Shangguan Min was frightened by the hatred in Xue Haoyu's eyes and took a step back suddenly. Fang Zilan turned around and looked over, then slowly said: "Shangguan Min, what do you think?"
"I..." Shangguan Min opened his mouth, "I feel that Mr. Xue did not have no way out, but the method was wrong and he ended up falling behind."
Fang Zilan turned to Xue Haoyu thoughtfully, the hatred in his eyes not diminishing at all, "Master Fang is such a good disciple, as innocent as Master Fang!"
Fang Zilan straightened her sleeves and said softly: "I would like to hear the details."
"After I entered the Ministry of Etiquette, no matter who made a mistake among the superiors or subordinates, they would be blamed on me." . Then I understood that this was not bullying students, but a wealthy family bullying a poor family."
He let out a long sigh, "After the Southeastern Plague, the Ministry of Rites invited Master Lioyuan from Baiye Temple to perform a ritual ceremony. I participated in the entire process and was cautious for fear of making any mistakes. However, who knew that on the day of the ritual ceremony, the experience in the case would be revealed. The article was missing one page for no reason, and Siwu Qi and I were picked out by Wang Quanrui on the spot. When I knelt in front of Master Yuan, it was the first time I felt so close to death."
He recalled the situation that day, as if he was still afraid, and continued after a while: "From then on, I knew that I and Qi Siwu were the scapegoats of the Ministry of Rites. If we didn't resist, sooner or later we would die at the hands of Wang Quanrui. . Qi Siwu was hesitant after learning my idea, but Xueer resolutely married me in order to strengthen his belief."
He smiled self-deprecatingly, "When Xue'er married me, I was still thinking about how Wang Quanrui could be so kind, but I never thought that he was waiting for today. Everyone knows what happened next. I was one step behind. , lose everything."
He said with a more determined look on his face, "But I don't regret it."
"If you are a member of the Ministry of Rites, even if you accidentally make a mistake in the year-end ceremony, you will end up in ruins. What's more, if you make a mistake intentionally?" Fang Zilan looked at the person across the wall steadily, with an expression on his face. A little relieved, "If you don't regret it, have you ever thought about your family far away from the capital?"
"I wouldn't do this if I had no other choice." Xue Haoyu lowered his head and took a deep breath, "Master Fang, you are a warrior on the battlefield. You once defended Qiluo City for more than a month. I admire you, but now I want to ask a disrespectful question."
Fang Zilan nodded slightly, "Just ask."
"During the more than a month I guarded Qiluo City, I didn't know when Miluo would attack, I didn't know when Qiluo City would be broken, and I didn't know if reinforcements would arrive..." Xue Haoyu's voice trembled a little, "It was like there was a sword above his head, every step of the way. Pressing hard, but hanging in the balance. Master Fang, have you never thought about fighting out of the city and ending all this?"
"Never." Fang Zilan answered without hesitation, "If I am alone, even if I risk my life and fight with all my strength, what's the problem? But behind me are tens of thousands of Beijing people, so I will never show off the courage of a mere man. .”
Xue Haoyu looked at her blankly, but saw her sigh softly and asked: "Xue Haoyu, do you know where you lost?"
Seeing that he was silent, Fang Zilan continued on her own, "Wang Quanrui allowed other people in the Ministry of Rites to bully you. His method was not very good, but his patience was better than yours. He waited for you to resist until you couldn't bear it, and then waited again. You planned to stir up trouble step by step, and finally waited for the perfect opportunity to kill you and Qi Siwu at once."
She said in a deep voice, "Not everyone can have this kind of patience for a whole year."
Xue Haoyu's voice was tainted with a hint of bitterness, "I only figured it out after Wang Quanrui left last night. He gave me opportunities, but he killed them all..."
"It seems that you haven't thought clearly enough." Fang Zilan interrupted him coldly, "If you have Mr. Wang's patience, it's still unclear who will win in the future. If you are inferior to others, you have to hide your strength and bide your time. If Mr. Wang can really kill you casually, How can you survive to this day? He just can't, so he is waiting to find out your faults."
A flash of shock flashed across Xue Haoyu's face, "How is it possible..."
"How is it impossible?" Fang Zilan had a chill in his brows, "Dajing advocates Buddhism and the etiquette of serving Buddha is the most stringent. However, even if you were in front of Master Yuan, you still held your position in the Ministry of Etiquette. It must have been at that time Mr. Wang has already tested the direction of the wind, so he did not act rashly."
"What's the wind direction?" Xue Haoyu was stunned for a moment, and then he realized, "The new batch of officials from years ago..."
"You are not slow to react." Fang Zilan's expression turned cold. "At the beginning of the official administration reform, before the first batch of new officials were in place, a high-ranking junior from a poor family made a mistake on such a major event as the year-end festival. Do you think If this matter is publicized, will the young people from poor families among the new officials still have a foothold?"
Xue Haoyu knelt down with a plop, "There are also those from high-ranking families who will take the opportunity to make a big fuss and question poor students..."
"One move can move the whole body." Fang Zilan said with emotion: "The timing of Master Wang's move is so good that even I can't help but admire it."
"Master Fang!" Xue Haoyu suddenly crawled over and clung to the cell fence, "Please save me!"
Fang Zilan looked at him condescendingly, and saw tears streaming down his face, "Even though I am from a humble background, I cannot let the Gongqing family play with people's lives in their hands. It is difficult to establish a family in a poor family, and under the ups and downs of the Gongqing family, it is even more difficult. A little carelessness can lead to the death of a whole family..."
He kowtowed heavily and said, "Master Fang, as the Duke of Yue, it is not an exaggeration to say that you are the head of a poor family. I beg you, you must not stop thousands of poor families from being able to stand up because of me!"
"If you have such a heart, it's not in vain for me to save your life." Fang Zilan bowed down, stretched out his hand and said, "Get up."
Xue Haoyu looked at the hand in front of him, and the hands he raised subconsciously shrank, and he didn't dare to step forward to hold it.
Seeing this, Fang Zilan said solemnly: "The world is huge, and there are many poor families, several times more than the aristocratic families. If the two sides are tit for tat, and all the poor families like you have the intention to resist, how can the world be stable? I know this, and Master Liaoyuan knows this. , Your Majesty knows better."
She did not take back her hand, paused and continued: "The reform of officialdom is just the beginning, we will not let it be defeated in one blow."
"Master Fang, I know that you have a good relationship with Master Zhuge Yu of the Zhuge family, but..." Xue Haoyu said hesitantly: "After all, he is the son of the aristocratic family. If there is a conflict, he will definitely put the interests of the aristocratic family first, and..."
He swallowed back the word "Your Majesty" and changed his words: "People's hearts are unpredictable and their greed is endless. The interests of the aristocratic families in the court are uneven, how can we allow the poor family to get a share of the pie? Let alone stand side by side with the poor family, it must be How can a noble family tolerate the pain of peeling and cutting meat?"
