After the cannon fodder father and daughter married into the family, the whole family regretted it

Chapter 925 Both Father and Son Are Kneeling

They kept him detained, and the people he sent couldn't even get a glimpse of him.

Given the Emperor's attitude, what could Jin Ke do? He could only continue to be humble and confess.

Of course, the so-called confession has been embellished.

The only way to put the blame is on the seventh brother. Sacrifice the seventh brother to save the entire clan.

"Your Majesty, I just learned that the Seventh Prince has been doing bad things behind the scenes. He has been keeping some shady characters around and has been instigated to participate in the assassination of Princess Yiyang and Fang Nanzhi. He is so foolish."

Jin Ke seemed genuinely heartbroken, with tears welling in his eyes, deeply disappointed in his cousin.

But the emperor didn't believe it at all.

Based on his choice of words, the carefully trained assassin became a "neither fish nor fowl" person, arrogantly committing murder and arson in the street, and was seen as someone who was instigated to participate.

His words implied that he was trying to exonerate his son, that his seventh son did not do it on purpose, and even if he did, he was not the mastermind.

The emperor's face darkened, as if he had just learned of the matter and was furious about it: "What did you say?"

Jin Ke trembled, knelt on the ground, and his voice was choked with sobs.

"Your Majesty, it was my negligence in managing the household that led me to discover the old grudge between my seventh brother and Chen Zijun. Perhaps knowing that the Fang family wanted to overturn Chen Zijun's case, and not wanting their rival to benefit, that's why..."

"boom!"

A teacup fell on Jin Ke, and the scalding tea seeped through his clothes and soaked him.

Thankfully, it was winter and Jin Ke was dressed warmly, otherwise he would have gotten burned.

The emperor stood up and looked down at him: "Minister Jin, do you think I've been blind all this time because I turn a blind eye?"

"For a trivial grudge, your seventh son dared to commit murder and arson right under my nose, showing that the Jin family truly has no regard for me or the court."

"Could it be that the world now belongs to the Jin family?"

That's a very strong statement; it directly accuses the Jin family of having ulterior motives and being ambitious.

Jin Ke kowtowed heavily, his forehead hitting the bluestone slab with a crisp sound, and spoke with great fear.

"This humble subject dares not, this humble subject dares not. The Jin family is utterly loyal to Your Majesty and has no disloyal intentions whatsoever."

After several slaps to the forehead, Jin Ke felt a lump on his forehead.

The emperor merely snorted coldly, showing no intention of stopping it.

Jin Ke gritted his teeth, knowing that if he couldn't show some sincerity in his confession, given His Majesty's attitude, it would be a waste of time.

He could only honestly confess to a few things.

For example, the old grudge between the seventh brother and Chen Zijun has a long history. During the reign of the late emperor, Chen Zijun suppressed the aristocratic families many times.

At that time, his seventh brother, along with several other young people from different families, held grudges.

Jin Ke claimed that he had no idea. It was only when Lao Qi was imprisoned and his former associates came to his door that he learned something. It seemed that there were hidden details in Chen Zijun's case back then.

It seems that the salt mine affair, as well as the letters of treason, were spearheaded by Ying and others.

His seventh brother knew about it but didn't report it...

Okay, actually, it's still about admitting guilt while glorifying their own family and their seventh brother.

If possible, I still want to keep the seventh child.

Because of this shady dealing, Chen Zijun's case was reopened, and they felt guilty, fearing that their secret would be exposed.

One mistake after another, a truly outrageous mistake.

However, Jin Ke specifically emphasized that the assassination attempt on the Crown Prince at the General's Mansion was carried out by the Ying family, and had nothing to do with his seventh brother.

Because Ying was so audacious, his seventh brother's men and his associates turned against each other. The seventh brother's advisors felt they couldn't cover it up anymore, so they went to him to confess.

Well, his seventh son is imprisoned, and the family is leaderless, so they won't come looking for him, the patriarch of the Jin clan.

A shrewd person is a shrewd person. When confessing his guilt, Jin Ke was able to make the lie complete by being half true and half false, and he even knew how to explain the assassination attempt on the crown prince.

Knowing that the Crown Prince is the Emperor's Achilles' heel, if they were suspected of being involved in a plot against the Crown Prince, the Jin family would be in real trouble.

Even confessing might not be useful; the emperor might actually want to execute him. Or, the emperor might pretend not to pursue the matter while secretly setting a trap for him.

In short, this matter must be made clear.

The emperor sat back on the dragon throne, with only two thoughts swirling in his mind.

It turns out that Chen Zijun was indeed wronged by him back then.

In fact, the emperor understood as soon as he received the list that he was being used as a pawn by the families on it.

The powerful families wanted to get rid of Chen Zijun, so they used the emperor as a pawn.

Now it has been confirmed that a dignified emperor, having fallen victim to someone else's scheme, was naturally unhappy, and there were indescribable complexities involved.

But to say he regrets it wouldn't be accurate. At that time, Chen Zijun held immense power in the court, and as long as he was alive, the emperor could not rule in his own right.

