In the novel "Joy of Life," the protagonist wakes up at Li Chengze's residence.

The bronze crane incense burner emitted bluish smoke, and the morning light slanted through the golden nails of the palace gate.

His tone was unreadable, but everyone in the hall could see the shadow cast by his eyelashes when he lowered his eyes.

Everyone felt a tightness in their throats, and a strange chill crept up their spines.

I have a bad feeling about this.

Seeing the situation, the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Justice stepped forward and presented the evidence of Xu Wangzhou's crimes accumulated over many years of official service.

When the ebony tray carrying the book of crimes was handed to Li Chengze, he handed it to Tao Jingyang without even glancing at it.

The ministers sat, and the emperor stood. All the ministers remained silent, watching this absurd scene without uttering a sound.

Perhaps to stall for time, she would look up and measure Xu Wangzhou from head to toe every time she turned a page.

Sweat beads trickled down Xu Wangzhou's graying temples, seeping into the corners of his mouth along his nasolabial folds. His once straight back now slumped slightly due to his guilty conscience.

Even so, they still stubbornly refused to back down and were determined to fight to the end.

He couldn't believe that even though he had risen to the third rank, the emperor would actually care about his minor violations.

Among these pages are three pages on buying and selling official positions, eight pages on wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice, five pages on embezzlement and bribery, and one page on helping his youngest son settle his misdeeds.

The list of crimes totals 108, which is just enough to make up a book called Water Margin.

"Sigh, buying and selling official positions, rendering false judgments, accepting bribes..." These are all capital offenses. Tao Jingyang sighed softly after reading through the list.

"Comrade Xu, I was wondering why I had a headache when I was reviewing certain memorials. It turns out that these wise men are either your nephews or your cousins."

"Snap!"

She tossed the folded document in front of Xu Wangzhou, and the guards immediately surrounded her.

Without giving the latter any chance to refute, they took advantage of the moment he opened his mouth to shout something, stuffed an unknown rag over his mouth, and dragged him away.

The gold-embroidered official boots left long scratches on the glazed bricks.

It was as if he was the one who was unwilling to accept it.

Fan Xian squatted down, picked up the folded document, flipped through it, and marveled at it, shaking his head repeatedly. He even wanted to show it to his father.

His father dismissively flicked his sleeve and told him to get lost with a look.

But how could a high-ranking official of the third rank be dragged away on the spot like that?

No one in the hall cared about Qian Ling and Fan Sizhe anymore. It was terrifying; this Lafayette looked like it was about to have its property confiscated.

As the morning light filtered through the hall, casting dappled shadows, dust motes floated and sank within the beams of light.

Sure enough, that's exactly what happened.

"The Censorate will lead people to confiscate their property, and all the officials listed in this book will also be dealt with."

Such a powerful family was destroyed in front of everyone in such a simple and absurd way, without any warning.

It's a hundred times easier than destroying an anthill; it's as if a mere breeze could blow away its former glory without a trace.

When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. The ministers were stunned into silence for a second, just a second.

Then things erupted into a commotion, with a great clamor of voices.

"This Xu Wangzhou is so audacious!" A minister's eyes widened in anger, as if he wanted to devour Xu Wangzhou alive.

"How dare he buy and sell official positions, embezzle and accept bribes?!"

"Damn it, I never realized he was a parasite on the court." Another official frowned, his face full of frustration and resentment.

He stomped his foot heavily, wishing he could turn back time and see through Xu Wangzhou's true colors sooner.

Even the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who had been promoted by Xu Wangzhou, was now mixed in with the crowd, his eyes filled with panic, fine beads of sweat on his forehead, and he was shouting and cursing along with the crowd.

The more he cursed, the further away he got from where Xu Wangzhou had been standing, for fear of getting caught up in this misfortune.

Those who can enter this grand hall to attend court and discuss matters are considered the best among officials.

But if everyone were to honestly examine their own conscience, I'm afraid they wouldn't be able to find many people whose hands are absolutely clean.

Those who abide by the rules and have faith are few and far between; most people wallow in this murky world, getting stained black and dirty.

Tao Jingyang listened quietly to the chorus of curses, secretly calculating the time in his mind, estimating that it was almost past 9 a.m.

However, Chen Pingping had not yet returned. Just as she slightly raised her hand, intending to have someone read out the incriminating evidence one by one, the servant behind her left crouched down and quietly handed her a slip of paper.

With a glance, she saw only a few words, but when she and Li Chengze exchanged a look, they both knew that the matter was settled.

The people around are still cursing each other passionately, their faces flushed.

She coughed lightly, creating a small opening in the noise, and the hall quickly quieted down.

"There's no need for you all to curse. The Ministry of Justice will give him a fair result. Why waste your breath?" She said with a faint smile.

His gaze remained gentle, but then he turned his attention to the Censorate, asking, "Censor Lai has not spoken today. What is your opinion on this matter?"

Imperial Censor Lai, his back hunched, straightened his sleeves and clasped his hands, saying, “A country has its laws, and a family has its rules. Xu Wangzhou holds a high position but sits improperly. I agree with the Imperial Preceptor’s decision.”

“Okay.” Tao Jingyang leaned forward and heard the faint sound of a wheelchair coming from outside the hall, which made her eyes light up.

She subconsciously turned her head to look at Li Chengze, only to see that the latter's ears twitched, his lips curled up, and he said in a low voice, "It's done."

Okay, let's whisper to each other now (Tianjin accent)

Fan Xian still held the indictment in his hand, his two long fingers pinched and raised upwards. "May I ask, gentlemen, would you still like me to read the indictment aloud?"

"No need." Tao Jingyang smiled broadly, his gaze piercing through the crowd and looking straight at the palace gate. "Dean Chen acted quickly and is back."

"So fast." Fan Xian casually remarked, then turned and stepped forward to greet Chen Pingping as if nothing was amiss.

Everyone turned around and realized that Chen Pingping had quietly arrived at the door at some point.

He was steadily pushed in by Fan Xian, dressed in a purple and gold robe, and carrying a trace of murderous aura brought in from outside the palace.

As we passed by, it felt as if a cold wind swept across our faces, sending chills down our spines once again.

"Reporting to Saint Anne, the Censorate has fulfilled its mission. From the beginning of the day to noon today, a total of 286 brothels and brothels were shut down."

"A total of 523 brothel owners and managers have been arrested. More than 1,600 prostitutes and more than 200 male prostitutes have been identified and are now all sealed off in their original locations. People have been assigned to guard them."

Chen Pingping's words were clear and powerful, each word landing firmly in the ears of every official.

The incident happened so suddenly that everyone was stunned and stood there, unable to react to what was going on.

Closing brothels? What's going on? Why are all the officials unaware of this?

While everyone was still confused, some officials in the hall had already begun to quietly wipe their sweat with their sleeves.

Opening a brothel isn't easy; without qualifications and protection, you can't just open one with money.

Almost every brothel had a high-ranking official protecting it. As the ultimate boss, they protected the brothels' various evil deeds, such as trafficking people, forcing people to sign indentured contracts, and forcing them to sell themselves.

Only now have people realized that the verdict was just the prelude; the real reason was to use this incident to detain them in the palace and prevent them from becoming "protective umbrellas."

Tao Jingyang coldly watched as more and more people below wiped their sweat, a silent, sarcastic smile playing on his lips.