Jiangning County, Jiulong Lake
The vast night covers the entire earth like a curtain. Today is undoubtedly a sunny day. A crescent moon hangs in the sky. A few sparse stars around it cast a faint clear light. On the lush forested lake in the southwest, The lights are like fireflies.
A awning boat floated on the water, and with the sound of water "swishing", the boat slowly moved towards the south bank.
Guo Yizhen abandoned the boat and landed on the shore, jumped up a few times, entered the dense forest, and came to a small courtyard with a bamboo fence and a thatched house.
In the east chamber, candlelight illuminated Chen Yuan's tall figure on the wall. Except for the howling cold wind on the winter night, everything was surprisingly quiet.
"Sir, we are back." The old man in a cotton robe said.
Chen Yuan raised his eyes and saw a young man wearing a bamboo hat and night clothes entering the side room and asked, "How is it?"
Guo Yizhen said: "It was just a little bit close. Later, Uncle Yongning came over and failed. However, the crown prince of Chu died on the spot."
When Chen Yuan heard this, his brows furrowed into the Chinese character "Chuan" and he said, "It's just a child. It doesn't even count as interest. It will also arouse the vigilance of the palace."
Guo Yizhen hesitated for a moment and said, "Master, Miss...she is still with Uncle Yongning."
"Don't mention her in front of me." Chen Yuan said in a deep voice, and with a bang, he hit several cases with his fist, venting his anger.
Chen Xiao was so preoccupied with searching for the heir of the deposed prince that he delayed a lot of business. As for her being around Jia Heng, no information was sent to her. This is simply unreasonable!
Guo Yizhen reminded: "Sir, according to the news from Jinling, Uncle Yongning seems to have found out our identity."
The news about the remnants of King Zhao spread a lot in Jinling City. Naturally, Guo Yizhen stayed in Jinling City to investigate and immediately informed Guo Yizhen through secret channels.
Chen Yuan frowned and said coldly: "I have been hiding for a while recently. It is not appropriate to act in a big way now."
Now that one hit is missed, it is no longer appropriate to blindly assassinate. However, it is almost conceivable that if his grandson died young in Jiangnan, the man in the palace will definitely go crazy with anger.
In Shenjing City, Daming Palace
The morning glow of early winter reflected the eastern sky, and the rays of light fell on the branches of the sycamore trees in the palace garden. Frost and dew hung on the fingers, reflecting the morning light, glittering and translucent, like clear glass.
It was already winter, and the Earth Dragon was already burning in the East Nuan Pavilion of Kunning Palace. The room did not seem cold. The cold wind was howling outside. Emperor Chongping was having breakfast with Empress Song beside him.
Empress Song handed over the red dates and glutinous rice porridge and said softly: "Your Majesty, Ziyu has been away from Jiangnan for so long. Is it time to come back?"
Emperor Chongping put down his chopsticks and whispered: "After he has checked the Zhen family, he will almost be able to return to Shenjing."
Empress Song's lotus face had some concern on her face, and she said softly: "Your Majesty, what exactly is going on with the Zhen family? There has been a lot of buzz inside and outside the palace recently?"
Emperor Chongping said in a deep voice: "The Zhen family has been too outrageous over the years. I don't know how many courtiers have gone to court to impeach the Zhen family. I have tolerated it again and again, but the Zhen family still doesn't know how to restrain themselves. This time we must severely punish them."
Queen Song said: "Your Majesty, Princess Chu and Princess Beijing..."
Emperor Chongping looked gloomy and said in a low voice: "One code is the same. It is precisely because the Zhen family thinks they are powerful and they have been so self-righteous these years."
Empress Song simply said a few words and stopped talking. She was not helping the Zhen family to plead for mercy, but was carefully testing the emperor's attitude towards the King of Chu.
At this moment, in the Daming Palace, Xiang Daiquan, who was standing with his hands lowered under the pillars, suddenly saw an eunuch looking at the door. He quickly approached quietly. After a while, he left and returned again, and came to Emperor Chongping and whispered softly. Said: "Your Majesty, the memorial delivered by Uncle Yongning from Jiangnan has arrived."
