History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 422 The Emperor Listens to Yu Yao's Trial of the Case

Escorting Xue Zhixiao into the palace was meant to lure out the powerful mastermind. Simply bringing Xue Zhixiao into the palace would be a waste of time. The only option was to interrogate Liu Shun based on the clues Xue Zhixiao provided last night and petition His Majesty to arrest the eunuch Liu Teng. But how much evidence could they find on the eunuch father and son?
Wei Yao remained calm and undeterred, saying, "The carriage's reckless movements just now reminded me of the death of Wu Bo'an from the Prince of Guangping's mansion. I would like to trouble you, Your Excellency, to arrange for someone to go to that fish market while I bring the prisoner to the palace."

Seeing Yuan Zhi's worried expression, she whispered to comfort him, "Uncle, don't worry. I had already thought of the other party seeing through the trap, and I have a plan."

Yuan Zhi didn't waste any more time. He took out the bone whistle tied to his collar, blew it, and turned his horse around. As the whistle blew, soldiers disguised as civilians followed him from both sides of the street and headed south of the city.

On the east-west street south of Yijingfang, the passerby who had been suspected by the soldiers and Zhao Cao walked hurriedly. Under the woven handkerchief, he was breathing rapidly. The rapid breathing was not from the fatigue of walking fast, but from unease and regret.

Suddenly, he stopped and turned around!

He was certain he was being followed, but there were many people on the street, and everyone was suspicious, making it difficult to distinguish the real from the fake.

He wasn't mistaken; the person following him was Old Hu. Old Hu carried half a basket of cakes on his back. He had received his assignment last night. Wei Yao had instructed him to change his cake-selling location this morning and wait for the prison cart to arrive at the Imperial Academy. This road had recently become a popular gathering place for people due to the distribution of lanterns. Wei Yao had ordered him to keep an eye on the onlookers and, if he found anyone suspicious, to try to identify them.

Hu Sou had served as a secret guard for many years and was familiar with court officials and officials of various princely residences. The fact that this traveler could sense that he was being followed indicated that he was strong in martial arts. Although he was dressed in plain clothes, his official demeanor was obvious, indicating that he was not of low status. Hu Sou then estimated the man's age and had already listed in his mind the military officers who met all the above conditions and were serving in the capital.

Returning to Wei Yao, she did not attend the morning court session. Instead, she sent a message to the emperor through a eunuch. Upon hearing that Xue Zhixiao had faked his death, the emperor first ordered Wei Yao to wait at the palace prison. Then, after a few words, he ended the court session and sent Yang Daye as his personal bodyguard to the palace prison.

Wei Yao handed his confession to the emperor, truthfully stating, "I was afraid that bandits might kill Xue Zhixiao on the way to the palace, so I found a condemned prisoner to take his place. The real Xue Zhixiao is still in the Sizhou Prefecture dungeon."

The emperor read the confession while responding with "Hmm."

Wei Yao: "I told Your Majesty a few days ago that someone was plotting against Your Majesty's will and trying to influence the appointment of officials in the Prince's Palace. I underestimated them. Based on the incident of the carriage hitting the people this morning, I have a guess... The person who controls Xue Zhixiao and the villains who are plotting against the Prince's Palace are the same force."

Emperor: "What do you intend to do?"

"Your Majesty, I request a secret investigation of the Vice Minister of Agriculture and a trial of Liu Teng, the Palace Attendant."

Bai Zheng, the Grand Chamberlain, had just been ordered by Wei Yao to find the records of Liang Xuantong's case. Holding the case file in both hands, he reported from a distance, "Found it."

Kou Meng handed the case file to Wei Yao, who quickly glanced at it before handing it to the emperor and then petitioning: "The Imperial Kitchen official Liang Xuantong died in the Yongxiang Palace, and the murderer has not been found. This case involves the former Imperial Kitchen official Zhang Anji. As far as I know, both Liang and Zhang had dealings with Liu Teng. Zhang Anji died shortly after being arrested and brought to the palace prison. I suspect that Liang Xuantong's death was part of a scheme to seize control of the Imperial Kitchen. Therefore, I request that Wang Jishu be suspended from his post at the Imperial Kitchen until he is questioned and found to have no connection with the deaths of the two female officials, Zhang and Liang, before returning to his post."

Liu Teng and Wang Jishu were eunuchs, whose rise and fall were easy. They didn't even need an imperial edict; the emperor would just nod in approval and then order: "Although Xue Zhixiao was coerced, he should not have cruelly killed innocent people. Let him be dealt with according to the law."

