In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, one can hear a pin drop.
There was a buzzing sound in the Crown Prince’s ears. He suddenly raised his head and shouted angrily, “Shen Qingzhuo! Gu has no grudge against you in the past or in the present. Why are you slandering Gu?”
Grand Tutor Cao also stood up agitatedly: “Lord Shen! In the court, in front of His Majesty, don’t speak nonsense!”
Shen Qingzhuo replied calmly: “Whether it is a rumor or a defamation, His Majesty can make his own judgment.”
After saying this, he presented the prepared memorial and the blood-stained confession to the Emperor.
Emperor Guangxi’s face was gloomy as ink. He snatched the confession from Eunuch Su’s hand and read it word by word.
“When the minister was ordered to investigate the case of fraud in the imperial examination, the minister never imagined that the real mastermind behind the case was His Highness the Crown Prince.” Shen Qingzhuo said in a sad tone, word by word clearly, “According to Lian Zhong’s confession, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel, under the instructions of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, accepted bribes and engaged in fraud in the imperial examinations since the 24th year of Guangxi.”
“Your Majesty!” Zhu Tai, the minister of the Ministry of Personnel, stepped out and said, “That Lian Zhong has committed a heinous crime that is unforgivable. He must have been desperate and deliberately framed the Eastern Palace. Don’t believe what he says!”
“Before this, the Beizhen Fushi investigated and punished a total of 140 Jinshi1Successful candidate in the highest imperial civil service examination; palace graduate. suspected of bribery. Among them, there are still 11 that have not been disclosed. They all have intricate connections with the Eastern Palace.” Shen Qingzhuo continued calmly, “The minister has ordered the Jinyiwei to catch the fish that escaped the net. After the minister strictly interrogates them, the truth will be revealed.”
At this point, Xiao Yichen was completely panicked, and he kneeled down in the front, “Emperor Father! Erchen is innocent! Erchen is innocent, Emperor Father!”
Emperor Guangxi’s hand holding the blood confession was shaking. “Crown Prince, you… how dare you cough, cough, cough…”
Shen Qingzhuo calmly delivered a fatal blow: “In addition, after the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel dismissed half of their officials, the newly promoted Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Fan Zhe, Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Zhu Tai, and Director of the Ministry of Personnel’s Examination and Rectification Department, Fan Zhenghai, all had close private contacts with the Eastern Palace.”
Emperor Guangxi suddenly fell back on the dragon chair. “Cough, cough, cough…”
This group of people were also on the list of prostitutes presented by Imperial Censor Cen just now. It was clear at a glance whether they were in collusion or not.
At this time, Junior Preceptor Pei, who was always taciturn in the court, finally couldn’t stand it anymore and stepped forward to refute: “If one wants to accuse someone of a crime, they can always find a pretext. Everything is so coincidental. Someone must have deliberately framed His Highness the Crown Prince. Please judge for yourself, Your Majesty!”
Shen Qingzhuo turned sideways and said coldly to him, “Junior Preceptor Pei, what you mean is that the former Minister and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and the eleven Jinshi, including last year’s runner-up, were all bribed by someone and used the same method to frame the Eastern Palace?”
Pei Yanqi paused and asked again, “Even so, what Lord Shen has provided so far are all witnesses, what about the physical evidence?”
“Physical evidence? For physical evidence, we must go to the Eastern Palace to search.” Lord Shen smiled slightly, turned around, and bowed. “Your Majesty, please issue an order to order the Beizhen Fushi to go to the Eastern Palace immediately to search for physical evidence!”
“How dare you!” Cao Ren took a step forward with great momentum, frowning and saying, “Can you search the Eastern Palace just because you want to?”
Shen Qingzhuo covered his lips and coughed twice, his tone calm: “Grand Tutor Cao, of course I can’t search the Eastern Palace just because I want to, so I am petitioning His Majesty.”
“Lord Cao, are you going to hit someone in front of His Majesty?” Cen Yuan couldn’t stand it anymore and shouted.
Cao Ren immediately pointed at Lord Cen’s nose and cursed, “You—”
“Shut up!” Emperor Guangxi shouted in rage, and the next moment, he smashed the teacup in his hand towards the center of the hall.
With a “bang”, the teacup exploded into pieces in front of His Highness the Crown Prince. The porcelain pieces flew onto Xiao Yichen’s face, instantly cutting it into several cuts. Blood gushed out, but he dared not move.
An unprecedented fear and panic enveloped him so much that his throat seemed to be blocked by a stone, and even breathing became extremely difficult.
The emperor was furious, and the other ministers in the hall were silent. The third prince also suppressed his gloating expression and lowered his head quietly.
