East Palace, Jiuqu Water Corridor. Wei Zixu leaned on the stone railing and threw fishing bait into the water. A group of carps had gathered around him.
The bodyguards who were close to him came quickly, stopped not far behind Wei Zixu, and reported: "Your Highness, the matter has been settled."
"Did anyone see it?"
"The villain wore a bamboo hat when he went. He made the appointment in a deserted place, so no one saw him."
Wei Zixu threw all the bait in his hand, patted the ashes on his hand, and said: "If you throw out such fragrant bait, the fish should be hooked."
Five days later, Yongle Hall.
Recently, the imperial court has been divided into two factions over the allocation of wasteland in the western suburbs of Ruoshui. One faction is headed by Changsun Wuzheng, who believes that allocating the wasteland in the western suburbs to the people for free and only charging 40% of the previous tax is a sustainable gain and can also increase the income.
The enthusiasm of the people has brought no harm to the court. The other group, led by veterans, believes that it is too risky to rashly reduce the tax to 40% for ten years. Once the people get used to it, if it is changed back in the future, it will be too risky.
It is to arouse public outrage.
Changsun Wuzheng rebutted this: "Wasteland is wasteland, so naturally it cannot compete with fertile land to collect the same tax. However, after a good harvest in the future, the court can increase the tax by 10% and promise not to increase it in the future. I believe the people will accept it."
"
The old minister sneered: "Did Mr. Changsun make a mistake in his calculation? The court and the people will be divided into 50 and 50? I'm afraid this has never happened before!"
"It has not happened in the past, so let's start from today, just in time to show the world that your majesty loves the people like a son and tolerates the country's benevolence and righteousness!"
The old minister did not accept his statement at all. For a time, old and new ideas collided together. After several heated arguments, Emperor Rong was unable to make a choice. He was about to ask King Yao for his opinion. When he looked up, there was no one in the Yongle Hall, which was full of people.
silhouette.
Emperor Rong then remembered that he had not gone to court for two days, so he asked Wei Zixu: "How many days has King Yao not gone to court? Prince, as my elder brother, do you know why?"
Wei Zixu couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth, and finally asked the key point. Then he cupped his hands towards Emperor Rong and replied: "I must be sick, so I can't go to court."
Emperor Rong obviously didn't believe it. At this time, there was a faint voice among the ministers: "I'm afraid I'm trapped by the beautiful lady!"
For a moment, the court hall was like water boiling, and voices of discussion arose one after another. Emperor Rong didn't hear clearly, but he knew the secret, and he coughed hard, and then it became quiet.
"Who spoke just now? King Yao?" At this time, Emperor Rong's face was already very ugly, and he glanced at everyone coldly.
There was silence in the court hall. Wei Zixu looked back at somewhere in the crowd, turned around slowly, and turned a blind eye to everything.
"Your Majesty, I have something to say!" The minister of the Ministry of Industry, who had just entered the court, knelt out of the procession and knelt his head on the stone slab: "In the past few days, I have personally seen five women enter the palace of Prince Yao. Those women are definitely not women of good families.
, apply makeup and powder, so delicate and artificial! Later, I heard that after these women were brought into the palace, King Yao was happy day and night, without leaving the house. King Yao still had one year to be crowned, and the next year to be concubine. Wouldn't this be
Disgraced the royal family?"
As soon as this statement came out, the ministers immediately exploded. The old ministers who had originally wanted to marry their daughters to King Yao also shook their heads. King Yao had just shown his talents and it was a good time to show off his talents, but he lost his reputation with women.
It's really self-destructive.
Emperor Rong's face turned blue and white. Wei Zixu saw this and immediately pretended to be: "Brother Yao is definitely not a person obsessed with beauty. Master Yin, please don't accuse me randomly. I still know my brother well.
There is absolutely no way he would accept a woman into his house, you must have misjudged it, right?"
The Minister of Works hurriedly said: "Your Highness is aware of it. I saw it with my own eyes. I will never be mistaken. It was the person who was brought in by the steward of the palace that day. Your Highness can go and verify it!"
"What are you investigating? It's just a few women, what's the importance!" Wei Zixu asked Emperor Rong for an order, determined to severely punish the minister of the Ministry of Industry.
Emperor Rong waved his hand and said: "Retreat from the court. We will discuss the matter of the wasteland tomorrow."
Watching the disappointed and exhausted Rong Emperor leave, Wei Zixu showed a successful smile, but then put on a worried look, trotted up to help Rong Emperor, and carefully helped him onto the dragon.
