The prince is more stable

Chapter 934 The Wind Turns Around
There is a cruel but true fact: when the state apparatus wants to fabricate so-called evidence of crimes, then that evidence will be flawless, and no one will be able to find any loopholes.

In this field, the Imperial Palace Guard is an expert.

The Imperial City Guard of the Song Dynasty was not only the emperor's eyes and ears, but more terrifyingly, it could directly fabricate crimes, determine their outcomes, and concoct evidence to condemn a case to death, one from which there would be no chance of redress.

Zhao Xiaoqian's decision to use the Imperial City Guard to handle Shi Zhongxian's suicide case was a well-considered one.

Having lived two lives, Zhao Xiaoqian had long seen through the true nature of this world.

The world is not black and white; it is not that simple.

Even if Shi Zhongxian was an incorruptible official with a flawless life, and his conduct as a person and as an official was clean and honest, his suicide in front of the palace gate damaged Zhao Xiaoqian's reputation, and caused a great uproar among the civil and military officials, making people uneasy.

Shi Zhongxian was undermining the Song Dynasty and tarnishing the supreme imperial power. Based on this alone, he must be firmly labeled as a "treacherous minister."

Since he is already a treacherous official, it is no longer important how to fabricate evidence of his crimes; everything can be left to the Imperial City Guard.

Perhaps Shi Zhongxian, now in the afterlife, still secretly believes that he can leave behind a good reputation even after death. A loyal minister earnestly remonstrates with the emperor, but the emperor does not heed his advice, so he uses his death to prove his loyalty. How righteous and tragic that sounds! It must have left a strong mark on history.

Zhao Xiaoqian could only say that this guy was overthinking it.

History is like a little girl who can be dressed up however one pleases, and so are historical figures.

Thus, even before the seventh day after Shi Zhongxian's death had arrived, rumors were already circulating in the imperial court.

Cai Jing, who had just been appointed as the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, presented a thick stack of evidence of his crimes in front of the Chancellors of the State Council.

It contains money embezzled by Mr. Shi Zhong's predecessor, totaling more than 1.2 million taels.

Every bribe and every account is traceable, down to the date, who handled it, who witnessed it, and where the money was hidden.

Then there's Shi Zhongxian, who abused his power for personal gain. When he served as a county magistrate and a censor, he handled countless wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice, involving countless lives.

Furthermore, Shi Zhongxian's family and relatives used his name to secretly trade with the Liao Kingdom, selling prohibited salt, iron, and other substances, and making huge profits from it.

The case involves seven major crimes and more than twenty minor crimes. Each case has witnesses and physical evidence, and the chain of evidence is fixed and locked, perfectly closed.

When Cai Jing presented the evidence of Shi Zhongxian's crimes to the Council of State, the prime ministers were shocked.

The first thought that came to everyone's mind was disbelief.

It's not that they don't believe Shi Zhongxian committed so many crimes; after all, the prime ministers weren't very familiar with him.

What they couldn't believe was that Cai Jing had obtained all the evidence so quickly; even the Imperial City Guard couldn't have done it so fast.

The prime ministers of the Council of State were all cunning old foxes; they immediately realized something was wrong.

This incriminating evidence is too comprehensive and too perfect.

The lack of flaws became the biggest flaw, especially since it had only been four days since Shi Zhongxian committed suicide.

In just four days, they were able to gather such comprehensive evidence, with both witnesses and physical evidence, as if Shi Zhongxian had already prepared the evidence before his death, and the Imperial City Guard only needed to retrieve it from his home.

The prime ministers had their doubts, but none of them spoke up.

The case of Shi Zhongxian's suicide is far too serious; it has already affected the Emperor's reputation. The fact that the Imperial City Guard produced evidence so quickly is clearly at the Emperor's behest.

