A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 336 You dare compare yourself to Twelfth Brother (Thank you for your monthly votes, 2 words today)
Liu Ming was visibly bewildered as he carried the bundle of silver in his hand.

He looked at Song Xuan in disbelief.

How did the money end up in his name?

Is this right?
The onlookers below the court were also surprised by Song Xuan's judgment.

After all, this was the youngest scholar to achieve the highest honors in the imperial examinations since the founding of the Song Dynasty.

He solved the case.

Everyone was still very curious and wanted to see how he would solve the case.

"Your judgment is correct, sir. He said fifty taels were lost, so fifty taels were lost?"

"That's right, I think the master is right. There are twenty taels in this bundle, not fifty taels at all."

“If the amounts don’t match, then it’s not his money.”

"Your judgment is excellent, sir!"

Xiao Feng was also taken aback by Song Xuan's method of solving the case.

He had assumed that Song Xuan would be helpless in a case like this, where the two sides were constantly bickering.

He is a newly appointed top scorer.

Do you know how to solve cases?

However, Song Xuan didn't even bother to consult the laws of the Song Dynasty; he simply made a judgment based on those laws.

Song Dynasty Criminal Code: When a lost item is found, the seal and color must be verified to match before it can be returned to its owner.

If it doesn't match, it won't be returned.

Song Xuan's swift and efficient handling of the situation was different from what Xiao Feng had expected!

Although he was somewhat bewildered, Xiaofeng believed that Song Xuan could not possibly be like Pang Tong, the Phoenix Chick in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, who could easily handle all cases.

He just made a random judgment, but Xiaofeng wasn't worried.

This is just the first appetizer.

"I'm innocent! My lord."

Seeing that all twenty taels of silver had gone to Liu Ming, Tian Rui shouted:

"I was wronged!"

“I know you’re anxious because you lost your money, but this is twenty taels, not the fifty taels you lost.”

Song Xuan slammed the gavel down:

"Of course, I know that fifty taels is not a small amount. In that case, I will post a reward notice in a short time."

"If anyone provides a clue, I will reward them with money to help you recover the lost fifty taels."

"Tian Rui, are you satisfied?"

Tian Rui was so anxious he was jumping up and down.

I'm not satisfied at all!
The profit was originally 20 taels to make 30 taels.

As a result, they even lost their principal.

How can we satisfy Tian Rui?

“My lord, these twenty taels are mine, they are my money.”

Song Xuan held up his finger and waved it, correcting him:

"No, you lost fifty taels."

"No, I lost twenty taels."

"No, you lost fifty taels. I will definitely find it for you, don't worry."

Song Xuan began waving his hand, ordering people to bring out the plaintiffs and defendants from the second wave of cases and throw him out.

Seeing that Song Xuan remained unmoved and that the judgment was so muddled, Tian Rui became even more anxious.
“My lord, these twenty taels are mine. I lost twenty taels.”

"No, you lost fifty taels."

Song Xuan waved his hand, signaling the bailiffs to remove him from the courtroom.
"Tian Rui, don't worry, I will definitely stand up for you."

"It really is twenty taels, it really is twenty taels lost."

Tian Rui clung to the constable's leg and refused to leave:
“My lord, I swear to God, I really did lose twenty taels.”

“These twenty taels are what I exchanged from Li’s Money Shop; they have their stamp on them.”

"I just had you weigh it yourself, and you saw this mark, so it doesn't count."

Song Xuan waved his hand:
"Besides, many people go to Li's shop to exchange silver; how can you prove it's yours?"

“Your complaint states fifty taels, so it is fifty taels. These twenty taels have nothing to do with you.”

"Guards, drag this man away!"

"Is the county government hall also a place where he makes a racket?"

"Yes."

At Song Xuan's command, the constables no longer held back and dragged Tian Rui away.

“My lord, this money is truly mine. I lost twenty taels, but I wanted to lie and say I lost fifty taels. Twenty taels is indeed my money.”

"Wait, bring him back to me."

With a single word from Song Xuan, the two constables pulled Tian Rui, who was throwing a tantrum, back to his senses.

"Tian Rui, repeat what you just said."

Upon hearing Song Xuan's question, Tian Rui's mind went blank.

He instinctively turned around and looked down, sitting on the ground, his eyes seeing stars.

Song Xuan followed his gaze to the crowd below the hall.

As expected, those who run honey traps always have accomplices.

However, Xiaofeng is upright and honest, so he doesn't need to personally handle such trivial matters.

Therefore, he did not try to dodge Song Xuan's scrutinizing gaze.

