Du Wulang once thought that the high walls of the Daming Palace blocked Xue Bai's eyes from seeing the world, but gradually he discovered that it was people's disguise that prevented him from seeing those desires and evil thoughts.
It is more difficult to discern the hearts of people than to detect the specific events outside the palace.
"Today, I met with them in the name of personally examining the Dharma of the monks left at Daci'en Temple." Xue Bai said, "In fact, I took the opportunity to verify the evidence of Abbot Fu Kong's crime, which is basically consistent with what Yuan Zai said. But Yuan Zai
You can’t believe everything he says, at least the list of officials he gave is not quite right.”
Xue Bai could at least confirm that Yuan Zai and his party members were removed from the list of officials who often interacted with Daci'en Temple.
Du Wulang asked: "What should we do?"
"It can be punished by law, but it cannot be charged with treason." Xue Bai said: "If you ask the young monk Jingyan to go to Jingzhao Mansion to file a complaint, he will be charged with kidnapping and selling good people."
"Why?"
Although Du Wulang could understand what Xue Bai said, sometimes he still couldn't get around it in his mind.
The political process of weighing the pros and cons and taking steps step by step is a bit too complicated for him. His thinking is very simple, such as distinguishing between good and evil and killing the bad guys.
Faced with such doubts, Xue Bai said: "Is it easy to distinguish between good and bad people? They are entangled with those who oppose me, and they are intertwined. If they want to kill them, they will kill them like rivers of blood, so more people will oppose me.
Gotta kill more.”
Because of these words, Xue Bai dreamed at night that one day he couldn't bear it any longer and sent troops into the palace to kill Li Longji, Li Cong, Li Heng, Li Chu... and then countless other clans and aristocratic families of the Tang Dynasty.
Rich family.
He was very excited at first, but he couldn't kill them all until the city of Chang'an fell into a sea of fire.
When it got dark, he woke up.
The excitement in the dream faded away, and facing reality, it was another boring and boring day.
He told himself that he had to be patient, think about everything like playing chess, and then make moves step by step. He was now the planner of a prosperous era, and he could no longer overturn the table at every turn.
~~
Chongyifang.
Wang Jin's house occupies a vast area, occupying a quarter of the square area.
In such an area, it is naturally extremely expensive to build such a large house. However, what the world talks about is the luxury of Li Linfu, Wang Jin, and the Yang family, but rarely mentions the wealth of Wang Jin.
Because those people were nouveau riche, Li Linfu was a downcast member of the clan even though he was a member of the clan, Wang Fei was born as a concubine, and the Yang family climbed up a tree and soared into the sky. These stories always give people a feeling of "maybe one day I can also become a prosperous person."
There is also a sour taste of "this kind of person is not worthy of wealth and honor". But Wang Jin is different. The origin of seven families and ten surnames has been prominent for thousands of years. He has a true aristocratic style and deserves everything.
The Yang sisters and Yang Guozhong like to fight for wealth, but Wang Jin does not need to express himself through worldly things such as high houses and compounds. The nobility of aristocratic families is cultivated from generation to generation, and it is not just for the new rich to buy a big house.
Can be imitated.
For example, Wang Jin's brother Wang Weineng bought Wangchuan Villa, but never showed off how much it was worth. Talent and style are luxuries that no amount of money can buy.
The Wang brothers have always had a good reputation, believed in Buddhism, had good deeds, and had a good relationship with Xue Bai. Therefore, Wang Jin never thought that one day, he would be suspected.
"Am I plotting against His Highness the Crown Prince?"
"good."
Sitting opposite Wang Jin was a young official. It was Yang Yan who was recommended as an official by Yuan Zai. Due to his outstanding performance, he had been promoted to Si Xun Yuan Wai Lang.
Yang Yan placed a sealed confession on the table in front of Wang Jin and said: "The evidence is conclusive. Wang Shangshu has been in contact with the monk Fu Kong for many years and has provided a lot of financial support. Fu Kong used the prince's financial support to secretly communicate with each other.
His Highness is a dissatisfied person who plots subversion."
"Not so."
Wang Jin's answer was very weak.
He has been standing in a high place all his life and has seen a lot of things in the world. He has long looked down on power and wealth. Therefore, when faced with such a terrible accusation, he did not show any panic and nervous attitude. He was always unfazed by honor or disgrace.