“Someone come!” Emperor Guangxi held the armrest of the dragon throne tightly with one hand and said, “Take the Crown Prince away and keep him under strict watch. No one is allowed to approach!”
“Father… Emperor Father!” Xiao Yichen came back to his senses suddenly and kowtowed to the ground, “Emperor Father, Erchen is innocent! This is all a trap set by the traitor! Emperor Father, you must believe in Erchen ah!”
Any of the charges of imperial examination fraud and forming cliques for personal gain could put him to death. At this moment, he could only grit his teeth and refuse to admit it.
But Cao Ren knew that the situation was hopeless, so he remained silent and no longer pleaded for the Crown Prince.
Emperor Guangxi shouted at the top of his lungs, “Take him away!”
The guards in front of the emperor quickly stepped forward, forcibly took off the Crown Prince’s hat, and escorted him away.
Shen Qingzhuo immediately asked, “Your Majesty, should the officials involved be arrested immediately?”
“Capture them all!” Emperor Guangxi’s face was abnormally pale. “Zhen just doesn’t believe that you all can turn the world upside down!”
The guards rushed in again and took Fan Zhe and his ilk away.
Emperor Guangxi’s chest rose and fell violently, and he pointed at everyone and shouted, “Get out! All get out!”
Civil and military officials kneeled down to pay their respects, then retreated tremblingly.
Eunuch Su supported Emperor Guangxi as he walked to the back of the palace. Emperor Guangxi coughed and shouted, “Shen Qingzhuo, cough, cough, cough… come to the study to see Zhen alone.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Shen Qingzhuo responded with a bow and watched the emperor leave calmly.
There were only a few officials left in the hall who had not yet evacuated. When Shen Qingzhuo was about to turn around and walk out of the hall, a hand grabbed his arm.
“Junior Preceptor Pei.” He glanced sideways. “What advice do you have?”
Pei Yanqi’s eyes were filled with anger. “Shen Qingzhuo, how could you—”
“I have never promised Junior Preceptor Pei anything.” Shen Qingzhuo gently brushed his hand away. “Everything that happened today was about the matter, not the person. I am just fulfilling my duties as the Beizhen Fushi. I am not targeting the Eastern Palace, let alone Junior Preceptor Pei.”
Junior Preceptor Pei was startled and asked in a harsh voice, “You accused His Highness the Crown Prince of several crimes in the court today. Do you have solid evidence?”
“Junior Preceptor Pei is someone close to His Highness the Crown Prince. Doesn’t he know more about these things than me?” Shen Qingzhuo looked at him calmly. “Something happened in the Eastern Palace. Junior Preceptor Pei can’t save himself now. Why don’t you think about how to get out of this?”
Pei Yanqi closed his eyes. “Pei is upright and does the right thing.”
“Even if I am willing to believe it, will His Majesty believe that you are completely unaware of it?” Shen Qingzhuo slowed down his voice. “Junior Preceptor Pei, Shen is brave enough to show you a clear path.”
Pei Yanqi suddenly opened his eyes, “Lord Shen… what do you mean?”
“This case is a done deal, there is absolutely no possibility of reversal. Whether the officials of the Eastern Palace know about it or not, they are bound to be implicated.” Shen Qingzhuo looked at him frankly and said, “However, there will definitely be omissions in the investigation by the Beizhen Fushi, so Junior Preceptor Pei can use his merits to atone for his crimes.”
Pei Yanqi’s expression was slightly shocked. “You want me to…”
Shen Qingzhuo bowed and said, “That’s all Shen has to say. Today, when we leave the Hall of Supreme Harmony, we will enforce the law impartially and without favoritism. Junior Preceptor Pei, please make your own decision.”
Having said that, he no longer gave Junior Preceptor Pei a chance to keep him. He turned around and left the hall calmly.
***
In the summer of the 26th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxi, the former Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Lian Zhong, confessed in prison that the fraud in the imperial examination was instigated by the Crown Prince. After investigation by the Beizhen Fushi, the Eastern Palace was suspected of forming a clique for personal gain and fighting against dissidents. Emperor Guangxi was furious and threw all the officials of the Eastern Palace into prison.
A few days later, several officials implicated in the case were convicted and imprisoned. The Jinyiwei turned the Eastern Palace upside down and found a bright yellow robe embroidered with a dragon, which they immediately presented to the Emperor.
He was charged with numerous crimes and had no way to defend himself. Emperor Guangxi finally issued an edict to depose the Crown Prince, Xiao Yichen, and imprisoned him in the Forbidden Palace for the rest of his life.
From then on, His Highness the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace will never be able to turn things around.
