Eager for quick success
Unexpectedly, he had been hiding in the crowd all this time.
Just as he took off his bamboo hat, the officials of the Ministry of Justice surrounded him almost instantly.
Murderer!
Where can you run to?
Everyone held their breath.
Some looked at him as if he was a monster.
Others looked at him with fear in their eyes.
Some looked at him in astonishment.
...
Old Zhang looked around at the crowd and smiled bleakly. Then...
He bowed to Lord Li and said, "My Lord, the eight people in the well … were killed by me. I also killed Sha Si. Everything about my crime is as Prince Rong and Teacher Ji have said. There is no mistake."
Ah!
He admitted it very enthusiastically.
Lord Li asked, "So, you admit to your guilt?"
"Yes, I admit to my guilt." His voice was deep and cold. Then, he bowed deeply to Jing Rong and Ji Yunshu. "You saved my son. Now, it's time for me to repay you with my life."
He heaved a long sigh of relief. The stone in his heart fell to the ground.
He walked with difficulty to his son's side. He stretched out his sinful, blood-stained hand and touched Zhang Daqi's messy hair.
He slowly squatted down.
Tears streamed down his face. "Father is sorry."
Repentance!
Zhang Daqi opened his festering mouth and made a few "uhhh" sounds.
He couldn't say anything.
The father and son hugged each other and cried bitterly.
No one in the court interrupted them.
Although the scene in front of them was heart-wrenching, Old Zhang had indeed killed someone.
As the saying goes, a pitiful person must have a hateful side!
Lord Li broke the silence. "Zhang Yicheng, let me ask you again. Do you admit to your guilt?"
"Yes!"
He was very magnanimous.
Then, the official who was taking notes quickly wrote a piece of paper and handed it to Zhang Yicheng.
It was spread on the ground.
"Sign it."
Old man Zhang looked at the list of crimes on it and smiled in relief. Almost without hesitation, he pressed his handprint on it.
Lord Li ordered, "Come, the criminal Zhang Yicheng has confessed to his guilt. Put him in prison immediately. I will report to the officials and then make a decision. As for Zhang Daqi, although he didn't kill anyone, he had the intention to cover up. Put him in prison first."
Several officials came and dragged the two people on the ground away.
The case was finally solved.
Lord Li came down from his seat and cupped his hands in greeting. "If it weren't for His Highness and Teacher Ji, the truth of the case wouldn't have been revealed."
Jing Rong's expression was solemn. "Lord Li, you should handle the case as you should. You mustn't …" He paused and glanced at Jing Yi, whose face was in a mess. "You're too eager for quick success."
The words' eager for quick success' were clearly directed at Jing Yi.
Jing Yi felt as if he had been slapped several times, his face burning with pain.
It could be said that he had lost completely.
Not only did he lose, he was even tricked by Wen Shisan.
He gritted his teeth and glared at Jing Rong. "Don't be too pleased with yourself."
Jing Rong said, "You should worry about yourself."
"What do you mean?"
"In order to solve the case as soon as possible, you didn't even investigate the details of the case. You even cut off Zhang Daqi's tongue just to make sure that there was no mistake in your case report. Now that the truth is out, I'm afraid you'll have to think about how to explain it to Imperial Father."
"I don't need to explain at all." He snorted. "Even if the case has been solved, do you have any evidence to prove that I sent someone to cut off Zhang Daqi's tongue? Moreover, it was personally drawn by him. I merely reported it truthfully. How can I explain it? Even if Imperial Father was here right now, I would say the same thing. "
Just as he finished speaking …
"Is that so? Then say it again in front of Us. "
Huh?
Us?
A deep and slightly powerless voice came from the crowd.
They saw Zhang Quan supporting Qi Zhen Emperor, who was dressed in civilian clothes, as they walked out of the crowd. Behind them were two imperial bodyguards.
Jing Yi was stunned!
Then …
Everyone in the hall of the Ministry of Justice knelt down.
"Greetings to Your Majesty/Imperial Father."
Following that, the crowd outside also knelt down.
"Greetings to Your Majesty."
Their voices trembled.
They had never seen the Emperor before!
Qi Zhen Emperor swept a glance at them. "Rise. This is not the Discussion Hall."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Official Li hurriedly dismissed the commoners outside and ordered someone to bring in a pear blossom chair. He placed a soft cushion on it and helped Qi Zhen Emperor to sit down.
Qi Zhen Emperor's health was poor. He was exhausted after leaving the palace.
He glanced at Jing Yi and said sternly, "Tell me, why did you submit the case even though it was clearly full of mistakes and flaws, and there were no suspicious details at all? Moreover, you wrote it so beautifully."
"Imperial Father …"
"Fortunately, Jing Rong found new evidence and overturned the case. Otherwise, how do you expect Us to answer to the people?"
"Imperial Father is wise. It was only because Zhang Daqi admitted his crime that Son compiled the case and submitted it. Imperial Father, please believe in Son."
Hmph!
Qi Zhen Emperor was furious. "It was because we trusted you that we almost overturned a wrong case. As a prince, you should have handled the case impartially and solved the problems for the people. Yet, you acted carelessly and disregarded human life."
"Imperial Father, Son didn't …"
"You don't have to say anymore." Qi Zhen Emperor raised his hand and interrupted him angrily. "We don't need you to explain anything. Just now, we have heard what we should have heard and seen what we should have seen."
Jing Yi was at a loss for words.
Qi Zhen Emperor then turned to Wen Shisan, his brows arched, "Your name is Wen Shisan?"
Wen Shisan stepped forward and cupped his hands in greeting. "This commoner is."
"Tell me the truth. How exactly was that document written?" he questioned.
Jing Yi glanced at him, indicating for him to speak properly and not lie to him again.
Unexpectedly, Wen Shisan said, "Replying to Your Majesty, actually … this commoner has always been suspicious of the case. The details of the case have never been clear and I wanted to continue investigating. However, after Prince Yi found out about the stone, he concluded that the murderer was Zhang Daqi. Not long after, Zhang Daqi confessed and tried to commit suicide by biting his tongue. Thus, this commoner followed Prince Yi's orders and wrote the case."
His tone was calm and his words were well-organized. It could be said that he had completely sold out Jing Yi.
Jing Yi's face turned red and he hung his head low. He was determined to cut Wen Shisan into pieces.
Qi Zhen Emperor's expression was extremely ugly. He had expected Jing Yi to cheat, but he did not expect it to be this treacherous.
"Peng!"
He slammed his hand heavily on the pear blossom chair and looked at Jing Yi. "It seems that you are really eager for quick success."
It was obvious that he was very disappointed.
Jing Yi did not speak.
He admitted defeat.
Qi Zhen Emperor looked at Jing Rong. "You will be credited with solving this case."
Jing Rong replied, "Imperial Father, this matter was not done by Son alone. If not for Teacher Ji's help, I'm afraid it would have been difficult to solve the case."
Ji Yunshu hurriedly said, "This commoner did not contribute to this case alone."
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