Yang Yan said: "Now that the matter has come to this, I'm afraid Wang Shangshu can't evade it with just one sentence."
"Before His Highness became the crown prince, I was the governor of Hedong." Wang Jin said, "If I were dissatisfied with Your Highness, I should have made plans when I was in Hedong, so why wait until now?"
"Do you really think I don't know? Wang Shangshu has already distributed official documents in the name of building temples in Hedong to enable monks to collect money and recruit troops, with the intention of plotting rebellion."
Although Yang Yanguan is young, he has a strong momentum. He also really produced evidence, verified and counted the money spent by Wang Jinlifo, and the thick account book was thrown on the case with a "snap".
"If I say that the expenditure of more than 100,000 yuan is not for a big deal, who would believe it?!"
"I firmly believe in Buddhism and am willing to donate."
"Willing to help the demon monk bully men and dominate women?"
"It's not just like this. Not all monks in the world are like this."
Wang Jin sighed helplessly, his eyes showing compassion for heaven and earth, showing his Buddha nature.
Yang Yan had a tough attitude. If it were not for his lack of authority, he would have almost captured Wang Jin on the spot. But he did not get this order, so he searched Wang Jin's residence and took away the account books, land deeds, and letters, saying that he wanted to check
Did Wang Jin collude with Da Ci'en Temple, and did they occupy any land together?
As a result, Wang Zhai was in a state of panic and panic.
Faced with this situation, Wang Jin always sat in the lobby, closed his eyes and said nothing.
He didn't hold anything in his hand, but his fingers made small movements, as if he were gently moving the beads. He was speechless, but his lips opened and closed slightly, as if he was chanting softly.
After an unknown amount of time, Yang Yan finally left with people escorting boxes of documents.
A monk came out from nowhere, slowly walked behind Wang Jin, and sighed: "It's the poor monk who has brought the prince into trouble."
This monk, whose religious name was Han Guang, had a close friendship with Wang Jin a long time ago. This time, he was asked by the court to return to secular life, but he wanted to continue practicing and did not want to farm, so he fled to Wang Jin's home for refuge.
"It has nothing to do with Zen Master," Wang Jin said, "This matter is about power and wealth, but it has nothing to do with Buddhism."
"The prince's situation is probably dangerous."
Monk Hanguang clasped his hands together and said: "Although the poor monk is a foreigner, he has heard a little bit about the affairs of the court. His Royal Highness the Prince was bewitched by the treacherous minister Yuan Zai and killed all Buddhists. The root cause is Yuan Zai
Take the opportunity to eliminate dissidents."
Wang Jin had always acted calmly, but when he opened his eyes, there was anger in his eyes.
He was actually very angry. This anger was not because of Yang Yan's words, but because Xue Bai's order to destroy the Buddha had ignited his anger.
This is a conflict of faith that cannot be reconciled.
Therefore, when he learned about the edict, he no longer supported Xue Bai in his heart. If he was still the governor of Hedong at that time, he would definitely not obey the edict, but would choose to protect the temples and monks in Hedong and oppose it head-on.
Xue Bai, after that, he will probably choose another prince.
It's a pity that he has been transferred back to Chang'an to serve as Minister of Industry. He has no power and can't do anything. He is full of anger.
Today, the biggest impact of Yang Yan's words is that he has been forced into a desperate situation. He has been involved in a major rebellion case, and the next thing he will face is likely to be confiscated and exiled.
Wang Jin had to consider whether to give it a try.
Hanguang could feel Wang Jin's anger, so he continued: "The poor monk has a question. The sage uses the prince to supervise the country, but the prince is young after all. If the prince makes a mistake, who should correct it?"
After a word, Wang Jin couldn't help but look back at Hanguang. He saw that the monk had a solemn appearance, but his eyes were quite meaningful.
~~
In the evening, Li Xian returned to his house.
He had just entered the door when a maid already reported: "Alang, we have a visitor. He said he wanted to see Alang no matter what. He has been waiting in the side hall for a long time."
Li Xian asked a few questions and went to the side hall in person, only to see Li Zhen sitting there.
Both of them were members of the same clan, one had a high title and the other had a powerful position, so regardless of the false etiquette, Li Zhen got straight to the point and told the purpose of his visit.
