I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

Xie Jinrong took out a document from his person and handed it over.

"The Confucian merchant Fan Liuyang has formally donated 1,500 taels of silver to the Imperial Court. The donation document is here for your review, Your Excellency!"

He Fu glanced at it and then said, "According to the imperial edict of the third year of the Tianqi reign, a donation of 1,500 taels of silver qualifies one for a position as a registrar in a county or prefecture, a clerk in a prefectural government, a clerk in a military command of the five cities, or a student at the Imperial Academy. What position is Manager Fan eyeing?"

Fan Liuyang lowered his head and said, "I have heard that the position of Assistant Magistrate of Dingxing County is vacant, and I hope that Your Excellency the Prefect can grant me this opportunity."

He Fu smiled and shook his head: "Judging from this situation, if this prefecture doesn't deliver a verdict on Magistrate Huang today, I'm afraid he won't be able to leave Dingxing!"

Fan Liuyang quickly replied, "This humble citizen only wishes to do something practical for the people of Dingxing; I have no other intentions!"

Xie Jinrong then stepped forward and said, "Fan Liuyang, your donation document has been signed and stamped by this county. Now it needs to be handed over to Prefect He, who will then submit it to the imperial court. After this is done, Prefect He will be your superior. You must treat him well and not mistreat him!"

Fan Liuyang nodded repeatedly in agreement, a smile plastered on his face. He lowered his voice and said, "Thanks to Magistrate Xie's suggestion, I have already arranged for someone to deliver some local specialties to Prefect He. Please rest assured, Prefect He, there are plenty more!"

These words are tantamount to making it clear that you've already taken my money!

You'd better cooperate and get things done; you'll benefit from it later.

If you don't process it, how do you explain this money?

You should know that all the officials and censors in the court are watching closely. They could impeach you at any time and see what you do then.

Having come this far, He Fu had a clear understanding of the situation.

Needless to say, these so-called victims were all brought in by Xie Jinrong and Fan Liuyang.

The confessions and various pieces of evidence were also arranged in advance, and these things cannot withstand scrutiny. Therefore, they firmly opposed taking the people and evidence away.

Then, using the money as leverage, he threatened to sentence Huang Mao to guilt in court.

With Huang Mao imprisoned, he will most likely die suddenly, and it is only natural that Fan Liuyang will take his place.

The plan was brilliantly calculated, with each step meticulously linked, but unfortunately...

He Fu slowly sat back down and said, "Xie Jinrong, do you know what you're doing?"

Xie Jinrong was slightly surprised: "This humble official does not understand, please enlighten me, Your Excellency!"

"You're courting death, you know that?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Jinrong's expression finally changed.

"Is Prefect He determined to sever all ties today?"

He Fu shook his head and said, "At first, I still harbored some hope for you, thinking there was still room for maneuver. It seems you have no chance!"

Now it was Xie Jinrong's turn to be confused.

"Prefect He, what are you saying?"

As they were talking, a commotion broke out outside.

It seemed someone was trying to force their way in, but was stopped by the constables.

"No one is allowed in!"

Immediately afterwards, there was a whooshing sound, and then silence.

Xie Jinrong frowned and ordered, "Zhang Zian, go out and take a look!"

"yes!"

Zhang Zian turned and walked out, but as soon as he reached the main entrance, he froze and backed away step by step, returning to the lobby.

In front of him, a man holding a long knife approached.

Xie Jinrong became even more enraged and said in a deep voice, "Who dares to trespass into the courtroom?"

"Magistrate Xie, what an imposing official you are!"

As the sound rang out, a group of people appeared in the lobby.

Xie Jinrong looked closely and realized it was He Fu's personal bodyguard.

There were about a dozen people in total, and the person in front was holding a knife to Zhang Zian's neck.

Unexpectedly, He Fu was also prepared!

However, this is Dingxing. Do you think you can defy the heavens with just a dozen or so people?

Xie Jinrong looked at the speaker again and sneered, "Who are you... ah!"

The shout came suddenly and startled everyone present.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Zhang Zian rolled backward and came to Xie Jinrong's side, saying, "Your Excellency, these people are audacious and reckless. I will go and call for reinforcements to capture them!"

After he finished speaking, there was no response for a long time.

Xie Jinrong seemed to freeze, staring straight at what was in front of him.

Zhang Zian then said, "Your Honor, our men are lying in ambush outside. Just give the order, and they'll never return!"

Xie Jinrong's face turned deathly pale. He stretched out his hand and murmured, "You, you are..."

"snort!"

Under Li Ruolian's protection, Zhu Youjian went straight to He Fu.

He Fu then rose to give up his seat, then kowtowed and shouted "Long live the Emperor!"

"Your subject kowtows to Your Majesty, long live the Emperor!"

Li Ruolian waved her hand, and more than a dozen captains lined up on both sides, protecting Zhu Youjian behind them.

The people below the hall were dumbfounded. What was going on?

Seeing that something was wrong, Fan Liuyang hurriedly asked, "Your Excellency, what... what does this mean?"

Xie Jinrong's knees buckled, and he knelt on the ground: "Your humble servant Xie Jinrong pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

Huang Mao was even more surprised; what he saw last night was indeed His Majesty the Emperor!

I thought it was because the lighting was dim, or that we looked alike and I was mistaken...

Seeing this, the others dared not hesitate any longer and knelt down one after another.

Zhu Youjian asked, "Xie Jinrong, you're a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations)?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Jinrong hurriedly replied, "Your Majesty, I was a Juren (successful candidate in the imperial examination) from Xinyang Prefecture in the third year of the Tianqi reign."

Zhu Youjian then asked, "So you didn't pass the palace examination? How do you recognize me?"

"Your humble servant once went to the capital on official business and had the honor of seeing Your Majesty's countenance."

Zhu Youjian looked at the crowd below and said, "This is quite a spectacle!"

Xie Jinrong wiped the sweat from his forehead: "The people are crying out for justice and have filed a lawsuit against County Magistrate Huang Mao. I dare not make a judgment on my own. Prefect He will handle the case directly."

"If Prefect He doesn't convict Huang Mao, will he be stuck in Dingxing forever?"

"This... Your humble servant dares not!"

Zhu Youjian chuckled and said, "Did you find all these aggrieved parties to file complaints?"

"Your Majesty...Your Majesty, please see the truth!"

Xie Jinrong was shocked: "This humble servant only heard someone crying out for justice; I knew nothing about it beforehand..."

Zhu Youjian waved his hand, and Li Ruolian stepped forward, taking out a small booklet.

"Li Er, a villager from Dongcun, lost all his land due to gambling and has been idle ever since."

"Zhang Wangshi from Liujia Village in the south of the city, your son lost money gambling, incurred high-interest loans, ran away, and has never returned."

"Zhao Daniu from the north of the city also sold his children and lost his wife and children because of gambling."

"The village head of Dongcun owes a huge amount of gambling debts... All of the above happened at the casino run by the Fan family!"

The lobby was completely silent; you could hear a pin drop.

Zhu Youjian chuckled, "So you're just a bunch of gamblers. No wonder you're so obedient!"

Xie Jinrong's expression changed drastically. He looked at Fan Liuyang and said, "Manager Fan, could it be that you're the one secretly plotting and distorting the truth?"

"Magistrate Xie, stop pretending!"

Fan Liuyang shouted, "Can't you see? The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty is on an incognito tour specifically to target you! You've been exposed!"

"That's utter nonsense!"

Xie Jinrong angrily retorted, "I have always maintained a clean and upright character, what could possibly happen to me?"