The Demon Prince

Has the Minister of Personnel gone mad?

Many people stared intently at the Minister of Personnel, especially the court officials who had not gathered at the Minister of Personnel's residence that night.

The Seventh Prince had already spoken, intending to temporarily shelve the Cuju case, only needing to seal the account books, and it could be swept under the rug today. But at this moment, the fearless Zhou stepped forward and demanded to open a case for investigation.

Isn't this tantamount to slapping Zhang Erhe across the face in front of the entire court?

Someone couldn't help but whisper:

"Did Minister Zhou take the wrong medicine today?"

"Why would he side with Xiao Xingyue?"

In their view, anyone could be impulsive, but this Mr. Zhou, the Minister of Personnel who was jokingly called "Zhou the Skinflint" by busybodies, was not.

This man has been in charge of the Ministry of Personnel for many years, and his greatest skill is weighing the pros and cons. If the political situation is going east, he will never go west.

Over the years, he has not made any mistakes, at least he has never been caught red-handed, and he is also very pragmatic.

But now, he has actually taken the initiative to stand by Xiao Xingyue's side and even wants to investigate the Prime Minister's biological son.

All the officials had only one thought in their minds: Did he really not want to live anymore?

The minor officials from the Fourth Princess's faction turned pale with fright. At the last court assembly, they had followed Zhou Bapi and secretly tried to curry favor with the Seventh Prince.

The winds had clearly been blowing in favor of the Seventh Prince and the Prime Minister, so how come our Minister changed his tune so quickly?

Could it be that they missed some crucial information at a dinner party they didn't attend?

You can change my face all you want, but at least tell me beforehand, bro!

We all got on the boat together and got off the boat together. Now you've jumped back onto Xiao Xingyue's boat and left them in the water to feed the fish. What kind of nonsense is this?

Officials on the Prime Minister's side were also caught off guard by the Minister of Personnel's baffling actions.

The matter should have ended there. With the Seventh Prince acting as regent and the Prime Minister wielding immense power, a football account book shouldn't have caused any trouble at all.

Who could have predicted that the Minister of Personnel would personally stir up this storm?

They wouldn't allow it, especially those who had previously criticized Xiao Xingyue:

"Lord Zhou, the Prince has already said that it is not advisable for the court to experience any further turmoil today. Your insistence on filing a case is an attempt to question the Prince's impartiality?"

Minister Zhou felt somewhat dead. He had no choice before, but now, he could only be a good person.

"I am not questioning Your Highness. It is precisely because Your Highness is acting as regent by imperial decree that I must ask Your Highness to investigate this case thoroughly."

He faced Li Xuansi and bowed in respect:

"Your Highness is known for his virtue, and all the officials in the court praise him for his fairness and integrity. Now that the Prime Minister's son is involved in a case, it is Your Highness's responsibility to investigate it personally."

If the Prime Minister's power is so great that no case is dared to be filed, wouldn't that damage the Prince's reputation built up over many years?

Li Xuansi's eyes trembled slightly. The Minister of Personnel outwardly defended him, but in reality, he was verbally blackmailing him.

If he insists on not investigating, he is protecting the Prime Minister, and the reputation of the Wise King will be tarnished from this day forward.

Zhang Erhe simply watched the Minister of Personnel quietly.

The Minister of Personnel quickly lowered his head, but he could not back down, otherwise Xiao Xingyue would definitely kill him.

"What Lord Zhou said makes sense." Another official stepped out of the queue.

Everyone turned their heads again. This was the Director of the Personnel Examination Department of the Ministry of Personnel, under the command of the Fourth Princess, Li Wanwan.

The physician also stood beside the Minister of Personnel:

"The prince has been ordered to act as regent, and all the people of the land are watching the court. At times like these, it is all the more important to be fair."

Verifying the authenticity of an account book is not difficult; failing to do so would only encourage the people of Kyoto to speculate wildly.

He had barely finished speaking when someone else stood up:

"I second that. Zhang San is now the son of the Prime Minister, and should be investigated even more thoroughly. Only by finding out the truth can we clear the Prime Minister's name."

One after another, all the officials under the Fourth Princess who had signed the pledge of allegiance stepped out of the queue. More than ten people, half of the officials in the Ministry of Personnel, stood on Xiao Xingyue's side.

The discussions in the imperial court erupted completely.

"What happened?"

"At the last court assembly, they were still speaking up for the prince."

"Has the Fourth Princess changed her mind?"

The officials under the Second Princess also spoke up, offering righteous and stern advice:

"You have all been misled by Xiao Xingyue. The origin of the account books is unknown and not worth verifying. If everyone in the court could bring up a fake account book to file a complaint, wouldn't the Court of Judicial Review never have a peaceful day?"

The Minister of Personnel, having gone this far, roared angrily:

"You keep claiming the accounts are fake, but do you have any evidence?"

The official was stunned:

"I……"

"Without evidence, it's just slander!" The Minister of Personnel spoke with increasing confidence.

