Chapter 2798 I Am Your Father, Kill the Minister of War

In the side hall of Yong'an Marquis's Mansion, Xu Zisheng sat in the upper seat, and Xu Qi'an sat on the lower right. The two had different expressions. Xu Zisheng was extremely calm, but Xu Qi'an showed a bit of impatience on his face. After all, his cousin was still in the prison of the Ministry of Justice, and he had suffered a lot of physical pain, which made people worried.

"On the surface, this incident was caused by the joint efforts of the Left Censor-in-Chief Yuan Xiong and the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War Qin Yuandao, with their followers at most. In fact, there are also people you have offended in the Sangpo case, the Pingyang County Princess case, and the Yunzhou case. They will definitely take the opportunity to retaliate against you two brothers. Minister Sun is an example."

"But these people are just minor details. As long as Yuan Xiong and Qin Yuandao are dealt with, this matter will be solved!"

"Leave this guy Qin Yuandao to me. I have long been annoyed with him. He has caused me a lot of trouble in the Ministry of War. It is just the right opportunity to kill him! As for the Left Censor-in-Chief, you can deal with it yourself!"

A cold light flashed in Xu Zisheng's eyes. He had long been annoyed with the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, but he was too lazy to pay attention to him. Now he has taken the initiative to jump out, so let him know who is the boss of the Ministry of War.

As for the Left Censor-in-Chief, Xu Qian'an may not be able to deal with him, but he has the support of Wei Dad behind him. This blue-clothed eunuch has been in charge of the Censorate for many years and has many ways to deal with Yuan Xiong.

Xu Qi'an nodded, indicating that he understood. He did not stay for long and went straight to Haoqi Tower. He fully demonstrated the principle of looking for Wei Daddy when he was in doubt.

Xu Zisheng narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at Xu Qi'an's leaving back, with a bit of coldness on his face. In fact, there was another person involved in this case. He did not tell Xu Qi'an that the person was Song Shanchang, Duke of Cao. This person was a military meritorious service and had a close relationship with the King of Zhenbei. This was an internal matter of the Military Merit Group, and Xu Zisheng had his own way to solve it.

"Come here!"

"My Lord!"

A guard came in, with a burly figure and a strong momentum. This was a fourth-rank warrior, the head of the guards of Yong'an Marquis' Mansion, and he was deeply trusted by Xu Zisheng.

"You go to the Duke of Cao's Mansion in person and tell Song Shanchang that Xu Xinnian is my man, and ask him to show mercy and stop interfering in this matter!"

"Yes!"

The head of the guards did not say much, turned around and left, doing things straightforwardly and neatly, and obeyed Xu Zisheng's orders.

"Song Shanchang should give me this face. The only one left is Qin Yuandao. He really thinks that I don't know what he did in the Ministry of War. I just don't bother to pay attention. Now I can settle accounts with him!"

After a day and a night of fermentation, spread, and the promotion of people with ulterior motives, the rumor of the imperial examination cheating case finally broke out. From nobles to civilians, everyone was discussing this matter and treating it as a topic of conversation after dinner.

The most heated discussion was among the scholars. Some people did not believe that Xu Huiyuan cheated, but more scholars chose to believe it and applauded, praising the court for its beautiful work. Those who cheated in the imperial examination should be severely punished and give an explanation to all the scholars in the world.

Xu Xinnian's reputation took a sharp turn. From Huiyuan, who was praised and admired, to a villain who was pointed at by thousands of people, Xu Xinnian, who was in prison, knew nothing about it. At this moment, he ushered in the first interrogation of the Ministry of Justice and Jingzhao Prefecture.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The jailer hit the fence with a stick and shouted at Xu Xinnian inside.

"Xu Xinnian, come out with me, the adults want to interrogate you."

In the interrogation room, the Minister of Justice and the Junior Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture sat behind the table, drinking tea and discussing the case.

"Mr. Minister, why can't you use torture?"

The Junior Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture looked puzzled and raised his doubts.

"The order of Minister Sun!"

The Minister of Justice explained and shared the news he knew with the Junior Yin.

"I heard that Xu Zisheng visited Minister Sun, and Xu Xinnian is his man!"

The Junior Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture looked surprised. He didn't expect that Xu Zisheng was involved in this case. His heart sank and he became more cautious. He made up his mind and decided to be impartial, so as not to accidentally capsize.

"That Xu Xinnian is just a young boy. I will give him a warning and make him lose his composure, and then interrogate him slowly. I will trouble you, the Junior Yin, to play the role of the good cop."

The Minister of the Ministry of Justice showed a bit of contempt on his face. He thought he could easily control the young man Xu Xinnian. As long as he frightened him a little, he could make Xu Xinnian confess.

