inspire-indiana Chapter 375 1 Big Drama 2
Chapter 375 1 Big Drama 2
Shi Siming panicked when he heard this. Although he had arranged guards for his mansion in the suburbs, they would be unable to stop it if the government came to investigate. He had been busy getting Xin Yunrou to sign the divorce agreement recently and had neglected that matter.
The emperor wanted to see what was going on, so he said, "Alright!"
Soon, Dugu Moyan and Feng Shengyi dragged Zhang Jinxin and the guard in. Dugu Moyan and Feng Shengyi first paid their respects to the emperor.
Then Dugu Mo said, "Your Majesty, this woman is the commoner Zhang, and the other one is the chief guard who is guarding Zhang."
Because they had to walk a distance to get to the palace, Feng Shengyi woke the two of them up when they got off the carriage. Before waking them up, he tied them up to prevent them from escaping or committing suicide.
Others didn't know, but the prince recognized Zhang at first sight. After all, she was the woman he had favored for many years.
The Crown Prince also reported to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, this person is indeed Zhang, a commoner who used to live in the imperial palace."
The emperor pretended to be surprised and asked, "I remember that Zhang was burned to death in the fire that year. How did she end up here?"
Dugu Moyan replied, "Your Majesty, someone provided a tip that Jingyao and Jingyue were seen near a mansion in the suburbs. I requested assistance from the government to search the mansion. Since His Royal Highness Prince Guangping was going to court, he sent his personal guard Feng Shengyi to accompany him. Unexpectedly, he didn't find my sister, but he did find Zhang."
His Majesty's face darkened. He asked, "What's going on, Shi Siming? Why is this criminal woman in your residence?"
Shi Siming was panicking inside, but he said on the surface, "I didn't know she was a commoner named Zhang! I just met her when I was out and saw her disheveled and unkempt, so I placed her in the mansion in the suburbs."
Li Chu snorted coldly and asked, "Master Shi is really an expert at telling lies! How come I heard that you and Zhang have known each other for a long time?"
Shi Siming knelt down quickly and said, "Your Highness, you are joking. How could we have known each other for a long time?"
Seeing that he refused to speak, Li Chu turned and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, please call the witness."
Although the emperor looked worried, since this matter had already begun, it had to be brought to an end, so he said, "Send it."
Once again, witnesses were called in. This time, they were Yu Da and Qian San, who had been rescued by Feng Shengyi and the secret guards yesterday. Yu Da walked in with his head lowered, and Qian San couldn't help but look up occasionally out of curiosity.
He walked to where Feng Shengyi was standing, knelt down and saluted, saying: "This humble servant pays respects to the Emperor. Long live the Emperor."
Upon hearing this, the emperor nodded slightly and asked, "Who are you?"
Because Qian San was not good at speaking, Yu Da spoke up, "Your Majesty, my name is Yu Da, and I have been working as a guard at Lord Shi's residence."
The emperor asked again: "So what do you all know? Tell us the truth."
Zhang Jin thought that Yu Da's family was still in her hands, so he wouldn't dare to say anything. So he knelt silently beside her.
Yu Da told the truth: "Your Majesty, about a few months ago, Madam Zhang was brought back to the mansion in the suburbs by Lord Shi. At first, I thought that Madam Zhang was just a woman that Lord Shi took pity on. But when Madam Zhang blurted out, "A Ming," I thought that the two must have known each other for a long time. But I didn't think much about it and thought she was just a concubine."
Upon hearing this, Shi Siming hurriedly stopped him, "You are slandering me. I didn't know her identity before!"
The emperor angrily shouted, "Shi Siming, shut up! If you haven't done anything wrong, just listen to what he has to say. I will make my own judgment!"
Hearing the emperor's words, Yu Da felt even more confident. He continued, "A few days ago, two women were brought in with their hands and feet bound. Madam Zhang summoned Qian San and me and told us to watch over them, providing them with good food and drink, but not to untie them. It wasn't until the women woke up and spoke that I learned from their conversation that one was the Princess of Guangping and the other a princess. During this time, because the Princess of Guangping had met with Lord Shi and filed a complaint, Madam Zhang took advantage of Lord Shi's absence and ordered her maids to torture the Princess and the princess, using subtle methods. But just last night, someone rescued the Princess and the princess, though I have no idea who it was. They simply knocked me and Qian San unconscious and took them away, but Madam Zhang sent someone to kill us, hoping to shift the blame onto me, accusing me of poor guarding..."
Zhang Jinxin didn't expect him to reveal everything, so she screamed hysterically: "You lied, you slandered me! I didn't do anything!"
The Crown Prince was already furious when he saw Zhang Jinxin. Perhaps she had been involved before leaving the palace, cuckolding him! Now she was humiliating his daughter-in-law and roaring at the court.
The prince strode towards Zhang Jinxin and slapped her twice without saying a word. Zhang Jinxin then turned back to look at the prince and cried, "Your Highness, you have such a cruel heart!"
But no one paid any attention to her, so the emperor pointed at Yu Dadao and said, "Go on."
Yu Dabian said, "Your Majesty, everything I said is true. Last night, I was lucky to be rescued by His Royal Highness Prince Guangping, so I escaped a disaster. Otherwise, I'm afraid I wouldn't be here today!"
When Dugu Xin heard the last sentence, her anger rose. Zhang Shi actually dared to persecute her daughter like this! Damn it.
The emperor was also very angry. Before Dugu Xin could say anything, he said, "How dare you, Zhang, a mere criminal, resort to lynching and harming the princess and the county lord! How despicable!"
