Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 93 The Real Motive (Part )

The gleam that flashed in Han Yaozi's eyes for a moment revealed the ruthlessness and sharpness of this old man of the world who was born in the Ning Wang Mansion but was able to dominate the streets of the capital.

However, Haiyue just looked at the other person calmly, as if the breeze was blowing on her face.

Han Yaozi's expression changed for only a moment, and he quickly returned to normal, but his heart sank. "This kid doesn't follow common sense. He tricked me into losing my composure!"

Not to mention the officials in the court who were vague and ambiguous in their words, even the people in the martial arts world liked to test each other and find out the truth. Few of them were so direct and took the initiative.

Han Yaozi had been thinking about that incident for a while. When his whereabouts were exposed, he snorted and waved his hand without saying anything.

Seeing that the atmosphere was not right, the group of talented artists on the stage gathered around tacitly, but when they saw the boss waving his hand, they stopped and quietly retreated.

"Wait here for a minute, kid! Come with me!"

Han Yaozi first spoke to Xiaochuan, who nodded with a smile, then made a gesture and walked to the back of the platform.

Yan Shifan's expression changed slightly. He looked at Haiyue with some worry: "Shisanlang, we..."

Haiyue whispered, "Let's go! I'll protect you!"

After saying that, he followed.

Yan Shifan took a deep breath and followed the two of them all the way around, finally arriving at a house deep behind the platform.

Han Yaozi had already sat down. In front of him was a wine jug and a few side dishes. He picked up his chopsticks and started eating, pointing to the seat in front of him: "Please!"

Haiyue sat down with a relaxed posture.

Since Yan Shifan came in, he didn't lose face and sat down confidently.

"You two are very courageous!"

Han Yaozi praised: "I admire people who are brave. If you have anything to say, just say it!"

"Master Han lives up to his reputation, he is truly a heroic hero!"

As long as the other party was willing to speak, Hai Yue didn't mind praising him: "We heard that there is a big deal in the Wuding Marquis Mansion. Has Master Han taken it over?"

"Oh! Yan Xiu told you? He just returned to the capital, so he's quite well-informed!"

Han Yaozi grinned and said without hesitation: "Okay, I'll take it!"

Haiyue asked, "What's the price?"

"Oh! That's a really bad question! But I'm in a good mood today, so I'll answer you..."

Han Yaozi held up two fingers and said, "Two thousand taels of silver."

Yan Shifan took a deep breath.

Fang Wei lived a life of extravagance in Guangzhou, but his highest monthly expenses were only five thousand taels. Two thousand taels was not a small amount in the capital, where the powerful and wealthy gathered.

Guo Xunhao spent two thousand taels and gave it to such a commoner?
Haiyue also frowned.

Han Yaozi waited for a moment, and seeing that he didn't ask any further, he smiled and said, "Sir, why don't you ask? What is the purpose of such a large sum of money?"

Hai Yue said slowly, "Master Han, do you really have to tell me?"

Han Yaozi laughed heartily. "If I don't tell you, wouldn't the news have been leaked in vain, and I'd be at a great disadvantage? The Marquis of Wuding gave him these two thousand taels because he's been slandered by the people of the capital for years. He told us, the Yaozi Squad, to suppress any rumors that are unfavorable to him within three days. Hey! Only we, the Yaozi Squad, can do such a thing!"

It's obvious that this is done with bad intentions.

Everyone knew that Wuding Hou Guo Xun was a tyrant. If anyone tried to pry into his secrets, they would be in big trouble if they found out. So Han Yaozi looked at him calmly and said, "Go back and tell Yan Xiu not to overreach. He can't do what my Yaozi squad does. Let's keep our own business to ourselves!"

'really! ’

Hai Yue knew full well that Han Yaozi would definitely combine Xiaochuan and the other two with Yan Xiu if they showed up. His threats were a result of some kind of underworld rivalry, which played right into his hands. He asked, "Master Han, can he firmly control public opinion in the capital and suppress any scandal?"

Han Yaozi ate a peanut, sipped his wine, and shook his head, saying, "Oh! If I can't suppress it, then no one else in the capital can! Do you think anyone would bring up the White Lotus Sect and the Taiyuan Guards anymore?"

