In the Manlu Hall, looking at the heartbroken Duan Zhixuan who was crying with runny nose and tears, His Majesty Li Er had a headache, and his eyes couldn't help but drift to Fang Xuanling and others, obviously wanting them to say something.
It's a pity that Li Er almost blinked and almost had cramps, but Fang Xuanling and others didn't express anything at all, and they still looked indifferent.
Instead, he kept his head lowered, as if there was something strange on the ground.
Li Jing simply squinted his eyes like an old monk sitting in meditation, having entered a state of selflessness.
His Majesty Li Er gritted his teeth and took the seat, giving these old foxes a fierce look.
These people obviously want him, the emperor, to shoulder everything!
Humph, didn't you guys say it very well just now? Why don't you even fart now?
But His Majesty Li Er had no choice but to cover his forehead and said: "Ahem, why did Duke Bao burst into tears as soon as he entered the palace? Could it be that he has been wronged in some way?"
"Your Majesty, Marquis Zhongyi is arrogant and domineering. He chopped off one of my children's legs for no reason. You have to make the decision for me! Your Majesty, please immediately issue an order to arrest that lawless guy and enforce the law of the country." Duan Zhixuan looked sad and his eyes were blood red.
He looked up at His Majesty Li Er and asked.
His Majesty Li Er held his tongue and felt very unhappy.
At first, Duan Zhixuan wanted to get into the lap of a noble family, but now he knows how to beg for it?
Your Duan family deserves to be treated as pawns by aristocratic families.
However, His Majesty Li Er is a very nostalgic person, and he still couldn't bear to see the people who helped him conquer the world in such miserable condition, so he comforted him and said:
"Wei Xiong! The ground is cold, you get up first!"
"I was quite shocked when I heard about this. That guy Yang Fan is really hateful. How could he be so cruel in a small conflict?"
"It's just that I also heard that this matter is caused by your son's visit to find Marquis Zhongyi, which makes me a little embarrassed!"
"Otherwise, you can go back for now and heal your son's injury first. I will think about it and I will definitely teach that boy a lesson."
Duan Zhixuan's eyes lit up when he heard His Majesty Li Er address him by his own name.
As expected, His Majesty Li Er is still very nostalgic for his old friendship. It seems that there is something to be said for him!
This matter must be struck while the iron is hot!
Thinking of this, Duan Zhixuan knelt down with a firm face and said: "Your Majesty, that boy Yang Fan has no laws. It is obvious that he wants to leave the old minister without a successor. You must make the decision for me."
"Even if the child is at fault first, it should be handled by the government. How can we use lynching indiscriminately? Doesn't this mess up the legal principles?"
"If Your Majesty does not severely punish that boy, I will kneel down and die in the Manna Palace today."
After saying that, he banged his head several times.
Seeing Duan Zhixuan actually cheating, His Majesty Li Er's face suddenly turned gloomy.
In this life, Li Er hates threats from others the most.
Just when he was about to get angry, Changsun Wuji said: "Your Majesty, please calm down. He is so heartless in praising his son. Please forgive his unintentional remarks."
After hearing Changsun Wuji's words, Duan Zhixuan raised his head slightly and glanced at His Majesty Li Er, and suddenly broke into a cold sweat.
Only then did I realize that although His Majesty Li Er was nostalgic, he was also a ruthless emperor.
Li Yuan threatened Li Er not to be allowed to become the crown prince. In the end, he was trapped in the small palace and could not move around freely, and he was even kicked off the throne.
Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji threatened Li Er to be the King of Qin and not to have other ideas. In the end, they were directly killed by him, and even his wife was brought into the harem.
Now that he dares to threaten to die on his knees here, he is like an old man who is eating arsenic and seeking death.
So he quickly played the emotional card: "Your Majesty, I deserve to die. However, for the sake of your Majesty and me who lived and died together to conquer the world, please Your Majesty to uphold justice for my son and punish Yang Fan severely. Otherwise, there will be more troubles in the future."
A lot of people will suffer."
