The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 107 He admitted it, he actually admitted it.

Out of the corner of his eye, Songgotu kept glancing at the Crown Prince.

When he saw the Crown Prince with dark circles under his eyes, looking like he had worked hard overtime the night before, he was furious.

This is absolutely outrageous!

It's one thing to stop listening to him, but to actually... that's outrageous!
By doing this, he meant that Songgotu's years of hard work would be destroyed in an instant!
How would Emperor Qianxi view a crown prince who was infatuated with women, embezzled funds intended for river repairs, and disregarded the safety of the nation?

Will he just pass on the empire inherited from his ancestors without any regard for the consequences?

Although he had a conflict with the Crown Prince and hoped that the Crown Prince would bow down to him, he still regarded himself as the biggest backer. However, if the Crown Prince were deposed, it would definitely not be in the interests of the Suo'etu family.

After all, he also hoped that the future emperor would be their family's grandson.

He also hoped that the next crown prince would marry a woman from their family to become empress.

Now, with Emperor Qianxi watching from above, he dared not.

However, once Emperor Qianxi is gone, what the world will be like will still be up to Suo'etu!

If anything unexpected happens, I still need to protect the crown prince.

He needs to suffer, but not to really suffer a major setback...

Mingzhu held the opposite view to Songgotu.

His strategy was to immediately target the Crown Prince. While the Crown Prince wouldn't necessarily be deposed, he understood perfectly well that the Emperor's opinions were built up gradually, like water dripping on a stone, eventually achieving its goal through persistent effort.

When the emperor increasingly believes that the crown prince is unfilial and unsuitable to inherit the throne, then the eldest prince's opportunity will come!

With the Crown Prince's ascension to the throne, his opportunity has arrived.

He could also be a first-class Duke of Cheng'en.

Just as the two were lost in their own thoughts, Jin Fu said, "I know about this money; the Ministry of Revenue allocated it to our River Works Office."

"However, the money was not used back then and was later returned."

"So there are no records."

Jin Fu's words surprised many of those in the audience.

Especially Zhao Yongyan!

As the person in charge of this matter, he naturally knows best where the money went:

The young master has spent money!
The money never went to the river works department.

It could even be said that although the money was given in the name of the River Works Department, the department was not notified at all.

In this matter, the River Works Office was just a front.

But now, Jin Fu has actually accepted the money!

This...how is this possible!

Zhao Yongyan knew very well that this was no small matter, and with no other options, he was prepared to die.

Unexpectedly, at this critical juncture, things took a turn for the better.

This this……

As the presiding judge in this case, Floren already knew where the 100,000 taels of silver had gone.

He and Mingzhu had also planned it out; they wanted to use Jin Fu to bring up the matter.

He is from the lineage of the eldest prince, making him a natural enemy of the crown prince.

If the crown prince is not overthrown, once he ascends the throne, he will definitely not have any good intentions towards him, and his descendants will certainly not have a good ending.

Therefore, based on this point alone, today's joint trial is a one-way street.

However, what was originally a sure thing suddenly turned out like this, and he couldn't help but slam his fist on the table and say, "You audacious Jin Fu, don't spout nonsense here!"

"You said the money was returned, but why is there no record of it in the Ministry of Revenue?"

"Was it you, or someone else, who embezzled this money!"

Floren's words were practically a direct message to Jin Fu, urging him to hurry up and reveal that the money had been given to the Crown Prince. However, Jin Fu remained remarkably calm, saying indifferently, "Lord Floren, the reason why the Ministry of Revenue didn't record this is probably due to a problem with the accounting books."

"I really don't know this."

"But our river works department did receive the 100,000 taels of silver, and we also returned it to the Ministry of Revenue."

"You can ask the Ministry of Revenue whether this money is still there."

At this moment, Shen Ye fully understood Emperor Qianxi's actions.

No wonder Emperor Qianxi said he had a solution.

So this was Emperor Qianxi's method.

Jin Fu admitted it, so naturally the money wouldn't be attributed to him.

The reason Jin Fu agreed to it was because it was arranged by Emperor Qianxi!
Fortunately, he also came up with a solution for Jin Fu, so he wouldn't owe his father too much of a favor.

Just as Shen Ye was filled with mixed emotions, Fu Lun shouted at Zhao Yongyan, who was standing in the crowd, "Minister Zhao, you handled this money."

"Then let me ask you, why wasn't this money deposited into the account?"

"Where is this money now?"

Zhao Yongyan had previously thought he was doomed, so he appeared somewhat dejected.

Now that the Crown Prince had made Jin Fu admit to the matter, his eyes immediately lit up with hope, and he wanted to confidently argue his case.

He immediately coughed lightly and said, "Lord Floren, His Majesty has asked you to interrogate the river works, not to interrogate our Ministry of Revenue."

"However, since you have asked, I can tell you that this money is currently in my Ministry of Revenue."

"As for why it wasn't recorded, our Ministry of Revenue will investigate whether it was a mistake in the ledger or an oversight."

Whether it was a mistake or an oversight, these things would not be attributed to the Crown Prince.

Naturally, the matter couldn't be traced back to him, the Vice Minister of Revenue.

At most, it's just a matter of not being careful enough in handling matters.

Although Fu Lun was the Minister of Justice, he really couldn't do anything about it when the Vice Minister of Revenue contradicted him.

After all, we are not subordinate to each other.

Thinking about it this way, I realized that someone had intervened on behalf of the Crown Prince!
The most likely candidate, in his opinion, was Suo'etu. Could it be that Jin Fu and Suo'etu had reached some kind of agreement?
He harbored suspicions but remained calm. Although the matter had started poorly, he still possessed other evidence.

"Jin Fu, taking the blame for someone else is an even greater crime," Fu Lun said coldly, with a hint of resentment.

Jin Fuping said calmly, "I will certainly keep Lord Furen's kindness in mind."

"However, Lord Florence may be disappointed, this is just how things are."

Looking at Jin Fu, who was gritting his teeth and refusing to admit it no matter what, Shen Ye felt a surge of emotion.

It seems that this capable minister who controlled the floods was not entirely ignorant of human relationships. Judging from his conversation with Fu Lun, he knew quite a bit about things.

Just as Shen Ye was thinking this, Floren spoke again: "Now that you've explained the 100,000 taels, let's talk about how it will be allocated to you in November of the 35th year..."

One by one, Fu Lun asked Jin Fu about the accounts, but Jin Fu answered them calmly and without any confusion, and even quoted many figures with ease.

Clearly, he was extremely knowledgeable about the river works.

As each question was asked, the sun in the sky grew brighter and brighter.

Although Fu Lun asked many questions, Jin Fu answered them all.

For a time, the joint trial seemed to have reached a stalemate.

Shen Ye hadn't slept well last night, and now, listening to a series of questions that had nothing to do with her, she almost fell asleep.

"Jin Fu, although you are eloquent, the facts are the facts."

"The silted land you used to repair the river embankment should rightfully belong to the imperial court, yet you sold it off privately. This is an heinous crime." Fu Lun, now even more composed, asked, "Jin Fu, where did the money from those land sales go?"

　The first update of the day is here, everyone! The end of the month is just around the corner, so please give me two monthly tickets if you have any!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)