Holding the bundle of loose silver in his hands, Liu Ming said with a face full of resentment:
"You really were trying to blackmail me!"

"My son has been wronged!"

Liu's mother, Liu, finally couldn't hold back her tears and they flowed down her cheeks.

Suddenly, she collapsed to the ground and burst into tears.

She raised her son alone and sent him to school, all because of her strong will to prove herself.

I never imagined that my teaching of returning lost money would almost ruin my son's reputation.

How could he be so bad?

"Yu Gao, was everything said in court just now recorded?"

Yu Gao put down his calligraphy brush and quickly stood up:

"Replying to Your Excellency, I have remembered everything clearly, including every word Tian Rui just said."

"Ah."

Song Xuan slammed the gavel again, startling Tian Rui once more.
"You treacherous Tian Rui, you actually set up a scheme to frame someone. Now that you've confessed, what excuse do you have left?"

Tian Ruiji sat on the ground, his eyes glazed over.

Five taels is not a small amount of money, let alone twenty taels that belong to oneself.

The sunk costs suddenly increased, causing him to self-destruct.

Snapped.

Song Xuan struck the gavel again:

"According to the laws of the Great Song Dynasty, firstly, you are guilty of false accusation and should be punished with thirty taels of silver as atonement, and should be flogged thirty times."

"Second, for defrauding others, the punishment is fifty strokes of the cane and one year of imprisonment."

"Both crimes are committed, and the offender shall be punished with fifty strokes of the cane, one year of penal servitude, and exile to this county to perform hard labor."

"In addition, you will need to pay a fine of ten taels of silver to the government."

"If you are unable to pay, your relatives can pay on your behalf. This is a common practice of collective liability in the Song Dynasty."

"Third, they will be paraded in shackles for three days, with a notice posted on the shackles listing those who have falsely accused and misled the people. Anyone who dares to follow suit will be punished three times more severely."

"Execute immediately."

Song Xuan threw out five orders directly.

"Yes."

County Lieutenant Ban Feng responded and immediately waved his hand, ordering the yamen runners to beat the person on the spot.

He picked up the warrant, which had the words "Main Hall" written on it, as a symbol of the power of the county magistrate as the official in charge.

Moreover, the act of throwing lots has the effect of "spilled water cannot be gathered up again".

If a prisoner dares to refuse to comply, he/she will face even more severe punishment.

"My lord, I dare not do it again, I dare not do it again!"

Tian Rui immediately shouted.

But the yamen runners didn't care about this or that.

The official has already thrown down the order; no matter how much you protest your innocence, you'll have to wait until the beating is over before we can talk.

They pulled down Tian Rui's pants.

They lifted him up in front of everyone and gave him a good beating with a board.

"oops."

"it is good."

There was never a shortage of people watching the spectacle from below.

They cheered and applauded loudly.

"Upright and just official."

Liu's mother, Madam Liu, quickly bowed to Song Xuan.

"Upright and just official."

Those below the hall also joined in the shouting.

As Xiaofeng watched Tian Rui get a spanking and heard the shouts of others, he also joined in, calling out to the righteous official.

If you're going to put on a show, at least make sure it doesn't arouse suspicion.

Song Xuan then had the yamen runners help her up, offered her a seat, and let her rest to the side.

After Yu Gao has finished writing down all the testimonies, then have the mother and son sign and affix their fingerprints.

Liu Ming quickly thanked him and wanted to put the package in his hand on the table for Song Xuan, but Ban Feng stopped him.

"This was a gift from the high official to your mother in accordance with the laws of the Song Dynasty. You have no right to return it."

With Ban Feng's intervention and advice, Liu Ming quickly said he understood and obediently stood beside his mother waiting.

The twenty taels of silver returned to his hands after going through so many twists and turns, which truly moved Liu Ming.

Liu's mother wiped away her tears, repeatedly urging her son to be an upright official like Song Xuan, and to become a respected and benevolent ruler in the eyes of the people.

Liu Ming responded repeatedly.

Xiaofeng listened to the surrounding people's discussions, saying that Song Xuan's decision to hit his buttocks instead of his back was a benevolent act to avoid crippling him, which was quite righteous.

He couldn't believe that this was a normal reaction from ordinary people.

Were there any shills among these people that Song Xuan had hired beforehand?
Is it to make him famous and counteract the rumors that we deliberately spread in the streets?
Before the beating was even finished, the second wave of attackers only included the plaintiff; the defendant did not come.

Song Xuan found it strange that the woman was accusing a dragon of eating her son.

Where in the world are there dragons?