At this point, who would dare to question this stack of incriminating evidence?
The mastermind behind forcing Shi Zhongxian to commit suicide has not yet been found, and the Emperor is looking around with a knife in hand. Everyone in the Council of State is on edge, fearing that the Emperor will suspect them. At this time, if they dare to question the authenticity of this evidence, wouldn't that be like walking into a knife's edge?

The old foxes certainly wouldn't do something so foolish. Now that they've obtained the evidence, everyone will assume it's true.

After carefully reviewing the evidence, Zhang Dun's brows gradually furrowed.

Cai Jing stood before him, a respectful smile still on his face, but his eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he stared intently at Zhang Dun's expressionless face.

Cai Jing was eager to know how Zhang Dun would respond.

The Emperor already intends to dismiss Zhang Dun as Prime Minister. If Zhang Dun dares to cause the Emperor any more trouble, then Zhang Dun, the Prime Minister, will retire early.

After a long while, Zhang Dun finished reading Shi Zhongxian's incriminating evidence, then sighed and shook his head at Cai Jing.

“Yuan Chang, you’re still too young…”

Cai Jing's smile froze for a moment, then he forced a smile and said, "If I have made any mistakes, please point them out, Mr. Zihou."

Zhang Dun shook his head: "There are no mistakes, it's perfect."

Then Zhang Dun smiled, flicked the evidence with his finger, and said with unexpected emphasis, "Too perfect."

Cai Jing was taken aback, and then he saw Zhang Dun pull out a few sheets of paper from the thick stack of evidence, put them aside, pick up a pen, circle a few lines on some of the confessions, and cross them out.

Finally, handing this weighty piece of evidence to Cai Jing, Zhang Dun said calmly, "This way, it's not perfect."

Cai Jing was stunned. After a long while, he finally understood what Zhang Dun meant, and his expression immediately became complicated.

Zhang Dun said calmly, "Yuan Chang may not have served as a criminal officer, so he doesn't know much about how to handle criminal cases. Doing things perfectly is not a good thing; it just makes it seem fake."

Cai Jing took the altered incriminating evidence and stared at him blankly.

After a long silence, Cai Jing bowed deeply to Zhang Dun and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Zihou. I have learned my lesson." With Zhang Dun's guidance, the evidence was no longer perfect, but it had become perfect nonetheless.

It sounds complicated, but that's the gist of it.

As for why Zhang Dun did this, Cai Jing had his reasons.

Zhang Dun clearly felt a sense of crisis. He had sensed the Emperor's intention to dismiss him as Prime Minister, so Zhang Dun wanted to salvage the situation and try to win over the Emperor and demonstrate his loyalty.

Zhang Dun's seemingly casual hints and omissions on the evidence were actually a way of showing the Emperor his stance. At least in the case of Shi Zhongxian's suicide, Zhang Dun had unreservedly stood on the Emperor's side, and he would turn public opinion in the court around.

Cai Jing quickly figured out Zhang Dun's thoughts, but he said nothing. He simply bowed to Zhang Dun and then hurriedly left the government office.

Half a day later, that afternoon, the evidence of the crime was displayed in the imperial court.

The imperial court was as if a nuclear bomb had been detonated, instantly erupting into chaos and uproar.

Those court officials who spoke out for Shi Zhongxian, publicly expressed their excitement for Shi Zhongxian's loyalty, and denounced the incompetence of the emperor, felt as if they had been slapped hard across the face, their faces swollen from the blow.

Many court officials did not believe it. They carefully examined Shi Zhongxian's evidence, page by page, word by word. Some officials with connections even secretly asked others to verify it.

The answer is obvious: no one can refute the evidence fabricated by the Imperial City Guard.

The fact that some parts are vague or contain ambiguous and questionable evidence only confirms its authenticity, leaving one speechless.

Overnight, the political winds in the court reversed.

Shi Zhongxian's act of smashing the palace gate to commit suicide was transformed from a loyal minister dying to remonstrate to a suicide out of fear of punishment.

