Chapter 480
~ CAUGHT THE FOX’S TAIL ~
While the Capital’s officials were anxiously waiting for news from Jiangnan, the Ministry of Justice had another incident. Yang Lian and Zou Min, who got imprisoned in the Capital, died overnight.
When the news got out, the Emperor directly threw away the teacup in his hand and ordered the Minister of the Ministry of Justice to investigate strictly.
After Mu Yunyao heard the news from Si Shu, she immediately frowned, “Didn’t I remind you to pay attention to Ling Wang before? How did you let people take advantage of the loophole?”
Si Shu replied respectfully, “Eunuch Cheng sent word that His Royal Highness had done it on purpose.”
“Intentionally?” Mu Yunyao was surprised. The Ministry of Justice was Ling Wang’s own territory. He was deliberately causing trouble in his own territory. Wasn’t he afraid that the Emperor would dismiss the Minister of Justice in rage when questioning?
“Yes, originally, Jin Wang only wanted people to destroy Yang Lian’s mouth. But after His Royal Highness found out about this news, he purposely didn’t get anyone to stop him and killed Zou Min concurrently.”
Mu Yunyao gently twirled the jade bracelet on her wrist, and her gaze slowly darkened, “Yang Lian is at the height of the storm. The Emperor is s staring at him very closely, but other than the clues that we intentionally threw away. Yang Lian doesn’t have any intentions of had no intention of confessing. Because he knows that if Jin Wang is safe and sound, it is still possible to rescue him. But if anything happened to Jin Wang, it would be hard for him to escape this calamity. Why did Jin Wang ignore the danger and rush to silence him?”
Si Shu and the others quietly waited at the side, not daring to make a sound to interrupt Mu Yunyao’s train of thoughts.
Mu Yunyao suddenly stopped spinning the bracelet. “Could it be that Jin Wang has already figured out how to rid of the Jiangnan salt tax case, and the only loophole is Yang Lian, who knows about the inside information, so he was anxious to silence people? Assuming my guess is correct, what means would Jin Wang use to get rid of the salt tax case?”
Si Shu tentatively accosted: “Could it be that Jin Wang destroyed all the evidence?”
“Evidence… Evidence…” Mu Yunyao’s face turned pale white. “Jin Lan, go and call Liu Liang over.”
Very quickly, Liu Liang arrived in front of Mu Yunyao. “Greetings, Mistress.”
“Liu Liang, take my letter and my banknotes and immediately rush to Jingling City to find Steward Qin. Have him use Chang He’s ticket number and exchange it for two million taels of silver, and then take the land route to send it to the Capital. If you can see Yue Wang, tell him to be careful of the riverside embankment. The letter I wrote must be handed over to Steward Qin personally, do you understand?”
“Yes, please rest assured, Mistress. Your subordinate will not disappoint you.”
“Good.” Mu Yunyao got up and walked to the back of the desk to write a letter. After writing it, she carefully sealed it with beeswax. After writing three letters in a row, he stopped writing. She then took out the silver notes and handed them to Liu Liang. “Liu Liang, you should pack up now and rush to Jingling City. You must not delay on the road. Thank you for your hard work.
“Your subordinate will go now.”
After Liu Liang left, Jin Lan carefully asked, “Miss, your face is mortified. Is the matter serious?”
“I don’t know if my guess is correct. But with regards to Jin Wang, you should never underestimate him. His methods are cold and cruel to himself, not to mention others.” Mu Yunyao lowered her eyes. “I’ll give it a try. If I’m right, it’s better to be safe than sorry. If I didn’t guess correctly, it would only consume a bit manpower and material resources.”
Jin Lan heard it and was still confused, but seeing the ugly expression on Mu Yunyao’s face, she didn’t dare ask any further questions.
The Minister of the Ministry of Justice was ordered to investigate what happened in prison. In the end, only two guards who were afraid of committing suicide were caught. Seeing that the closing date set by the Emperor was approaching, so he had no choice but to report the result to the court.
When the Emperor saw this result, he flew into a rage. The Ministry of Justice was the place that paid the most attention to the law and was the most strict. But two court officials were secretly murdered in jail before they could be convicted. It was equivalent to a resounding slap in the face of the Imperial Court.
The Minister of the Ministry of Justice came out of the Palace with his back hunched over. After changing his clothes, he hurried to Ling Wang’s Palace.
Ling Wang had long been waiting for the Minister of the Ministry of Justice. When he saw him coming, he asked people to serve tea to appease him, “Master Shao, you don’t have to be so worried. I have already investigated this clearly that the two guards who died did not commit suicide out of fear of their crimes, but rather, they murdered, and the person who killed them was sent by the Jin Palace’s steward.”
The Minister of the Ministry of Justice had just taken a sip of tea when he heard this, then he fell to the ground in fright and poured some tea all over the floor. “Your Royal Highness, you want me sue His Royal Highness Jin Wang?”
The dispute between the two princes had been going on for a long time. No matter how much a contest was going on in private, on the surface, they always showed the brotherly courtesy that the Emperor liked to see. Even if they tore off their relationship now, it shouldn’t be him, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, stepping out. Isn’t it life-threatening?
“Master Shao, don’t worry. I won’t let you identify Jin Wang. I just want you to report the results of your investigation to Imperial Father, and he will make his own decision.” Ling Wang grinned, and his eyes were full of confidence.
“Your Highness, this … Is this inappropriate?”
“Master Shao was reprimanded by Imperial Father when you entered the Palace, right? The effect of this case is really not good. Master Shao was unable to investigate before the prescribed closing date, and it was due to your incompetent performance as the Minister of the Ministry of Justice. In a rage, Imperial Father said that he would not directly remove you from your official position. Can Master Shao accept such a result?”
“If I do as Your Royal Highness says, won’t the Emperor pursue it?”
“If Master Shao does my instructions, I can ensure that Master Shao is safe and sound. Master Shao, you are my right-hand man. For so many years, I have relied on you to support me in order to not be at a disadvantage in the Imperial Court. I always keep your credit in mind. If something happens now, I will try my best to protect you.”
After thinking carefully for a moment, The Minister of the Ministry of Justice nodded heavily. “Alright, I will listen to Your Royal Highness’s orders.”
“Alright.”
Two days later, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice wrote the letter once again. The Emperor was similarly furious, but the target was not the Minister of the Ministry of Justice. Instead, it was Jin Wang who was pointed secretly to in his notes.
Jin Wang was summoned immediately into the Palace. When Zou Min was poisoned to death, he guessed that Ling Wang was trying to use this method to target himself. Although Jin Wang tried his best to erase the evidence, Ling Wang still managed to find some clues in a hurry. He did not know why the Minister of the Ministry of Justice’s letter was so accurate that he even found out about his steward.
“Imperial Father, I really don’t know anything about it. During this time, I have been busy in the Ministry of Industry with the transformation of Qu Plow. I have rarely stepped out of the Palace, so how could I have anything to do with the murder case in the Ministry of Justice’s prison? In addition, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice had always been close to Eldest Imperial Brother. Even if I wanted to interfere, I don’t have this opportunity.”
Hearing this, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice hurriedly replied, “Your Highness, the official identified the steward of your residence. Even if you don’t believe that he has committed a grave mistake, you should at least go back and interrogate him before coming to a conclusion. On the contrary, this hurried rebuttal is a suspicion of hypocrisy. Could it be that you know everything about your steward’s actions?”