This made Li Shimin anxious, and he wanted to trade one for one with me.

Upon hearing this, Ma Zhou asked curiously, "Brother Chuxia, what do you need their names for?"

Cheng Jun stated bluntly, "I need to know who they are. They've bullied me; how can I let them get away with it?"

"This time, none of them will escape!"

Ma Zhou suddenly realized, "That makes sense. Cheng Jun is the kind of person who will retaliate for even the smallest grievance, and will repay even the smallest favor. With so many money-catching clerks targeting him, it would be strange if Cheng Jun didn't retaliate."

"it is good!"

Ma Zhou straightened his imperial censor's robe, put on his xiezhi crown, and walked solemnly toward the Du family's gate.

Everyone was taken aback when they saw that an imperial censor was walking over.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Ma Zhou first bowed to those of higher rank than him, then looked at the more than six hundred money-collecting clerks and announced in a loud voice:

"I am Ma Zhou, an Inspector of the Censorate. I have come here on the orders of Grand Censor Wen Yanbo to ask you some questions!"

Ma Zhou walked towards Lin Lingshi, then looked at the other money-collecting clerks who had come to watch, and said with a stern face, "Report your names and positions to me one by one now!"

Hu Yan snorted coldly, "There's no paper or pen here!"

Ma Zhou said calmly, "No need for paper and pen, I can remember it!"

Hu Yan's eyes narrowed upon hearing this, and he was somewhat surprised. He truly hadn't expected Ma Zhou to have such a photographic memory.

Not only him, but the military officers were also surprised.

Li Jing watched him with great interest. After he memorized the names and positions of all the money-catching clerks and turned to leave, Li Jing immediately got up and chased after Ma Zhou.

"Imperial Censor Ma, please wait a moment."

Upon hearing the voice, Ma Zhou turned around and saw that it was Li Jing who had come after him. Knowing that he was one of his own, he immediately bowed in a friendly manner and said, "Greetings, Minister Li."

Li Jing nodded in acknowledgment and asked, "Where is Cheng Jun?"

Ma Zhou just said he was acting on Wen Yanbo's orders, but Li Jing didn't believe him at all. He suspected that Cheng Jun was nearby and had instructed Ma Zhou to go there.

"At this!"

At that moment, Cheng Jun waved from around the corner and said.

Li Jing smiled. Just as he had guessed, the kid was indeed here. He walked over and said, "My dear nephew, things are in complete chaos over there, yet you've been hiding on the sidelines watching the show?"

Cheng Jun said, "This is called 'the person is formless while I am formless'."

Li Jing laughed and scolded, "Is this how you use Sun Tzu's Art of War?"

After saying that, he glanced at Ma Zhou and said, "You are quite good; you have the makings of a prime minister."

"Minister Li is too kind." Ma Zhou understood his meaning immediately and looked at Cheng Jun, saying, "Brother Chuxia, I'll go back and copy down those names first. We'll meet at the Vermilion Bird Gate later."

"Thank you for your trouble, Brother Binwang!"

"Farewell!"

Cheng Jun watched him leave until he was out of sight, then turned to Li Jing and said, "Uncle Li, thank you so much for arriving in time, otherwise things would have been much more complicated."

"I can't be of much help to you in this matter."

Li Jing waved his hand and sighed, "Because I am the Minister of War, not the Minister of Justice, the Ministry of War has no right to reject cases handled by the Court of Judicial Review."

"Hu Yan is the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. Investigating cases is simply part of his job."

"According to the laws of my Great Tang Dynasty, if I were to forcibly obstruct this, it would be an overstepping of my authority."

"I understand, nephew."

Cheng Jun nodded slightly.

The imperial court established official positions and assigned duties so that each official would fulfill their responsibilities, perform their duties, and do their own thing, without interfering with each other.

If someone oversteps their own department, does things that are not their responsibility, or meddles in other people's affairs, then they are overstepping their authority and encroaching on others' duties.

According to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, the punishment was seventy strokes of the cane.

Li Jing stared at him and said, "Our Great Tang has officials who can report on matters. Once they learn of this matter, they will surely report it to His Majesty."

“If it weren’t for the fact that my Great Tang Dynasty had a system of redemption for punishment, where one could pay off the debt with copper, I’m afraid I wouldn’t even dare to touch that Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review.”

