“The wisdom cannot help each other, and the strength cannot defeat each other.” [Shenzi]
Dong Cheng glared at Ma Rixi after hearing this, but he calmed down in his heart. If it was for this matter, then it would be okay. After all, everything Dong Cheng did was based on Qingniujiao's plan and was done in accordance with the will of God.
.If he pleads guilty, doesn’t it mean that the emperor is at fault?
Therefore, Dong Cheng denied: "This is absolutely not the case! According to the law, they occupied Shanglin land and reclaimed it wantonly, and they should have been punished. Not to mention the Jingzhao Wang family, Dong family and other wealthy families, who ignored the national law and destroyed the Shanglin Garden.
The beams, columns, bricks and tiles of the gardens of Yichun Garden, Dinghu Palace, Changyang Palace and other places were removed and used to build manors and houses. Such a major treason, confiscating the property is already a light sentence, how can it be said to be wrong?"
Ma Rixi retorted: "Shanglin Garden has been destroyed by war several times in the past two hundred years. All the beams and pillars in the garden were burned down and decayed. How could they be torn down and built another house? As for the style of bricks and tiles, the ones used by the people are mostly similar, so how can we tell whether they are the same ones?
Is it used by Shang Lin? I'm afraid that the Sili Xiaowei may not have verified the truth and was deceived by his subordinates."
Dong Cheng was quick to speak and did not think of this incident. Fortunately, he had already made some remarks, and now he replied: "Liangdong can be burned and rotted, but bricks and tiles cannot! I dare to ask the Taiwei, this 'Shanglan Liquan'
, is the tile with the words 'Dinghu Extends Life' something that ordinary wealthy people can use?"
Seeing that Ma Rixi froze immediately and had nothing to say, Dong Cheng felt very proud and took advantage of the victory and said: "When my family builds their mansion, they only use some auspicious tiles of 'immortality' and 'eternal blessing'.
These powerful and arrogant people, taking advantage of their family background, actually took Shanglin's royal tiles for personal use. This not only violates the rules, but also violates the laws of the country!"
Ma Rixi's face turned green and white, and he sat aside, unable to say a word in defense of those bold and powerful men.
"Okay." The emperor who had been watching finally spoke. He looked at Ma Rixi and mocked: "If the imperial court had not moved its capital to Chang'an, in a few years someone would have demolished the beams, pillars and bricks of Weiyang Palace.
I’m building a private house!”
"Lieutenant!"
The emperor shouted loudly, which woke Ma Rixi out of his fugue. He looked at Dong Cheng, who looked like a winner, and then at the emperor, feeling at a loss.
The emperor continued: "Do you think these people should be severely punished?"
Building materials and specifications in this era did not have strict restrictions like those in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Even the tiles like "Long Live Qianqiu", which in later generations were like the word "Da Ni", can be used by ordinary people today. Whether it is a folk residence or a
Most of the tiles used in royal palaces are of the same style, and the color is blue and gray. Except for the finer workmanship and more patterns, it is actually difficult to distinguish the two together.
Therefore, for the sake of temporary vanity, these powerful people in Beijing took advantage of the capital's eastward movement and paid little attention to Chang'an. It has become a bad custom to privately move bricks and tiles from the forest to build farms. The scholars hid it from each other, but they got along well.
Anyway, these types of building materials all have the same style. If someone really investigates, they cannot definitely say that they came from Shanglin.
But what Ma Rixi hated the most was that these powerful men were so used to being arrogant that they just took Shanglin's ordinary tiles in return. Unexpectedly, they were bold enough to take the tiles, and they took the tiles with the palace name engraved on them!
Today, Dong Cheng exploited the topic and exposed it, so it is fitting that they should suffer this retribution.
It was just difficult for Ma Rixi, who had to suffer an unreasonable disaster. Faced with the emperor's questioning, he struggled to distance himself from the relationship and hurriedly said: "These people have no regard for the law of the country. They should indeed be investigated and punished to serve as a warning to others. I was temporarily negligent. I hope that your majesty will do the same."
Forgive me!"
"You are obviously confused!" The emperor knew that Ma Rixi did not make any big mistake in this matter. After all, it was not he, the Fufeng Ma family, who stole Shanglin's bricks and tiles, so he deliberately scolded him and waved him away.
The two left.
Ma Rixi left in a hurry as if he had received an amnesty. However, Dong Cheng accepted the imperial edict and did not leave in a hurry. He still stood aside and secretly stared at the emperor.
