When Liu Xuewen finally saw his relative, he was so frightened that he wet his pants, and then he burst into tears, crying, "Help me! Big cousin! I'm innocent!"
Liu Xun had never seen such a spineless relative before. He immediately ordered his men to give him another beating before he felt better. He said, "Let me tell you, Liu Xuewen, I know everything about you. If you want me to save your life today, you'd better tell me everything you know. If you hide anything, once I find out, your whole family won't be spared."
Liu Xuewen was stunned for a moment, then finally said dejectedly, "I've told you everything, ask me whatever you want."
After a confession, it turned out that the counterfeit silver case was indeed related to Murong Qingyun. Three years had passed, meaning that none of the silver flowing out of Lin'an during those three years was genuine. With so many cities across the country, how could no one have reported to the Emperor in three years that counterfeit silver existed within their borders? The reasons behind this were chilling.
If the Emperor hadn't been troubled these past few days and hadn't secretly left Chang'an for a trip to Lin'an where he encountered counterfeit silver, this matter might have remained a secret for who knows how long.
Liu Xun was so angry he almost fainted. He never imagined this bastard would be so audacious. Not only did he commit crimes, but he also dragged him into it. He deserved to die.
Liu Xuewen then confessed, “I initially disagreed, but Murong Qingyun told me it was the Emperor’s order! I was wondering how the Emperor could exchange his own money for counterfeit money? But I didn’t dare to ask. Think about it, besides the Emperor, Murong Qingyun is the highest-ranking official in the whole country! I could only listen to him. If he told me to go east, I wouldn’t dare to go west.”
Liu Xun asked with a dark face, "Since you're so afraid of him, why don't you use his name instead of my name to swindle people?"
“Cousin, we’re distant relatives. If he hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known I had such a high-ranking official as a relative. After he told me, I did some research, and it’s true! I figured that by using your name, no one would dare to give me a hard time, so I…”
"Alright, let's not talk about that for now! I'm asking you, you say he instructed you to do this, do you have any evidence? Slandering the current prime minister is no small crime." Liu Xun wanted to obtain strong evidence so that he could help the emperor bring down this treacherous minister in one fell swoop.
“Yes! I have evidence! He received me at the Flower Pavilion in Lin’an. Everyone present at the time can testify! By the way, Hua Yuhe was also there, and there was a girl named Butterfly who served Lord Murong.” Liu Xuewen dared not be stubborn anymore and placed all his hopes for survival on his distant cousin, saying whatever he knew.
"What did he say?" Liu Xun asked.
"He said the Emperor had sent him to do something secretly, and that I shouldn't interfere with the changes in the money supply in Lin'an," Liu Xuewen recalled. "Not long after he left, some people came to complain that they had received counterfeit silver. I looked at it, and although it looked very similar, it was a bit too light, not real. But remembering Lord Murong's advice, I gave the man twenty lashes, scolded him for talking nonsense, and drove him away. Later, a few more people came, and I chased them all away. After that, no one came anymore, and everyone thought they were seeing things."
"Is the silver you used real or fake?" Liu Xun asked.
"Mine is real, of course! But like them, I only use counterfeit money when I need to spend it."
"Do you know that Huludao is their counterfeit silver production site?" Liu Xun asked.
"I know! But the island is guarded by martial arts figures, so I can't go. Besides, Lord Murong Qingyun is keeping me in check, so I can only pretend I don't know." Liu Xuewen regretted not secretly asking his cousin about this matter after finding out his identity, which led to him being coaxed into doing so.
"I'm asking you! Did he give you any benefits?" Liu Xun asked.
Liu Xuewen looked around first, then beckoned Liu Xun to come closer and speak.
Liu Xun dared not whisper in front of everyone, "If you don't answer the question properly, you'll never speak again!"
“I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you!” Liu Xuewen continued to confess. “I accepted it, 100,000 taels every year. I didn’t take any banknotes; I buried all the money under the ancestral home in my hometown. In these three years, I’ve saved 150,000 taels, all real silver!”
"Why only 150,000?" Liu Xun asked, puzzled.
"I'll send the remaining 150,000 to your hometown and bury it under your ancestral home." Liu Xuewen said, glancing furtively at Liu Xun, barely daring to breathe.
"You!" Liu Xun never expected that, despite his position in the court, trouble would come from his hometown! He immediately slapped him in anger and cursed, "Nonsense! Utter nonsense!"
Liu Xuewen, feeling wronged after being slapped, said, "I... I was thinking that if Murong Qingyun were to betray me later, I would ask my older cousin for help, so..."
Liu Xun was about to be driven mad by this idiot! Murong Qingyun only mentioned his name, and this fool believed it. He actually followed the script designed by others word for word. Lin'an just changed its prefect today, and it was personally arranged by the Emperor. It seems that the other party already knew about it and probably had a backup plan.
"Is that enough?" Liu Xun asked.
"By the way, we met at Hua Man Lou. There was also a famous martial arts master with him at the time, named Wu Tongling. As far as I know, Wu Tongling is a retainer of Murong Qingyun and often does things for him that others cannot do."
"Very well! Remember what you said. I will immediately ask the Emperor to see if he can spare your life."
The situation was urgent, and Liu Xun dared not delay. He hurriedly left the Eastern Depot and rushed towards the Taihe Hall.
After the situation was reported in detail, the emperor immediately wanted to personally interrogate Liu Xuewen and bring Murong Qingyun down from his post!
Liu Xun thought for a moment and then advised, "Your Majesty, this humble servant has a plan. It can both prevent the conflict from escalating to avoid any unforeseen circumstances and also capture that treacherous old minister, Murong Qingyun."
"Oh, tell me quickly."
"This is what I think: now that Liu Xuewen has been exposed, Murong Qingyun must be eager to kill him to silence him."
The Emperor seemed to understand. "You mean, we should lure them into a trap?"
“Exactly! We just need to lower our guard. If Murong Qingyun thinks we're being careless, he'll definitely send out his best assassins to silence everyone involved. We just need to ambush the assassins after they enter the Eastern Depot. We'll have two pieces of evidence on hand, so he won't deny it.”
"Alright, go and do it quickly. If you handle this matter well, the Eastern Depot will be in your hands from now on." The Emperor waved his hand, dangling a big promise in Liu Xun's mind.
Sure enough, that very night, they captured a highly skilled assassin in a tight net! The Eastern Depot lost over a hundred of its secret guards before finally apprehending him.
The Emperor immediately dispatched men to surround the Prime Minister's residence, imprisoning all the family members and placing them under heavy guard. He also sent an urgent message, summoning Murong Xingchen to the capital overnight to personally investigate the matter, ensuring nothing went wrong.
Upon receiving the imperial decree, Murong Xingchen set off before dawn, without even having time to inform her family.
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