Chapter 731: The Duke’s Perfect Counterattack in the Trial (4)_1
This time, as usual, no one paid attention to the students’ requests. Just when they thought it would be fruitless again, an eunuch appeared before the crowd, holding an imperial edict in his hands.
With a resounding proclamation of "The Imperial Edict has arrived," thousands of students knelt down en masse to listen to the decree, their excitement undiminished by the cold, hard floor tiles that made them incredibly uncomfortable.
"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees... The examination fraud case is of great significance. I shall hold a public trial in the Hall of Supreme Harmony today at the third quarter of Si Shi. All the students from Jing City may enter the palace to observe, to witness and hear the truth—Such is Our command—"
As the last word of the Imperial Edict was pronounced, the students who had been agonizing at the palace gates for days were overjoyed and deeply grateful to Emperor Huian. They openly declared that the current Emperor was wise and that Great Chu would surely prosper for millennia.
The eunuch who delivered the edict listened with one ear to the students singing Emperor Huian’s praises and, with a smile, turned and entered the palace gate. He relayed their words in a more polished form to Liang Gonggong, who then tactfully mentioned them to Emperor Huian after the morning court session while the Emperor was having his breakfast.
Emperor Huian listened expressionlessly, seemingly unaffected. But Liang Gonggong observed carefully that the Emperor had eaten two more steamed buns and a bowl of white jade red date porridge than usual.
The news that the examination fraud case would be publicly tried in the Hall of Supreme Harmony at the third quarter of Si Shi spread like wind across Jing City in an instant, bringing the people’s attention to the pinnacle of interest in the fraud case.
No one expected Emperor Huian to take the fraud case so seriously that he would hold a public trial in the Hall of Supreme Harmony and even allow hundreds of students to be present as observers. It seemed that he was determined to be thorough.