Prime Minister.

Chapter 38 038 [In the Prime of Life]

The investigation office.

With Shen Wang's order, the place returned to its previous closed state.

However, news had already spread that the four departments of the Ministry of Works had been almost completely wiped out. Now no one dared to criticize Shen Wang for remaining unmoved. This leader of the Qingliu faction had indeed made a stunning move. Once the lid on the Ministry of Works was lifted, it would be difficult to cover it up again.

Inside the yamen, Shen Wang did not take the opportunity to deliver an inspiring speech. He only asked everyone to devote all their energy to getting the officials involved in the case to talk as soon as possible and to make these cases airtight.

For several days in a row, the officials in the investigation department worked day and night, taking turns in two shifts. On one hand, they searched for evidence in those seemingly flawless case files and ledgers, and on the other hand, they repeatedly interrogated the officials involved who had become prisoners.

By the 23rd, the officials involved had confessed almost everything. As Shen Wang had expected, these people implicated many other officials, including high-ranking officials at the vice minister level.

There are certainly some true testimonies in this, but we cannot rule out the possibility that some people are making baseless accusations out of desperation.

Shen Wang's decision was very clear: he was determined to solidify the crimes of the officials involved in the Ministry of Works case, while he would handle all other high-ranking officials implicated.

After nightfall, Xue Huai looked at the neatly arranged case files on the table and stretched lazily.

He was indeed very tired, but he didn't feel sleepy at all; his stomach was rumbling with hunger.

He got up and walked out of the duty room where he had been working for nearly ten days. Under the cold moonlight, he walked towards the kitchen in the southeast corner.

The interior of the government office was cramped and compact, with the kitchen and canteen squeezed together. These days, the officials from the investigation department, including Shen Wang, had been eating in this small room.

This not only made it easier for them to discuss the case during meals, but also deepened their friendship.

Upon entering the cafeteria, Xue Huai found it brightly lit by candlelight.

"Here comes another one."

A cheerful, laughing voice rang out.

Xue Huai looked up and saw Ge Cunyi, a supervising secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, as well as Fang Jiming, a principal of the Ministry of Justice, and Chen Zhi, a judge of the Court of Judicial Review, among others.

In short, apart from Yuan Cheng, the Censor of the Censorate, the other key members of the investigation department were all in this small canteen at the moment.

"With everyone here, could it be that someone sent out invitations?"

Xue Huai smiled and stepped forward, picked up a sesame seed cake from the table, broke it open, and put it in his mouth.

"Everyone was busy until late at night and got hungry, so I asked the cook to make a few plates of snacks so that anyone who came over could have something to eat."

As Chen Zhi explained, he poured a cup of tea and handed it to him.

Xue Huai thanked him and accepted the gift.

These days of getting along made him realize that everyone has their own strengths. The absent Imperial Censor Yuan was like a block of ice, with extremely sharp words. He often made the officials involved in the case weep. For example, Qi Huan, the Assistant Director of the Water Conservancy Department of the Ministry of Works, was so angry that he fainted several times because of Yuan Cheng's barrage of scolding.

Fang Jiming, the chief of the Ministry of Justice, had a completely different style. He rarely spoke harshly when interrogating criminals, but he could always find loopholes in their confessions through meticulous analysis, and then break down their psychological defenses step by step.

Several censors were experts at following the clues, especially Ge Cunyi, the seemingly carefree censor of the Ministry of Revenue. This time, the investigation team was able to compare the two sets of account books of the Ministry of Works and find out the hidden truth in a very short time. Ge Cunyi's contribution was second only to Xue Huai.

As for Chen Zhi, the judge of the Court of Judicial Review, he left Xue Huai with the impression of being calm and meticulous, like a strategist in charge of the rear in those folk tales, who could handle every matter properly.

He always takes care of everyone's feelings, yet he never comes across as humble or obsequious.

Working side by side in such a group, Xue Huai naturally had many feelings.

"As expected of Judge Chen, we can only sit back and enjoy the fruits of his labor."

Ge Cunyi joked with a smile, his narrow eyes gleaming.

Chen Zhi laughed and said, "If you feel bad about it, you might as well give me a few hundred coins as a reward, and the cook and I will split it in half."

Ge Cunyi quickly shook his head and said, "That won't do. My monthly salary is only five taels of silver, and I only get three taels in hand. I have several mouths to feed at home, how can I pretend to be rich when I'm not?"

Everyone laughed, but there was a hint of bitterness in their laughter.

Compared to previous dynasties, the salaries of officials in the Great Yan Dynasty were neither high nor low. However, in the present day, after more than a hundred years of peace, prices in various places have been rising, and the situation of officials in the capital is particularly difficult.

Without the support of his family, an honest official like Ge Cunyi would certainly be short of money.

In contrast, the officials involved in the case in the Ministry of Works were all bloated with wealth, having amassed their fortunes through the ill-gotten gains of the people.

The atmosphere was somewhat oppressive. Seeing this, Ge Cunyi smiled and said, "Everyone, please take it easy. Since we are following the example of the Vice Minister, we should have been prepared for this kind of frugal life. Besides, the Vice Minister led us to investigate those corrupt officials. Even if he didn't achieve great merit, he must have worked hard. The court should reward him, right?" Chen Zhi nodded and said, "Of course."

