I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 300 Already prepared
The Marquis of Zhongyong remained oblivious, scrutinizing Wang Qi as if he were a clown. "Bring out any other evidence you have. I want to see what else your people have prepared to frame me."

Listening to his constant slander and framing, and his calm demeanor, which made him seem completely unrepentant, the officials couldn't help but look at Wang Qi with suspicion.

Could it be that someone is deliberately plotting against us or has mistakenly accused the wrong person?

Wang Qi lowered his head, clutching the bundle tightly, a look of struggle and hesitation flashing between his brows.

Seeing him like this, Xie Hui reached out to grab the bundle.

If it's just a small token, there's no need for this bag; there must be something else inside.

Wang Qi only stopped him briefly before letting go, allowing Xie Hui to easily pull him away.

Xie Hui glanced at him and opened the bundle.

All the officials craned their necks to look.

Marquis Zhongyong also looked up.

The bundle contained a booklet. Xie Hui only flipped through a few pages before his expression changed drastically. He gave the Marquis of Zhongyong a deep look and then presented the booklet to the emperor.

The Marquis of Zhongyong's gaze followed the booklet to the emperor, a faint sense of unease rising in his heart.

At the same time, Chu Liuzheng found the answer that made the Marquis of Zhongyong so heartless and insane that he killed people like chickens.

[Holy crap! Marquis Zhongyong has discovered that the iron mine has been concealed and illegally mined there for almost five years!]

Xiao Jingfan's grip on the ledger tightened suddenly.

Chu Liuzheng was stunned.

[Not just one or two years, but five years! A full five years!!! How could such a massive operation as iron ore mining possibly escape the government's notice? Is the magistrate of Shisong County just sitting around doing nothing?]

She flipped through it quickly.

[Uh... well, the county magistrate really has become a man of the Marquis of Zhongyong. Almost all the surrounding officials have been bribed by the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion. That area has practically become the Marquis of Zhongyong's personal fiefdom. No wonder such a big incident as the massacre of the village could be covered up so perfectly and closed as an accidental fire.]

[The Marquis of Zhongyong chose to massacre the village because the current magistrate was about to be transferred, and the new magistrate was a troublemaker, unyielding and resistant to both persuasion and coercion. If they waited for the new magistrate to take office, the illegal iron ore mining would inevitably be discovered, and if it reached the tyrant, their entire family would be wiped out.]

As Chu Liuzheng looked at it, he felt that something was strange.

[Wait a minute, can't the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor do math?]

There's only one new magistrate, and Dongjing Village has over three hundred people. Wouldn't the usual approach be to eliminate all the disobedient and uncooperative new magistrates until a willing and obedient one appears?

[Even adding them all up, we wouldn't kill three hundred. With the connections the Marquis of Zhongyong has built up over many years, killing a few county magistrates is nothing. Even if they're found to have been murdered, they can easily cover it up, let alone make it look like accidental deaths. Afterwards, they can continue mining iron ore. No matter how you look at it, killing county magistrates is more profitable.]

The more Chu Liuzheng thought about it, the more suspicious he felt, and he couldn't help but glance at the Marquis of Zhongyong below.

How could a marquis like Zhongyong Hou not have thought of something that even she could easily think of?
There's definitely more to this than meets the eye!

She mentally rolled up her sleeves and plunged into the melon patch.

Here comes the big scoop!
Xiao Jingfan quickly flipped through the ledgers, his face turning ashen.

He forcefully flung the ledger downwards, hitting the Marquis of Zhongyong squarely on the forehead.

Marquis Zhongyong dared not dodge at all, and took the blow head-on. He knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger."

"Calm down?" Xiao Jingfan was furious. He picked up the paperweight on the table and slammed it down on him. "You've been illegally mining iron ore for five years! Li You, are you trying to rebel?!"

Upon hearing the word "rebellion," all the officials were so frightened that they knelt down in unison.

The hall was completely silent, which made the sound of the paperweight hitting someone all the more loud.

The ironwood paperweight was quite heavy; when it hit him, it felt like being struck by a large stick, causing the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery to groan in pain.