This means that even if Xue Zhixiao is still useful, there is no need to continue the trial; he can simply be allowed to die in prison.

Wei Yao: "Yes."

The palace prison was filled with instruments of torture that reeked of blood and palace slaves screaming in pain. The emperor, who was used to burning incense, naturally did not want to stay there for long. Now that he had approved Wei Yao's report, he was about to return to the Dongji Hall. However, after taking only a few steps, he heard Wei Yao instruct Bai Zheng to bring Liu Teng.

The trial has already begun?
The emperor wanted to see for himself how Wei Yao was good at handling cases, so he nodded at Yang Daye.

Yang Daye, whose mind was completely written on his face, stretched his neck and was stunned: What do you mean?
The emperor's breathing grew longer as he pointed to a secluded spot.

Yang Dayan alertly drew his sword in the direction the emperor pointed. The emperor couldn't help but miss the time when Zhao Zhi was guarding him. In fact, sending Zhao Zhi out was not because he didn't trust her, but because he wanted to keep her in the palace. It would be even more difficult for the empress's father to command the imperial guards. The empress's cousin, Yu Zhong, could barely be relied upon, but unfortunately, he was in mourning and it would take time before he could be reinstated.

At this time, Empress Yu Baoying heard that the emperor had gone to the palace guards' prison in the violent chamber. She immediately instructed her confidante to find out what had happened, and she took the female attendant Gao Yueen to the violent chamber.

The palace was filled with clothes and fabrics of various colors and embroidery. The empress stepped into the palace with a heart full of longing, but the colorful clothes filled her with disappointment, and a smile involuntarily bloomed on her lips.

Gao Yue'en, observing the Empress's expressions, pretended to be happy with her, but inwardly worried about when her niece, Gao Ying, would enter the palace. The Empress's methods of establishing her authority were becoming increasingly ruthless. If Gao Ying didn't enter the palace soon, the entire harem would be under the Empress's control. At that time, it would be equivalent to the Empress returning to the court, making it even more difficult for the Gao family's daughters to compete for a place. One wrong move, and they wouldn't even know how they died.

Wang Zhi, the vice-minister of Changqiu Temple, led the emperor to the room next to the torture chamber, which served as a warehouse and contained a large number of torture instruments, writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.

Bai Zheng and Wang Zhi originally had the habit of listening to the court officials preside over cases, so there were listening holes in the wall separating them from the torture chamber, so they could not only hear the interrogation and questions clearly, but also see the torture being carried out.

Wei Yao entered the torture chamber.

Liu Teng was brought here. He had been a slave in the palace since childhood and had experienced countless setbacks, so he had long since learned to remain calm and composed.

Bai Zheng sat to one side, recording the statements in this case.

Wei Yao asked, "Is Liu Shun your adopted son?"

Just then, the Empress entered the next room. The Emperor heard the noise, turned around, gestured for her to be quiet, and then continued to look at the other side through the peephole.

Wang Zhi moved quietly and led the Empress to another place to listen to the Confucian scriptures.

Liu Teng replied, "I severed ties with that brat last January; he is no longer my adopted son." After saying that, he looked at Bai Zheng.

Bai Zheng had no choice but to testify: "Indeed, I know about this matter."

Wei Yaoxian said to Bai Zheng, "Write down your testimony in the record."

Bai replied with "Okay," while glaring at Liu Teng to warn him not to drag him into this mess.

Wei Yao continued to ask Liu Teng, "With the reform of official ranks, you have been demoted to a minor eunuch of the ninth rank. Do you have any complaints about this?"

Liu Teng feigned a thoughtful expression, but in reality, he cursed Wei Yao for her wickedness! This was a difficult question to answer. Who wouldn't feel resentful after being demoted? If he answered that he did, he would fall into her trap; if he answered that he didn't, would he be a saint?
"I do feel down sometimes, but whenever I feel down, I think about those who are older than me but not as well off as me, and that helps me feel better."

Wei Yao asked again, "You previously visited my mother regarding your adopted son Liu Hun, mentioning the female official Liang Xuantong..."

Liu Teng was struck by a thought and guessed that her purpose today was to re-examine Liang Xuantong's death. Although he didn't know why she wanted to re-examine the case, he already had evidence to clear himself of any wrongdoing, so he remained calm and composed.

But Wei Yao's question this time caught him off guard once again!