Facing Zhu Youtang's aggressive approach, Xiao Jing just knocked his head on the ground and lay prone. Perhaps because of his old age, his thin body was trembling in the hall.
Seeing him like this, Zhu Youtang softened his tone and said, "Get up and talk."
Xiao Jing stood up tremblingly, bowed to Zhu Youtang again, and said: "Your Majesty asked this slave, is it because of Zhang Fang's matter?"
Zhang Fang......
All the civil and military officials had a vague impression of this person. Some people who were interested also discovered that Zhang Fang did not come to the court today. Although the court meeting only required officials of a certain grade to join, the imperial envoys were different. Although their official positions were humble, they also came to the court.
However, it was obvious that Zhang Fang did not appear for some unknown reason.
Zhu Youtang didn't expect that Xiao Jing would say it all by himself, and said with a cold face: "Exactly, I have repeatedly warned that Dongchang, as a factory guard, is the confidant of the palace. The more this is the case, the more careful he should be, walking on thin ice, and not letting others
Sorry, I ordered you to take charge of Dongchang, but why did someone from Dongchang break into the Metropolitan Procuratorate today and arrest the minister without authorization?"
All the civil and military officials looked shocked. Only then did they realize that such a shocking thing had happened today. Many people started whispering. At this moment, many envoys stood up and said angrily:
"Your Majesty, please make the decision for the Metropolitan Procuratorate."
Zhu Youtang looked directly at Xiao Jing and said nothing. He was waiting for Xiao Jing to explain.
Xiao Jing looked unconcerned and said, "Your Majesty, Zhang Fang is guilty!"
Zhu Youtang's face became darker. At this time, Xiao Jing actually dared to speak harshly. He laughed angrily and said: "Okay, okay, if you say he is guilty, then I will ask you where he is guilty."
Xiao Jing said: "Zhang Fang spoke unscrupulously and insulted the Holy Lord. As the head of the East Factory, I naturally want to punish him."
Zhu Youtang sneered: "You said he insulted me, but I have not seen his memorial. Even if he insults me, I will weigh it, so why bother you."
This sentence was already very rude. At least Xiao Jing had never heard Zhu Youtang say such serious words to him.
Xiao Jing's performance was not as panic-stricken, but his eyes were more determined, and he said slowly: "If you just wrote a letter of insult, I would have nothing to say, but the bad thing is that Zhang Fang actually handed over the insulting article.
From the newspaper, it spread to the world with great fanfare. It is said that the son does not speak of the mother's ugliness, and the king and his ministers are like father and son. How can any ministers publicize the faults of the king to the outside world? Seeing that the influence was too great, the slave made a private opinion and ordered the man to smash it.
We went to the newspaper office, confiscated the newspaper, and took Zhang Fang, waiting for His Majesty's disposal."
Zhu Youtang was slightly stunned after hearing his words: "Are you serious?"
Xiao Jing took out a newspaper from his sleeve, carefully took a few steps forward, held the newspaper high, and said, "Your Majesty, please read it."
A young eunuch took the newspaper from Xiao Jing, went up to Danbi's jade steps, and delivered the newspaper to the imperial case.
Zhu Youtang opened the newspaper and read it for a while before his expression began to change.
Zhang Fang's article was published on the front page of this so-called Dong'an newspaper. The first sentence of the article was, 'Oh, the country will fall only today.' This sentence is bold, but Zhu Youtang opened up a new way of speaking.
It was not that he had never received such a memorial before, but this article was written in a newspaper, not for his emperor to read, but for the world to read.
Showing it to the emperor can be said to be an admonishment. But scolding the emperor for his faults in front of others would be considered disloyal.
The second paragraph of the article begins to talk about Zhu Youtang's "fault", saying that he relied on the factory guards, especially the Jinyiwei. The Jinyiwei acted recklessly in Yingchunfang, which led to the civil uprising, but Liu Chengfeng did not.
In order to cover up the situation, they sent people to suppress them, killing countless people and causing rivers of blood to flow.
As for the quotations from scriptures that followed, Zhu Youtang knew roughly what he was talking about without even looking at them.
He took a deep breath, leaned back on the royal chair, and did not move at all. His eyes were half open and half closed, and he began to organize his thoughts.
Zhang Fang is very bold and even talks nonsense, but can he be punished?
cannot!
If it were Emperor Taizu or Emperor Wen, he might have been imprisoned and prepared for execution, or even his whole family would be executed, but it was not impossible. But Zhu Youtang was different. He also worried about his reputation. If he was punished, he would inevitably be punished.
The population is true, and besides, he has always boasted that he can speak freely, and now he wants to punish an imperial envoy for his crimes. This is nothing more than a slap in the face.
But what about Xiao Jing? Xiao Jing ordered Dongchang to rush into the Metropolitan Procuratorate, which was indeed a bit presumptuous, but Zhu Youtang not only could not punish him, but he might even praise him.
What is Dongchang? Dongchang is the emperor's sword, a sharp blade to protect the emperor. No matter how stupid Zhu Youtang is, he still knows that the existence of Dongchang is to protect himself. Now someone dares to insult the emperor outside. If Dongchang is indifferent, this
It was a dereliction of duty. And what Xiao Jing did was just to fulfill his duties. He was not wrong, so how could he be punished?
But who is at fault?
Zhu Youtang's eyes fell on Liu Chengfeng in the newspaper.
