Font Size:
In the past, his family had been poor, so they could only afford to send one person to school. Pang Lu was the more intelligent one, and the teacher appreciated him, giving him the chance to go to school.
The two brothers had always had a good relationship. Whenever Pang Lu returned home from school, he would teach Pang Xi how to read and write, so Pang Xi had learned as well.
“Okay, tell me everything again, and I’ll write it down. Once you sign and seal it, I’ll take it back to the capital. Of course, this testimony won’t be in vain.”
Luo Qing took out a silver note: “This is the reward.”
Pang Xi, hearing that the master only wanted him to state the facts and not confuse right and wrong, instinctively trusted Luo Qing. “I don’t want money. I just ask the master to protect me. If the master has any clues about my brother, please let me know.”
Luo Qing had helped Luo Ming handle similar matters before. Most of the families of witnesses he met were unwilling to leave their hometowns to be “protected.” This family was rare and clear-headed. They were willing to hide with his help, ensuring their safety and making it easier to contact the witness when needed in court.
“Okay, I promise you.”
_
Shi Zongnian sent people to Prince Rui’s palace several times to deliver letters, hoping to meet with Prince Rui.
Prince Rui did not respond for several days but eventually sent someone to reply, inviting him to meet in a teahouse in Yinling Lane in western Beijing.
Shi Zongnian had just heard that not only was the King of Chu involved in Ji Yanming’s case, but even the Luo family had started to show interest. Luo Ming was personally involved, and he couldn’t help but feel guilty.
The King of Chu had no one available under his command and was known for deceiving people. Shi Zongnian had never worried that the King of Chu would uncover anything, but the Luo family was different.
Although Grand Master Luo was old, he was still sharp. He had not attended court for many years due to illness but always kept an eye on court matters, leaving nothing unnoticed.
Luo Ming, a trusted cabinet minister, had earned the emperor’s trust because he was the eldest son of the Luo family. Now, after the prince’s scandal, the emperor trusted him even more because he was impartial and loyal.
Shi Zongnian frowned at Prince Rui and said, “Your Highness, I must be honest with you. I’m unsure. Do you think we can successfully bring Ji Yanming down this time? Will there be any mistakes?”
Prince Rui twirled the ring on his right thumb and coldly responded, “You did all of this yourself. Instead of asking me these silly questions, you should think carefully if you left any evidence or made mistakes, so you can fix them as soon as possible.”
The more Shi Zongnian thought about it, the more he felt this matter couldn’t stand up to scrutiny, and he began to back out: “If I go to the Dali Temple to explain everything, do you think the emperor would forgive me, considering I was deceived and confessed?”
“The memorials have been submitted to the emperor. The witnesses are gone, but the physical evidence remains. Lord Shi is starting to get scared now, isn’t it too late? Besides, it was you who asked Ji Yanming for those official documents, claiming he was too busy on the emperor’s tour to sign in advance. You asked him to sign a blank piece of paper for future use. Can you blame anyone else?”
Shi Zongnian started sweating.
Prince Rui patted him on the shoulder in a rare friendly gesture and said, “Now that things have reached this point, Lord Shi has no way out. Even if you are scared and want to retreat now, you should explain the matter to the emperor. Maybe you can place the blame on me and lessen your guilt. But how are you going to explain to the emperor about the cheating in the palace exam that year?”
The cold sweat on Shi Zongnian’s forehead kept increasing, and he anxiously began wiping it with his sleeve, forgetting his image as a scholar-official.
One wrong step led to more.
Seven years ago, he had sent someone to deliver a note to candidates during the provincial examination. Because the examiner opened the papers late, he arranged for one of his disciples to deliver the note and ensure the candidate could enter without having their inner lining checked.
Unfortunately, the handoff happened in a remote alley, and most candidates had already entered. He thought no one would see them, but on the exam day, Ji Yanming’s car had a broken wheel, so he took a shortcut and witnessed the handoff.
The student returned and told Shi Zongnian about it, describing the examinee’s clothes and appearance. After asking around, Shi Zongnian found out the person they met that day was Ji Yanming.
