Old Madam Liu now understood that Shopkeeper Jin wasn't joking; she genuinely had the ability to protect herself, so she shielded her son behind her.
He yelled, "Come here... I'm half-buried in the ground, do you think I'm afraid of you? Come on, kill me if you dare! As long as I live, I'll expose all your crimes. You bunch of heartless dogs in human skin!"
Jin Shanyao her head in surprise, not expecting her to be so selfless. She pointed at Old Madam Liu and said to the assassin, "Shoot her... She agreed."
Upon hearing this, Old Madam Liu's legs went weak and she nearly fell to the ground, but Liu Kangjian caught her and prevented her from sitting down.
The assassin's face flushed red and then paled with rage, feeling utterly humiliated... He turned to leap over the wall, but suddenly a soft whip wrapped around his waist.
Before he could react, he was violently pulled back and slammed to the ground.
Jin Shanyao her tongue twice, her tone tinged with helplessness, "Look at you, I've called you so many times and you still won't come. Why are you so stubborn?"
The assassin, sensing trouble, tried to speak, but Jin Shanyao grabbed her chin and glared at her, asking, "Are you going to commit suicide by poison...? Let me see where you hid the poison, ah..."
She opened her mouth wide at the assassin, and when he didn't cooperate, she slapped him on the head. "You're not likable... You'll suffer in this world like this."
After saying that, he pried open the assassin's mouth and said with disgust, " Dahuang... you come... I find it disgusting."
Hearing this, Dahuang reluctantly went over, raised its front paw and stuck it inside... Ugh... The man nearly vomited out Dahuang's paw.
It disgustedly threw the pill on the ground, then turned and plunged its hand into the basin of water, washing it vigorously...
Yan Shuan waited all night, and only when he had to attend court at dawn did he have to admit that the people he sent had failed.
The Golden Palace.
The emperor sat wearily on the dragon throne. He had injured his body while conquering the country, and now that he was old, various ailments had taken their toll.
Now, aside from attending court daily, most other affairs have been handed over to the Crown Prince. Looking at the civil and military officials below, he mustered his strength and said, "My dear ministers, is there anything else? If not, the court may adjourn."
"Your Majesty... Your subject has a report to make," a hoarse voice came from behind the assembled officials. The emperor looked in the direction of the voice and saw Meng Anci walking out.
The emperor looked at his handpicked young scholar, Zhang Jun, whose handsome face belied his duck-like quacking voice, and couldn't help but laugh. "Minister Meng... what do you have to report?"
"Your Majesty... I hereby accuse Yan Shuan, the Chancellor of the Hanlin Academy, of Yan Shuan acquiring farmland and concealing tax payments..."
These words shocked the entire court. All the officials looked at Yan Shuan, who wore a bewildered expression, equally astonished...
Yan Shuan thought Meng Anci was going to sue him for reselling rubbings, and he had already prepared his response. Who knew Meng Anci would sue him about land reclamation...
Wait a minute, Yan Shuan suddenly realized, how did Meng Anci know about his privately owned farmland?
Yan Shuan mustered his courage and looked at the dragon throne, only to see the emperor staring coldly at Meng Anci with an expressionless face.
"Minister Meng... do you have any evidence?"
Meng Anci held the memorial above his head. "Your Majesty," he said, " Yan Shuan has broken up large tracts of land into smaller plots, distributing them across multiple household registers under the names of relatives, tenants, and small households to evade tax exemptions and quotas."
The eunuch stepped forward, took the memorial, and presented it to the emperor.
After carefully reading the memorial, the emperor's expression grew increasingly grim. He casually handed the memorial to the crown prince before looking up at the steps below.
" Meng Anci, since you dared to speak out against this in the imperial court, then explain yourself clearly... How did you know the details of these hidden schemes?"
Meng Anci said loudly, "Your Majesty, my eldest sister often goes around to provide free medical care. She happened to hear that Yan Shuan has acquired a lot of land in the countryside, but there is no tax record for it."
