Zhang Yizhi turned pale and said coldly: "Lu Wenjia, I know you. You are the housekeeper of Zheng Qiong's house. Do you know what you are talking about?"
Zhang Changzong glanced at Wu Xuecheng and said sternly: "Lu Wenjia, is someone forcing you to say these words in front of His Majesty?"
Lu Wenjia did not argue with the two people, and continued: "I am also involved in this matter. I know that my sins are serious and I don't want to make the same mistake again. I also know that Zheng Qiong is in a high position. If I want to expose this matter, I can only...
I have told your majesty about this, so I beg Miss Wu to bring me to see the saint."
Wu Zetian stared at Lu Wenjia with majestic eyes, and did not speak for a long time.
Zhang Yizhi said: "Your Majesty, why not call Zheng Qiong over for a confrontation."
Wu Zetian waved his hand and said in a serious tone: "Lu Wenjia, I want to ask first, you are Zheng Qiong's housekeeper, why do you want to expose him? I don't believe your lies about reforming!"
Lu Wenjia gritted his teeth and said: "Your Majesty, the main reason is that Wu Zongbao, the young minister of Dali Temple, has been pursuing this matter. Zheng Qiong was forced to have no choice but to use the common people to take the blame. The common people did not want to die for such a stinking crime.
That’s why I chose to expose him.”
Wu Zetian nodded and said: "This reason is pretty much the same. Since you have come before me, you should have prepared evidence."
Just as Lu Wenjia was about to speak, a female official outside the door suddenly walked in and said, "Your Majesty, Wu Shaoqing wants to see you."
Wu Zetian said calmly: "Let him come in."
Lu Wenjia secretly wondered why Zheng Qiong didn't come in with Wu Zongbao. Before he could think about it, Wu Zongbao walked in and kept looking at him.
Lu Wenjia secretly sneered: "That's right, Zheng Qiong must be afraid that I will reveal all kinds of dirty things. She can't control her expression and the emperor will see her flaws, so she doesn't dare to come here."
Wu Zongbao cupped his hands and said, "I pay my respects to Your Majesty."
Wu Zetian said calmly: "Zongbao, are you also here for Zheng Qiong's case?"
Wu Zongbao said: "Yes."
Wu Zetian said: "Then just listen next to me." She turned to Lu Wenjia and said: "Continue talking."
Lu Wenjia glanced at Wu Zongbao and saw that his eyes were wide open with a threatening look. He felt very happy and thought to himself: "Do you think you can still scare me now?"
He cupped his hands towards Wu Zetian and said loudly: "Your Majesty, in order to accommodate those girls, Zheng Qiong has a small courtyard in the north of the mansion and has four maids to take care of them."
"Later, a catcher from Tongyang County, Bianzhou began to pursue the case. Zheng Qiong sent someone to ask the Tongyang County magistrate to slander the catcher as a bandit, and ordered people to pretend to be thieves and kill the catcher on his way to Luoyang.
"
Wu Zetian frowned and said, "Then what is the name of a head catcher?"
Lu Wenjia said: "Hao Ping!"
Wu Zetian thought for a while and said slowly: "I remember that a major case occurred in Luoyang recently. A head catcher named Wang Jin abducted and trafficked many girls, which caused great public outrage."
Lu Wenjia said loudly: "Your Majesty, Wang Jin was framed by Zheng Qiong just to clear up Hao Ping's grievances!"
Wu Zetian narrowed her eyes and said, "So, Wang Jin was also unjustly accused?"
Lu Wenjia whispered: "Yes, he was also framed by Zheng Qiong..."
Wu Zetian interrupted coldly: "I have seen the case, and one of the rescued girls pointed out to their faces that it was Wang Jin who imprisoned them. So what do you mean?"
Lu Wenjia hesitated for a moment and said: "Your Majesty, Zheng Qiong has actually known for a long time that Wang Jin was pursuing the case. He originally wanted to get rid of Wang Jin like he did Hao Ping, but he was worried that someone would investigate the missing girls in the future, so he
I came up with a plan."
This strategy was proposed by him...
"What's the plan?" Wu Xuecheng couldn't help but ask.
