"In order not to upset his sister, Princess Jing, he colluded with bandits to set fire to the prison overnight and break in, releasing many criminals."
"They also kidnapped ten students from the city? Was it to threaten the Emperor into sparing Prince Jing's life? Otherwise, he would kill the students and join forces with the mountain bandits to rebel?"
"And the precious items that the Eagle King gave to our country, he can use them to buy weapons and food to start a rebellion?!"
Ning Hongxi made the final decision: "That's exactly right!"
The Zichen Palace fell silent once more!
Then the ministers expressed their surprise and shock in a clamor.
"I never imagined that the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, a man of unwavering integrity, would have a son who would rebel!"
"Indeed, if the Marquis of Zhongyong knew this in the afterlife, he might want to chop off this wicked man's head!"
Then, the ministers, led by Yan Shizheng, knelt down and begged the emperor to immediately send troops to suppress Ye Cunsi.
Some people also said, "Princess Jing has also been working on Prince Jing's behalf. I fear that the siblings are colluding with each other. I request Your Majesty to arrest and imprison Princess Jing as well!"
Some people said, "Since Ye Cunsi dared to rebel, the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion cannot be allowed to remain; their property should be confiscated!"
In short, their goal is to besiege Ye Cunsi, capture Ye Qingxue, and destroy the entire Zhongyong Marquis's mansion!
The emperor sat on the dragon throne, looking around at the court officials below. His chest heaved, clearly indicating his anger, but he did not speak immediately.
The pleas from the court grew louder, and the emotions of the officials became even more intense.
...
Before Ye Qingxue even arrived at the Zichen Palace, the eunuch Yun Zhuo had planted there rushed over to find her and hurriedly told her everything that had happened at the Zichen Palace.
Ye Qingxue paused, a cold glint flashing in her eyes. "Thank you for informing me, Eunuch!"
The young eunuch quickly withdrew.
Ye Qingxue hurried towards the Zichen Palace, but was stopped at the entrance. A guard said, "His Majesty is discussing important matters with the officials. Princess Consort Jing is not allowed to enter!"
Ye Qingxue said, "Please ask the guard to go in and inform them. This concerns the life and death of my Marquis's mansion. Please give me a chance to speak!"
The guard thought for a moment, then went in to report.
Upon hearing that Ye Qingxue was requesting an audience, the officials in the hall all said, "This concerns the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence, and the Princess Consort of Jing is bound to cause trouble. Inviting her into the hall at this time will only delay the opportunity to capture Ye Cunsi!"
"Yes, Your Majesty. Putting aside the fact that women are not allowed to interfere in politics, even if they were, the Princess Consort of Jing entering at this time would only be to plead for Ye Cunsi!"
"Your Majesty, I implore you to issue an order immediately to arrest Princess Jing, and to prevent her from colluding with Ye Cunsi from within!"
"Send troops again to encircle and suppress Ye Cunsi, the mountain bandits, and the escaped criminals! To prevent more people from suffering! To prevent them from disrupting our Great Zhou and our capital!"
The calls for help came like waves, sweeping across the land.
The entire Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion must be completely destroyed.
The emperor stood up, glanced again at the kneeling ministers below, stopped in his tracks, and was about to speak.
However, at that moment, Ye Qingxue burst in from outside.
She was sweating and slightly out of breath.
Upon seeing this, the Emperor immediately roared, "Princess Jing, do you know that trespassing into the Zichen Palace is an even more serious crime!"
Ye Qingxue lifted her skirt and knelt down, loudly proclaiming, "Father, if you wish to punish your daughter-in-law, I have no objection! I came in only to ask three questions!"
The courtiers glared at her angrily, as if trying to pry her out with their sharp gazes.
Knowing that time was tight and the opportunity was rare, Ye Qingxue spoke directly without waiting for anyone's response.
"The first question concerns the timing. My brother, Ye Cunsi, only arrived outside the capital yesterday. How could he possibly have simultaneously raided the imperial prison, kidnapped students, and colluded with bandits? The imperial prison is heavily guarded; how could a grain transport team possibly break through it? Do you think he's some kind of god?!"
The ministers: "..."
Yan Shizheng said, "Perhaps he has already arrived outside the capital, but he just doesn't reveal when he arrived. He first colluded with the mountain bandits, and then arranged for his men to act separately. It's not impossible for him to do all three things at the same time."
Ye Qingxue said, "Okay. The second question concerns the evidence. Did any of you personally witness his prison break?"
"If a student was indeed kidnapped, why not first verify the kidnapper's identity instead of directly convicting him? Did you see it with your own eyes, Lord Yan? Or did you see it with your own eyes, Prime Minister Ning?"
Ning Hongxi frowned: "Although we didn't see it with our own eyes, we arrested several people around Ye Cunsi and interrogated them!"
Ye Qingxue said, "This brings us to the third question I want to ask!"
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