At the same time, due to the wide range of implications of the case of deposing the Crown Prince, Lord Shen worked all night to investigate the criminals in order to handle related cases, striving not to wrongly accuse anyone and not to let any fish slip through the net.
On the sixth day, Shen Qingzhuo finally couldn’t bear it anymore and fainted while working at Beizhen Fushi.
Kong Qianhu was so frightened that he almost lost his life. He quickly sent Lord Shen back to Jiuyue Pavilion and hurriedly asked the imperial physician to come and treat him.
After the imperial physician examined him, he said that Lord Shen was weak and had been overworked for days, which had exhausted his energy, so he fainted. He just needed to rest well and eat more tonic food to recuperate, and he would recover soon.
Although Kong Shang was a rough man, but he did not dare to be negligent since it concerned the health of Lord Shen. He followed Imperial Physician Lu back to the Imperial Medical to get medicine and told the palace maids to simmer the medicine over low heat before returning to Beizhen Fushi.
Even though his lord is in poor health, he cannot be lazy. It is best to finish the work before his lord wakes up so that he can share more of his lord’s worries.
That night, Xiao Shen hurried over after hearing the news. As soon as one foot stepped over the threshold, his other foot slipped, and with a “bang”, he fell to the ground.
“The New Year is still a long way off. Why are you in such a hurry to give Master such a big gift?” Shen Qingzhuo had already woken up and was sitting on the head of the bed, sipping medicine. He couldn’t help laughing.
But Xiao Shen seemed not to be afraid of the pain. He climbed up and rushed to the edge of the bed like a hurricane, stopping in front of his master. “Master!”
His master was dressed in white, with his black hair hanging down behind his shoulders. His jade-like face was pale without a trace of blood, and his once rosy lips were now pale and cracked, revealing a fragile and morbid beauty.
Xiao Shen’s heart was suddenly tightly grasped, and he was almost unable to breathe due to the pain. His red eyes sockets trembled slightly, and a layer of wet mist quickly appeared in his eyes.
“Dear disciple, you are not going to cry again, are you?” Shen Qingzhuo smiled and said in a casual tone, “The palace attendants are still here, aren’t you afraid that they will laugh at His Highness the Seventh Prince?”
“Get out! All get out!” Xiao Shen suddenly came to his senses, raised his hand to wipe his eyes fiercely, and roared in a low voice.
The few palace maids serving in the palace didn’t understand what was going on, but they were still frightened by the Seventh Prince and quickly left.
“Why are you so fierce?” Shen Qingzhuo put down the medicine and asked calmly, “You’ve driven them all away, are you here to serve me ah?”
Xiao Shen did not answer. He slammed his knees on the ground, looked up at his master, and asked in an unusually fierce tone, “What did Master promise me?”
That assassination during the spring hunting nearly cost him half his life. God knew that today he heard about the accident of his master again, and he was so frightened that his heart almost stopped beating on the spot.
Shen Qingzhuo felt a little guilty and looked away. “The imperial physician already came to see me, I just didn’t get enough rest. Get a good night’s sleep tonight, and I promise that you will see a lively and energetic master tomorrow.”
The youth pursed his thin lips, like a badly injured wolf cub, staring at him with a fierce yet pitiful expression, and the moisture in his eyes was almost unable to be held back.
“As long as you are well, all of Master’s hard work is worth it.” Shen Qingzhuo couldn’t help but soften his heart. He leaned over and touched his little disciple’s face, coaxing softly, “Master is really fine, be good.”
“Master clearly promised me that you would take good care of yourself and not let me worry about you anymore…” His throat was shaking and his voice was choking, but he still insisted on finishing his words, “Master, when will you understand that nothing… is as important as you?”
If he wants the throne, he can fight for it himself, but not at the cost of having his master hurt.
If he finally ascends the supreme dragon throne, but his master is not by his side, then what is the point of having this damn throne?
Hearing this, Shen Qingzhuo sighed, patted the spot beside him, and motioned for his little disciple to come up.
Xiao Shen climbed onto the bed without hesitation and threw himself into the familiar arms. His strong arms tightly wrapped around his slender waist, like a greedy person holding a rare treasure that he would never let go even if he died.
Shen Qingzhuo stroked the youth’s thin back and whispered to him, “The Crown Prince has been deposed. After Master finishes this case. I won’t be so busy anymore.”
The Crown Prince…
Xiao Shen’s hidden eyes suddenly became extremely sinister and terrifying.
The author has something to say:
The Master: All the palace attendants have been driven away by your fierceness. Are you here to serve me ah?
The Wolf Cub: I couldn’t ask for more! I promise to serve Master comfortably in and out of bed…
