"The secret of the night banquet picture?"
Zhou Chen said: "Yes, officials, this matter is of great importance. If the officials know the truth, they can solve the current trouble without hurting the saint in the slightest."
When Zhao Heng heard this, the clouds suddenly turned sunny. He opened his mouth to ask more questions, but found that Zhou Chen looked around and understood.
"You all should step back and stay outside. No one is allowed to come near without my permission."
"Yes, official."
The eunuchs and maids in the palace all left the Wende Palace very obediently, while the eunuch Cui stayed outside the palace, not allowing anyone to approach.
After everyone left, Zhao Heng asked hurriedly: "Zhou Qing, can you speak now?"
Zhou Chen did not show off and said directly: "Guan family, in fact, I have heard about the Night Banquet Picture for a long time. When Gu Sashi went to Qiantang to investigate, I was also in Qiantang and knew about the Night Banquet Picture. It's just that I
I knew that the matter was of great importance at this time, so I never mentioned it, thinking that it would be just fine if it went away like this."
"But what I never expected was that there would be villains who would take advantage of this matter to stir up trouble and cause trouble for the officials and saints. Therefore, I must report the truth to the officials."
"The truth? What do you mean?"
"The official family, in fact, the real night banquet picture is not the one the official family saw. The real night banquet picture is in the hands of my mentor Ke Xianggong."
"Um?"
Zhao Heng looked shocked, why is this related to Ke Zheng again?
"Tell me clearly, what's going on?"
"When I return to the official house, when I talk about this matter, I have to mention Zhao Pan'er, the woman I like, because the real night banquet map once belonged to her, and later she handed over the real night banquet map to..."
Zhou Chen told Zhao Heng about the night banquet picture, one part true and one part false.
After Zhao Heng listened, his expression kept changing.
"You mean, that Zhao Pan'er once had a relationship with Tanhua Ouyang Xu? She gave the night banquet picture to Ouyang Xu, and then Ouyang Xu gave it to Ke Zheng as a apprenticeship gift?"
"yes."
"Then the picture of the night banquet in my hand is fake, but the picture of the night banquet in Ke Zheng's hand is the real one?"
"It's absolutely true. If the officials don't believe it, they can send someone to Leizhou to see Mr. Ke. Then they will know the truth."
Zhao Heng's eyes were shining. If what Zhou Chen said was true, then as long as he found the original and confirmed that the banquet picture in his hand was fake, everything would be easily solved.
but?
He took a deep look at Zhou Chen. As the person who knew Liu Wan best, how could he not know the facts depicted in the night banquet picture in his hand? In other words, the night banquet picture in his hand was the real one.
, he had never seen the painting in Ke Zheng’s hands, but it was very likely to be fake.
But, so what if it’s true, and what if it’s fake?
As long as it can be proven that the queen is innocent, the truth is false, and the false is true.
"Zhou Qing, if what you said is true, then you have made a great contribution, and the Zhao Pan'er you mentioned will definitely be rewarded heavily by me."
Zhou Chen immediately made a move to climb up: "This is my duty. Both I and Pan'er are devoted to the official family and the saint, and we don't want anyone to frame the saint."
When Zhao Heng heard this, he burst out laughing.
"Well, Zhou Qing, if the matter is resolved satisfactorily at this time, I will personally grant you a marriage to that Zhao Pan'er."
"I thank the officials for their grace. Long live, long live, long live."
Even if Zhao Pan'er's social status is very low, if she can get a marriage from the official family, the resistance to Zhao Pan'er marrying into the Hou family will be much smaller.
He planned this matter originally just to bring down Qi Mu and others, and to put himself in power. Now that he had an unexpected surprise, of course he was happy.
Zhao Heng suddenly frowned again and said: "Ke Gong is the leader of Qingliu, he can..."
"Please rest assured, officials, Mr. Ke is a true gentleman. He will never do anything villainous. He will definitely present the real picture of the night banquet."
Zhao Heng thought for a while and nodded. He was dissatisfied with many of Ke Zheng's policies, but he still recognized Ke Zheng's character.
After learning the 'truth' from Zhou Chen, Zhao Heng couldn't wait to send someone to Leizhou. Within ten days, he brought back the 'authentic' picture of the Night Banquet, and also brought back Ke Zheng's letter to prove it.
.
With the proof of the authenticity and Ke Zheng's evidence, Zhao Heng strongly determined that the picture of the night banquet presented by the censor was a fake, used by someone with ulterior motives to frame the queen.
Then, without giving a chance to refute, the officials who danced the most happily were arrested and thrown into prison.
Empress Liu Wan was even more ruthless. In cooperation with the new chief minister Xiao Qinyan, she launched a major purge in the court and killed countless officials of the Qingliu lineage.
Of course, Qi Mu and other members of the Qing Dynasty were not willing to tie their own hands, but they rose up to resist, even going to the official Zhao Heng.
But then, the matter of Qi Mu's collusion with the assassins of the Palace Division was reported and exposed, and even the Imperial City Division found conclusive evidence, which aroused the anger of the official Zhao Heng, who directly dismissed Qi Mu's official status, and
On various charges, Qi Mu's home was confiscated and he was sent to exile.
Qi Mu was indeed miserable. He originally thought that after Ke Zheng left the capital, he would become the leader of Qingliu, and he would be able to support the prince and become the chief assistant in the future.
But he never expected that in less than a month, instead of overthrowing the queen and Xiao Qinyan, he would end up being ordered to confiscate his property. This was already the most miserable punishment for the literati of the Song Dynasty.
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Chapter completed!