Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 335 Families Turn Against Each Other, Clues from the Western Regions

Iron-Blooded Marquis Zhongzheng Tiguo enjoys an excellent reputation among the people.

In the martial arts world, he is also known as the number one person below the Grandmaster. Twenty years ago, he defeated the Undefeated Rascal who was rampaging through the martial arts world by his own strength.

However, this major bribery case suddenly emerged, with the amount of bribes reaching a staggering 160 million.

This number is astonishing.

The total annual tax revenue of the entire Ming Dynasty was approximately 20 million taels.

This case naturally caused a huge uproar throughout the world.

The reputation of the Iron-Blooded Marquis is declining day by day.

Li Xunhuan nodded and said, "In this inn, I often hear guests cursing the Iron-Blooded Marquis. Alas, the Iron-Blooded Marquis has been praised for more than ten years, but I never expected that his reputation would be so ruined in just a few days."

However, as far as I know, although Iron-Blooded Marquis is currently imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, he is only awaiting trial. The truth of the entire case has not been clarified, and the imperial court has not reached a conclusion. How could he have such a great infamy?

Lu Xiaofeng said, "Then it was naturally the Wan family and the other enemies of the Iron-Blooded Marquis who made the move."

The power of public opinion is clear to any power.

In the Ming Dynasty right now, the two most powerful media outlets are Jianghu Monthly and Southern Weekly.

But in reality, there are many other newspapers and periodicals besides these two.

For example, the Mingyue Daily, which was controlled by the imperial court.

The sales figures after each release are quite high.

But in this vast land, the martial world is the dominant theme. The *Da Ming Yue Bao*, on the other hand, focuses more on the imperial court and people's livelihoods; therefore, its reputation is far less prominent than the two mentioned above.

In addition, each faction also has its own tabloids.

Many newspapers have no chance of making a profit, but various forces still allocate funds to maintain them regularly, just to ensure that they have the ability to make their voices heard when they want to.

This bribery case involving Shenhou was clearly orchestrated by the Wan family.

As the richest man, Wan Sanqian holds a portion of the shares in Jianghu Monthly and has also contacted Southern Weekly.

This is how the matter could be spread throughout the Ming Dynasty in a short period of time, while also subtly guiding public opinion.

After this incident broke out, many of Iron-Blooded Marquis's enemies also made their move.

The Eastern Depot, in particular, was the most active.

Iron-Blooded Marquis originally had the Dragon Guard Manor under his command, which could be used to wage a propaganda war.

However, because Shangguan Haitang had previously broken into the palace in an attempt to steal the thousand-year-old snow lotus, she was caught red-handed by the Eastern Depot.

In order to save Shangguan Haitang, Zhu Wushi relinquished the power of the Dragon Guard Manor.

This left him with absolutely no chance to fight back.

The imperial court quickly took action, assigning the Eastern Depot, the Ministry of Justice, and the Imperial Clan Court to jointly handle the case, but so far, there has been no result.

However, to prevent Iron-Blooded Marquis from escaping, he has been imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison.

"As the current emperor's uncle, the Iron-Blooded Marquis is a member of the imperial family. Even if he is embroiled in this case, he shouldn't be imprisoned in the imperial jail. Besides, the outcome of this case is still pending."

Li Xunhuan asked in confusion.

Lu Xiaofeng: "I heard that His Majesty's original intention was to keep Iron-Blooded Marquis in his residence and not allow him to leave, under the supervision of the Eastern Depot. However, Iron-Blooded Marquis himself voluntarily requested to enter the Heavenly Prison in order to prevent himself from interfering with the case."

Li Xunhuan was taken aback: "The Iron-Blooded Marquis entered the Heavenly Prison on his own initiative? How come I've never heard of this before? If this were to be exposed, public opinion would probably take a turn for the worse."

Lu Xiaofeng said, "Right now, public opinion has been manipulated by the Wan family and the Eastern Depot. They don't mention the process at all, they only say that Iron-Blooded Marquis has been imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison."

Li Xunhuan frowned: "With such a selective interpretation, I'm afraid the whole world has already concluded that the Iron-Blooded Marquis is guilty."

“Yes…” Lu Xiaofeng sighed.

In normal circumstances, the Heavenly Prison is where people who have been thoroughly convicted are imprisoned.

Other departments with investigative and judicial functions, such as the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Six Doors, also had prisons, but these were for the purpose of facilitating the retrieval of prisoners for trial and were considered temporary detention.

Those detained in these places can only be described as suspects.

Once imprisoned in the imperial jail, one becomes a criminal.

Of course, this is just the normal situation.

The current case of Iron-Blooded Marquis is clearly not normal.

Listening from the side, Afei suddenly said, "So, this whole thing was started by the Wan family, who framed Iron-Blooded Marquis, and then the Eastern Depot took advantage of his misfortune?"

