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墨書 Inktalez
The business at Cup Mo Ting Restaurant was already thriving, and with the recent opening of the Ready-to-Wear Store, Ye Xiaohan was busier than ever.
Every morning, she left home early and returned only after dark, working long hours.
However, seeing her savings gradually increase in the vault brought her joy. As long as there were results, a little hardship along the way was worth it.
During this time, Gu Bei was also becoming increasingly busy. He didn’t share specific details with Ye Xiaohan; their chances to meet became fewer and fewer. When they did see each other, it was often brief, with little time for conversation before he had to leave.
Knowing that Gu Bei was occupied with a case, Ye Xiaohan had encouraged him to focus on his work and not to worry about them. Yet Gu Bei didn’t listen. No matter how busy he was, he still made time to check in on them.
Gu Bei's case was indeed quite complicated. Firstly, the individuals involved held very prestigious positions. Secondly, this was a matter personally overseen by the emperor; no one dared to go against his wishes.
Moreover, those ministers who understood the situation could clearly see that the emperor wasn’t merely trying to clear Gu Bei’s name; it was imperative that he did so.
There was a significant difference here. Even if Gu Bei were innocent, if the emperor only wanted to vindicate him from wrongful accusations, then the ministers investigating the case could afford to be lenient as long as they ensured Gu Bei's safety during the investigation.
For instance, they might show some leniency towards those involved in the case or even choose to conceal certain facts.
However, if it were the latter scenario—where it was essential for Gu Bei’s reputation to be restored—then the investigating ministers would not dare to engage in any form of corruption.
If they were reported and the emperor found out that they dared to act against someone he wanted protected, what else would they be willing to do? In such a case, their official titles would be at risk.
If things went poorly, they could even lose their lives.
Those high officials who managed to rise in the capital were far from naive; they all had sharp minds and knew better than to make foolish decisions.
Liu Chancellor, as a high-ranking minister of the court and a trusted confidant of the emperor, certainly wouldn’t set himself up for failure.
After receiving the emperor's orders, Liu Chancellor worked day and night with great diligence, constantly preoccupied with matters related to the case.
With the Emperor's strong support and additional manpower assigned to him, the relevant departments were also required to facilitate the investigation of the case. Most importantly, no one dared to obstruct it in secret, allowing the investigation to proceed swiftly.
The events from that year were not difficult to investigate. The reason for the prolonged silence was twofold: first, Gu Bei had directly hidden away from the battlefield and escaped the searches in the capital without putting up any resistance.
Second, Murong Cheng had blocked off the channels while Gu Bei was missing. With the Crown Prince intervening and self-preserving ministers around, how could they jeopardize their own futures for someone like Gu Bei, with whom they had little connection?
Thus, it quickly became a foregone conclusion that the blame for the defeat on the battlefield was placed squarely on Gu Bei.
Now, at the Emperor's behest, Liu Chancellor led a group of officials to conduct a thorough investigation, and soon they uncovered some clues.
"Chancellor, look at this. This is the report on supplies submitted at that time, and this is the result of the subsequent investigation," an official presented two reports for Liu Chancellor's review. "The numbers reported are five times greater than what was actually delivered to the military camp!"
Liu Chancellor examined them closely, slammed his hand on the table in anger, and exclaimed, "Soldiers risk their lives to defend our homeland, yet among us there are those who dare to embezzle supplies! How audacious!"
The primary reason for the earlier defeat was attributed to insufficient supply of provisions afterward. How could starving soldiers possibly win against an enemy as fierce as wolves?
In that battle, if it had been left in the hands of the enemy, it would have been better than dying at the hands of our own.
And the root cause of all this was none other than Murong Cheng and Gu Bei's younger brother, Gu Rong.
Now that military funds were being investigated, both men were filled with dread and quickly gathered to discuss countermeasures.
"What guarantee did you give back then that we wouldn't be discovered?" Murong Cheng shouted at Gu Rong angrily. "Look at the current situation; Liu Chengye has already traced it back to military funds. The next step will be uncovering who embezzled these funds!"
