A court of the Shen family has a court of the front yard.

Chen Xi and Zhu Houzhao had a serious expression and sat upright in front of the main hall. There were more than a dozen civil and military ministers and nobles sitting on both sides.

The Zhang brothers stood in the middle of the yard, and there were a large number of guards behind them to prevent misconduct.

Zhang Yanling sneered: "Shangshu Chen, you really know how to slander people. You frame us everything. When will we collude with Japanese pirates and train troops overseas? Isn't anyone caring about this accusation that makes nothing?"

When he raised his head again, he felt guilty when he saw Zhu Houzhao's gaze, so he quickly looked around and avoided it.

Chen Xidao: "People and physical evidence are there. Do you need to interrogate in detail in front of you, Marquis Jianchang?"

Zhang Yanling said: "Who swears at the swear word, who is evidence of physical evidence? I don't know these people at all... Look at these guys who look like they are vulgar and despicable, and you're bored when you look at them. How could I associate with them?"

Originally, the Zhang brothers appeared here as criminals, but because Zhang Yanling was a hereditary marquis and his relatives were used to being arrogant and domineering, he acted arbitrarily in front of the emperor and would not take Chen Xi seriously.

Chen Xi looked calm and did not hurry to Zhang Yanling. He said slowly: "You don't know the people who came out of your mansion, but you don't know them? There are also these people who were sent by the Japanese pirates to the capital to contact you. When they were arrested, they happened to meet, and some evidence was found from your mansion. There are also letters for you to contact the Japanese pirates..."

"Shen Zhihou, you are framed and accused!" Zhang Yanling shouted.

Chen Xi said it with confidence, so that the ministers present who were not sure of each other had their own thoughts. Xie Qian had already wanted to speak out. At this moment, he quickly stood up and saluted Zhu Houzhao: "Your Majesty, there are still many things that are not clear about in this case. We should make a long-term plan, and we should not investigate it rashly... Please ask Your Majesty to postpone the case and retrial."

"Please think twice."

Yang Tinghe and Xie Qian stood together, and immediately got up and spoke.

Zhu Houzhao narrowed his eyes and looked at the people in front of him, with disappointment in his expression, but he did not turn against him in the end, just said gloomy: "I'm just here to listen to the case, just like you... I have something to tell Shangshu Chen, he thinks it's OK, that's fine."

The matter was pushed to Chen Xi again.

Chen Xidao: "Tongfan letters are available, and people are also from the Marquis of Jianchang's mansion... Master Xie Ge, do you still feel that the case is unclear? Do you have to wait until all the thieves are brought and then ask them to prove that the Marquis of Shouning and Marquis of Jianchang have contact with them one by one before they can finally be convicted?"

Xie Qian said with a dark face: "The case has been heard, and all the evidences and physical evidence must stand the scrutiny. Now, these evidences are unknown. How can we determine that they were made by Marquis Shouning and Marquis Jianchang?"

Chen Xi said coldly: "Then let's make a decision first. If it is not the criminal, you can defend yourself... Marquis Jianchang, you said that you are not involved in the case, but it is irrefutable that your subordinates have contacted with the thief. Someone tried to break into the Leopard Room and attempt to assassinate His Majesty. Fortunately, they were discovered by the Jinyiwei and killed on the spot... Do you dare to say that this matter has nothing to do with you?"

Zhang Yanling smiled coldly and asked, "Everyone is dead, can they still survive and prove that this marquis is not successful?"

Chen Xidao: "People are killed, but they have letters from senior Japanese officials asking them to do things, and their clothes and weapons are also commonly used by Japanese people. In the letters of Japanese people, it is clearly stated that after arriving in the capital, the people from the Marquis of Jianchang will help lead the way..."

"Nothing nonsense, what kind of Japanese letters? Could it be that you still know Japanese writing?"

Zhang Yanling was not very clear about the Japanese assassination of the emperor, and Chen Xi insisted that it was related to him and felt extremely panicked.

If he doesn't know the truth, he doesn't know how to argue, and he doesn't even know any evidence in Chen Xi's hands.

Chen Xi said calmly: "Come, bring the weapons, clothes and letters used by the assassin."

This time, the officers and soldiers of the Jinyiwei sent the things and placed them on the ground in front of the Zhang brothers. Even though there were twenty or thirty lanterns hanging around the yard, people still couldn't see clearly what they were because there were people sitting around, blocking the light.

Chen Xidao: "Marty Jianchang, do you need to find someone to verify it?"

"False accusations are all false accusations!"

Zhang Yanling continued to argue, but he felt that there was no real evidence. Even if there were any Japanese letters, he could still ask them to be framed by Japanese.

Chen Xi said again: "Since Marquis Jianchang doesn't want to verify it, put that thing aside first. Here is evidence that you betrayed the secrets of the Ming army..."

Zhang Yanling widened his eyes, not knowing where Chen Xi’s accusation began.

Chen Xi glanced at Zhu Houzhao with a focused expression beside him and waved his hand: "Transfer to Zhao Qi, a member of the Ministry of Industry!"

Immediately, a group of guards appeared in front of the door and escorted an official in his forties to Zhu Houzhao and Chen Xi. The official knelt down and kowtowed: "The old minister has seen Your Majesty, and you all."

Zhu Houzhao looked at Chen Xi, obviously not very clear about the person in front of him.

Although the official rank of the Ministry of Works is not low, he, as an emperor, rarely goes to see ministers, and it is even more impossible for him to know who is the middle and lower-level ministers.

Chen Xidao: "You are responsible for guarding the military equipment drawings. The drawings leaked before were leaked from you... Are you guilty?"

