Please call me Your Majesty!

Chapter 222 The Secret of the Su Family’s Ancestral Tomb

Chu Shizhao's eyes swept through the volumes of files...

The chaos in this warehouse was far beyond Chu Shizhao's imagination.

The dust accumulated on the floor of the room was as thick as a blanket, and even in broad daylight, there were still mice scurrying around.

"Your Highness, look, there are too many files, and many of them have been in disrepair for a long time. I am powerless to help..."

Officer Liu followed behind Chu Shizhao and began to explain with an embarrassed look on his face.

However, Chu Shizhao was too lazy to pay attention to these things.

He picked up a file at random and shook it gently, and the file broke into several pieces. The handwriting on the paper became blurred and unrecognizable.

He picked up a few more volumes and the situation was exactly the same.

"What a disrepair it is!"

Chu Shizhao turned around abruptly and stared at Officer Liu with cold eyes, "Sir Liu, do you dare to say that these files were not damaged intentionally?"

Official Liu turned pale with fear and waved his hands repeatedly, "Your Highness, this is unjust! I really didn't know anything about this!"

"Not aware?"

Chu Shizhao sneered, "Master Liu, do you know that destroying court files without permission is a capital crime!"

Officer Liu fell to his knees with a thud.

"Your Highness, spare your life!"

"I really don't know anything!"

Chu Shizhao already knew in his heart that this official Liu was clearly lying.

He suddenly turned around and looked at the other person

"Master Liu, I will give you a chance to redeem yourself now."

"Take me to where the files on the previous crown prince's treason case and the Su family's corruption case are kept."

Officer Liu was trembling all over and stammering, unable to speak.

Chu Shizhao's eyes turned cold in an instant: "Why, Master Liu is unwilling to cooperate?"

"How about...I tell Father about this?"

"When the time comes, let's see what he's going to do to you," Chu Shizhao threatened.

"No...no, I am willing to cooperate!"

When Liu, an official with a guilty conscience, saw that Chu Shizhao was going to inform Emperor Yongjin, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed.

"Your Highness, please follow me."

He stood up tremblingly and took Chu Shizhao to the depths of the warehouse.

After passing through several rows of tall bookshelves, I came to a relatively clean and tidy small room.

This place was obviously specially organized, the files were neatly arranged, and there was no pungent smell of mold in the air.

"Your Highness, the files on the previous crown prince's treason case and the Su family's corruption case are all here."

Officer Liu did not dare to delay and pointed to the files in the room.

Chu Shizhao didn't say anything, but walked straight to the bookshelf and looked through it carefully.

The number of files was much smaller than he had imagined, and the seals on many of them had been torn off, indicating that someone had obviously looked through them.

Chu Shizhao's heart sank. Could it be that someone had gotten there first?
He casually picked up a file about the Su family's corruption case, opened it, and his face suddenly turned livid.

The contents of the file were completely different from what he had known before...

According to the files, the ancestor of the Su family was not wrongly accused, but was indeed guilty of corruption!

Not only that, the files also record in detail the amount and methods of corruption committed by Su's ancestors, as well as the list of officials who colluded with them.

On this list, there are several powerful figures in the court, including...

The current prime minister!

Chu Shizhao felt his head buzzing, as if a heavy hammer had hit him hard on the head.

He stared at the file in his hands in disbelief, as if he wanted to see a hole in it.

How can this be?

The Su family has been loyal for generations, how could they do such a thing?

Could this all be fake?
Could it be that Su Wan'er has been lying to him all along?

No, not possible!
He believed in Su Wan'er and the innocence of the Su family.

So, what is the truth?
He realized that the file had most likely been tampered with.

He continued to look through the other files.

However, what he discovered next shocked him even more.

He discovered that the files on the previous dynasty's crown prince's rebellion case had also been tampered with.

The key part that originally recorded the prince's rebellion plan and the list of his accomplices was actually torn off!

It's obvious that someone is deliberately concealing the truth!

who is it?

Who is behind all this?
Chu Shizhao clenched his fists so tightly that his nails almost dug into his flesh.

Just then, he noticed a small piece of torn paper in the corner of the file, which seemed to have fallen from other files.

He carefully picked up the scrap of paper and pieced it back onto the incomplete file.

Miraculously, the content on the piece of paper matched the missing part perfectly!
"The Su family's ancestor was ordered to investigate the corruption case in the court and got a list of many officials involved."

