Chapter 246 The minister is guilty, the minister is punished
In the imperial study, Emperor Ning looked at the memorials handed over by several counties under the jurisdiction of Gyeonggi Province with a smile on his face: "Okay, after the introduction of Tang Ji's Green Seed Law, the people's resentment towards the imperial court has been reduced a lot, and there is also
After the method of making the Quyuan plow spread, it also gained a good reputation among the people, and the headaches in agriculture that have caused me these years can finally be alleviated."
The old eunuch Bai Chang standing next to him quickly shouted in his hoarse and sharp voice: "This old slave is for Your Majesty..."
But before he could finish his words of celebration, a captain of the imperial army walked in from outside the palace.
"Report!" The captain of the imperial army knelt on the ground and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, Tang Jigang, the head of the Household Department, had a conflict with His Highness King Hao in the inner city, and His Highness Hao Wang accidentally fell into Qingling
The river is now fine."
Hearing this, Emperor Ning frowned slightly and patted Long An: "Why is it that bastard boy again? Why is he in the palace at this time?"
Bai Chang stepped forward quickly and reminded: "Your Majesty, Mr. Tang was selected by Commander Su to inspect the provincial examination, and it was you who summoned him to the palace."
Emperor Ning exhaled his breath and continued to ask the captain of the imperial army: "What happened?"
"According to Mr. Tang, His Highness King Hao had a dispute with Princess Jingyang first, and he only went up to stop her. Unexpectedly, His Highness King Hao was frightened and accidentally fell into the water." The captain of the Imperial Army replied.
Emperor Ning had already heard about King Hao Li Jiaze's bad behavior. He had just turned a blind eye before. Unexpectedly, his indulgence made him even worse. His face darkened: "Where is Tang Ji at this moment?"
The captain of the Forbidden Army replied: "Master Tang is currently in the Star Division."
"Tell him to come and see me." Emperor Ning ordered.
"Yes!" the captain responded, got up and walked out of the hall.
Emperor Ning folded the memorial at hand and put it on the table. He was about to ask Bai Chang to investigate what happened, but he was the first to hear the announcement from the young eunuch outside the palace.
"Your Highness, Princess Jingyang asks for an audience."
Hearing this, Emperor Ning raised his eyes to look at the palace door and said: "Xuan!"
Soon, Li Qingmeng ran in from outside the palace. Her cheeks were already stained with tears and her hair was a little messy. She looked like a pitiful kitten. She knelt down and saluted: "My dear father, I wish you the best."
Seeing her crying so hard, Emperor Ning stood up quickly: "Excuse me, Meng'er, what happened? Come to Father quickly!"
Li Qingmeng slowly stood up, sobbed and walked to Emperor Ning's side, pouting her mouth, looking extremely pitiful: "Father!"
"Don't cry, don't cry, tell Emperor Father, what's wrong?" Although Emperor Ning is the king of a country, he is also a father. Seeing his daughter in this state, he couldn't help but feel a little distressed in his heart. He held her in front of him,
Wiping away the tears from the corners of Li Qingmeng's eyes, he gently stroked her head.
Li Qingmeng grabbed Emperor Ning's sleeve and said softly: "Father, I don't dare. Brother Hao Wang said that if he dares to tell you, he will beat me to death."
Hearing this, Emperor Ning narrowed his eyes slightly and his face darkened again, but he quickly adjusted himself and said comfortingly: "It's okay. With Father here, no one dares to hurt Meng'er, so feel free to speak boldly."
Li Qingmeng nodded repeatedly and explained: "Father, you gave me a night pearl at noon, so I thought about taking it back to my mother and concubine. My mother and concubine have not received such a bright gift for a long time, but on the way, King Hao
Brother Huang suddenly wanted to snatch my Night Pearl. I accidentally bit him. As a result, he got so angry that he wanted to hit me. Then a big brother suddenly appeared. Brother Hao Wang fell into the river when he saw him. Big Brother
He sent me to the gate of the harem before leaving. Father, does the eldest brother need to be punished? Father, can you not punish him? It’s all because of Meng’er. If you want to be punished, just punish me.”
Emperor Ning naturally knew that the "big brother" she was talking about was Tang Ji, but why did Ze'er fall into the river when he saw Tang Ji? Could it be because of what happened last time? As a prince, he was so scared that someone jumped into the river. What if?
If the news spreads, where is the dignity of the royal family?
He couldn't help but exhale, and said with a smile: "Silly girl, this is not your fault, why should my father punish you?"
"Then the father still wants to punish the eldest brother?" Li Qingmeng stared at Emperor Ning with her big eyes open.
Emperor Ning took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and shook his head: "His original intention was to save you, how could the father punish him? Not only that, my little Meng'er has grown up, and I know that I feel sorry for my mother and concubine.
I want to give you a reward, so why don’t you go back and tidy up first? Otherwise, you won’t be a beautiful little princess!”
Seeing that the plan had succeeded, Li Qingmeng's lips slightly raised, but she quickly adjusted it, nodded heavily, and then left Ning Huang's arms and walked towards the palace gate, not forgetting to turn around and salute halfway: "My son, please retire."
At this moment, the eunuch's voice came from outside the door again.
"Your Majesty, Mr. Tang has arrived."
Emperor Ning put away his smile and said calmly: "Let him come in!"
Soon, Tang Ji walked into the palace, and happened to bump into Li Qingmeng. When he saw the little girl sticking out her tongue at him, he knew that this girl must have come to plead for him. His heart suddenly warmed, and he withdrew his gaze and walked towards the palace.
go.
He had already seen Emperor Ning's appearance clearly outside the palace, but he still lowered his head and pretended not to know anything, and quickly knelt down to salute.
"Tang Ji, the head of the household department, is here to see your majesty."
"Get up!" Emperor Ning stared at him and said.
After Tang Ji stood up, he raised his eyes slightly. When he saw the other party, he deliberately showed a surprised look: "Bai, Mr. Bai, you are too brave. You actually sat on the dragon throne and pretended to be His Majesty. This is decapitation."
What a great sin!"
Emperor Ning saw through his acting skills at a glance and said angrily: "Okay, stop pretending to me. Do you want to give me an explanation for what happened today?"
Tang Ji didn't know how Li Qingmeng described what happened. If it was wrong, they both couldn't bear to walk around, so he said directly: "Your Majesty, all the mistakes in this matter are my fault.
You shouldn't mind your own business and follow His Highness King Hao, so that he won't fall into the river. I'm guilty, and I'm willing to be punished!"
After hearing his words, Bai Chang, who was leaning on the pillar, raised his eyes and raised the corners of his mouth slightly.
Good boy, this trick of "retreating to advance" is a good one!
Emperor Ning originally wanted to hear this kid explain, and then scold him to vent his anger. Unexpectedly, he directly said, "I am guilty and I will be punished." This made him continue, frowning slightly, and patted Long Jianyan.
He said: "Tang Ji, do you think that since you have contributed to the agricultural reform policy, I will always protect you?"
Tang Ji had also heard that the emperor was moody. Seeing the emperor's appearance, he did not dare to act rashly. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva, bowed his head and said, "I don't dare."
Seeing his fearful expression, Emperor Ning was a little happy. He adjusted his tone and planned to continue speaking, but was interrupted again by the voice coming from outside the door.
"Your Majesty, you have to make the decision for Ze'er. That Tang Ji is really lawless..."