Now that we're on board, we can't waver, or the ship will capsize. If we don't send Zhang San to Dali Temple today, he might be the one going to Dali Temple tomorrow!

"Verifying the authenticity of the account books doesn't take much time."

The gambling game that Zhang San is handling involves many participants in the capital, and there are also merchants' signatures on the books. The Dali Temple only needs to send a few people to ask questions, and the truth will naturally come out.

Your insistence on obstructing me suggests you might also be involved in this case.

The officials under the Second Princess turned green with rage.

"Minister of Personnel, stop making baseless accusations."

"Then let's investigate."

The Minister of Personnel flicked his sleeve, his tone so righteous and imposing that even he felt a little unfamiliar with him.

People really need to be pushed a little, otherwise they won't know how righteous they can be!

Xiao Xingyue never urged him or offered any words of support.

Li Xuansi could suppress his petition, but he couldn't easily suppress half of the Ministry of Personnel, especially since this was only the beginning.

Behind the civil officials, several more people stepped forward, from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works. These were all court officials under the command of the Fifth Princess, Li Taiping.

A few days ago, they also advised Li Taiping to make the Fifth Princess recognize the situation and not to accompany Xiao Xingyue to his death.

Now, with solemn expressions and orderly steps, they stood beside the Minister of Personnel, exuding a sense of shared hatred for a common enemy.

"I second that opinion."

"His Majesty is still unconscious, and the court should thoroughly investigate long-standing problems. When His Majesty awakens, we should see a more enlightened and just court."

A physician from the Ministry of Works followed closely behind:

"Your Majesty has worked hard for the country for many years. Now that Your Majesty is ill, if we, your subjects, only care about fighting for power and profit and turn a blind eye to corruption, how can we have the face to stand here?"

Zhang San is suspected of manipulating football betting, involving a large sum of money; this case must be thoroughly investigated.

As Li Xuansi listened to these words, his heart grew colder. As regent, he was, on the surface, even more obligated to uphold the imperial order, at least for now.

One of the prime minister's students couldn't help but rebuke him:

"Are you trying to force the Regent?"

The official from the Ministry of Revenue immediately replied:

"We requested a thorough investigation into corruption, how did that become coercing the prince?"

Could it be that this official believes the prince will protect the prime minister's son?

The prime minister's student snorted:

"I did not say that."

"If there's no such thing, why stop it?"

"I simply believe that stability should be the priority in governing the country."

"How can things be considered stable if corruption isn't investigated?"

"This case can be tried at a later date."

"When will 'later' come? Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow? Waiting for His Majesty to wake up? Or waiting for the account books to be burned and all the witnesses to die?"

Faced with a barrage of questions, the student was rendered speechless.

Furthermore, the situation in the main hall has completely changed. Initially, there was only the Minister of Personnel, but now more than ten officials from the Ministry of Personnel have stepped forward, and there are also people from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works. Although their official positions are not all the highest, they hold the real power in their respective departments.

The moment these people make a move, all government departments and offices will be shaken.

Someone finally realized what was going on:

"Xiao Xingyue controls more than just the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites."

Of the six departments, five have already featured people associated with Xiao Xingyue.

Although no one in the Ministry of Justice openly took sides, the Court of Judicial Review did not necessarily obey the Prime Minister's orders entirely.

Adding to the troops under Qin Zhenyue's command, and the royal status of several princesses, Xiao Xingyue's power behind him is no longer weak; his influence has begun to grow substantial.

One of the officials who had remained neutral was sweating profusely. Just a few days ago, he had concluded that Xiao Xingyue was only barely clinging to life, but now it was hard to say who was actually clinging to life.

When exactly did this kid extend his reach into the other three departments? In just a few days?

Zhang Erhe showed no anger, but stared at Xiao Xingyue's figure.

Xiao Xingyue remained calm and composed, clearly aware that these people were part of his plan.

Li Xuansi also stared at Xiao Xingyue, his Sacred Dragon Technique surging quietly within his body.

The current situation has completely exceeded the plans made last night. At the Prime Minister's residence, Zhang Erhe had also said that it would be impossible to take down the Minister of Personnel and others in a short period of time.

Half of those people who were previously untouchable are now on Xiao Xingyue's side.

What could Xiao Xingyue possibly offer them? Or did Li Chengqian leave behind some other decree?

Things have come to this point because he is now burdened by his past reputation for virtue and by the current regent.

dilemma?

In reality, he didn't really have two paths. For the sake of legitimacy and his long-standing reputation as a virtuous man, he could only check the account books!

Once the case is filed, Zhang San will have to go to jail!

Li Xuansi remained silent for a long time, and everyone was waiting for his decision.

Zhang Sanjin kept his head down, and his expression was not visible.

Li Xuansi took a deep breath, slowly suppressing all his anger, and said in a deep voice:

"The Court of Judicial Review shall examine the account books in the main hall. If the account books are genuine, a case shall be immediately opened, and Zhang Sanjin shall be imprisoned."