Initially, Gu Rong had suggested they manipulate the military supplies. In a battle between two armies, it wasn't just tactics or troop strength that mattered; it was which side could sustain its supplies longer.
Once supplies ran out, no matter how brilliant Gu Bei was in warfare, he would have no choice but to admit defeat.
The embezzled supplies mostly ended up in the pockets of Murong Cheng and Gu Rong. If this were to be discovered, even if Murong Cheng was a prince, he would face severe consequences.
Gu Rong said bitterly, "How was I supposed to know that Gu Bei would come back alive? During the fierce battle, most people died, and yet he, a general who charged to the front, somehow survived!"
It was precisely because Gu Rong believed that Gu Bei could never return to expose them that he had the audacity to act so boldly. Little did he expect that despite all his calculations, Gu Bei would escape disaster.
Now that Gu Bei had returned from the brink of death, it was their turn to face misfortune.
Murong Cheng exclaimed angrily, "What good does it do us now? We should be thinking about how to save our own skins! If Father Emperor finds out it was me behind this, there’s no way he would let me off easily!"
Even if they managed to save their lives, Murong Cheng knew he could not retain his position as the crown prince. For someone like him, whose life goal was to ascend the throne, losing the chance to become emperor meant his life would be over; it would be worse than death.
"The Crown Prince need not worry too much," Gu Rong said darkly. "This matter will stop here. We’ve handled everything cleanly; even if they investigate further, they won’t find any evidence linking us."
Gu Rong was quite confident about this; he had put in considerable effort to destroy all evidence. After all, even if Gu Bei were dead, he still needed to live well.
Others wouldn’t suspect him of harming Gu Bei, but when it came to corruption, how many officials in court could honestly claim they had never taken a single cent that didn’t belong to them?
Especially for Gu Rong, such matters were second nature; he habitually ensured that everything was handled properly afterward.
Hearing Gu Rong's confidence calmed Murong Cheng slightly. "Are you sure? I’ll tell you this: if anything happens to me, none of you will escape!"
"Rest assured, Your Highness. I am completely confident," Gu Rong replied, a glimmer of dark light flashing in his eyes as he thought of a good plan.
Chancellor Liu's investigation proceeded smoothly; following the clues led them quickly to the culprit behind the embezzlement of military funds and supplies.
"Chen Kang! As Minister of Personnel, you have broken the law and dared to lay your hands on military funds! Now that there is solid evidence against you, what excuse do you have left?"
Liu Chancellor threw a thick stack of documents in front of Minister of Personnel Chen Kang, shouting angrily.
Chen Kang knelt on the ground, repeatedly bowing his head. "I know my crime, I know my crime. I hope the Chancellor will show mercy!"
"You have committed such a heinous crime and still dare to hope for leniency!" Liu Chancellor retorted angrily. "Bring him here, strip him of his official robes, remove his cap, and imprison him in the Criminal Department Prison for trial!"
"Please spare me, please spare me!"
Chen Kang was dragged away, and the ministers present couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow for the fallen. Among those standing there, how many had not secretly engaged in similar deeds? It was just that they had not been as greedy as Chen Kang; they simply hadn't run into trouble.
This fleeting sympathy lasted only a moment before the proceedings continued as planned.
As the investigation into Minister of Personnel Chen Kang deepened, everyone was astonished to discover just how audacious he truly was!
Bribery from subordinates, commissions from others, exploiting gaps within departments—wherever there was profit to be made, he would take a hefty slice.
During the search of his home, mountains of gold and silver artifacts were uncovered, along with exquisite antiques and paintings—wealth that could never have been amassed from his salary as a mere Minister of Personnel.
Everyone felt deep loathing for this man, such a corrupt official. Not only did he constantly scheme to amass wealth for his own selfish desires, but he also embezzled military funds and withheld supplies, causing heavy casualties among the Army!
His crimes were simply unforgivable!
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