"My lord, it was a dragon that ate my son."

"Dragon?"

Song Xuan raised an eyebrow. The dragon written on the complaint had become a jiaolong (a type of dragon) in her mouth.

Could it be a giant python? He wasn't sure about this point in time during the Northern Song Dynasty.

Are there giant pythons in Henan?
But Song Xuan knew that there were still wild elephants in Henan at that time.

It took the government more than a year to capture it because it damaged farmland.

They were taken by boat to the royal garden, specifically to Jinming Pond, where they were kept.

Ordinary families cannot afford to feed elephants.

"Yes, the dragon ate my son. I was so stupid, really."

The woman just kept wiping away her tears:
“I let the monk sit on the threshold and play for a while, but he was captured by a dragon and left with only one shoe.”

Then she hugged the shoes and burst into tears.

Song Xuan suddenly felt strange:
What is a dragon?

"It is a dragon."

After answering, the woman cried so hard that she fainted.

Song Xuan stood up and asked someone to find a coroner, as he was also a semi-physician.

"Does anyone know what the dragon Zhang described looks like?"

The people below the hall then described the various appearances of the dragons.

There are carp, snake-like creatures, and even offspring born from the union of dragons and snakes.

Anyway, Song Xuan's head was spinning from listening to all this.

He was truly at a loss when faced with this mysterious contraption.

Because everyone's thinking is completely different.

Xiaofeng spoke up instead:

"Perhaps it is that alligator in the Bian River, which not only eats people but also damages their houses."

Upon hearing the word "alligator," Song Xuan pondered for a while before pointing at Xiao Feng and saying:
"Is it the kind with a really long mouth and skin covered in thorns?"

"Correct."

"Damn it, it's that dragon from the story of Zhou Chu eliminating the three scourges!"

"How could I not have thought of that? I thought she was talking nonsense out of fear!"

Song Xuan finally realized what was going on.

He truly never expected that there would be crocodiles in the Bian River.

Can crocodiles survive in winter?
Or was it one of the crocodiles kept by some powerful or wealthy person that escaped?

Song Xuan immediately instructed Zheng Wenhou to compile a proclamation:

"A reward of five hundred strings of cash is offered. Go and capture this dragon alive and send it to the Kaifeng County government office."

"Yes."

The registrar, Zheng Wenhuan, immediately responded and began writing.

"Five hundred strings of cash?"

"My goodness!"

"Master Song is so generous."

"This is a dragon that eats people; how can it be captured so easily?"

"Yes, yes, yes, it swallowed you whole in the water."

Xiao Feng couldn't help but feel a little angry when he heard Song Xuan's boastful words.

He took my money!
Song Xuan spoke again:

"Hey, you, come up here."

Xiao Feng was startled. Could it be that Song Xuan had discovered his anger just now?
"I?"

Xiaofeng pretended to be confused and pointed to himself.

"Correct."

Having received a positive reply, Xiaofeng stepped through the crowd and walked up. At this moment, only Tian Rui's wails remained in the hall.

"Greetings, Your Excellency."

Song Xuan nodded and said:
"What's your name?"

"My name is Zhang Feng, and I am from Kaifeng."

"Qian Gansan".

"My subordinate is here."

“This man helped me solve the case just now, so he deserves a reward of one string of cash. Take him to collect the money immediately and make sure the accounts are accurate.”

"Yes."

Qian Gansan immediately got up from his seat.

Because it involves money, he still needs to handle the inflow and outflow of funds.

Xiao Feng was somewhat bewildered; he didn't understand the meaning behind Song Xuan's reward to him.

However, County Lieutenant Ban Feng reminded him:
"Aren't you going to thank my lord?"

"Thank you for the reward, sir."

Xiaofeng lowered his head, but inwardly he was roaring with rage.

He gave me my money as a reward, and I should thank him.

Where are you going to make sense?
"Let's go."

Qian Gansan led Xiaofeng through the crowd with a smile.

Many onlookers looked on with envy, thinking they could make money while watching the spectacle.

I should have answered Master Song's question seriously.

"It was passed down to Lady Qi."

Lady Qi knelt down and recounted her grievances. She had appealed to the authorities for three years, but each time her appeals were blocked.

I've heard that Official Song is an incorruptible official who directly tries cases, so I've come to give it a try.

Song Xuan had seen the petition, which stated that Lady Qi's husband had died.

Li Jia, the younger brother-in-law, forced his sister-in-law to remarry and falsely accused her son of not being a member of the Li family, all in order to seize his brother's property.

