The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 159 The trump card is revealed, the doomsday of the former top executives of the three companies!
"you--"

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's undisguised sarcasm, Mu Ping abruptly stood up.

He pointed at Liu Shuyi, wanting to angrily rebuke Liu Shuyi for disregarding hierarchy and committing insubordination, but because of Wu Chenyang's shout, his mind was filled with tension and panic that "Liu Shuyi already knows everything and has gathered them here to wipe them out in one fell swoop," and he couldn't open his mouth for a moment.

In Xue Ming and the others' eyes, it was as if Mu Ping was so angry at Liu Shuyi that he was trembling all over and unable to speak.

"what happened?"

"How dare Liu Shuyi speak to Doctor Mu like that?"

"Does he really think that with His Majesty backing him up, he can act with impunity and offend anyone?"

"And what did Wu Zhongcheng mean by saying 'they've been exposed'? What have they been exposed about?"

Guan Qi, the former secretary of the Ministry of Revenue and now a compiler, was bewildered by the scene before him and couldn't help but whisper to Xue Ming and Deng Chengren.

Xue Ming frowned. He did not answer Guan Qi, but leaned forward slightly, no longer as relaxed as before. His eyes roamed over Liu Shuyi, Mu Ping and the others, a thoughtful look flashing in them.

Deng Chengren, the former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue who was later demoted to Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, stood with his arms crossed, his face showing an expression that said he didn't understand what had happened, but that didn't stop him from watching the show.

After Li Shimin ascended the throne, he was demoted from a fourth-rank vice minister to a sixth-rank assistant minister. He could only remain at the assistant minister level for the rest of his life and had no chance of promotion. Therefore, he secretly hoped that officials of higher rank who were not as unlucky as him would suffer misfortune.

He can only feel at ease when others are more unfortunate than himself, his jealous and resentful heart is at peace.

So... let's fight! Let's fight until we're all bloodied and battered, it's good if it's a fight to the death! He doesn't care who wins in the end, as long as someone is definitely more unlucky than him today, that's enough.

"presumptuous!"

At this moment, Wei Qian, who had finally calmed down after the initial panic, shouted directly, "Doctor Liu, shut up!"

Do you know what nonsense you're spouting?

"Physician Liu, don't forget, you are currently in the Ministry of Justice, wearing the official robes of the Ministry of Justice. Your every word and action represents the Ministry of Justice!"

"You can be delusional, but don't disgrace the Ministry of Justice!"

"Even if you have His Majesty's edict and are the chief investigator of the salary case, for the sake of the Ministry of Justice's reputation, as the Vice Minister of Justice, I have the right to stop you from continuing your madness!"

Wei Qian spoke sharply and sternly, his entire being shrouded in the authority of a superior, having lost his previous gentleness and refinement.

After being reminded by Wei Qian, Mu Ping and the others finally realized what was happening.

Mu Ping's expression was icy: "Liu Shuyi, I gave you face by coming to the Ministry of Justice to cooperate with you out of consideration for our colleague relationship, but you dare to be so disrespectful to me! If that's the case, why should I give you any more face?"

"Don't even think about getting me to utter another single word!"

"You can bring up His Majesty, fine, I also want to see His Majesty. I want to see if His Majesty will continue to let you run rampant after he knows what you've done!"

Dai Fei, who looked like an old farmer, sighed: "Doctor Liu is like the rising sun, full of infinite future potential. Why is he in such a hurry to use us old folks who are barely surviving as stepping stones to establish his authority? Doctor Liu is being too hasty."

Listening to Mu Ping and the others' words, Liu Shuyi couldn't help but feel a sense of emotion.

These guys really know how to twist the main points and reverse cause and effect.

They didn't talk about any of the salary case, but only focused on their own hypocrisy, claiming that they didn't respect them and wanted to use them as stepping stones... They said they had no regard for hierarchy and were eager to show off their overwhelming power like petty people who had gained power. If someone who didn't know the truth heard their words, they might be led astray and think that they were indeed petty people who had gained power and were arrogant and conceited.

Look... Guan Qi's expression right now clearly shows that he has this idea.

Liu Shuyi sighed, stroking his hand: "No wonder you were so decisive in distorting the truth in the case of the salary, sending hundreds of innocent people to their deaths and ruining the futures of thousands of others... Yet you not only show no remorse or regret, but instead trample on their corpses and fates to claim credit and hold lavish banquets to celebrate..."

He swept his gaze over Mu Ping and the others, noticing their increasingly cold expressions, and shook his head, saying, "You have never truly cared about fairness, justice, or reason, have you? You say I'm using you to establish my authority... Ha!"

