Chapter 1283: Counterattack (2)
First, Mu Bowen’s memorial and essay secretly mocked Assistant Minister Lan for not being capable enough to be an official and blaming Qi Haoran for his weak will which led to his suicide attempt. In doing so, he successfully diverted the topic away from Qi Haoran.
Just as the courtiers were about to respond, Qi Xiuyuan quickly removed Assistant Minister Lan’s official title and even asked the Ministry of Official Personnel Affairs to reassess him. Although he did not say it explicitly, it was clear that he agreed with Mu Bowen’s point of view.
Hence, the next day, an old man went to the Court of Judicial Review to beat the drums and voice his grievances. He said that King Rong, Qi Haoran, had drawn pay without serving during the war against the Jin Dynasty last year. After the old man’s son had discovered that Qi Haoran had embezzled military supplies, the young man had been dragged to the front line and died in battle. Now, the old man had evidence that Qi Haoran had drawn pay without serving and embezzled military supplies.
The courtiers immediately requested the Emperor to let King Rong return to the capital, so that they could confront him.
Qi Xiuyuan flipped through the evidence submitted by the Court of Judicial Review and sneered. "It’s just two letters and there’s not even an account book. How can it be considered evidence? Let the Court of Judicial Review investigate thoroughly. We’ll wait for King Rong to submit a memorial to explain his side of the story."
In other words, King Rong did not have to return to the capital.
The ministers below looked at each other and their hearts sank.
Although Qi Haoran would obstruct them while he was in the capital, he was still right under their noses, which meant they could quickly react to whatever he did. However, now that he had left the capital, it was not convenient for them to monitor him or deal with him. It was like trying to hit a cow from afar. No matter how hard they tried, they could not reach the other party.
It seemed that the "incriminating evidence" needed to be more specific.
Hence, the Court of Judicial Review quickly discovered an account book...