Volume 1: Swan Goose Chapter 45: The Eight-Foot Body Falls to Pingyang (1)
Green willows swayed gracefully in the morning light, and pink apricot blossoms filled the branches. The New Year in the city was particularly enchanting. A simple and elegant carriage drove out from the residence of Man Tingfang, Minister of the Ministry of War, heading to Ziwei City
Go. In the morning, the emperor sent a young eunuch to order him to enter the palace. Although he didn't know what the emperor wanted to do with him, he felt uneasy for some reason and felt that something big was always going to happen.
I don't know whether it was because she was anxious or because she was feeling depressed in the carriage. Man Tingfang opened the curtains to get some air. A man and a horse happened to come towards her at a very fast speed. When the carriage and the horse crossed each other, a hidden weapon was thrown into the carriage from the window.
Man Tingfang subconsciously hid inside. When he saw that what was thrown in was a stone with a letter tied to it, he opened the curtains and leaned out to look, but the man and horse had long disappeared.
trace.
Man Tingfang picked up the stone suspiciously, but when he saw the contents of the letter, his expression suddenly changed: Sure enough, something happened! And it's not a trivial matter! He looked at the letter again, and although there was no signature at the end, he roughly guessed
Come to who the author is.
The carriage stopped steadily in front of Xuande Gate, and Man Tingfang was helped out of the carriage by his attendants. He stood in front of the gate and paused in surprise. Suddenly he caught a glimpse of Ruan Lang leading more than a dozen government officials on Yu Street, escorting a group of people.
The man with a sullen face and a wretched look walked towards the prison.
He was slightly surprised, so he walked over quickly, stopped Ruan Lang and asked, "Master Ruan, you have arrested so many people, who are they?"
Seeing that the person who came was Man Tingfang, Ruan Lang hurriedly bowed his hands and said, "It turns out to be Man Tingfang. Today, when our Imperial Guard patrolled the streets, we saw more than ten people posting reactionary slogans on the Imperial Street. We were preparing to take them back for interrogation."
Woolen cloth."
Man Tingfang was startled, looked at those people carefully, and asked, "I wonder what kind of reactionary slogans they posted?"...
Ruan Lang thought for a moment and handed him a pile of torn red paper. Man Tingfang took the red paper with both hands and looked at it one by one. The more he looked at it, the more curious he became, and the color on his face gradually changed:
What is written on these red papers all criticizes Xia Yunqing for being greedy for wealth and authority, and that is why she refuses to go back for her old father. Ding You is an unfaithful, unfilial and unjust daughter and minister!
Man Tingfang took the red papers and asked in surprise: "Sir Ruan, why do these people criticize Xia Shoufu? Why do they go so far as to put up big-character posters everywhere?"
Ruan Lang looked around, pulled him to a secluded place, and whispered: "The Mandarin still doesn't know. A few days ago, the memorial to impeach Xia Shoufu was sent to the emperor, but the emperor suppressed it.
After ignoring the memorial, these officials started to make trouble, and now it has become like this."
Man Tingfang pretended not to know and asked, "I wonder what crime the memorial lists for impeaching Xia Shoufu?"
Ruan Lang pondered for a moment before explaining: "Xia Shoufu's father died at the age of ninety in his hometown. When his family members came to him with the news of his death, Xia Shoufu concealed the news and
He did not inform the emperor, and he did not go back to Ding You to observe his filial piety. That is why he was impeached and criticized, and why there were these big-character posters."
Man Tingfang twisted her beard to listen to what he said, and was shocked: the person who could organize such a massive action, no need to investigate, knew that this must be Wang Su's plan.
On the one hand, he mobilized his party members to make the situation worse, and on the other hand, he sent the Imperial Guards Division to suppress the show of goodwill, so as to get rid of his own suspicion. However, he did not realize that this was a bit of a pretense, but it made it more eye-catching.
It seems that Xia Yunqing is really in big trouble this time! His position as chief assistant may not be guaranteed!
