Empress Dowager Sun left so cleanly and neatly, it must be said that it was beyond everyone's expectations.
She was so aggressive when she came here, and she was so forceful both inside and outside of her words, but who would have thought that in the end, she actually had no interference in the handling of Huichang Bo and others.
Is it possible that the Holy Empress Dowager really just came here to take a look?
of course not!
When Empress Dowager Sun left the palace, the officials were still in a daze, but Ren Li took a deep breath and spoke.
"Your Majesty, since Huichang Bo and others have been dealt with, it means that Ningyang Hou and others did not seek personal gain and colluded with the clan. What they did was out of public motives. Although they were not aware of it for a while and did not carefully check the truth, there was no estrangement.
The heart of heaven.”
"Therefore, I believe that Xue Xuan's accusation is a deliberate frame-up and must be severely punished."
In every case, there must be a motive. King Guangtong and others were seeking revenge for their mother, while Bo Huichang was greedy for wealth.
At the end of the story, the key to this matter became whether Ningyang Hou and others knew the truth about the Zhennan King case.
If they knew in advance that Wang Guangtong and others were making false accusations, he still made a judgment in favor of Wang Guangtong even though he knew that the facts of the case were untrue.
So using this case to alienate the Tian family is a real crime.
This is a motive that is deduced from the result. Knowing that the facts of the case are untrue and still miscarrying the verdict is selfishness.
Marquis Ningyang had neither accepted bribes nor had any friendship with King Guangtong, so his motive for such a sentence could only be to alienate the Tian family.
But if it is said that Marquis Ningyang does not know the truth of the matter, then this logic has lost its starting point.
Although it can still be explained that he means to alienate the Tian family, this is not the only answer.
Ren Li can definitely claim that he was just deceived and decided the case impartially.
As a result, Xue Xuan's confession alone is no longer convincing enough.
What started out as a fight turned into a quarrel, with no one able to refute the other.
So in the end, the crime that can be convicted on Chen Mao is at most dereliction of duty, and the most he can be held accountable for is improper procedures during the interrogation process and the fact that he met the prisoner in private.
However, these charges are far from enough for a prince with many military exploits to make him unable to stand up again.
The current situation is that Huichang Bo has taken the most critical charge of colluding with the clan.
In other words, to deal with Uncle Huichang, Marquis Ningyang must be sentenced lightly.
So, Queen Mother Sun is abandoning her car to protect her commander?
Or are they really having internal strife?
Zhu Qiyu's eyes fell on Ren Li without any trace, and for a moment, he couldn't tell the difference.
After thinking for a moment, Zhu Qiyu asked.
"Do you think Ren Hou's words are reasonable?"
All the ministers present were hesitant.
Queen Mother Sun's trip, although she did not intervene on the surface, actually put pressure on them.
No one is a fool.
If the Shangsheng Empress Dowager really didn't care about the outcome of this case, she would just stay in Cining Palace peacefully.
She made this trip specifically for one purpose, and that was to tell them not to go too far!
After contacting the envoy who had just left Beijing, the ministers seemed to have some vague understanding.
I am afraid that what the Queen Mother really wants to protect is not Uncle Huichang, but Marquis Ningyang.
This time, she even gave up on Uncle Huichang, so no one can accuse her of having selfish motives in this case.
In this way, if the court still insists on a heavy sentence for Marquis Ningyang, it will be difficult for her to intercede.
After looking at each other, Jin Lian cautiously stepped forward and spoke.
"Your Majesty, it is uncertain whether Marquis Ningyang and others knew the truth in advance, but it is true that he held a private hearing during the interrogation."
"As for what Marquis Ren said, Xue Xuan deliberately made false accusations. I believe that we cannot make any hasty conclusions. Not to mention that Xue Xuan had no motive to frame Ningyang Marquis. I just want to say that during the imperial trial, Xue Xuan tried his best to advise His Majesty.
This fully shows that in order to maintain the harmony of the heavenly family, he has no regard for personal life and death, honor and disgrace."
"Such a critic would never do such an outrageous thing!"
Zhu Qiyu's eyes flashed and he glanced at the ministers below.
Sure enough, Queen Mother Sun's trip was not in vain.
On the civil servants' side, they have changed from advocating a heavy sentence for Marquis Ningyang to trying to protect Xue Xuan.