Although Ji Yanming never mentioned the incident, most likely because he was focused on the exam and didn’t pay attention, Shi Zongnian always felt uneasy about Ji Yanming seeing the incident and possibly identifying the student, implicating him.
Shi Zongnian repeatedly prevented Ji Yanming from taking the exam and had to watch him enter the Hanlin Academy. Later, he came up with this idea: first, ask Ji Yanming to sign and seal a blank piece of paper, then make false accusations against him.
This matter was inadvertently discovered by Prince Rui, who used it to threaten him, taking advantage of the prince’s scandal to capture Ji Yanming and remove the King of Chu’s right-hand man.
Many people had been using the deposed crown prince to create trouble and attack political opponents recently, and he wasn’t an exception.
Shi Zongnian grew more uneasy after hearing that the Luo family had intervened and Luo Taosheng had begun to support the emperor. He went to talk to Prince Rui, only to be denied responsibility so clearly.
After Prince Rui and Shi Zongnian parted ways, Prince Rui felt uneasy. He was ready to shut himself off from the world, painting a picture of eternal youth to present to his father, showing his devotion to landscape painting and claiming he had no time for court disturbances.
Before finishing the painting, a eunuch from the Xuanzheng Hall came to deliver the emperor’s order, saying that the emperor wanted to see him.
Prince Rui felt a little surprised.
When his father found out that he had planted people in the Imperial Academy to change the list, he was furious. Even though he used the excuse that he was blinded by love and only wanted Tao Sheng, he couldn’t escape.
The emperor still believed that placing people in the Hanlin Academy to challenge imperial power was unforgivable. After a severe beating, Prince Rui was forced to reflect on his mistakes in isolation and was never summoned again.
But why had the emperor suddenly invited him today?
In the Xuanzheng Hall, the emperor looked at Prince Rui kneeling on the ground with a grim expression: “Sixth Brother, do you admit your guilt?”
Before knowing the emperor’s purpose, Prince Rui naturally couldn’t admit to anything.
“I don’t know.”
Gao Zhen, standing nearby, kindly added, “The Dali Temple has already investigated Lord Ji’s affairs, and the emperor has personally interrogated Lord Shi from the Hanlin Academy, and he has confessed everything.”
The emperor added: “I saw that you sincerely admitted your guilt that day, and I thought you were honest. So I only punished you to reflect behind closed doors. Do you really think that I am old and confused? You want to fool me like this! How many people have you planted in the Hanlin Academy? Do you want to use Li Xueshi to serve you and enter the East Palace as the crown prince?”
_
Prince Rui knelt there, feeling cold all over.
The emperor thought Shi Zongnian was placed in the Hanlin Academy by Prince Rui, but that wasn’t true.
Prince Rui had exposed Shi Zongnian’s favoritism and corruption, wanting to use him against the King of Chu. It wasn’t as complicated as the emperor thought.
The Dali Temple likely found out Ji Yanming was innocent and interrogated Shi Zongnian. For some reason, Shi Zongnian blamed Prince Rui.
Prince Rui had framed Ji Yanming, but everyone knew he didn’t get along with the King of Chu. The emperor would have thought it was just a dispute between factions.
But now, the emperor firmly believed that Shi Zongnian was Prince Rui’s person. Prince Rui had promised his father there were no people in the Hanlin Academy except Qin Run, who was on the replacement list.
And then, just a month later, this happened again.
Now, the emperor was seeing this as Prince Rui’s failure to come clean about Shi Zongnian’s actions and a continued attempt to undermine the Hanlin Academy.
Prince Rui had crossed his father’s limits.
He used to falsely accuse others, but now he found himself framed.
Prince Rui was in disbelief. Who was behind this?
***
If you’d like to show your appreciation, consider buying me a coffee—it really helps me keep going! 𖹭
Don’t forget to check out more of Vyl’s projects! ۶ৎ
_
✨ For even more, click Vyl’s profile or this link! ⋆. 𐙚 ˚
↓↓↓
Vyl[Translator]
~Thank you soo much for the support! Love yaa~ ⋆.❤︎