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

Chapter 482 His father's case was over, but his own case resurfaced.

Hearing this righteous and stern question, Kong Shangde's heart, which had been hanging in his throat, finally settled down a bit—ah, heaven has eyes, thankfully there are still reinforcements!
He didn't speak, but looked at the person who had spoken with eyes full of gratitude:
Xu Chunping, the Grand Academician of the Hanlin Academy!

A leader of the reformist faction, a pillar of the court's reputation! A true savior!

Shen Ye's gaze also fell on this suddenly appearing "messenger of justice".

He raised an eyebrow, as if he had seen a duck waddling along with an air of serious composure, and then said with a smile:
"Oh, Lord Xu, you're not at the Hanlin Academy revising books today, what brings you here to practice your singing?"

Xu Chunping was taken aback by the question, but quickly composed himself and answered solemnly:
"Your Highness, I have come to the Duke of Yansheng's residence to pay my respects to an old friend."

"Oh," Shen Ye drawled, his voice turning colder, "you've come to mourn a disgraced official who committed suicide out of fear of punishment?"

Xu Chunping's heart skipped a beat!
Good heavens, the Crown Prince seized on my casual remark about "offering condolences"?

A disgraced official?

Although Duke Yansheng Kong Yujin was not explicitly convicted, the phrase "committing suicide out of fear of punishment" is undeniable.

It seems... not entirely impossible to force someone to be labeled a "traitor"?

His mind was in turmoil, but Shen Ye continued with a cold smile:
"It seems that Lord Xu and this disgraced official Kong Yujin have quite a close relationship!"

"Should we write a eulogy for him tomorrow, praising his glorious deeds of embezzlement and corruption?"

Xu Chunping took a deep breath and silently reminded himself:
Stay calm and collected! I don't swear!

As the leader of the upright faction, I absolutely cannot follow the Crown Prince's lead!

He straightened his clothes and said solemnly:

"Your Highness, I do indeed have a past relationship with Kong Yujin."

"Kong Yujin has made mistakes, and the court will deal with them accordingly. Now that he has passed away, the court will no longer pursue the matter."

"I have come here today merely to visit the descendants of an old friend. Is there any problem with that?"

Shen Ye suddenly smiled again, a smile as gentle as a spring breeze: "No problem, of course no problem!"

"Lord Xu is a pure and virtuous gentleman, valuing loyalty and righteousness. He is truly a model of gentlemanly conduct and a moral exemplar, worthy of emulation by many in the court!"

Xu Chunping, however, gave Shen Ye no chance to beat around the bush, pressing him relentlessly as he asked:

"Your Highness has not yet answered my question: The three judicial departments have concluded the case of the Kong family. Now that you have arrested Kong Shangde without cause, shouldn't you give an explanation to the people?"

Shen Ye said lightly, "Lord Xu, you are mistaken!"

"The three judicial departments concluded Kong Yujin's case, but they didn't say that his son Kong Shangde was clean."

"We've come to arrest him today because he committed a crime."

"Kong Shangde instructed his servants to collude with local officials to embezzle disaster relief grain, inflate grain prices, and forcibly seize the land of disaster victims... The evidence for these things is conclusive and is all here. Would you like to study it, Lord Xu?"

Xu Chunping's old face turned bright red, and he couldn't say a word.

After Shen Ye finished speaking, he turned to glance at Orondai, who was still in a daze:
"Olundai, what are you doing? What are you standing there for? Can't you even take a criminal with you?"

Orondai had been feeling incredibly stifled under the Crown Prince's command these past few days and was looking for an outlet for his frustration.

He was helpless against the crown prince.

But they weren't so lenient with Kong Shangde.

He immediately responded loudly and stepped forward, kicking Kong Shangde in the back of the knee: "What are you dawdling for? Let's go!"

The kick was quite powerful, and Kong Shangde fell to his knees with a "thud." The sound was so crisp that it seemed as if the stone lions in front of the Duke of Yansheng's mansion were in pain for him.

