Chapter 333: Was I wrongly accused?
What’s even more infuriating is that even with all the efforts of the Ministry of Justice, no one was able to find Wang Hu.
There must be someone behind this!
So the person was sent out of the capital not long after the incident.
"Heh..." Emperor Chengde half-squinted his eyes and looked at Cui Ye, sneering: "Lord Cui is indeed very capable."
Such obvious irony hit Cui Ye hard in the face like a slap in the face.
"Your Majesty..." Prime Minister Liu was about to speak again, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he received the cold gaze of Emperor Chengde.
"Prime Minister Liu still wants to make excuses for him?"
Prime Minister Liu opened his mouth and finally said, "I dare not."
The emperor's words also made him realize that it might not be easy to save Cui Ye.
Liu Xiang frowned and returned to his seat.
Since Cui Ye can no longer be retained, he has to think of a suitable candidate to take this position.
Since the emperor wants to remove Cui Ye from his post, it is obvious that he does not want to use his people, otherwise he would not be so disrespectful to himself.
So who does the emperor want to use?
Also, who exactly does Zheng Kuan work for? Who gave him the instructions to set such a big trap for Cui Ye?
But as soon as this idea came to mind, Liu Xiang quickly rejected it.
Zheng Kuan treats human life as nothing. If this is proven to be true, even if the emperor remembers the old uncle's contributions, he will not easily forgive Zheng Kuan. Could it be that he really acted on impulse in anger?
The second prince naturally felt the emperor's attitude and couldn't help feeling a little anxious.
The emperor already suspected that Chu Jinyan was assassinated and it was done by them, so he has been very cautious these days. If something happens to Cui Ye again, it will be very disadvantageous to him.
Prime Minister Liu gave the Second Prince a soothing look.
Not long after, Zheng Kuan arrived.
As a son-in-law of the emperor, he did not hold any official position, so he was not qualified to attend court in the past. Today was his first time to step into the Hall of Supreme Harmony, but the reason for coming in was not what he wanted.
He knelt in the hall and bowed to Emperor Chengde: "Your Majesty, long live His Majesty."
Although Zheng Kuan did not hold an official position, he inherited the title of Earl of Dingyuan, so he could also call himself a humble official.
Emperor Chengde looked at him expressionlessly.
Prime Minister Liu snorted and squinted at Zheng Kuan, saying, "Prince Consort Zheng is so bold that he bribed the jailer to poison everyone in Ningxiang Tower in order to avenge his son. He is so cruel and merciless that he disregarded dozens of lives."
Zheng Kuan was so frightened that his body trembled slightly. He kowtowed heavily to Emperor Chengde and prostrated himself on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty, I am innocent."
Emperor Chengde looked at Zheng Kuan with a half-smile, and a sharp look flashed in his deep pupils: "Unfair? Tell me how I wronged you."
Facing the emperor, Zheng Kuan was not as calm as usual. The emperor's pressure almost suffocated him. However, thinking of his own life, he hurriedly said, "I did not bribe the jailer to poison the people in Ningxiang Tower. Although I hate the death of Wenwu in Ningxiang Tower, I dare not go to the Ministry of Justice to kill people even if I have ten guts. What's more, the emperor has ordered the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice to jointly investigate and catch the murderer. Why should I take this risk?"
"It is obvious that someone wants to frame me. Please, Your Majesty, help me. I am innocent."
After Zheng Kuan finished speaking, he kowtowed heavily again.
"Quibbling." Liu Xiang shouted coldly.
Zheng Kuan respected Prime Minister Liu. After all, he was the head of all officials, second only to the emperor. But faced with Prime Minister Liu's aggressiveness, Zheng Kuan suddenly became unwilling to respect him.
"Prime Minister Liu said that I was quibbling, but is there any evidence to prove that I bribed the jailer?"
"Where is the person I bribed?"
"Your Majesty, to prove my innocence, I am willing to confront him face to face." Zheng Kuan knelt in the center of the hall, looking mighty and unyielding.
Seeing him like this, some people began to waver.
"Prince Consort Zheng doesn't look like he's lying. Could he really be wronged?"
"It's possible. After all, with such an obvious flaw, if anything happens to someone in Ningxiang Tower, everyone will think of him first."
"It's also possible that he did it on purpose, exposing himself to make everyone think it was the most impossible thing."
"But he said he wanted to confront the jailer."
"Don't forget that man disappeared. The Ministry of Justice searched for him all night but couldn't find him. There is no evidence, so what Zheng Kuan said is true."
There were many different opinions for a while. Emperor Chengde narrowed his eyes and said after a while: "Enough."
A loud roar was heard, and the noise in the hall suddenly quieted down, and all the officials were silent.
"Cui Ye, as the Minister of Justice, has seriously neglected his duties and is unfit to be an official. You should not stay in the Ministry of Justice any longer. You should be demoted to a commoner and go back to farming." The emperor looked at Cui Ye indifferently and said.
"Your Majesty..." Cui Ye burst into tears immediately. He cried miserably when he thought about how he had worked hard for half his life and finally climbed to the position of Minister of Justice, but was beaten back to his original position.
If you have never experienced the power, it won't be so painful.
But after falling from a high position, Cui Ye felt as if his heart was being cut out and he wished he were dead.
"Your Majesty, please be merciful. I beg Your Majesty to spare me for all my years of hard work and loyalty. I will definitely make amends."
Cui Ye knocked his head so hard that it made loud bangs.
The emperor remained unmoved.
If Cui Ye was not a member of Liu's party, the emperor might not have dismissed him from his post.
But the Liu Party is powerful, and the Second Brother is close to the Liu family. How can the Eighth Brother defeat them without cutting off the power of the Liu Party?
"You should be thankful that you have been loyal for so many years, otherwise I would just let you return home."
How many officials in the court have nothing left in their hands?
Even he himself ascended to the throne by stepping on a pile of dead bones.
But the emperor doesn't want to use you, and he won't tolerate even a small mistake.
What's more, he even found someone to take advantage of the situation and poison three people in the prison of the Ministry of Justice. If we don't punish you, who else should we punish?
Liu Xiang moved his lips, but finally remained silent.
He guessed correctly, the emperor didn't want to keep Cui Ye anymore.
Thinking of this, a cold look flashed in his eyes. Was he taking this opportunity to get rid of Cui Ye in order to pave the way for the Eighth Prince?
Cui Ye understood what Emperor Chengde meant. He was just asked to go home and farm. If he made trouble again and angered the emperor, he would lose his life.
His face was pale and his lips trembled as he thanked the emperor for his grace.
As for Zheng Kuan, there is no evidence that he poisoned the person, but there is also no evidence that he did not poison the person.
Emperor Chengde, for the sake of his old uncle, only stripped him of his title of Earl of Dingyuan and sent him to the Dali Temple's prison to reflect on his past.
As for how long I will think about it, that depends on when the emperor releases me.
Lu family.
Lu Xiang had just learned about what happened in the Ministry of Justice prison, and didn't know that it was Chu Jinyan who facilitated this. He wrote a letter to Chu Jinyan and asked Ah Man to deliver it to the Eighth Prince's mansion.
Chu Jinyan looked at the contents of the letter happily, with a smile on his face.
"My Xiangxiang is really smart. She thinks the same as me."
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