After the emperor drank a glass of wine to himself, he did not immediately put down the cup, but played with it in his hand. His body leaned forward slightly, his eyebrows furrowed slightly, and he suddenly asked, "Your Gao family and Zhou Cairen are not distant cousins, right?" Are you a righteous daughter who only accepted talents later? ”

"The emperor is wise. The criminal ministers did not dare to deceive the emperor, but a few children fooled around with the criminal ministers, and then they couldn't cover it. After all, this was not a trivial matter, and the sinners had no choice but to obey their wishes. Big things are small, and small things are small. But the most important thing is that you like it, so why do you have to care about her identity? You and talented people can be regarded as achieving a true relationship in the world. ”

The emperor raised his eyes to look at him: "Aiqing doesn't have to worry. Since I didn't cure anyone's sins because of the talents, how could I make amends afterwards? ”

"I really can't hide anything from the emperor. Your question really scared the sinners enough. ”

"Maybe you don't know yet, do you? She is already pregnant with a dragon. It was she who hoped that the child would be safe, so she asked me to wait for the fetus to sit firmly before it was made public. ”

"The sinner understands. It turns out that the emperor was able to spare the guilty ministers, and did not implicate the entire Gao family, and there is also a credit to Zhou Cairen. ”

The two of them drank a few glasses of wine each.

The emperor fell into deep thought, and after a good while, he raised his eyes again: "It's okay to talk to you. I knew that in a few days, your father-in-law would come forward to intercede for you, and then it would seem that I was unsympathetic. ”

Before Gao Junming could reply, he said again: "Besides, our colleagues and ministers for so many years, if we spare you, can't we have a share of my credit?" ”

Gao Junming only said in a low voice: "How can the criminal minister be deed!" ”

"The ministers left one by one, and I felt more and more alone. Guess who I met the other day? ”

"Please also ask the emperor to make it clear."

"Pei Zimu. How? Don't remember, do you? ”

Gao Junming was stunned and said, "Him! Pei Wenjing's son. Your Majesty, please don't scare the criminals, you can't stand the scare at this age. It's in a prison again, this kind of eerie place. Isn't he dead? ”

The emperor smiled and said, "Since you asked, I will tell you." Actually, he didn't die. Back then, I used the bag trick to exchange for Pei Zimu, and he survived. Do you think that I have disregarded the law of the country and acted favoritism? ”

"The sinners don't dare."

"At that time, Wang Junhao, the son of Squire Wang, was indeed a big mistake to forcibly defile the woman, I thought that Pei Zimu was excusable for beating people to death, but the other party came to be fierce and hastily convicted him, there was no chance to explain or intercede at all, and the discerning person wanted his life at a glance. If he hadn't found a substitute for the dead, he would have died sooner or later. I wanted to rescue him no matter what, and Qin Huaiying, the scapegoat of the year, died shortly after he was imprisoned. Therefore, you think that he and his father are both dying. This time, as soon as he heard that you had been caught, he ran. ”

Gao Junming said angrily: "Pei Zimu must have fallen into the well." ”

"How can I not see this? He wants to punish you severely. This kid still has hatred in his heart. ”

"Your Majesty, after all, Wang Junhao is dead. Wouldn't it be unfair to Squire Wang's father and son when you rescued Pei Zimu? ”

"I also thought that Wang Junhao's crime would not lead to death, and I had already paid Squire Wang two taels of silver." After speaking, the emperor drank a glass of wine, "Thinking about these past events now, it's like a dream." ”

"These kids are really good enough to cause trouble." Gao Junming sighed.

"Actually, I had seen him secretly earlier. Otherwise, how would I know the cause of Pei Wenjing's death back then? ”

As soon as he heard "Pei Wenjing's cause of death", Gao Junming immediately knelt down: "The criminal deserves to die!" ”

"You get up. If I wanted to settle accounts with you, I would have done it a long time ago, and I would have to wait until this time! Although I drank a little wine, I was not so confused that I turned over old accounts. Can't you see that I just want to catch up with you? ”

Gao Junming didn't get up, still kneeling: "Yes, the criminal minister will not have any position in the future, and he will only have to catch up with the emperor." So your majesty, you will let go of telling the guilty ministers this. However, it is also the honor of the guilty minister. ”

"There is another reason why I saved Pei Zimu back then, that is, I felt that Pei Wenjing died strangely, and even thought that he was not guilty of death. Facts have proved that it was right to leave Pei Zimu behind. Only he is qualified to open the coffin for an autopsy. Pei Wenjing's final burial was for others to see, and Pei Zimu dug up the grave overnight, carefully examined it, and said that it was poisoned. I have seen Pei Wenjing's bones with my own eyes, and it is indeed poisoned. But at that time, he was told that he had hanged himself. At that time, it was suspected that it was related to the crown prince. Even though I knew the cause of his death, I still wanted to hear it with my own ears. ”

"The criminal naturally understands the emperor's wisdom and only wants to defend himself. Indeed, he was poisoned and died, and the criminal was the one who poisoned him back then. It was Prince Yin's order to die for Pei Wenjing, and he didn't dare to disobey as a subordinate. Your Majesty, I also blame myself. The criminal found an opportunity to worship Pei Wenjing another day, hoping that he could feel at ease under the Nine Springs. ”

Pei Zimu has already reburied Pei Wenjing. If you want to go, just go. But I'm a little puzzled, you have done so many important things for Jiancheng, you can be said to be his henchman. But you can betray him. ”

Gao Junming lowered his head, knowing that there was a person who had betrayed the "past", and he should be questioned by the next master. He replied, "It is because the sinner has done all his best for the prince that he has taken the risk of doing these things for him, but he is suspicious." Your Majesty, you are a Ming monarch, 'don't use suspicious people, don't suspect people', as long as you use the guilty ministers, even if it is a day or an hour, you must be trusted. This is something that Prince Yin can't do. ”

"Practice has proved that Aiqing has made great contributions to the imperial court. If I don't reuse you in the first place, wouldn't it prove that I am a faint king? ”

"The sinners don't dare. The reason why I will take refuge in you is only for objective reasons, and of course there are subjective reasons. The sinners have long seen the emperor's majesty, and you need a position to prove yourself. Therefore, the sinner has long expected that the world belongs to you. 'Good birds choose trees to perch on', of course, the guilty minister chooses such a master. ”

At this point, each of them is relatively clear in their hearts. Without further words, the two of them drank not a drop of two jugs of wine.