The first time she filed a complaint with the authorities was in Xiangfu County. The county magistrate, Sun De, ruled that the shrew had falsely accused her relatives and had her beaten with twenty strokes of the cane and driven out.

The second time she filed a complaint was with Wang Lun, the newly appointed magistrate of Xiangfu County, who also beat her up.

Now that Wang Lun has been transferred, Chen Gu has taken over.

On her third attempt to file a complaint with the authorities, Qi received guidance from others and bribed a clerk in Kaifeng Prefecture.

Only then was the petition delivered to Lu Xingchen, the head of the criminal division of Kaifeng Prefecture.

As a result, Lady Qi was once again beaten out.

Song Xuan thought that if what Qi said was true, it meant that Li Jia had taken out even more money to bribe him.

However, Song Xuan had no way of knowing whether or not his son was his biological son.

We'll have to look at the case file first before making a decision.

"Someone, go and summon Li Jia and Qi Shi's current husband, Chen Xing, to me."

"Yes."

County Commandant Ban Feng, carrying the imperial edict given to him by Song Xuan, went directly to invite the messenger.

Song Xuan then wrote another note:

“County Magistrate Zhou, please go to Xiangfu County and bring me this case file.”

"I?"

Before Zhou Derong could react, he heard:
"My lord, I know the way well, please let me go."

Zheng Wenhuan has already written the reward notice and asked Song Xuan to review it.

Song Xuan handed the note directly to him, asking Zheng Wenhuan to go there.

The notice contained almost the same content.

In the Song Dynasty, the government was willing to pay to hunt tigers and crocodiles.

Both Wu Song and the Xie brothers were skilled tiger hunters, but the Xie brothers were proper hunters, so their tiger-hunting skills were not as impressive as Wu Song's.

Song Xuan immediately took out his official seal, stamped it, and ordered Magistrate Zhou to post it outside immediately to spread the word.

Xiaofeng held a string of coins in his hand, his feelings were truly complicated.

Why is it suddenly being called the fourth case?
However, Xiaofeng carefully put away the money and squeezed forward again, believing that Song Xuan definitely couldn't handle this matter.

"You mean you're Consort Shang's eunuch?"

"Correct."

Song Xuan frowned:
"Guards, seize this eunuch and give him thirty strokes of the cane."

"you dare!"

The eunuch Tang Xingwen, who was in charge of the imperial concubine, pointed at Song Xuan with a look of horror.

"You damn eunuch, how dare you point at me? Who gave you the guts?"

Song Xuan threw out another order:
"Give me ten more lashes."

"Yes."

"And this craftsman, give him ten lashes too. He went to the palace to pull strings to avoid paying taxes. He's a disgrace to the emperor."

Consort Shang is Zhao Zhen's latest favorite concubine.

After Empress Guo stopped bothering her, she was taken directly to Yuqing Palace and became very favored.

"I am Consort Shang's personal eunuch, and Song Zhuangyuan. Aren't you afraid of offending the Emperor?"

"I bother."

Song Xuan grabbed the warrant and threw it directly at the eunuch's head:
"Does a mere beauty deserve to issue orders to court officials?"

"Are you crazy?"

Tang Xingwen still couldn't believe that Song Xuan would dare to hit him.

"I ask you, when you said that the decree to consort Shang was issued by which of the Emperor, Empress Dowager, or Empress?

Tang Xingwen dared not speak.

"Since the founding of the Great Song Dynasty, no beauty has ever been allowed to issue imperial edicts to prefectures and counties. This is an overreach of power and a violation of ancestral rules. Does Consort Shang also want to become like Lü Wu?"

Tang Xingwen was so unsteady on his feet that he could barely stand.

I thought it was a small matter, but I ended up running into Song Xuan.

Song Xuan then issued another order:
"Give him a good beating, and then throw him to Consort Shang."

"Yes."

The yamen runners didn't care about that.

At this moment in the lobby, they only recognized Song Xuan.

The stick came down and hit Tang Xingwen so hard he cried out for his parents.

If it weren't for Song Xuan's strong and unyielding approach to officialdom, the tax collectors in Kaifeng County wouldn't have dared to "invite" them to the county government office.

When Xiaofeng, the master of Wuyou Cave, saw this scene, he was dumbfounded.

Song Xuan didn't even care about the emperor's favored women.
This wasn't a slap on the buttocks of Consort Shang's personal eunuch; it was a slap on Consort Shang's face.

What terrified Xiaofeng even more was that Song Xuan didn't even respect the emperor.

After all, even if we don't care about the monk, we should at least give Lady Shang some face.

She was, after all, the emperor's woman!

