Zhu Cang and Zhu Di looked at each other in surprise. Li Qi was tied up without any resentment, but when he heard the name of Jin Yiwei, he was actually happy. Zhu Xiangmu pointed to his forehead inquiringly, meaning that Fourth Brother, you were too cruel and beat this dignified Korean prince into a fool?
Zhu Di rolled his eyes and ignored Zhu Xi. He turned to Li Qi behind the curtain and said, "You want to report and confess? Let's talk about what you want to confess now. Once I know about it, I will report it to the Holy Lord immediately."
Unexpectedly, Li Qi became uncooperative at this time and admitted that he had to meet His Majesty or the Crown Prince before he could make an appearance. After all, the fewer people knew about his father's plan, the better. Whether these people in front of them are real Jinyi guards or not, if they were sent by the enemy, wouldn't it mean that their father was killed for nothing?
No matter how hard he tried, Li Qi refused to let go. The angry Zhu Ping picked up his long stick and said angrily: "Fourth, there is no need to talk to him anymore. He will only tell the truth if I convince him with my virtue..."
With that said, he opened the curtain and rushed towards Li Qi.
Li Qi was still wondering what it meant to convince others with virtue. He was stunned when he saw His Highness the Second Prince actually holding a stick with the word "virtue" tattooed on it and threatening to hit him. Emotion is this "conquering people with virtue". Speaking of which, the dignified second prince could actually do such a thing as kidnapping people?
The stick in Zhu Xi's hand was exactly the one he used to block the gap when he set fire to Shanhaiguan, knocking out many Mongolian generals in one fell swoop. Because there were so many prisoners that night, he was credited with military merit and was rewarded with an official position after he returned.
Therefore, Zhu Chong loved this "stick that persuades people with virtue" like a treasure. After he came back, he had the word "virtue" tattooed on the stick, and he never left it. Li Qi didn't know the allusion, but he just felt that it was inappropriate for Zhu Feng, the second prince, to carry a stick.
But when he saw it was Zhu Xi, Li Qi's eyes lit up again: after asking him several questions just now, he thought that the other party was pretending to be a Jin Yiwei to deceive him. So he shouted to Zhu Xi in surprise: "Second Prince, Second Prince, take me to see Your Majesty quickly. I have something important to report to Your Majesty!"
When Zhu Di saw Zhu Xi rushing out, he quickly came out from behind the curtain and stopped the reckless second brother. Li Qi was even more delighted when he saw that Zhu Di was there, and kept saying that he wanted to meet His Majesty Chen. Zhu Di thought about it and saw that he was so sincere and thought that there could be no delay, so he ordered him to go down and take Li Qi all the way to the imperial city.
Along the way, when he heard Li Qi break the news that the reason why the Yushitai could not find anything fishy was because the Ministry of Revenue had hidden all the problematic files in the back, Zhu Fang said angrily: "I said how come those people don't have any flaws? They really did. Broken hands and feet!"
"You dare to fool us like this. Aren't you afraid of deceiving the emperor?"
"I just changed the position of the copywriting, but it doesn't count as deceiving the emperor." Zhu Di said. Then he asked Li Qi: "Moving the file to a later date is just a stop-gap measure to delay time. Aren't they afraid that when I find out what's going on behind the scenes, the matter will be exposed directly?"
"They already have a plan to deal with it." Li Qi looked a little ugly. "Your Highnesses, can you hurry up? If it's too late, we might miss something important."
If when the nobles arrive at the house, his father successfully bridges the gap between the civil and military parties... By then, according to what is recorded in the history books of the old dynasty, his Li family will be peeled off even if they are not dead.
The carriage flew by and arrived at the palace gate in a moment. Zhu Di and Zhu Ping took Li Qi into the palace to meet the Holy Spirit. When they arrived at the Jinshen Hall, Lao Zhu was discussing the details of the new tax system with Liu Bowen, Zhu Su, and Zhu Biao.
Seeing Zhu Xi and Zhu Di entering the palace, Lao Zhu looked happy and said: "Second and fourth children. Come on, come on. Come into the palace so early today. Could it be that some clues have been found in the case?"
