diskusbooks Chapter 498: The Gold Ingot Incident
Chapter 498: The Gold Ingot Incident
Emperor Kun calmed down his anger a little and said in a loud voice,
"I am not a tyrant. The reason why I have increased the intensity of examinations and selection of talents in recent years is that
The goal is to train a group of young officials and give students from poor families another chance to succeed.
My dear ministers, do you know how many students from poor families have become impoverished and have nothing at home?
In order to support his studies, the whole family, including his parents, family members and clansmen, worked together to persevere.
The ten years of hard study have tempered not only the students' bodies and minds, but also the expectations of the clan members.
Finally one day I graduated from high school and was able to bring honor to my family. But this happened.
And there must be more than one person who was impersonated.
My dear ministers, do you know whether what you are doing is right?
Today, some students have stood up to seek justice! How can we disappoint them again? "
The emperor's impassioned and disappointed speech struck the ministers' hearts with every word.
*
“Plop…plop”
All the courtiers in the hall knelt on the ground and shouted in unison,
"Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty is wise, long live the Emperor!"
The sound was so loud that it could be heard a mile away from the Golden Throne Hall.
However, Prime Minister Xiao, who seemed to be the most pious among them, had his heart beating very fast. He never thought that bad luck would come to him one after another.
He didn't expect that despite all his calculations and numerous warnings, his subordinates were still exposed for buying and selling official positions in order to make money!
At this moment, Prince Rui was also extremely anxious. He ignored his grandfather during the morning court and hurried back to the palace!
He was thinking that he would first take the 50,000 taels of silver from Qian's concubine's house and then resolve the issue of the fake silver.
Then I'll go to my grandfather to discuss solving the problem of cheating in the imperial examinations. At worst, I can just find a scapegoat.
*
When he returned to the Rui Palace,
He was so frightened by Eunuch Dong's hurried report that he slipped and fell to the ground.
"Your Majesty? Oh, Your Majesty?"
Eunuch Dong was so scared that he hurried forward to help.
Liang Hengrui, who was helped up, was furious and roared,
"Search! They stole my fifty thousand taels of silver and wanted to escape. Don't even think about it. I will dig three feet deep to find them."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Eunuch Dong hurriedly took the order and went to make arrangements.
But the act of extorting money was not very glorious after all, and we could not conduct a high-profile search or offer a reward for the capture of Qian Shiqi's parents and family members. Everything had to be done in private!
Liang Hengrui's hopes were shattered in an instant. He was so anxious and angry that he fainted without even being able to catch his breath.
There was another round of chaos in Prince Rui's palace.
*
What happened in the morning court seemed to have wings.
The emperor already knew that the student had been impersonated, so people throughout the capital watched the situation develop with wide eyes, and the matter continued to ferment.
However, there has been a wave of unrest.
In the afternoon,
Another major event occurred that affected Prime Minister Xiao's reputation.
Two burly men with bandit-like looks drove a horse-drawn carriage and took two gold ingots to the pharmacy to buy medicine.
As the medicinal materials purchased were of many types and in huge quantities, the shopkeeper did not dare to be negligent and reported it to his boss.
The old boss was also a smart guy. When the guys were loading the truck, he invited the two big men to have tea and quietly got a little information about where they lived. He said they were from some ditch.
It was also a coincidence that the old boss's maternal grandparents were from there. He was very familiar with it.
The so-and-so ditch they were talking about was not a village at all, but a deep forest in the mountains, and few people went in it.
The old boss watched them take out two gold bars easily and generously, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
Thinking of the fake silver ingot incident a few days ago, he secretly asked the shopkeeper to cut the gold and check it. Hey, it turned out that it was mixed with black stone. It was not gold at all.
Therefore, the shrewd boss calmed the two men down and reported the matter to the authorities without making any noise.
*
Once this happened, the news was leaked the next day.
The elf hurriedly reported the news to his master in vivid detail.
Fang Qingge in the inn was listening so much that he almost wanted to clap his hands and applaud.
Look, there's a pillow for when you feel sleepy! Are you still thinking of ways to add fuel to the fire?
Look, within two days, clues about the gold ingot have already been revealed.
Fang Qingge asked excitedly,
"So what happened after reporting it to the police?"
"Master, this time it was Concubine De's biological father, Lord Kang, who took over the case and conducted a sudden trial overnight.
Don't be fooled by the strong looks of these two burly men. It is said that the torture instruments of the Ministry of Justice were not even half used before the men shouted that they were Prime Minister Xiao's private soldiers.
Upon hearing this, Lord Kang did not dare to delay and went to the palace that night to report to the Emperor.
The emperor waved his hand and directly dispatched three thousand guards, who marched to the place called "Ditch" overnight.
He killed everyone in his sleep!
My goodness, there really are several thousand private soldiers from the Prime Minister's Mansion hiding in the mountains!"
The elf was dancing and talking excitedly with his little mouth.
Fang Qingge never expected that he would gain such a great deal from this trip.
She told the elf,
"You should keep a close eye on the Prime Minister's Mansion and see what the Emperor is determined to do this time."
"Yes, yes, all right, Master. I'll go then!"
Fang Qingge nodded, and the elf disappeared in a flash.
*
royal palace,
imperial study room,
Lord Kang, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, was reporting to the Emperor about the grand occasion of escorting 3,000 private soldiers back to the capital last night.
This was a major case he handled involving an important figure in the court.
If he accomplished such a great feat, maybe his official hat could be promoted a little bit. After all, he was the biological father of Concubine De!
He said respectfully,
"Your Majesty, I have dispersed all the people and detained them in various cells in the capital!
According to their confession, there are still 2,000 private soldiers scattered in the city and hiding in the streets. I dare not delay and report it immediately!
Your Majesty, this is about Prime Minister Xiao, what do you think of how to deal with it?"
Lord Kang hadn't finished speaking yet.
*
With a "clang", the door of the imperial study was pushed open with force!
Emperor Kun was about to get angry when he saw Concubine Xiao, who was pregnant, stumbling in.
The two senior palace maids behind him had already knelt outside the door out of fear.
"Bang" the door closed, and Concubine Xiao started crying to Emperor Kun.
"Your Majesty, please understand! My father would never do such a big thing. This is a frame-up!"
The sound of her crying and the sight of her huge belly made Emperor Kun unable to bear scolding her any further.
*
Eunuch De, who followed in, knelt down and kowtowed,
"Your Majesty, please forgive me! The Imperial Concubine threatened me with the child in her belly, and I dared not stop her!"
Emperor Kun said impatiently,
"Get out now."
"Yes, yes, I will get out of here immediately."
Eunuch De wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, got up and rolled out!
**