——
"This Chi Yan is indeed arrogant! Lord Cao only kidnapped his wife, and he led his men to confiscate his property. It's clearly a case of settling a personal score!"
Once the news spread, some people couldn't sit still.
Several powerful ministers gathered together, vehemently denouncing the incident, using this as a cover for their inner fears:
"The imperial court is not his personal fiefdom; how can His Majesty listen to only one side of the story?"
"That's right! We will definitely plead for Lord Cao before His Majesty later!"
Most of these people were of the same ilk. The fact that Lord Cao suffered was a subtle warning to them. Chi Yan was a vengeful man. If he really succeeded in this matter, who would dare to oppose him in the future?
We must not embolden him!
"Look, he's here!"
Chi Yan walked past without changing his expression, and the others exchanged glances.
Having not slept all night, he had faint dark circles under his eyes, but he didn't look particularly tired. Wherever he went, people gave him subtle glances, but he pretended not to notice.
If someone stares at him intently, he might even look back at them with a forced smile, making the other person awkwardly turn their face away.
At the start of the morning court session, Emperor Chongde appeared expressionless, saying, "I heard that a terrible incident occurred yesterday where an official was kidnapped. Chi Yan, you are in charge of this matter, so tell me about it."
No one dared to utter a sound. Chi Yan respectfully stepped forward and clearly recounted the cause and course of events:
"I received a report around 1 p.m. yesterday... that Minister Chi was found unconscious in a farmhouse."
"It has now been verified that this was done by Cao Zhengren, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies. Furthermore, I found a ghost mask and some letters in Minister Cao's residence. These are the physical evidences found in Minister Cao's residence. Please take a look, Your Majesty."
Chi Yan presented the physical evidence, and Emperor Chongde took it and glanced at it, his eyes growing increasingly unfathomable.
An official below hesitated before speaking up: "Your Majesty, I believe there are still doubts about this matter. Minister Cao and Minister Chi have no past grievances or recent feuds, so why would you take such a great risk to kidnap him?"
Chi Jingyu's expression was calm, but his eyes flickered uncertainly.
He thought about this problem after he got back, and finally came to the following conclusion:
The other party was probably targeting Shen Tangning, and he just happened to get caught up in it.
But he didn't speak up rashly. Chi Jingyu wasn't exactly easy to deal with either. Since Lord Cao was treating him so disrespectfully, there was no reason for him to plead for him!
"Lord Zhang, you may not know this, but Lord Cao and Minister Gong have some friendship. He probably feels indignant on behalf of his friend and thus hates Minister Chi, who replaced him."
Chi Yan spoke calmly, and Chi Jingyu glanced at him. He deliberately downplayed Shen Tangning's presence in this matter in order not to damage her reputation.
But some people just don't want things to go their way. Lord Zhang narrowed his eyes: "But I heard that there are also..."
Chi Yan's eyes turned cold, and Chi Jingyu stepped forward to interrupt him:
"Your Majesty, I truly never imagined that Lord Cao would be this kind of person! I beg Your Majesty to do me justice!"
Interrupted, Lord Zhang looked displeased. The two of them were clearly trying to confuse the issue!
Chi Yan chuckled softly, “Your Majesty, Lord Zhang and Lord Cao have always had a good relationship, so it is understandable that they would speak up for each other.”
Just as Lord Zhang was feeling somewhat bewildered, he saw the emperor above suddenly turn cold, his tone somber:
"Zhang Chengfeng, since you're so indignant on Cao Zhengren's behalf, why don't you go to the imperial prison and keep him company?"
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