In Love With My Fierce Farming Wife!
Chapter 1067 - 1062: To Vent the Hate in One’s Heart!

Chapter 1067: Chapter 1062: To Vent the Hate in One’s Heart!

"Lord Qin, as an official of the Hanlin Imperial Academy, has read the sage’s books and heard His Majesty’s teachings. He understands all too well the importance of the Autumn Imperial Civil Service Examination. In spite of this, Lord Qin still recklessly committed the act of leaking examination questions..."

As soon as he began, Lord Cao quoted classics and laws, incessantly enumerating a plethora of cases, intending to prove that their final judgment was fair and reasonable.

"...Therefore, the officials of the Ministry of Personnel jointly deliberated on this case and ultimately decided to sentence Qin Hao, Lord Qin..." Lord Cao sneakily raised his head to check His Majesty’s expression, seeing that Qin Yi’s face was calm and showing no signs of anything amiss, he steeled himself and said: "to sentence Qin Hao, Lord Qin... to the waist-cut punishment!"

Having said this, he knelt where he stood, not daring to make the slightest move.

Yet in his heart, he bitterly cursed the other two lords who had called in "sick"!

There were four main judges; those two had strong backers and were extremely slippery. Just as the case was about to be concluded, one suddenly claimed to have eaten something bad, his face swelling so much he could hardly speak, and naturally went home sick. The other "accidentally" startled his horse on the way to the morning court session, fell from his carriage, and broke his leg, requiring him to return home to recuperate.

Only he and Lord Lih, being the most junior, had no choice but to face His Majesty’s wrath and report the results.

This was His Majesty’s brother they were sentencing to be dismembered—whether they would live to see tomorrow’s sun was uncertain.

Waist-cut punishment?

This declaration caused even Qin Yi to look up in surprise and snort coldly through his nose.

Smack!

The Memorial to the Emperor suddenly fell from the dragon desk, striking Lord Cao directly on the head: "A fine waist-cut punishment! Lord Cao, is this your answer!"

Struck in the forehead by the Memorial, Lord Cao was terrified and fell prostrate on the ground, pleading incessantly.

"Spare us these pointless words. It’s easy for you to talk without pain, as the lips meet without any strain, but the contents written in this Memorial are convoluted and hard to remember. I don’t see it clearly. Lord Lih, please, tell me, how should this case be adjudicated?"

How it should be adjudicated was still ultimately for His Majesty to decide! They, the officials, were simply carrying out the Emperor’s business. If the case was closed and the Emperor was dissatisfied, it hardly counted as having done a good job.

Yet this case was watched over by the Teacher of the Previous Emperor, making it difficult for those investigating from either inside or out!

With countless ideas spinning in his mind, Lord Lih quickly rolled his eyes and hurriedly knelt down: "Your Majesty, although the case has concluded, it is recognized that the Qin Family had once bestowed upon you great kindness and nurtured you. It is said that nurture surpasses nature. Furthermore, within or beyond the law, it is all about humanity! According to the laws of Our Great Zhou, punishments can be either light or severe. I believe that the sentence in Lord Qin’s case is too harsh. I hereby implore Your Majesty, for the sake of the Qin Family’s many years of nurturing and sincere kindness, to mercifully lighten Lord Qin’s punishment, to uphold the might of the Great Zhou Dynasty and showcase Your Majesty’s wise and benevolent virtues!"

This speech seemed to improve Qin Yi’s countenance somewhat.

Lord Lih proved to be a sensible man!

Qin Yi seated himself back in the dragon throne. He had no intention of letting Qin Hao go free, but since the Qin Family had indeed shown him great kindness, he could not put Qin Hao to death. However, he also would not indulge Qin Hao’s treachery, allowing him to ruin the empire of the Great Zhou!

"What Minister Lih has said is excellent! Therefore, Let it be known by Our decree, concerning the case of Qin Hao leaking the examination questions, his crime is grave and unforgivable. However, in light of the Qin Family’s many years of kindness and true dedication to Us, alter Qin Hao’s sentence to stripping him of his official position and demoting him to commoner status. Let him be exiled to Qiongzhou, never to return to the capital in his lifetime. Hear Ye!"