On the way back to the palace, Emperor Rong sighed and asked Wei Zixu who was following him: "What do you think of this younger brother?"
Wei Zixu replied: "Yao brother has been playful since he was a child and often sneaks out of the palace. It is normal, but his nature is not bad. The so-called talk of joy day and night by the Minister of Works is just what he heard and there is no evidence. Father and Emperor Farewell
Listen to his one-sided words."
Emperor Rong suddenly realized what he was doing, and immediately called for a halt to the dragon hunt, and ordered Wang Zhong, his personal eunuch, to go to the palace.
Wei Zixu was still saying: "Yao brother is what I have seen since childhood. I know his temper best. From my perspective, he is just lazy and doesn't want to go to court. As a child, just give him some advice."
"Yes, yes..." Emperor Rong pinched the armrest, extremely worried about the results of Wang Zhong's visit. If Wei Yao was really addicted to beauty as the Minister of Works said, then...
It had been an hour since eunuch Wang Zhong reported his report. The sky was so gloomy that it made people breathless. Emperor Rong sat on the dragon couch behind the curtain, which was shaped like a wooden stake. After hearing the news from Wang Zhong, Emperor Rong looked great.
Angry, he waved his hand and broke the porcelain bottle placed on the side.
"Bring that traitor here, I will interrogate him personally!"
Wang Zhong received the order and immediately knelt down and retreated.
Wei Zixu saw the opportunity and stepped forward to comfort him: "Father, there is no need to be angry. Brother Yao is young and energetic, so it is understandable that he did such a thing..."
"What are the extenuating circumstances?" Emperor Rong stood up and came over. The palace maid immediately stepped forward to roll up the curtain. Emperor Rong said coldly: "As an elder brother, you don't know what your younger brother is doing. If you could persuade him in time, you wouldn't be in trouble.
To this day, I have been laughed at by my officials and despised by the people!"
Wei Zixu hurriedly knelt down and blamed himself. Seeing how aggrieved he was, Emperor Rong realized that he had gone too far. He had many scoldings on his lips, but he swallowed them back.
When Wei Yao appeared in the emperor's palace, both Emperor Rong and Wei Zixu were surprised. The man in front of them, who was thin and lifeless, unable to walk, even needed help from others to kneel down, turned out to be Wei Yao! Emperor Rong left
I took a few steps closer and looked at him for a long time before I dared to confirm that this was his son. But when I thought that he was in this state because of his indulgence day and night, I felt a surge of anger in my heart and slapped him away.
He said angrily: "Treason, do you know your sin?"
Wei Yao covered his face in confusion, and it took him a while to react. He stuttered and replied: "My son cannot go to court due to illness. Please punish me!"
"Is it because of illness?" Emperor Rong laughed angrily, pointed at his nose and asked him: "Is it the illness caused by those women in your room pestering you, or is it the illness they fed you the ecstasy soup? I know that you have been naughty and unbearable since you were a child.
It is because of your reuse that the prince has been able to supervise you more, and you have indeed lived up to your expectations. The opinions and remarks you made in the court impressed me with admiration. I didn’t expect that it only took so long for you to show your true colors. You have disappointed me so much!”
"Father, if you want to blame, just blame the son. It's the son's fault. It's the son who didn't take care of his younger brother. It's the son..."
"What does it have to do with you? He committed a crime of his own and no one can control him. Come and punish this treacherous son. I will watch with my own eyes!" Emperor Rong kicked Wei Yao down and shouted hysterically outside the palace.
The imperial guards outside the palace immediately rushed in and pushed Wei Yao to the ground, who had not yet recovered. Several more people rushed in and waved wooden sticks to beat him down. When Wei Zixu saw this, he hurriedly rushed forward.
, sticks rained down, some hit Wei Yao on the buttocks, and some hit Wei Zixu on the back.
Wei Yao thought that Emperor Rong was just bluffing, but he didn't expect it to come true. He screamed in fright and kept explaining, but was drowned out by Wei Zixu's voice begging for mercy.
After Emperor Rong lost some of his anger, he couldn't bear his son's continued suffering, and waved the Imperial Guards to retreat. Because Wei Zixu was protecting him, Wei Yao was not seriously injured. Instead, Wei Zixu supported his waist, making it almost difficult to get up.
Emperor Rong asked Wei Yao: "After this punishment, you should have a long memory. Send those women away quickly. Don't go to court again in the future, otherwise you will dirty my eyes!" After saying that, he looked at the prince who was groaning in pain and asked with concern.
His body. Hearing this, Wei Zixu felt warm in his heart and shook his head to indicate that he was fine.
