mtlumby2d Chapter 139 The Sinner Is Someone Else
Chapter 139 The Sinner Is Someone Else
"Sister Cheng, please tell us where Daddy is. He is too busy to come back. We can go find him!"
Qi Xing questioned Cheng Wenwen.
Qi Qi also said, "Yes! Sister Cheng, can you take us to see Daddy? Okay?"
The two children pulled Cheng Wenwen's sleeves and twisted them. Cheng Wenwen was also helpless! Qi Shuo was in prison now, how could she just take them to see him?
Cheng Wenwen thought about it and could only make up an excuse to them: "What your father is doing is very confidential, so he can't show up for the time being, otherwise the emperor will punish him. You don't want to implicate your father and get him punished, right?"
"Dad is doing something confidential?" Qi Xing asked puzzledly.
Cheng Wenwen nodded: "Yes! Be good, you will meet your father in due time, okay."
Qi Xing frowned, still feeling something was wrong.
Qi Qi believed Cheng Wenwen's words easily and said, "Okay! Then we won't go to look for Daddy and disturb him. I don't want Daddy to be punished by the Emperor."
Cheng Wenwen nodded: "Yes! That's good! Okay, I'll ask someone to prepare dinner for you. You must be tired after reading books all afternoon!"
Qi Qi shook her head: "Not tired!"
Cheng Wenwen looked at Qi Xing: "What about you? Are you tired? Is there anything you want to eat?"
Qi Xing was warmed by Cheng Wenwen's concern, and shook his head and said, "I'm not tired, I want to eat braised pork."
Qi Qi followed happily and said, "I want to eat fried chicken legs!"
"Okay, you guys take a break, I'll ask the kitchen to make it for you."
Cheng Wenwen managed to fool people with great difficulty and breathed a sigh of relief. However, Qi Shuo didn't come out for a long time, and the two children wouldn't be able to see him. They would definitely make a fuss and become suspicious, and then she would be unable to hide it anymore.
Cheng Wenwen hopes that Qi Shuo will come out safely as soon as possible.
……
In the early morning, civil and military officials went to court to pay homage to the emperor and report on state affairs as usual.
The emperor on the throne was getting tired of listening to his ministers talking for so long.
But suddenly, someone started to speak: "Your Majesty, I have something to report!"
"What's the matter?"
The emperor just raised his eyelids slightly and looked at the minister who spoke below. It turned out to be Censor Xiao.
When the emperor saw him, his brows frowned slightly and he perked up a little.
This Censor Xiao came from a prominent family and was very methodical in his work. Whenever he made a report, it was bound to be bad news.
Xiao Yushi said: "Your Majesty, I would like to ask, how should we deal with Qi Shuo, the general of Shanzhou City?"
When the emperor heard about Qi Shuo, he became alert and pretended to be puzzled, saying, "Qi Shuo... I almost forgot about this man. He led the army poorly and caused the death of 20,000 generals in Shanzhou. His crime is extremely heinous. It is not too much to execute his entire clan!"
Censor Xiao then said loudly: "Your Majesty, there are still doubts in this matter. Qi Shuo cannot be convicted at this time."
"Oh?" the emperor asked, "What's the doubt? Could it be that there is someone else who caused the death of 20,000 soldiers?"
Xiao Yushi continued, "That's exactly what I meant! The real culprit is outside the palace right now. Your Majesty, please call him in, and the truth will be revealed."
"The real sinner?"
The emperor finally understood that Censor Xiao was here to clear Qi Shuo's name.
"How did you catch this criminal?" The emperor looked at him coldly.
Censor Xiao never participated in court disputes, and was mostly fair in his handling of affairs. He had angered the emperor many times because of his old-fashioned principles. The emperor had long wanted to remove him, but because he came from a prominent family, the Xiao family, and because he had a good reputation among the people for his fairness, the emperor had been reluctant to move.
The emperor also thought that as long as he did not threaten the imperial power, he could tolerate him.
However, Qi Shuo was the adopted son of the Duke of Yingzhou of Northwest China, and it was obvious that Censor Xiao was asked by the Duke of Yingzhou to come to defend Qi Shuo in front of him!