But he was no longer concerned about the physical pain and cried out, "Your Majesty, I did not! I am innocent!" Xiao Jingfan glanced at him coldly: "It is clearly written in the account book, and it is also stamped with your personal seal, Li You. How have I wronged you?"

Marquis Zhongyong picked up the account book from the ground and looked at it for a moment. He then looked up at the emperor and said, “Your Majesty, my personal seal was lost four years ago. In order to prevent it from being used by someone with ulterior motives, I specially replaced it with a seal that is slightly different from the original. I hope Your Majesty will understand.”

As he spoke, he took a small seal from his sleeve and held it above his head along with the account book.

Xiao Anzi came down, took the seal and account books, and presented them to the emperor.

Xiao Jingfan dipped the seal in red clay, stamped it on the paper, and compared it with the seal on the account book.

Private seals are often written in seal script. They not only record the name but also use suffixes or palindromes to highlight the identity and integrity of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery. This private seal of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery is no exception.

At first glance, the two stamps seem to be no different, but upon closer inspection, one can see that the vertical stroke of the character "李" (which cannot be typed, please imagine the seal script) on the new stamp is slightly shorter, and there is an inconspicuous plum blossom seal next to it. If one does not look closely, one might think that it was not stamped at all.

Even though the difference is small, the two stamps are indeed different.

Staring at the fresh stamp on the table, Xiao Jingfan almost sneered.

[Oh my, at first glance, the old and new stamps are almost indistinguishable; enough to fool anyone. No wonder the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor is so fearless.]

Chu Liuzheng looked at the relatively calm Marquis Zhongyong below and really wanted to pick up another paperweight and smash it down.

What a scumbag!!

Xiao Jingfan ordered his men to show the account books and seals to the officials.

Dong Yi and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review examined it very carefully, thinking to themselves that the Marquis of Zhongyong's private seal was lost at a very opportune time.

Faced with the evidence, officials who were on good terms with the Marquis of Zhongyong immediately stepped forward to speak on his behalf.

"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Zhongyong's family has a long history of loyalty and righteousness, their unwavering devotion is as clear as day. Please, Your Majesty, do not be easily swayed by the words of petty men and chill the hearts of loyal ministers!"

“Your Majesty, this boy has made false accusations against the Marquis of Zhongyong’s mansion without any evidence. He should be severely punished to prevent others from following suit.”

"Your Majesty, this boy may be acting under someone else's orders, and a thorough investigation is warranted."

"His Majesty……"

……

Seven or eight officials stood up one after another to speak on behalf of Marquis Zhongyong, as if it would be an injustice if Xiao Jingfan did not immediately beat Wang Qi, this commoner who dared to falsely accuse Marquis Zhongyong, to death.

Wang Qi bit his lip hard, his eyes filled with a mixture of hatred and confusion. He couldn't understand why the account books he had risked his life to protect had suddenly become useless.

Didn't that person tell him that as long as he had this ledger, he could have the Marquis of Zhongyong's family raided and exterminated?

“Kid,” Xie Hui suddenly squatted down and whispered, “If you don’t want to die and want to avenge the whole village, hurry up and produce the other evidence.”

Wang Qi glanced at him and shook his head.

It's unclear whether there's no other evidence or some unspeakable reason.

Seeing his reaction, Xie Hui didn't say anything more.

Dong Yi and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review exchanged a glance, wondering why Commander Xie, who was all smiles but no heart, had suddenly started meddling in other people's business.

The officials of the Marquis of Zhongyong's faction clamored for the emperor to severely punish Wang Qi, each one of them wishing they could make the decision for the emperor, while the Marquis of Zhongyong, the person involved, played the innocent and pitiful victim.

The incident happened suddenly, and Xiao Jingfan was at a loss for what to do. Just as he was about to use a delaying tactic to investigate properly, a member of the Imperial Guard came to report that someone had struck the Dengwen Drum again.

My ministers, you look at me and I look at you.

What a lucky day it is today, even people are flocking to file lawsuits against the emperor.

I've seen everyone's replies. Since no one minds, I won't use chapter titles for the next update! ^v^