There was a huge quarrel among the civil and military officials.
Xiao Jian's treatment methods can be described as polarizing.
Zongzheng Temple suffered a theft and fire last night, and the frame-up was confirmed. Moreover, something similar to aphrodisiacs was found in the sleeping place of the maid Lanhua. The evidence is conclusive and fully proves that Xiao Jian was set up.
Therefore, the ministers who now support Qin Yun, such as Qi Yong, the Minister of Punishment, and others all support the acquittal of Xiao Jian.
But on the other side, Wang Wei and other powerful officials, as well as the sour scholars and admonishers headed by Wei Zheng, expressed their opposition.
"Your Majesty, even if Xiao Jian was framed, it has already happened. The matter of defiling the late emperor's concubines is a fact. If it is not dealt with, where will the majesty of the royal family be?!"
Wei Zheng's voice was loud, like an angry old lion.
"That's right, in my opinion, Ma Jieyu must be executed, and Xiao Jian must also be severely punished. It is best to be expelled from the imperial capital and regain the military power of Mang Mountain!" A third-rank minister agreed.
Wang Wei said nothing and just watched.
Qi Yong, Zhao Heng and others jumped out one after another and started arguing with them.
As the top general in His Majesty's military, Xiao Jian will suffer a great loss if he is punished. This will also be a great loss of interests for Qi Yong and others.
After all, it is no longer possible for them to reconcile with Wang Wei. The previous surrender was a life-or-death feud.
Qin Yun looked at the argument below calmly and was not surprised.
For such a big thing, someone must take the blame. The maids in Lanhua are the first to bear the brunt and must be executed. As for Xiao Jian, it is unjustifiable if he is not punished on the surface.
"Gentlemen, please stop arguing!" He said slowly.
All the civil and military officials quickly fell silent and looked at Qin Yun.
"The slave girl Lan Hua and others who created the figurines will be beheaded by the Queen of Autumn."
"Ma Jieyu, order her to lead the monks to pray for Daxia."
"Xiao Jian." Qin Yun paused for a moment and then said thoughtfully: "I will fine him a year's salary, remove the first-grade official title of generalissimo, and lead the armies of the three places in Mangshan as a second-grade general."
"What do you all think of this punishment?" Qin Yun looked at everyone.
All the civil and military officials fell into deep thought. This punishment was actually a fair result.
Xiao Jian's status as generalissimo was eliminated and he was demoted from the first rank to the second rank. This was a heavy punishment. The number one military general was instantly on an equal footing with generals such as Wang Ming.
Even ministers who don't want to see the Xiao family grow bigger still think it's acceptable.
Wang Wei stood up slowly, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I think it's okay, but it's not enough!"
"Oh?" Qin Yun's eyes showed a cold look. I haven't dealt with Wang Min yet, but you old guy dared to jump out and object. I really don't understand!
"Then Wang Aiqing, what do you think should be the most appropriate punishment?"
Wang Wei stroked his beard, smiled calmly, and said loudly: "Your Majesty, the incident in the Lotus Garden, plus what happened last night, is really ridiculous!"
"The royal concubine was assassinated and is still lying in bed. I think we should investigate seriously and find out the mastermind behind Lan Hua and other maids!"
"First, let's find justice for the noble concubine."
"Secondly, I want to redress the injustice for the imperial concubine, so that some people will not make use of this matter to make a fuss about it and implicate the imperial concubine and my Wang family."
He did not object to the way Xiao Jian was handled, but at the same time he distanced himself from the relationship between the Wang family and Wang Min and the frame-up case.
Qin Yun looked at Wang Wei, an old fox, with calm eyes. Was he so confident that Lanhua and others would not confess?
Some civil and military officials stood up to support the imperial concubine and attack the mastermind behind the scenes.
Of course, Qin Yun would not break up with the Wang family when he didn't have absolute evidence and an absolute upper hand.
So he took the initiative to smile and said: "Wang Aiqing, you are worrying too much."
"I believe that the imperial concubine is the victim and has nothing to do with the frame-up case. Those who say that the Wang family is involved in this case are completely false."
"I will not follow the trend casually, so don't worry."
Wang Wei showed a restrained smile, knelt down and shouted respectfully: "Your Majesty is wise!"
Seeing that Qin Yun and Wang Wei had reached an agreement, the other ministers also shouted as if they had a tacit understanding.
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
At this point, on the surface, this matter has been simply revealed.
Xiao Jian was quickly released and resumed his duties. It was just a disaster that caused him to lose his rank of marshal. Moreover, many pedantic scholars secretly scolded him.
In the morning.
Guo Ziyun reported that the famine in Guanzhong has been initially improved.
The money and food from the imperial court will arrive long ago, and now we are just waiting for the second batch of money and food to arrive.
Without saying a word, Qin Yun allocated another 600,000 taels of silver from the treasury, and ordered the states and counties to take out some grain and transport it to provide disaster relief.
A careful calculation shows that during these days, traitors were continuously executed and homes were ransacked, and the amount of money and various treasures harvested was more than the amount provided for disaster relief.
It can be regarded as taking it from the people and using it for the people.
One more thing!
It was the old man Wei Zheng who led a group of remonstrating ministers to jointly petition Qin Yun to choose a concubine as soon as possible, fill the harem, and produce heirs!
The reason is that without the prince, the country has no foundation. If poisoning and assassination happen again, the court will inevitably be in turmoil again, and powerful officials will rebel again.
Finally, all the ministers knelt down and begged Qin Yun to pick a concubine.
It was the first time Qin Yun heard such a good idea coming from Wei Zheng's mouth. He agreed on the spot and rewarded Wei Zheng with a gilded crutch.
As a man, having thousands of concubines and still being considered a handful is indeed the pinnacle of life.
…
Imperial Garden, small pavilion in the lake.
Qin Yun sat here to rest and listened to Feng Lao's report.
"Your Majesty, I have personally been to Linglong Palace and found no Datura flower poison."
"The old slave is still actively checking the imperial hospital secretly to see if the poison was administered by the imperial doctors."
Qin Yun nodded with a far-reaching gaze: "Mr. Feng, what do you think of Wang Min's injury this time?"
Mr. Feng frowned and said briefly: "Regardless of whether it's true or false, you can't touch the royal concubine now."
"How do you say it?" Qin Yun turned back with interest.
"Your Majesty's current foundation is not stable. He is too radical. I am afraid that someone will jump over the wall in a hurry. Furthermore, just because the perpetrator is the maid of the royal concubine, it is difficult to convince the public that he is a concubine and the daughter of the royal family.
"
"I think your Majesty can wait for news of the interrogation from the Ministry of Punishment first."
Qin Yun nodded and expressed deep agreement: "I think so too. Without irrefutable evidence, it is difficult to convict."
"The Wang family is so powerful that you have to boil the frog in warm water and do it slowly."
"Over at Linglong Hall, you send shadow guards to monitor it day and night. No more trouble will occur in the harem."
Old Feng nodded.
At this time, Tao Yang stepped forward and reported: "Your Majesty, the Minister of Punishment, Qi Yong, wants to see you."
"Please come in." Qin Yun raised his eyebrows. Could it be that there was some progress in interrogating Lan Hua?
Qi Yong looked ugly, walked to the pavilion, knelt down, and said in panic.
"Your Majesty, all those who committed crimes in Linglong Palace committed suicide by biting their tongues...including Orchid."