Prime Minister.

Chapter 17 017 [Sharpness]

There is never a shortage of clever people in the imperial court.

Xue Huai's voluntary confession of the missing files was ostensibly a way of handing over more evidence to Gu Heng, but the matter was clearly not that simple.

As he said, when the logical chain of a matter is almost flawless, that in itself is the biggest flaw.

If only Gu Heng impeached Xue Mingzhang, then relying on the records in the old archives of the Ministry of Works, he could at least remain in an invincible position. No matter what the final outcome was, he would not be making false accusations.

Just before he submitted his impeachment memorial, Xue Huai was misled by this matter. Regardless of whether the anonymous letter he mentioned was true or false, the fact remains that the relevant files kept by the Hanlin Academy were inexplicably lost.

The combination of the two makes the conspiracy too obvious. How could these shrewd people in the court not notice it?
Gu Heng's expression changed slightly, but before he could press on, a calm voice suddenly rang out from not far away.

Shen Wang, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, bowed slightly and said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, Xue Huai was transferred to compile the fourth volume of 'A Study of the Taihe River Works' in early August. News of the floods in the south just happened to reach the capital at that time."

A simple, just-right moment pushed the bizarre atmosphere to its peak.

Many officials looked at Gu Heng with suspicion.

Chen Quan, a lecturer at the Hanlin Academy, shrank back, secretly relieved that Xue Huai hadn't dragged him into it.

The head of the military ranks, Duke Xie Jing of Wei, glanced at Shen Wang without leaving a trace, and slightly tugged at the corner of his mouth. He thought to himself, "It seems that Shen Zhanxing still hasn't given up on that hotheaded disciple. However, this time it wasn't your doing. I initially thought you were setting a trap for Xue Minglun. But thinking about it carefully, such a crude and immature method is indeed not something you would do."

Shen Wang stood there quietly.

He didn't need to shout; those words were enough to help Xue Huai.

In fact, he never thought Xue Huai was in much danger from the beginning. Based on his understanding of the emperor on the throne, Gu Heng was nothing more than a clown in his eyes. He just wanted to know who was behind the scenes.

There was silence in the hall.

The middle-aged emperor did not respond to Shen Wang; instead, he looked at Gu Heng, who had become somewhat nervous.

Sensing the Emperor's deep gaze, Gu Heng quickly said, "Your Majesty, I know nothing about what happened at the Hanlin Academy. Perhaps it was just a lie fabricated by Editor Xue."

At that moment, Liu Huaide, the Imperial Reader, remembered Xue Huai's request before the court assembly and was about to step forward to testify when a civil official stepped forward.

Hanlin Academician Lin Miao solemnly said, "Your Majesty, I testify on behalf of Xue Huai that this matter is indeed as he said. The servant Liu Pingshun, without any evidence, made baseless accusations that Xue Huai stole the case files, but Xue Huai exposed him to his face. I have already handed Liu Pingshun over to the Ministry of Justice."

He didn't even look at Xue Huai, as if he was doing it entirely from his own heart.

However, Xue Huai knew in his heart that if his mentor Shen Wang hadn't spoken first, the head scholar would most likely have remained silent.

Otherwise, why would he have asked Liu Huaide for help beforehand?
However, now is not the time to think about this matter. Although he has turned the situation around a bit, it is not enough to clear his deceased father's name. He must ensure that Gu Heng has no chance of turning things around.

Just then, Gu Heng said somewhat hastily, "Your Majesty, I am willing to guarantee with my life that there is not a single falsification in the old files of the Ministry of Works! The files clearly record the various suspicious points from that year. Even if this cannot prove that Xue Mingzhang definitely did something to enrich himself, it can at least prove that the breach of the Yangzhou dike this year is inseparable from his decision back then!"

Xue Huai said without hesitation, "Your Majesty, I believe what Doctor Gu said is true. He certainly wouldn't dare to lie or deceive the Emperor. However, I think he used an extremely clever sleight of hand!"

Gu Heng turned his head indignantly and said, "What do you mean by that, Editor Xue?"

Xue Huai looked at his slightly ferocious face and said, word by word, "Just now, Physician Gu raised many doubts. Now I will explain to you why these doubts did not lead to the accountability of the officials of the Ministry of Works at that time. But before that, I would like to ask Physician Gu one more question: have you really only seen the existing files?"

Gu Heng panicked and almost lost his composure, but he forced himself to say, "Editor Xue's words make me even more confused. Isn't the existing evidence enough?"

Xue Huai sneered, "Since that's the case, then please listen carefully, Physician Gu."

On the dragon throne, the middle-aged emperor did not stop the conversation between the two; he simply gazed at Xue Huai thoughtfully.

"On the 23rd day of the third month of the eighth year of Taihe, the River Conservancy Officer Li Zhong inspected the new embankment at Erli Sluice Gate. The actual paving stones were 14,000 dan (a unit of weight), which was 2,100 dan less than the approved number. This was the first point of doubt raised by the River Conservancy Officer Gu, implying that my late father had left a huge hidden danger in such an important project for his own selfish interests. However, my late father had already explained this clearly to the officials of the Ministry of Works back then!" Xue Huai turned to face Gu Heng, his tall and slender figure as straight as a pine tree, and his clear voice reached the ears of all the court officials in the hall: "Back then, my late father personally consulted with veteran river workers and found the fish-scale interlocking method, which saved 20% of the stones without damaging the embankment. The money saved was used to purchase ironwood to strengthen the foundation!"

