I thought things would change dramatically the next day, but it was so calm for several days. In the end, even Kong Gongfeng became a little desperate, thinking that the Cao family had really reached the point of being able to cover up the matter with one hand and suppress it.
But no one expected that on the day of the grand court meeting, Qin Tong suddenly launched an attack and wrote a letter to impeach Cao Wen for ten crimes.
Qin Tong has not rested these past few days. He held back his anger and investigated thoroughly all the crimes that Cao Wen had been criticized for over the years, from the time when Cao Wen embezzled the sacrificial silver from the Taimiao to the recent time when Cao Wen framed the third master of the Xie family in Jingxi, who was now the magistrate of Wanping, for a painting of green pine trees. He investigated every detail clearly.
Not only that, after finding out all this and getting witness testimonies, his memorial even had signatures and seals from a number of imperial censors, which showed that he had been planning this for a long time.
Emperor Longqing did not get angry on the spot, but specially appointed the Ministry of Justice to try the case.
After the court session, he scolded Cao An in Shoukang Palace, accusing him of hypocrisy.
He had some affection for Cao An, but he had no affection for Cao Wen at all. He threw the teacup to the ground and said coldly, "How dare you! How despicable!"
Empress Fang was still well-maintained and looked no more than twenty years old. She was not afraid of Emperor Longqing's anger. She asked the master of ceremonies to serve tea, and sat next to Emperor Longqing. She tilted her head and asked him in confusion, "Who are you scolding, Your Majesty?"
Emperor Longqing married Empress Fang when he was nearly forty years old. Empress Fang was knowledgeable and interesting, and he was very happy. When he faced her, he restrained his anger and said coldly, "Cao Wen, that idiot!"
He was extremely angry, and told her about how Cao Wen had stopped Old Lady Wei's carriage in the street, and sneered, "Others thought it was my idea, but I took the blame for him!"
Emperor Longqing was ruthless, but sometimes he was so soft-hearted that it was hard to believe. Empress Fang had always felt his pulse very accurately, and she frowned when she heard this: "Why bother? Didn't we know the truth after the interrogation? Old Madam Wei never left the house, and it's really far-fetched to say that she had any connection with the rebels of the Ming family..."
After all, they grew up together. Emperor Longqing had some feelings for Old Madam Wei, who was no longer a threat and had lost all her relatives. Empress Fang sighed again: "Besides, the old lady was already in poor health at her age. Didn't she say she was sick a while ago?" She looked at Emperor Longqing's face and said slowly: "There is one more thing. Yesterday, Concubine Kong came to check my pulse and said that Old Madam Wei was sick. From what you said, I'm afraid she was frightened by Cao Wen, right?"
Emperor Longqing's expression suddenly became even gloomier and uglier.
That afternoon, he severely reprimanded Cao An in the imperial study, and sneered at him: "Your nephew is really extraordinary. Your relatives are more noble than my relatives! He doesn't care about the wife of Marquis Dingbei, and he doesn't even care about the fourth brother! Who gave him the courage? Is it you?!"
Cao An had followed Emperor Longqing for so many years that he already had a clear understanding of his moods, so he was not too afraid when he got angry.
Emperor Longqing was a person who did not like change, but Cao Wen insisted on getting to the bottom of things. He brought up things that Emperor Longqing was unwilling to delve into and poked at Emperor Longqing's heart. He had already anticipated that Emperor Longqing would be angry, so he knelt on the ground and kowtowed continuously, not saying a word to argue with his nephew, but just kept apologizing.
Emperor Longqing was still furious, pointing his finger at him and scolding him: "You are just taking advantage of others' power! Who gave you the courage?! What are you trying to do to me?!"
Cao An then straightened up and said to Emperor Longqing after careful consideration: "It is Cao Wen who deserves to die. He is young and ignorant... After being instigated by those bandits, he seemed to have drunk a few mouthfuls of horse urine and forgot his own name. But he was thinking only of Your Majesty..."
Emperor Longqing then remembered that Cao Wen was handling a case in Yunnan. He suppressed his anger and his expression changed unpredictably: "I was instigated. What instigation?"
Cao An looked very embarrassed. He hesitated for a while, and was kicked by Emperor Longqing before he said aggrievedly: "The captives captured in Yunnan were all stubborn, except for one who was pried open by Cao Wen. He said... that although Madam Wei did not instruct them, they fought so hard for the descendants of the Ming family. They felt that the Ming family was wronged and wanted to seek justice for them."
Cao An did not wait for Emperor Longqing to continue speaking, and sighed in a deep voice: "Cao Wen is a rude person, and we haven't investigated much yet. We only found out that the wife of the Marquis of Dingbei has been ordering people around quite frequently recently, and the housekeepers in the family have been going to Tongzhou too frequently, so... ... Prince Zheng was protecting the wife of the Marquis of Dingbei that day..."
As soon as King Zheng was mentioned, he came to the palace to ask for an audience.
Emperor Longqing had a gloomy face. Before he could say anything, Prince Zheng knelt down first, with anger in his tone.
"Brother, you have to make the decision for me!" He was still filled with righteous indignation: "Does the Ming family's matter have nothing to do with me?!"
Emperor Longqing looked at him coldly: "Why are you bringing this up for no reason?!"
King Zheng sneered and raised his eyebrows: "Why can't I mention it?! The Ming family deserved to die, that's the Ming family's own business! It's not me who asked the Ming family to die. Old Madam Wei is so unreasonable. I was kind enough to help her out, but she spat in my face. In front of so many people, and in front of Cao Wen, that bully, she didn't give me any face at all!"
Emperor Longqing laughed with an unclear emotion: "You know her temper. I warned you at the beginning that if you marry Ming Yuyou, the order of generations will be messed up..."
King Zheng was very distressed: "What is the point of talking about seniority in our royal family? How can this be discussed? It's just that Old Lady Wei's temper is like a stone in the toilet, smelly and hard, making people feel at a loss. Mingyu died young, but I didn't ask her to die..."
Emperor Longqing waved his hand and called him up: "So you want me to vent your anger for you?"
King Zheng snorted, "Why should I vent my anger? Anyway, I have been a good person once, and I won't do it again. I heard that she caught the attention of Cao Wen and was involved in the Yunnan case. She is seeking her own death."
He then asked Emperor Longqing about Cao Wen: "Is this man really reliable? He and Young Master Lin are not on good terms. As the supervisor, whose opinion should I listen to?"
Emperor Longqing was very angry: "What do you mean by listen to whose orders? I asked you to supervise the trial! Of course, the evidence will have the final say! How can they not get along with each other?"
King Zheng sneered, "Isn't it just the Feng family's business? Third Young Master Lin said that Cao Wen neglected his duties and abused private punishment, so he forced Rongchang Marquis, Rongchang Marquis's son, and Rongchang Marquis's old lady to death. He thinks Cao Wen is the instigator of the Feng family case!"