Spring comes to the desperate place

Chapter 459 The time has not come yet

Since the implementation of the new policy at the beginning of the year, the emperor has encountered many obstacles, but the biggest one was this time, the case of Zhao Yong killing his wife, and the case of the Xue family buying official positions. The two cases were combined for trial, which made the Ministry of Justice very busy, and the Ministry of Personnel was also busy. After all, if someone dared to boast about selling official positions, he must have connections in the Ministry of Personnel. No one can escape it anyway.

The emperor looked at the table full of memorials and laughed out of anger. He threw the memorials in front of the queen.

"Look at your good cousin! He's really audacious and skilled. He's nothing, yet he boasts about buying people official positions. Does he really think official positions in this dynasty are like carrots on a vegetable stall, for you to pick and choose?"

The Empress knelt on the ground, looking at the memorials. She could imagine what was written on them without even opening them. They simply expressed her hope that the Emperor would severely punish her family and use this incident as a tool to attack the new policies advocated by the Emperor.

However, the queen did not seem to be panicked. She naturally knew how powerful her cousin was. He could boast about buying and selling official positions, which was nothing more than wanting to take advantage of his status as the queen to bully others. But the county magistrate over there was not a pushover either. He might have to secretly involve the Zhao family in order to really buy this official position. It was impossible for the Xue family to do so on their own.

Besides, who says that there is no chance of turning the situation around in this deadlock?

"Your Majesty, how do you intend to punish the Xue family?"

"How to punish him? Doesn't the Queen know?"

Hearing the emperor's question, the queen smiled lightly, and then stood up without the emperor saying anything. The emperor just raised his eyebrows slightly and had no intention of scolding the queen.

When the queen saw this, she knew that she had guessed right.

"Your Majesty, since someone wants to muddy the waters, why don't we take this opportunity to clear it up?"

"The Queen's words probably indicate she already has a plan in mind. If that's the case, we'll have to sacrifice your cousin to Heaven first."

The emperor kept his word. Not long after, the head of the Xue family was arrested and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice. Coincidentally, he was a neighbor of Zhao Yong. When the two met in prison, they did not have tears in their eyes as if they were fellow villagers. Instead, they cursed each other through the bars, exposing each other's past and saying the most hurtful words. They cursed each other for most of the day when they met on the first day. It was useless for the jailer to stop them. In the end, he had to let the two continue to curse each other. Anyway, the two would definitely stop when they were tired.

As for whether they will be mad at each other, I'm sorry, just let them be mad at each other. Anyway, both of them have committed capital crimes, so it doesn't matter whether they die early or late. The worst that can happen is that they will be scolded by their superiors.

The Xue family had just been arrested, and the high-ranking officials who took the lead in impeachment had no time to celebrate. The emperor was indignant and said that he would continue to investigate the case thoroughly. Just when those people were wondering how else to investigate, the matter fell on Gu Fengyun. At the same time, the emperor also personally appointed several officials from various departments. When those high-ranking officials saw these candidates, they couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

It was because these officials, openly or secretly, were on the emperor's side. With these people around, they were afraid that they would not be able to find any loopholes even if they wanted to intervene.

Just when the officials were wondering what the emperor wanted to investigate, Gu Fengyun had already led the officials and began to disperse with the capital as the center to strictly investigate the lowest-level officials in the government. If they were found to have bought and sold their official positions, they would be dismissed and investigated. For serious cases, such as corrupt officials and cruel officials, they would be arrested directly and handed over to the Ministry of Justice for unified management, waiting for the emperor to decide whether to keep them or not after the matter was completed.

As Gu Fengyun and his men arrested more and more people, the high-ranking officials could no longer sit still, and even the aristocratic families could no longer sit still, because the buying and selling of official positions had existed since ancient times, and there were many unwritten rules that had been passed down. In the official recommendation system, such things kept happening.

This time, Gu Fengyun arrested the people who were most affected by the buying and selling of officials, namely the lowest-level officials.

Many people look down upon these officials because their positions are too low, and many of them don't even have a rank. For example, the position of county magistrate for the third son of the Liu family was bought by his family at a huge price. This kind of position is most favored by aristocratic families. It is quite suitable to buy it as a gift to others and win people's hearts.

Therefore, the people in such positions are basically mixed. There are good officials who truly speak up for the people, and there are also children of noble families who just want to use this as a stepping stone. More are those who want to use their official positions to abuse their power and power like the Liu family.