After silently going through the situation just now, Zhu Qiyu had a plan in mind and asked.
"In that case, do you think it is more appropriate to decide this case?"
this……
The case was brought by the Criminal Department to preside over the case, so Jin Lian couldn't escape. After a moment of silence, seeing that no one in the hall spoke, he had to continue walking forward.
"Your Majesty, I think that since the facts of the case are unclear, it might as well continue the trial until the case is clarified."
Even though he said that, everyone present knew it.
When the matter has developed to this point, it is useless to review it again.
Marquis Ningyang and others will definitely be killed. They were deceived and did not know the truth, so they failed in their duties and made a wrong judgment.
Even if they interrogated Wang Guangtong and others privately, they would not deny it, because these were just trivial details and insignificant.
But the most critical crime of alienating the Tian family has been unable to be confirmed.
After a quick scan, seeing that all the ministers had such an attitude, Zhu Qiyu suddenly had a smile on his face and said.
"In this case, there is no need to go to trial. Since you all feel that Marquis Ningyang and others just made a wrong verdict, then let's close the case accordingly!"
Jin Lian blinked, as if he couldn't believe what he heard.
Is the emperor really going to give in just like that?
Subconsciously, Jin Lian asked.
"As for how Ningyang Marquis and others will be judged, please let your Majesty tell you."
Zhu Qiyu glanced at Ren Li and said.
"The Marquis of Ningyang, Chen Mao, misjudged him improperly, neglected his duties and made arbitrary judgments. He held a private trial and was demoted to Ningyang Bo. He was fined for one year. He was relieved of all official positions and returned home to meditate."
"The Marquis of Cheng'an, Guo Sheng, as an honorary relative, interfered in the affairs of the clan without authorization. He was removed from his official position and fined one year's salary. The prince-in-law, Captain Jiao Jing, was also guilty of the same crime, and was reduced to half his salary, and was banned for three months as a warning to others."
"As for Xue Xuan..."
Under the nervous gazes of all the civil servants, Zhu Qiyu sighed and said calmly.
"The verdict of the case is unfair and the trial of the case is unclear. In mind of your loyalty to the country, you should resign from your official position and return to your hometown!"
This result should be considered satisfactory to both parties.
The emperor did not mention anything about alienating the Tian family, nor did he mention Xue Xuan's accusations against Ningyang Hou and others. It was regarded as a tacit understanding and he was pardoned.
Therefore, the people below were wise enough not to say anything more and shouted: "Your Majesty is wise!"
This case is considered to be over.
Of course, for many elders, there is still a trace of doubt in their hearts.
You know, they can roughly understand the emperor's thoughts, and they should have no intention of asking for mercy.
But now, is it possible that we are really forced to make concessions?
But in any case, the matter was finally settled, so the ministers resigned and left.
After everyone had left, Zhu Qiyu's expression suddenly turned playful. He reached out and called Cheng Jing over and asked.
"Has Fan Guang returned to Beijing?"
Cheng Jing replied respectfully.
"Your Majesty, Jing'an Bo resigned from the post of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Datong a month ago. He just returned to Beijing three days ago and is now waiting for the imperial edict in the palace."
Zhu Qiyu nodded and said.
"Invite Fan Guang, the uncle of Jing'an, and Tao Jin, the uncle of Datong, to the palace to have an audience. In addition, Shu Liang is also called back."
"You go to the cabinet again and order the cabinet to draft an imperial edict. You will remove Prince Consort Shi Jing from the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Army Governor's Office. You will order Fan Guang, the Bo of Jing'an, to take charge of the affairs of the Rear Army Commander's Office on your behalf. You will remove him from the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Army Commander's Office and appoint Cheng'an Marquis Guo Sheng to be the Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Army Commander's Office."
He appointed Marquis Ningyuan Renli to take charge of the affairs of the Central Military Governor's Mansion."
"Removing Changping Marquis Yang Hong from the post of Chief Military Officer of the Xuan Mansion, recalling him to the capital, and ordering him to be in charge of the affairs of the Right Army Governor's Mansion and admiral of the capital camp. He dismissed Datong Bo Tao Jin from his post as the Chief Military Officer of the Xuan Mansion, and ordered him to take over as the Chief Military Officer of the Xuan Mansion.