The Dumb Prince of the Ming Dynasty

The main hall of the Ministry of Justice.

Li Jinglong entered and glanced around; he saw more than a dozen officials from the Ministry of Justice present.

Minister of Justice Wang Huidi sat in the main seat, Vice Minister of Justice Wang Xizhe stood to one side, and the other officials lined up below.

"Greetings, esteemed lords." Li Jinglong clasped his hands in a fist and bowed deeply.

Wang Huidi stood up, beaming, "Your arrival is just in time, Young Duke. We've been waiting for you."

Other officials also clasped their hands in salute.

"My lords, please don't be so polite. How would I know anything about investigating cases? I even read case files sideways," Li Jinglong said with a smile. "His Majesty sent me here to gain experience and broaden my horizons. Just do what you're supposed to do, and pretend I'm not here."

Wang Huidi smiled meaningfully: "That's not right, Young Duke."

"What's wrong?" Li Jinglong asked.

"I heard that you went to the Eastern Palace before coming to the Ministry of Justice," Wang Huidi said.

Goodness, this old fox is really well-informed.

Li Jinglong remained outwardly calm and smiled, "Lord Wang is very well-informed. I was on official business. Aren't I also serving as the Junior Chamberlain now? His Highness the Crown Prince instructed me to familiarize myself with the Eastern Palace."

"When the young Duke went to the Eastern Palace to identify the gates, he wasn't just identifying His Highness's gate, was he?" Wang Xizhe asked.

Li Jinglong turned to look at him: "What do you mean by that, Vice Minister Wang?"

"The young Duke accepted the assignment to assist in the Lü Yang case, and then went to the Eastern Palace. Who is Lü Yang? He is the Crown Princess's cousin and Minister Lü's nephew," Wang Xizhe said.

Li Jinglong smiled and said, "Minister Wang, it is my duty as the Junior Chamberlain to go to the Eastern Palace. As for Lü Yang's case, I haven't even looked at the case file yet."

Wang Huidi chuckled and said, "I've worked in the Ministry of Justice for so many years. Some cases appear to involve only one person, but in reality, they implicate more than one. Other cases appear to be investigations, but are actually about protecting people."

"Lord Wang, what you're saying is too profound; I don't understand." Li Jinglong blinked.

Wang Xizhe stepped forward: "Young Duke, stop pretending. Aren't you here to exonerate Lü Yang?"

"I'm warning you not to talk nonsense! I'm suing you for defamation, you know? I'm suing you for defamation! He's defaming me! He's defaming me!" Li Jinglong raised his voice.

The officials in the hall looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Young Duke, don't get agitated. Your agitation makes it seem like you have a guilty conscience," Wang Huidi said.

Li Jinglong suddenly raised his right hand: "I am mortal enemies with evil!"

"good!"

Wang Huidi waved his sleeves in court, "Everyone, go about your business. Wang Xizhe, stay here, let's explain the case to the Young Duke."

The officials withdrew.

Li Jinglong put on a grinning expression: "My lords, how was my performance just now?"

Wang Huidi was stunned for a moment: "Act? What act?"

"Of course it's acting. With so many eyes watching, how can I not appear righteous? We're talking amongst ourselves behind closed doors, so there's no need to pretend, right?"

Wang Huidi and Wang Xizhe exchanged a glance, both surprised and suspicious.

"My lords, I know the unspoken rules of your officialdom. Don't worry, I'm a very sensible person. This is just a formality. Do what you need to do, and I promise I won't report it to His Majesty." Li Jinglong appeared to be completely sincere.

Wang Huidi quickly waved her hand: "Our Ministry of Justice handles cases in accordance with the law."

Keep pretending.

Li Jinglong sighed, "Lord Wang doesn't treat me like one of his own. Alright, alright, I understand. It's normal for him not to trust me since it's our first time dealing with each other."

"What do you understand?" Wang Huidi's face turned pale.

Li Jinglong shrugged: "Making money, you know. First, arrest a bunch of people, convict them of some minor crime, and have their families pay ransom. Once the money's collected, Master Huang's money is returned in full, and the rest is split 30/70. Isn't that how it's always been?"

Wang Huidi broke down: "No, absolutely not."

"Young Duke, His Majesty sent you here to keep an eye on us?" Wang Xizhe asked from the side.

Li Jinglong shook his head: "No, absolutely not."

Wang Huidi coughed twice: "Young Duke, let's get down to business. Let me tell you about Lü Yang's case."

"Okay." Li Jinglong sat down.

Wang Huidi cleared her throat and began to speak from the beginning.

After the case of Hu Mei and his son's rebellion came to light, the Embroidered Uniform Guard followed the clues and found Han Duo, the Vice Minister of Works.

Han Duo was imprisoned, but he confessed everything after only a few days, giving a list of names, including Lu Yang, the head of the Ministry of Works.

"Han Duo's confession was very detailed. He remembered exactly how much he embezzled and how much Lü Yang received. The confession alone was not enough. The Embroidered Uniform Guard investigated the account books, documents, and witnesses, and everything matched up."

"The evidence is irrefutable."

Li Jinglong shrugged: "Then arrest them."

"Young Duke, Lü Yang is, after all, the Crown Princess's cousin, so we submitted a memorial." Wang Huidi's expression was solemn. "But His Majesty has not issued any decree, neither saying that he should be arrested nor that he should not be arrested."

Li Jinglong was stunned: "That's not right. His Majesty has even arrested his father-in-law, how could he let go of a mere minor official in the Ministry of Works?"

"We don't understand it either," Wang Xizhe chimed in. "In terms of kinship, Lü Yang is just the Crown Princess's cousin, far less close than Hu Mei. As for evidence, we have both witnesses and physical evidence."

Li Jinglong felt a chill run down his spine, a sense of foreboding washing over him.

Has Zhu Laodeng set another trap for me?

Last time, they collected all the nobles' pardons from the dead. What about this time? What do they want me to do this time?

"Didn't His Majesty give the Duke of Shao any instructions?" Wang Huidi asked.

Li Jinglong was on the verge of tears: "No. His Majesty just told me to assist in the matter and to act according to the law. He and the Crown Prince both support me. I just have a feeling that nothing good is going to come of it."

Wang Huidi asked, "So what do we do now?"

"How would I know? You're the organizers." Li Jinglong wanted to quit.

Wang Xizhe pondered for a moment: "Should we arrest them first? The evidence is irrefutable, so arresting them is perfectly reasonable."

Li Jinglong waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "Don't look at me. I'm just a co-organizer; you're the organizers."

"Young Duke, since His Majesty has given you the decree, you must make the decision. This case is on the list of the Ministry of Justice, and you are on the list; we are in the same boat." Wang Xizhe cupped his hands in greeting.

Li Jinglong stared at him, remaining silent for a long time.

He was silent for a moment before saying, "Well then, I'll go and meet this Lü Yang first."

"Thank you for your trouble, Young Duke." The two clasped their hands in greeting.

……

Li Jinglong left the Ministry of Justice and went straight to the Lü residence.

The door was locked, so he had no choice but to knock: "Hello, how about the 'extermination of nine generations of relatives' package?"

After waiting for a while, there was no response from inside the door.

He banged even louder and shouted, "Not satisfied with the set meal? We also have sets that involve exterminating three generations of your family, slow slicing, and skinning alive. There's bound to be one that suits your taste."

Clang!

The gate opened, and standing in the doorway was Zhu Yunwen.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" he asked angrily.