Zhang Cheng came out of the palace again and brought Chen Qingshan and Xue Mo's wife Li to the main hall.
The emperor asked Chen Qingshan why he arrested Li, and Chen Qingshan reported the truth:
Mrs. Li was transferred to Jingzhao Yin Mansion for stealing her master's property.
When he asked the owner of Li's theft, it turned out to be Quan Quan's brother-in-law. Hearing this, Quan Quan's heart skipped a beat and he couldn't help but panic:
This time it’s over and I can’t explain it at all.
Mrs. Li knelt in the palace and curled up, not daring to raise her head when the emperor asked. She said that she had never stolen anything but was framed by her master, and she was imprisoned for nothing.
After hearing the news of Xue Mo's death, Mrs. Li burst into tears holding the blood letter left by Xue Mo. She no longer cared about being afraid, and cried with her head on the ground begging the emperor to make the decision. After a while, her forehead was bruised with blood.
Qin Zongliang, the shopkeeper who died suddenly, also gave an explanation. It was not him who did it, but the shopkeeper who misappropriated the shop's silver and made false accounts in the shop's account books. It happened that the Ministry of Accounts inspected the shop and found out this matter. The shopkeeper saw this. When the matter was exposed, he did not want to experience the pain of prison, so he committed suicide by taking poison.
The emperor looked at Han Shangshu at the Ministry of Revenue, and remembered that the incident was indeed contained in the excerpt he had submitted, and stared at Qin Zongliang with dark eyes:
The cunning Zhuzi actually used the help of the Ministry of Accounts to investigate unfaithful servants...
Qin Zongliang also talked about Xue Mo, saying that he liked a servant from his house and wanted to marry him. Qin Zongliang learned that he was a servant from his brother-in-law's house, so he did not agree.
Unexpectedly, Xue Mo secretly married Mr. Li behind his back. He wanted to make a deal and then come to him through the Xue family to plead for mercy. He never thought that the Xue family would evade taxes and be exiled. Xue Mo had no one to plead with, so he could only secretly marry Mr. Li. Coming and going.
Xue Ren discovered this a few days ago. Xue Mo was afraid that the Li family would be implicated, so he packed his bags and escaped from the house overnight, preparing to elope with the Li family. Unexpectedly, as if the people from the Ministry of Punishment had gotten the news, they waited outside the mansion and arrested Xue Mo. After being tortured and unable to extract a confession, they framed Li and imprisoned him, using him to force Xue Mo to give perjury to frame the government.
However, although Xue Mo was trapped by love, he couldn't bear to really harm the Duke's mansion, so he risked his life and left a blood letter, hoping to protect the Li family and the Duke's mansion with his own life.
Quan Quan knelt on his head and felt dizzy, shouting that he was wronged, pointing at Qin Zongliang and saying that he was framed by his design.
The emperor frowned as he listened to Quan Quan's hysterical accusations. Although he felt that things were too smooth, he had no choice but to punish Zheng Cheng because of all the evidence. In the main hall, he had Zheng Cheng strip off Quan Quan's official uniform and imprisoned him in Dali Temple.
Chu Chengyao ignored the numb legs on his knees, the people who were dragged out of the hall, and the dagger-like eyes above his head. He tried to stabilize his mind and body, and apologized calmly:
"Because of my father's trust, I handed over the punishment department to my son. Today, such a mistake occurred. Although my son did not want it, I cannot escape his responsibility. I sincerely ask my father to punish me."
The emperor withdrew his gaze and glanced at Chu Chengye, who had not suppressed his gloating smile, and the expressionless prince, stood up and said:
"It won't be too late to discuss your crimes until they are all cleared up. You don't have to come to court until the trial is over. What a mess in the Hall of Light! I'm sure you have good intentions, and I will never allow you to retreat from the court with bad intentions!" "
After saying that, the emperor swept away his sleeves and left. Hong Anbo, who had been waiting for a long time, looked at the emperor's walking back:
"Your Majesty, the case of Wei Chen'er has not been resolved yet. Your Majesty..."
As soon as the emperor left, the officials who were bowing respectfully got up from the ground and moved their stiff bodies. Officials from the prince's party rushed forward to help the prince and Qin Zongliang up.
(End of chapter)
