Joy of Life: I am Li Chengze, and I have mastered the Eight Wonders

Chapter 17 Building momentum
"Your Highness, this batch of materials is definitely not inferior!" Minister Guo explained hurriedly.

"I personally selected the best building materials to ensure that the Spring Examination Hall is sturdy and durable. I will never slack off in the slightest and affect the country's talent selection plan!"

Li Chengze had a blank expression on his face, and his tone was filled with unquestionable majesty: "It's just usable, could it be that the Ministry of Revenue didn't allocate enough funds?
The golden nanmu and gold bricks that were replaced this time are very valuable. What do you plan to do with the remaining after deducting the cost? The profit here is not a small amount! "

Minister Guo lowered his head even lower and firmly denied the suspicion of corruption:
"Your Highness, please understand that the items that were dismantled were properly stored in the Ministry of Rites' warehouse, and the accounts are clear. I know that Your Highness is determined to severely punish corruption, so how dare I test the law? I am innocent and have not taken a penny of ill-gotten gains!"

The students looked at each other, unable to judge the truth of his words.

Li Chengze saw through his intentions and hit the nail on the head: "Could it be that you are a new official and want to use the name of rebuilding the examination hall to gain political achievements and show your ability as the Minister of Rites?"

Such behavior is common in the officialdom. New officials always like to build large-scale projects to show their achievements, but in fact they have their own selfish motives, to enrich themselves, to gain both fame and fortune, and their eagerness for quick success and instant benefits is fully revealed.

Minister Guo looked pale. He did not dare to be corrupt openly, but it was an indisputable fact that he took advantage of the opportunity of the reconstruction to add luster to his political achievements. Now that the Second Prince had exposed him, he could only apologize in fear:

"I am eager for quick success and instant benefits, and I have wasted people's money and resources. My crime is unforgivable. Please punish me severely, Your Highness!"

Seeing this, Fan Xian laughed inwardly. This was clearly a plot set for the Second Prince.

Li Chengze was unmoved and said coldly: "Your guilt is not something I can determine, it will be decided by your majesty.

The accounts between you and me have not been settled yet, so there is no need to rush to confess. "

After saying this, Li Chengze turned to Fan Xian, who understood what he meant and immediately revealed the evidence of Minister Guo's laziness and enjoyment - his self-portrait.

Li Chengze said slowly: "Minister Guo, since you are in charge of the renovation of the examination hall, you should fulfill your duties and supervise the project.

However, not only did you fail to fulfill this responsibility, but you also took it easy in the shed, and even forged pictures of you working, deceiving the emperor in an attempt to take credit. Guo Zheng, how dare you deceive the emperor! "

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room was in an uproar. The crime of deceiving the emperor is a capital crime that cannot be escaped.

Fan Wujiu and his four companions were even more aggressive, as if they were going to take this traitor to the emperor away immediately. Minister Guo was so frightened that his soul flew away, his legs went limp, and he fell to his knees:
"I was careless for a moment, and I have absolutely no intention of disrespecting your majesty!"

Fan Xian sneered, pointed at the spacious shed and asked:

"negligence?
The Spring Examination Hall has not yet been completed, but you are enjoying the good life first, with iced fruits and vegetables in the pergola, while you let the students sweat under the scorching sun without even a piece of shade. Is this your negligence? "

"Not only are you derelict in your duty, you are also just sitting there doing nothing!
"Fan Xian's voice was passionate, stirring up the anger in the students' hearts. They accused and exposed Minister Guo's injustice and greed.

Faced with public anger, Minister Guo was powerless to refute and could only defend himself more awkwardly, but this only brought more accusations and indignation.

Everyone shouted in unison: "Your Highness and Master Xiao Fan are right. We fully support them!"

This passionate voice seemed to be able to penetrate the sky and spread to every corner of the capital.

This was exactly the effect that Li Chengze had been expecting - to use the authority of the Second Prince, the momentum of the students, and the people's voices to expose Minister Guo's crimes, while also serving as a powerful warning to the forces behind him.