The Junior Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture nodded slightly and did not refuse, but he had other plans in mind.

"There are many big figures behind Xu Xinnian. It is better for me to stay out of it."

The officials smiled. They were all experienced interrogators. It was easy for them to deal with a young student.

The jailer took Xu Xinnian out of the cell and came to the interrogation room. He bowed to the officials in the room and said.

"My lords, the prisoner Xu Xinnian is here."

After that, the jailer retreated tactfully, leaving behind the somewhat embarrassed Xu Xinnian. His white prison uniform was stained with dried blood and turned dark red.

Xu Xinnian stood at the door and took a look at the scene in the interrogation room. Behind the main table sat two officials in red robes, the vice minister of the Ministry of Justice and the junior governor of Jingzhao Prefecture.

On both sides were several officials accompanying the interrogation, clerks taking notes, and a white-robed sorcerer from the Imperial Observatory.

"Bang!"

The vice minister of the Ministry of Justice grabbed the gavel and slammed it hard, making a loud noise, taking the lead and giving Xu Xinnian a warning, and said in a deep voice.

"Xu Xinnian, someone reported that you bribed the chief examiner Zhao Tingfang and participated in cheating in the imperial examination. Is it true?"

Xu New Year said with an unyielding look on his face, extremely coldly.

"That's nonsense!"

The Minister of Justice sneered and didn't take it seriously. He had seen too many tough people, but after arriving at the Ministry of Justice, they all turned into weaklings. He had many ways to manipulate Xu New Year, and said in a deep voice.

"You bribed Zhao Tingfang's housekeeper three hundred taels of silver, and used the housekeeper as a medium to get the test questions in advance. Zhao Tingfang's housekeeper Zhu You has already confessed. This is his confession. Take a look for yourself."

As he said that, the Minister of Punishment had a cold look on his face, took out a confession from his sleeve and asked the officials to hand it to Xu Xinnian.

Xu New Year took the confession and read it carefully. The confession was very detailed, even accurate to the details of the transactions between the two parties, the time, location, and the content of the conversation. On the surface, there were almost no loopholes.

"As expected of someone from the Ministry of Punishment, even I, the client, can't see any flaws. But I also have a certificate here. Would you like to see it, sir?"

Xu New Year's face didn't show any emotion and he said very calmly.

"What proof?"

The Minister of Justice asked curiously, leaning forward slightly and showing a proud smile, thinking that Xu New Year was ready to confess.

"Get pen, ink, paper and inkstone."

Xu Erlang was very calm and asked the Minister of Justice.

The Minister of Justice nodded and signaled, and the officials immediately brought in a small table and put pen, ink, paper and inkstones on it.

Xu New Year was wearing handcuffs and shackles, standing at the table, dipping his pen in ink, and writing furiously. It only took a moment, and the paper was filled with small regular script. Xu New Year dipped his thumb in ink, made his fingerprints on the paper, and threw the pen , said loudly.

"Please take a look, sir."

The Minister of Punishment ordered someone to fetch it, and after a closer look, his face suddenly solidified and became extremely gloomy, his breathing was heavy, he tore up the paper angrily, pointed at Xu New Year with his trembling right hand, and shouted angrily.

"To punish me, I will punish you."

Shao Yin was stunned. This was different from what he said just now. Before the prisoner could lose an inch of his life, the Vice Minister lost an inch of his body first.

The officials present subconsciously looked at the torn paper, guessing what Xu New Year had written that made the dignified Minister of Justice so angry and hysterical.

"Oh, Sir, do you think the student is talking nonsense?"

Xu New Year spread his hands, sneered disdainfully, and said sarcastically.

"If you write down the time, place, people, and the specific process, and then press your fingerprints, you can prove which housekeeper I bribed. Then, Mr. Minister, everything that your mother and I have done is clearly written down. It's obvious. Bai Bai, should you call me daddy?"

The officials looked at the shredded paper again, with a somewhat strange expression on their faces. They finally knew what Xu New Year had written. No wonder it could make the Minister of Punishment furious and hysterical.

"Torture! Give me torture! I will make this crazy creature unable to survive or die."

The Minister of Punishment's eyes were splitting, and he was furious. He stared at Xu New Year, feeling secretly angry in his heart.

"A mere Xu New Year dares to insult my late mother. A mere Huiyuan dares to humiliate me, a fourth-grade minister, in public. You must pay the price!"

The Minister of Justice's blood rushed to his face instantly, and he was so angry that he picked up the token and was about to throw it out.

"Your Excellency, Sir, please calm down. Your Excellency, the Minister, has an order and cannot be punished."

An official from the Ministry of Justice rushed to comfort him, whispering in his ear to persuade him to calm down.

"snort!"

The Minister of Punishment took a deep breath and forced himself to suppress his anger. His whole body was like a silent volcano, and he no longer asked for punishment.