Liu Shuyi sneered, "Compared to you trampling on thousands of innocent people, how is it me trampling on you if I just tell the truth?"

"What!?"

Upon hearing this, Guan Qi couldn't help but widen his eyes and exclaim in surprise, "You mean Doctor Mu and the others personally sent hundreds of people to their deaths and ruined the futures of thousands... What does this mean?"

Liu Shuyi glanced at Guan Qi and said, "If a compiler could become a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue before, his thinking shouldn't be this slow, right?"

Guan Qi's pupils twitched, and he finally said, "You mean to say that Feng Mu and the others who died because of the salary embezzlement case...were not the ones who stole the salary, but..."

He couldn't help but glance at Mu Ping and the others, whose faces were grim and who were glaring at Liu Shuyi with eyes that looked like they wanted to devour him. He swallowed hard and said, "Is it that Doctor Mu and the others deliberately framed him?"

"shut up!"

Mu Ping directly shouted at Guan Qi, "Guan Qi, how dare you slander us?"

Guan Qi subconsciously shrank his neck and quickly said, "This humble official dares not. This humble official is merely making a deduction based on what Doctor Liu said."

Seeing Guan Qi's straightforward manner, Liu Shuyi understood why Li Shimin, after ascending the throne, only transferred Guan Qi to a minor, powerless post, instead of demoting him repeatedly like Deng Chengren, leaving him no chance to recover.

This chess player is quite interesting, and his temperament is indeed suitable for compiling history and writing books.

Liu Shuyi picked up his water glass again, gently swirled it, and said unhurriedly, "The author is simply stating the facts; how can this be considered slander?"

Guan Qi was taken aback and quickly looked at Liu Shuyi.

He never expected that Liu Shuyi would stand up for him.

Mu Ping stared intently at Liu Shuyi: "Liu Shuyi, do you really want to oppose us? We are all from the Three Departments. Compared to outsiders, we are family. Can't family members talk things out behind closed doors?"

Wei Qian quickly added, "Doctor Mu is right. Physician Liu, I think you might have some misunderstandings about us. Why don't we have a calm talk alone? Maybe the misunderstanding can be cleared up. In the end, Physician Liu might even be able to make a greater contribution. This is much better than continuing to misunderstand us and making us a laughing stock."

Wu Chenyang was no longer as arrogant as he had been when facing Liu Shuyi. He said, "Doctor Liu, if you are willing to have a good talk with us, I can even act as a matchmaker for you and my mentor, Pei Sikong. The misunderstanding between you and your mentor is just like our misunderstanding now. It can be resolved. There is no need for us to fight to the death."

On Dai Fei's dark face, a look of someone who had been through it all was revealed: "It's better to resolve enmity than to create it."

At this moment, even Du Gou was so angry at Mu Ping and the others' shamelessness that he laughed.

Upon discovering that Liu Shuyi intended to harm them, each of them became sharp-tongued and tried to portray Liu Shuyi as the most arrogant person in the world.

They attempted to suppress Liu Shuyi outside of the case.

They discovered that Liu Shuyi was not afraid of them at all. In the blink of an eye, he warmly told Liu Shuyi that they were family, subtly and overtly informing him that they were willing to offer benefits in exchange for his forgiveness.

This is treating Liu Shuyi as one of them, believing that as long as there is profit, one can disregard the truth and be unable to distinguish right from wrong.

They weren't wrong. Most people pursue their own interests, especially in officialdom, where power and interests are paramount... But ultimately, there are still some people who uphold the bottom line of being a decent human being.

And Liu Shuyi happened to be among these people.

"I am increasingly understanding why you were able to make the same choice so consistently back then."

Liu Shuyi took a sip of water, then sat up straight, his gaze sweeping over Mu Ping and the others, and said, "Enough with the nonsense, let's get down to business."

"Gentlemen, do you wish to voluntarily confess the crimes you have committed in order to receive leniency?"

"still……"

He narrowed his eyes and said calmly, "Still resisting? Let me personally end your hopes and send you to prison."

"Liu Shuyi!" Mu Ping hadn't expected Liu Shuyi to make such a suggestion to them without even hesitating. He shouted sternly, "Are you really going to fight us to the death?"

Liu Shuyi was not as noble as Du Gouyi imagined; he also pursued profit.

Seeking advantage and avoiding harm is the instinct of all living things, and in his view, this was not a problem.

However, some interests are poisonous and should not be pursued.

