Zong Ai hurried back to the palace and heard from Xiaohuangmen that Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao was reviewing memorials in his study, so he asked to see Emperor Taiwu.

In the study room, Emperor Taiwu saw Zong Ai kneeling in front of him and asked him what was going on. Zong Ai said: "Your Majesty, I inspected the prison with the prince in accordance with the emperor's order. I saw that in the prince's words, there seemed to be something in the works of Lang Zongqin excusing the prisoner.

"I am very loyal to the Emperor. This matter is of too great importance and I dare not conceal it. I have come here to report it to the Emperor."

Emperor Taiwu exclaimed: "The prince is testing Zong Qin. This is exactly what I meant. I heard that Zong Qin is an upright official and does not follow the influence of others. The prince and Gao Yun tried their best to protect Zong Qin. I want to pardon Zong Qin, so I ordered the prince to go with you to test him.

.”

Zong Ai knelt down and said: "Your Majesty, I have also heard that Zong Qin is a learned scholar who has no ambitions as an official and has many complaints against the court. If Zong Qin is pardoned, he will be afraid that others will follow suit. From then on, there will be many people who slander the court, which will cause great harm to the court."

It harms the majesty of our Emperor."

Emperor Taiwu pondered for a moment, and Zong Ai secretly saw that Emperor Taiwu was moved by his words, and quickly said again: "I heard that Zong Qin's people often complained and were very scheming. The emperor wanted to test Zong Qin, so he ordered His Highness the Prince

I'm going there, I'm afraid that the prince will also be deceived by Zong Qin, and the emperor doesn't know who Zong Qin is."

Emperor Taiwu was surprised: "Why is this?"

Zong Aidao said: "Cui Hao is extremely rebellious and his five clans should be punished. All the officials in the Secretary's Office participated in the compilation of "National Records" and were all convicted. Now the emperor is kind-hearted and takes pity on Gao Yun's talents and pardons him.

He also exempts all the people in the Secretary's Office from the crime of copying and beheading the whole family. You are a truly wise king, and everyone in the world is grateful for the emperor's kindness."

"Zong Qin is very thoughtful and knows that the emperor likes loyal people and dislikes flattery and sycophants. He also knows that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is famous for his kindness. Although he is trapped in a prison, he knows that he will die. However, when he sees the Crown Prince coming to ask questions, he has guessed that the Emperor has something to do with him.

The heart of forgiveness, so suppressing the fear of survival in the heart, and showing loyalty on the face, is actually deceiving the ears of the emperor and the prince."

Emperor Taiwu was furious: "Zong Aiqing, this is true as you said. I will kill Zong Qin and other flatterers."

Zong Ai was secretly happy, but with a look of fear on his face, he said: "Your Majesty, please calm down. I only heard about Zong Qin's character, and I don't know whether it's true or not. I heard that the prince's palace was in trouble. Qiuni Daosheng and his minister Rencheng usually rely on the prince."

With his blessing, many of his actions were arbitrary and domineering, and the courtiers complained a lot. Why doesn’t the emperor order the two of them to go to Tianlao and try Zongqin again?”

Emperor Taiwu said suspiciously: "I have also received reports and memorials many times about the evil deeds of Qiu Ni Daosheng and Rencheng, but I only thought of it for the sake of the prince and did not punish these two people. These two are sycophants, how can they be treated as such?"

Do you have the important duty of patrolling the prison?"

Zong Ai said: "Your Majesty, if you go as a villain to test him, you will show your true nature. Qiuni Daosheng and Rencheng like to accept bribes. If they go to the Tianlao according to the order, they will extort money from the prisoners."

.And a group of criminal officials will bribe these two people heavily in order to save their lives."

"If Zong Qin is a loyal and upright minister, he will scold the two of them, and they will report back to the emperor and speak ill of Zong Qin. If the two plead for Zong Qin in front of the emperor, Zong Qin will bribe them. In this way, the emperor himself

See clearly."

Emperor Taiwu nodded and said: "Zong Aiqing, your words are reasonable. I will report this matter tomorrow. I will ask Qiuni Daosheng and Rencheng to inspect Tianlao tomorrow."

After bidding farewell to Emperor Taiwu, Zong Ai summoned his confidant eunuch Jia Zhou. Shou Ai whispered to Jia Zhou, and Jia Zhou accepted the order and immediately rushed to the prince's east palace.

