Chapter 722: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 722: Mo Qingze Imprisoned (3)
Everything seemed prearranged, and a dramatic upheaval occurred overnight. As Mo Yan arrived at the Ministry of Justice with her two “maidservants,” Li Yan and Tang Xin, in a carriage, she was greeted by discussions about the examination fraud case. She even encountered several groups of students on their way to the palace, who, with righteous indignation, were denouncing the fraudsters with the kind of anger one might reserve for a blood feud.
Mo Yan's heart sank with these passionate discussions. If they could clear her father’s name of the cheating accusations, it would be a relief, but if not, she could hardly imagine what awaited her family.
While the students gathered at the palace gates, the Ministry of Justice was quiet. Mo Yan was the first to disembark from the carriage. After Li Yan and Tang Xin had taken care of the blankets, clothes, and food prepared for Mo Qingze, she instructed the horse, Da Hongzao, to wait in a nearby alley. The three of them then proceeded toward the Ministry of Justice’s entrance.
At the entrance, two guards blocked Mo Yan’s way. “The Ministry of Justice is a restricted area. Unrelated persons are not allowed inside. Miss, please leave at once!”
Had Mo Yan not been so distinguished, with an exceptional demeanor and appearance, and accompanied by two “maidservants,” the guards would have been even more stern.
Adopting the bearing of a county princess, Mo Yan addressed the guards with full authority: “This county princess has urgent business to see one of your superiors. Please go and inform them immediately.”
The guards, understanding the significance of the title "county princess" and knowing that Emperor Huian had recently ennobled a county princess, believed her without hesitation. They immediately became respectful, bowing and saying, “Please wait here, County Princess. We will inform the officials at once.”
Mo Yan nodded, her expression softening appropriately. “Thank you.”
Under the guidance of one of the guards, they entered the Ministry of Justice and waited in a room near the entrance.
The guard offered Mo Yan a seat and a cup of tea before hurriedly going to deliver the message.
As they entered the Ministry of Justice, Li Yan and Tang Xin relaxed a bit, though they were still somewhat intimidated by the reputation of the place. Watching Mo Yan calmly observing the outside, they admired her bravery.
If it had been them facing the guards, even if they were also county princesses, they wouldn’t have had the courage to proceed. This was probably the biggest difference between them and their sister Yan Yan!
Mo Yan was not as calm inside as she appeared on the surface.
Soon, two officials, one wearing a higher rank’s hat and the other a lower rank’s uniform, arrived in haste. The front official was the Deputy Minister of Justice, and the one behind had a lower rank. Seeing Mo Yan seated in the room, they hurriedly approached and bowed, saying, “We did not know County Princess was visiting. We apologize for the lack of a proper reception. Please forgive us!”
Mo Yan slightly raised her hand, signaling them to rise. “It was my oversight not to announce my visit. You need not blame yourselves.” Without waiting for further pleasantries, she got straight to the point: “I am here to see my father. May I ask if you can assist with this?”
Seeing the two officials’ puzzled expressions, Mo Yan quickly added, “My father is Mo Qingze, who has been falsely accused of cheating in the examination.”
The officials’ expressions changed noticeably, clearly shocked to learn that Mo Qingze, who had just been imprisoned by the Emperor and become a center of controversy overnight, was the father of the newly ennobled county princess.
Even so, the officials did not dare to be dismissive of Mo Yan. After all, the examination fraud case was still unresolved, and the truth was unknown. As long as the title of County Princess was not revoked by the Emperor, she was someone they could not afford to offend.
(End of Chapter)
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