A suppressed gasp rippled through the crowd. Xu Chunping trembled with rage, his finger shaking as he pointed at Orondai:
"This is an insult to scholarship! It is utterly an insult to scholarship!"

"Your Highness, this is a trumped-up charge! This old minister must see His Majesty and explain this matter!"

Shen Ye slowly interrupted him: "Lord Xu, please go and report!"

"However, I also happen to have some things I'd like to discuss with my father—"

"I've heard that Lord Xu is an upright and honest official, with nothing to his name? Heh heh, isn't this just a coincidence!"

He took a half step closer, lowering his voice so that everyone in the room could hear him clearly:
"I've also heard that since Lord Xu passed the imperial examination, his family's land holdings have increased from ten acres of poor land to several thousand acres of fertile land, and he also owns many shops in Jiangnan?"

"Lord Xu's annual salary is only two hundred taels. Could you teach me, the Crown Prince, your business acumen? How did you 'cultivate' ten acres of meager land into several thousand acres? Let me increase my income as well!"

"Could it be that the pens of the Hanlin Academy can turn dirt into gold?"

Xu Chunping's face turned pale, and his lips twitched twice.

He didn't expect the Crown Prince to be so ruthless, actually exposing his past on the spot, and in such a vivid way.

Xu Chunping was flustered inside, but on the surface he had to maintain a calm demeanor:

"My family's wealth is of pure origin and I have no fear of the court's investigation!"

"Your Highness, stop beating around the bush. What you have done today will not win the hearts of the scholars of the world, and His Majesty will certainly not sit idly by!"

Having said that, he turned and strode away.

It's not that they chickened out; they just went to call for reinforcements.

He can't control things here; we need the Emperor's intervention. Shen Ye watched his stumbling figure, chuckled, and waved his hand dismissively, saying:
"Guards, take Kong Shangde to the Dali Temple!"

Shen Ye originally wanted to go to the Daxing County Government Office, but was afraid of causing trouble for Nian Dongliang, so he simply went straight to the Dali Temple.

Kong Shangde was dragged away, and the Duke Yansheng's mansion was thrown into chaos.

The steward scrambled to Kong Yushen's side, trembling as he asked, "Third...Third Master! What...what should we do?"

Kong Yushen suppressed his panic and gritted his teeth, saying, "Quick! Let's go find someone!"

"You all split up and go find Left Censor-in-Chief Chen Tingjing, Grand Secretary Zhang Ying, and Li Guangdi! I will personally go to see Prime Minister Tong! Be quick, or things will change!"

On the other side, the Fourth Prince Yunzhen followed Shen Ye, watching Kong Shangde being taken away, feeling half sentimental and half worried.

They admired the Crown Prince's decisive action but worried that the matter might be difficult to resolve.

He lowered his voice and asked, "Your Highness, what if... I mean, what if Father investigates?"

Shen Ye turned around, patted his shoulder, and said nonchalantly, "What are you afraid of?"

"You've already obtained all the evidence of Kong Shangde embezzling disaster relief grain, haven't you? Then give him irrefutable proof!"

"Father should investigate Kong Shangde, this parasite of the nation!"

"For the two of us, it's simply that we can't stand seeing criminals get away with it!"

After a pause, Shen Ye smiled and said, "Fourth brother, when we get to the Dali Temple, you will be in charge of the trial, and I will be there to oversee things for you."

"Remember, time is of the essence, so be quick!"

Looking at Shen Ye's resolute expression, the Fourth Prince Yunzhen sighed helplessly in his heart: Well, this time he has completely boarded the Crown Prince's pirate ship!
But then he thought of the emaciated and sickly disaster victims at the foot of Mount Tai, and the pent-up frustration he had been holding back for so long turned into a sense of relief—the trial! It must be conducted!
They traveled briskly and arrived at Dali Temple in less than a quarter of an hour.