But it just doesn't happen.

Xiaofeng suddenly understood.

Why did Liu Congde, the most powerful relative of the Song Dynasty, act like a mouse before a cat when he saw Song Xuan?

Song Xuan didn't even give the Emperor face, but did he give the Empress Dowager face?

After all, spanking Liu Congde was also an indirect slap in the face to the Empress Dowager.

But Song Xuan was completely unharmed. Is this the strength of someone who has won the triple crown?

Wang Yufeng, who had come to the show late, stared at his brother-in-law in the crowd:

"Brother-in-law, it was a wise move of yours not to go head-to-head with Scholar Song back then!"

Liu Congde was also there to join in the fun; he was actually there to see Song Xuan make a fool of himself.

With so many cases coming at once, Song Xuan was bound to be caught off guard and forget his previous agreement. And yet, upon arriving, he witnessed such a fierce scene.

In fact, Liu Congde knew a little about the situation inside the palace.

Empress Guo, who was once arrogant and domineering, has become much more docile recently.

Now that Lady Shang has gained the Emperor's favor, Song Xuan doesn't give her any face at all.

Does this seem like making a mountain out of a molehill?
However, faced with his brother-in-law's praise, Liu Congde chuckled dryly twice:
"Of course!"

"Otherwise, how could the Empress Dowager bestow her favor solely upon me?"

"It's because I'm smart and quick-witted."

Wang Yufeng: ? ? ?

No, brother-in-law, I'm just being polite and praising you a little. Do you really have no sense of direction?

You're afraid of Song Xuan, isn't it because you're afraid he'll beat you up?
Others might not dare to make a move, but he truly dared to.

How did you come to this conclusion?

Of course, once you say what's on your mind, it's no longer what's on your mind.

Wang Yufeng chose to continue watching the play.

The caning was quickly over, and the eunuch Tang Xingwen was dragged out by the yamen runners like a dead dog.

This one dish smelled entirely of urine.

A barrage of water and fire sticks will beat you until you soil yourself; that's perfectly normal.

Liu Congde covered his nose and cursed angrily.

Of all those present, he was the only one who didn't take Shang Meiren's personal eunuch seriously.

As for the fifth murder case, Song Xuan directly sent people to arrest the perpetrator, and perhaps even went to the scene to investigate.

"The defendant hasn't arrived yet, let's rest for a while."

Song Xuan tapped the gavel and then left.

The onlookers were naturally buzzing with discussion, eager to see more of the drama unfold.

After all, the Qi family had filed complaints for three years without resolving the issue, which shows how difficult the matter was.

"The Li family is also a prominent local family."

"Yes."

"I'm afraid the case won't be solved as easily as it was just now."

"What's there to be afraid of? Master Song even dared to beat Consort Shang's personal eunuch, what else wouldn't he dare to beat?"

"Beauty Shang, I've never heard of that name before."

"Not as good as Liu Congde."

"Yes."

Upon hearing some troublemakers mentioning his name, Liu Congde immediately glared at them angrily.

This silenced the others, who dared not meet his gaze.

After all, the clothes he was wearing and the burly men around him indicated that he was not someone to be trifled with.

Liu Congde casually went to find Song Xuan to have a chat.

Inside Yuqing Palace, Consort Shang sat on a donkey cart, cheering and encouraging everyone.

But it gave Zhao Zhen a lot of emotional value.

These were things he had never experienced before.

His joy was short-lived; Consort Shang's personal eunuch, Tang Xingwen, was carried back looking like he was about to die.

The clothes around his buttocks were soaked with blood.

Both Tang Xingwen and the eunuch serving him were cursing Song Xuan.

When we get to the Emperor and Empress, we'll definitely get our revenge.

Tang Xingwen was grinding his teeth to powder, his hatred for Song Xuan was boundless.

They wished they could just devour Song Xuan alive.

Now he's pretending to be pitiful, trying to gain sympathy.

He didn't need to pretend to be pitiful.

Because Song Xuan said he would beat them severely.

The constables were truly ruthless; they never played dirty tricks.

They were really badly beaten.

Shang Meiren shouted:
"what happened?"

Zhao Zhen was also slightly puzzled:
"Why is that so?"

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, I was beaten by Magistrate Song without any explanation."

"He doesn't respect the Emperor and Empress at all!"

Tang Xingwen pleaded pitifully:
"I hope Your Majesty and Your Highness will do me justice."

Consort Shang immediately turned her back on him; she could please Zhao Zhen.

After all, he was the emperor.