Liu Shuyi didn't trust Mu Ping and the others' character, and he didn't believe they would actually deliver on their promises of benefits after overcoming the difficulties.

Moreover, this case is being closely watched by Li Shimin. He doesn't believe that Li Shimin won't know what happened if he keeps it to himself. If Li Shimin finds out that he has colluded with Mu Ping and others, one can imagine what he will face.

This risk is completely disproportionate to the benefits offered by Mu Ping and others.

Of course, in his previous life, as a criminal police officer, his dedication to the truth and his sense of justice still held a significant place in his heart. His values ​​would not allow him to collude with criminals.

For all these reasons, Liu Shuyi made a decision almost immediately upon hearing the words of Mu Ping and the others.

He said calmly, "It seems that Doctor Mu is unwilling to explain everything. Since you don't cherish this opportunity, then I will do it."

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Mu Ping and the others felt a chill in their hearts.

They never expected Liu Shuyi to be so stubborn!
Wei Qian whispered to Wu Chenyang, "How much evidence does Liu Shuyi actually possess? Those who know are either all dead, or, as we would never tell them... Does he really have evidence that can prove our crimes?"

"This……"

Wu Chenyang hesitated for a moment and said, "I don't know exactly how much he has mastered."

"When he met me, he only told me about how we framed Feng Mu, and that when we handed over the embezzled money of Feng Mu's soldiers to the Ministry of Revenue, our household was very strapped for cash, thus proving that we had paid for all that money... That was all."

Upon hearing this, Wei Qian's eyes flashed.

He quickly exchanged glances with Dai Fei and Mu Ping.

Unlike Wu Chenyang, who was in the Censorate and whose main job was to supervise, they were all experienced officials from the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice. They had handled at least hundreds of cases, so they knew very well how strict the requirements for evidence and testimony were for a case to be successfully concluded.

Although Liu Shuyi discovered their family's financial difficulties, so much time had passed that he had no way of knowing exactly how much money they had lost in those months.

Since they couldn't get the specific amounts, they couldn't match the money they handed over to the Ministry of Revenue one by one.

That would give them room to defend themselves...

Besides, there are witnesses...

Such a big case absolutely cannot be solved without witnesses.

The only people who know the truth are Feng Mu and the soldiers they framed, as well as themselves. But Feng Mu and the others have already been reincarnated, and they themselves cannot cooperate with Liu Shuyi.

As for Ren Xing, who has already escaped...

Mu Ping's men happened to see Ren Xing's carriage leave Chang'an City at noon yesterday. They knew that Ren Xing had already disappeared without a trace, and Liu Shuyi could not possibly find him.

Not to mention that Ren Xing benefited more from the salary case than any of them, making him the least likely person to speak up.

Therefore, Liu Shuyi has no witnesses!

Without witnesses and with incomplete physical evidence... how can they possibly prove their crimes?
Wei Qian, Mu Ping, and the others breathed a sigh of relief, but also sneered. They had been taken aback by Liu Shuyi's pretense, and even more frightened by Wu Chenyang's words. They had genuinely believed that Liu Shuyi possessed irrefutable evidence and that they had no chance of turning the tables. Now they realized that Liu Shuyi had been bluffing and deceiving them from the start, hoping that the pressure would overwhelm them and they would confess everything...

No wonder Liu Shuyi went through all that trouble without starting to recount the case, and even specifically said he wanted to give them the opportunity to tell everything on their own initiative; that was his purpose all along.

Fortunately, they were determined. Now that they know Liu Shuyi's background, it's time for them to fight back.

They wanted to let Liu Shuyi know that he hadn't been in the Three Departments for nothing all these years, and that if he wanted to gain merit by stepping on them, he should be prepared to be crushed by them!

With a renewed sense of confidence, Mu Ping was no longer in a hurry. He sat back down, picked up his water cup, and gently swirled it like Liu Shuyi. He said calmly, "When we were investigating the silver treasury case, we were always very careful and cautious, afraid that something might go wrong and we might frame an innocent person. So I really want to hear what Doctor Liu found out after he reopened the silver treasury case."

Seeing Mu Ping and the others' composed demeanor, which was different from before, Xue Ming and the other officials from the Ministry of Revenue exchanged glances.

They sensed that something new must have happened that they didn't know about.

"Interesting, really interesting!"

Deng Chengren originally thought that Mu Ping and the others were going to be in trouble, but now it seems that the situation has reversed. Could it be that Liu Shuyi is going to be in trouble?

The thought of the hottest rising star falling so quickly filled Deng Chengren with emotion. Liu Shuyi's fall was even worse than his, and he suddenly felt that he wasn't so unlucky after all.

