Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 72 This gold is purer than the gold in the national treasury!

[What a bastard. He was probably observing the situation the past few days, keeping quiet as long as I seemed to be winning. After all, as my nominal father, he'd definitely profit from my victory. Now that things are going wrong, he's jumped out to distance himself from me, to avoid being implicated when the bigwigs in court settle scores with me. Seriously, how can he be so clever? Clever to the point of being almost stupid…]

Emperor Jingtai couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips into a smile. He was right. Everyone said Lin Wei was a clever man, and even he himself had been fooled by Lin Wei's cleverness. But now, look at him—he wasn't clever at all; he was utterly foolish, so foolish that he couldn't even distinguish between himself and others. Even if he talked himself hoarse, could he really fake his father-daughter relationship with Jiu Que?

These days, people value blood ties very much. Even when executing nine generations of a family, they will wipe them out according to the family genealogy. Do they really think they can sever ties with just a few words? That's ridiculous.

Especially at times like these, Lin Wei should be on the same side as Ying Jiuque. After all, their fates are intertwined, and it would earn him a good reputation for his beloved daughter. Now, he'll only be scorned. After all, sending Jiuque back to her chambers at a time like this is tantamount to killing her.

Sure enough, the way the surrounding officials looked at him changed slightly. No matter the time, this kind of person is always the most despised.

Ahem, but it's still not right for Jiu Que to curse his father in his heart like this. He can't let others find out. After all, people these days still really believe in the old system of Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher.

However, Jiu Que couldn't be that stupid. Sure enough, she bowed to Lin Wei, looking somewhat aggrieved.

"Father, haven't you always taught me to be loyal to the emperor and love my country? Why do you still think I've done something wrong after I've done this? Have I really done something wrong? As a court official, shouldn't I serve His Majesty? How can I be concerned about my own life when serving His Majesty? I learned all this from you, Father!"

"Shh!"

Now, everyone's attention was focused on Lin Wei.

They hadn't realized it. They'd been wondering how Ying Jiuque, a mere teenager, could be so successful at arresting people, especially since their own daughters were already of marriageable age, so well-behaved and adorable, and didn't even know where the government office was. She even dared to frequent places like Wuyou Cave. Turns out, someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes. Lin Wei, what a genius! To come up with such a shameless method—letting his daughter fight on the front lines while he reaps the rewards—impressive, truly impressive!

Lin Wei was naturally aware of the gazes around him and became anxious, but there was nothing he could do. What could he say? Could he say that Ying Jiuque wasn't his biological daughter? He didn't want that kind of reputation.

However, she is indeed a rebellious daughter. She has been disobedient since childhood and is still the same now. Raising her is a waste of time. If she drags the Lin family down with her, wouldn't all the results of his years of hard study be in vain?
At this moment, after a brief silence, the ministers who wanted to pin a charge of wantonly disrupting the peace of the capital on Ying Jiuque silently gathered their strength, waiting for the right opportunity to swarm and tear Ying Jiuque to pieces. Surely Ying Jiuque would have to submit his report eventually? Finding faults in those documents wouldn't be difficult for them, would it?
"Your Majesty, in addition to arresting the officials involved, I have also brought back all the evidence. However, there is quite a lot of it. I would like Your Majesty to come out of the palace to take a look."

Evidence?

Emperor Jingtai was somewhat puzzled. What evidence? Shouldn't that evidence have been handed over to the Ministry of Justice? Why go through all the trouble of bringing it to the palace? However, since Jiuque had spoken, Emperor Jingtai naturally became interested. He waved his hand to stop his ministers from resisting and led the way out.

Seeing this, the ministers could not lag behind, so they all followed. After they went out, they saw hundreds of large wooden boxes placed in the originally empty square, with some panting golden-armored guards standing next to them.

Are all these boxes evidence of a crime?

Ha! The officials, who were initially a little nervous, calmed down now. Even if they were guilty, how could there be so much evidence? It's all a lie.

"Ying Qing, what are these?"

Ying Jiuque bowed respectfully.

"Your Majesty, these are all pieces of evidence that I have uncovered. The Wuyou Cave case involves too many masterminds. I have been investigating thoroughly for so long, but I have not yet caught all the real culprits. However, there is too much evidence, and the Ministry of Justice is already overflowing with it. Moreover, it is not very safe to keep it there. Therefore, I brought these things back with me. After all, this is the safest place in the world. Only by keeping it in the palace can it be truly safe."

"Oh?" Now Emperor Jingtai was completely intrigued. What could it be that he wouldn't even trust the Ministry of Justice with? Could it be evidence of crimes committed by those scoundrels in the court? That might be a case of collusion with the Ministry of Justice to switch things.

"open to take a look."

"Yes."

Jiu Que waved his hand, and the golden-armored guards below, who were suppressing their excitement, moved in unison, opening the boxes with a whoosh. In an instant, brilliant golden light shone brightly on the square, even more dazzling under the sunlight.

Emperor Jingtai and his entourage, standing on the high platform, couldn't help but shield their eyes before taking a closer look at the golden light emanating from the boxes.

What the hell is this?

After they finally saw what was inside those huge wooden crates, everyone was momentarily stunned.

"This this……"

There were boxes and boxes of gold!
Although it's somewhat misshapen, as if it's been flattened, its purity is so high that you can tell at a glance that it's pure gold!
Emperor Jingtai's face was ashen. He strode over, picked up a piece, and examined it closely. When he discovered that its purity was no higher than that of the pieces in the national treasury, he sneered, his face extremely ugly.

"Ying Qing, tell me, where did you get this stolen silver?"

"Your Majesty, it seems to be the Prince Ping's residence, Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Personnel, and Minister Wang of the Left Censor-in-Chief..."

Emperor Jingtai listened attentively, then casually tossed the gold back into the box. He turned to look at the officials who couldn't utter a single word, his expression extremely unpleasant.

"Why are you all silent? Weren't you just pleading for those guilty officials? Now you're not saying a word. Isn't that too heartless?"

A silence.

"This gold is excellent, truly excellent. It's even purer than the gold in the national treasury, and perhaps even better than the gold in my own private treasury. I had no idea that those ministers who usually profess loyalty to the emperor and love for the country have amassed so much wealth in secret. Are they still my loyal ministers?"

"Back then, when Quzhou suffered a severe drought, you all complained about being poor, and in the end, you couldn't even scrape together a thousand taels of gold. But look at this now! There's so much gold on the ground that I don't even want to look at it anymore!"

"Now, I can't help but suspect that some of you are secretly making deals and colluding with the real culprit behind the Worry-Free Cave, providing them with convenience and obtaining benefits that even I find tempting!"

"We, your subjects, deserve to die a thousand deaths. Please, Your Majesty, calm your anger—"

Everyone present knelt down.

(End of this chapter)