Volume II Chang'an Chaos Chapter 142: Corruption by the Ministry of Households (2)
In the Huangsun Mansion, there were more than a dozen people standing in Li Chu's study.
Li Chu sat on the chair with a gloomy face and said nothing.
Finally, the familiar footsteps sounded outside the door, and Li Xin'an pushed the door open and entered.
"Your Highness, I'm here!"
Li Chu glanced at him lightly, but the worry between his brows subsided a bit.
"Everyone is here, let's start."
An old staff member was the first to speak: "Your Highness, I secretly believe that Mr. Liu's imprisonment this time is undoubtedly caused by Yang Guozhong. He wanted to take this opportunity to overthrow Mr. Liu and seize the Ministry of Household Affairs!"
"Even if you know, what can you do?" Another staff member sighed, "Liu Tailai's corruption is indeed true. Yang Guozhong did not fabricate it out of thin air. He has several pages of evidence of his crimes. There are more than a dozen disaster victims in the pass.
The representatives are still living in Dali Temple!"
"Liu Tailai, you should never pay attention to disaster relief money!"
"Indeed, embezzling disaster relief funds is not what a gentleman would do! It's no good that Liu Tai is a disciple of the Confucius family! What a waste of time!" A staff member was filled with indignation.
Another person sighed: "It doesn't matter, greed is greedy. It's just that the timing is too inappropriate. Is he a stupid pig? Now there is a war, and the national treasury is tight. Every place is cutting back on food and clothing.
It is not easy to give money to the court from your crotch and allocate disaster relief funds. If he insists on doing something at this time, isn't he giving himself away to others? "
"Speaking of which, Liu Tailai is indeed stupid. He is over sixty years old, but he doesn't know it. The Ye family from Jiangnan has obviously come to Beijing, and it is obvious that he has come to give them money. How much Liu Tailai wants is just a matter of words.
How much more will the disaster relief food funds from Biguan be obtained from the Ye family? He can't even figure this out!"
"By the way, could it be that the attack on the Ye family was also done by Yang Guozhong? A two-pronged approach, cutting off the emperor's merchants, seizing the household department, and suppressing His Highness."
"It is indeed possible..."
More than a dozen of Li Chu's confidants were quarreling with each other.
On the other hand, the chief and deputy commanders of the "Eight Divisions of Heavenly Dragons", who were considered roughnecks in their eyes, seemed very calm.
Of course, there is another person who is considered an outlier among the staff—Su Xiu.
To the left of Li Xin'an is Mr. Su, and to the right is Xie Liya.
Right in front of him was Zhong Nanxun dressed in white.
"Mr. Zhong, you also..."
Zhong Nanxun would turn around and nodded towards him with a smile.
Li Xin'an's heart sank and she lowered her eyes.
Since Zhong Nanxun appears here, it means that he has completely become Li Chu's person. He has given up the pride of the swordsman, the water dragon sword sect, and the ambition of the world.
From now on, the Water Dragon Sword Immortal who once dominated Chang'an City no longer exists.
"What I want is not your analysis!"
Li Chu, who had been quietly listening to their quarrel, finally couldn't bear it anymore and finally became furious.
"What this king wants is your solution!"
"Tell me, Liu Tailai, what should I do?"
As soon as these words came out, the originally noisy study fell into silence for a while.
Several staff members looked at each other and lowered their heads in shame, unable to come up with an idea.
"Normally, we all talk eloquently and seem to have all the major issues in the world in mind. Now, when something happens, they all turn into headless flies?" Li Chu sneered, "You are all proficient in Confucianism, Mohism, Dharma and Taoism.
, is it possible that all we can do is just talk on paper?”
The old staff member blushed and said: "Your Highness, it's not that we don't want to save Mr. Liu. It's just that the evidence of Liu Tailai's corruption is conclusive, both the witnesses and the evidence are there, and he also embezzled money for disaster relief in the customs. The saint named him.
If you want to bring him to trial in person, there is nothing we can do..."
Li Chu knew that there was no solution to this problem. He closed his eyes in pain and looked up to the sky and sighed:
"Do you really want to hand over the household department to others?"
"Your Highness has been working hard to run the household department for a long time. I know that it is difficult for Your Highness to let go of it for a while. But as the saying goes, if you continue to break up, you will suffer chaos! Therefore, please make up your mind early!"
"Your Highness, please make up your mind early!" a group of staff said in unison.