Hearing Duan Zhixuan mention the past, Li Er softened immediately, remained silent for a while, and sighed slightly: "Wei Xiong wants an explanation, and I can understand your feelings as a parent."
"However, as the king of a country, I cannot condemn a person based on my own preferences."
"Everything has a cause and an effect. In this way, I summoned Marquis Zhongyi into the palace to confront him. If it is true that that kid used lynching indiscriminately, I will definitely punish him severely."
After speaking, His Majesty Li Er waved his hand to the chamberlain and said, "Go and bring Marquis Zhongyi into the palace."
The chamberlain who had just brought Duan Zhixuan in had the opportunity to interject: "Your Majesty, Marquis Zhongyi has already arrived at Chengtianmen."
Li Er was slightly stunned and shouted angrily: "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Why didn't you tell that bastard in sooner?"
His tone seemed very unhappy.
The chamberlain was extremely depressed.
Duan Zhixuan cried and complained as soon as he came in. He didn't have a chance to speak at all. How could he say it, but he didn't dare to complain at all!
The chamberlain was about to turn around and go out, but before he could walk out of the Manlu Palace, a dull drum sound suddenly sounded and spread throughout the Tai Chi Palace in an instant.
His Majesty Li Er asked in astonishment: "What's going on?"
In ancient times, the cultural connotation of drums was broad and profound, and the majestic sound of drums closely accompanied mankind step by step from wilderness to civilization.
But the drum cannot be beaten casually.
Because drums are considered to be channels of communication with gods, they are mainly used as objects for sacrifices, expeditions, and hunting, and there are strict regulations.
It is absolutely not allowed to play drums when you have nothing to do. It will be considered as blasphemous behavior, you will be punished, and it will also be considered very unlucky.
Fang Xuanling and others listened attentively, then looked shocked, swallowed, and said quickly: "Your Majesty, this drum sound is coming from the direction of Chengtian Gate. It seems to be the Dengwen Drum outside Chengtian Gate?"
"Chengtianmen, Dengwengu?" His Majesty Li Er's eyes were as big as copper bells, appearing in disbelief.
Then he rolled his eyes and said furiously: "It must be Yang Fan. He dares to beat the drum and complain to the emperor. Is he really brave?"
"Where are the guards? Get that bastard to me quickly. I want to see how many heads that guy has grown. The sky is clear and the sun is shining brightly. Do you really think I don't dare to cure him?"
The so-called "Dengwengu" means "Dengshi Shangwen".
Regardless of men, women, old or young, rich or poor, those who want to redress their grievances and litigate the drums, and the sound of the drums reaches the "Heavenly Court".
In this sense, the Dengwen Drum system is exclusive to the highest judicial officer, the emperor. Therefore, the Dengwen Drum system is called the "direct prosecution" system in the ancient Chinese judicial system.
The Tang Dynasty was the most complete period of the judicial system in ancient China, and the Dengwengu system also entered a substantial stage of development in the Tang Dynasty.
After Li Er succeeded to the throne, although the land of China went through a period of recuperation during the Wude years, the long-term anti-Sui war led to the accumulation of a large number of bad governance and old cases in various places.
In order to eradicate bad governance, Li Er established the Dengwengu system.
Although the early Denwen drum system had a certain effect in the short term, it solved some old cases of bad government left over from the previous dynasty.
However, this system mainly serves politics and is intended to strengthen the connection between the palace and the government, the imperial power and the political power, and even the people. It can only be regarded as a direct form of litigation outside the judicial system.
In the sense of a litigation system, the Dengwengu system is a system that activates the highest judicial level, which is the so-called leapfrog litigation.
Its core is that under the normal judicial system, when the parties cannot resolve their litigation situations through normal judicial channels, it provides the parties with an opportunity to communicate with the highest judicial referee or relevant judges.
This allows the parties involved to appear before the highest judicial referee and state their grievances to him, in the hope that the "litigation" can be resolved fairly.
In the Tang Dynasty, the Dengwen drum outside Chengtian Gate was not allowed to be sounded unless there was great grievance.
