Not long after, under the gaze of all the ministers, a young man appeared at the entrance of Wenhua Hall.
He was wearing heavy court clothes, a beam crown on his head, sword-shaped eyebrows and starry eyes, and a face like a crown jewel. He looked like a frail scholar, but there was a stubborn heroic spirit between his eyebrows.
Perhaps because it was the first time he saw such a big scene, the young man seemed a little nervous and hurried to the palace under the guidance of the chamberlain.
The young man then paid homage, kowtowed to the ground, and said:
"I, the Crown Prince of Zhennan, Zhu Yinqi, bow to Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
It was also the first time for Zhu Qiyu to see this young man who was highly praised by Shu Liang.
In terms of age, he is not as old as Zhu Qiyu, having just turned nineteen this year, but in terms of seniority, he is of the same generation as Emperor Xuanzong, and is Zhu Qiyu's real elder.
Zhu Qiyu waved his hand and said.
"Ping Sheng, just now the drum guard reported that you were beating the Dengwen drum to avenge your father. Is this true?"
Zhu Yinxi stood up carefully and replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, this is indeed the case."
Zhu Qiyu nodded, glanced at Marquis Ningyang and others below intentionally or unintentionally, and asked.
"Then you know that under the ancestral system of our dynasty, if anyone who beats the Dengwen drum is not wronged after verification by the court, the drummer will be treated as a hundred sticks. Even if you are a member of the clan, there is no exception. Have you thought clearly?
"
After hearing this, Zhu Yinqi, who was still a little nervous at first, became firm, and with a firmness in his slightly childish face, he raised his head and said.
"Your Majesty, this case is a false accusation. My father's injustice is so great that it can be likened to a storm in June. I believe that your Majesty is wise and wise in his judgment, and can distinguish between injustice and injustice. I and my father are open and honest, with a clear conscience and no fear!"
His words immediately caused a small ripple in the palace.
To defend one's father's grievances and to overcome all difficulties without fear is the filial piety advocated by Confucianism.
Now, a 19-year-old young man, as a nobleman in the sky, risks being reprimanded hundreds of times to resolutely beat the drum, which is in line with the image of a filial son in the minds of the elders.
Therefore, for a moment, the eyes of many people in the palace were full of approval.
With Zhu Yinzhen's statement, even if it is finally found out that King Zhennan was not innocent in the case, his filial piety that moved the world can still serve as an example for the clan.
When many elders heard his words, they were already thinking about how to plead for this filial young man if the case was not overturned.
Some people even began to think about whether King Zhennan would really commit such crimes if he could teach such a virtuous son.
Unknowingly, after Ningyang Hou announced the case, the public opinion in the court that was unfavorable to Zhennan King began to quietly change at this time.
On the throne, Zhu Qiyu was obviously very satisfied, nodded slightly, and then said.
"This case is originally a clan matter, so I will hand it over to the head of the Zongren Mansion for trial. But today, since you have sounded the Dengwen drum, as usual, I will hand over the case to the three divisions for trial."
Because the previous interrogations involved clan members, they were actually kept semi-secret, and the specific circumstances of the interrogations were not made public.
However, the cases that sound the Dengwen drum, according to regulations, need to go through a public trial of three divisions to ensure the fairness of the trial.
Not only that, the official who presided over the trial was no longer the Second Assistant Officer, but the sitting officer of the Third Division.
Therefore, after Zhu Qiyu finished speaking, he turned his eyes to the civil servants and shouted.
"Where are the censor of Zuodu, the minister of the Ministry of punishment, and the minister of Dali temple?"
Chen Yi, Jin Lian and Xue Xuan came to the palace at the same time, bowed and said.
"I'm waiting here!"
Zhu Qiyu looked solemn and said.
"When I heard the sound of the drum, as usual, the three divisions should be jointly tried. Now the prince of Zhennan, Zhu Yinxi, is avenging his father. As the chief officers of the three divisions, you should take over the case. I order you..."
However, he was only halfway through speaking when he heard a voice.
"Your Majesty, please wait."
Everyone turned their attention to the source of the sound, only to find that the person who spoke was none other than Zhu Yinxi, who requested a retrial.