Li Chu's expression was stern, and his brows were full of tangles.
Liu Tailai was just embezzling. For him, it was not a serious crime. There was no need to be so afraid...
Li Xin'an suddenly had some ideas, and just as he was about to speak, he saw the arrogance of the staff from the corner of his eye, and suppressed the impulse again, wanting to wait until no one was around before speaking to Li Chu.
Su Xiu, who had been silent until now, finally expressed his opinion:
"Your Highness, what the gentlemen said makes sense. I secretly believe that the longer we are involved in Liu Tailai, the worse it will be for us. In my humble opinion, Liu Tailai cannot be controlled!"
"Just let it go?" Li Chu's eyes widened and he said angrily:
"You also know how much effort I have spent on the Ministry of Accounts. How can I be willing to give up like this?"
Su Xiu smiled and said: "Your Highness, there is a relationship. You and your lords have been wrong from the beginning."
"What?"
"Liu Tailai is Liu Tailai, and the Ministry of Household Affairs is the Ministry of Household Affairs. Liu Tailai was imprisoned for corruption. What does it have to do with you controlling the Ministry of Household Affairs?"
Li Xin'an's eyes glowed instantly. What Su Xiu said was exactly what he thought!
Li Chu asked doubtfully: "What do you mean?"
"The humble position means that Your Highness can burn bridges across rivers."
Seeing that Li Chu had no reaction, Su Xiu continued: "There are three steps in humble duty: First, we must disassociate ourselves from Liu Tailai as soon as possible to prevent Yang Guozhong from following the clues and finding real evidence or fabricated evidence to involve His Highness."
"Secondly, since Liu Tailai has been imprisoned, we might as well just follow Yang Guozhong's methods. If he wants to investigate, let him investigate. Before His Highness even wooed Liu Tailai, the Ministry of Household Affairs also overtly and covertly gave him
Yang Guozhong has done a lot of shameful things. Some of these things we know about, and some of them have not been investigated clearly. Once Yang Guozhong wants to thoroughly investigate the household department, it will give us the opportunity to settle old accounts. When the time comes, he will get
The advantages are far greater than the disadvantages. In this way, Your Highness will certainly not suffer any loss."
"If Yang Guozhong doesn't want to thoroughly investigate the Ministry of Household Affairs and just wants to use Liu Tailai for surgery, that would be the best. One Liu Tailai is far less important than the entire Ministry of Household Affairs. We have enough time to select another Minister of Household Affairs. By then,
The household department still belongs to His Highness."
"Third, it's targeting Liu Tai."
"We have to be prepared for Liu Tailai's betrayal. He has a lot of your Highness's secrets in his hands. Once they are leaked, it will be a certain death situation for Your Highness. Therefore, we must always be prepared to kill someone.
Silence!"
Su Xiu paused and then said: "Of course, there is a possibility that Yang Guozhong tortured him to extract a confession and forced him to surrender. Although we are sorry for Mr. Liu, we have to kill him."
"But if Mr. Liu is a tough man and remains unmoved despite Yang Guozhong's coercion and inducement, then he must be on guard against Yang Guozhong's preparations to forge a confession. This method was used many times by Zhou Xing, a ruthless official in the previous dynasty.
How many unjust, false and wrong cases have been committed! At that time, we will have to protect Mr. Liu."
Li Chu frowned and said, "How to protect?"
"Of course, Your Highness, you cannot show up." Su Xiu said with a smile, "But don't forget, the commanders are still standing here."
"I see!"
Li Chu nodded and turned his attention to the young man next to Su Xiu.
Li Xinxin understood the idea, took a step forward, knelt on one knee, and said in a deep voice:
"I am willing to take on this responsibility!"
"Peace of mind, I have to work hard for you again."
Li Chu said: "It's just that everyone in the court knew that Liu Tailai was a princeling. If Yang Guozhong slanders me and prevents me from intervening in this matter, what can I do?"
"Your Highness need not worry about this matter. According to Su Xiu's opinion, the saint will not hinder His Highness."
"Sir, I would like to hear the details."
Su Xiu smiled and said: "Your Highness, why do you think the saint proposed to interrogate Liu Tailai personally?"
Without waiting for Li Chu's answer, Su Xiu continued on by himself: "Because of the court's face!"