This is really speechless.

Just days ago, the entire court was indignant on his behalf, hurling all sorts of insults and slander at the emperor. But it turns out he was utterly wicked and couldn't live any longer, so he chose to kill himself by crashing his head against the palace gate, hoping to earn a reputation as a loyal minister before he died.

For a moment, the faces of the court officials were very ugly, especially those who had submitted memorials criticizing and scolding the emperor, who were now even more ashamed.

It's just that you can't delete your WeChat Moments these days, otherwise these people would definitely delete their accounts overnight and disappear without a trace.

At the same time, the rumors circulating among the common people of Bianjing also changed.

The evidence of Shi Zhongxian's crimes spread beyond the imperial court, and naturally, the common people in the city also heard about it.

Those who had followed the crowd immediately felt ashamed. They remembered how they had cursed the officials for being so incompetent, and those words still echoed in their ears. Now the tide had turned, and it turned out that the so-called loyal minister whom the people sympathized with and admired had committed a heinous crime.

The officials who were harshly criticized have remained silent to this day, silently enduring their grievances.

The people felt increasingly ashamed, and their opinion suddenly shifted, and they began to vehemently criticize Shi Zhongxian.

Then other rumors began to circulate among the common people. These rumors were more profound. Someone began to explain to the illiterate masses in the simplest language why the government was implementing the Fangtian Equal Tax Law.

The "square field" refers to the measurement and surveying of land throughout the country. As the number of acres of land registered by the imperial court and government increased, so did the taxes and the court's revenue.

These revenues can be used in many ways, such as to manage rivers and repair dikes for the people, exempt people from taxes in disaster-stricken areas, and even if the court's revenue reaches a certain level in the future, it can consider reducing taxes for the people of the country, so that all farmers have land to cultivate and will not starve to death.

It's a very simple and easy-to-understand principle that even illiterate people can comprehend.

After understanding, the people were filled with gratitude. Many of them even knelt down and bowed in the direction of Yanfu Palace, apologizing to the officials while expressing their gratitude for their benevolence and righteousness in finding a way to survive for the people. This was a great kindness and virtue.

Public opinion in the imperial court and among the common people had now been completely reversed.

The loyal minister of the past became a villain condemned by all, and the incompetent and tyrannical official of the past became a benevolent and virtuous sage ruler who established a life for the people.

…………

Inside the Funing Palace.

Looking at the so-called evidence in his hand, as well as the news that Zhen Qing had reported to him about the shift in public opinion in the court and among the common people, Zhao Xiaoqian nodded in satisfaction.

"This is exactly what I wanted. How can good people be scolded?"

“A good person like me cannot endure any hardship or grievance.”

As Zhao Xiaoqian spoke, he looked up at Zhen Qing and asked, "Have you found out who was behind forcing Shi Zhongxian to commit suicide?"

Zhen Qing lowered his head and said, "I am guilty. I have not found anything. It is simply that Shi Zhongxian wiped away all traces before he died. The Imperial City Guard could not find any clues at all."

Zhao Xiaoqian hummed in agreement, not blaming him.

The person behind the scenes must be very careful and would not leave any evidence for the Imperial City Guard to find out, otherwise they would face the fate of having their family and relatives exterminated. No one would dare to joke about their own life and the lives of their family and relatives.

"It doesn't matter. If we can't find out, we'll attack indiscriminately. Those who plot against me and smear me are nothing more than those officials, powerful landlords and tycoons who are trying to stop the equal taxation of the land. Since my interests have been affected, they will naturally try their best to stop me."

"The Imperial City Guard will investigate immediately, starting with the capital region. Any landlords who have concealed their land holdings from the government, evaded taxes, or seized farmers' land should be rounded up and punished in accordance with the law."

Zhen Qing bowed and accepted the decree, then said, "Your Majesty, I have found out about the land owned by Empress Dowager Xiang and her relatives."

(End of this chapter)