In the streets and alleys, many people were still discussing how the Jinyiwei had mobilized a large number of troops to go to the residences of several officials to arrest people yesterday, and more people were discussing the examination cheating case that would be tried in the Dali Temple today.
Look, before the case even started, some common people and scholars and students wearing straight robes and silk scarves had already spontaneously gathered at the gate of the Dali Temple, forming a huge crowd.
This case is of great importance and many people are paying attention to it, so the person presiding over the case today is the Dali Temple Minister Zhou Zhiqiu.
The red lacquered door of the Dali Temple was wide open. Fifteen scholars had the honor of coming outside the courtroom to listen to the trial up close. These people came from all over the country, and their youth, appearance, and temperament were all very different. Five of them were candidates who had attended the preliminary trial in Jingzhao Prefecture seven days ago.
As for the common people, they were basically stopped outside the gate. There was a large courtyard between the court and the gate, so from outside the gate one could only see the people in the court but could not hear any voices.
Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen, who were traveling incognito, held hands and mingled with the people outside the gate.
Shen Qianchen took out two osmanthus pine nut candies from his purse, took one for himself, and fed one to Gu Jue.
As the time for the court session approached, the area became crowded with people.
When the time came, Dali Temple Minister Zhou Zhiqiu appeared in the court with an expressionless face, announced the opening of the court in a loud voice, and his every move exuded majesty.
The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice and the Left Censor-in-Chief sat on both sides to assist in the trial.
Zhou Zhiqiu was about to strike the gavel when he caught sight of Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen, who stood out from the crowd. His hand slipped and the gavel in his hand almost fell.
The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice and the Left Censor-in-Chief followed Zhou Zhiqiu's line of sight and saw the Emperor and Empress. They secretly exchanged glances and had the same idea: the new emperor was truly horrible because he didn't even inform the emperor in advance that he was coming to attend the trial!
Zhou Zhiqiu's eyes twitched, and he immediately perked up, slammed the gavel, and shouted, "Bring the prisoner!"
The bailiffs on both sides of the court shouted in low voices. At the same time, a group of people were brought into the court and pushed to their knees by the bailiffs.
Among these criminals, there were not only Wei Jingze's second son Wei Yuanzhi, Lao Yu who sold the questions, but also more than 20 men who were also brought to the court, looking disheveled and terrified.
Wei Yuanzhi, the main culprit in this case, knelt at the front of the crowd.
Seven days ago, Wei Yuanzhi was beaten with thirty sticks in the court of Jingzhao Prefecture. After that, he was transferred to the Tianlao of the Ministry of Justice. During this period, he neither saw a doctor nor had a good rest, and suffered a lot.
At this moment, Wei Yuanzhi looked much thinner than when he was in the court of Jingzhao Prefecture that day, with untidy beard, and no longer as elegant and graceful as before.
Most of the people around looked at Wei Yuanzhi, filled with anger and contempt.
At the request of the Dali Temple Chief Justice, the Temple Chief Justice took a document and began to state the case, explaining the whole story of the exam leak and cheating case, and also explaining the identities of the criminals.
Only then did the people listening to the trial realize that among the group of criminals, there were those who sold and bought the test papers, there was also a bookstore responsible for printing the test papers, and several middlemen who helped to find buyers. Most of these middlemen were officials with noble titles and well-known reputations.
The students outside the hall all looked at the dozen or so candidates who bought the questions, and their faces all changed.
They had not expected that so many candidates would buy the examination papers for the final exam, and they were outraged.
The imperial examination is held once every three years, and only two hundred candidates are selected each time. Once the admission quotas are occupied by those who cheat, the chances of ordinary candidates like them passing the examination and becoming tribute scholars will be even smaller.
These students felt a pang of fear just thinking about it, and their expressions were solemn.
This was a courtroom, no one dared to make a noise, so the candidates exchanged glances with their acquaintances, thinking that the new emperor was right, and that the examination must be retaken. Retaking the examination was the fairest, after all, no one knew if there were any fish that slipped through the net, and there was no guarantee that the sellers would not conceal something for various reasons.
After Si Zheng finished explaining the case, Zhou Zhiqiu struck the gavel again and asked in a cold voice, "Everyone in the hall, do you plead guilty?!"
Zhou Zhiqiu was responded to by silence. In the courtroom, none of the prisoners kneeling on the ground dared to make a sound. The surroundings were so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
The other prisoners were secretly glancing at Wei Yuanzhi standing aside.
"I am innocent!" Wei Yuanzhi raised his head, gritted his teeth and refused to plead guilty, with his hands clenched into fists in his sleeves.