Li Chengze looked down at Minister Guo who was kneeling on the ground with a sharp gaze, and said with a hint of sarcasm in his tone:

"It seems that you really are a person who knows how to enjoy life."

Minister Guo could only kneel down humbly and confess his fault in a low voice: "Your Majesty, I know my crime..."

The students' applause was as surging as the tide, and cheers rose one after another. Shi Chanli's cheeks flushed with excitement, and Hou Jichang's eyes sparkled with eagerness.

They looked up at the Second Prince, their hearts filled with admiration and pride. This scene was more lively and exciting than any festival celebration. However, in this jubilation, Yang Wanli frowned, thinking secretly in his heart, as if he had a premonition that this storm had not subsided...

At the same time, in the eldest prince's palace, a silent contest was quietly taking place.

Li Chengqian was always able to quickly grasp Li Chengze's movements. Isn't this a kind of alternative "brotherly understanding"? The guard hurriedly reported:

"Your Highness, the Second Prince has led Fan Xian and many of his attendants to surround the examination hall, intending to thoroughly investigate Minister Guo's fraudulent use of inferior materials as genuine ones."

Li Chengqian frowned, while Fan Wujiu looked puzzled:

"What did he discover? Was it Minister Guo's greed or deeper corruption?"

Li Chengqian shook his head, his eyes deep: "Those are just appearances, my second brother's actions are more like a show, intended to accuse others of being eager for quick success.

As long as he hasn't figured out our plans, there's nothing to fear."

The guard asked tentatively: "Your Highness, Minister Guo is our man. He is now being closely watched by the Second Prince, and he is suspected of taking advantage of the opportunity to create momentum. How should we deal with it? If he can't bear the pressure..."

Li Chengqian smiled calmly, biting the grapes lightly, and said with a hint of amusement in his tone:

"It doesn't matter. If he knew that I am not fighting alone in this power struggle, he would persist. I want to see how my second brother will respond."

Upon hearing this, the guards secretly marveled at the unfathomable depth of this vortex of power.

At the Fan residence, the sun was setting, and Fan Ruoruo was waiting anxiously at the door, her heart filled with worry for her brother's safety.
This made her even more restless, and the discussions among her neighbors about the changes in the Spring Examination Hall made her even more anxious.

Aunt Liu gently consoled her: "Ruoruo, you won't be able to help if you go, and you will only cause more trouble. Have you forgotten the lesson from last time?"

Fan Ruoruo nodded in agreement, but secretly swore in her heart:

"I want to become stronger. Whether it's martial arts or medical skills, I must learn a skill so that I can help my family and my brother solve problems in the future!"·······

The Spring Examination Hall was under renovation. The people of Kyoto heard that something big was happening and came to join in the fun, and saw a shocking scene.

Minister Guo started to grovel and then kneel down, like a hawk being fed and his energy was almost exhausted, but His Highness had no intention of letting him go, as if he still had a goal that had not been achieved and some means that had not been exhausted.
Your Highness, where are you?
I betrayed the second prince and joined your faction!

That's right. Because of the incident in the court a few days ago, many of the second prince's followers switched to the prince's side. Among them was Guo Shangshu.

Didn’t we agree that we are cooperative allies?
Why is it that I have done everything but no one comes to help me?

Just as Minister Guo was feeling confused and anxious, Li Chengze looked at Fan Xian beside him.

The latter took out a list of candidates from his bosom, which recorded the names of hundreds of poor scholars who came to help, so it was a bit heavy and substantial:

"Dear students, do you know what this is?"

More than a hundred students were confused. Only the brave ones dared to shout, "It's the register of us who came here to help!"

"Yes, this contains the names and hometowns of hundreds of you."

Fan Xian held up the list, circled around Minister Guo, and stopped in front of him.

The latter covered his chest, feeling uneasy. Damn, the Second Prince was using him to build momentum!
(End of this chapter)