"My father did not give me a chance to explain, so I am unjustly accused." Wei Yao said weakly.
"What did you say?" Emperor Rong, who had calmed down just now, suddenly raised his eyebrows again.
"I did take in five women, but they were all maids bought by the housekeeper to clean the yard. I only took one as my personal servant. I am not obsessed with beauty. Please tell me, Father!"
"You said no, could it be that what Wang Zhong saw when he went to your house was all lies to me? How dare you quibble, you traitor!"
"I don't know why Wang Zhong said those things to you. If my father doesn't believe it, you can go check it out. I guarantee with my life that I never touched them!"
Wang Zhong heard this and hurriedly knelt on the ground: "Everything I saw and heard is true, I don't dare to lie!"
Wang Zhong was Emperor Rong's most trusted palace official. He had been entrusted with all matters large and small for decades and never let him down. However... Wei Yao's explanation was extremely sincere, and it didn't look like he was lying. This made Emperor Rong not know how to respond for a while.
.
Wei Zixu realized that the situation was not good, and immediately stepped forward and said: "Father, brother Yao is innocent. Please allow me to let my son go, and I will definitely clear brother Yao's innocence!"
Wei Yao lowered his head, glanced at the prince, and said feebly to Emperor Rong: "The prince brother has been protecting his son and ministers. I think my father will not believe what the prince brother said. It is better to send Yan Ling to investigate. He should be able to
I made my father believe it."
Emperor Rong nodded, agreed with his opinion, and asked Wang Zhong to pass on the message.
Wei Zixu knew Yan Ling's ability, but he was as stable as a mountain and even cared about Wei Yao's body, which made Wei Yao murmur in his heart. Zuo Qing only confessed that he had followed the prince's tricks, but he did not say so clearly.
As for the next step, I was at a disadvantage at this time, and I didn't know if Yan Ling could find out the truth for me.
By the time Yan Ling returned, it was already night.
Wei Yao knelt so stiff that his knees were numb, but he immediately became energetic after seeing Yan Ling and asked him hurriedly: "Master Yan is here to find out the truth. How did those women answer?"
Yan Ling bowed to him, knelt down to Emperor Rong, and reported back: "I questioned the housekeepers and maids in King Yao's mansion. All six of them agreed. They admitted that they confused King Yao and made him obsessed with beauty and unable to go to court...
…”
Wei Yao sat paralyzed on the ground. He thought this was a plan that would never fail, but he didn't expect the prince's plan to go so far as to bribe the housekeeper! He felt mixed emotions and couldn't help but shed tears.
Wei Zixu breathed a sigh of relief and thought: No one can find out the origins of those women, and the traffickers who originally traded them have been killed. No matter how talented Yan Ling is, he can't find the source!
Emperor Rong pinched Ren Zhong in pain and raised his other hand to point at Wei Yao. What he wanted to say was out of order.
"But...I accidentally discovered a woman sneaking around outside the palace. I didn't expect that this person turned out to be a personal trafficker." Yan Ling wrote lightly.
Wei Zixu felt his heart skip a beat and blurted out: "How is that possible!"
"Oh, what advice does His Highness the Crown Prince have?" Yan Ling asked with a smile on his face.
Wei Zixu realized his gaffe and hurriedly explained: "I feel that in broad daylight, how can there be traffickers running rampant, let alone outside the palace, you must have made a mistake."
Emperor Rong asked him impatiently: "What does this woman you are talking about have to do with King Yao?"
"The woman looked panicked, but she kept staring at the minister's boots. Later she found out the reason." Yan Ling said unhurriedly: "The five women in the palace of King Yao were sold by this woman's husband.
And the boots worn by the people who bought them are the same as those of the ministers! In other words, the people who bought those women were not people from Prince Yao's palace, but from the imperial guards in the palace!"
"What?" Emperor Rong felt it was getting more and more bizarre and quickly asked him to bring the person up.
When the woman saw Long Yan, she was so frightened that she knelt on the ground and tremblingly talked about what happened five days ago: "That night, the husband of the common woman had just taken in five women who had been living in Ruoshui City. How many women had they thought about?"
They were sold to a brothel, but a man wearing a bamboo hat came and bought them at a huge price. At that time, the husband of the civilian woman thought he was lucky, but he didn't expect that a day later, he would suddenly die.
On the street! The peasant woman thought it was the man who killed her. Fortunately, when the man came to buy her, the peasant woman was in the backyard cellar. He had not seen the peasant woman, so she survived by chance!"