Gu Heng was shocked and couldn't believe what he had just heard.

Even if the files in the Hanlin Academy had not been lost, Xue Huai should not have known about this matter, because there was no corresponding record in those files.

"Gu Langzhong also said that on June 17th of the eighth year of Taihe, the Imperial Censor Wang Xiao reported that the dike in the Guazhou section was three feet thinner than the Ministry of Works' specifications, which was suspected to be due to shoddy workmanship."

Xue Huai pressed on, his voice cold: "As the Director of the Water Conservancy Bureau, don't you know that the inner embankment should be reinforced with a six-foot layer of glutinous rice mortar, and the outer embankment should be thinned to protect the farmland? This would ensure the embankment's strength while minimizing its damage to fertile land!"

Gu Heng was overwhelmed with shock and said with difficulty, "This is probably also your father's—"

Xue Huai interrupted him directly, saying in an extremely forceful tone, "Does Doctor Gu mean to say that this was also a way for my late father to cover things up? Just now you said that in order to make sure that the accounts were flawless, my late father once bought 3,000 shi of glutinous rice at a price 40% higher than the market price, and also bought 5,000 cedar logs at three times the market price. Now I will tell you why my late father did these things!"

“My late father once gave up the hexagonal stone he had ordered in advance and instead bought cheap slab stones. This was not because he wanted to line his own pockets, but because he had gone to great lengths to find a method of interlacing random stones. The interlacing of slab stones actually increased stability, and the remaining money was used to buy iron sand to fill the gaps!”

"As for the claim that glutinous rice and cedar wood were purchased at high prices, that's just your way of omitting the market price. You use the price at the place of origin as a benchmark, but deliberately ignore the market price there! My father already explained the reasons clearly, otherwise, how could the officials in charge of the audit have remained indifferent back then!"

"Getting back to the biggest problem, Doctor Gu keeps saying that reducing the stone material by 30% was my late father's selfishness. Now I'll ask you one last time, do you really not know why my late father did this back then?"

Xue Huai was furious, his hair standing on end and his eyes turning red.

Gu Heng was intimidated by his imposing aura, and his legs staggered, barely managing to regain his balance.

"The so-called 30% stone material—" Xue Huai suddenly roared, his voice like thunder, "does not exist at all!"

does not exist!
The hall was deathly silent.

Gu Heng's body began to tremble involuntarily.

Xue Huai forced himself not to look at the emperor, who seemed to be above the clouds, and stared intently at Gu Heng. However, the anger in his voice could not be hidden: "From the very beginning, the Ministry of Works has been embezzling money and stone materials under the pretext of losses. You say that the accounts my father had made were flawless, but how can he compare to those seasoned officials in the Ministry of Works! In order to ensure that the dike could be completed smoothly, my father endured humiliation and hardship, dealing with countless corrupt officials while trying every means to make every penny count!"

"My late father has devoted himself to the cause and done everything in his power, but he still couldn't escape being slandered and framed by someone like you!"

“Even now, you remain unrepentant, attempting to fabricate a colossal lie to frame our late father. How are you any different from a beast!”

Although his words were extreme, no one stood up to criticize him at that moment, and the imperial censors seemed not to have heard anything.

The head of the civil officials, the over-fifty-year-old second grand secretary Ouyang Hui sighed and said, "Lord Xue is not easy to deal with."

The prime minister beside him remained silent.

Gu Heng was completely flustered. He hadn't expected Xue Huai to know the answers to all the questions. Did this person really have a photographic memory, simply because he could remember all the contents of those files after just one look?
The problem is that the reasons for some things are not even in the case files, so how did he know them?

Xue Huai had already seen through this man's thoughts and gritted his teeth, saying, "Gu Heng, you certainly don't have the ability to tamper with the old files of the Ministry of Works, but the so-called old files are incomplete. Many of my father's explanations have been deliberately concealed, leaving only those suspicious points that are meant to cover up the truth! You must be curious as to why I know about what happened back then. It's because my father was very familiar with the methods of people like you. Therefore, he left this note to prevent you from slandering him afterward!"

After speaking, he took out a scroll from his wide sleeve, turned to face the throne, raised his hands above his head, and solemnly said: "Your Majesty, this is my late father's 'Notes on River Works'. It contains detailed explanations of the construction process and all the details of the Yangzhou dike ten years ago. It is all handwritten by my late father, and there are witnesses and physical evidence to prove that Gu Heng's report was a deliberate frame-up."

"Your subject Xue Huai, weeping blood, pleads for justice: Gu Heng has slandered Your Majesty and framed loyal officials. His malicious intent is wicked, and he deserves to be executed!"

The lingering sound echoed endlessly.

"boom."

Gu Heng's vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud.

(End of this chapter)