Li Jing continued, "The reason why Hu Yan prefers a standoff to a confrontation is firstly because we outnumber each other and each of us has a powerful background. If a fight breaks out, he won't be able to handle the consequences."

"Secondly, what your brother said about the Du family mother and daughter climbing over the wall can be considered a legitimate reason. Hu Yan knows that although I have overstepped my authority, I have not prevented him from doing his job, so he does not dare to completely offend me."

"That's the reason for the current stalemate."

Li Jing's expression turned serious, and he pointed to the top of his head, saying, "But soon, this matter will reach the ears of the Emperor."

“Once His Majesty intervenes in this matter, I will have to leave, because this matter will become an imperial case. I don’t know who will take over this matter, but given Changsun Wuji’s connections in the court, it will definitely be detrimental to you.”

Have you figured out what to do?

Cheng Jun nodded and said, "I've thought it over. I want to enter the palace..."

Li Jing raised his hand and immediately interrupted, saying, "Stop. I don't want to know what you're going to do, and you shouldn't tell anyone else. Just keep it to yourself."

“There are some things that you don’t know, which is called ignorance is no crime. But if you do know them and something goes wrong, at the very least it’s concealing the truth, and at worst it’s deceiving the emperor, with unimaginable consequences.”

Cheng Jun bowed respectfully and said, "I have learned a great deal."

Li Jing was very pleased with his humility and politeness, and said, "Nephew Cheng, you have already achieved something extraordinary by being able to arm wrestle with Changsun Wuji until now. It is only a matter of time before you become famous throughout the world."

"That's why I have two pieces of advice for you."

He held up two fingers and said seriously, "One of them is what civil officials often say: 'An official should think thrice before acting.'"

That sounds familiar...

Cheng Jun was taken aback and asked, "Is it 'thinking of danger, thinking of retreat, thinking of change'?"

Li Jing said in surprise, "You're quite knowledgeable. Not bad, this is what it means to think thrice before acting as an official."

Cheng Jun asked, "Is the second sentence about putting oneself in a desperate situation to find a way out?"

"..."

Li Jing felt he couldn't quite keep up with Cheng Jun's pace of speech. He paused for a moment before continuing, "That's right, that's what our military officers often say!"

Cheng Jun pondered for a moment and said, "I think the second option is more suitable for me now."

"The second type..."

Li Jing pondered his words for a moment, then his expression suddenly changed, and he exclaimed in surprise, "You want to participate...!"

Cheng Jun nodded and said, "Yes."

Li Jing rubbed his ears and said, "My ears are ringing, I didn't hear anything. What did you just say?"

"I wish to petition Your Majesty."

"..."

Li Jing's facial muscles twitched. This time, he couldn't pretend he hadn't heard. He straightened his face and said, "Nephew Chuxia, are you trying to drag this old man into this?"

Cheng Jun spread his hands and said, "Uncle Li, you shouldn't have come over just now. If you hadn't come over, no one would have suspected you of doing this. But as soon as you came over, people would suspect that you were the one who gave me the idea."

"So whether you know it or not, the result is the same, so it doesn't matter if you know it or not."

Li Jing pondered for a moment, then thought his words made sense, and asked, "Should I advise you not to go?"

Cheng Jun asked, "If I don't go, Du Jingjian will suffer injustice, and my reputation will be damaged. I might even lose my position as an imperial censor. It concerns our futures. Uncle Li, will you try to persuade me again?"

Li Jing remained silent for a few seconds, then sighed, "How can I possibly persuade them now...?"

Cheng Jun smiled and said, "But Uncle Li did advise me, but I didn't listen. When His Majesty asks, I can use this to prove that I impeached His Majesty and that it had nothing to do with you."

Li Jing breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and couldn't help but look at him a few more times, saying with a smile, "You've certainly thought this through."

"Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Gone."

Li Jing waved his hand and said, "Then go! I wish you a triumphant return!"

"I'll take my leave now!"

"Go!"

Li Jing watched as Cheng Jun mounted his horse and headed towards the palace.

Soon, Cheng Jun rode his horse to the outside of the Vermilion Bird Gate and saw Ma Zhou walking towards him.

"Brother Chuxia, here is the list you requested."

…………

There will be an extra chapter later.