Emperor Rong asked her: "Why don't you report to the official?"
The woman replied: "When the man left, the woman happened to come out of the cellar. The man was not dressed like ordinary people. Although the woman was born in poverty, she also knew that only officials in the palace would wear such expensive clothes.
Boots are not worn by ordinary officials! The women of the common people were afraid that they would be killed if they applied for official positions, so they kept hiding in Tibet. To this day, this gentleman brought many people to the palace, and the women of the common people saw that their boots were also for the palace.
The clothes inside were the same as that of the man! The civilian woman followed her, wanting to see if there was that man among them."
Emperor Rong asked again: "Do you remember what the man in the palace looks like?"
The woman shook her head: "It was too dark to see clearly. I only saw that the soles of his boots were very bright. From a distance, they looked like a tiger's head."
A cough fell in the palace. Emperor Rong looked at the sound and saw that Wei Zixu's face was pale and he looked panicked. He coughed a few more times before saying, "I may have been injured inside, and there is some chest tightness."
Emperor Rong was just about to let him go back to recuperate, but Yan Ling added: "I checked around the palace on the way here, and I arrived late. From the guards at the palace gate to the patrol guards, to the East Palace and other palaces
, everyone in Xuanting went out to investigate one by one and found this person."
"Who is it?"
Yan Ling slowly faced the prince and said word by word: "Guard of the East Palace, He Chong!"
With a "boom", Wei Zixu fell to the ground and could no longer speak.
Seeing this scene, Emperor Rong suddenly understood everything and ordered someone to push the woman down. He paced back and forth in the palace, the sound of his footsteps was heavy, hitting Wei Zixu's heart one after another. At this time, he had almost three souls and seven souls.
Dispersed.
Suddenly, the footsteps stopped abruptly. Emperor Rong turned to stare at Wang Zhong and asked, "You said you saw it. At this time, it seems that you lied to me?"
Wang Zhong knelt and crawled to Emperor Rong's feet, begging for mercy. Emperor Rong closed his eyes in disappointment, then kicked him away and said angrily: "You Wang Zhong, when did you become the prince's spy? How dare you
Betrayed me? You're a bastard who talks lies. Come on, drag him down and beat him to death with sticks!"
Amidst Wang Zhong's pitiful shouts, Wei Zixu shivered in fear and shed tears. Seeing this, Wei Yao felt that it was time to take action himself, so he said: "It turns out that he is the prince's brother, but I can't figure it out.
What did I do wrong? You wanted to kill me, and you actually let that woman poison my food! If I hadn’t called for medical treatment in time, I might have died long ago. Father, why did I not go to the hospital?
Chao, it was because the poisoning was too deep and I was afraid that my father would be worried, so I didn’t say the reason."
"You still poisoned him?" Emperor Rong glared at the prince, unable to believe that he actually hurt his siblings.
When Wei Zixu heard that he had been poisoned, he suddenly returned to normal: "I don't have it! I just wanted to send some women to Yao brother, and I was afraid that he wouldn't accept them, so I secretly stuffed them in. I just wanted to
...I want to..."
"What are you thinking about? That woman's husband is lying dead on the street. You should have noticed Wang Zhong's appearance. You are still quibbling!" Emperor Rong was furious. He kicked Wei Zixu hard and rolled over.
He knelt down again and cried bitterly: "I really didn't want to kill Yao brother. I just wanted to rob a few girls. How could I kill each other? He was the one I saw since I was a child!"
That woman must have gone crazy, and it was not what I wanted! The steward of Prince Yao’s palace can testify that what I ordered was to use her beauty to prevent Yao’s brothers from going to court, and never asked them to kill anyone!"
"Even the housekeeper of Prince Yao's palace is yours?" Emperor Rong shook his head in disappointment. For the first time, he discovered that the prince was so scheming, which made him feel disgusted in his heart.
Wei Zixu was still defending, and even brought up bits and pieces of his childhood friendship with Wei Yao, trying to arouse Wei Yao's compassion and beg him to forgive him. However, Wei Yao was indifferent and just looked at him quietly like a bystander.
Completely lost the dignity of the East Palace Prince.
Emperor Rong didn't want to talk nonsense with him anymore, so he ordered Yan Ling to put the prince under house arrest in the East Palace. Without his order, no one could visit him, let alone let him leave even half a step.
Wei Yao watched the prince being dragged away, but he was not at all happy in his heart. The prince naturally had no intention of killing him. The woman who poisoned her was just a push-over, but now his method is no different from the prince's.
It turns out that in this deep palace, if you want to survive, you really have to kill each other...