Once the drum is sounded, the emperor must personally receive the person who sounds the drum, and together with the chief officials of the three departments, listen to the grievances of the parties!
Since the Dengwen Drum outside Chengtian Gate was established, there has never been a drum sound.
After all, ordinary people who have grievances will only sound the grievance drum at the local government offices instead of beating the Dengwen drum outside Chengtian Gate.
Thinking about it this way, only that bastard Yang Fan dares to beat that drum!
The most important thing is that that boy has a grievance.
As the servants and guards left, Fang Xuanling and Li Ji looked at each other, a little embarrassed, but in their hearts they admired Yang Fan with admiration.
Looking at the entire Tang Dynasty, only that boy Yang Fan could make His Majesty so angry and unbalanced.
However, they both couldn't help but feel deeply worried, fearing that Yang Fan would be punished.
Seeing His Majesty Li Er's furious appearance, Changsun Wuji and Duan Zhixuan couldn't help but shudder. Who can resist the emperor's anger?
But I was secretly happy. That bastard Yang Fan was so courageous. He really didn’t know how to write the word “death”!
If you dare to anger His Majesty, you deserve to die.
Watching the imperial guards go out, His Majesty Li Er suppressed the anger in his heart and shouted in a deep voice: "Come here, call me the chief officer of the third division."
"promise!"
The old eunuch Wang Huangui appeared silently in the palace, bowed and exited the Manna Palace.
Outside Chengtian Gate, a few breaths ago.
A large drum, at least as tall as three adults, stood majestically on the stone base on the left side of the city gate.
This is the famous Dengwen Drum. Unfortunately, no one has beaten this drum since it was built.
Nowadays, this drum is no more than a decoration, just to show the fairness and strict laws of Zhenguan Dynasty and the absence of unjust, false and wrong cases.
After all, how much grievance does it take for someone to come here to beat a drum and voice their grievances?
If everyone came here to play drums, the emperor would be extremely busy!
Besides, this drum can't be beaten easily. I didn't see two teams of guards standing straight on both sides of the Dengwen drum.
How dare ordinary people come here?
And if the nobles in Chang'an City know the meaning of this drum, who would dare to knock it?
However, while the guards were stunned, Yang Fan walked out of the city gate, picked up the drumstick wrapped in red cloth next to him, and beat the Denwen drum with all his strength.
They didn't dare to ask about this Marquis, nor did they dare to stop him.
However, this Marquis is so awesome that he has already sent someone to inform His Majesty, why are you still beating this drum?
Li Junxian stood aside and smiled bitterly when he saw the snow on the big drum being washed and falling by Yang Fan's hammer.
This brother is too fierce!
If you file an imperial complaint, file an imperial complaint. Why are you beating this drum? It’s not like you can’t see the emperor.
But Li Junxian knew Yang Fan's arrogant temperament and knew that it was useless to persuade him, so he could only watch with cold eyes.
You don’t need to think about it to know that His Majesty the Emperor must be furious at this moment!
You must know that His Majesty is the one who cares about face the most. Originally this drum was just for decoration, but now it is being beaten. Wouldn't it be a slap in His Majesty Li Er's face?
Li Junxian suddenly became secretly worried...
When Yang Fan was brought to Ganlu Hall, the three chief officers were already sitting at the head of His Majesty Li Er, but they looked a little uneasy. I wonder why the emperor called them here alone?
More importantly, Fang Xuanling and Li Jing were sitting aside, as if they were students observing.
Xiao Yu, the minister of Dali Temple, the minister of the Ministry of punishment, and the imperial envoy secretly looked at each other and made guesses in their minds.
Could it be that some case was mishandled and His Majesty Li Er caught the evidence?
Of course, Yang Fan and Li Junxian entered the Manlu Hall one after another. They looked up and saw His Majesty Li Er sitting on the high seat with a gloomy face.