The second reason is that Chen Zijun acted on the orders of the late emperor, which offended the powerful families. Those families were able to endure it until the late emperor died, and then he took power and plotted revenge.

Chen Zijun was a high-ranking official in the imperial court, second only to the emperor, yet those powerful families could frame him at will.

If a powerful minister offends them, the aristocratic families will not let him off the hook. What if one day, the emperor touches the interests of the aristocratic families, and they try to kill him?

The emperor looked very grim, feeling that those powerful families were like a malignant tumor, ruthless and insane, and had already become a threat to him.

The emperor remained silent for a long time, and Jin Ke felt uneasy.

"Does Minister Jin know who was involved in framing Chen Zijun back then?"

"This humble servant did indeed obtain a list from my seventh brother's advisors, but I do not know if it is detailed."

Jin Ke took out a piece of paper from his pocket. The eunuch glanced at His Majesty shrewdly before going down to take it.

When it reached the emperor's hands, he glanced at it and saw that only four or five families were listed on the paper.

The first family to be prominent was the Ying family; the families that followed were all second- or third-rate.

If those third-rate families continue to be unsuccessful, and then they happen to encounter a spendthrift son, they will never be able to turn their fortunes around.

It's clear that Jin Ke is not stupid. He can't confess and expose all the powerful families. If he does, the Jin family will become the object of hatred for them.

Who knows, out of spite, they might harm his family or his son?

Therefore, the five companies on the list were carefully selected by Jin Ke, four of which were companies that the Jin family could afford to offend and did not need to take seriously.

The only remaining person of similar standing, Ying, was someone Jin Ke deliberately created.

It was that old clan patriarch of the Ying family who tried to drag him into this mess, causing a fight between him and his son.

Then don't blame him for being ruthless.

The emperor, on the other hand, wished he could kill all the families on the list to avenge his son.

But that won't actually work. If he were to suddenly and forcefully deal with a powerful family, they would probably unite and rebel first.

Even an emperor might not be able to stop them; how many monarchs throughout history have died at the hands of powerful families? We must learn from past mistakes and take precautions.

In the Imperial Study, Jin Ke was pleading guilty, while at the entrance of the East Palace, Jin Yunting was also kneeling.

He is the young master of the clan. He can't just shrink back and let his father handle the chaos after it happens, can he?

Another point Jin Yunting believes is that it is not enough for his father to apologize to His Majesty; they should not forget about offending the Crown Prince.

He finally managed to make that connection back then, it can't end so quickly.

Unfortunately, Jin Yunting's health failed him; he fainted after kneeling for half an hour.

But by taking advantage of the light from his fainting spell, he finally entered the Eastern Palace and was able to see the Crown Prince.

The imperial physician took his pulse and prescribed medicine. After taking one bowl of medicine, Jin Yunting woke up.

Jin Yunting's confession was much more sincere than his father's.

Without offering any explanation, he simply presented two ledgers.

One ledger, from Jinzhou Prefecture, details the Jin family's control over the private salt market, including the locations of their strongholds, how they profited, and, crucially, the manpower and output of their three salt mines.

These three salt mines were not seized by the Jin family. They nominally belonged to the imperial court, but in reality, they had long been infiltrated by the Jin family in Jinzhou Prefecture.

Of the salt mine's annual output, 20% was sent to the emperor, while 80% belonged to the Jin family.

The other ledger contains the properties that the Jin and Ying families have managed in the two prefectures over the years.

With such blatant leverage delivered to his doorstep, Jin Yunting certainly has more guts than his father.

Qingyan briefly flipped through the two account books before putting them away.

His gaze fell on the sickly man, but his thoughts drifted back to the day of the fire, when Jin Yunting was the last to be carried out, his face covered in soot.

The young master of a prestigious family lost his composure while trying to save someone, ending up in a sorry state and nearly losing his life.

I heard that after waking up, he didn't complain and even became a friend recognized by Fang Nanzhi.

His actions reveal him to be cunning, scheming, and treacherous.

Qingyan accepted the account books but wasn't in a hurry to discuss serious matters.

"Young Master Jin has been recuperating for many years, yet his health remains so frail. Is it because the doctors in your household are ineffective? I will send an imperial physician to your door."

This is just pretending to be ignorant when you know the truth. It's not that the doctors in the manor are incompetent; it's that the Imperial Medical Academy has consulted every famous doctor in the world, yet they still can't cure Young Master Jin.

Jin Ke lowered his eyes, unsure whether His Highness was being sarcastic or something else, and could only humbly say, "Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness, but I am afraid that my fate is beyond cure since birth."

Qingyan said "Oh," raised an eyebrow, and seemed quite surprised.

"If medicine is ineffective, Young Master Jin, why don't you try another method?"

Jin Yunting looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Qingyan sat there aloofly, without saying a word, until the little eunuch beside him spoke up.

"I've heard that there's a folk remedy of curing illness by bringing good luck to the patient. Young Master Jin, you might want to give it a try."