Liu Shuyi took in everyone's expressions, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips. With his abilities, he could naturally tell what Mu Ping and the others were thinking.

However, they might be disappointed...

He looked at Mu Ping and said, "Doctor Mu, are you aware of my habits?"

"What?" Mu Ping was a little confused. What was Liu Shuyi up to now?

"I am a person who values ​​time very much, and I dislike wasting time when investigating cases..." Liu Shuyi said, "However, since I arrived at the Ministry of Justice, we have not gotten to the point. This is obviously different from my usual habits. Does Doctor Mu know the reason?"

Mu Ping frowned. How could he possibly know the reason?
He's not a mind reader like Liu Shuyi.

"It seems Dr. Mu is unaware. Well, if Dr. Mu knew..."

Liu Shuyi squinted and said meaningfully, "Doctor Mu shouldn't be able to sit here so leisurely."

"What do you mean?" Mu Ping couldn't understand what Liu Shuyi was saying at all.

Liu Shuyi glanced at Cui Lin, who had appeared outside the door at some point, and laughed, "Then let's not waste any more words and call the witnesses first."

"Witnesses?"

Mu Ping and the others were taken aback. Where were the witnesses?

Is it Feng Mu's ghost in hell?
then……

They saw Cui Lin lead a man into the main hall.

But after seeing what this person looked like...

"Ren Shaoqing!?"

"Ren Shaoqing, how could it be you?"

"You...you didn't escape Chang'an, did you? How did you end up here?"

The moment Mu Ping saw Ren Xing, the water glass in his hand wobbled.

The water in the cup instantly spilled out and splashed directly onto him.

This made him jump to his feet, wiping the water off his official robes as he stared at Ren Xing in disbelief.

His subordinates clearly told him that they saw Ren Xing's carriage leave Chang'an City, and he later inquired and found that the time Ren Xing's carriage left corresponded exactly to the time Ren Xing left the Chang'an County Government Office. Ren Xing clearly ran away when he saw that things were not going well, so how could he have been caught by Liu Shuyi?
And Liu Shuyi never left Chang'an! Ren Xing ran away so far in advance... how did he end up in Liu Shuyi's hands?

Mu Ping couldn't understand it, and neither could Wei Qian and the others.

When they saw Ren Xing enter the hall, not look at them, but instead fearfully bow directly to Liu Shuyi, their hearts skipped a beat.

Ren Xing's reaction...

"Ren Shaoqing!"

Mu Ping gave Ren Xing a meaningful look and said, "How did you get tied up with ropes? Did something happen to you and get hurt? Tell me, I, Vice Minister Wei, and Vice Minister Wu are all here, and we will definitely stand up for you!"

Mu Ping's meaning was clear: he was reminding Ren Xing not to be intimidated by Liu Shuyi. Ren Xing wasn't fighting alone; he had others with him, and they all held high positions, making it easy for them to suppress Liu Shuyi, a mere fifth-rank physician.

Upon hearing Mu Ping's words, Ren Xing abruptly raised his head, his face filled with shock as he stared at Liu Shuyi: "You, you didn't say they had already..."

Liu Shuyi naturally understood Ren Xing's meaning. He slowly said, "If I didn't say it this way, how could Minister Ren cooperate with me?"

"But that's no longer important."

"The important thing is that I can give Ren Shaoqing a chance to be lenient. As long as Ren Shaoqing cooperates with me, I can guarantee that you will be treated leniently."

Upon hearing this, Mu Ping knew that Ren Xing had not completely sided with Liu Shuyi.

He quickly said, "Minister Ren, we have worked diligently and devoted so much effort to the case of the military pay, and that's how we managed to expose those scoundrels like Feng Mu. Just tell Doctor Liu the truth and don't hide anything from him."

Ren Xing could naturally understand Mu Ping's warning, but Mu Ping had no idea what he had said or done after being found by Liu Shuyi...

It was all too late.

Even if he turns against you now and says that everything he said before was a lie, it's too late.

All he could do was let his brothers bleed so that he could survive.

Ren Xing took a deep breath and finally said, "Don't worry, Doctor Liu, I know what I should do."

“You…” Mu Ping and the others’ expressions changed.

Liu Shuyi glanced at Mu Ping and the others, and said, "Then let's not delay any longer. Tell me again what you did in the salary case."

Mu Ping and the others refused to believe that Ren Xing, the biggest beneficiary of the salary fraud case, would voluntarily give up everything. They kept a close eye on Ren Xing, still clinging to a last glimmer of hope for him.