"To protect the list, hide it in..."

The words on the back were torn off, but Chu Shizhao already understood.

The ancestor of the Su family was not corrupt, but was framed!

They have an important list in their hands, and this list may be what Chu Shiren and others have been looking for!
The people who tampered with the files and tore out key information are most likely those on the list!
Thinking of this, a gleam of light flashed in Chu Shizhao's eyes.

He knew that he had found the key clue.

Next, what he has to do is to find the list and uncover the truth behind it!

At this moment, the door of the warehouse was suddenly pushed open, and Officer Liu walked in with several guards.

"Your Highness, you..."

Before Officer Liu could finish his words, he saw the piece of paper in Chu Shizhao's hand and his face suddenly changed.

"You...you actually..."

Chu Shizhao looked at him coldly, "Master Liu, now, do you have anything else to say?"

Official Liu's face turned from white to blue, then from blue to purple, and finally became completely pale, with beads of sweat the size of beans rolling down his forehead.

He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"It seems that Master Liu has nothing more to say."

Chu Shizhao put away the paper in his hand and said in a cold tone, "Someone, arrest Lord Liu!"

The guards looked at each other and dared not step forward.

Although they were subordinates of official Liu, they also knew that Chu Shizhao had a noble status and did not dare to offend him easily.

"Why, you also want to disobey the order?"

Chu Shizhao's eyes swept over the guards.

The guards were so frightened that they trembled all over and rushed forward to tie up Officer Liu.

Officer Liu collapsed to the ground with a blank look in his eyes. He knew he was finished.

Privately destroying the court files is an unforgivable crime, not to mention that he is involved in the previous dynasty's crown prince's treason case and the Su family's unjust case. He knows the interests involved better than anyone else.

Chu Shizhao ignored Officer Liu's pleas and turned to leave the warehouse.

……

After returning to the palace, Chu Shizhao immediately summoned his confidants and told them what he had discovered in the clan house.

"Your Highness, this... this is too unbelievable!"

Xiao Dezi looked at Chu Shizhao in disbelief.

"I didn't expect that the Su family was actually wronged, and those who framed the Su family are still holding important positions in the court!"

"Yeah, it's unbelievable."

Another confidant also sighed, "Your Highness, what should we do next?"

Chu Shizhao pondered for a moment, "The most important thing now is to find the list. Only by finding the list can we bring those treacherous officials to justice and give justice to the Su family."

"But, Your Highness, where is the list hidden?"

Xiao Dezi asked.

Chu Shizhao's eyes flashed with a gleam of light: "According to the clues on the paper, the list is likely hidden in the Su family's ancestral tomb." "Su family's ancestral tomb?"

Everyone was stunned.

"Yes."

Chu Shizhao nodded, "In order to protect the safety of the list, the ancestors of the Su family probably hid it in the ancestral tomb."

“This is the safest place where you are least likely to be discovered.”

"Your Highness is wise!"

Everyone praised him one after another.

"Without further delay, we will set off for the Su family's ancestral tomb tonight."

Chu Shizhao said decisively.

As night fell, Chu Shizhao, along with a few of his confidants, quietly left the palace and headed for the Su family's ancestral tomb outside the city...

The night is as dark as ink and the cold wind is howling.

Su family ancestral tomb.

"Your Highness, do we really want to dig up someone's ancestral grave?"

The servant holding the shovel looked at Chu Shizhao reluctantly.

You know, digging up people's ancestral graves is a capital crime in the Great Zhou Dynasty, not to mention that they are now disturbing the ancestral graves of well-known big shots like the Su family.

Although the Su family has declined now, even Ri Ci is not someone they can provoke at will.

"At this point, we can't care about all the red tape."

"The Su family has been wronged for many years. Now only by finding the list can they be cleared of all charges."

“Dig it for me!”

Chu Shizhao's face was solemn and his tone was firm. After that, he took the lead to walk to the tombstone of the Su family's ancestor and ordered people to start digging.

Seeing that Chu Shizhao took the first step, the servants had no choice but to rush forward no matter how reluctant they were.

Although they couldn't afford to offend the Su family, they dared not disobey Chu Shizhao's orders.

If they were allowed to choose, they would rather offend the Su family than disobey Chu Shizhao. …

I don't know how long it was, but I heard a "clang" and the shovel seemed to touch something hard.

"Your Highness, there seems to be something!"

A guard shouted happily.

