Chapter 143 Interesting
Fan Jian said as he wiped his hands with a handkerchief.
"The Kyoto prefectural hall, how can a minister of the Ministry of Revenue like me rush over there?"
Liu Ruyu frowned and took two steps forward.
"Then you don't care?"
Fan Jian folded the handkerchief and placed it on the stone table, then replied.
"It's not that we don't care, the situation is unclear right now, so let's wait a moment."
After saying that, he picked up the tea and took a sip.
Liu Ruyu said with a worried look on her face.
"The situation is worrying. The Crown Prince has already rushed to Kyoto Prefecture. Guo Baokun is the Crown Prince's disciple. He wants to be there and convict Fan Xian!"
Fan Jian put down the teacup.
"I know."
He raised his eyes to look at Liu Ruyu and said softly.
"Don't panic yet. There are more than just the prince going to Kyoto Prefecture."
Liu Ruyu was stunned for a moment when she heard this and sat down opposite Fan Jian.
"Who else can compete with the prince?"
"Hiss~ Could it be..."
Fan Jiandao.
"Fan Xian is related to the inner treasury's financial power, and the Second Prince has been keeping his eye on him."
Liu Ruyu suddenly realized.
……
Kyoto Prefecture.
After the prince finished saying that he also had a case that he wanted Mei Zhili to try together, the hall fell silent.
Mei Zhili felt a little uneasy. Although he knew what the case was about and had discussed it with his son, he didn't know why he had a strange feeling that something bad would happen if he tried the case.
After thinking it over, he felt that he was overthinking. He calmed himself down and was about to ask the prince what the case was when a voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard.
"Your Highness's case must be very interesting. If you don't mind, let me sit in on it."
Everyone's attention was drawn again, and they saw that the Second Prince had appeared at the entrance of the lobby without them noticing, followed by Prince Jing's son Li Hongcheng.
Mei Cheng'an had already stood up when he heard the noise. He looked at the Second Prince with a smile, but thought in his heart that under the current circumstances, the Second Prince's trip was a bit unnecessary.
As he was talking, the Second Prince walked into the hall at a rapid pace, while Li Hongcheng was a step slower and moved aside. He Zongwei knelt down immediately upon seeing the Second Prince, while Fan Xian just looked at him in confusion. Mei Cheng'an was standing further back so he just bowed as a token of his respect, while the Crown Prince sat upright as steady as a rock. Mei Zhili quickly stood up, walked down the platform, and knelt down to salute.
"Greetings, Second Prince."
The Second Prince kept walking. When he passed by Fan Xian, he patted Fan Xian on the shoulder and said casually.
"Everyone, please stand up. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is here. How can you kneel before me?"
Mei Cheng'an put his hand down directly. Mei Zhili and He Zongwei stood up, still with their hands clasped, their eyes following the Second Prince.
The second prince walked past the crowd and went straight to the platform, where he came before the crown prince and kowtowed in a proper manner.
"Meet His Highness the Crown Prince."
After the ceremony was over, the Crown Prince stood up and scolded the Second Prince while helping him up.
"Second brother, I've told you so many times, brothers don't have to be like this!"
The second prince lowered his head and curled the corners of his mouth. Then he stood up with the help of the crown prince and looked at the crown prince and spoke seriously.
"You are the crown prince, etiquette cannot be abolished!"
The prince smiled.
"What are you doing here, brother?"
The second prince looked back at the hall, then said while looking back at the crown prince.
"Your Highness, I will do whatever you are here to do. I will follow the heir apparent and I will not go wrong."
The smile on the second prince's face froze for a moment, then deepened a little, and at the same time he cursed in his heart, "How shameless!"
"Oh, I'm here to watch Lord Mei try a case."
The second prince glanced at Mei Zhili and smiled.
"What a coincidence, so am I."
The prince restrained his smile, sat back down, looked up and said to the second prince.
"Second brother, you are late. The case of Guo Baokun being attacked has been tried."
The second prince looked at Mei Zhili with surprise.
"Is the trial over?"
Mei Zhili bowed and said.
"Yes, Second Prince, there is insufficient evidence. Fan Xian is not guilty and is found not guilty."
The second prince suddenly realized.
"Ah, that's it."
After saying this, he looked at the crown prince and the second prince smiled.
"It's okay, it's okay. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince still has a case to be tried. Your Royal Highness, do you mind if I sit in on the trial?"
The prince was stunned for a moment, not knowing what he was thinking, and suddenly he smiled mysteriously.
"Since Second Brother wants to listen, then just stay."
The Second Prince kept smiling, but he felt that the Crown Prince's reaction was not right. However, the words had been spoken and it was too late to regret.
The second prince nodded and walked to the other side of the desk, leaving a word when he passed by Mei Zhili.
"Master Mei, please continue with the trial. I will also listen..."
The second prince suddenly saw Mei Cheng'an, patted Mei Zhili's arm, walked towards Mei Cheng'an, and said in surprise.
"Why are you here?"
Mei Cheng'an was talking to his elder brother-in-law who had walked up to him. Hearing this, he looked at the second prince.
"Ah, I was just passing by and wanted to watch the fun."
The second prince burst out laughing.
"That's good."
Having said that, he walked to the other side of the table and stood still.
Mei Zhili saw this and hurriedly looked around. He saw the stool next to his son and quickly walked over to pick it up and put it in front of the Second Prince. "Second Prince, please sit down."
