"Your Majesty?" Eunuch Jiao called softly.
Emperor Ye Yao frowned. "What is it?"
Eunuch Jiao entered the inner chamber and bowed. "Your Majesty, the little princess has arrived, saying she has important matters to see Your Majesty about."
"Don't you see I'm busy? Tell her to withdraw!" Emperor Ye Yao said coldly.
Eunuch Jiao wiped a bead of cold sweat and repeatedly said "Yes," then quickly bowed and left.
Emperor Ye Yao looked at Ye Jingcheng. "Continue."
Ye Jingcheng cupped his hands. "Although there are letters as proof, these only mention Duke Yingguo in passing and do not specify anything more concretely."
"Your son believes these pieces of evidence are sufficient to vindicate Lord Feng, but to prove that Duke Yingguo was also slandered based on these would be somewhat inappropriate."
Emperor Ye Yao lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment, then looked at Ye Jingyu. "What do you think?"
Ye Jingyu paused. "Your son previously gave Father Emperor a list."
As Ye Jingcheng had said, while Duke Yingguo's case could not be immediately overturned, the冤案 (yuān'àn - wrongful cases) of other slandered officials were clearly proven.
Now that the one-month period had ended and the evidence was laid bare, it was not so easy for Ye Jingcheng to gloss over it.
Emperor Ye Yao's expression darkened. "Has Prince Lian seen the list?"
A glint flashed in Ye Jingcheng's eyes. He lowered his head. "Reporting to Father Emperor, your son has not yet seen it."
"If you haven't seen it, then take a good look!" Emperor Ye Yao flung the list from the table.
The list landed squarely on Ye Jingcheng's head, knocking his ceremonial cap askew.
Ye Jingcheng immediately knelt. "I beg Father Emperor to quell his anger."
"Quell my anger? Over twenty officials, hundreds of families! How many wrongdoings have you committed over the years, and I remained in the dark!" Emperor Ye Yao slammed the table.
He had thought his eldest son, the嫡长子 (dí cháng zǐ - son of the principal wife and the eldest among them), would be someone he could place great hope in, but he never expected him to be so driven by profit and benefit, completely disregarding matters of state!
Emperor Ye Yao exuded a powerful, oppressive aura.
The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly tense.
Ye Jingcheng picked up the list from the ground and held it in his hand. He looked up at the person seated above. "Father Emperor blames your son for not daring to defend himself, but even if someone framed officials, how can one be sure it was at your son's instigation?"
"When the Zhao residence was searched, Zhao Xun and his brother were both convicted. Your son had also reported them and did not show any favoritism. Why is it now that because your son is associated with those people, he is deemed the mastermind?"
Emperor Ye Yao looked at him coldly. "Are you implying you have nothing to do with this matter?"
Ye Jingcheng straightened his knees and argued logically. "When Father Emperor saw the list back then, he was furious and ordered your son to confine himself to his residence, with Third Brother fully investigating the matter."
"Now that the evidence is all here, it can be determined that those people are innocent, but does Third Brother dare to say your son is beyond redemption and is the one behind it?"
"They are all court officials. What benefit would your son gain from framing them?"
"Father Emperor, do not forget that it has been several years since the first official was framed. At that time, your son had just entered the court to listen to political affairs. How could he have possessed such great ability to wrongly accuse court officials?"
Emperor Ye Yao's brows were furrowed and stern, he remained silent.
Ye Jingcheng knelt rigidly, his face filled with the indignation of being wronged.
Ye Jingyu glanced at him, a strange look flashing in his eyes.
Wrongfully accusing officials was certainly no small matter, and Ye Jingcheng's words were not wrong.
He had indeed lacked such great ability when he first entered the court. However, while he might not have had the capability to do so, it did not mean the people behind him did not.
Eunuch Chang's gaze kept shifting between the father and his two sons, and he couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from his brow.
In truth, everyone knew how those officials on the list were framed and why.
But since the parties involved were already dead, there was no one to testify.