Zhang Jinxin saw that no one was on her side, and even Shi Siming wanted to distance himself from her. She thought to herself: Shi Siming! I've helped you so much, and in the end, you just abandon me like that? How is that possible? If I'm not doing well, then you shouldn't expect to do well too.
So Zhang Jinxin gave up and said, "Your Majesty, the kidnapping of the princess and the princess was done by me at the behest of Lord Shi! He said he needed to borrow money from the Yunnan Palace..."
Shi Siming also saw that Zhang Jinxin was about to confess everything he had done, so he spoke out to stop her: "You are talking nonsense. How could I have instructed you to kidnap the princess and the princess? It is obvious that you have an old grudge against the princess, and you want to kidnap them to vent your anger. What does it have to do with me?"
Everyone caught the loophole in Shi Siming's words. Li Chu asked, "So, you knew Jingyao and Jingyue were in your residence?"
Shi Siming realized that he was too impatient, but everyone present heard what he said, so he had no room for rebuttal and could only accept the matter.
He said, "I do know about this matter. However, it was not my initiative. I only found out about it later."
The emperor asked, "Is that so? I see this guilty woman has something else to say, so I'll let her finish first."
Shi Siming saw no other choice but to watch the crazy woman finish her words.
Zhang Jinxin continued, "He wanted to borrow some people from the Yunnan Palace, but he knew the Yunnan King wouldn't lend them to him without a reason, so he had to threaten him with his daughter. I was just helping him. We've known each other for a long time. I was the one who sent someone to find him. He was the one who came up with the idea that got me fired up, and then he found a way to have me taken away."
Shi Siming roared, "You crazy woman, what nonsense are you talking about? I never asked the King of Yunnan to borrow anyone, and I never tried to save her. Your Majesty, please understand."
The Emperor said, "You two each hold different opinions. Shi Siming, do you have any evidence to prove your claims? And Zhang, do you have any evidence to prove your claims?"
Unexpectedly, Li Chu stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I have evidence to prove that what Zhang said is true."
The emperor asked curiously, "Oh? What evidence do you have?"
Li Chu said: "There are witnesses and physical evidence."
The emperor said, "Then present them all."
The witness was He Lingyi, but because He Lingyi's tendons in her feet and hands were cut, she was carried up by someone.
The prince saw that the person being carried up looked familiar, and then he realized: "Isn't this the maid He Lingyi who had a private meeting with Zhang before?"
Li Chu said, "Father, it's her. We met He Lingyi at the Shi residence. He Lingyi, you tell me."
He Lingyi knelt down with all her strength, and then said, "Your Majesty, it was Lord Shi who ordered me to help Zhang, and Zhang sent me to the Prince of Guangping's Palace."
The emperor then asked, "How do you prove that it was Shi Siming who sent you to help Zhang?"
He Lingyi replied, "When Zhang was imprisoned, the maidservant beside the Crown Princess saw me meeting Zhang. There is another thing that proves that I am from the Shi family." After that, He Lingyi began to undress in front of everyone's gaze.
Everyone else was shocked, and the emperor angrily rebuked her, "How can a woman like you undress in the court? How can you be so rude?"
But He Lingyi had no intention of stopping until her collarbone was exposed. She patted her shoulders a few times, and soon a red word "Shi" appeared.
Everyone then understood that everyone in Shi Siming's mansion had words carved on their bodies, but they did not expect that this would become evidence presented in court.
Zhang Jinxin, however, was determined to shock the world. She bowed and said, "Besides, I am pregnant with Shi Siming's child. I cannot deny this. If Your Majesty doesn't believe me, please ask the imperial physician to feel the child and you will know for sure."
The emperor thought to himself: If Zhang was pregnant before leaving the palace, and Heng'er hadn't visited Zhang for about a year at that time, then wouldn't her pregnancy be... No, no, this is a royal secret, and there are so many court officials here.
The emperor could only say, "Forget it, forget it. There's no need to call the imperial physician. Whether you're pregnant or not is not important to me. But this witness is kneeling on the ground. Shi Siming, do you have anything else to quibble about?"
Shi Siming didn't expect that He Lingyi would betray him. He really couldn't understand it, so he sat down on the ground limply.
Seeing that he did not retort, the emperor called the Dali Temple Minister and asked, "Gu Aiqing."
Lord Gu stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty!"
The Emperor asked, "What is the crime for harboring a consort and kidnapping the princess and the princess?"
Lord Gu said righteously, "Your Majesty, according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, those who kidnap the princess or harbor a convicted concubine will be beheaded, their property confiscated, their male relatives exiled, and their female relatives enslaved by the government."
The emperor nodded slightly and said, "In that case, let's do it this way!"
Just as they were about to drag Shi Siming and Zhang out to jail, Shi Siming suddenly knelt and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have done something wrong and deserve death, but my wife and children are innocent and were unaware of the situation. I beg Your Majesty to show mercy."
The emperor snorted coldly, "If you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?"
Shi Siming pulled a piece of paper from his sleeve. It was none other than the evidence Dugu Jingyao was looking for. He said, "Your Majesty, this is the divorce agreement between me and my first wife. It also clearly states that the children belong to Xin, so they are naturally not my family."
Someone went down and fetched Shi Siming's divorce letter. After the emperor read it, he said, "Since they've already divorced, they're naturally no longer considered members of your Shi family and won't be implicated by you. However, all other punishments will continue as usual."
After that, Shi Siming kowtowed in thanks, and then he and Zhang were dragged away. This drama also came to an end.