. Please ask whatever you want to ask."
Han Chong didn't understand the case in detail, so he asked Kong Zhizhou to interrogate him.
As a result, Yuan Wei said nothing and pretended not to hear.
Han Chong saw Ye Chutang yawning with his hands covering his mouth and didn't want to waste any more time.
"Master Kong, let's punish him. If Yuan Wei is wrongly accused, I will take the responsibility."
After these words were spoken, Princess Yong had no reason to stop it.
"Put on the splint."
Yuan Wei looked at the clip in the bailiff's hand and shook his head in horror.
"No, I was wrongly accused, you can't torture me!"
The bailiff ignored Yuan Wei's words, controlled him as he struggled frantically, and put splints on his hands.
As the rope tightened, the stick squeezed the fingers hard.
The fingers are connected to the heart.
Yuan Wei screamed like a pig being slaughtered.
"Aunt...Aunt, save...save me!"
Princess Yong was frightened by Yuan Wei's screams and her face turned pale. Her feet moved back a step uncontrollably.
At this time, the official sent by Kong Zhizhou to find evidence came back.
They lived up to expectations and obtained evidence of Yuan Wei's collusion with the gangsters.
The officers could not understand what was happening in the court.
But he tactfully handed the evidence he found to Han Chong who was sitting behind the desk.
"Sir, these evidences prove that Yuan Wei often bribes people in the underworld to help him commit evil, including tonight's assassination."
Although people in the underworld are loyal, they also keep a trick up their sleeve just in case.
In order not to implicate their families, they had no choice but to betray their moral principles and sell out their employers.
After reading the irrefutable evidence that could convict Yuan Wei, Han Chong said, "Take them all away and hold a public trial tomorrow."
After saying this, he looked at Princess Yong.
"Someone has testified that the princess is involved in tonight's assassination. Please stay in the prefectural government for one night."
These words made Princess Yong completely panic.
"I am the princess and the mistress of Jizhou City. You have no right to put me under house arrest!"
Han Chong took out the emperor's token and said with a smile: "Don't even mention the princess, even if you are the prince, I am qualified."
He looked at Kong Zhizhou and said, "Lord Kong, please surround Prince Yong's mansion and only allow people in but not out, especially the Crown Prince Zhao Sirui."
"I obey your command!"
When Kong Zhizhou sent officials to surround Prince Yong's mansion, Ye Chutang, Qi Yanzhou and Han Chong returned to the inn to rest.
After tossing and turning for nearly an hour, Ye Chutang was extremely sleepy and fell asleep as soon as he hit the bed.
The next day.
While having breakfast, the news that Prince Yong’s mansion was surrounded by soldiers spread throughout Jizhou City.
The people did not hide their happiness and cheered.
"Master Qi is really amazing. He has just arrived in Jizhou for one day and he has already dealt with King Yong."
"Who made the prince so blind that he flirted with Madam Qi? He deserves it!"
"Flirting is nothing, the princess also bribed the people in the martial arts world to assassinate Master Qi and his wife!"
"There isn't a single good person in this family. I hope Master Qi can be impartial and punish them severely according to the law!"
Many people gathered outside the inn.
Qi Yanzhou knew that the people deliberately said these words to him.
After he finished his breakfast, he got up and walked to the door of the inn.
"Everyone, rest assured. Prince Yong's Mansion will never have the opportunity to do evil again. If the emperor breaks the law, he will be punished the same as the common people."
Hearing this, the people felt reassured and immediately felt relieved.
They all thanked Qi Yanzhou for getting rid of the bully for Jizhou City.
Those who had been harmed by Prince Yong's Mansion knelt down in gratitude and kowtowed to Qi Yanzhou.
"If it weren't for Master Qi, I would never have the chance to get my shop back in my life. Thank you!"
"I have no regrets in my life as I can see the beast that harmed my daughter get his comeuppance!"
"My poor child, rest in peace!"
Qi Yanzhou felt very uncomfortable when he saw the people trying hard to suppress their grief.
"Everyone, hurry up and get up. The prefectural government is about to open the court. Let's go and take a look."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Chutang added a sentence.
"Remember to bring some rotten vegetable leaves, pebbles and rotten eggs."
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