"How long has that person been in charge of the East Palace? He has not established a stable footing. He dared to destroy the Buddha as soon as he was in charge of the country. He made a fool of himself, but I didn't want to take the opportunity to deal with him. I have nothing to do with Buddhism. But the result is that he destroyed the Buddha just as he did.
We have not forgotten to eliminate dissidents and carry out major treason cases. What does this mean? Put a knife on our heads?"
Li Xian said: "Do you want it to be easy to store?"
Li Zhendao: "It's not that I want Yi Chu, he has made people angry now. It's because the officials in the dynasty are eager for a saint or emperor to come forward and take charge of the overall situation."
Li Xian did not speak immediately, but thought about it.
At first, he did not object to Xue Bai's confiscation of temple property, thinking it was beneficial to the country. But when the situation progressed to this point, it did seem to be a bit out of control.
There are many reasons. On the surface, it seems that the courtiers have a bad feeling towards Yuan Zai, and they accuse Yuan Zai of taking the opportunity to eliminate dissidents. This is also the most popular one. But in fact, it is because the temple involves the interests of too many powerful people.
For example, Li Xian knew that one of Li Zhen's sisters liked young monks with a handsome appearance. Presumably the abbot of Daci'en Temple was aware of Li Zhen's many evil deeds.
Even if there is no such collusion, there are many high-ranking officials and ministers who usually go to pay for incense and donate some sesame oil money, but now everyone is in danger.
Now, there is a saying circulating in Chang'an City, saying that if the prince dares to order the destruction of Buddha, he will soon be punished, or he will die suddenly in a short time.
This kind of speech can spread, but the imperial court controls the newspapers but cannot suppress public opinion, which shows how big the dissatisfaction is.
Not only were the dignitaries dissatisfied, but the monks who returned to secular life to farm were also complaining. These people were eloquent, which made the public's reputation for the prince deteriorate sharply.
Li Xian actually thought that it might not be a bad thing to ask a saint or the emperor to take charge of the situation at the moment.
He didn't think about it from the perspective of power struggle, nor did he want to save it easily. Rather, the prince overseeing the country had a way out and leeway. If the prince did something wrong, it was normal for the saint to step in and end it.
The saint is not as good as the Supreme Emperor in terms of body and talent. Therefore, it seems that it is expected by the public that the Supreme Emperor will take over the government.
Seeing that Li Xian had not spoken for a long time, Li Zhen stretched out her hand and waved it in front of him and said: "This matter is not my own opinion. The reason why I come forward to meet you is just because of my distinguished status. There are many officials who have joined forces.
, there are even many people who once supported the person who oversaw the country."
"Not a few? Who are they?"
"If we dare to do this, of course we must first ensure that we can control Chang'an City." Li Zhen said, "Jing Zhaoyin Yang Wan is the person you recommended, right? He has already agreed to ask the Supreme Emperor to come forward."
"What are your plans?"
"It's simple. When you go to court in a few days, all the officials can invite the Supreme Emperor to come to court." Li Zhen said: "The only trouble is the imperial army. Guo Qianli and Zhang Xiaojing in Beiya are his confidants, but the prime ministers can mobilize them
Nanya's military strength, plus the manpower that Jing Zhaoyin can mobilize, is enough."
It's enough, but we don't really want to fight. The civil and military forces of the court, plus so many troops, are enough to scare Xue Bai.
Li Xian thought for a while and said, "We still need to convince Wei Jiansu and Li Mi."
This sentence means that he has agreed.
Li Zhen then smiled and said, "Don't worry, they won't be difficult to convince."
~~
at the same time.
Jingzhao Yin Yang Wan was sitting alone in the government office, with half of his face sunk in the darkness. He was thinking about what would be most beneficial to the Tang Dynasty.
To be fair, he supported Xue Bai's return to the temple's land and population.
As Jing Zhaoyin, he knows best how difficult it is to collect taxes every year, how many fleeing households he encounters, and how many fields are not taxed at all.
On the other hand, he was also the clearest about the case of Daci'en Temple, which made him feel the danger.
The world now claims that the imperial court is "exterminating" the Buddha, but the imperial court itself also knows that the Buddha cannot be "exterminated". All the imperial court has to do is suppress and control. Some people are taking the situation in an extreme direction, which may cause
The turmoil of the country.
You have to grasp the balance well. If His Highness the Crown Prince cannot grasp this balance well, then what is the most beneficial way for the country? Give him a sweet date after hitting him with a stick.