"The dignified Minister of Household Affairs actually blatantly embezzled funds for disaster relief. Such a scandal was reported in the age of peace and prosperity. Everyone in the world is watching. How can the imperial court lose its face!"
"The saint would not have known that Liu Tailai was from His Highness, nor would he not have known that Yang Guozhong was trying to get involved in the Ministry of Household Affairs. Your Highness, you just took over the two fat jobs in the Ministry of Personnel and Work, which were in the hands of Yang Guozhong. The saint knew it very well.
Very soon, Yang Guozhong will fight back. Then, in the saint's heart, he is already biased towards His Highness, so the saint will give you enough reaction time, and he will watch how you respond to this situation."
"So, Liu Tailai's life or death is not important. Your Highness's attitude is the most important."
"Those who are emperors must be ruthless and ruthless, and dare to bring down the world!"
Li Chu suddenly realized it and said in admiration: "Li Chu has learned a lesson!"
The eyes of the other staff members looking at Su Xiu were also full of shock.
"It turns out that Mr. Su, who is usually taciturn, actually has such knowledge..."
The staff looked at each other in confusion, feeling that Su Xiu was already weaker than him, and could not help but feel a sense of comparison.
"In Mr. Yisu's opinion, who can succeed Liu Tailai as Minister of Household Affairs?"
"Gao Zhengming, the Minister of Household Affairs, is enough. Your Highness, please remember that this is the only thing that you cannot take the initiative to speak out. Even if Yang Guozhong wants to rob it, you must remain silent."
"A saint will remember the tall man who fainted while kowtowing to express gratitude outside the palace gate."
"Li Chu understands!"
He waved his hand and said: "Everyone, please step aside. I am going to write a memorial. Mr. Su, please feel at ease. Please stay here for a while."
Everyone in the study saluted and said goodbye. In the end, only Li Chu, Su Xiu and Li Xin'an were left.
"Mr. Su, what do you think of the Ye family's affairs?"
"The attack on the Ye family's motorcade is indeed strange. There is a possibility that it is a struggle for power within the Ye family." Su Xiu shook his head, "But taking fifty-five people away quietly is not something ordinary people can do."
Li Xin'an said: "Your Highness, Ye Qinglan, the seventh son of the Ye family, is coming with his subordinates and is waiting in the mansion now."
Li Chu was surprised and said: "Ye Qinglan? How do you know him?"
"This...it's a coincidence. I went to Wanhua Tower last night and happened to meet Young Master Ye Qi." Li Xin'an said, "We felt that we were destined to meet each other, so I told him the address of Youxiang Residence. This is
I thought he would come back in a month or two, but unexpectedly he came to see me today because the household department was in chaos."
"When His Highness sent someone to inform his subordinates, Ye Qinglan happened to be there. He was a child at heart and insisted on making noise. The subordinates had no choice but to think that His Highness would win over Ye Qinglan sooner or later, so he took it upon himself to take him with him.
Come over here."
Su Xiu smiled and said: "Your Highness, Commander Li's move can be regarded as a quick move."
"What do you mean, sir?"
Su Xiu looked at Li Xin'an, "Commander Li, did Mr. Ye Qinglan tell you his guess about the attack on the Ye family?"
"Never heard of it."
"Well...it doesn't matter. Based on Su's understanding of Mr. Ye, his first suspect will not be family members, but outsiders."
"As Mr. Sun said before, the attack on the Ye family's motorcade may have been done by Yang Guozhong in order to control the household department!"
"Ye Qinglan is smart, so he would naturally suspect this, but he just doesn't dare to say it. Your Highness, you need to give him a chance to let Ye Qinglan and the Ye family get involved."
"First stabilize the position of Huangshang, and then deal with Yang Guozhong, so there will be no worries."
"What do you mean, sir, to let Ye Qinglan investigate Yang Guozhong?"
"That's not true. The risk of investigating Yang Guozhong is too high. All we need to do is let Mr. Ye go with Commander Li. If it was Yang Guozhong who really attacked the Ye family's convoy, sooner or later he would expose himself to Liu Tailai. And if it hadn't been for him
, Deputy Commander Xie Liya will definitely gain something. No matter which of the two, they will win over Mr. Ye’s heart."
"The fact that the head of the Ye family can send the seventh son, who is usually the most dandy, to Chang'an, doesn't it just show his expectations for Ye Qinglan?"
"If you win Ye Qinglan, you will win ten years of loyalty from the Ye family!"