Zhao Qi kowtowed and said, "When he replied to Mr. Shen, these drawings were kept well, but when His Majesty was in charge of the army, Marquis Jianchang used the excuse of checking and borrowing all the drawings for more than ten days. When he returned them, he was missing... It was said that it was damaged due to improper storage."

Zhang Yanling looked ugly and said, "So what? I borrowed the drawings just to study the firearms in the Ming army, and wanted to provide suggestions for the improvement of the firearms."

No one present believed this.

You are a relative who is a nepotist. You are already respectful to you when you are in charge of the army. You actually want to transform a firearm? Do you have this ability?

Chen Xidao: "The problem is that after you borrowed the drawings, these drawings appeared in the hands of the Japanese pirates. They relied on the Ming Dynasty's technology to transform the firearms they equipped and then used them to conquer cities and lands along the Ming coast... It is said that Zhu Sui, a hundred households in the Jingying camp."

Another general was immediately escorted in, but he was a general in the Beijing camp. He was directly pressed to the ground by the Jinyiwei's hands, but he didn't say anything.

Chen Xi asked, "Zhu Sui, I found out that more than half a year ago, you escorted a batch of weapons from the capital to the south, with a total of more than 2,000 muskets, as well as a large number of ammunition and weapons. Where did you transport these?"

Before Zhu Sui could reply, Zhang Yanling was already angry and shouted: "Don't bite people randomly, kid! Be careful of your and your family's life."

Originally, the people present didn't think that this incident was related to Zhang Yanling. After listening to his threatening words, they realized that this incident must have been done by Zhang Yanling.

Zhu Sui said: "When I go back to Lord Shen, it was the Marquis of Shouning who sent villains to transport weapons out of the capital!"

Zhang Heling was thinking about how to get out of the matter. When he heard this, he quickly said, "Why are you talking nonsense? When will I ask you to transport the weapons to the south?"

Chen Xi asked with a cold face: "Why, Marquis Shouning, are you going to threaten the witness like Marquis Jianchang?"

Zhang Heling suddenly said nothing, but heard Zhu Sui say: "When the villain escorted the armies, he had seen the Marquis of Shouning. He said that he would send these military supplies to the Central Plains to help the local area to quell the rebellion. However, after transporting them to the local area, he received an order from the capital, saying that he would continue to send them south. Later, he was transported to a port in Haizhou, and some unknown people would transport them by sea."

Zhang Heling was stunned and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, this matter really has nothing to do with me. I remember that those batches of weapons... were originally transported to Guide Mansion and handed over to local officers and soldiers to quell the rebellion."

Zhu Houzhao said quietly: "Can ordinary garrison troops be equipped with such a large number of firearms? At that time, I was leading troops in the northwest. Whose order did you receive to transport the weapons equipped by the Beijing camp to other places?"

Zhang Heling had no idea how to explain it for a moment. He did not have a deep memory of this matter. He seemed to be an order from the Governor's Office of the Five Army, but he forgot who gave him the warrant at that time.

Zhang Heling didn't know that all this was caused by Zhang Yanling. It was his brother who forged military orders, and the people who took over this group of military orders in Haizhou were also sent by Zhang Yanling.

Chen Xi said again: "Mr. Jianchang, you won't say that this matter has nothing to do with you, right?"

"Of course it doesn't matter."

Zhang Yanling raised his head and said arrogantly, "This little officer with a bigger sesame may have been used by someone. His firearm was not an order issued by this marquis."

Zhang Heling looked at his younger brother in a daze, then shouted angrily: "What are you saying? It's not you, is it an order issued for your brother? It must be you doing it behind your back..."

Halfway through, Zhang Heling didn't say anything. He originally planned to betray his younger brother and keep it alone, but now he found that he seemed to be tied up with his younger brother and shared honor and disgrace. Even if he betrayed his younger brother, he would not be able to get any benefits.

Chen Xidao: "Come here, bring in the thief caught from outside the city!"

After Chen Xi finished speaking, another guard entered the yard.

This time, there were two boxes. After the boxes were put away, the guards opened the boxes. They were filled with weapons, but they were not standard weapons of the Ming officers and soldiers, but weapons commonly used by pirates such as harpoons and Japanese swords.

Chen Xidao: "These things were seized from the warehouse where you, Marquis of Jianchang, privately collected gold, silver and jewelry outside the city. In addition to these, there are dozens of boxes. You won't say that it has nothing to do with you, right?"

"Why do you say it belongs to me?"

Zhang Yanling refused to admit it again.

Chen Xi was still calm: "It is said that the Jianchang Hou Mansion was in charge of the warehouse outside the city."

Then several people were taken into the yard. These people were all stewards and people who looked like tents. After kneeling down, they kowtowed desperately. Chen Xi said, "Your Majesty is right in front of you. To be honest, you can spare your lives... You are slaves of the Marquis of Jianchang, and these things are you usually keep?"

"Yes, sir... spare your life, sir..." These people were very afraid of death because they were a lot of people and were arrested on the spot, so they had no way to deny it.

Chen Xi waved his hand and these people, together with Zhao Qi and Zhu Sui, were all escorted down. Chen Xi said again: "Marty Jianchang, what else do you have to say?"

Zhang Yanling said arrogantly: "I don't know them, they all speak nonsense, not enough to accept it!"

Under the evidence of personal evidence, Zhang Yanling was still trying hard to be cunning, which made everyone present extremely despised. However, Xie Qian didn't care about despising Zhang Yanling. He was already thinking about how to crack the chain tricks used by Chen Xi.

Xie Qian said in his heart: "No, let this kid try the case, he must ask the bottom line. If he is asked to continue the trial, even if the last two uncles do not admit it, he can still be convicted... His Majesty is present."

As soon as he thought of this, Xie Qian quickly stood up and advised: "Your Majesty, it is of great importance. This case can be postponed for trial."
Chapter completed!