When I first heard about it, I angrily rebuked my elder sister for believing the rumors. To prove Lord Yan, I secretly asked a trustworthy person to go to Lord Yan's hometown to check the fish-scale register and the household registration certificate. I also visited the local village head, tenants, relatives and neighbors to collect evidence one by one. Only then did I find out that he had fraudulently transferred the land to the names of relatives and tenants, and then fraudulently distributed the land to evade national taxes.
I was greatly shocked when I learned the truth. On one side was my superior, and on the other was the common people of the land. In the end, it was Your Majesty who made me decide to report this matter.
Your Majesty has worked tirelessly for our Sheng Dynasty, exhausting your health in the effort to reduce the taxes on the people. Yet Yan Shuan, for his own selfish gain, has undermined the very foundation of our dynasty's tax revenue. This is something I absolutely cannot tolerate.
Therefore, I risk my life to come before you today.
If, upon investigation, it is found that my report was incorrect, I will actually be pleased... simply because the court has not suffered any loss;
If the facts are verified, I will be at peace... I have at least done my part for the people of this Sheng Dynasty, for Your Majesty, and for the foundation of our dynasty.
Whatever the outcome, I will accept it willingly, for my heart is only for Your Majesty and the court. I implore Your Majesty to send someone to thoroughly investigate and verify this matter!
Meng Anci's long and eloquent speech left all the officials speechless... It instantly shattered their preconceived notions about Meng Anci, and they even overlooked his hoarse voice during puberty.
The emperor's expression softened slightly. "If all officials were like Minister Meng, so devoted to the people and the court... how gratified I would be!"
The emperor's gaze swept over the officials below the steps, finally settling on the crown prince. "Crown Prince."
Xiao Yuan quickly stepped forward and bowed, "Your subject is here."
"This matter is entrusted to you. A joint investigation will be conducted by the Ministry of Revenue, the Censorate, and Court of Judicial Review of Judicial Review. Immediately dispatch personnel to Yan Shuan's ancestral home to survey the land, verify tax records, and interrogate relevant witnesses. The investigation must be thorough; no matter who is involved, there will be no leniency. If Lord Meng's allegations are incorrect..."
The emperor, recalling his earlier remarks, did not want to discourage his loyal minister.
He said slowly, "A year's salary will be deducted."
"Your subject obeys the decree."
The emperor glanced at Yan Shuan, whose face was deathly pale. " Lord Yan is getting old; he should rest. You should go home and await further instructions."
Then he looked at Meng Anci and smiled, "Minister Meng, is there anything else?" He had only asked casually, but Meng Anci knelt down with a thud and took out a folded document from his sleeve and held it above his head.
"Your Majesty... I plead for justice for the people. The family of Liu Wenbin, a compiler at the Hanlin Academy, was assassinated last night. The murderer has been taken to the Capital Prefecture."
The emperor, feeling exhausted, forced himself to look at Lu Chi and asked, "Lord Lu, is what Lord Meng said true?"
Lu Chi stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Lord Meng's words are all true. The assassin is in the Capital Prefecture prison, and I will personally handle the case after court."
The emperor nodded and looked at Xiao Yuan, "You may interrogate them as well..." He then waved to the eunuch, who stepped forward and loudly announced, "Court adjourned..."
"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Once outside the Golden Palace, Meng Anci found himself completely alone within three steps of each other.
All the officials were in a hurry, rushing to send people home to measure their own fields... lest they be implicated.
Ministry of Revenue Lord Li pulled Su Wenqian aside and lowered his voice, "What's going on? How dare your student say such things? Does he even want to have a place in the court anymore?"
Su Wenqian stared at Meng Anci's retreating figure in silence... Meng Anci Yan Shuan, but it had put the entire court of officials on the fire to roast.
Lord Li was still muttering to himself, "I advise you to sever ties with him as soon as possible. Someone who dares to impeach even his own superior might turn on you one day."
Su Wenqian: " Lord Li... you still have the leisure to complain to me? Hurry up and send a message back to ask your wife if she's hiding private land."
Lord Li slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "Oh dear, right, right... I have to hurry and send a message back. My wife is a fool; I don't want her to cause me any trouble."
After saying that, he jogged away.