Shang Junlin stared deeply at Shen Yu for a while, his eyes seeming as if he wanted to see into Shen Yu's heart. It was as if nothing could be hidden, as if the secrets that had been hidden for so long were about to be exposed to the light of day.
Shen Yu couldn't help but feel a little nervous, his fingers slightly curling at his sides.
In the end, Shang Junlin only raised his hand to stroke the hair on his temples. "Wait until A Yu is willing to speak, then tell us."
Shang Junlin knew better than anyone that Shen Yu hid countless secrets. Not delving into it didn't mean that he didn't care. He just didn't want to force Shen Yu to do anything. He was willing to wait for the day when Shen Yu would open his heart and tell him everything.
Shen Yu gently leaned against Shang Junlin and whispered, "Actually, I can't say for sure. It might rain in ten days."
"It's just a matter of time. It can happen anytime. Subei really should give the people an explanation as soon as possible."
The mass imprisonment of the high-ranking officials caused quite a stir in Subei.
The people were confused and gathered together to discuss the matter.
"What's going on? Why were Lord Hou and the others suddenly arrested?"
"Wasn't Lord Fang sent by the Imperial Court to provide disaster relief? Why did he arrest the other officials?"
It had to be said that Lord Hou and the others had done a good job on the surface. At the very least, the people of Subei were willing to speak up for them. But in other places, the people unconditionally trusted Lord Fang.
"Have you heard? The high-ranking officials of the Main City have all been arrested by Lord Fang."
"I heard. Sure enough, the Heavenly Dao reincarnates. They used the disaster relief funds to expand their private coffers. Sooner or later, they will pay the price."
"No wonder we haven't seen Lord Fang in this period of time. It turns out that he went to the Main City to deal with the officials who pocketed money."
"I also heard a small piece of news. I don't know if it's true or not, but it's said that at the beginning, there were officials who reported our situation to the Imperial Court. But for some reason, this report wasn't sent to the capital …"
"We waited for a long time for the Imperial Court's people to arrive. It turns out that it's because someone is interfering and doesn't want the Imperial Court to help us."
"I don't understand. Doing this won't benefit Subei at all. Look at how many people have died in this period of time. If the people of the Imperial Court hadn't arrived in time, I'm afraid there would have been even more casualties."
"Are you stupid? Think about it. If the imperial court doesn't send anyone over, wouldn't the ones who save us be the high-ranking officials in the main city? At that time, those people only need to say that 'the imperial court deliberately ignored us' to incite our dissatisfaction with the imperial court. From there, we'll be grateful to the culprit who caused all this."
After listening to the analysis, the others came to a sudden realization and cursed.
"This dog official is really inhumane. Well done!"
"You want us to be grateful to them? Dream on."
"Fortunately, the lords sent by the imperial court saw through their scheme."
In just a few days, the news had spread to every part of Su Bei. The people in the main city also understood the ins and outs of the matter from the explanations of the people sent by Lord Fang.
They had always known that the drought in Su Bei was very serious, but the main city had relief every day, so it wasn't as if they couldn't get by. Everything in the city was stable, so their perception wasn't so clear. It was only now that the blindfolds over their eyes had been removed that they could see just how serious the situation in Su Bei was.
It turned out that the stability they had thought of was a man-made illusion.
"They would secretly send the sick out of the main city and casually throw them somewhere, telling the people in the city that they were being brought to a centralized place for treatment. At the same time, they would seal the city gates, forbidding the people inside from leaving and the people outside from entering. As the news didn't spread, the people in the city never noticed that something was wrong."
At the end of his speech, Xun Chao's tone was filled with uncontrollable anger.
"I don't know about any of this. They must have sent their trusted aides to do this. Those people who were sent out of the main city probably didn't have much luck."
Not only was there no one to take care of them when they were sick, they were also left in the wilderness without medicine or food. One could easily imagine their fate.
"No matter what, send people to look for them. Save as many as you can," Lord Fang ordered, even though he knew that the chances of those people surviving were very small.
Under Lord Fang's command, Su Bei's main city operated in an orderly manner.
Lord Fang learned about Shen Yu's actions in the capital from the people who came from the capital. He knew that he couldn't let anyone take advantage of the loopholes and stir up conflict between the people of Su Bei. Thus, he sent people to blend in with the people and guide them to see the truth of the matter.
"Lord, what did the imperial court say? Should we detain those people back to the capital?" Xun Zhao asked.
There were quite a lot of people arrested this time. If they were to detain all of them back to the capital, they would have to spend a lot of effort and manpower considering the possible situations that might arise along the way.
"His Majesty said that we can deal with them directly in Su Bei. He also set a date for us to execute these people before that day."
Hearing the date mentioned by Lord Fang, Xun Zhao was surprised. "Why is it so rushed?"
"Don't worry about what His Majesty thinks. Go make the arrangements." Lord Fang patted him on the shoulder.
Fortunately, they had already collected all the evidence. After receiving the order, the evidence was released one by one. It was also at this time that the people of Su Bei's main city realized for the first time that the officials they trusted had committed countless crimes.
"So, my sick father wasn't actually sent for treatment, but directly thrown out of the main city?" The moment he heard the news, the young man covered his face and knelt on the ground. He would never be able to forgive himself for pushing his father to his death.