At the same time, a hint of meaning flashed across Xiao Jing's eyes. He knew this emperor too well. This emperor was diligent and shrewd. He had great ambitions to create a peaceful and prosperous age and to be a king like the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.
Zhu Youtang is not without weaknesses. For example, he cares about reputation.
The most powerful part of this article is that it talks about the emperor's shielding of Jin Yiwei, which led to the Yingchunfang disaster. Now, this article has been circulated through newspapers. Xiao Jing believes that with Zhu Youtang's character, in order to let the world
Knowing that he was not harboring or even indulging the Jin Yiwei pro-soldiers, he would definitely kill Liu Chengfeng to protect his reputation.
The purpose of arresting Zhang Fang and copying the newspaper was just to cover up the matter. It was to make the matter bigger, attract the attention of the world, and involve all civil and military officials. And if this happens, then this article will definitely be spread everywhere, you know
The more people there are, the harder it will be for Zhu Youtang to ride on a tiger. If Liu Chengfeng is not killed, people in the world will criticize him. They will only think that the emperor loves villains and condones Liu Chengfeng, the butcher. As the emperor, in order to avoid trouble and protect his own life.
Holy Name, of course, cut through the knot with a sharp knife, and Liu Chengfeng got into trouble.
Xiao Jing raised his head slightly and saw Zhu Youtang, the frail emperor, above the Dan Emperor. Sure enough, there was a hint of murderous intent in his eyes at this moment.
Xiao Jing can already be sure that everything he arranged has been successful and his goal has been achieved.
Zhu Youtang, on the other hand, was sitting on the royal chair, motionless like a dumb chicken. It was not that he had never had murderous intentions. With Zhu Youtang's intelligence, he certainly understood that in order to quell Zhang Fang's similar speculations,
Killing Liu Chengfeng immediately is the best way. Killing him will dispel the rumors.
But……
Liu Chengfeng had a deep impression on Zhu Youtang. He taught the prince to read and treated himself. All of them were great achievements. He was executed regardless of right or wrong. When Zhu Youtang came up with this idea, he felt a little pity in his heart.
.
Zhu Youtang hesitated...
He remembered a sentence: Your Majesty, even a saint can make mistakes. As long as you know your mistakes and can correct them, your Majesty will be the Holy Son of Heaven.
If Liu Chengfeng is executed rashly now, does that mean he can correct his mistakes after he realizes his mistakes?
"I still don't know where I went wrong." Zhu Youtang murmured, then cheered up, put the newspaper on the imperial desk, raised his eyes, and said: "Zhang Fang's words are groundless and extremely ridiculous.
But I never punish crimes with words, so Dongchang should release Zhang Fang as soon as possible. As for the people in the newspaper office, they are not allowed to make things difficult."
Zhu Youtang stood up, his eyes fell on Xiao Jing, and said: "Xiao Aiqing is not wrong, but next time this matter comes up, report it directly to me, and I will deal with it myself."
"My slave obeys the order." Xiao Jing smiled slightly, with a trace of surprise in his eyes. It was obviously because Zhu Youtang never mentioned Liu Chengfeng, which made him feel a little strange.
Zhu Youtang hummed and continued: "However, this newspaper article talked about Jin Yiwei's suppression of the civil uprising. It seems that by the time of the trial, rumors will have spread. Today, I simply used this court meeting to observe
Judgment, hundreds of officials are witnesses, where is Wang Shu, the Minister of Civil Affairs?"
Wang Shu stood up and said: "I am here."
Zhu Youtang said: "Give Wang Aiqing an extra seat, and sit at the head of His Majesty Dan. You will preside over the trial here. As for Dali Temple, the Ministry of Punishment, Dongchang, and Beizhen Prefecture, they also each selected one person to accompany the interrogation.
People, hurry up and bring the prisoner Liu Chengfeng into the palace."
After Xiao Jing heard Zhu Youtang's words, he thought he heard it wrong, but his face still looked indifferent. It seemed that Liu Chengfeng's life and death had nothing to do with him. But his heart was turned upside down.
What he knew about Zhu Youtang was that Liu Chengfeng was bound to die, so why did something go wrong? What is Your Majesty thinking about now? Could it be that Liu Chengfeng is already in the Emperor's heart, and even Your Majesty can't help but favor him?
?
Thinking of the words "Jian in the Emperor's Heart", Xiao Jing's eyes flashed with a hint of haze. If this was really the case, this Liu Chengfeng would be even more difficult to deal with.
Xiao Jing thought wildly for a while, then he smiled slightly, became calm and composed again, and said: "Your Majesty is wise, here in Dongchang, let's just let the hundreds of criminal households come to the jury." After that, he stepped aside, and there was no more.
He spoke. When he glanced at the two civil and military groups from the corner of his eye, he found that Cabinet Minister Li Dongyang was looking at him with a cold look.
Xiao Jing did not look at Li Dongyang, but he suddenly felt deeply afraid of Li Dongyang in his heart.
The public case in Yingchunfang has long attracted the attention of the courtiers, so when they heard that the emperor was going to be tried here, no one objected. Everyone stepped aside and gave up their positions. The young eunuchs also moved tables and chairs one after another.
Wang Shu was the chief judge, and he sat on the left side of Dan Bi without hesitation, stroking the desk with his hand, as if he was ready.