Ge Cunyi, being a free spirit, looked at the silent Xue Huai and changed the subject, asking, "Xue Huai, when do you plan to get married?"

Xue Huai smiled and said, "I haven't thought about it yet. Brother Ge, are you planning to introduce me to a marriage?"

Ge Cunyi exclaimed "Eh!" seemingly surprised by Xue Huai's response, and then added, "Speaking of which, I can actually introduce a good match."

Upon hearing this, Fang Jiming, Chen Zhi, and the others looked over, their faces showing curiosity.

Ge Cunyi continued, “My wife’s family has a distant relative who is said to be beautiful, skilled in needlework, and very gentle. She is seventeen years old this year, but her family background is not good enough for the Xue family.”

Xue Huai had only intended to liven up the atmosphere, but he didn't expect it to involve others. He could only wave his hand and say, "Thank you for your kindness, Brother Ge, but I am still young. Let's talk about marriage in a couple of years."

Ge Cunyi seemed to feel regretful, but he also knew that the Xue family had high standards, and perhaps the person in the palace would pay attention to Xue Huai's marriage because of Xue Mingzhang, so he smiled and let it go.

At this moment, Fang Jiming interjected, "Brother Ge, you should know that when Brother Xue passed the imperial examination two years ago, countless prominent families in the capital were inquiring about him. If it weren't for Minister Shen speaking up, we might have witnessed the story of 'catching a son-in-law after passing the examination.'"

Ge Cunyi glanced at Xue Huai's young and handsome face and couldn't help but sigh, "If my parents had given me such good looks back then, I could have experienced the feeling of 'finding a son-in-law after passing the imperial examination'."

Chen Zhi laughed and said, "Be careful that your sister-in-law doesn't hear you saying that."

Ge Cunyi subconsciously shrank his neck.

Everyone pointed at him and laughed, but Ge Cunyi didn't mind, and the atmosphere immediately became cheerful.

Xue Huai smiled faintly, feeling quite pleased.

Apart from Yuan Cheng, who is older, the others are all in their twenties. They have different personalities but the same aspirations. Working with such a group of like-minded people is undoubtedly a wonderful experience.

Fang Jiming looked at Xue Huai and said, "To be honest, the person who surprised me the most during this period was Brother Xue."

Xue Huai asked curiously, "What do you mean by that, Brother Fang? Did I give you a bad impression before?"

His question was not pretentious. Over the past two years, the name Xue Huai had sounded jarring to many officials in the court. He had even found it difficult to get along with his colleagues in the Hanlin Academy, let alone those who heard rumors about him.

To everyone's surprise, Fang Jiming firmly replied, "Absolutely not! Brother Xue, in the past two years, I have observed your actions. Perhaps some of your behavior has not been smooth enough, but I deeply admire your pure heart. You could have enjoyed a life of ease and comfort, but you chose to forgo stability and wealth, repeatedly braving dangers to plead for the people. No matter how high-ranking or lowly the officials are, as long as they have some conscience, how can they slander your actions?"

A slight ripple stirred in Xue Huai's heart.

Ge Cunyi's smile vanished, and he said seriously, "Those people speak so ill of Brother Xue simply because they are afraid of your continuous impeachments. But since they can't find any dirt on you, they want to destroy you with rumors. As the saying goes, 'three men can make a tiger, and accumulated rumors can destroy bones.' These scoundrels only have such despicable methods. I have never believed that an upright person who disregards his future and only wants to bring down those corrupt officials could be so eccentric and difficult to get along with?"

He paused, looked at Xue Huai, and said, "You gave a good scolding at the grand court assembly that day. I wanted to have a good drink with you then!"

Even though Xue Huai had lived two lives, he was still deeply moved at this moment and nodded, saying, "There will definitely be such an opportunity."

"Brother Fang and Brother Ge are right."

Chen Zhi picked up the conversation and said calmly, "Through our time together, I have seen very clearly that Brother Xue is a loyal and honest person, and the other rumors about his strange temperament are utterly absurd."

Xue Huai sighed inwardly, but pretended to be troubled: "Brothers, if you keep praising me like this, I'm afraid I won't be able to tell east from west."

Laughter broke out again.

Ge Cunyi downed the tea in his cup in one gulp and said with a complicated expression, "The Vice Minister has decided to go to court tomorrow to report back, so this case will most likely end here. Although a large group of corrupt officials in the Ministry of Works have been caught, I still feel it's a bit of a pity."

Fang Jiming asked, "You think that's not enough?"

"No."

Ge Cunyi shook his head, his gaze falling on Xue Huai's face, and sighed softly, "Once this case is closed, we will all return to our respective offices, and I'm afraid we will rarely have the opportunity to fight side by side like we have this time in the future."

Xue Huai got up to pour him some tea, gently patted his arm, and said calmly, "Brother Ge, there's no need to be sad. We'll definitely have the opportunity to work together again in the future."

After all, he was Shen Wang's highly regarded disciple, and everyone else looked at him with anticipation.

Ge Cunyi quickly asked, "Why are you so certain?"

Xue Huai looked at everyone one by one and said firmly, "Because we are still young."

As the candlelight flickered, knowing smiles appeared on the faces of the young people.

(End of this chapter)