Furthermore, Zhao Zhen disliked Empress Guo, so perhaps he could become empress himself in the future.

Therefore, Shang Meiren believed she had a bright future and naturally looked down on everyone else.

“He dared to hit my men, Your Majesty.”

Consort Shang continued to cling coquettishly to Zhao Zhen's sleeve:
"You must do me justice!"

"Making the decision?"

Before Zhao Zhen could even speak, he received this unreasonable request, and he immediately asked:

"How do you want me to make the decision for you?"

“Song, the county magistrate, must be severely punished. We must not allow him to beat my people so easily.”

“He didn’t just hit me; he was slapping the face of the officials. This is a grave offense of disrespect.”

"Great disrespect?"

"Correct."

Zhao Zhen simply flung her sleeve away:

"Get out of here."

"Your Majesty."

Shang Meiren wanted to say something more.

"Go down."

Zhao Zhen said with a serious expression:

"I don't want to say it a second time."

Shang Meiren got off the donkey cart with a pitiful expression.

Zhao Zhen sat on a donkey cart:
"Tang Xingwen, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Zhao Zhen glanced down at his blood-stained buttocks:
"I'm giving you a chance to explain things clearly from the bottom of your heart."

“Twelfth Brother would never beat you up without asking questions.”

"If you speak ill of me, I can ignore it."

"But you dare to gossip about Twelfth Brother in front of me."

"I see you are courting death!"

Zhao Zhen's voice suddenly rose, startling Tang Xingwen so much that he lost control of his bladder again.

Even Lady Shang knelt down.

This was the first time she had ever seen the emperor angry.

Zhao Zhen pointed to the young eunuch who was carrying Tang Xingwen back:
"Tell me the whole story."

The young eunuch, of course, dared not conceal anything and told Zhao Zhen everything.

After hearing this, Zhao Zhen got off the donkey cart and lashed Tang Xingwen several times with his horsewhip.

"Your Majesty, spare my life! Your Majesty, spare my life!"

Tang Xingwen didn't even dare to dodge; he could only endure it.

"Go back to the palace. I don't want to see you."

"Miss."

Tang Xingwen wanted to plead for leniency again, since he was working for Shang Meiren.

Shang Meiren forced herself to say:
“Your Majesty, that craftsman Wang once did my family a favor, I…”

"You should also go back to the palace."

Zhao Zhen interrupted Consort Shang directly.

He couldn't understand why, even though he was the emperor, he was always surrounded by stupid women.
Even if Consort Shang herself spent money to repay a debt of gratitude, Emperor Zhao Zhen would still have to praise her.

As it turned out, she didn't want to spend a single penny and even sent her subordinates to falsely convey the imperial edict.

Zhao Zhen felt that his twelfth brother hadn't killed the man on the spot, just to show him how stupid the people around him were.

Shang Meiren was completely stunned.

She never imagined it would end like this.

"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. Please don't send me away."

Lady Shang quickly grabbed Zhao Zhen's leg.

Zhao Zhen coldly replied:

"I think you don't know you're wrong, you're just scared."

"I don't want to say it a second time, otherwise you can forget about ever returning to the palace."

Upon hearing the emperor's words, Lady Shang dared not press the matter any further.

She never imagined that her status in the emperor's heart would be lower than that of a man!
So he could only leave sadly, wiping away his tears.

Song Xiang watched silently from the side.

Zhao Zhen's originally happy face was now clouded with gloom.

He felt that he had only shown a little affection for a woman, and they dared to bully him like this.

The craftsman only needed to pay a little over ten strings of cash in taxes.

Such a small amount of money has caused such a huge embarrassment, which has really made Zhao Zhen quite speechless.

The twelfth brother's statement that there has never been any interference in politics by beauties is also a way of curbing interference in politics by the imperial harem.

But never mind.

"Judge Song, write a letter to the Empress Dowager, saying that I am about to issue an edict to all prefectures and counties, and from now on, do not accept any orders sent from the palace."

"Yes."

Song Xiang immediately accepted the order and left.

Zhao Zhen did not yearn for romantic love, after all, Empress Guo had given him a very painful experience.

However, Zhao Zhen understood deeply that Song Xuan was someone who would be of great use to him, while Consort Shang was just a woman.

How dare she compare herself to my twelfth brother?

Who gave her the confidence?

Zhao Zhen was completely baffled.

Everyone says that the women in the palace are very shrewd, so why are there so many stupid women around me?
Could it be that the Empress Dowager deliberately chose and arranged them to be by my side to drain my energy?

Zhao Zhen could never understand the trickery involved.

After all, these women were indeed chosen by Liu E.