Lu Xiaofeng glanced at him, shook her head slightly, and said, "This... is hard to say."

"What's so hard to say? The situation is quite obvious."

“Everything must be based on evidence, especially such a major case. Moreover, the evidence presented by the Wan family is not only very comprehensive, but it is also highly likely to be true!”

Lu Xiaofeng said, "The Eastern Depot, the Ministry of Justice, and the Imperial Clan Court are in charge of investigating the case. The Eastern Depot might deliberately frame Iron-Blooded Marquis, but the Ministry of Justice probably wouldn't, not to mention the Imperial Clan Court."

Li Xunhuan suddenly said, "If this is true, then the previous marriage between Wan Sanqian and the adopted daughter of the Divine Marquis can be explained."

Lu Xiaofeng nodded: "That's right. Although Wan Sanqian is the richest man, he is just a businessman. Moreover, his relationship with Tie Dan Shenhou was not very obvious before. Why would he suddenly get married? Many people didn't understand at the time. Now that this matter has come to light, we have a conclusion."

"There is no obvious connection between Iron-Blooded Marquis and Wan Sanqian on the surface, but they have been in contact in secret for a long time. Wan Sanqian had already made connections with Iron-Blooded Marquis and used his wealth to support him."

Unfortunately, the marriage alliance failed, and the two sides became enemies. Wan Sanqian then used the wealth he had previously provided as a pretext, calling it a 'bribe,' to retaliate against Iron-Blooded Marquis!

"This is also the most mainstream view in the martial arts world today."

Li Xunhuan's expression was solemn: "The Iron-Blooded Marquis is an upright and honest man who never indulges in extravagance and has never even married. If this is true, and he really did accept 180 million taels of silver from the Wan family, then where did all that silver go?"

Indeed, that is the most important reason.

If Iron-Blooded Marquis is obsessed with pleasure and spends money like water.

So even if he swallowed 180 million taels, there would still be room for maneuver.

After all, he was the current emperor's uncle, in charge of the Dragon Guard Manor, and his personal strength was extremely powerful, known as the number one person below the Grandmaster.

Even if someone like that makes a mistake, the emperor will find a way to protect him later.

But Iron-Blooded Marquis doesn't care much about enjoying life.

So, where did he spend the 180 million taels of silver?

This question truly makes one's mind wander.

A powerful and well-regarded member of the imperial family amassed 180 million taels of silver over the past few decades but vanished without a trace.

Even this 180 million might not be all of it.

Moreover, this relative of the emperor is also the emperor's uncle.

The title of "Imperial Uncle" carries significant weight in the Ming Dynasty.

"If this is true, then I'm afraid the emperor will not tolerate the Iron-Blooded Marquis no matter what."

Lu Xiaofeng said, "In that case, your father's revenge can be considered complete."

Previously, when the alliance attacked Blackwood Cliff, Li Xunhuan had talked to Lu Xiaofeng about his father's revenge.

At the time, his biggest suspect was Iron-Blooded Marquis.

During this period, he has been traveling around, actually investigating the Iron-Blooded Marquis.

Unexpectedly, all these investigations couldn't compare to the falling out within the Wan family.

They directly fabricated a bribery case involving 180 million taels of silver, sending the Iron-Blooded Marquis straight to the Heavenly Prison.

"That's right, in that case, Zhu Wushi is doomed!"

"The master's revenge has finally been achieved!" Upon hearing this, Afei and Tie Chuanjia also showed joy on their faces.

Li Xunhuan remained calm: "Anything can change before the results are in."

One school has seven Jinshi, and the father and his son have three talents.

The Li family can be described as a true scholarly family, descended from officials.

Li Xunhuan was also familiar with many of the rules and regulations of officialdom.

The timing of the death of a high-ranking official depends not on the crime he committed, but on when he loses his usefulness.

Throughout the history of numerous dynasties across China, there are countless examples of people whose fates seemed predetermined and who were destined to die, yet who subsequently rose to prominence.

Ultimately, the Iron-Blooded Marquis was merely a potential rebel.

If the emperor on the dragon throne now were a powerful emperor who ruled with absolute authority, whose orders were obeyed by all.

That Iron-Blooded Marquis is definitely going to die.

But unfortunately, he is not.

The young emperor had little power and low prestige, so he couldn't possibly execute the Iron-Blooded Marquis based on a single possibility or guess.

If he really wanted to do that, the Imperial Clan Court would oppose it, and all the princes throughout the land would also have objections.

Unlike the previous Prince of Nanping.

The Prince of Nanping had a real plan and actions in place.

Iron-Blooded Marquis only possesses the possibility and the ability.

But if we're talking about possibilities, all those kings throughout the land were relatives of the emperor.

Iron-Blooded Marquis accepted a bribe of 180 million taels of silver.

However, the amount of gold and silver controlled by the local kings was staggering.

One hundred and eighty million taels of silver is nothing to them.