He wasn't the only one who was devastated.
"I was wondering why we weren't allowed to visit him. It turns out that it's because he's long gone. How can we visit him without him? And I was so stupid to believe it. "
"These dog officials, I'm going to kill them!"
The people who were stimulated by the sudden bad news were filled with regret and hatred. After all, no one could accept the fact that they had personally pushed their loved ones to their deaths.
Fang Jun and Xun Zhao watched this scene from afar.
"On the day of the execution, let them come and watch the execution. Call more people to stand guard."
The hatred in their hearts had to be vented.
The evidence of their crimes was also handed over to the Imperial Palace.
During the morning court session, the Prime Minister announced the news from Su Bei one by one. Upon hearing this, the hall was instantly thrown into chaos.
"That batch of supplies was actually stolen by the officials of Su Bei?!"
"They hid it and refused to report it only because they wanted to control the Su Bei army?!"
"The people can't even fill their stomachs, yet they're still in the mood to drink and make merry, completely ignoring the disaster. These people are simply unworthy of being officials!"
"Lying about taxes, oppressing the people, colluding with bandits, robbing passersby of their wealth, intercepting and killing fleeing citizens …"
Each and every one of these things that were placed on an official made people feel that it was ridiculous.
"Severe punishment, this matter must be severely punished!"
The ministers' opinions reached a high level of unity. The actions of the officials of Su Bei were undoubtedly trampling on the authority of the Imperial Court. From the Emperor to the ministers, no one could tolerate this.
At the same time, the Prime Minister announced the decision to execute these people on the spot.
The ministers once more began to quarrel over whether or not they should be escorted back and executed.
Shang Junlin propped up his forehead with one hand, bored to death as he watched the red-faced officials argue. Suddenly, his gaze paused for a moment on an official who was pretending to be calm, but before he could be noticed, he lightly looked away.
The bait had worked.
In the end, neither side could convince the other, so they all turned to Shang Junlin and said, "Your Majesty, please make a decision."
"Let's do as Lord Fang says."
Although those who felt that the officials should be escorted back to the capital were dissatisfied, they could only accept.
After the court session, the officials dispersed, leaving the Prime Minister behind.
"I really didn't think that those people would be so bold as to even touch something sent by the Imperial Court."
"They probably think that the Imperial Court is too far away to do anything about Su Bei. They didn't even think about how His Majesty would tolerate others coveting his things."
"After staying in Su Bei for so long, they really think that they're the master of Su Bei."
With such a big incident happening in the previous dynasty, the harem had also heard the news.
Shen Yu saw Mu Xi's angry expression and found it a bit funny: "Still angry? Aren't these people about to receive the punishment they deserve?"
Mu Xi: "This servant just can't stand it."
Shen Yu: "I didn't expect Mu Xi to be someone who abhors evil."
Mu Xi: "Gongzi, don't make fun of this servant. This servant really can't understand why they would do such a thing."
Shen Yu: "Power blinds the eyes. Since they couldn't control themselves, they should have known that there would be a day when they would pay for their sins."
Shen Yu had dealt with many such people in his previous life. For power and money, some people could give up everything. A mere conscience was worthless in the eyes of those people.
Shang Junlin asked the Prime Minister to stay behind to discuss the follow-up of the incident in Su Bei, as well as how to deal with the person who spread the rumors.
This person hid very deeply in the imperial court. If it wasn't for Shang Junlin's deliberate delay in the incident in Su Bei, this person might not have exposed himself.
"Why did Your Majesty let Fang Jun execute those people on the spot?" The Prime Minister was somewhat puzzled. According to the usual practice, those people should be escorted to the Capital to receive the final trial. This way, it would be more beneficial for the imperial court and the imperial family to establish their power.
Shang Junlin stood with his hands behind his back. When he heard the question, he turned around and said lightly: "I naturally have my reasons for doing so."
After dealing with official business, Shang Junlin returned to Yuzhang Palace.
Shen Yu was asking Mu Xi about the flower sent by Prince An.
He thought about it and felt that this flower was a bit strange.
"This flower is also magical. Ever since it bloomed that day, there have been no signs of withering. After so many days, it's still blooming very well." Mu Xi had never seen a flower that could bloom for so long.
"What flower?" Shang Junlin walked over.
"It's the flower sent by Prince An previously. Mu Xi said that the flower hasn't withered yet. I want to see it."
This flower had been in the palace for so long and nothing had happened. There were also specialists who came to take a look at it and said that this flower was not poisonous. Shang Junlin also asked the imperial physicians to treat the palace servants who took care of the flower and confirmed that there were no problems with their bodies.
"If you want to see it, go ahead. Speaking of which, the date when this flower blooms is interesting." It happened to be a date that Shang Junlin had a deep memory of.
"If Your Majesty knows the specific time when it blooms, you might be even more surprised." Shen Yu mentioned the time.
Shang Junlin silently calculated. "What a coincidence."
While they were talking, the two of them had already arrived at the place where the flower was placed. From afar, the flower bloomed beautifully among the other flowers and plants.
When they got closer, Shen Yu did not know if it was an illusion, but he felt that the petals were leaning towards him.
Shang Junlin also saw it. He looked at the flower and then looked at Shen Yu. There was a trace of uncertainty in his voice: "This flower seems to like you very much …"
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