Can the royal palace keep secrets?

can.

But it is also the place where secrets are most easily leaked.

The news that Consort Shang returned to the palace in tears immediately began to spread.

After a little inquiry, I found out.

It turns out that the top scholar of the Song Dynasty had punished the eunuch who was close to Consort Shang.

They distorted the truth before the officials and framed the top scholar, Song.

This led to the Emperor's fury towards Consort Shang, and he directly banished her back to the palace.

It's unclear whether the top scholar of the Song Dynasty was directly appointed by the emperor on the spot, bypassing the Empress Dowager!

It was all in order to win over Song Xuan and make him work for him.

This was also a common tactic used by emperors: promoting new people to deal with the vested interests of the old guard.

Everyone knows that Lady Shang is the emperor's favorite woman recently.

Many eunuchs became even more wary of Song Xuan after hearing about his actions.

I heard that Song Xuan had even reprimanded Empress Guo in the palace, but Empress Guo did not dare to retaliate.

How could such a person not be feared by everyone?
"You mean that vixen surnamed Shang was sent back by the emperor?"

"Your Majesty, that is indeed the case."

Yan Wenying shared this news with Empress Guo very quickly.

"Hahaha."

Empress Guo immediately burst into laughter:

"How could this wretched wretch possibly win the emperor's favor?"

Yan Wenying then added another explanation:
"The main reason is that the top scholar Song beat the eunuch serving Lady Shang and then framed the top scholar Song, which angered the emperor."

Empress Guo raised her proud little neck, certain that her family members had spoken with Song Xuan.

Although Song Xuan was the top scholar in the imperial examination, he still had to fear the power of the Guo family.

That's why Song Xuan was so disrespectful to this beauty, Shang.

Perhaps Song Xuan is one of our own.

Thinking of this, Empress Guo immediately ordered a visit to Consort Shang.

While Shang Meiren was still crying, she ordered her men to continue beating her personal eunuch, Tang Xingwen.

If he hadn't caused trouble, I wouldn't have been driven away by the authorities.

It's all your fault!

Anyway, if something goes wrong, the responsibility will never be mine.

Tang Xingwen shouted that he was wronged and begged the goddess to spare his life.

But Shang Meiren was still angry, and Tang Xingwen's voice gradually faded away.

"The Queen has arrived."

Just as Consort Shang was feeling agitated, she heard that Empress Guo had arrived and hurriedly came out to greet her.

Empress Guo saw that Consort Shang's eyes were swollen from crying, and then she noticed that all the eunuchs had been beaten to death.

"I've met the Queen."

"Get up."

"Thank you, empress."

As soon as Consort Shang raised her head, she saw Empress Guo's raised hand coming towards her.

Snapped.

A crisp slap rang out.

Consort Shang looked at Empress Guo with some disbelief.

"You bitch, who gave you the right to commit murder without permission!"

Empress Guo not only hit her, but also scolded her:
"Are you guilty?"

Consort Shang glanced at her personal eunuch, who was barely breathing and on the verge of death, and quickly bowed.
"I know I'm guilty."

"It's good to admit your guilt."

Empress Guo turned and left, leaving Consort Shang with a graceful silhouette.

Lady Shang understood perfectly well that Empress Guo was doing this on purpose.

But what good is understanding?
She didn't know if she could regain the Emperor's favor, and how could she possibly compete with the Empress?
So at this moment, all I can do is silently shed tears.

Empress Guo felt extremely happy today, so much so that she wanted to go to Yuqing Palace to see the Emperor.

How could any affairs of the palace be kept from Empress Dowager Liu E?
Therefore, news about Consort Shang and Empress Guo reached Liu E's ears.

Liu E smiled and said to Madam Lin:

"Song Zhuangyuan is really quite bold."

"Yes."

Madam Lin also said with a sigh:
"He was not only indifferent to Empress Guo, but also to Consort Shang. It really wasn't intentionally targeting anyone."

Liu E was also satisfied with Song Xuan for this point; he applied the same principles to everyone.

It's not about speaking up for someone just because they're on your side.

These kinds of people may annoy you, but they are also hardworking and stubborn.

Fan Zhongyan's stubbornness was passed down to his students.

Just as Liu E was about to praise Song Xuan, she heard a report that Song Xiang was requesting an audience.

After Song Xiang entered, he conveyed the emperor's message to Liu E.

Pretending not to know anything, Liu E had Song Xiang recount his observations in detail.

"I see."

Empress Liu was very satisfied with the three identities that Song Xuan had proposed, and that an imperial decree could be issued.

