After being rejected, he emptied the mansion and went into exile

That was when he received the secret memorial.

I received it before going to court.

The secret memorial listed Shen Maoshan's crimes.

His first reaction was very genuine. He felt that he could finally get rid of the annoying, nagging and boring Shen Maoshan.

Shen Maoshan has all the shortcomings of a civil official.

He is talkative and full of moral principles.

At the same time, he also has some advantages that others do not have.

In Shen Maoshan's eyes, the emperor is the most noble person.

The emperor's words are more important than anything else.

Even if he would oppose it every time, he would stop if the emperor did not agree.

He is not like those decadent old men who threaten his life all day long.

So when he went to court, the emperor hesitated.

I don’t know if his hesitation irritated some people, but that morning court session turned into a denunciation meeting for Shen Maoshan.

He paid close attention and found that both the eldest prince and the second prince had stood up.

The fourth prince did not stand up because he was still young enough to attend court.

But his maternal grandfather's family also stood up.

Only the third prince said nothing.

He actually didn't know that a marquis could have so many political enemies in the court.

After the court session, he asked Shen Maoshan to come to him directly.

Before that, he thought about it calmly.

If the majority of people impeach him, it means that there is indeed something wrong with him.

Of course, there is another possibility, that is, those people have the same purpose.

And Shen Maoshan is their common enemy.

So those people were temporarily united.

but……

This was all his conjecture.

It’s not because he is reluctant to part with Shen Maoshan, but because he is used to looking at things in this way.

In addition to these, he also wanted to hear what Shen Maoshan himself had to say.

At this time, Eunuch Gao walked in and said, "Your Majesty, the Marquis has arrived."

"Let him in."

"My Lord, the Emperor invites you."

Shen Maoshan walked in front with neat square steps, following closely.

He felt a little uneasy, wondering why so many ministers impeached him at the morning court today.

No one even spoke up for him.

The rest of the people just remained silent.

The emperor asked him to come over after the court session. I'm afraid...

He didn't dare to think too deeply, he could only constantly improve himself and be cautious.

He knelt down and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty."

The emperor did not turn around, but ordered: "Everyone go down, Gao Quan, you go down too."

Eunuch Gao: "Yes."

The palace maids and eunuchs quickly closed the door and retreated.

But everyone knew that today's conversation was not simple, and the emperor would not normally let Eunuch Gao come out.

When only the emperor and Shen Maoshan were left in the room, the emperor picked up the secret letter on the table and gave it to Shen Maoshan.

He said, "Look at this."

Shen Maoshan sat up straight and took the secret letter with both hands.

When he finished reading, his hands were shaking.

He fell to the ground and cried out, "Your Majesty, I am innocent. Some of these things were done by me, and some have nothing to do with me."

The emperor sat on the chair and said in a cold voice: "Tell me clearly what you did and what you didn't do."

Shen Maoshan swallowed his saliva and said, "Your Majesty, it says here that I went to drink wine. I did go, but that was because Lord Zhang invited me."

"So he invited you to go?"

"Reporting to the Emperor, last month, Lord Zhang recommended a famous doctor to me. He has been very kind to my daughter. I have thanked him many times, but he has never responded..."

The emperor stopped him from continuing, "I understand. And did you really do that?"

"And I'm going to buy some cakes for my mother. I don't know why, but after Lord Li's wife came to my house, my mother asked for our cakes."

"This Feicuixuan, my wife said that Lord Sun's wife often goes there, so she asked me to buy it for her..."

The emperor wanted to laugh as he listened.

If it were someone else, such a story would definitely be made up.

But if this person is Shen Maoshan, then the possibility is still very high.

Whether it is the pastry shop or the Jade Pavilion, there are spies from the Embroidered Uniform Guard inside, and Qiang people have been coming and going there recently.

He asked Pan Ye to investigate all the prominent figures in the capital.

Therefore, he also knew Shen Maoshan's whereabouts.

If it weren't for his ancestors' good deeds, he might have had to return to his hometown to farm.

Every day I think of my wife, children, mother and family.

However, it is also possible that he was pretending all along.

So what is his purpose?

So... he chose to believe Shen Maoshan.

But the whole thing is too weird.

There are too many people involved.

Some of the adults that Shen Maoshan mentioned just now were the second prince's men, some were the eldest prince's men, and some were even his men.

So he asked Shen Maoshan, "You feel you were wronged. Is there something wrong with this secret letter? Or is there something wrong with the memorial presented at this morning's court?"

Shen Maoshan raised his head and sweat began to form on his forehead.

His expression was somewhat painful. Based on his understanding of the emperor, this should be a punishment for him?

"Your Majesty, I have done nothing wrong. I have a clear conscience. Everything is entirely up to Your Majesty."

After Shen Maoshan said this, he lay down.

If Shen Maoshan pleaded for mercy at this time, the emperor might punish him completely.

But when he said this, the emperor believed him.

There was silence in the imperial study.

After a while, the emperor spoke.

"You said you were wronged, right?"

Shen Maoshan raised his head, his face already in tears.

"Your Majesty, the heavens can bear witness to my heart..."

"Okay, okay, I didn't say I'm going to punish you now."

When Shen Maoshan heard this, he thought the emperor believed him and immediately kowtowed to express his gratitude.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, listen to me."

"But now, you know you're under attack from both sides. If you didn't do anything, why are you in this situation now?"

Shen Maoshan thought about it and felt that it might be related to something.

but……

The emperor saw his hesitation.

He asked, "Why? Are you still trying to hide this from me at this time?"

Shen Maoshan lowered his head and said, "I dare not. But a few days ago, the eldest and second princes both approached me, as did the fourth prince... I rejected them all..."

The emperor asked, "Why do you refuse?"

Shen Maoshan said respectfully: "The emperor will make the final decision on the matter of appointing a crown prince. When it comes to right and wrong, you must remain silent."

The emperor nodded where Shen Maoshan couldn't see.

This person is indeed quite pedantic.

"In that case, I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself from your crime, what do you think?"

Shen Maoshan raised his head and said quickly, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."

"I haven't finished yet, don't get excited yet."

"So many people are impeaching you. I have no choice but to do something. What do you think I can do better?"

All along, Shen Maoshan was just pedantic, not stupid.

His eyes widened, "Your Majesty, are you trying to catch a big fish?"

The emperor laughed heartily, "Hahahaha, you are not that stupid."

Shen Maoshan smiled innocently.

He knew that at least his life was saved.