Chu Shizhao hurried forward to check, and saw that in the tomb, in addition to the white bones, there was also a rusty iron box.

Could this be the place where the Su family’s ancestor hid the anonymous list?

Chu Shizhao was delighted and immediately ordered someone to take out the iron box.

The iron box felt heavy and cold to the touch, and no one knew how many years it had been buried in the tomb.

Chu Shizhao carefully opened the iron box and saw a neatly folded piece of cloth inside, with ink stains faintly visible on the cloth.

"Quickly bring the tinder!"

Chu Shizhao said excitedly.

Li Feng, who was following behind him, quickly lit the fire and moved closer to the cloth.

With the faint light of the fire, Li Feng finally saw the contents on the cloth.

There were names densely written on it, and it was the list of officials who were involved in the corruption case that year!
The first name on the list was...

"what!"

Li Feng cried out in surprise, and the fire starter in his hand fell to the ground and went out instantly, and the surroundings fell into darkness again.

"what happened?"

Chu Shizhao frowned.

"Your Highness, you...you can see for yourself..."

Li Feng re-lit the fire stick. Chu Shizhao looked at it carefully and felt his whole body tremble. The cloth in his hand almost fell to the ground.

The first position on the list was clearly written: Dali Temple Minister, Zhang Shixian.

"How is this possible?"

Chu Shizhao muttered to himself.

Zhang Shixian was an important official of the dynasty, one of the Nine Ministers, and was always known for his integrity.

How come he is on this list of corruption cases?
Chu Shizhao continued to read on, and the more he read, the more frightened he became.

Li Mingyuan, the Minister of Rites, Wang Chengze, the Doctor of the Ministry of Revenue, Zhao Deming, the Director of the Ministry of War...

These names came into view one after another, and all of them were important officials in the court.

Chu Shizhao carefully put away the cloth and then ordered people to restore the tomb to its original state.

He had a plan in mind and this list must not be shown to anyone easily.

On the way back home, Chu Shizhao remained silent.

Li Feng secretly observed his master's expression and did not dare to say much.

"Go find a few reliable people and secretly monitor the movements of Zhang Shixian and Li Mingyuan."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Li Feng took the order and left.

After returning to the mansion, Chu Shizhao immediately dismissed his attendants and paced around the study alone.

Every name on this list frightened him.

These important officials in the court appeared to be honest and upright on the surface, but they were secretly involved in the major corruption case.

“If this list were made public”

Chu Shizhao frowned.

There will be chaos in the court and all officials will be shocked.

Zhang Shixian was the Minister of Dali Temple, one of the Nine Ministers. If he fell, more people would inevitably be implicated.

And those implicated will in turn identify more officials.

By then, God knows how many people will suffer.

"It seems that the Su family's unjust case is just a small knot in this big network."

Chu Shizhao muttered to himself.

While I was thinking, I heard hurried footsteps outside.

"Your Highness!"

Li Feng rushed in breathlessly, "Something terrible has happened!"

"Why are you panicking?"

"I just got the news that Zhang Shixian secretly met with Li Mingyuan, the Minister of Rites, tonight. The two had a secret conversation for two hours in Zuixian Tower in the south of the city."

Chu Shizhao's eyes narrowed: "Do you know what they talked about?"

"I sent someone to follow them, but I only heard a few words. It seemed...it seemed like they were talking about something about the 'Su family'."

"really."

Chu Shizhao sneered, "They have already noticed it."

At this moment, another guard came running in: “Your Highness, Chu Shiren just sent someone to the Su Mansion!”

Chu Shizhao stood up suddenly: "Do you know what was sent?"

"It is a letter, but the contents are unknown."

"interesting."

A cold light flashed in Chu Shizhao's eyes, "These people are very quick."

He walked to the window and looked at the dark night sky.

"Pass the order,"

Chu Shizhao said in a deep voice, "Starting tomorrow, send more people to monitor the Su Mansion, especially pay attention to the letters coming in and out. At the same time..."

He paused, a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes, "Pay close attention to Chu Shiren's movements, I want to know his every move!"

Li Feng took the order and left, and the study returned to peace again.

Chu Shizhao waved his hand to summon the system interface.

[After careful consideration, Chu Shizhao decided to announce the list in the court the next day. ]

[The next morning, he entered the palace early, and in front of Emperor Yongjin and all the civil and military officials, he unfolded the cloth and read out the names on it aloud.]

(End of this chapter)