Lu Wenjia lowered his head and said slowly: "Zheng Qiong only likes women under the age of fifteen. If they are over fifteen, he will kill them and then replace them with new ones."
"There happened to be another woman who was over her age at that time. Zheng Qiong ordered someone to kill her, and then spent money to buy a maid named Xiao Qian and let her live in a small courtyard."
"Later, when Wang Jin found the small courtyard, Zheng Qiong deliberately pretended not to know and left gaps in the defense so that he could rescue all the women."
Wu Zongbao took a deep breath: "I understand, after Wang Jin rescues those girls, you will send people to break into Wang Jin's home, find those girls, and let Xiao Qian frame the crime on him!"
Lu Wenjia said: "Yes, but the day before we took action, Wang Jin seemed to be alert and sent a woman away."
Wu Xuecheng wondered: "Wang Captou saved those women, why didn't he send them home? Instead of keeping them in his own home?"
Wu Zongbao glanced at Lu Wenjia and said, "Didn't An Zong say that those women were tortured to the point of numbness and couldn't even speak, how do they know where they live?"
Wu Xuecheng nodded and slowly figured it out.
These women couldn't speak and naturally couldn't serve as witnesses. Wang Jin must have wanted to take care of them and wait for them to slowly return to normal.
When the time comes, you can send them home or ask them to testify against Zheng Qiong.
Wu Zetian said nothing, her eyes flickering, as if she was thinking about Lu Wenjia's words.
After a long moment of silence, she finally spoke.
"Although what you said is reasonable, I cannot convict a prime minister based on just a few words of yours. Do you understand?"
Lu Wenjia's expression was solemn: "No ordinary people dare to let His Majesty believe it based on these empty words."
After a pause, he continued:
"When the Tongyang County magistrate framed Hao Ping, no one suspected it, and Bianzhou Sima secretly investigated the matter. After learning about it, Zheng Qiong wrote a letter to the Bianzhou governor, asking him to prevent Bianzhou Sima from continuing the investigation."
"At that time, the grassroots people personally sent the letter to the governor of Bianzhou. Zheng Qiong asked the governor of Bianzhou to destroy the letter after reading it, but the grassroots saw that the governor of Bianzhou secretly replaced the letter with a piece of white paper and burned the white paper.
, the true faith was left behind by him.”
Wu Xuexuan asked curiously: "Why would he do this?"
Wu Zongbao snorted and said: "The governor of Bianzhou is not a good person either. He must be thinking of using this letter to threaten Zheng Qiong in the future."
His eyes turned to Lu Wenjia: "You knew that the letter was left by the governor of Bianzhou, didn't you tell Zheng Qiong?"
Lu Wenjia was silent for a while, then whispered: "The letter has been left by the governor of Bianzhou. It is useless to tell Zheng Qiong. Instead, he will blame me for my inability to do things well."
Wu Xuecheng still didn't understand: "Since you saw that the governor of Bianzhou burned false letters, why didn't you stop him at that time?"
Lu Wenjia gave a bitter smile and said: "Miss Wu, Bianzhou is their territory after all. If I say it, not only will I not be able to stop it, but I may also offend the other party."
Although a person like him sounds majestic and majestic like the steward of the Prime Minister's Office, he only comes into contact with some big shots. If he wants to live a long life, he must not offend others easily.
Only he himself understands the difficulties involved.
Naturally, Wu Xuese didn't understand the dangers of officialdom, but she didn't want to appear too stupid, so she nodded and pretended to understand.
Wu Zetian said calmly: "You mean you can get that letter from the governor of Bianzhou as evidence?"
"Yes." Lu Wenjia nodded: "In addition, the common people have two pieces of evidence."
After speaking, he glanced at Wu Zongbao and was secretly surprised to see that he was silent and had no intention of stopping him from speaking.
"Say!" Wu Zetian said sternly.
Although Lu Wenjia noticed Wu Zongbao's strange reaction, at this point, he didn't have the time to think too much and said:
"After Zheng Qiong killed those women who were over their age, the corpses were thrown into an ancient well in an abandoned garden on Jiuquan Street in the south of the city. The owner of that abandoned garden was named Huang Yang. He used to be the chief clerk in the Prime Minister's Mansion, and now he specializes in
Manage Jiangnan's industry for Zheng Qiong."