They even had real power and troops.

The young emperor suspected that the Iron-Blooded Marquis might rebel, so he killed him. Now, every king in the land will probably feel a chill down their spine and can't help but overthink things.

Therefore, Li Xunhuan actually did not believe that Zhu Wushi would die.

Unless a more in-depth investigation can uncover evidence that Zhu disregarded treason.

Moreover, only irrefutable evidence that leaves no room for anyone to refute it can truly lead to Zhu Wushi's execution.

Otherwise, he would never have died.

As for framing, fabricating evidence, or creating false evidence, those methods are absolutely unacceptable.

Of course, it would be acceptable to use this opportunity to make Zhu Wushi's crime even more serious, so that although he would not die, he would receive a more severe punishment.

Whether such a thing will actually happen depends on the emperor's decision.

Everyone present was an outsider, and he shared his thoughts with them.

This immediately changed the expressions of A Fei and Tie Chuanjia.

“Sigh,” Lu Xiaofeng couldn’t help but sigh, “Brother Li’s words really hit the nail on the head. Whether Zhu Wushi embezzled the 180 million taels or not is not the key point…”

"This world is truly disgusting!"

Young and hot-blooded, Ah Fei couldn't help but grit his teeth.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about this anymore, let's drink!"

Seeing that the three of them looked unwell, Tie Chuanjia quickly changed the subject.

Wine is indeed a way to drown sorrows.

The group was in a bad mood because of the fact that Zhu Wushi was still alive.

He gulped down the wine, drinking until he was completely drunk before stopping.

However, all of them were highly skilled in martial arts, and they all woke up early the next morning.

Li Xunhuan, accompanied by Lu Xiaofeng, visited Zhou Ming at the Pei residence.

"You guys come to my house every day to freeload, I don't know when you'll be able to come back."

Zhou Ming was speechless.

"Haha, if you're interested, why don't you come to my house for Chinese New Year this year? I guarantee you'll have plenty to eat and drink," Lu Xiaofeng said with a smile.

Zhou Ming shook his head: "Forget it, even if you bought all the meager things in your house, it wouldn't compare to this table of dishes I have."

Li Xunhuan stood to the side, unsure whether to laugh or cry.

Lu Xiaofeng's family was actually not poor.

But clearly, he cannot compare to Zhou Ming.

Zhou Ming was not wrong; in this era, spices are as precious as gold.

But on his dining table, various seasonings were casually sprinkled, not to mention that every dish contained projections of rare and precious medicinal herbs.

Putting everything else aside, he said that the plate of blood bodhi scrambled eggs was something that even if Lu Xiaofeng sold all his family's assets, he still couldn't buy.

As for Li Xunhuan... no explanation needed.

After several rounds of drinks and several dishes, the two began to talk about what they had discussed the day before.

Zhou Ming listened and casually said, "In that case, wouldn't it be enough to find irrefutable evidence of Zhu Wushi's treason?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiaofeng and Li Xunhuan both turned their heads to look at Zhou Ming.

Zhou Ming was taken aback, put down his chopsticks, and said with an unfriendly expression, "You two, you eat and drink my food, do you think you can take something from me?"

Lu Xiaofeng grinned and said, "Oh dear, didn't we just happen to be talking about this?"

"Just a coincidence? I think you clearly anticipated this and are deliberately trying to probe my intentions," Zhou Ming said angrily.

"So... do you have a hint?" Lu Xiaofeng leaned closer and pressed for an answer.

Zhou Ming raised an eyebrow, a look of anticipation in his eyes, and asked, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Wow, you actually know something!"

Lu Xiaofeng was surprised.

Li Xunhuan stood up, bowed deeply, and said, "Please enlighten me, Young Master Zhou."

Zhou Ming quickly helped him up and said, "Li Tanhua, I do know a little bit of a clue. It's no trouble to tell you. There's no need for such a grand gesture."

"What clue?"

"In fact, Zhu Wushi had many underhanded actions before this, which were not unknown to anyone. But at that time, he held great power and concealed these actions very well, so few people were able to investigate them thoroughly. At most, they could only find out that he had a lot of activities in the Western Regions."

"The Western Regions? Could you be more specific?"

Zhou Ming shook his head: "That's the most it can be."

Lu Xiaofeng was speechless: "The Western Regions are so vast, we don't even have a direction, how can we investigate?"

Zhou Ming revealed a look of anticipation and said to Li Xunhuan, "Li Xunhuan, if it were an ordinary person, it would be impossible to find clues in such a vast place as the Western Regions. But, don't we have a top-notch detective here?"

Lu Xiaofeng was taken aback: "Good heavens, you've schemed against me?"

"Same to you," Zhou Ming laughed. "Everyone says Lu Xiaofeng has friends all over the world. If a friend came to you asking for your help, would you help or not, Master Lu?"

(End of this chapter)