So, this Censor Xiao has defected to the Duke of England?
The more the emperor thought about it, the more unhappy he felt, and the more unfriendly his eyes became when he looked at Censor Xiao.
Well, there are more and more people from the Duke of England in the court. Is this still my court? Are they still my subjects?
"Your Majesty? Do you want to summon this criminal to the palace?" Censor Xiao reminded loudly again.
The emperor came back to his senses, sneered, and said in a low voice: "Announce it! Of course I will announce it!"
If the Duke of England places people around me, then I can also place people around him.
Qi Shuo is the candidate.
The Duke of England still cares about his son Qi Shuo, so the more useful Qi Shuo will be to him.
As the illegitimate son of Duke Ying, didn't Qi Shuo have any selfish desire to inherit the position of Duke Ying? He could have used this selfish desire to lure him with the promise of a high position and let him work for him.
By then, he would be able to take back the military power in the Northwest.
"Bring the people up!" the emperor waved his hand.
"Yes!"
Censor Xiao went out and then brought a man into the palace.
"Your Majesty! This man is Tan Dunsheng, the deputy general of Shanzhou City. After investigation, it was found that he is a Hu person. He sneaked into the Central Plains when he was young and became a traitor to the Hu people. He was the one who reported the news to the Hu people that night! Here is the evidence!"
Censor Xiao put the evidence up, and the emperor nodded and took a symbolic look at it.
He had originally planned to release Qi Shuo and use him for his own purposes, so now was the perfect time to go with the flow.
However, a man suddenly jumped out from the court and said, "Your Majesty, where did this evidence come from? We still need to consider it. What if it is forged?"
The person who spoke was Censor Chen.
Censor Chen is the emperor's man, so he naturally thinks of the emperor when he speaks. He knows that the emperor wants to take back the military power in the northwest, so it is impossible for him to let people go so easily.
However, Censor Chen flattered the wrong emperor in this matter. The emperor was eager to release Qi Shuo so that he could serve as his spy!
But after Censor Chen made this statement, the people on the emperor's side followed suit and began to attack Censor Xiao's evidence.
"Xiao Yushi, where did this evidence come from? Is it forged? You must explain it clearly one by one!"
Censor Xiao snorted coldly, "This evidence clearly describes Tan Dunsheng's background and life experience, and it is also verified by his confession. How can it be forged?"
"Then where does this evidence come from? Censor Xiao? Do you dare to tell me?" Censor Chen continued to press.
Xiao Yushi said: "Why not? This evidence was sent by someone sent by the British. Qi Shuo is his subordinate. He must find out the cause and effect of the matter!"
"The Duke of England? The Duke of England is Qi Shuo's adoptive father, so he naturally has to protect him. It's not surprising that he suddenly sends someone out to take the blame!"
Censor Xiao frowned and was about to retort, but at this moment, Duke Ying's followers were suddenly irritated and started to confront Censor Chen, saying, "How could Duke Ying protect Qi Shuo? He has always been defending his country and has never lost a battle. He cares for the people, so how could he tolerate the death of 20,000 soldiers? That's why Duke Ying immediately escorted Qi Shuo to the capital when he learned about Shanzhou's incident. Duke Ying's move can be described as sacrificing his own family for the sake of justice."
"That's right! If the Duke of England really wanted to protect Qi Shuo, he should just cover it up and not report it immediately! Why would he do that?"
The emperor's people also started to fight back: "Who knows the truth of the matter? The northwest is so far away, so it's just what the Duke of England said. What should we believe?"
"That's it!"
"..."
There was a lot of noise in the court, and the emperor was very annoyed by the noise. Finally, he couldn't help but scold all the court officials: "Alright! What are you arguing about! How disgraceful!"
The court officials were scolded and immediately shut up, all confessing their guilt: "Your Majesty, we have lost our manners, please forgive us!"
The court officials looked at the emperor quietly, waiting for his verdict. They could roughly guess that the emperor would not let Qi Shuo get away easily.
The emperor held the evidence in his hand and was silent for a moment.