After thinking about this, Man Tingfang returned the pile of papers to Ruan Lang and asked, "How are Master Ruan going to deal with these people?"
Ruan Lang said without hesitation: "Detain them all and torture them to extract confessions, waiting for the emperor's trial."
Man Tingfang smiled softly and said earnestly: "Sir Ruan, I see that these people are just refugees. They dare to openly criticize the country's chief minister, so there must be someone with guidance behind them. I think Master Ruan should not criticize them too harshly.
Save yourself the trouble of talking in the future!"
Ruan Lang was startled and quickly raised his hands and said, "Thank you, Lord Man, for reminding me!"
Man Tingfang waved her hand and said warmly: "This is my humble opinion. Then Sir Ruan, please continue your work. I have to enter the palace. Take your leave!"
Farewell to Ruan Lang and confirm the seriousness of the situation
Only then did he understand why someone wanted to notify him in such a way. Man Tingfang even tightened his pace and ran towards the Zichen Palace. His heart was like a mirror - he was about to face another bloody storm!
When he entered the palace, Wang Su, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Liu Bingwen, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Gu Zhili, the Minister of the Criminal Ministry, and others were already standing quietly in the palace. After greeting them one by one, he looked around, but did not see Xia Yunqing alone, and he couldn't help but feel suspicious.
: Did Emperor Yu not summon Xia Yunqing, or did he not want to come?
"Man Aiqing, are you here?" Emperor Yu's lazy voice came from above.
Man Tingfang hurriedly walked up to him and bowed deeply: "Back to the emperor, I am late, please punish me."
Emperor Yu tilted his cheeks and looked at him, and asked calmly: "Does Qing Manai know why I came to you?"
Man Tingfang bowed her hands and said with sincerity and fear: "I'm sorry for my stupidity, I don't know."
Emperor Yu's undisputed voice sounded again: "In recent days, many courtiers have impeached Xia Shoufu. Have you heard about this?"
Man Tingfang said respectfully: "When I just entered the palace, I saw the officials of the Imperial Guards Department arresting the people who posted the big-character posters. I only found out about this after asking!"
Emperor Yu turned his eyes to Wang Su and asked in a deep voice: "Wang Aiqing, why is the matter so serious?"
Wang Su quickly bowed his hands and said sternly: "Your Majesty, the First Assistant has always been strict in self-discipline and has a clear mind. He is an example for officials in the court and even the common people, as well as scholars. But now, the First Assistant Xia refuses to go home and Ding You keeps his filial piety."
In terms of matters and feelings, it is a violation of filial piety and contrary to human ethics. In terms of principles, it not only violates the ancestral system, but also violates the law. This incident really angered many people and made Xia Shoufu's image plummet."
Emperor Yu's sharp eyes swept across the people below who had different thoughts, and then asked: "My dear friends, what do you think of this matter?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Bingwen couldn't hold himself back. He was the first to stride out and said with cupped hands: "Your Majesty, filial piety is the first thing to be done! The ancestral system clearly stipulates that if a court official's parents die during his reign, no matter what
No matter what official position a person holds, from the day he learns of the funeral, he must resign and return to his ancestral home to serve his parents for twenty-seven months. Only military generals do not need to be relieved of their official positions, but must take a leave of absence for a hundred days.
Nowadays, Mr. Xia, as the chief assistant at the head of hundreds of officials, is more familiar with the ancestral system and laws than anyone else. He should abide by the laws and set an example for the civil and military officials. However, not only did he not go home, Ding You
Although he kept his filial piety, he suppressed the funeral and did not report it to the emperor. His rebellious heart can be learned from heaven and earth. The matter is so important that he must not be leniently spared!"
After saying that, Liu Bingwen glanced at Gu Zhili, and Gu Zhili also walked out quickly, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, what Mr. Liu said makes sense. The ancestral system stipulates that any official who has lost his or her parents must report the death of his or her parents. If he hides and fails to report, once he is found out,
You will be punished. Such actions by the Chief Assistant are contrary to the ancestral system and human ethics. If the emperor lets this matter go easily this time, then it is conceivable that such things will happen one after another in the future, and all officials will follow suit."