Prince Tuoba Huang was worried about whether there would be another stir in the "Guo Ji" incident. Hearing Jia Zhou's request to see him, he was about to inquire about his father's intentions in the palace, so he hurriedly came out to summon Jia Zhou in the side hall.

Jia Zhou paid homage to the prince, and the prince asked him why he asked for an audience late at night. Jia Zhou said: "I heard that His Highness the Crown Prince tried to protect Lord Gao Yungao in front of the Emperor, and also protected the author Lang Zongqin from death. I am also deeply impressed by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's kindness. Today

Seeing that Chang Shizong Ai made a speech before the Emperor, falsely accusing His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Bao Zongqin, this was actually an act of buying people's hearts and using cronies."

The prince was shocked, knowing that Zong Aisu was not in harmony with him, and he was favored by Emperor Taiwu. If he really went forward to slander Emperor Taiwu, it would be very detrimental to him, so he hurriedly asked Jia Zhou about his love.

Jia Zhoudao: "Zong Ai said in front of the emperor: The author Lang Zongqin seems to be incorruptible, but he is often at odds with his officials. In fact, he is a man who has failed in his official career and often complains. Zong Ai urged the emperor to kill Zong Qin, and the emperor was heartbroken.

If we have any concerns, we will reassign two ministers to inspect Tianlao tomorrow."

The prince was shocked and asked Jia Zhou urgently: "Eunuch Jia, who will the emperor send to inspect the prison tomorrow?"

Jia Zhou said with a smile: "Your Majesty, there is no need to panic. Your Majesty will summon Ni Daosheng, the prince's servant, and Ren Cheng, the minister of the prince's palace, to inspect Tianlao tomorrow. I came here to tell you, firstly because the prince is a benevolent master, and secondly, because I

I have always been oppressed by Zong Ai. If His Highness the Crown Prince succeeds to the throne in the future, I hope His Highness the Crown Prince will make the decision for me."

The prince felt at ease and ordered his subordinates to give a thousand pieces of gold to Jia Zhou in return. Jia Zhou thanked him and left. The prince urgently summoned Qiu Ni Daosheng and Rencheng into the East Palace to give secret instructions on the matter.

Qiuni Daosheng and Rencheng were overjoyed when they heard what the prince said. They secretly planned to blackmail the prisoners in the prison.

In the morning of the next day, Emperor Taiwu indeed issued an order to Qiu Ni Daosheng and his minister Rencheng to go to Tianlao for inspection, but he did not explain why they were sent there.

Qiu Ni Daosheng and Rencheng came to the heavenly prison with great dignity. They had already learned from the prince's mouth. All the officials in the Secretary's Office were the most flattering people, Min Zhan and Xi Biao. So the two of them

He went directly to the cell where Min Zhan and Xi Biao were imprisoned.

Min Zhan and Xi Biao were secretly happy when they saw the servants and ministers of the prince's palace suddenly arriving in the prison. They thought that this must be the prince's kindness, and he came to plead for mercy in front of the emperor without killing all the officials of the secretary's palace.

Come to Tianlao for inspection.

Sure enough, I heard Qiuni Daosheng, the official of the Prince's Mansion, say: "Master Min, Master Xi, you two have offended Tianyan, and you should kill the three tribes. However, His Highness the Crown Prince is kind and intercedes for you, and only kills Zhuang and others.

And I will pardon your family members. You will be executed in the near future. We are here to inspect the prison on the orders of the emperor. If you have anything to say, please say it directly. We will convey it to the emperor."

Min Zhan and Xi Biao liked to guess people's thoughts, and they also knew the personalities of Qiuni Daosheng and Rencheng, so they immediately understood what they saw. Min Zhan said to Qiuni Daosheng and Rencheng Dao: "Two adults, the prisoner Min Zhanshang

I have 100 acres of land and three houses. If I get a good word from you two adults in front of the emperor, Min Zhan will order an ox or a horse to repay you."

Xi Biao quickly followed up and expressed his position. The two of them were in the prison and immediately wrote down the documents for the transfer of all the property to Qiu Ni Daosheng and Xi Biao. Qiu Ni Daosheng and Rencheng pretended to decline and accepted the documents happily.

The Secretary's Office was originally a Qingshui Yamen, and there was not much money. Min Zhan and Xi Biao also majored in "National History" and gained money from it. They also accepted a large number of project bribes for publishing "National Records" on stone tablets, so they set up their offices.
Chapter completed!