Sparing his life was also to honor the kindness he had been shown.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your sage and just decree!"

Both men kowtowed in unison, accepting the decree with thanks, then slowly retreated from Jinluan Bao Hall. Even the increasingly cold weather couldn’t prevent their backs from sweating.

As soon as they left the grand hall, they saw the Teacher of the Previous Emperor, clad in his court robe, standing at the foot of the stone steps, holding a tally board and looking coldly at the two men.

"Lord Cao, Lord Lih, if you please!"

The Teacher of the Previous Emperor greeted them with a slight bow of his fist: "Why such haste, my lords? What matter brings you rushing about?"

This is clearly a case of feigning ignorance!

He simply couldn’t believe that the Teacher of the Previous Emperor hadn’t received prior news or was unaware that they had come today to report the review results of the case to His Majesty.

It seemed that those with ill intentions were the ones who came while the good stayed away.

Lord Cao and Lord Lih exchanged a glance and quickly bowed respectfully, "So it is the Teacher of the Previous Emperor. We pay our respects to you."

"Dispense with the formalities, dispense with the formalities!"

With a forced smile, the Teacher of the Previous Emperor regarded the two men, "Seeing that you both have an urgent expression, could it be that you were just at the Jinluan Bao Hall..."

"It’s nothing, just a minor case."

Lord Lih laughed it off, "As the Teacher of the Previous Emperor also knows, recently the Ministry of Rites has been assigned numerous cases by His Majesty. Fortunately, today we finally reached a conclusion, truly ashamed."

"Ah, but the nature of this conclusion..."

The Teacher of the Previous Emperor leaned forward, his eyes filled with inquisitiveness.

"Fortunately, it met everyone’s expectations!"

Feigning resignation, Lord Lih shook his head and, with a fist and palm salute toward the Teacher of the Previous Emperor, strode past him and left.

Seeing this, Lord Cao also saluted with a fist and palm and hurriedly followed Lord Lih.

The Teacher of the Previous Emperor initially wanted to stop them but after thinking it over, he ultimately flung his sleeve and continued his ascent up the stone steps instead.

Watching the Teacher of the Previous Emperor enter the Hall of Golden Chariots, Lord Cao wiped the sweat from his forehead, "You’re truly something! To lie to the Teacher of the Emperor and still keep a straight face, admirable, admirable."

"When have I ever told a lie?"

Lord Lih raised an eyebrow proudly, "I merely told the downright truth. The rest, let’s leave it to His Majesty to handle. Let us make haste; if we delay and the Teacher of the Emperor comes out, we will both be in deep trouble!"

The Teacher of the Previous Emperor had commanded awe in court for many years and even during the reign of the previous emperor, he had been a person whose words carried the weight of nine tripods. Later, when Qin Zitong rebelled and ascended the throne, the Teacher of the Previous Emperor requested to guard the Imperial Mausoleum in Qinling. It was not until the current emperor ascended the throne that he reappeared in the public eye.

It was for this reason that his influence in court had always been significant.

Even the current His Majesty had to give him some face.

Yet at the moment, he knelt before His Majesty, seeking none other than to plead for the posthumous conferment of a title upon his unjustly slain son.

"Your Majesty, my son’s death was a grave injustice! I have but this one seedling, and now with the lineage severed, the posterity ended, my heart is truly..."

But after saying just a few words, the Teacher of the Previous Emperor was already choking with sobs.

Qin Yi hurriedly set down the paper and brush in his hand, stood up, and personally bent down to help the Teacher of the Previous Emperor to his feet.

"My esteemed minister, don’t be distressed. Such an incident grieves my heart as well. At this point, Teacher of the Emperor, any request you have, just ask, and I will do my utmost to fulfill it."

Taking the opportunity to stand, the Teacher of the Previous Emperor’s face brimmed with indignation, "I ask for nothing more than for Your Majesty to grant my son a posthumous title. Additionally, I demand the heartblood of that scoundrel Qin Hao for a sacrifice to appease my son, to vent the hatred in my heart!"