His Royal Highness first came to confiscate the temple's land and people. In this way, the court benefited. Then the saint or the emperor came forward to show mercy and stopped the destruction of Buddhism. The Buddhist believers were once again grateful to the court.
In other words, you have to control the heat.
In the same way, in the case of Daci'en Temple, the heat must not be too high. If the case of rebellion is completed and the involvement is too wide, the country may be destroyed in a fire.
However, Xue Bai reused Yuan Zai, which made Yang Wan extremely uneasy.
This is why he agreed to invite the Supreme Emperor to preside over the government.
"Jingyin, someone came to complain. The person who complained was Fu Kong, the abbot of Daci'en Temple."
Yang Wan frowned upon hearing this, not wanting to expand the case at this time.
However, when he took the piece of paper and looked at it, surprise flashed in his eyes.
"Where's the person coming?"
"See you outside."
Yang Wan stood up and said, "I'll go see him."
At this moment, another government servant hurried over and whispered in Yang Wan's ear: "Jing Yin, Bu Kong will die in prison."
Yang Wan's expression remained unchanged and she continued to walk out. She saw Du Wulang and a young monk waiting in the hall.
Du Wulang seemed to be careless no matter how big the incident happened. He only said that he was here to accompany the young monk to file a complaint.
And when Yang Wan said that Bu Kong had died in prison, Du Wulang said "Huh?" and showed a look of shock and confusion.
"This matter involves a major treason case. What do you think?" Yang Wan asked tentatively.
"How can there be any major conspiracy case?" Du Wulang said, "Isn't it just a case of human trafficking? Now he has committed suicide out of fear of crime. Let's close the case."
"Case closed?"
"Yes, the case is closed." Du Wulang replied crisply, which represented Xue Bai's sense of propriety in doing things.
It's like hunting. People are often distracted by other prey, chasing rabbits, and then change direction when they see larger deer.
But this time, Xue Bai had clearly set his sights on a certain direction.
Yang Wan looked at Du Wulang again, and this time, he saw an unmoved wisdom.
~~
It was a small golden Buddha statue with a compassionate and peaceful face.
Li Heng looked at it with a look of obsession in his eyes.
Now he believes in Buddhism more and more, believing that Buddha can save him from trouble and regain his power. Because Buddha is Xue Bai's opponent, he is naturally on his side.
Just now, Yang Yan brought people to search his residence, looking for evidence of his collusion with Wang Jin.
After Yang Yan left, Li Heng kept looking at the Buddha statue and thinking.
"I finally understand!"
Li Heng suddenly said something like this, causing Zhang Ting to turn around and look at him.
"What do you understand?"
"It turns out that my father has been making arrangements for a long time." Li Heng murmured: "My father has secretly bribed a group of people to work for him. They have been dormant for a long time, so that they can quickly organize themselves when there is an opportunity."
Zhang Ting said: "I think this is a coincidence. Who could have expected that Xue Ni would suddenly have trouble with Buddhism? And who could have expected that a trivial matter would turn into a conspiracy?"
"Although things are accidental, conflict is inevitable."
Li Heng's words seemed to have a Zen tone.
He raised some sarcasm at the corner of his mouth and said: "When Xue Ni governs the country, sooner or later he will have rifts and resentments with the clan and officials. This will happen sooner or later, it is inevitable. Do you know why?"
Zhang Ting said: "Why?"
"Because he's cheap!"
Zhang Ting raised an eyebrow, thinking of Xue Bai's graceful temperament, and did not agree with Li Heng's unwarranted venting.
But Li Heng was serious and said: "I'm not scolding him, but telling the truth. Xue Ni's background is too humble. Even if he is the flesh and blood of his second brother, it can't change his humbleness. He was raised as a slave.
How can you be so big as to conform to the will of everyone?"
Zhang Ting somewhat understood what Li Heng was talking about.
"You are a common slave, and you are extreme in your actions. You are also a young Jinshi, and your poetry is famous far and wide. Can you imagine that one day Wang Wei will order the destruction of Taoism? No, because Wang Wei is a real nobleman of the family, with character. Xue
What about Ni? The worst thing about him is that he is intolerant of others. Just look at how he treats Chen Xilie."
