Zhang Shou and the Zhu family did not make a big fuss about the unsuccessful assassination attempt on the night of the twelfth day of the first lunar month, but an assassin was sent directly into the Shuntian government office, and two gangs of thugs who were deceived into fighting without knowing the truth were caught red-handed. Such a big event naturally caused a lot of rumors. By the morning of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival, it had become a hot topic on the streets.
Of course, there were people who criticized Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying for traveling together in the same car at night even though they did not have a marriage certificate. However, because Zhao Guogong's eldest son Zhu Tingfang was also present, such voices soon died down. Instead, officials and the public were all very curious about who would use such a sinister method to assassinate this young couple who looked like a perfect couple.
During the grand court meeting on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Wang Jie, who had not yet handed over his post as the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, announced the result of Song Tuiguan's trial in the Fengtian Hall. The assassin who failed to assassinate was executed immediately without waiting for the autumn, and the two gangs of thugs were each beaten with 40 sticks and sentenced to two years of hard labor. As for the mastermind behind the scenes, who everyone was most concerned about, Wang Jie gave an answer that surprised many people.
"That assassin was one of the spies that the rebels from the Linhai Camp had placed in the capital. He had previously mingled with all kinds of people, trying to get information from the court. However, the rebels who had escaped were all caught because of Dr. Zhang. He held a grudge in his heart, so he took advantage of the conflict between the Censor and the Duke of Zhao's Mansion to try to fish in troubled waters, but he didn't expect to end up being caught by the law."
Knowing that this was an answer that would relieve many people, the outgoing governor of Shuntian Prefecture looked coldly at the ministers who had different reactions, taking in everyone's expressions, and then looked at the emperor on the throne.
In fact, he had seen the emperor a day earlier. The short man was indeed a stubborn man. He refused to confess at first, but later changed his statement repeatedly. Sometimes he said it was the censor's instructions, and sometimes he said it was the empress's order. No matter how severely he was tortured, he could not get an accurate confession. Therefore, after reporting to the emperor, since the emperor also acquiesced, he used this answer that could be made public.
Seeing that the officials gradually quieted down after whispering, he said calmly: "In addition, the old beggar woman who banged her head against the drum to report a certain imperial censor for framing a local prominent family did so because her granddaughter was kidnapped and threatened. She was forced to report the case at the risk of her life. Fortunately, she survived, and I also found her granddaughter."
The case that happened on New Year's Eve had already had a result within the fifteen days when the government office was sealed - this included the investigation of the case involving the assassin and the local thugs sent by Zhang Shou and the Zhu family of Duke Zhao's mansion - with such efficiency, the court officials looked at Wang Jie with a different look.
As expected of Wang Datou, who has taken on so many messy unsolved cases in recent times, he really doesn’t pass the blame to his successor even after leaving office!
The emperor had not heard Wang Jie mention this yesterday, so he could not help but have doubts in his heart. Hearing the unfinished meaning in these words, he immediately asked: "Since the granddaughter who was taken hostage was rescued by Wang Qing, could it be that you got the exact truth from this old beggar woman who falsely accused a certain censor?"
Wang Jie glanced expressionlessly at the group of censors standing very close to the emperor, and a sneer appeared on his face - censors, like the imperial secretaries, were of low rank and high position, which could be seen from the positions of these censors in the court. It was a pity that they were supposed to be the mouthpieces, but behind the false appearance of not fearing the powerful, they were often used as guns by another group of powerful people.