A few days ago, his father Wei Jingze sent someone to the Ministry of Justice's Tianlao to meet him, and told him to change his statement and not to confess, and also told him that he could definitely be rescued.
Seeing that Wei Yuanzhi refused to plead guilty, the other prisoners followed suit and refused to plead guilty, crying out:
"The common people are wronged!"
"Your Excellency, I am innocent!"
“…”
Everyone knows that cheating is a serious crime. As long as those involved in selling questions admit their guilt, they will be dead. If they do not admit it, they may still have a chance to survive, or the son of Minister Wei may still have a way.
Those candidates who bought the questions were also hoping for luck. Once they admitted to buying the questions, they would certainly lose their fame and might even be exiled.
These people had never been to court before, and at this moment they were all trembling with fear, almost losing their souls.
Seeing that these people were still stubbornly refusing to admit anything, the students attending the trial became more and more angry. It seemed as if there were flames burning in their eyes. They really wanted to rush in and scold all these shameless people.
Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen watched leisurely as the young couple held hands, occasionally exchanging a tacit glance, waiting to see the show.
Sitting behind the desk, Zhou Zhiqiu looked down at the dying Wei Yuanzhi with an almost pity look, and he could roughly guess what was in his mind.
He slammed the gavel again, making everyone quiet, and then said righteously: "Wei Yuanzhi, this is your confession in Jingzhao Prefecture. You sold the examination questions. There are witnesses and evidence. You cannot deny it."
While Zhou Zhiqiu was speaking, Si Zheng took out the confession document signed by Wei Yuanzhi and unfolded it, not only to confront Wei Yuanzhi, but also to show it to the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice and the Left Censor-in-Chief who were present.
Zhou Zhiqiu continued, "I advise you to tell the truth. Tell me where did you get the exam papers from?"
Everyone knows that Wei Yuanzhi alone cannot get the examination questions. The person that the three courts are really trying is the person who leaked the examination questions, that is, the mastermind behind Wei Yuanzhi.
"Sir Zhou, I was tortured into confessing by the Jingzhao Yin that day!" Wei Yuanzhi held his neck high and said, still refusing to admit it. "Sir Zhou, please clear my name!"
Wei Yuanzhi also knew that Zhou Zhiqiu wanted him to turn over his father Wei Jingze, but Wei Yuanzhi also knew that if Wei Jingze fell, then their Wei family would be completely finished. As long as Wei Jingze was there, there would be a way to save him.
There was another commotion outside the hall.
The candidates who attended the trial were all angry at Wei Yuanzhi's shamelessness. Even though there were witnesses and evidence, he still dared to deny it in the Dali Temple court. Some candidates also worried that Wei Yuanzhi was so confident because he had something to rely on.
The trial process seemed to be at a stalemate for a while.
Just then, the head of the yamen runners walked in quickly and whispered a few words to Zhou Zhiqiu.
Zhou Zhiqiu nodded, his eyes sharp.
Everyone else was confused and just watched what was happening.
After a while, a middle-aged man in a green robe was brought into the court. The middle-aged man had a pair of shrewd triangular eyes and an ordinary appearance. At this moment, he looked nervous and embarrassed.
It is said that Wei Shun, the seventh-rank official in the prime minister's office and the chief steward, is Wei Jingze's confidant. Whenever he goes out, he represents Wei Jingze, and many officials have to show him respect when they see him.
Wei Yuanzhi was completely relieved, and his eyes regained their spirit. He felt that the reason why Wei Shun came to the Dali Temple court must be because his father had made arrangements.
Sure enough! With my father's ability, there is no problem that he can't handle!
As a result, Wei Shun didn't even dare to look at Wei Yuanzhi. He knelt on the ground with a plop and kowtowed to Zhou Zhiqiu: "Greetings, Lord Zhou!"
Zhou Zhiqiu said calmly: "Wei Shun, do you have anything to say about this case?"
Wei Shun then raised his head and pointed at Old Yu who was kneeling not far away. He said in a dry voice, "This Yu Si was introduced to my master and the second young master by me. He is responsible for finding a buyer in the capital."
"..." Wei Yuanzhi couldn't believe his ears. He wanted to say, Wei Shun, are you crazy? ! Wei Shun turned his head stiffly and looked at Wei Yuanzhi. He smiled bitterly and lowered his voice and said, "Second Young Master, our house was raided by the Jinyiwei yesterday!"