Gu Fengyun did not kill everyone at once. His main target was those who occupied official positions but did nothing and were unworthy of their positions. Among these people, most were children of aristocratic families.

The emperor made such a big move that he hurt himself a hundred times and hurt the enemy ten thousand times. The queen's family also took this opportunity to completely sever ties with that branch, which was considered to be a timely stop-loss. In the whole incident, the worst hurt were the aristocratic families. Almost all the children of the aristocratic families had their official positions stripped away. Not only did the money they had spent before go down the drain, but some people might even lose their lives.

Zhao Yong and the head of the Xue family in the cell were still able to curse each other at first, but as more and more people were arrested, those people learned that it was these two wicked guys who made the matter so bad and reported it to the emperor, causing them not only to lose their official positions but also to lose their lives. They were no longer friendly to the two of them.

If there had not been a fence separating them, the two would have been attacked by the others. Zhao Yong and the Xue family patriarch hid in a corner, trembling with fear, not even daring to fight back, which made the jailers laugh.

"I thought they were brave, but it turns out they are just cowards."

Being ridiculed by the jailers and being scolded and cursed by other people in the cell, Zhao Yong and the head of the Xue family had a hard time in prison.

However, the Liu family was unaware of all this. They just hoped that the government would behead Zhao Yong as soon as possible so that Liu Huaer and Xiaoman could vent their anger.

After Xiaoman drank the spiritual spring water, his health has been much better than before. From time to time, he would follow Aunt Liu to the Song family to play. Maybe because of his poor health before, the little guy has a very quiet personality and gets along well with the children of the Song family.

His mother, Liu Huaer, seldom came to the Song family, probably to avoid suspicion. What Zhao Yong said that day still had an impact on her. She was afraid of causing trouble to Song Chunsheng and his wife, so she simply came here less often. On weekdays, she just worked at home with her parents. Her series of experiences and changes made many people in the village change their views on her, and some even wanted to matchmake for her. Unfortunately, Liu Huaer was frightened by Zhao Yong and did not agree.

Today is the day when the Song family starts making vermicelli. As usual, Aunt Liu brought Xiaoman with her. The child stayed in the Song family yard to play together, while she helped with the work in the workshop.

While everyone was working, they couldn't help but talk about Liu Huaer's ex-husband. Because Zhao Yong had delayed beheading him, the villagers thought that the Zhao family was really so powerful that they could get the Ministry of Justice to delay the execution.

Aunt Liu also knew nothing about this. Although there had been a major reshuffle of low-level officials across the country, this news was still a bit far-fetched for the people who were not well-informed.

After hearing the gossip, Aunt Liu began to feel uneasy.

Could it be true as they said, that the backer that the Zhao family found is so powerful that he can influence the decision of the Ministry of Justice?

With doubts in her mind, she deliberately stopped for a while after finishing her work, came to the Song family yard, and asked Song Chunlin about Zhao Yong.

"Chunlin, that Zhao Yong is truly despicable. As long as he doesn't carry out the execution, our family will be worried. Can you give me a clear answer? What's going on with Zhao Yong's family? Could it be that his mistress is actually more powerful than you?"

Aunt Liu didn't understand things like official ranks. In her impression and knowledge, Song Chunlin and the Yongyi Marquis' Mansion were the highest-ranking officials she had ever seen. If they were higher-ranking officials than the Marquis, how high-ranking would they be?

Song Chunlin almost laughed out loud after hearing this, and he comforted Aunt Liu.

"Don't worry, Auntie. How could the Marquis not be reliable? It's just that there are too many people involved in this matter. It's normal that ordinary people like you don't know the twists and turns inside. But Zhao Yong will be beheaded. This is a foregone conclusion. It's just that the time has not come yet. When the time comes, he won't be able to survive. Besides, he doesn't have much support behind him. His supporter has been arrested, so he can't make much waves."

Aunt Liu was relieved when she knew that Zhao Yong's backer had also been arrested. No matter how high the official was, once he was arrested, he would never be able to get out. In the minds of ordinary people like them, once you were in jail, there was no way you could get out.

"I'm relieved to hear your words, but could you please explain to me in detail how this case involves other people? From what I've seen, it's just the Zhao family and his mistress behind the scenes, isn't it?"

