Chen Xiao ordered Ye Yu to keep a close watch on the servants and not allow any of them to leave. Then he looked at the prefect and guessed what was going on.
Chen Xiao, exuding an aura of authority, took Feng Li's hand, walked past the prefect, and sat down with Feng Li in the main seat. He stared at the prefect's kneeling figure and smiled slightly.
"He has no ability, so he can only hide it. He has managed to drag it out until I deal with it personally. That is a skill in itself. What crime has the governor committed?"
Upon hearing this, the prefect panicked even more and began to explain his mental journey since taking office in a clear and detailed manner, speaking fluently and eloquently, as if he were reciting a thesis.
He had been in office for over twenty years, serving under three emperors, and indeed knew many things, but he had never been able to bypass that mysterious force to inform His Majesty of these matters.
During the reign of Emperor Wende, he had just taken office and it happened to be during a time of war. The previous dynasty was in turmoil, the border was in chaos, and the people were living in fear. He was unable to send messages out and could not leave Guangling.
During the reign of the retired emperor, he had been in office for five years when he began to be suppressed by the mysterious organization behind the Kite Gang. They threatened him with the lives of his wife and children. He wanted to protect the lives of his family, so he gave up on exposing the matter to the emperor, which led to the Kite Gang growing stronger and more and more people in the orphanage being secretly bullied.
As a result, he has lived in fear and regret for more than 20 years, unable to find peace of mind.
Since he learned of this, there was nothing he could do but secretly inquire about the situation to see if he could change the fate of some people.
He took advantage of the war to release some people, and I heard that they were doing quite well after they left.
Later, he used the same trick again, letting some people go when the retired emperor was purging the court. However, this time Qi Yuan noticed and warned his whole family. Only then did he realize that Qi Yuan was also related to Yuan Xing.
Since learning about this, he has started paying attention to Qi Yuan's life, just to find a breakthrough.
So a few years ago, he finally found the breakthrough he had been waiting for: Feng Li. Feng Li looked very similar to one of the women he had released the first time, but their ages didn't match. He had some guesses about it.
So he began to keep a close eye on Feng Li, but Feng Li rarely went out. On the other hand, Qi Ruyan would go out at fixed times, and each time she went out, she would carry a bouquet of lilies. He ordered his secret guards to investigate, and that's how he discovered Qi Ruyan's secret.
He sent a message to Qi Ruyan via a carefully trained carrier pigeon, which simply read, "I will assist you in whatever you wish to do."
However, just as the emperor abdicated to the crown prince, he was ushered in the third emperor. Qi Ruyan's two sons were to enter the palace as concubines, so Qi Ruyan did not take any action.
Until yesterday, Qi Ruyan finally took action. He knew that the emperor would come to this place at any time. He organized all the information about this matter and waited for the emperor's arrival with the determination to die.
After hearing his words, Chen Xiao was puzzled. Qi Ruyan hadn't told her about this.
She looked at Feng Li, who shook his head, indicating that he knew nothing about it either.
Chen Xiao was silent for a moment, then asked a question that even the prefect wouldn't have expected: "Do your wife and children know about this?"
The prefect, thinking the emperor was going to punish his wife and children, quickly raised his head, his eyes filled with tears, and said, "Your Majesty! My wife and children know nothing about this! It's all my fault! Your Majesty, please punish only me!"
Chen Xiao looked at him, who was over fifty years old, kneeling on the ground, excitedly starting to refer to himself in a confused manner, and felt a little emotional.
"For the sake of your wife and children, you have caused many innocent men and women to suffer and even lose their lives. Do your wife and children wish this?"
But this is also a great dilemma throughout history: which should people choose, the life of the majority or the life of their own loved ones?
"Madam Prefect, what do you think?"
When the prefect heard Chen Xiao's question, he hurriedly turned around and saw his wife and two children standing behind him. The group of people were filled with complicated emotions and silently shed tears.
If Chen Xiao were faced with this problem, she would choose the lives of the majority, because she is the emperor and must consider the greater good. If the people suffer because of her selfishness, she would not be at peace with herself. But if she were in modern times, not as an emperor, but just an ordinary college student, she wouldn't know what she would choose.
So she could actually understand the governor's thoughts, because judging from the age of the young boy and girl, when he was threatened, his two children were probably still in his wife's womb.
She corroborated her suspicions to the governor, and sure enough, when the governor was threatened, his wife was pregnant and about to give birth, and could not withstand any more stress.
But when the prefect's wife heard about this, she was not afraid of losing her life and insisted that the prefect send the message, because as the wife of an official, she did not want those innocent people to suffer.
But the governor also had his reasons. He and his wife were childhood sweethearts who grew up together and had only been married for a few years. He did not want to lose his wife, so he lied to her, saying that the matter had been settled and that she could focus on her pregnancy. He kept this a secret for nearly twenty years.
Only now have the governor's wife and their two children learned the truth.
The prefect's wife then knelt down with her children. Upon seeing this, the prefect repeatedly kowtowed to Chen Xiao, pleading for his wife and children, "Your Majesty! This matter has nothing to do with my wife and children! Your Majesty! Please release them!"
Chen Xiao made his own judgment and asked Feng Li in a low voice, "What would you choose if it were you?"
Feng Li looked into Chen Xiao's eyes and answered without hesitation, "Although I have no relatives alive, I have parents who are better than my own, and people who treat me very well. So if I can't have both, I will sacrifice myself to protect them."
Chen Xiao remained noncommittal, turning to look at the four kneeling men below, and said calmly, "Put this matter aside for now, we'll discuss it later. The important matter now is to destroy the Yuanxing gang. Prefect, you will lead your men to accompany me to surround the Qi residence. The official reason given is that they have insulted the royal family. Do not alert them, otherwise..."
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