Just as Yang Fan was about to salute, he heard Duan Zhixuan in the center of the hall howl loudly, pointing at Yang Fan and crying hard: "Your Majesty, this guy is the one who killed my son. Please make the decision for me!"
Then, he nodded his head to the ground and burst into tears.
The cry was hoarse, majestic, passionate, and seemed to have endless cruelty.
That burst of heart-shaking crying almost made Fang Xuanling and others think how wronged he had been.
A burly middle-aged man crying loudly is enough to make onlookers sad and those who hear it cry.
Perhaps Meng Jiangnu who cried down the Great Wall was nothing more than this.
Yang Fan was dumbfounded!
I really didn't expect that Duan Zhixuan, who has always presented himself as a gentle gentleman, would be as good as any actor in later generations.
The twitching shoulders, the bursting tears, the grief-stricken face, and the cry that was wronged to the core, the beautiful country owes him a golden statue.
Yang Fan pursed his lips. Isn't this old boy too shameless?
It was your Duan family who started the trouble first, and I was the one who beat the drum and complained.
You, an old man, are crying so hard now. Who can you show?
Now that I have been robbed of my role, I am so shameless!
As the wronged person, I should be the one crying.
Yang Fan didn't know.
Although Zhixuan was acting during this period, he felt really aggrieved.
Not to mention that his son Duan Guan had an arm chopped off by Yang Fan and is about to be sent away three thousand miles away.
What's more, another son who had high hopes was also deposed. As a parent, how can we not feel heartbroken?
More importantly, all of this is thanks to Yang Fan.
When I suddenly saw the culprit, I was naturally filled with jealousy and hatred.
Enemies are naturally extremely jealous when they meet.
If he wanted His Majesty Li Er to slap Yang Fan hard in the face and express his anger for him, Duan Zhixuan would of course cry a little more sadly to make His Majesty Li Er more sympathetic.
When he wanted to get rid of Yang Fan, he just wanted to keep his position as general.
Who would have thought that the assassination failed, but instead his son was harmed. After all, he was also the commander of the army. Now his son was crippled by Yang Fan one after another. What is the difference between killing him?
Since Duan Zhixuan became a high-ranking prince, when has he been humiliated like this?
At this time, Yang Fan had already severely peeled off a layer of his face, so he simply didn't want the remaining bit.
As long as he can get Yang Fan, he has given up all dignity, so he cried heartbrokenly in front of His Majesty Li Er like an angry little daughter-in-law. I feel pity for him.
Duan Zhixuan's earth-shattering cry really made Yang Fan a little confused and even at a loss.
Did he also kneel down and cry?
Crying is okay, the key is that Yang Fan can’t cry!
What the hell, even though I thought Duan Zhixuan would do something wrong, he still didn't follow the routine!
Your Duan family started everything, and you still have the nerve to cry in front of His Majesty Li Er?
But Yang Fan also knows that children who cry can be fed by milk.
When Duan Zhixuan cries like this, it makes people feel that he is on the weaker side, and it is easy to gain sympathy points.
What's more, His Majesty Li Er is a nostalgic person.
In desperation, Yang Fan had no choice but to kneel down and howl several times.
A prince of the country is not shy even when he is dozens of years old, but Yang Fan is only a teenager and is so scared!
As a result, a prince and a marquis burst into tears in the Ganlu Hall.
Fang Xuanling and Li Ji were sitting on the side and could clearly see Yang Fan howling and crying while rubbing his eyes vigorously.
Unfortunately, my eyes were red from rubbing, but not a single tear fell.
Li Ji, who was originally stoic, couldn't hold it in anymore and had to raise his hands to cover his face. He was really afraid of laughing out loud.
Changsun Wuji twitched the corner of his mouth, Yang Fan is really shameless!
Duan Zhixuan cried when his son was deposed. Why are you so excited?
Duan Zhixuan, who was crying, was also shocked by Yang Fan's actions, and he forgot to cry for a while.
I really didn’t expect that other people couldn’t figure this guy out, and now he can’t even pretend to be pitiful. I’m really angry!