Wei Yuanzhi was not at the scene, but Wei Shun saw it with his own eyes yesterday. He saw the Jinyiwei searching out those shameful account books and letters from the wall, and saw the Jinyiwei carrying out boxes of gold and silver from the cellar.
Putting aside the fraud case, the evidence found by the Jinyiwei was enough to sentence Wei Jingze to behead.
At this point, Wei Shun can only protect himself. Even if not for himself, he has to think about his family. He can only follow Pei Linye's instructions and testify against Wei Jingze and his son in court.
This case must be explained to all students in the world. Only in this way can the prestige of the "Imperial Examination" be restored and everyone in the world will know that the Imperial Examination is absolutely fair and just.
“……”Wei Yuanzhi stood there as if struck by lightning, wishing this was a nightmare.
However, the hip injury that has not yet healed clearly tells him that this is the reality.
Their Wei family has been ransacked and is completely finished!
The reason why my father did not appear in court today was not because he was going to make arrangements, but because he was in trouble and is probably behind bars.
It’s over, it’s all over!
Wei Yuanzhi's face turned pale, his body began to tremble like a sieve, and he was almost on the verge of collapse. He shouted in a trembling voice: "Master Zhou, I plead guilty!"
"I didn't get the examination papers. My father ordered me to do everything. He is the mastermind!"
Wei Yuanzhi didn't want to die. After realizing that Wei Jingze was doomed to die, he quickly weighed the pros and cons and just wanted to save himself.
Zhou Zhiqiu: “…”
In fact, even if Wei Shun did not come to the court today, Zhou Zhiqiu could still continue the trial. After all, there were witnesses to what Wei Yuanzhi and Lao Yu said in Li's Restaurant and the court of Jingzhao Prefecture that day. It's just that such a trial would inevitably lead to a war of words, and the process would be too slow.
Like now, as soon as Wei Shun came out, Wei Yuanzhi immediately pleaded guilty in court. The whole trial process was neat and tidy, the case was clear at a glance, and even the people who were listening to the trial outside felt extremely happy.
“Pah, pah, pah!”
There was warm applause outside the court.
The students who were listening to the trial outside could no longer suppress their excitement. They clapped their hands ecstatically or shouted:
"The wicked will be brought to justice, and justice will prevail in the world!"
"Master Zhou is wise!"
"Long live the emperor!"
“…”
Not only were these students shouting, but the people outside the Dali Temple who were watching the excitement also followed suit and shouted: "Long live the emperor!"
The shouts were uniform and resounded like thunder within a mile radius, revealing the people's most sincere respect for the monarch of Great Qi.
Amid the shouts that came one after another, Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen quietly retreated from the crowd.
There were still many passers-by on the street walking towards the Dali Temple, shouting that they wanted to go and watch the excitement. Only the young couple was heading in a different direction from the others on the street, and walked slowly towards the end of the street.
The two held hands and smiled at each other from time to time.
Jingfeng drove their carriage and followed far behind, not daring to disturb his masters' love affair, so he kept a distance of at least a hundred feet.
Shen Qianchen shook their clasped hands and asked him softly, "Where are we going?"
They were not heading back to the palace, so Shen Qianchen guessed that Gu Jue had other plans.
Gu Jue said: "It's rare for us to leave the palace, let's go for a walk."
Of course Shen Qianchen had no objection, and responded softly, "Okay."
Gu Jue lowered his eyes, lingered on her delicate little face, and said with a smile: "Let's go to Ya Ming Tea House. Didn't you say last time that the sesame cakes there are delicious and your mother and grandmother like them?"
Shen Qianchen blinked, and a gentle smile appeared in his black and white eyes.
He was always like this, no matter what she said, he would remember it in his heart.
The day before yesterday afternoon, Amber privately said to her in amazement: "Miss, I have been with you longer, but I don't understand you as well as you do!"
Amber also said at the time that she had to work harder, to which Shen Qianchen only smiled and gave her three words: "It's useless."
No matter how hard Amber tried, it was useless because she would never understand her better than Gu Jue.
She is different from him!
Seeing the little girl laughing happily, Gu Jue raised his eyebrows. Just when he was about to ask her what she was laughing at, he saw Shen Qianchen pointing at an old man selling flowers in front of him and said with a smile: "The wild chrysanthemums over there are so beautiful, can I buy some for you?"
Gu Jue: “…”
Gu Jue looked at Shen Qianchen deeply and raised his sword-like eyebrows.
Shen Qianchen then realized that he had said something wrong, and changed his words: "Can you buy it for me?"
Her eyes blinked, and her voice was as soft and lovely as it could be!
(End of this chapter)