The second prince looked at Mei Chengan with a smile and sat down leisurely.
Mei Chengan: “…”
Well, stand up, there is really no stool now.
Mei Zhili walked to the main seat, looked at the Second Prince and then at the Crown Prince, and sat down uncomfortably.
The second prince said.
"Your Highness, what case do you have? Tell us about it."
Mei Zhili also looked at the prince.
The prince smiled and shouted outside the courtyard.
"Bring the people here."
Everyone looked towards the door.
Two of the prince's personal guards walked into the hall, holding Teng Zijing, whose hands were tied behind his back. Fan Xian's eyes moved and he looked at Teng Zijing.
After the two guards escorted Teng Zijing to the central hall, they each kicked Teng Zijing in the crook of his legs and pressed hard on his shoulders. After Teng Zijing knelt on the ground with a thud, the two men bowed to the prince and retreated.
The second prince had never seen Teng Zijing before, so he looked at him and asked in confusion.
"who is this?"
The prince glanced at the second prince, then stood up and smiled.
"Don't be impatient, second brother. Let me introduce it to you slowly."
The prince began to narrate as he walked around the table and down the platform.
"Two days ago, I accidentally learned a piece of news." The prince looked at Fan Xian, "Fan Xian, went to the Supervisory Office the day after arriving in Beijing!"
Fan Xian stood with his hands behind his back and looked coldly at the prince.
The prince smiled and continued his story.
"What is Fan Xian going to do? He wants to retrieve a document. What document? A document that records the whereabouts of Teng Zijing's family!"
The prince walked up to Teng Zijing and looked at him.
"As far as I know, Teng Zijing is from the Supervisory Council. After the assassination attempt in Danzhou, Fan Xian claimed that he killed him personally. So the question is, Teng Zijing is already dead, why is Fan Xian still looking for the whereabouts of his family?"
The second prince leaned forward with his hands on his knees, waiting for what would happen next with great interest.
The prince glanced at everyone who was studying and listening, and continued to preach.
"It will be more interesting if we continue to investigate. Teng Zijing's family was sent out of the city and moved to a new residence. I have to send people to look for them." The prince pointed at Teng Zijing and said, "In the end, we caught him!"
When everyone's eyes were focused on Teng Zijing, the crown prince turned around and looked at the second prince and said.
"Second brother, guess who he is?"
The second prince tilted his head and said nothing.
The prince did not keep the secret and quietly raised his voice.
"He is Teng Zijing who should have died long ago!"
The prince curled his lips and his voice returned to normal.
"Interesting."
The second prince stood up, said something interesting, and stepped down from the platform. He came to Teng Zijing, looked at him for a few seconds, and then looked at Fan Xian.
"You went to retrieve the documents because you thought you had killed him, but unexpectedly discovered that he was not completely dead and had escaped, so you wanted to find him by checking the whereabouts of his family!"
Fan Xian looked at the Second Prince with a little surprise. It must be said that the excuse the Second Prince found for him was quite convincing.
The prince glanced at the second prince and smiled.
"Don't be so anxious to make amends for him, second brother. I haven't finished what I'm saying yet. There's something more interesting to say."
The second prince looked at the crown prince.
"Oh?"
The prince smiled and continued.
"What's even more interesting is that this person has been accompanying Fan Xian since he entered the capital."
The second prince narrowed his eyes and glanced at Fan Xian, who smiled sheepishly.
The prince pointed at Teng Zijing and looked at Li Hongcheng, and asked with a smile.
"Hongcheng, he also went to the poetry gathering yesterday, right?"
Li Hongcheng thought to himself that it was bad and he should not have come. He glanced at Teng Zijing and then at the Second Prince, nodded, and said softly.
"I did see it."
The prince asked again.
"Fan Xian's personal bodyguard?"
"Yes."
The Second Prince spread his hands towards Fan Xian, turned around, walked back a few steps, and sat down on the steps.
After receiving a satisfactory answer, the Crown Prince looked at the Second Prince again.
"Brother, don't you think this is even more interesting? The Overwatch Council is the emperor's pawn. Our young Master Fan," the prince glanced at Fan Xian, "actually falsely reported his death and recruited people from the Overwatch Council under his command. I won't talk about the criminal law or the national law. Fan Xian, you are actually deceiving the emperor!"
After the prince finished speaking, the place became unusually quiet, even a little solemn. He Zongwei glanced at Fan Xian, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up, but he deliberately pursed his lips to barely hide his smile.
Fan Xian continued to look at the prince coldly without saying a word.
Mei Cheng'an patted Li Hongcheng's shoulder and whispered.
"Do you regret coming to watch the fun?"
Li Hongcheng looked at him, his mouth twitched, and he nodded.
The Crown Prince slowly stepped onto the platform and sat back in his seat, looking at Mei Zhili. The Second Prince followed suit and returned to his seat to prevent the Crown Prince from putting unilateral pressure on Mei Zhili.
When Mei Zhili was at a loss as to what to do, someone suddenly spoke. It was Teng Zijing, who had been kneeling on the ground.
"I threatened Fan Xian with a knife to force him to surrender."
The prince looked at him and sneered.
"If that's true, why hasn't Fan Xian fled or shouted since entering the capital?"
……
(End of this chapter)
