This son-in-law is wicked in a good way!

The following morning, at the palace.

Fengtian Hall, early morning.

"Speak if you have something to say, otherwise the court is adjourned!" The sharp voice of the eunuch in charge of ceremonies rang out in the main hall.

The Empress, dressed in a black robe embroidered with gold dragons, sat regally on the dragon throne, exuding an imposing aura without anger.

Below, the red-robed Grand Eunuch Guo Sanbao stepped forward and bowed in greeting.

"Your Majesty, the arson case in the west of the city has now been investigated and found to be the work of Sun Guihua, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, who secretly sent people to collude with the White Lotus Sect outlaws."

"The purpose was to kill him to cover it up and exonerate his son, Sun Xing."

"Sun Guihua committed suicide by poisoning himself at home last night. His son, Sun Xing, and a group of other criminals are being held in the Night Watchman's Prison, awaiting His Majesty's judgment."

These words immediately sparked a murmur of discussion throughout the court.

"I never imagined that the mastermind behind the arson in the west of the city was actually Lord Sun!"

"This is outrageous! Sun Guihua deserves to die! He's a disgrace to all scholars at the Imperial Academy!"

A censor from the Censorate stepped forward, his face filled with anger, and said, "Your Majesty, Sun Guihua is utterly depraved and deserves to be executed!"

"I suggest that Sun Guihua's entire clan be executed, as a warning to others!"

"I second that!" someone stepped forward.

"I second that opinion!"

Almost everyone in the court agreed.

Apart from a handful of people.

The Empress's gaze fell upon the few who remained silent.

The current Left Chancellor is Lu Chongyang.

The six ministers, and the left vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Zhang Xuanling.

Apart from Zhang Xuanling, the others basically represented the entire Great Wu court.

"Prime Minister Lu, what do you think?" the Empress asked calmly.

Lu Chongyang bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Sun Guihua colluded with rebels and harmed the people. His crimes are unforgivable. However, his family was unaware of the situation. I believe that only the ringleaders should be punished, and the innocent should not be implicated."

The Empress's gaze then fell upon the six ministers.

"Do you, my esteemed ministers, share the same view?"

The six ministers bowed simultaneously and said, "Indeed."

"Your Majesty should govern the country with benevolence and righteousness, and should not commit many acts of killing."

A cold glint flashed in the Empress's eyes, but she remained silent, neither confirming nor denying.

Guo Sanbao secretly observed the Empress out of the corner of his eye. The chief eunuch understood that the Empress was angry.

"Your Majesty, this servant believes that what the Left Chancellor and the other officials said is inappropriate!"

"Speak," Chu Lingyu coldly uttered a single word, sparing with her words.

Guo Sanbao immediately retorted: "According to the Great Martial Law, Sun Guihua's crimes are enough to warrant the extermination of ten generations of his family."

What does it mean to refrain from committing excessive killing?

"Although I don't understand classical Chinese, I know that if the law is not strictly enforced, how can the people of the world be convinced?"

"Your Majesty, I implore you to confiscate Sun Guihua's property and exterminate his entire clan, so as to appease the wronged souls of the thousands of people in the western part of the city!"

Unfortunately, those court officials who had just been clamoring to execute Sun Guihua's entire clan were now completely silent.

They never expected that the Left Chancellor and the six ministers would speak up for Sun Guihua, who had committed heinous crimes.

They misjudged the attitude of the Left Chancellor and others earlier, and now that they know, they naturally won't support Guo Sanbao.

Moreover, they were already on the opposite side of Guo Sanbao.

The Empress silently took in everyone's expressions, her beautiful face growing even colder.

Mo Yu, who was standing next to her, felt a chill run down her spine.

What a fine Left Prime Minister! What fine Ministers of the Six Ministries! What fine court officials!

These people, who usually fight to the death, are now unusually united for the sake of Sun Guihua.

This is because they are worried that if they set a precedent like Sun Guihua, their entire family lineage will be in danger!

Then I will set this precedent!

The Empress slowly said, "The Night Watch has determined that Sun Guihua, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, colluded with rebels, harmed the people, and oppressed the innocent. His crimes are unforgivable!"