Wu Zetian's face became extremely gloomy. After hearing this, she was almost certain that Zheng Qiong had something wrong, and said coldly: "What is the other piece of evidence?"
"There were four maids taking care of the girls in the courtyard. After Wang Jin rescued the girls, Zheng Qiong asked me to send people to kill the four of them. One of the maids was from my hometown. I thought she was pitiful, so I quietly ordered her to be released.
She and Zheng Qiong don’t know about this either.”
When he said this, he kept his head lowered, because this sentence was not entirely true.
The real situation is that he fell in love with the beauty of the maid very early, took the opportunity to rescue the maid, sent her back to his hometown, and raised her as a concubine.
Wu Zetian said expressionlessly: "Where is that maid?"
Lu Wenjia whispered: "Xiliu Village, Quanyang County, Huzhou." This is the village where he was born.
Wu Zetian said: "I will have people verify these three clues. Someone come and take Lu Wenjia to the sky prison!"
Lu Wenjia opened his mouth, but finally swallowed what he wanted to say.
This is a result that should have been expected. Even if Zheng Qiong is convicted, he will not be able to escape his involvement.
Glancing at Wu Xuecheng, she seemed to have no intention of interceding for him, which made Lu Wenjia feel a little sad.
Wu Zongbao cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I think Zheng Qiong should also be imprisoned in the sky prison to prevent him from destroying evidence."
Lu Wenjia was stunned and opened his eyes wide.
Wu Zetian said: "It's accurate!"
After leaving Taichu Palace, Wu Zongbao raised his head and looked at the space. It seemed that the autumn rain a while ago had ended in one fell swoop. It had been sunny these past few days.
The blue sky is like a beautiful blue satin, bright but not dazzling. It is a good day for autumn.
Wu Xuecheng put his hands behind his back, raised his delicate chin high, and said proudly: "Fourth brother, is it thanks to me this time?"
Wu Zongbao rubbed her little head and said with a smile: "Okay, Fourth Brother, treat you to something delicious!"
Wu Xuecheng hurriedly took two steps back, adjusted her hair, and said angrily: "You are not allowed to touch my head like dad in the future, and mess up other people's hair!"
Wu Zongbao was in a good mood and did not refute.
After the brother and sister came out of the palace, they met up with Xiao An, Mero, Xiao Ping and others, and went to the largest restaurant in Luoyang to have a hearty meal.
During the dinner, Wu Xuecheng told the story about Lu Wenjia's identification of Zheng Qiong. After hearing this, Xiao Ping burst into tears and kowtowed to the Wu brothers and sisters.
Wu Xuecheng hurriedly picked up the vial and said: "Silly girl, you are so pitiful, we should help you. After two days, I will take you to Bianzhou and send you home, okay?"
Xiao Ping buried her head in Wu Xuecheng's chest, sobbing.
Wu Xuecheng was the youngest in the family since she was born. She only acted like a baby to others. This was the first time someone acted like a baby to her. Tenderness arose in her heart and she hugged the bottle tightly.
Wu Zongbao looked at the boss impatiently and said: "Stop crying, you are making a lot of noise."
Wu Xuecheng glared at Wu Zongbao. Her motherly nature was aroused by Xiao Ping's cry, and she hummed: "Xiao Ping, stop crying, I will take you home right now! Let's ignore this wooden man!"
Wu Zongbao was a very impatient person, and it would be difficult to fall asleep at night if he didn't finish his tasks on the first day.
Therefore, he did not object to the two of them setting off immediately, and just said: "You go to the East Palace first, ask Lao Wu to borrow Xiaoyu, and the three of you will go together."
Wu Xuecheng glared and said, "Do you think I can't send the vial home safely by myself?"
"I want you to take Xiaoyu out for a walk, so that she won't be bored in Luoyang all the time."
When Wu Zongbao was in a good mood, he would occasionally take care of his sister's face.
Wu Xuecheng then nodded and said: "Okay, I'll take Xiaoyu out to relax." After saying that, he took the vial and walked towards the stairs.