When the emperor saw it, he understood what he meant. He couldn't help but sneered a few times in his heart and said: "I can see that you have done well in the past few days. Don't worry, I won't let you down!"
Dong Cheng then smiled with satisfaction, as if he had been rewarded, as if he had received some kind of promise, and bowed before leaving.
After Ma Rixi returned, the more he thought about it, the more ashamed he became, and he fell ill within a few days.
Sun Rui, the minister of the Shangshu, Ma Yu, the minister of the imperial court, and the fifth patrol of the Guan Nong Ling came all the way to visit. They only heard the imperial physician Ling Zhixi say: "The Taiwei is suffering from heart palpitations caused by internal heat. Young Master
If you sleep a lot and have many dreams, you should not overwork yourself these days and rest peacefully."
"What kind of decoction should I take?" Ma Yu, a member of Ma Rixi's family, asked with concern.
Zhi Xi waved his hand and said, "It happens that lotus flowers are in full bloom at this time. We can pick some fresh lotus seeds, boil them into soup, and give it to the Taiwei."
After Ma Yu sent Zhi Xi away, Ma Rixi was sitting up from the bed with difficulty and said with a wry smile: "This is good, even I am sick."
In addition to Situ Zhao Qian, who had been lingering on the sickbed for a long time, two of the three princes fell ill at once, and they were all important ministers who recorded affairs. If the emperor had no ministers who could restrict him from exercising imperial power.
Thinking about the cause and effect, Ma Rixi suddenly sighed: "I really regret it!"
Everyone bowed their heads and remained silent. They had originally persuaded Ma Rixi to enter the palace to 'intercede' for those powerful people. These people all had certain responsibilities.
Sun Rui, the minister of the Shangshu, frowned and reproached: "I advised you at that time that Qingzhang Shanglin wanted to open up the Guanzhong farmland, and the farmland is a major matter that the country attaches great importance to! You are discussing this matter in front of the country,
Interceding for those people caused Qian Sheng to be angry. Now that Zhuitang is regretful, who can blame him?"
The scholar Sun Rui was talented and knowledgeable, and he was the mastermind among the Kansai scholars. Ma Rixi relied on him to make suggestions to a large extent. When the emperor sought foreign aid to check and balance Wang Yun, Ma Rixi hesitated.
However, it was Shi Sunrui who spoke for the emperor and convinced everyone to cooperate with the emperor, step by step to get where he is today.
Not only that, Shi Sunrui is also very popular among other factions. Even people like Zhao Wen and Yang Biao respect him very much. It can be said that he is a friendly figure among the factions.
Although he didn't want to admit it, Ma Rixi was actually very jealous of the other party. He didn't like Shisun Rui very much. When the other party said this, he felt embarrassed and forced himself to find an excuse: "My original intention was
I want to take this opportunity to dampen Dong Cheng’s arrogance and prevent him from using the name of his relatives to cause chaos in the government. How could I have expected that they would be so arrogant as to misappropriate bricks and tiles from Shanglin?"
"Yes, no matter which side is arguing about Changqiu right now, each has his own candidate. If Dong Cheng becomes more powerful this time, it will really make him a relative. It will be years of hard work for us and other scholars.
Destroyed?" Ma Yu defended.
"Even so, we shouldn't seek the country's displeasure over this matter!" Shisun Rui said stubbornly.
Seeing the scholar Sun Rui insist on speaking for the emperor and blaming himself, Ma Rixi couldn't calm down and gasped: "In your opinion, that means I did something wrong?"
"Isn't Mr. Ma still clear in his heart about right and wrong?" As if he knew that he should not speak to a patient like this, Shi Sunrui softened his tone and said softly: "The imperial court was already arguing over the establishment of the country.
, now you and Situ are ill one after another, and the Yang family has been deliberately keeping a low profile recently, refusing to be in the limelight. The Dong family is almost a foregone conclusion."
Ma Yu stroked Ma Rixi's chest to relieve his depression, and heard him say: "Situ Zhao Gong's most important thing right now is the affairs after his death. He always cooperates with the country to protect his power and position. They have not paid attention to the matter of establishing a successor.
The word "Obviously, they are waiting to agree with the country's decision. It's better for them to say, but the Yang family has been favored by the country, so why are they unwilling to stand up?"
"Have you not seen it clearly yet?" Ma Rixi lay back on the bed again and sighed: "This is the way to retreat bravely when the opportunity arises!"