"According to the Great Law of Wu, his property shall be confiscated and his entire family (nine generations of his relatives) executed!"

"The Night's Watch shall carry out the order immediately!"

After speaking, the Empress looked at the Left Prime Minister and the six ministers.

The dumbfounded officials in the court also looked at the Left Chancellor and the six ministers.

However, this time neither the six ministers nor the left prime minister spoke.

Clearly, the Empress was warning them.

If they speak again, they will surely anger the Empress.

The Empress asked for their opinions just now in order to test them.

Their response to the Empress was, in a way, a test.

Both sides are testing each other's bottom line.

This is the Empress's bottom line.

"This servant obeys the decree!" Guo Sanbao smiled sinisterly and returned to his seat.

"Dismiss the court!" The Empress waved her sleeves and turned to leave.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"

The courtiers paid homage.

……

Qingshan Hall.

Zhao Qianshan gave the order.

Zhang Ping'an, Wang Qisheng, and others immediately gathered at the entrance of the yamen.

In the group, Zhang Ping'an asked in a low voice, "Why is the boss in such a hurry? Did a thief break into his house?"

"I heard it's good news, you'll find out soon enough," Wang Qisheng chuckled.

Zhao Qianshan mounted his horse, his black cloak billowing in the wind behind him, looking very dashing.

"By His Majesty's decree, Sun Guihua, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, is hereby ordered to have his property confiscated and his entire family executed!"

"Now, you will come with me to search the Sun residence!"

"yes!"

The Night's Watchmen shouted in unison, their voices louder and more energetic than ever before.

Zhao Qianshan, riding on his horse, laughed heartily: "A bunch of little brats, they get excited as soon as they hear about raiding homes."

"Same rule as always, don't cross the line."

"Come with me!"

drive!

Zhao Qianshan took the lead and rushed towards the Sun residence.

"Ping An, you're lucky, kid. You've only been here a few days and you've already landed this cushy job."

Wang Qisheng patted Zhang Ping'an's chest and said excitedly.

Zhang Ping'an asked, puzzled, "Is raiding a house a lucrative job?"

Zhou Weidong came closer, rolled up his sleeves, and looked ready to get down to business.

"Of course, Lao Wang will tell you the rules on the way."

"Sometimes, it's rare for us to be raided, maybe once a year."

"Hurry up and catch up with them, or the brothers from other gangs will have already taken everything."

Zhang Ping'an followed the two as they ran wildly.

On the way, the two men explained to him the precautions to take when raiding someone's home, as well as the benefits he could gain.

According to Lao Wang, raiding houses was indeed a lucrative job for the night watchmen.

However, there are three things you can take and three things you can't take.

First, do not bribe honest officials.

Second, do not take bribes from colleagues.

Third, do not take whole silver coins.

The "three things to take" naturally refer to those that can be put into one's own pocket.

1. You can take loose silver. 2. You can take jewelry. 3. You can take the dead.

Based on these premises, you can't actually make much money off of it.

But that's normal. The big cuts are definitely taken by those in power. How could it possibly be their turn, these little karami?

It's likely that these rules of "three things to take and three things not to take" were specifically set up for them by the higher-ups.

However, for the Night's Watch Iron Guards, whose monthly salary was only one tael of silver, raiding homes was still a lucrative job.

If you're lucky, you can make several hundred taels of silver.

If you happen to come across one or two pieces of jewelry, it's like striking it rich.

When Zhang Ping'an and his men arrived at the Sun residence, guards from other branches had already begun ransacking the house.

"Ping An, hurry up, or we'll only have soup left."

Wang Qisheng was very experienced in this matter and immediately rushed to the backyard.

Zhou Weidong patted Zhang Ping'an on the shoulder and called out, "Ping'an, keep up!"

They also rushed towards the backyard.

Zhang Ping'an didn't rush to chase after them, but observed his colleagues who were ransacking the homes.

At this moment, the Sun residence was in a mess. The servants had all run away, and those who remained were mostly members of the Sun family's nine clans.

It's no use for these people to escape; they're all going to be beheaded.