Shaoyin of Jingzhao Mansion coughed, took over the burden of interrogation, and interrogated Xu Xinnian.

"Xu New Year, have you cheated?"

Xu New Year shook his head firmly and answered decisively.

"No, Xu behaves aboveboard and has never committed any fraud."

When Shao Yin heard this, he looked at the white-robed warlock in Si Tianjian, hoping to distinguish the truth of Xu Xinnian's words.

Si Tianjian and Xu Xinnian have a close relationship. From Si Tianjian to Jianzheng, to Chu Caiwei and other Jianzheng disciples, they all look at Xu Qi'an in a different light. Si Tianjian's white-clothed warlock has long been entrusted, and whatever Xu Xinnian says will be ignored. It's the truth. He nodded and said with great certainty.

"Not lying."

Shao Yin withdrew his gaze, looked at Xu New Year in the hall again, and asked.

"Did you really write that song "It's Difficult to Travel"?"

Xu Xinnian puffed up his chest, said proudly without changing his expression.

"It's exactly what the students did!"

The white-clothed warlock's eyes flickered slightly, turning a blind eye to the fluctuating luck above Xu New Year's head, and answered mechanically.

"Not lying."

Shao Yin glanced at the Minister of Justice, thoughtfully. Si Tianjian was obviously favoring Xu Xinnian. He pondered for a moment and discussed.

"This case is intricate and complicated. Why not retry it at another date?"

The Minister of Justice was not a fool, so he naturally saw the clues and nodded in agreement.

"good!"

The two left the prison and entered the side hall to drink tea and talk.

"As expected, Si Tianjian is really helping Xu New Year!"

The Minister of Punishment looked gloomy and said in a hateful voice. He had just been greatly stimulated by Xu New Year. A little Hui Yuan dared to insult his late mother and wanted to be his father. He hated Xu New Year in his heart.

Shaoyin of the Jingzhao Mansion smiled and said nothing. In this case of imperial examination fraud, the Jingzhao Mansion adopted a wait-and-see attitude and go with the flow.

The next day, at dawn, the civil and military officials remained silent and walked through the Meridian Gate in an orderly manner to attend the court meeting.

Xu Zisheng followed the crowd, his steps were calm, his face was calm, and a cold light occasionally shot out of his eyes. He glanced at Qin Yuandao, the Minister of War, behind him, and the corners of his mouth were slightly raised, revealing a bit of coldness, which made people shudder.

The officials entered the Golden Palace, remained silent, and waited for a quarter of an hour. Emperor Yuan Jing came late. The old emperor with white hair turned black, wearing a simple Taoist robe, with fluttering sleeves, more like a Taoist priest than an emperor.

After the normal performance, Sun Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice suddenly stepped out and said loudly.

"I have something to report."

In an instant, a lot of eyes looked at the back of the official in the red robe. The slightly dead atmosphere of the court seemed to stir up a turbulent undercurrent at this moment, and a stream of vortices spread among the officials in the court.

The foreplay was over, and the curtain was slowly opening. Yuan Xiong, the Left Censor-in-Chief, and Qin Yuandao, the Minister of War, who planned this matter, quietly straightened their backs and showed strong fighting spirit and confidence.

The Dali Temple officials and others who participated in this matter all raised their lips, waiting for the show to begin, and eager to retaliate against Xu Qian'an and Wei Yuan.

The Grand Secretary Zhao Tingfang's faction was alone and frowned. In normal times, he was not afraid of provocations between parties or the Minister of War. But now the Minister of War has come with a big momentum and tied the Grand Secretary of the East Pavilion with the students of Yunlu Academy. If he wants to clear the grievances of the Grand Secretary of the East Pavilion, it is equivalent to clearing the grievances of Xu Xinnian, and there are too many enemies.

Inside and outside the palace, the neutral parties are watching the excitement tacitly and watching the changes.

"My dear minister, please speak."

Emperor Yuan Jing sat on the dragon throne, with inexplicable majesty. He was the referee and did not need to leave the court. He only needed to make a ruling. No matter what the result was this time, he was invincible.

"I was ordered to investigate the case of Dongge Grand Secretary Zhao Tingfang accepting bribes and leaking the exam questions to candidate Xu Xinnian. Now the truth has come to light. There are three people involved in the case, namely Xu Xinnian, a student of Yunlu Academy; Dongge Grand Secretary Zhao Tingfang and his housekeeper who acted as an intermediary. In addition, according to Xu Xinnian's confession, he made friends with Dongge Grand Secretary through his brother Xu Qi'an."

The Minister of Justice only relayed the results found by the Vice Minister of Justice and did not interfere. Since Xu Zisheng came forward, he has been hiding behind the scenes and no longer intervened in the case.