Xiao Ping walked a few steps and suddenly turned back to look at Wu Zongbao, with some reluctance in his eyes.
Wu Zongbao waved his hands a little irritably and said: "Okay, don't act like you are about to leave. I will go to Bianzhou to see you when I have time."
Xiao Ping's eyes became brighter and he finally smiled.
It was not until more than ten days later that Wu Zongbao began to realize that something was wrong.
Lu Wenjia actually committed suicide in prison!
After Wu Zongbao learned about it, he immediately went to see Wu Zetian, but was blocked.
"Your Majesty is dealing with important matters and has no time to see you." Zhang Yizhi said calmly.
Wu Zongbao saw a cold look in the other person's eyes.
He immediately returned to Dali Temple and wanted to ask Zhuge Nan about the situation.
Unexpectedly, he happened to meet several female officials from the palace. Wu Zongbao frowned and said, "What are you here for?"
The leading female officer said coldly: "I will come to Dali Temple to announce the decree upon your Majesty's order." After saying that, she stopped talking to Wu Zongbao and walked along the corridor.
Wu Zongbao's face turned pale and he hurried to the Siqing Yamen. He saw Zhuge Nan packing his things in the house, and even his official uniforms were changed into regular clothes.
"Uncle Zhuge, what are you..."
Zhuge Nan raised his head and smiled and said: "It's okay. Your Majesty may think I'm too old and ask me to retire and return home."
Wu Zongbao was shocked and angry. Zhugenan was only in his forties, and he was in the prime of life. How could he be allowed to grow old for this reason?
He immediately guessed where the reason came from and said through gritted teeth: "Has there been any change in Zheng Qiong's case?"
Zhuge Nan's face condensed and he said slowly: "Zong Bao, Zheng Qiong has been acquitted. You don't want to investigate him anymore. Let this matter end here."
Wu Zongbao was stunned for a moment and said angrily: "How could this happen? Is Lu Wenjia's evidence wrong?"
Zhuge Nan smiled bitterly and said: "Lu Wenjia recanted his confession before he died, saying that our Dali Temple used torture to force him to identify Zheng Qiong. Those charges are all false!"
Wu Zongbao said anxiously: "Even if he recants his confession, the evidence cannot be false."
Zhuge Nan shook his head and said: "No bones were found in the abandoned garden in the south of the city. The people sent to Bianzhou also reported back that the maidservant was not found in Xiliu Village, and the letter was not found in the Bianzhou Governor's Office.
"
Wu Zongbao's whole body felt cold.
He finally realized that he was still too careless, thinking that he would be able to rest easy after arresting Zheng Qiong, but did not follow up to confirm the evidence.
But Zheng Qiong has been imprisoned in Tianlao. Who destroyed the evidence and made Lu Wenjia change his story?
There were only a few people who heard Lu Wenjia tell the evidence, and that person must have been someone in the hall at that time.
Suddenly, Wu Zongbao thought of Zhang Yizhi's eyes.
It's him!
But then I thought about it, even if I knew, there was nothing I could do.
The emperor refused to see him, and he didn't have any evidence. In addition, Zhuge Nan, who strongly supported him, was dismissed from office.
Wu Zongbao felt a sense of powerlessness in his heart.
In the past, people always told him that this was not Chang'an, but Luoyang, but he never took it seriously.
It wasn't until this moment that he realized that this sentence was true. When he was in Chang'an, no matter what opponent he faced, he had no fear in his heart because he knew that his father was behind him.
Suddenly, he wanted to run away, return to Chang'an, and get rid of this heavy burden.
But this thought quickly dissipated.
If you do this, you will not only feel sorry for Zhugenan, Xiaoping, and Zhang Lei, but also no one will look down on Shiro Wu in the future, including himself.
He took a deep breath and said slowly: "Uncle Zhuge, I will reinstate your official position!" After saying that, he strode out of the room.
Xiao An and Melo followed him silently until they left Dali Temple. Melo Fang said: "Master, shall we go find Zheng Qiong?"
Wu Zongbao shook his head and said, "Let's go to Tianlao."
If Wu Zongbao was the proud and arrogant person in the past, he would definitely go to Zheng Qiong immediately and vent his anger.