Hai Yue was stunned for a moment, but Yan Shifan's face suddenly changed: "Shut up! How dare you say that?"

Han Yaozi picked up the wine glass in front of him, drank it all in one gulp, and said sarcastically, "What's the matter? Only you nobles are allowed to fight to the death, and we ordinary people can't even say a word? If Master Yan is not satisfied, go and report me to the Jinyiwei!"

Yan Shifan's lips trembled slightly, and he started shaking for a moment. Hai Yue thought about these key words and realized that this was talking about the case of Li Fuda!

The case of Li Fuda, also known as the "Great Prison Case", was second only to the "Great Ceremony Debate" in terms of its impact on the turmoil in the court during the early Jiajing period.

The core of this case is Guo Xun, Marquis of Wuding.

Guo Xun admired Buddhism and Taoism and was obsessed with alchemy. He made friends with a commoner named Zhang Yin and found him a position as the commander of Taiyuan Guard. However, Zhang Yin was reported by someone, who said that he was the White Lotus Sect's evil leader Li Fuda in disguise.

Li Fuda had rebelled twice and escaped from prison twice, but now he had unexpectedly become an official appointed by the court. This was too embarrassing, and he immediately reported it to the court, and the turmoil grew bigger and bigger.

In the end, the two factions in the court were confronting each other.

The new nobles of the Great Ceremony and their supporters believed that Zhang Yin was not Li Fuda at all, and that the court officials used the Zhang Yin incident to attack Guo Xun, which was simply a political slander.

One faction opposed the Grand Ceremony and the criticism of the new nobles, and believed that Guo Xun was a nobleman of the Ming Dynasty, but he colluded with the traitor, accepted bribes, and bought an official position for him. His crime was unforgivable and he should be severely punished.

Based on this division of components, it is obvious which side Jiajing would agree with.

As a result, the case ultimately ended with more than a dozen officials dying in prison and over forty being exiled, implicating a wide range of people. Later, upon the death of Emperor Jiajing, Xu Jie drafted a will that restored the positions and reputations of all officials implicated in the "Great Ritual Debate" and the "Great Prison Case," vindicating Li Fuda and earning him a significant boost in prestige.

But when Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng came to power, they both firmly believed that Zhang Cong and Gui'e's judgment was correct and upheld the original verdict in the Li Fuda case.

So this has become a standard historical mystery, and the truth has long been buried in history.

The two factions of officials each have their own opinions and evidence. Who is right and who is wrong is probably unknown except for the parties involved, even the ministers who are arguing in the court are not clear.

This case occurred in the sixth year of Jiajing, and the turmoil has not completely subsided until now. Yan Shifan was quite frightened when he suddenly heard about it. When the case happened, Yan Song was still the chief academic officer of the Imperial College. He saw with his own eyes how those ministers who submitted memorials to impeach Guo Xun were imprisoned, tortured, and exiled in batches. This almost became a taboo in the court. He did not expect that this gangster was so unscrupulous!
Seeing that he had intimidated the son of a high-ranking official, Han Yaozi became even more proud and played with the wine glass in his hand: "What else do you two want to say?"

Haiyue stood up and bowed: "Goodbye!"

"Go slowly! I won't send you away!"

The two of them left the house quickly, thanking Xiaochuan and saying goodbye. Only after they were completely off the overpass did Yan Shifan start cursing: "Crazy! Crazy! This guy will definitely have a miserable death in the future!"

"This Han Yaozi will definitely not end well!"

Haiyue nodded and gave a similar comment.

This man was originally an entertainer in the Ning Wang Mansion. Later, the Ning Wang Mansion disappeared, but he went to the capital and became very successful. It seemed that he felt that the affairs of the court were nothing big, and he was involved in the most top-level court confrontations, and even felt quite complacent.

The way to death!

Ignoring this arrogant underworld leader, Hai Yue began to sort out the current clues: "Inside the Imperial College, Zhao Qilang stole Master Gui's sword and committed suicide. He looked agonized and desperate before committing suicide. His last words also indicated that he was forced to death by someone close to him."