Upon hearing such threatening words, Emperor Yu's face darkened and his eyes became cold.
Seeing the emperor's face, Wang Su also echoed: "Your Majesty, I think that Xia Shoufang hid and did not report the funeral at home, just because he didn't want to resign as chief minister and was afraid that his power would be lost. Although Xia Shoufang usually acts impartially,
He claims to be strict, upright and honest, so he is famous all over the world. However, his actions really prove that instead of being just, strict, upright and honest, he is instead a greedy, unfaithful and unfilial person. If all officials follow his behavior
, wouldn’t that bring chaos to the world! I hope Your Majesty will severely punish this matter!”
Emperor Yu's face became more and more embarrassed. He pursed his lips tightly and had a sullen face. He listened without saying a word as everyone listed Xia Yunqing's various deeds from governance to moral conduct, and criticized them one by one as evidence.
Suddenly, his eyes turned and landed on Man Tingfang, who was standing silently in the corner, with a glimmer of unknown meaning in his eyes.
"Man Aiqing, I see you haven't spoken a word. What do you think about this matter?"
Man Tingfang took a step forward, bowed slowly, and said unhurriedly: "I would like to report to the emperor that this move of the chief assistant is indeed inappropriate. However, the position of the chief assistant is very important, and the late emperor also had some cases of stealing love when he was alive.
Precedent. It is up to Your Majesty to decide whether to allow the Chief Assistant to go back to Dingyou. However, I have just been
I was thinking about something else."
Emperor Yu raised his eyebrows and said curiously: "Tell me and listen."
After Man Tingfang pondered for a while, he said: "I just saw the people posting big-character posters on the street. They are all homeless people on the street, but the things mentioned in the big-character posters are very detailed. Therefore, I am worried that this group of refugees dare to
Blatantly criticizing the Chief Minister and knowing so much about him. It seems that there are no secrets left in this imperial city..."
As soon as these words came out, everyone's faces changed color. Especially Emperor Yu, although his expression did not move, his eyes became darker and darker.
Man Tingfang's words suddenly reminded him: In fact, how to deal with this matter is not the most critical. Although there are ancestral regulations, there is an exception to everything.
But the question is, if Xia Yunqing is no longer there, can the situation between the DPRK and China maintain the current balance? Who can be the next person to serve as the chief minister?
Although Liu Bingwen has a high status, he is stupid and flamboyant, and he must not be able to hold the position of chief assistant.
Although Wang Su understands his own wishes, he has already served as the head of the six ministries and holds the Imperial Guards Division. If he is allowed to serve as the chief assistant of the cabinet again, he will have all the power in the government, which Emperor Yu will never allow.
of!
What's more important is that Man Tingfang's words reminded him: when the matter has become so big, there must be someone behind the scenes who wants to remove Xia Yunqing from the position of chief assistant. Without asking, he understands that the people behind this must be the few people in front of him.
A minister with relevant interests!
Thinking of this, Emperor Yu stopped asking everyone for their opinions and hurriedly asked: "Is the Commander of the Royal Guards Department here?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ruan Lang strode in from outside the palace, clasped his fists and said: "Back to the emperor, the commander is leading people around to arrest the people who posted the big-character posters. Today, the Imperial Guards Department is doing a humble job."
Emperor Yu looked him up and down, frowned and asked, "Are you the Ruan Lang that Wang Jing mentioned?"
Ruan Lang cupped his hands and said loudly: "It is a humble duty to return to the emperor."
"Since Wang Jing is busy, you will personally lead the people to interrogate the refugees who posted the big-character posters. You must find out the people behind them." When Emperor Yu spoke, he glanced at Wang Su thoughtfully.
"Yes, I humbly obey the order!" Ruan Lang bowed deeply and bowed out of the palace.