But he has gradually understood that this case is not a personal battle between him and Zheng Qiong, nor is it about becoming famous and satisfying his own vanity.
This is a struggle between good and evil, related to the fate of countless people and the majesty of the law.
Wang Jin, Hao Ping.
They were all defenders of the law and fought against evil with their lives until the last moment. Although they lost, their beliefs had left a deep mark on Wu Zongbao's heart.
Wu Zongbao told himself that he would complete their unfinished business and inherit their beliefs.
Before they arrived at Tianlao, a tall and thin man suddenly approached Wu Zongbao and said, "Wu Shaoqing, I am the steward of the Di Mansion. By order of my master, I would like you to come over to the house."
Wu Zongbao snorted coldly: "Your master wants to persuade me not to investigate Zheng Qiong again, right?"
The housekeeper of the Di Mansion smiled and said, "Wu Shaoqing will know when he comes to the house."
Wu Zongbao said coldly: "I still have some urgent matters to deal with. Please help me apologize to Di Pushe." After that, he left.
When we arrived at Tianlao, it was already Shen Shi, with dark clouds hanging low in the sky, as if a heavy rain was about to begin.
Upon learning of Wu Zongbao's arrival, the Tianlao Supervisor personally welcomed him out.
Wu Zongbao did not exchange pleasantries and said bluntly: "Is Lu Wenjia's body still in the Tianlao morgue?"
The prison officer said: "He has been taken away by people from the Criminal Department."
Wu Zongbao said no more and immediately went to the Ministry of Punishment. However, officials from the Ministry of Punishment refused to let him enter the morgue.
"Wu Shaoqing, Minister Min has an order that no one is allowed to enter the morgue. Please don't embarrass us."
Wu Zongbao said calmly: "You, Minister Min, have agreed to let me in."
The official smiled apologetically and said: "Wu Shaoqing, don't make fun of me. If Min Shangshu really agrees, he will pass the order to me."
At this moment, an old voice said: "I have agreed, let him in!"
The official was startled. The voice was that of Minister Min.
Wu Zongbao took advantage of his daze, forced his way into the morgue, and asked the widow inside: "Where is Lu Wenjia's body?"
Seeing that he was wearing official uniform, Wu Zuo walked up to a corpse and said with a smile: "Sir, this is Lu Wenjia's corpse."
When Wu Zongbao opened the body and took a look, his expression suddenly changed and he couldn't help but take a step back. Melo even let out a cry of surprise.
It was shocking to see that Lu Wenjia's body was covered with wounds, his eyes were gouged, his nose and ears were cut, and his face was full of marks left by the soldering iron. No part of his skin was intact.
Before Wu Zongbao arrived, he guessed that Lu Wenjia had been tortured, but seeing his miserable appearance, he could no longer control his anger.
He grabbed Lu Wenjia's body, carried him on his back, and strode towards the door.
As soon as I arrived at the door, I saw Min Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment rushing over with his people.
When he saw Wu Zongbao carrying Lu Wenjia's body, he was surprised and said: "Wu Shaoqing, what are you doing? Put down the body quickly?"
Wu Zongbao's eyes were red and he ignored him at all. He strode forward. Minister Min gritted his teeth and said, "Wu Shaoqing, you don't have an official document. Please forgive me for not letting you take this body away."
With a wave of his hand, the officials from the Ministry of Justice behind him immediately blocked Wu Zongbao's path.
At this moment, a majestic voice sounded: "Min Shangshu, let Wu Shaoqing pass."
I saw a few people coming from behind Minister Min. The leader was over fifty years old and had a stern face. It was none other than Minister Min She Di Renjie.
Di Renjie was Min Shangshu's immediate superior, and he was meticulous in character. The subordinate officials were all afraid of him. Min Shangshu did not dare to persist and ordered his subordinates to disperse.
Wu Zongbao walked up to Di Renjie and was about to ask a question. Di Renjie smiled slightly and said, "No need to say more, just do what you want to do."
Wu Zongbao nodded vigorously, strode away from the Ministry of Justice, and headed towards Taichu Palace. He wanted Wu Zetian to see Lu Wenjia's appearance with his own eyes!