"We used this as a starting point for our investigation and discovered that Zhao Qilang seemed to have discovered something three months ago. This caused him great distress and a drastic change in his personality. We then focused our investigation on the mystery of his past."

"Regardless of whether this speculation is correct or not, if word spreads that the Marquis's brother is suspected to be his biological son, it will undoubtedly cause a huge uproar and deal a huge blow to Marquis Wuding's prestige."

"But in fact, Marquis Wu Ding had already arranged for the civilian harbinger squadron. If anyone spreads words that are unfavorable to Marquis Wu Ding, someone will immediately step in to suppress public opinion."

“This is folk.”

"It is difficult for the common people to distinguish truth from falsehood; they only hear rumors."

"But when it comes to officialdom, it depends on actual evidence."

"Zhao Qilang is dead. Proving he is the Marquis' biological son is incredibly difficult. The Zhao family will surely cover up this scandal. The most we can get are some indirect clues like calligraphy, paintings, and poems."

"To put it another way, even if we prove that Zhao Qilang is Zhao's biological son, we still have to prove that Lord Guo discovered the truth about his life and forced his brother-in-law to death before we can completely clear Gui Sanlang's name..."

"But on the other hand, if Marquis Wuding has evidence to prove that the mystery of Zhao Qilang's life experience is fabricated and that he is the biological brother of Marquis Zhao, not an illegitimate child at all, then the crime of slandering a meritorious official will bring a miserable end to anyone involved in this case!"

"Donglou, do you have anything to add?"

Yan Shifan listened carefully and said in a deep voice, "No."

Haiyue said: "But this is very unreasonable, isn't it?"

Yan Shifan realized something was amiss. "Yes! His motive doesn't make sense! He's risking his own reputation just to deal with people like us who've discovered something's amiss and are investigating the true cause of Zhao Qilang's death? And then he's going to spend two thousand taels to appease the public. What's that old bastard Guo Xun trying to achieve by doing this?"

Hai Yue looked around to make sure no one was around, then whispered, "In the Li Fuda case, was Marquis Wu Ding wrongly accused?"

Yan Shifan snorted, "Who knows? I don't think so! That Zhang Yin is a member of the White Lotus Sect!"

Hai Yue said slowly, "What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Yan Shifan lowered his voice and said, "I think Your Majesty is also worried!"

"The Li Fuda case has become an unsolved case. It's a foregone conclusion. Nothing can be changed..."

Hai Yue asked, "What if, at this moment, Marquis Wu Ding is slandered again, and this time he can finally prove his innocence?"

Yan Shifan was stunned when he heard this, and immediately groaned: "So that's it! So that's it! Guo Xun wants to defile himself to gain the trust of Your Majesty?"

The Li Fuda case ended with a resounding victory for the new nobles in the Grand Ceremony Forum, and the opposition in the court was purged again.

This was actually inevitable. It was impossible for Zhu Houcong to abandon the Grand Ceremony and choose the group of officials who cried and advised him at Zuoshunmen to give up his biological parents.

But after the case was judged in this way, the current emperor probably had some doubts in his heart.

Is Zhang Yin, the commander of Taiyuan Guard, the evil leader Li Fuda of the White Lotus Sect?

Is Guo Xun, who is at the center of the vortex, being wronged?
The key point is whether Zhu Houcong, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, was manipulated and exploited by his ministers?

With this background in mind, and looking at the current case, Yan Shifan finally came to his senses: "Guo Xun is about to fabricate a false case against me, so that Your Majesty can see that someone is deliberately framing him, even with ulterior motives, and is trying to stir up trouble between the two new nobles of the Great Ritual Discussion!"

"That's why Zhao Qilang was forced to death!"

"That's why Gui Deyu was convicted as a murderer!"

"Zhao Qilang is definitely not the Marquis's biological son. Compared to the ambiguity in the Li Fuda case, this time the Marquis's Mansion will definitely be able to produce solid evidence to prove their innocence!"

"When the 'truth' is revealed, even though Guo Xun has suffered so much injustice, His Majesty will no longer doubt him. From now on, this Marquis Wuding will be invincible!"

"This is... the real motive of this case!"

(End of this chapter)