Xiao Yu and others looked confused. They had just been called here by His Majesty Li Er and did not understand the situation.
Is it because the two of them are pitiful?
Looking at the two guys kneeling down below, His Majesty Li Er felt his temples pounding.
Do you really think of this Manna Palace as a place for mourning?
It’s really unlucky!
Suddenly his eyes turned black with anger, and he said angrily: "Yang Fan, why are you so shameless? You have been crippled by the son of the Duke of Bao, but you have done nothing, so why are you crying in front of me?"
"Besides, you can't beat the Dengwen drum casually. If you don't give me an explanation today, I'll tell you whether it's your head that's hard or my sword that's sharp."
Yang Fan stopped crying and rubbed his sore eyes.
Come on, we won’t pretend if we’re discovered!
Do whatever you like.
However, he still had to pretend, so he raised his head and said aggrievedly: "Your Majesty, it's not just the humble minister who wants to teach the young master of Duke Bao, but Duan Zan has gone too far."
"Wei Chen really didn't expect that as the leader of the left guard guarding the capital, Duan Zan would dare to deploy troops in the capital without receiving the imperial edict. This has violated the laws of the Tang Dynasty and should be punished according to the laws!"
"Besides, Duan Dalang led his men to surround Wei Chen's residence without authorization and injured Wei Chen's guards. If Wei Chen hadn't had some martial arts skills, he might have been beaten to death by those guys."
"Duan Zan relied on his status as the general of the left guard, bullied the weak, and wanted to kill Wei Chen. Wei Chen was about to die, so how could he not resist with all his strength?"
"However, Wei Chen still kept in mind the laws of the Tang Dynasty and did not dare to do anything with all his strength. He even warned the other party several times in advance."
"However, Duan Zan has a distinguished family background and has military power. He is only a civil servant and has no protection from his ancestors. He is afraid of being beaten to death, so he can only resist with all his strength."
"In panic, one of them accidentally cut off the other's leg."
"I really didn't expect that Duke Bao could not tell right from wrong and was so protective of his calf, but instead he would bite back and frame a minor minister."
"When I thought of this, I became frightened and had to beat the drum to ask Your Majesty to find out everything and clear my name."
"Your Majesty has a great reputation as Shenwu, and he is a famous monarch in ancient times. He shouldn't be guilty of punishing his ministers because of his affair with Duke Bao, right?"
Li Jing also opened his eyes at this time, and suddenly realized that this boy Yang Fan had many advantages, including his eloquence. There were only a few people in the civil and military circles who could match him.
The reason why I helped the boy just now was because I felt that this boy had made good military achievements and wanted to leave a good seedling for the empire.
Little did I know that this kid could even make the dead look alive. He is simply a genius.
Duan Zhixuan was completely dumbfounded.
This kid has nothing wrong with him, yet he makes himself look miserable. He is really cunning.
What's more important is that this guy holds the lifeblood of His Majesty Li Er.
He directly said that if His Majesty Li Er wanted to punish him, it would be because of his affair with himself.
In this case, His Majesty Li Er would not dare to protect his Duan family.
Just as he was about to retort, His Majesty Li Er shouted in a deep voice: "Okay, since you have sounded the Dengwen drum, the merits of this matter will be reviewed by the three departments."
"I have invited the chief officials of the three departments to let them express their opinions, and then I will make the final decision!"
Duan Zhixuan suddenly panicked.
The original purpose was to allow His Majesty Li Er to punish Yang Fan arbitrarily for the sake of old friendship.
Who would have thought that if Sansi was asked to join in, he would still be fooling around?
Originally, it was his son Duan Zan who led the troops to make trouble, and he was on the unreasonable side.
But His Majesty Li Er is right.
Since Yang Fan sounded the Dengwen drum, the participation of the three divisions was also in line with the laws of the Tang Dynasty.
Now I can only pray that Sansi and others can show some favoritism for his own sake, otherwise...
Duan Zhixuan didn’t dare to think about it!
This bastard Yang Fan is too insidious and cunning!