As soon as Fang Zheng said this, Emperor Jing slammed the table and leapt to his feet, exclaiming excitedly, “Excellent! Well said! Lord Fang is truly my right-hand man.”

“You flatter me, Your Majesty. These are just some thoughts from my heart,” Fang Zheng replied with a grin.

He had long wanted to find an opportunity to quote those four lines from the Classic of Poetry. If not him, then who else could put on such airs in the court?

The court officials were all dumbfounded, looking at Fang Zheng with strange expressions.

His words were indeed righteous and heroic, cutting right to the heart of a scholar’s ideals.

But who says…that you, Fang Zheng, of all people, have the right to say them? Everyone knows what kind of man you are. Shamelessly fawning over His Majesty from the get-go.

With such coquettish demeanor, who among us can grovel faster than you? And yet you pretend to be a man of integrity!

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, Emperor Jing also felt a bit embarrassed, realizing he had reacted too excitedly just now.

He had forgotten that this brat Fang Zheng had always been disliked in the court, and that he seemed to…want to hide away in Taoyuan County all along…

With that thought, the emperor resumed his usual countenance and added, “Lord Fang spoke very well. All officials should take him as an example.”

Having said that, he sat back down.

Crown Prince Li Yuanzhao couldn’t help feeling smug, hands on his hips. Old Fang was that kind of person, and so was he – they shared the same ideals!

Upon hearing this, Guo Tianyang lowered his eyelids, his hands hidden in his sleeves ceaselessly writing and drawing, muttering phrases like “common prosperity” and “dedicating one’s life to the people”.

He thought to himself that he mustn’t fall behind Fang Zheng, whose skills seemed to be constantly improving…

The court officials remained silent, feeling as uncomfortable as if they had swallowed a fly.

They all had the same thought in their minds: Why wasn’t I the one to say those words?

Tang Shou sat on the ground, his heart as cold as ice, helplessly looking around…was there really no place for him to clear his grievances?

Was the imperial court really so dark?

In the end, he still turned his pleading gaze towards Zhang Shi, constantly hinting with his eyes. Wasn’t he going to mention Fang Zheng’s tax evasion?

Zhang Shi’s face was as calm as water. Ignoring Tang Shou, he stepped forward and said gravely, “Your Majesty, this man is glib-tongued, constantly claiming to act for the country and the people, but how does he explain his tax evasion?”

“Tang Shou also knows a thing or two about this matter. Please have him enlighten Your Majesty!”

Tang Shou scrambled to his feet. “Reporting to Your Majesty! It’s true that Taoyuan County has evaded taxes!”

“Five years ago, due to severe population shortage and local poverty, the court specially exempted Taoyuan County and Jihua County from taxes, but this policy had limitations.”

“Taoyuan County has long since ceased to be as poor as before, yet it has been concealing its true situation.”

“When I went to Hengjiang Prefecture, I asked the officials in charge of inspecting tax collection in each county. These officials had never seen anyone from Taoyuan County and didn’t even know such a place existed!”

“Therefore, I dare say with certainty that Taoyuan County has not been paying taxes!”

Emperor Jing turned to look at Fang Zheng.

Fang Zheng clasped his hands. “Reporting to Your Majesty! Although Taoyuan County has developed quite well, the county government truly lacks money.”

“In recent years, the vast majority of the silver earned has been invested in improving people’s livelihoods, especially in education!”

“In order to make the people understand reason and appreciate the emperor’s benevolence, I have spared no effort to promote literacy among all the people of the county, ensuring they have books to read.”

“On the other hand, the governance of Taoyuan County emphasizes hiding wealth among the people. Any money must be spent on infrastructure. Naturally, if there’s no money, that’s to be expected. If you don’t believe me, you can send someone to audit the accounts at any time. I, Fang Zheng, have nothing to hide!”

What a joke. As if you old fogeys could see through the fake accounts of my Taoyuan County!

Emperor Jing nodded slightly.

Seeing this, Fang Zheng continued, “Of course, there may be some unpaid taxes, which is my negligence. The county has no money now, but after letting Taoyuan County sort through it again, we will make up the payment.”

“This is my fault! I request Your Majesty’s punishment!”

One always had to give the big boss some room to maneuver so he could save face.

Although it might cost a bit more money, that was unimportant. If he had to spend it, then so be it. Consider it a small price to pay to avoid disaster!

It’s just money. You old things, just wait and see if I sell you health products in the future!

Emperor Jing also breathed a sigh of relief. It was best to conclude this matter quickly.

This brat Fang Zheng caused him no end of worries!

“Very well! In light of Fang Zheng’s outstanding political achievements during his tenure, the matter of the missing taxes will be punished with the withholding of his salary for one year as a disciplinary measure. What do you think, ministers?”

No one spoke. There were no objections.

Things had already reached this point. If you didn’t know better, you might think Fang Zheng was His Majesty’s own son. Who dared to say another word?

If it were someone else, they would have likely been dragged out and beaten by now, but this brat was still standing in the hall, looking all proud of himself.

“Good! Since that’s the case, then this matter is settled!”

Zhang Shi showed no unusual reaction, quietly stepping back.

Tang Shou stood in the hall, his heart turned to ash…he never imagined Fang Zheng had such a powerful background. Revenge…was hopeless…

“I have a memorial to present! Fang Zheng poisoned prisoners, killing a total of fifty-four lives! I implore Your Majesty to severely punish him!” Yan Guoan stepped forward and declared.

Fang Zheng glanced at him, then at Zhang Shi. Judging from Zhang Shi’s unsurprised expression, he had clearly already known about this matter.

It seemed the two had already joined forces…

Upon hearing this, the hearts of the court officials were all in their throats as they looked at Fang Zheng in horror.

Those standing close to him hurriedly took a few steps back.

Everyone could tolerate this brat’s glib tongue, but they never expected that behind his scholarly appearance, he was actually a murderous madman. Fang the Butcher, you’re a ruthless one!

Emperor Jing’s brows furrowed tightly as he stared at Fang Zheng. “Is this true?”

He didn’t know the situation now, but if they were talking about murder, that was a serious crime. And killing fifty-four people in one go – excluding on the battlefield, the emperor hadn’t heard of such a vicious incident in many years…

Fang Zheng wasn’t flustered at all. He honestly said, “Reporting to Your Majesty, it is indeed true! However, there is a reason behind this matter…”

“Your Majesty! Allow me to explain. I’m worried that Fang Zheng will distort the facts with his clever words!” Yan Guoan said with a stern face.

“Very well, you may speak!”

Yan Guoan closed his eyes, carefully recalling the details in his memory. This time, he must overturn Fang Zheng in one fell swoop. Leaving this man in the imperial court would surely bring disaster.

Zhang Shi, as a senior official, had also been rendered speechless. This time…he couldn’t lose again!

“Does Your Majesty recall, some time ago, the crown prince often skipped his lessons without reason? It was from that time that I began to pay attention to the crown prince’s movements.”

“I discovered that the crown prince was actually using Fang Zheng’s gold medallion to disguise himself and run out of the palace!”

“So I also began to send people to investigate Fang Zheng’s whereabouts. I found that he and the crown prince had been secretly carrying out some activities.”

“Not long after, the crown prince stopped sneaking out of the palace. After much investigation, I discovered that Fang Zheng and the crown prince had been privately executing prisoners in a dungeon in the capital!”

“Those prisoners died in extremely miserable states! Does everyone know, the mysterious figure currently spreading terror among the people in the city, causing them to panic, the Poisonous Butcher, is none other than Fang Zheng!”