Being watched by so many people, he became a little nervous again, but he still calmed down, lifted up his robe, fell to the ground, and kowtowed.
"I will die, but I am going to the palace today. In addition to pleading my father's grievances, I also have something to report."
The emperor said with a golden tone: "What's the matter?"
Zhu Yinqi raised his head, glanced at the ministers present, and said.
"I want to impeach Cheng Anhou Guo Sheng, Prince Consort Xue Heng, Huichang Bo Sunzhong, and Prince Consort Jiao Jing. Four of them secretly made friends with the clan, colluded with King Guangtong and King Yangzong, and plotted to murder and falsely accuse my father."
"I also want to impeach Chen Mao, the Marquis of Ningyang, Xue Xuan, the minister of Dali Temple, and Luo Tong, the left deputy capital censor. They colluded with each other. They did not decide the case clearly, listened to one side and bent the law for personal gain. They ignored my father's words and closed the case hastily. To my father
Being wrongly imprisoned bears the heavy responsibility of the imperial court."
The ministers below immediately swallowed their saliva.
Chen Mao, the Marquis of Ningyang, and Guo Sheng, the Marquis of Cheng'an, are now regarded as pillars among the nobles.
Prince Consort Xue Heng, Prince Consort Jiao Jing, and Huichang Bo Sun Zhong were all relatives of the Empress Dowager Shangsheng in the palace.
In comparison, Xue Xuan and Luo Tong on the civil servant side pale in comparison.
This is a big deal for me!
All the nobles, relatives, and civil servants were included in the network at once.
Is this Prince of Zhennan planning to offend all the officials in the court?
Sure enough, the next moment, Ning Yuan Hou Renli was the first to stand up and question,
"What does the prince mean by this? In the case of King Zhennan, whether there is injustice or not, we cannot draw a conclusion now. However, Marquis Ningyang and others accepted the case according to the order, and every procedure was not improper, even if the retrial was finally concluded.
There is something wrong, and at best it is an accidental oversight, so how can we call the situation a traitor and bend the law for personal gain?"
Faced with the question, Zhu Yinxi did not panic. After thinking about it, he turned to Chen Mao and asked.
"May I ask Chen Hou, now that you have closed the case and convicted my father of the crime, do you have any evidence that my father confessed his crime and was detained?"
Chen Mao twisted his gray eyebrows together and said.
"The King of Zhennan firmly denies the charges in this case and insists that he has never slandered the Ren Temple or involved the clan. Since I cannot impose punishment, naturally I don't have the evidence you mentioned."
Of course, Chen Mao also saw through Zhu Yinqi's intention, and then said.
“However, historically, when trying a case, it is not necessary for the criminal to plead guilty. As long as the evidence is sufficient and the facts of the case are clear, the case can be finalized.”
"In the case of King Zhennan, there were slanderous poems written by him as physical evidence, and a restaurant clerk as a witness. The chain of evidence was complete. Although King Zhennan insisted on denying it, he was unable to produce evidence to prove his innocence. There was no inconsistency in the verdict.
OK."
Zhu Yinxi shook his head and said.
"Then let me ask Chen Hou, where did the so-called physical evidence and witness you mentioned come from?"
this……
Chen Mao vaguely understood what he meant and was speechless for a moment.
Zhu Yinxi seemed to be greatly encouraged by this, and sneered and said.
"Why didn't Chen Hou say anything? Is it because the so-called poems written by my father were proved by King Guangtong and others, and the so-called restaurant clerk was also brought to Beijing by King Guangtong and others?"
"The physical witnesses and evidence were all provided by the plaintiff. Chen Hou is the presiding judge, and Xue Siqing and Deputy Luo are co-trials. The three of you unanimously agreed on the testimony and evidence of King Guangtong and others.
be accepted."
"On the contrary, you did not check my father's defense at all, arbitrarily judged it as sophistry, and forced my father to be imprisoned. You did not even mention my father's request to meet with His Majesty to state his case. This is not a conspiracy.
What is it about bending the law for personal gain?"
This chapter has been completed!