Daily life in the academy

Yan Minghe narrowed his eyes slightly and watched Yan Lang get on the carriage and drive out of the imperial city. He stood for a long time before slowly turning around and returning to the East Palace. His fourth brother was becoming more and more mature, so mature that he began to have feelings for others. Well... he would see what the gift was.

The second day, the eighth day of the first lunar month

As usual, the people got up before dawn to line up to buy food, and they were anxiously hoping that they could buy food before others and take it home. However, they never expected that the grain shops and fruit shops would remain open with no limit on the number of people. In addition, there were two soldiers guarding outside each shop. At first, no one knew why there were suddenly soldiers outside the shops, but when everyone was overjoyed and rushed to stock up, they realized that the two soldiers on guard were specifically there to deal with those customers who stocked up unreasonably. Although there was no limit on the number of people who could buy, they still had to buy on demand.

Everyone waited and watched for two days, and finally felt relieved when they found that the grain and fruit and vegetable stores had finally resumed normal supply.

The haze that shrouded Sheng'an City had dissipated, but a rumor arose from the streets and alleys overnight.

"Hey, have you heard? The food shortage in the city this time was actually caused by Concubine Li in the palace."

"I heard about it. Bah, she's truly a scoundrel who brought disaster to the nation. To win favor, she even allowed her father, Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Revenue, to embezzle hundreds of thousands of taels of silver."

"That's right. Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver are enough for ordinary people like us to eat and drink for dozens or even hundreds of lifetimes."

"I also heard..." One of them lowered his voice, motioned the other two to come closer, and said mysteriously: "I heard that Concubine Li was the murderer who killed the Queen."

"Ah...is this true? Don't talk nonsense."

"Hush, keep your voices down. If someone hears you talking nonsense about the royal family, you'll lose your head."

The three of them looked around in tacit understanding. Fortunately, there were no officials around, so they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"Is your information reliable?" I couldn't stop my curiosity.

"Of course." The man made a knife-like gesture towards his lower body and said, "A distant relative of mine was sent to the palace by his parents when he was young because his family was poor. 'Crack!' He became a eunuch with a single stroke of a knife. He's made a name for himself in the past two years. He recently asked for leave to go home to visit his family and repay his parents for their kindness in raising him. He was the one who told me this, so how could it be false?"

"People in the palace said it... so of course it's credible."

"Ah, this Lipin is too vicious."

"Who says it's not..."

...

When these rumors spread in the streets and alleys of Sheng'an City for three days, that is, on the 13th day of the first lunar month, when they were introduced into the Eastern Palace, Yan Minghe's investigation into the corruption case of Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Revenue was nearing completion.

Fusheng stood beside Yan Minghe and repeated the rumor in a low voice.

Yan Minghe smiled after hearing this. "It's indeed the work of my fourth brother. He always likes to make a big splash when doing things." He stopped writing, flexed his wrist, stood up, and said to Gao Quan and Chu Yi, who were standing outside: "Come on, follow me to the Ministry of Justice prison."

The Ministry of Justice was only responsible for detaining the suspects in this investigation and would not be involved in any other matters. Wen Ting escorted Yan Minghe all the way to the prison gate and then stopped, bowing and saying, "I will wait for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince outside."

Yan Minghe nodded slightly and walked down quickly. There was a smell of corruption and mold in the prison. He frowned slightly and took out a handkerchief to cover his nose.

"Your Highness, Zheng Guangyao is imprisoned here." Chu Yi walked in front on the right to lead the way for Yan Minghe.

Turning the corner, I saw Zheng Guangyao, who was wearing prison clothes, with messy hair, a face covered in black and gray, curled up in a corner.

"Open the prison door." Yan Minghe said lightly.

"Yes, Your Highness." The jailer who followed the three men immediately walked forward with a nod and bowed, and opened the cell door.

Gao Quan smiled kindly at the jailer and said, "Will you please step aside for a moment? Your Highness would like to discuss the case with this suspect."

"Yes, yes, I'll leave right away. If you need me to lock the door, just call me."

Yan Minghe ignored the movement behind him. He walked in slowly and stopped in front of Zheng Guangyao. The man in front of him had only been imprisoned for five days and seemed numb. It took him a long time to come back to his senses and realize that there was someone standing in front of him. The first thing he saw was a pair of finely crafted black boots with faint golden threads flowing on them, and above that was a black cloak. He knew at a glance that this cloak would definitely be able to resist the cold and damp air in this dungeon, but when his eyes met that face, he didn't care about his stiff body, and knelt down on the cold bluestone slab with a "thump".

"The criminal Zheng Guangyao pays homage to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Yan Minghe uttered a faint "hmm," took a step back, lowered the handkerchief covering his mouth and nose, and spoke slowly, "Zheng Guangyao, although you came to your senses and identified Zhang Huaicang for me, you knowingly broke the law and accepted bribes for three years. According to Yan State law, you will be exiled to Nanzhou to mine for Yan State for ten years. However, considering your sincere repentance, I will reduce your sentence by three years. Do you still have any doubts?"

"I acknowledge my crime and accept the punishment, but I beg Your Highness to help me take care of my wife, children and 60-year-old mother. I will be very grateful." Zheng Guangyao kowtowed continuously.

Yan Minghe frowned slightly and spoke to stop him. "No need to kowtow. Considering how much you've sacrificed for me, I will definitely not care about your family. Don't worry, after the seven years are up, I will ensure that you return to Sheng'an and live a worry-free life."

"The sinner Zheng Guangyao bows to thank Your Highness for his great grace."

Yan Minghe led his men out of the prison. When the jailer came to close the cell door, he saw Zheng Guangyao still lying on the ground. He felt a sense of pity and called out softly, "Zheng Guangyao, His Highness is gone. You don't have to kneel anymore."

These words fell on deaf ears, and no one in the cell responded. The jailer could only sigh, shake his head, and leave. When all around him fell into silence, Zheng Guangyao slowly got up from the ground, curled up against the wall, and stared at the ground in a daze with lifeless eyes.

When Marquis Wenting saw Yan Minghe walking out quickly, he immediately went to greet him, "Your Highness, are you leaving?"

Yan Minghe smiled and nodded: "Thank you for your company, Minister Wen. I will be leaving now."

"I respectfully send you to His Highness the Crown Prince."

After leaving the Ministry of Justice, Chu Yi asked in a low voice: "Your Highness, where are we going next?"

"Go to the Censorate and summon the three courts to a joint trial. Minister Zhang is a senior official of the fourth rank. If you want to convict someone, you can't make the decision alone."

...

On the 14th day of the first lunar month, the fourth morning court session after the New Year

Three days ago, Yan Yunrui saw that all his officials were submissive and he was so angry that he started scolding everyone under him. Of course, these people did not include General Mu Feng, and several princes and emperors.

Ning Wang Yantai saw that his brother was so angry that he could only breathe, and he could not bear it any longer, so he spoke out to persuade him: "Royal brother, don't be angry, be careful not to get sick from anger."

Mu Feng also took the opportunity to echo: "That's right, Your Majesty wants me to tell you that if you don't like those disobedient ministers, just give the order and kill them with a sword."

As soon as he said this, all the officials became even more silent. Yan Tai glared at him speechlessly. Mu Feng touched his nose. He felt that he was not wrong. If a soldier under his command embezzled so much money, anyone who dared to do so would be tantamount to risking his life.

Until the fourth day, which was today... Yan Yunrui was tired of scolding, so he kept silent and just waved his hand. Wang Changqing understood, and his sharp and penetrating voice echoed through the hall: "If you have something to say, please report it. If not, please dismiss the court."