It's no wonder that Aunt Liu is confused. As long as the case is not investigated thoroughly, the government will not post a notice to inform the public. In addition, ordinary people keep their distance from government officials and will never inquire unless necessary. So Aunt Liu and the others naturally don't know that recently, there has been a major personnel reshuffle in all the government offices, big and small, and county yamen.

Song Chunlin thought about his wording and had to tell Aunt Liu half the truth and half the lies.

"This matter is of great importance. It concerns the foundation of the country. The emperor has been so angry that he has fallen ill. Naturally, a thorough investigation is necessary. I'm afraid this case will take at least a year or two to be concluded."

When she heard that it would take another year or two, Aunt Liu showed a trace of confusion on her face.

"It's going to take that long. Doesn't that mean Zhao Yong can still live that long?"

When Song Chunlin heard this, he knew this job well. He said to Aunt Liu with a sly smile, "Aunt, if you think Zhao Yong's life is too easy, I have some connections in the Ministry of Justice. How about I help you with some operations? Hmm, after all, making Zhao Yong's last days difficult will also help Liu Huaer vent her anger, right?"

When Aunt Liu heard this, she was extremely excited, but her mind told her that it was not possible, as this would be considered as using a backdoor, which was not appropriate.

But she didn't struggle for long before she asked Song Chunlin hesitantly.

"Chunlin, how does it work? Does it cost money? If it does, I have a little money. Ahem, don't tell your uncle Liu about this. He doesn't know."

Song Chunlin's eyes widened: "Aunt, you actually still hide your private money."

Aunt Liu felt a little embarrassed by his gaze. She covered her lips and coughed lightly: "Ahem, well, this is for emergencies, right? Look, it's coming in handy now, isn't it? Tell me the amount. If it's not enough, Auntie... Auntie will go back and search your Uncle Liu's pockets. He's sure he has some too."

My goodness, if you are not from the same family, you should not enter the same house. I’m afraid that you two are hiding your private money for the sake of marital interest, right?

Song Chunlin didn't want to make Aunt Liu bleed profusely. Everyone is responsible for making the scumbag suffer. He also wanted to see how miserable Zhao Yong could be. Anyway, he couldn't let him have an easy time.

In the end, Song Chunlin accepted ten taels of silver from Aunt Liu. This money made Aunt Liu feel painful for a long time, but when she thought about making life difficult for Zhao Yong, the scumbag, she felt happy.

On the way back, Aunt Liu was in a good mood and held Xiaoman's hand. Xiaoman looked at her smiling aunt and didn't quite understand why her aunt was smiling so happily after coming back from work.

After returning to the Liu family, Aunt Liu immediately brought Liu Huaer and her parents-in-law into the house, closed the door, and repeated Song Chunlin's words to them.

Although Old Lady Liu didn't quite understand, since Song Chunlin had said that the time had not yet come, and when the time came, Zhao Yong would definitely be beheaded, with this guarantee, Old Lady Liu could finally let out a sigh of relief.

But Old Man Liu and Aunt Liu had the same idea. They thought that it was not enough to relieve their anger that Zhao Yong was still alive. It was Aunt Liu and Old Lady Liu who comforted him and made him calm down.

"The Ministry of Justice prison isn't his home. Zhao Yong is going to jail, not to enjoy himself. How can life in jail be any better? Let's just wait patiently. This matter has been made public with the emperor. No one would be so bold as to plead for Zhao Yong unless he doesn't want to live anymore."

Old man Liu still couldn't figure it out, so he asked Aunt Liu if she had found out who Zhao Yong's mistress was from.

Aunt Liu was not quite clear about this, but she only said that the mistress's family head was also sent to jail for this.

When Old Lady Liu learned about this, she angrily said, "Serves you right!"

"They are all birds of a feather. It's a great relief to see them all in jail. Humph, they actually dared to murder my daughter and grandson. They are blind. My baby is a blessed person, my dear. They say that those who survive a great disaster will have good fortune in the future. You and Xiaoman have suffered a great disaster, but your future will surely be smooth sailing. Let the Zhao family regret it."

Liu Huaer forced a smile. She was not very satisfied with the result in her heart, but since Song Chunlin had said that the matter was a done deal and the only thing missing was time, she would wait a little longer. She wanted to see with her own eyes that Zhao Yong and his mistress and her family paid the price they deserved. Otherwise, how could she justify the suffering she and Xiaoman had endured?