Zhang Zuo met with Yang Tinghe and others on behalf of the emperor to convey the results of the emperor's punishment to a group of Hanlin and supervisors who had been sentenced to prison.
"...I was sent to various mines to work for two months. It was a bit hard, but I already had people come to say hello. I couldn't do the work that was too hard. I arranged my daily life and food. I just went there to experience it. Waiting.
The official reinstatement after two months will not affect future career advancement..."
Zhang Zuo spoke softly and in a consultative tone.
Yang Tinghe didn't say anything.
Mao Ji approached and asked, "Wouldn't this be like exile?"
"hehe."
Zhang Zuo smiled and said, "Mr. Mao Ge, you can't say that."
Mao Ji wanted to say a few more words, but was stopped by Jiang Mian.
It is clear.
The emperor sent envoys not to discuss matters with them, but to convey the final punishment results.
Your cabinet can freely mix opinions on court affairs, and even on matters such as mining taxes, you can directly impose the emperor's decision and make the six ministries refuse to implement it...
But now the emperor is making a fuss about his private area, that is, the imperial prison, and the punishment of those scribes is also famous. If you want to fight again, the emperor will directly have those people beaten in the imperial prison.
, I released the person after he was about to die, and I asked you what would happen?
Now it is like sparing a lot of people the physical pain and moving to another place to practice for two months.
The emperor also sent Zhang Zuo, the internal minister, to convey his opinions, which was a great favor to the cabinet members.
At this time, I really thought that Zhang Zuo represented a gentle emperor, but I was totally wrong. The only people who suffered were the scribes who were still in prison and lost their personal freedom.
Yang Tinghe asked: "When will the decentralization be scheduled? The New Year is coming soon."
Zhang Zuo smiled and said: "Your Majesty's intention was to implement it immediately, but the Queen Mother of Xingguo interceded with Your Majesty, saying that the human heart is made of flesh and should be merciful, and it was also to accumulate kindness for the Queen Mother, so Your Majesty allowed them to return home for a day each.
After settling the family affairs, Jin Yiwei will be sent to various mines to work."
"Um……"
Yang Tinghe's breath was heavy.
However, I feel that this is a way to ease the conflict between the emperor and his ministers.
The emperor was considered very kind. He was originally exiled and did not give him the chance to see his family. Or if he wanted to see him, he could only let his family visit him in the cell. But now he allows all the detained scribes to go home for one day and take a day off.
, and then leave the capital to work as a coolie for two months...
The meaning of exile has been downplayed, and it is more like being sent out to perform a mission.
Seeing that Yang Tinghe did not express his position, Jiang Mian also understood that Yang Tinghe's status was not easy to agree directly. After all, if Yang Tinghe agreed, others would think that he did not speak for those scribes, which violated his status as the head of the civil service.
Jiang Mian smiled and said, "That's fine. I hope Eunuch Zhang will greet the managers everywhere and ask them to do some clerical work instead of hard labor. That would be great."
"This is natural."
Zhang Zuo responded with a smile.
After Yang Tinghe acquiesced, the punishment for those scribes was decided.
…
…
The matter was settled, the news spread to all parts of the country, and different people had different thoughts.
But most people feel that this matter is picked up heavily but put down gently.
It seems that two months of being outside is a kind of hard training, but in fact it is a kind of experience. A group of weak scholars who have no strength but can only use a pen are sent to work in a mine for two months. They don't care what they do first.
Let him get in touch with people from the middle and lower classes of society. Isn't it a kind of accumulation of spiritual practice that involves reading thousands of books and traveling thousands of miles?
Why don't you scholars have to work?
For ordinary people, this is simply a matter of applause.
The key point is that the emperor did not torture these people, and this time they were not exiled, but released. They were reinstated and had little impact on their official career. This made the political factors of this matter downplayed again.
The matter was settled in this way, and there was no way of imprisonment, and the Third Law Division did not participate.
Even Yang Tinghe acquiesced, and no one said anything.
The scribes finally walked out of the cells where they had been detained for three days, went home for a day's visit, and then left for their assigned mines.
There are two places to go.
Those with serious crimes went to the Xishan Coal Mine, while those with less serious crimes went to the Yongping Prefecture Iron Mine. Although Yongping Prefecture was relatively far away, after all, they did not need to work in the iron mines, and the coal mines
The work is dirty and tiring...
Zhu Hao was the chief signatory, and almost all the imprisoned supervisors, as well as several colleagues from the Hanlin Academy, were sent to the Xishan Coal Mine for labor reform.
…
…
The scribes went home to make preparations.
The Hanlin Academy was missing many colleagues and seemed particularly deserted at this time.
Yang Shen was sitting alone at the table sorting out manuscripts, looking very depressed. He didn't move from the desk all morning, as if he wanted to use work to numb his heart.
Yu Chengxun came in and saw that there was no one in the editing room except Yang Shen. He suddenly remembered that in fact, except for the two of them, the rest of the people in the editing room had been taken over. The matter of editing books was now mainly left to the editor and some others.
After the completion of the Shu Jishi, these people who attended the reading and lectures may be even busier.
Fortunately, there are no banquet lectures in winter. Otherwise, a noble and idle yamen like the Hanlin Academy would also face the dilemma of insufficient manpower.
"Yong Xiu, why are you here? The festival is coming soon, it's time to prepare."
Yu Chengxun wanted to use something else to attract Yang Shen's attention.
Yang Shen raised his head and glanced at Yu Chengxun: "I originally planned to take the initiative and join them in being exiled for two months."
"Ah, this..."