Just as Zhu Di was about to speak, Zhu Xi rushed over and said, "If I tell you, although nothing has been found in the Ministry of Household Affairs, I have found some clues by finding another way!"
With that said, he told everything about Li Qi's kidnapping and confession in the morning.
Lao Zhu's face became ugly, and Zhu Su and Zhu Biao also looked at the second brother speechlessly. Zhu Di next to him also had a helpless look on his face. He wanted to help his second brother take care of him lightly, but unexpectedly, his second brother committed suicide and took the matter of beating a sap as a merit...Seeing that Lao Zhu was about to go crazy, Zhu Biao He quickly changed the subject and said, "Dad, since Li Qi said he has something to report, why not listen to what he wants to say first."
"Maybe what he wants to report is the key to this case, who knows?"
"You know how to protect these younger brothers of yours!" Lao Zhu glanced at Zhu Biao, but did not refute his face. With Zhu Ping's confused look on his face, he waved his hand to summon Li Qi in. Li Qi still had a big bump on his forehead. When he saw Lao Zhu, he immediately knelt down and said: "Your Majesty, Li Qi, pay homage to your Majesty. May your Majesty bow down and be blessed!"
"Get up." Li Qi was a nerdy scholar, far from the type of minister that Lao Zhu valued. Therefore, Lao Zhu was not familiar with the prince and only waved his hand when he saw him. "Li Qi, I heard that you have something to tell us urgently. We are here to listen now. You can just say it."
Li Qi bowed in response and successfully met the emperor, so Li Qi no longer had anything to hide, and told all the stories he heard at home that many officials came to look for Li Shanchang and Li Shanchang's strategies for these people.
"Bang!" Lao Zhu listened and suddenly slapped the armrest of the dragon chair, which shocked Li Qi, who was still talking. "What a great Li Shanchang... He actually used our imperial weapon to seduce hundreds of officials... Does he want to test whether our sword is sharp?"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me!" Li Qi was so frightened that he told the truth because he didn't want to harm his old father. "My father is just unwilling to be lonely and wants to come back... He has no intention of rebelliousness!"
"Besides, this matter has not yet been completed. Today at noon, my father will be at home to invite the princes and nobles of the court..."
"I hope your majesty can issue an order to stop my father from really showing kindness to the princes... Li Qi only wants my father to be an idle prince. He really can't bear to see my father act so presumptuously and see evil to your majesty again!" After finishing speaking, , kneeling to Lao Zhu in an almost prostrate posture.
Zhu Su looked at the Korean prince and thought that the elder Li Shan was really a kind father and a filial son. The father planned to come back to power, while the son went out early in the morning and wanted to report... But it is also understandable that what Li Shanchang did was still at the "planning" stage, and there was no actual behavior. Therefore, even if Lao Zhu is convicted, the most he can do is a fine behind closed doors.
If Li Shanchang had actually hosted a banquet for the nobles, acted as a middleman, and hooked up with all the civil and military officials...then he would have really touched Lao Zhu's side. With Lao Zhu's temperament, even ten deaths would not be enough.
This Li Shanchang is really brave. It was also because at this time, Lao Zhu had never opened any of the four major cases. When he was punishing Hu Weiyong, he also summarized what he said about the evaluation of the four major cases by later generations, as well as the advice of the prince and Queen Ma, and there was no mass killing.
This made Li Shanchang and others feel that the emperor was kind and could be bullied, and he was nostalgic for old feelings. In this case, it's better to try and give it a try. If it doesn't work, don't you still have an iron book of elixirs at home that can save your life?
In the hearts of Li Shanchang and these former court officials, they may also look down on Lao Zhu a little. They feel that Lao Zhu has a mud-legged background after all. Compared with the crooked people in the court, he may not be as good as them in Yuanting's past. The old fritters. Moreover, it is not a capital offense to buy and sell a shop. At most, it will displease the Sacred Heart and lead you to go home and be idle.
Although there are no shops, if I can get so much land from the nobles, I can go home to farm and study and pass on the family. As long as the family property is still there, and I teach a talented child, there will always be a day when I can become an official in the court... …
There are only so many scholars left in the world. Even if you don't become an official, your family can do the same, right?
Everyone's calculations are rattling.
(End of chapter)