After Sun Shangshu finished his report, he returned to the queue and said nothing more. The corresponding confession had been submitted to the emperor by the Ministry of Justice for review. Anything discussed at the court meeting was submitted one day in advance.

Yuan Xiong, the Left Censor-in-Chief, turned sideways and looked at Wei Yuan expressionlessly. The other officials also looked at Wei Yuan, waiting for his response and counterattack, wanting to force Wei Yuan into the water and not give him the opportunity to stand idly by.

"Everyone, how do you think we should deal with this case?"

Emperor Yuan Jing nodded and looked at Wei Yuan and Zhao Tingfang. He was waiting for their counterattack to see if they could turn the tables and reverse the case.

Yuan Xiong, the Left Censor-in-Chief, took a step forward, bowed, and wanted to drag Wei Yuan into the water, and said.

"Your Majesty, I think the nature of this case is extremely serious. After many days of fermentation, everyone in the capital knows about it. The students are full of resentment and the people are indignant. If we don't deal with it severely, it will not be enough to appease the public anger."

Yuan Xiong knew that Xu Qi'an was the person Wei Yuan valued the most, so he wanted to deal with it severely, forcing Wei Yuan to come forward.

At this time, the Dali Temple Minister also came out, shook his head slightly, and gave Xu Qi'an eye drops.

"Xu Qi'an represented the Sitianjian to fight, and he had just made great achievements. He cannot be dealt with."

The Dali Temple Minister's words were heartbreaking, and he established an arrogant image of Xu Qi'an who was proud of his achievements for Emperor Yuan Jing.

Zhao Tingfang's followers came out to refute. The court officials waited for a moment and were shocked to find that Wei Yuan did not speak, and the censors under his command also stopped.

As the most troublemaker in the court, whenever there was an impeachment of Wei Yuan, there would be the presence of the Secretary. The Secretary of the Ministry of Personnel took the lead and said with a bow.

"What the Dali Temple Minister said is very true. This case must be handled strictly and must not be tolerated. Otherwise, the court will lose its prestige and your majesty will lose its prestige."

At once, the six departments of the Secretary came out to support the Dali Temple Minister's view. As one of the promoters, the Minister of War, who did not speak, turned his head and looked at Duke Cao.

Now that the civil officials have expressed their views, Duke Cao, who is a first-class duke, can add fuel to the fire and form a powerful force. Even Emperor Yuan Jing needs to be a little cautious and has to deal with Xu Qian'an. At that time, Wei Yuan can be involved.

Duke Cao came out expressionlessly, attracting the attention of the ministers and nobles around him, and spoke lightly.

"Your Majesty, I think the Ministry of Justice and the government office handled this case too hastily. Dongge Grand Secretary Zhao Tingfang has always been honest and has an excellent reputation. How could he accept bribes?

"In addition, although Xu Xinnian is just a student, Yunlu Academy has not produced a champion for many years. How can the great scholars of the academy let it go if the case is so hasty?"

The Minister of War looked at the back of Duke Cao in disbelief. This was not how they discussed it at the beginning. Duke Cao actually betrayed their alliance and set them up. Why?

Xu Zisheng's mouth curled up slightly. As the spokesperson of the Military Merit Group, Duke Cao would naturally give him face and turn the spearhead against the Minister of War and others.

"What's going on? ! "

The officials in the hall could not hide their astonishment. Duke Cao changed sides? Then what was the point of him fanning the flames before? Suddenly, the officials were shocked and looked at Xu Zisheng.

Xu Zisheng ignored everyone's gaze, walked out of the queue, did not salute, looked directly at Emperor Yuan Jing, and said.

"I have a report!"

Emperor Yuan Jing looked at Xu Zisheng in surprise. He did not expect him to stand up. He was silent for a while before speaking.

"Show it up!"

Xu Zisheng took out the memorial from his sleeve and handed it to the eunuch beside him. The eunuch took it quickly, stepped onto the steps, and handed it to Emperor Yuan Jing.

Emperor Yuan Jing opened the memorial, looked down, his face gradually changed, a terrifying light shot out of his eyes, looked up and looked down at everyone, and said coldly.

"What a big dog's guts! Where is Qin Yuandao, the assistant minister of the Ministry of War?"

The assistant minister of the Ministry of War hurriedly stepped out of the line, bowed and saluted, and said loudly.

"Your Majesty, I am here!"

"Come on, put him in the prison of the Ministry of Justice, and order the three courts to try him!"

Emperor Yuan Jing was extremely angry, his eyes were full of coldness, and he ordered loudly.

Suddenly, two guards of the Imperial Guard, wearing armor and carrying swords, walked into the hall, took down the assistant minister of the Ministry of War who was still in a daze, and dragged him out.