At this moment, Fei Yuanji, the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review, was nestled in a rosewood chair in the back hall, leisurely sipping tea with his legs crossed, feeling utterly content.
The case of the Duke of Yansheng's mansion is finally closed. I am lucky to have escaped this calamity.

This case almost involved the crown prince. If something had gone wrong, losing his official position would have been a blessing from his ancestors.

I'm afraid we'll have to spend the New Year in the snow in Ningguta at the very least!
Fortunately, His Majesty is wise... thankfully, we escaped unharmed!
He was just thinking about having a couple of drinks that evening to relax his heart, which had been pounding in the air for days, when a subordinate came stumbling in, his voice trembling with tears:

"My lord, something terrible has happened! The Crown Prince has arrived! He wants to use our main hall for the trial, and he's already...sitting in the hall!"

Fei Yuanji was so frightened that his hand trembled, and he spilled tea all over himself: "W-what?!"

He couldn't even bother to reprimand his subordinates for their indiscretions; he grabbed the hem of his official robe and rushed out in a hurry.

I groaned inwardly, "I'd barely gotten used to this peaceful time! And now this trouble has come knocking again!"
In the main hall, Shen Ye stood with his hands behind his back, calm and composed, as if he had come not to the Dali Temple, but to his own backyard.

Seeing Fei Yuanji arrive in a panic, he said with a smile:

"Lord Fei, your arrival is just in time. The Fourth Prince needs to hear a case and would like to borrow this place."

While bowing, Fei Yuanji asked urgently, "Your Highness, what case are you and the Fourth Prince going to investigate?"

"Has His Majesty issued any decree regarding this case?"

Upon hearing Fei Yuanji's question, the Fourth Prince's expression changed slightly, and his palms became a little sweaty.

Shen Ye naturally took over the conversation: "The Fourth Prince is the Imperial Envoy for Disaster Relief in Mount Tai. It is his duty to investigate criminals who embezzled disaster relief funds."

As he spoke, he stepped forward and grabbed Fei Yuanji's wrist.

"By the way, Lord Fei, I've long heard that your chess skills are superb, and you're hard to find an opponent in the capital!"

"Come on, I'm itching to play today, let's go to the side room and have a couple of rounds of chess."

Fei Yuanji was pulled off balance by Shen Ye, and his expression changed several times as he looked at the Fourth Prince, who was already sitting upright in the hall.

Knowing this matter was likely to escalate, he wanted to persuade him further: "Your Highness, this trial is no small matter. Should we inform His Majesty first, or at least..."

Without allowing a word, Shen Ye grabbed him and pulled him outside: "Lord Fei, it's not like you're interrogating me, why are you panicking?"

"Let's go, let's play chess, playing chess is the most important thing!"

Shen Ye spoke lightly, but his grip remained firm, dragging Fei Yuanji until his steps faltered, his mind racing as he calculated:

I've tried to stop him, I've tried to persuade him, but the Crown Prince is determined to conduct the interrogation. What can I do?
If Your Majesty asks, I have struggled with it, and that is plain for all to see.

Enough, enough. When gods fight, mortals suffer. I decided to say no more and reluctantly followed them to the side hall.

The two had just sat down and the chessboard was set up when the Fourth Prince's solemn voice rang out from the main hall: "Bring in the criminals!"

Fei Yuanji held the chess piece, shook his head with a wry smile: "Your Highness, why are you... pressing me so hard?"

Shen Ye placed a piece, then looked up, smiled, and said with a clear gaze, "Lord Fei, I am, after all, a crown prince."

"Someone's trying to pin a ton of shit on my head, and you expect me to just smile and pretend nothing happened?"

"If I don't react, then I'm a pathetic coward as the crown prince! From now on, anyone will dare to touch me, and who will take me seriously?"

He paused, his tone both playful and resolute: "Sometimes, when you can't figure out these messy accounts, or you don't want to... well, then you might as well just flip the table!"

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(End of this chapter)