Then, they heard Ren Xing say, "I received an order from the Emperor Emeritus to accompany the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review to investigate the silver treasury case. However, the silver treasury case is too strange. No matter how we investigate, we have no clue. With the time given by the Emperor Emeritus running out, we are all very anxious..."

"Just then, one of my men... who is also Liu Langzhong's elder brother Liu Shuzhong, suddenly came to me and said that he had discovered that Feng Mu's testimony did not match his whereabouts."

I then asked him why he said that.

"Liu Shuzhong told me that Feng Mu said he was in Chang'an during his time off, but he had met Feng Mu when he was on a mission outside Chang'an, so he concluded that Feng Mu was lying."

"When I learned about this, I immediately realized that this would be a tremendous achievement, which would directly point the way for our clueless investigation."

"At that time, I was at a crucial stage of my promotion, just missing a significant achievement... so..."

Ren Xing pursed his lips, looked up at Liu Shuyi, and said, "I took credit for Liu Shuzhong's work and, based on my own experience, altered Feng Mu's whereabouts."

Guan Qi and other officials from the Ministry of Revenue were all taken aback upon hearing this.

"You embezzled your subordinates' credit?"

"They even changed Feng Mu's whereabouts?"

"Isn't that fabricating evidence?"

Guan Qi, being the most impatient, couldn't help but ask.

Mu Ping and the others also had strange expressions; this was a secret even they didn't know.

They assumed that Ren Xing had truly discovered Feng Mu's problem, or that Ren Xing had created the problem himself... but they never expected that Ren Xing had stolen Liu Shuzhong's credit.

And the relationship between Liu Shuzhong and Liu Shuyi...

They instinctively looked at Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi appeared calm and showed no dissatisfaction at having his brother's credit stolen.

Of course, Liu Shuyi already knew about this and had probably already dealt with Ren Xing.

"Continue," Liu Shuyi said calmly.

Ren Xing dared not disobey, and he continued, "My words indeed attracted the attention of Minister Dai and others, and they immediately ordered me to investigate Feng Mu based on this."

"Later, Liu Shuzhong and I found letters and memorial tablets at Feng Mu's residence, confirming that Feng Mu had the motive to avenge his benefactor. We then arrested Feng Mu and others and began interrogating them."

"But……"

Ren Xing paused for a moment and said, "But no matter how we interrogated them, Feng Mu and the others refused to confess. Even when we tortured them severely and almost beat them to death, not one of them confessed."

“As a general, Feng Mu is resolute, and I can understand why he won’t confess. But not a single one of the ordinary soldiers will budge, even though I have presented enough evidence. Even if they don’t talk, they can’t escape, but they still won’t confess…”

"This made me realize that I might be wrong, and that Feng Mu and the others might not be the thieves."

Guan Qi hadn't expected this at all. He said, "They weren't thieves? But didn't they all confess later?"

Ren Xing shook his head and said in a deep voice, "I have been handling cases at Dali Temple for many years and have a lot of experience. I can confirm that I am not wrong. Feng Mu and the others should really not be the thieves."

"I informed the then Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Doctor Mu, who in turn informed the high-ranking officials of the three ministries, including the Minister of Justice, the Grand Censor, and the Vice Censor-in-Chief."

"I thought that after they found out about this, they would severely reprimand me, scold me for wasting time, and scold me for almost wrongly accusing an innocent person..."

"But who knew..."

Ren Xing turned his head and looked at Mu Ping and the others, who were dressed in fine clothes and looked very dignified. He said, "After hearing about my matter, Doctor Mu and the others not only did not reprimand me, but also comforted me, saying that they would let me take the greatest credit and make me the biggest beneficiary of the salary case."

"But before that, I must forget what I said before, firmly believe in my own judgment, and confirm that Feng Mu and the others are the real thieves!"

“They said we don’t have much time left, and it’s impossible to find the thieves in the remaining time! If we release Feng Mu and the others, we’ll end up in jail instead… We have good intentions towards Feng Mu, but the Emperor Emeritus won’t have good intentions towards us.”

"So, since we've already made a mistake, let's go all the way! Using the ant-like futures and lives of Feng Mu and thousands of others to exchange for the merits and futures of us high-ranking officials in the Three Departments... that's their honor."

…………

PS: It's the last day of the month, and I'm only a little over a hundred monthly votes away from 3,000. If you have any remaining monthly votes, please vote for me. This is the first time this book has been so close to 3,000 monthly votes. Let me break through!

(End of this chapter)