"I was born as a slave and have a strong sense of business. I think it is called 'pragmatism', but in fact I am careless. I say I care about the common people, but what I do is to use a knife to cut the flesh from the Buddha. There are tens of millions of people in the world, and all you need to do is to take care of the people.
How much does it cost if you levy ten coins? Xue Ni did not increase taxes, but plundered from the heads of eloquent monks. How could he do such a stupid thing? Because he is cheap and has been wallowing among the slaves of the grassroots for too long. "
"In the past, he pretended, recited poems and composed poems, pretending to be a dragon, a grandson, and a phoenix. Now that he is in power, his true nature has been exposed. How can he not fall down from the sycamore tree if he is a grass chicken with colorful wings hanging on it to pretend to be a phoenix? Of course he will be planted.
I just didn’t expect him to fall down so quickly.”
The more energetic Li Heng talked, the more he felt that his opinion was the truth.
Although he was imprisoned here, he could still feel that the resentment of the courtiers was getting bigger and bigger after Xue Bai took charge of the country.
~~
Yang Yan left the Ten Kings' Residence and was about to go to see Yuan Zai when he found a line of forbidden troops standing at the intersection.
"Yang Sihu, His Highness has summoned you, come with me."
Yang Yan calmly performed the ceremony and followed him into the palace unhurriedly, entering the Xuanzheng Hall.
"Yang Yan, a distinguished member of the imperial court, pays homage to His Highness."
"I know you, you are very talented." Xue Bai said, "I have always thought that one day I will reuse you."
"Thank you for your high reputation, Your Highness, I am ashamed of myself."
"You should be ashamed." Xue Bai suddenly turned cold and said, "You have a genius, why are you so stubborn and want to get into trouble?"
Yang Yan was stunned for a moment and said, "I wonder what your Highness is talking about?"
"I ordered you to search the temple property, but you deliberately carried out a major treason case, intimidated the courtiers, and aggravated the situation. Do you know your guilt?"
"The official has never been like this." Yang Yan said: "The Daci'en Temple rebellion case was handled by the Jinwu Guards and the Jingzhao Mansion. As for the official intimidating the courtiers, the official was only ordered to investigate the relationship between the Chang'an temple property and the courtiers.
The official does not know the crime."
Xue Bai seemed helpless, smiled and said: "You are deceiving me and there is no evidence."
"I don't dare, I'm just telling the truth."
"Then you went to see the loyal king Li Heng twice in the name of investigating the case. Are you also doing business?"
"Xiaguan heard that King Zhong had always believed in Buddhism and suspected that he was related to the rebellion, so he went to ask questions." Yang Yan said, hesitated for a moment, and said: "Xiaguan informed Duke Yuan of this matter before setting off.
I thought His Highness knew."
"Yes, Yuan Zai wanted to solve a big case and make great achievements. You said you wanted to investigate Li Heng, and he certainly agreed. I think he even praised you."
"Yes." Until now, Yang Yan still did not panic and responded calmly: "There is indeed a Buddha statue in Prince Zhong's palace, but the official did not find any other evidence related to the treason case, so he returned without success."
"I said that Yuan Zai no longer needs to find out who is treasonous and can focus on land and population. Is it because he doesn't listen or you don't listen?"
"This matter is my fault."
Although Yang Yan said this, the calm attitude he showed showed that Yuan Zai still hinted that he would continue to pursue the rebellion case.
He left no flaws and remained extremely calm from beginning to end.
If Xue Bai wanted to test him, he should have stopped here. Maybe he could continue to be reused in the future.
However, Xue Bai casually threw a stack of documents in front of Yang Yan.
"See for yourself, are these the conversations you had with Li Heng?"
Yang Yan picked up the document and took a look at it, and his whole body froze there.
He didn't understand that when he went to meet Li Heng and no one else was present during the discussion, why was the conversation between the two recorded sentence by sentence and placed on Xue Bai's desk?
Unless someone whom Li Heng trusted the most betrayed him.
Such a disparity in the comparison of methods finally made Yang Yan's eyes change, showing a look of fear.
"Is this your choice? Regardless of right or wrong, strong or weak, just 'favors must be repaid, debts must be repaid'?" Xue Bai said: "Do you think you can deal with me by inciting the emotions of the courtiers? How much land and population can you get this time?
, you know best, so let me ask you, if I reward the Chang'an garrison with these money and grains, do you still have a chance of winning?"