The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 365

Princess Jinyang wasn't about to tolerate him. She snorted coldly and said, "Search for me!"

The two soldiers immediately pinned Chen Wenlong to the table and quickly found a piece of paper in the lining of his clothes.

Xu Tian took the evidence and casually said, "It seems to be this."

"Xu Tian, ​​why won't you let me go? Why do you keep making things difficult for me? What deep-seated hatred do I have for you? Don't other officials embezzle? It's just a mere ten thousand, why are you holding onto me?"

Xu Tian sneered, then said, "Take him away."

Moreover, it was evidence of Magistrate Chen's corruption and dereliction of duty, which, along with the previously obtained fake account book, was written in the memorial and sent back to Chang'an.

Meanwhile, in the Golden Palace, Li Shimin remained calm and composed, revealing no discernible thoughts. In the past, he might have intentionally favored Xu Tian, ​​but now the emperor was calm, collected, and at ease.

It was clear that Xu Tian's matter had been settled, and for a moment everyone was a little uneasy, wanting to see what would become of Duan Lun, the Minister of Works.

Sure enough, this Lun acted like a frightened bird.

"Chen Duan Lun is guilty."

Li Er was in a good mood and then said, "What crime have you committed, my dear minister?"

Seeing the Emperor's distracted expression, Duan Lun felt as if he had been slapped in the face and said, "I am guilty of failing to investigate. I should not have believed that a false document could convict Prince Rui. Prince Rui is loyal to the Emperor and loves his country."

Li Er wanted to tell all the court officials about this, so he immediately said, "Duke Zhenguo, you read it aloud."

Wei Zheng took the letter and said, "In the first month of the third year of Zhenguan, Magistrate Chen rebelled against the Tang Dynasty and fled to the Western Turks."

The account book, signed and sealed by Magistrate Chen Wen, matched almost perfectly with the one mentioned by the Minister of Works. However…

Wei Zheng turned to look at the Minister of Justice.

Li Daozong, the Minister of Justice, stepped forward.

"Comparing the two pieces of evidence, the first one is insufficient and clearly a frame-up of Prince Rui. The latter, however, is sufficient to prove that Chen Wenlong, the magistrate of Congling County, betrayed his country for personal gain and committed embezzlement and perverted the law."

After Li Daozong finished speaking, he subconsciously glanced at Duan Lun. The two of them had worked together in the same court for several years. This Minister of Works was so brainless that now he had no way out.

Even Li Daozong was somewhat helpless when he saw the look Li Daozong was giving him.

Duan Lun watched as Li Shimin remained expressionless in court, saying little from beginning to end. He then knelt down with a thud, his face contorted with rage, and said, "Your Majesty, I was unaware of the false testimony and it was truly wrong of me to falsely accuse Prince Rui. However, I was genuinely worried about the border! I feared that the foreign tribes might rebel at this time. I was foolish! Please forgive me, Your Majesty, for my patriotic heart."

Eunuch Kou immediately curled his lip in disdain. If patriotism could be a crime, and if the emperor were to convict him, wouldn't that chill the hearts of all the officials in the land?

"I implore Your Majesty to give Minister Duan a chance to reform and start anew."

"Your Majesty, please consider his years of diligent work as Minister of Works and give him a lenient sentence. Lord Duan has been deceived by treacherous people. Please give him a lenient sentence."

Li Shimin only said: "This Magistrate Chen's defection to the enemy and betrayal of the country is truly wrong. Chen Wenlong has fabricated evidence to frame Prince Rui, which is even more wrong. Issue my decree that this person has betrayed the country. If he returns from the Western Turks, he shall be brought back to the Tang Dynasty and his entire family shall be executed. Chen's descendants shall never be employed again."

Eunuch Kou immediately stepped forward and shouted, "Dismiss the court."