Jin Yunting clenched his fist; for the first time, he was angry, a man who never took anything to heart.

Why would the Crown Prince care about his health for no reason? It's all just to pressure him into marriage.

Their relationship as ruler and subject was not yet one of complete openness. The crown prince was not truly concerned about him; he simply wanted him to get married and then distance himself from Fang Nanzhi.

But why?

Jin Yunting kept quiet to outsiders, but he couldn't fool his own heart.

His weak heart, which usually beats slower than normal, lost control several times when he saw the little girl.

He was very pleased with Fang Nanzhi.

At that moment, meeting the powerful gaze hidden in the Crown Prince's cold eyes, he vaguely realized that the Crown Prince also had feelings for the young girl.

The crown prince used his status as emperor and the excuse that his poor health made him unworthy of the young girl to pressure him into giving up.

Jin Yunting had little fear of the former.

Despite his efforts to curry favor with the Crown Prince and force his father to confess, it wasn't out of fear of the royal family or the Crown Prince.

Rather, it was the path he had planned for his clan that destined him to relinquish certain shackles.

To be fair, Jin Yunting had some respect for Qingyan, but he wasn't the type to be forced into things.

But the latter point, that he was in poor health, really hit Jin Yunting where it hurt.

Why did his mother repeatedly test his feelings, implying that she would propose marriage immediately if he was willing, but he always said that he had no romantic feelings for her?

Jin Yunting knew his own body too well and didn't want to burden the young girl.

He won't live much longer. What if one day he passes away, leaving such a vibrant young woman like Fang Nanzhi to be a widow for him?

In a large family like the Jin family, daughters-in-law are not allowed to divorce and remarry.

This is so unfair to Fong Namgyal.

If he can't be with the girl until the end, why cross the line?

Therefore, Jin Yunting watched quietly without interfering when his father looked down on the Fang family's reputation and repeatedly tried to thwart his mother's attempts to create opportunities for him.

Jin Yunting thought he had given up and stopped competing.

But at this moment, forced by the Crown Prince, all his resentment and desires surged up.

Why is his body like this? Why doesn't he dare to confess his feelings to the girl he likes?

"The idea of ​​'marrying for good luck' is just nonsense from ignorant people and should not be taken seriously."

Jin Yunting met the Crown Prince's gaze without flinching.

Qingyan's expression remained unchanged, but his aura grew even colder, clearly indicating his displeasure.

The eunuch lowered his head, feeling apprehensive.

What's wrong with this Young Master Jin? He knelt for half an hour begging to see His Highness, and then somehow managed to anger him after the meeting?

Fang Nanzhi was unaware of what was happening in the palace. After finishing her work with the two wounded soldiers, she sat on the threshold of the second gate, propping her chin up with her hands and gazing at the sky.

Her mother wouldn't let her go out or wait for news at the gate, so she had to stay here.

Anmei walked over in small steps, carrying a food box containing steaming roasted sweet potatoes.

"The lady baked it herself and asked me to bring it over while it's still hot."

Fang Nanzhi took it, broke the sweet potato in half, and the sweet and soft aroma wafted out.

The sweet potato core is still orange-yellow, making your mouth water just looking at it.

She gave a small portion to Anmei before starting to eat the other half.

Anmei didn't refuse. Having spent a long time with the young lady, she knew that refusing back and forth would only waste time.

The master and servant munched on sweet potatoes, gazing at the snow-covered ground.

"Do you think Second Uncle can catch the person?"

"How will it be if we catch them? Behind those assassins, the Jin family is one, but who knows, there might also be the Wang family, the Xiang family..."

She didn't even dare to list them all. She really didn't understand how her uncle had managed to offend so many powerful families in one go.

With so many powerful families, even the emperor wouldn't dare to easily make a move against them, right?

"The foundation is still too shallow. Even if we add up Second Uncle, the Crown Prince, and Grand Princess Mingzhu, it doesn't seem to be enough."

Fang Nanzhi kept rambling on and on.

Anmei didn't respond; she knew that her mistress didn't need her to.

Fang Nanzhi said this because she was uneasy. Those assassins were extremely fierce, and she didn't know if her own people would get hurt this time.

She suddenly stood up and paced back and forth like a trapped animal before finally stopping.

"Anmei, take me out of the manor. I want to go and pay my respects to my uncle."

Anmei wanted to refuse.

When is it not okay to pay respects to ancestors? Now that the city gates of the capital are closed, the lady has ordered that no one is allowed to leave the mansion.

Fang Nanzhi stared at her longingly, her little hands tugging at her clothes, looking all coquettish.

Anmei closed her eyes; how could she possibly withstand it?

All I could do was help cover it up and lead the young lady to a low wall in the backyard.

She and her mistress used their light-footed skills to leap away.

The two had barely left when someone reported it to Qian Fengping.

Miss sneaked out of the manor, but the guards secretly followed her, so Madam doesn't need to worry too much.

It would be strange if I wasn't worried!