Especially in the current situation, Empress Liu is afraid of influential figures like Song Xuan among the scholar-officials, who might raise their voices and call for the return of power to the emperor.

Because things escalated to that point, it became very troublesome to handle.

Empress Liu was also someone who hated trouble.

"Song Xiang, what do you think of Song Xuan's actions?"

"Replying to Your Majesty."

Song Xiang also said with great emotion:

"Twelfth Prince is decisive in handling affairs, acts in accordance with the law, and upholds the principle that the outer court should not be subject to arbitrary orders from the inner palace. He is truly a role model for us."

These words sounded harsh to Madam Lin, but Liu E didn't seem to care.

Because she didn't feel like she was in the harem.

The position of ruling from behind the curtain is very special.

"If you encountered a similar situation, how would you handle it?"

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's question, Song Xiang answered quite honestly:
"So that Your Majesty may know, I will certainly think it over carefully and will not handle it like Song Twelve did. I cannot keep up with his intelligence."

Liu E also knew that Song Xiang was telling the truth.

He was far less astute than his younger brother Song Qi, let alone compared to Song Xuan.

"With Song Xuan's approach to solving cases, do you think the atmosphere in Kaifeng Prefecture will improve in the future?"

When Liu E asked the question again, Song Xiang pondered for a long time:

"Your Majesty, if I were to give an evaluation, I could only evaluate what he has done."

"But it is impossible to say."

Liu E is happy to hear opinions from various perspectives.

You can say whatever you want; whether she accepts it or not is completely unimportant, and she won't tell you.

This is why Wang Zeng and his group repeatedly suffered setbacks.

"I believe that if Xuan were in Kaifeng, he would govern the people according to the law, and the imperial family, eunuchs, and powerful families would all be wary of him."

Liu E listened to Song Xiang's evaluation and nodded seriously.

She felt that Song Xuan had done the work of Chen Yaozuo, the prefect of Kaifeng.

After all, the Chen brothers, who took over as prefects of Kaifeng, did not achieve this effect.

Perhaps they have been deeply involved in officialdom for many years and have long been accustomed to turning a blind eye.

They are not as driven as Song Xuan, who is new to officialdom.

"Alright, you should take a good rest."

Liu E glanced at the sky outside:

"The weather is hot now, so send someone to give Song Xiang's family ten pieces of ice."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

……

Inside the Xiangfu County government office, Chen Gu was somewhat taken aback upon hearing Zheng Wenhuan's request.

"Is this case related to Wuyou Cave?"

"In response to Master Chen's question, there might be a slight connection. Li Jia may be secretly colluding with Wuyou Cave."

"I see."

Chen Gu instructed, "Since it's related to Wuyou Cave, go and get the files for him immediately."

"Yes."

Magistrate Sun was puzzled. When did Li Jia collude with Wuyou Cave?

Could it be that his older brother was murdered?

After all, he had received money for dealing with Li Jia's sister-in-law.

After all, he had a clear understanding of how he handled receiving money.

There may be even more business dealings in the future, so how could I not remember these VIP customers?

Chen Gu now wholeheartedly supports Song Xuan's investigation of the case.

He was smiling now, showing no trace of his previous arrogance.

"By the way, is there any new progress in the case of the Worry-Free Cave?"

Hearing Chen Gu's question, Zheng Wenhuan remained neither humble nor arrogant:

"In reply to Lord Chen, there has indeed been new progress."

"Elaborate."

Zheng Wenhuan stroked his beard, glanced at the others in the room, and remained silent.

Chen Gu understood, and immediately waved for everyone to leave, even Magistrate Sun was not present.

He really wanted to hear it.

"Speak quickly, there are no outsiders here."

Then the registrar Zheng Wenhuan lowered his voice and said:

"So that Master Chen may know, my master has already found some clues."

"That means there are spies from Wuyou Cave in Kaifeng and Xiangfu counties, and even in the Kaifeng government office."

"what?"

"Master Chen, please don't make a fuss." Zheng Wenhuan quickly gestured for him to leave.

"We need to investigate carefully who the spy in Wuyou Cave is and find out the mole as soon as possible."

Chen Gu narrowed his eyes, feeling that Song Xuan wouldn't speak without reason.

Given how rampant the Worry-Free Cave is, how could they not send people to the government to tip them off?
"I understand. This matter should not be publicized."

Chen Gu waved his hand: "I will carefully examine them."

"I am resigning."

Zheng Wenhuan left alone, took Qi's dossier, and headed straight for the Kaifeng County Government Office.

(End of this chapter)