Yu Chengxun was very hesitant.
You, Yang Shen, are trying to make yourself feel better by taking the initiative to take responsibility for your crimes, right?
"But then I remembered, if I leave the capital, who in the Hanlin Academy will work for my father? For the sake of the overall situation, I can't leave," Yang Shen said.
Yu Chengxun smiled.
I thought to myself, it’s a good thing you didn’t take the initiative to ask for help.
I don't care if you are really afraid that no one will do things for your father, or you are just afraid of suffering and not taking responsibility. At least if you don't ask for help, I don't have to follow your example.
You are the instigator, and I am not much different. If you really have to bear the blame, can I stay out of it?
"Yong Xiu is doing the right thing. I believe those colleagues can understand that His Majesty's move is basically aimed at civil servants. If you ask for help, maybe they will be punished more seriously. It is not as good as what they are now. In fact, it can be regarded as turning hostility into friendship."
Yu Chengxun spoke to comfort Yang Shen.
It's a good thing that you don't ask for permission. We don't have to work together in the mines as coolies, and it can also reduce the sins of those scribes.
Who doesn’t know what to say?
"well!"
Yang Shen suddenly sighed, "But I'm afraid they won't be able to return to the capital."
"ah?"
Yu Chengxun looked puzzled, even a little shocked.
What do you mean by this?
The emperor plans to intercept them halfway?
Or are you planning to exhaust them to death in the mine?
Yang Shen said: "I heard from my father that the imperial court is going to transfer a group of officials. Previously, your Majesty has been squeezing through the teeth regarding the evaluation, appointment and dismissal results of the officials. I am afraid that this is just to prepare for their transfer."
"this……"
After hearing what Yang Shen said, Yu Chengxun felt that it made some sense.
Previously, the new emperor was very concerned about the appointment and dismissal of officials reported by the Ministry of Personnel, especially for the many official vacancies in the court and local areas. After the winter came, many of them are still vacant now. The Ministry of Personnel submitted requests several times, and the emperor was only in some important positions.
Arrangements have been made, but a lot remains unresolved.
It just so happened that all the Hanlin officials came together to discuss the funeral etiquette of Empress Dowager Shao. Didn't the emperor just use the topic to make use of it?
Yang Shen sighed: "It was my lack of thinking that allowed Your Majesty to seize the opportunity. This Hanlin Academy is the place where the people of the imperial court should be clean. They should have a great future, not for any party... I delayed their progress."
future."
Yang Shen again
Take responsibility.
Yu Chengxun wanted to say, are you a resentful woman now?
Do you think about everything blindly and take everything into yourself?
Besides, these are just your guesses. Didn’t the emperor already say that officials will be reinstated after two months of labor reform? Why do you think they will be released?
Yang Shen suddenly became very frustrated. He held his head with both hands and shrugged his head. He asked in a sad tone, "How will my father respect me in the future?"
Hear this.
Only then did Yu Chengxun finally understand.
Yang Shen felt that a group of people in the Hanlin Academy, because of a joint petition, caused the Hanlin Academy, a noble yamen that was supposed to avoid court affairs, to be involved in such a big dispute. The middle and lower Hanlin Academy were almost blamed by the emperor.
In the future, the value of the Hanlin Academy will be greatly reduced. Yang Shen, who was arranged to work in the Hanlin Academy by Yang Tinghe, will naturally have a rapid decline in his presence in Yang Tinghe's eyes.
Coupled with the fact that Yang Shen did not sign the remonstrance to Shangshu, the reputation of the Yang family and his son in the court was greatly reduced.
Yang Tinghe said that he understood his son's difficulties, but how could he still entrust his eldest son with important responsibilities in the future?
Since you can't get anything done, just stay idle!
Or just do some small errand work, and don't expect to achieve big things in the future.
"Ah."
Yu Chengxun understood that Yang Shen was feeling sorry for himself.
But in fact, Yang Shen's analysis is equally suitable when applied to Yu Chengxun.
Previously, Yang Tinghe was very concerned about controlling public opinion in the court, and to control public opinion, he put the little emperor in a position where he could act recklessly, regulated the little emperor's behavior, and asked the little emperor to stop on important matters... all of this was done by relying on the noble Hanlin officials and
Kedao Yanguan will complete it.
You can't let a group of high-ranking officials in the court do the things of admonishing and remonstrating, right?
The people of the Hanlin Academy and the academic officials were used as cannon fodder.
To put it simply, Yang Tinghe's method of controlling the little emperor is to occupy the commanding heights of public opinion.
Now that the Hanlin Academy has been wiped out, if Yang Tinghe wants to control public opinion again, the value of the Hanlin Academy will be greatly reduced. Yang Shen and Yu Chengxun are both pawns placed by Yang Tinghe in the Hanlin Academy. The Hanlin Academy is already a dead chess for Yang Tinghe and cannot survive.
Then Yang Shen and Yu Chengxun will be treated as abandoned children in the next step.
Yu Chengxun said: "Yongxiu, if Your Majesty insists on having his own way, he will ask those colleagues to be transferred elsewhere, otherwise we... can also apply for transfers too!"
Since the value of the Hanlin Academy to Yang Tinghe has greatly decreased, why do you still hang on to the Hanlin Academy and not leave?
Yang Shen shook his head and said: "No matter what, this Hanlin Academy cannot be abandoned!"
Yu Chengxun said to himself, well, even if he is treated as an outcast, he still can't bear to part with his prominent status as a Hanlin official. No wonder you take pleasure in treating this concubine as a resentful woman!