"Get out of my way, this princess wants to see my imperial brother now! Imperial brother! Imperial brother!"
Ye Yunshuang's voice echoed from outside the door.
Emperor Ye Yao was displeased. "What is all this noise?"
"Imperial Brother!" Ye Yunshuang pushed past Eunuch Jiao and barged in, kneeling on the ground. "Imperial Brother, you must uphold justice for your sister."
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This servant truly could not stop the Princess," Eunuch Jiao knelt on the ground to beg for forgiveness.
"Useless!" Emperor Ye Yao cursed angrily, then frowned and looked at Ye Yunshuang. "I am currently handling state affairs. Whatever it is, you can tell me later."
Eunuch Jiao stepped forward to pull her away. "Princess, you should go back first."
Ye Yunshuang flung him off. "I won't! If Imperial Brother does not uphold justice for me, I will not leave!"
Emperor Ye Yao had a terrible headache and could only wave his hand.
The two brothers below retreated to their respective sides.
Emperor Ye Yao said, "What do you have to say?"
Ye Yunshuang's voice was choked with tears as she spoke, prostrating herself on the ground. "Imperial Brother, your sister has been bullied. Su Yunmo, the daughter of Su Qingtian, not only instructed people to beat your sister's servants but also maliciously threw dirt on your sister."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's gaze fell upon her.
Emperor Ye Yao almost hurled his teacup.
How old was that girl from the Su residence? She was bringing such childish squabbles to him for judgment. What did she think he, the Emperor, was!
Emperor Ye Yao suppressed his anger. "Alright, I understand. You may withdraw first, and I will have that girl apologize to you later."
Ye Yunshuang's eyes widened, and her voice immediately rose. "An apology is not enough. Imperial Brother must have her brought here and severely punished!"
Otherwise, how could she vent her anger!
Emperor Ye Yao was annoyed. "Don't forget that you are already married and an adult! How can you still be like a child, quibbling with a little girl!"
To have such a young child brought to be punished for a trivial matter, what kind of reputation would that spread!
"Imperial Brother!" Ye Yunshuang knelt up and cried loudly. "Su Yunmo, being so young, dares to bully your sister. She clearly shows no respect for the imperial family."
"If Imperial Brother does not uphold justice for your sister, your sister will absolutely not stand for it. Your sister will... will smash herself to death right here in the study!"
"Nonsense!" Emperor Ye Yao slammed the table heavily. "Get out immediately!"
Ye Yunshuang was startled by him and froze. After a moment, she began to cry loudly, refusing to relent.
"Imperial Brother no longer dotes on your sister. I'm going to tell Mother Empress. Mother Empress will definitely stand by my side."
Emperor Ye Yao's face turned dark.
What kind of trivial matter required escalating to the Empress Dowager?
"Guards, guards! Go and summon that girl from the Su family. I will question her myself!" Emperor Ye Yao's head was about to explode from her crying, so he had to agree to her request.
Eunuch Jiao said "Yes" and immediately got up to leave. Before leaving, he glanced at Ye Yunshuang.
This one was truly capable.
Seeing that someone was going to fetch Su Yunmo, a hint of triumph flashed in Ye Yunshuang's eyes, and she stopped crying.
After a short while, a little dumpling entered from outside, rubbing her belly.
There were still un-wiped oil stains around her mouth, indicating she had just finished a hearty meal.
After entering the room, the little dumpling knelt on the ground as instructed by Eunuch Jiao and offered her greetings. Before she could speak, she let out a burp.
Ye Jingyu looked at her appearance, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes.
Emperor Ye Yao's helplessness was even more pronounced.
The little dumpling kneeling below was not even as tall as an adult's thigh. Anyone could easily lift her with one hand and throw her onto the roof beams.
How could he interrogate such a tiny thing as a criminal? It was already quite good that she could understand and follow instructions to kneel and greet him.
"Little girl, I heard you disrespected the princess and also beat her servants without reason?"
Even if she couldn't be interrogated, it had to be done. Since she was already here, at least a formality had to be observed.