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Page 56
"What if you didn't kill a real traitor?"
Chen Yan picked up his teacup and smiled slightly.
Iron Hand was stunned, not understanding.
"Master Chen, what do you mean by that? The order came from that person in the palace, so they must have investigated it thoroughly."
Besides, back then, eight officials joined forces to impeach Prime Minister Cai, and seven of them had their entire families executed. The remaining person was obviously a traitor; that's obvious and there's no way it could be wrong.”
"Ah!"
Chen Yan smiled.
He thought to himself, "It seems that the idea of currying favor with superiors has never worked, from ancient times to the present."
People tend to believe what their superiors say without question, especially those of higher status.
But I don’t know.
No matter how high one's status, one is still just a human being. They don't have an extra brain like ordinary people, and they will make mistakes as well.
"What if, in the matter of the Sheng family's extermination, the person in the palace was also deceived?"
Chen Yan asked again.
Hear this.
Iron Hand's expression changed slightly: "Master Chen, are you saying that Ya Yu's father wasn't a traitor?!"
But didn't you just say that it was Ya Yu's father who betrayed the other seven adults?
Wuqing stopped crying and looked at Chen Yan with teary eyes.
"Did I say that it was Miss Sheng's father who betrayed the other seven adults?"
Chen Yan countered with a question.
Before Iron Hand could answer, he laughed and said, "I only said that the outside world believes that the seven adults were betrayed by the ruthless father, but I didn't say that I think so myself."
"Then, then isn't my father a traitor who betrayed the seven adults?!"
Amidst the ruthless shock, there was a strong sense of hope.
A glimmer of light appeared in her previously empty eyes.
"Of course not."
Chen Yan nodded.
what?
Ah!
A heartbreaking surprise, a shock.
Iron Hand was terrified and shocked.
Even Wanwan, who was standing to the side, was stunned.
Could there be some hidden secrets in this matter?
She gave Chen Yan a reproachful look.
What's the secret behind this? Can you just tell me all at once? It'll pique my curiosity.
Little did she know that Chen Yan was doing this simply to earn more "collapse points".
If we directly tell the ruthless truth, how will we earn those 1,000 points of collapse?
Clearing his throat, Chen Yan said, "Twelve years ago, Prime Minister Cai held absolute power, committing all sorts of evil deeds."
Eight loyal ministers in the court were filled with righteous indignation. They secretly discussed the matter and jointly submitted a memorial to accuse Prime Minister Cai.
However, before the memorial was even delivered to the emperor, it was discovered by a eunuch bribed by Prime Minister Cai, who then informed Prime Minister Cai of the news.
Cai Xiang originally ordered the extermination of the entire families of eight ministers.
But then another wicked plan came to mind.
That's framing someone!
He deliberately killed only seven ministers, leaving only Sheng Dingtian, whom he hated the most, so that outsiders would mistakenly believe that Sheng Dingtian had betrayed the other seven ministers.
In this situation, Sheng Dingtian would not only be unable to escape death, but would also forever bear the infamy.
What's even more ingenious is that this also muddies the waters, preventing the eunuchs he planted in the palace from being suspected—a triple win.
You all know what happened next.
As expected, the person in the palace fell for the trap and sent his men to exterminate Sheng Dingtian's entire family of thirty-two, forever branding Sheng Dingtian, this loyal minister, on the pillar of shame for being a traitor!
Even his daughter, Sheng Yayu, has always carried the stigma of being the daughter of a traitor and has been harassed by some people..."
"Master Chen, you...you were telling the truth just now?!"
Lord Sheng Dingtian is truly not a traitor who betrayed the other officials?
He... he was framed by Cai Xiang through trickery?!
Iron Hand swayed, feeling his vision go black, as if his body was being drained of its strength, and he didn't even have the strength to stand up.
Chapter Fifty-Six: Deduction
"Of course it's true."
Chen Yan nodded.
"Actually, it's very simple to verify this matter. Just ask that person in the palace to find out if it's true or not, but that seems a bit difficult."
However, we can also prove whether what I said is true from another perspective.
"What angle?"
Iron Hand asked hurriedly.
Both Wuqing and Wanwan were filled with doubt.
Chen Yan curled his fingers and tapped the table. "Prove it from a reasoning perspective."
reasoning?
The three of them were stunned.
Chen Yan: "Nothing happens without clues. As far as I know, Sheng Dingtian was an honest and upright official with a very good reputation back then, right?"
"Yes."
Iron Hand nodded.
Chen Yan continued, "Doesn't Iron Hand Constable think that it's highly suspicious that someone with a good reputation suddenly reverses course and becomes a major traitor?"
"What's so great about that? Some people are just good at acting."
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Wanwan pouted.
Iron Hand nodded in agreement.
Even the ruthless couldn't find a way to refute it.
Throughout history, there have been many people who were cunning and treacherous yet appeared loyal.
Chen Yan looked at Wanwan and smiled, a bright and cheerful smile.
"What are you laughing at? Did I say something wrong?"
Wanwan felt a little uneasy under his gaze, so she puffed out her chest and retorted defiantly.
“You’re absolutely right, but because you’re right, another loophole has appeared.”
Chen Yan spoke in a low voice, analyzing the truth for them bit by bit: "If Sheng Dingtian is really a treacherous villain who has pretended to be a loyal minister for more than ten years, he must be very cunning."
How could someone with such deep cunning not leave themselves a good and safe way out before betraying others?
As far as I know, when you were hunting down Sheng Dingtian's family, you found their hideout very easily, didn't you, Iron-Handed Constable?
Furthermore, they did not encounter much resistance when they exterminated the Sheng family.
Excuse me!
Is this... reasonable?
Chen Yan's voice wasn't loud, but it was like a giant drum, striking Iron Hand's mind and leaving him stunned, speechless, and terrified!
Facing Chen Yan's deep eyes.
His face was extremely bitter as he murmured, "This...this is unreasonable. The only explanation is that we killed the wrong person. His Majesty was deceived, and so were we."
They were deceived by that treacherous Cai Xiang.
We, we all fell for his trick and wrongly killed the entire Shengda family.
No wonder Cai Xiang didn't react much or seek revenge after we wiped out the entire Sheng family. It turns out, he was too happy to retaliate when we helped him get rid of a troublesome rival.
No wonder, when the files were later sorted out, no secret correspondence between Sheng Daren and Cai Xiang was found.
It turns out they never had any secret dealings at all, so how could we find evidence of their secret dealings...?