After hearing this, Emperor Chongping put down the porridge bowl in his hand, took the handkerchief and wiped his mouth, saying: "Bring the memorial here."
Dai Quan greeted the eunuch, held a lacquered wood secret box, opened it with a key, and took out the memorial.
Emperor Chongping reached out to take the memorial, and under the attentive gaze of Empress Song, he unfolded the memorial and read it. Immediately, his face became as calm as a lake.
The main report in the memorial is Jia Heng's recent inspection of the Zhen family, which can probably determine the deficit of the three major weaving bureaus of Jinling Tirenyuan.
"Your Majesty, here are two more letters." Dai Quan picked up the two memorials and handed them over.
After hearing this, Emperor Chongping took the memorial from Dai Quan and read it. The middle-aged emperor's hand holding the memorial was trembling slightly.
The king of Chu was assassinated, the prince died young, and the former king of Zhao and his party were causing trouble in the south of the Yangtze River... Jia Heng recorded the detailed events in his memorial.
These keywords were like sharp weapons, licking Chongping's nerves hard.
"These treacherous ministers and traitors!" Emperor Chongping shouted, anger showing on his face, and the evil spirit rolling in his eyebrows, as if a biting cold wind swept through the entire Kunning Palace.
All the palace officials and eunuchs in the palace had looks of fear on their faces, and they were so frightened that they did not even dare to express their anger.
Empress Song was secretly observing the changes in Emperor Chongping's face. When she suddenly heard the thunderous anger, Fangxin was equally shocked and said softly: "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
"The King of Chu was assassinated by gangsters in the Jiangnan Posthouse. Unfortunately, Chen Chun, the eldest son of King Chu, died young." Emperor Chongping said in a deep voice, his face as gloomy as water.
When Empress Song heard this, her heart skipped a beat. She looked surprised on her snow-skinned face and whispered, "Your Majesty, what's going on?"
The King of Chu was assassinated, who could be so bold and reckless, and even the crown prince of Chu King was unfortunately killed?
Emperor Chongping said coldly: "It was the remnants of King Zhao who were behind this. They took advantage of the situation when the Zhen family was ransacked and King Chu moved to the post house to assassinate them. What on earth were these officials from the south of the Yangtze River doing? Even the guards of the Jinyi Mansion hid it from them. , and this Fang Yaochun actually went to the Zhen family to cancel the engagement on the day King Chu was assassinated."
Finally, regarding the movement of offering wine to Fang Yaochun in the Nanjing Imperial College, it was naturally Jia Heng who made the move. It was this move that announced Fang Yaochun's fate to a certain extent.
Upon hearing the word "King Zhao", Queen Song's appearance suddenly changed, her eyes flashed, and she said softly: "Your Majesty, King Zhao is not..."
"Although King Zhao is dead, his son, remnants of the party, and some associates who miss King Zhao cooperated with others and sent dead soldiers to assassinate the vassal king. This is for me." Emperor Chongping said with a cold face. , got up, his eyes were suppressing a raging anger.
After so many years, people like the deposed prince and King Zhao still have rebellious intentions. The last assassination case at Ciyun Temple was the work of these people!
There are also places in the south of the Yangtze River. At that time, many officials wanted to depose the prince, and some imperial censors Qingliu were sent to Nanjing, but they still did not give up after many years!
Dai Quan handed over the memorial and said, "Your Majesty, here is another memorial from Uncle Yongning."
Emperor Chongping suppressed the boiling murderous intention in his heart, looked at Dai Quan, reached out to take the memorial, and started to read it.
It recorded in detail some details of the assassination of the King of Chu, and he finally asked himself to be blamed. Because he was busy working in the camp in the south and north of the Yangtze River, he did not notice the treachery in advance, and he was guilty of the divine grace.
"Your Majesty." Empress Song looked at Emperor Chongping, her beautiful eyes full of worry.
Every time the deposed prince and King Zhao's party appear, His Majesty will be furious. Sometimes she feels scared when she sees them.
"Ziyu took the blame himself, saying that he was busy with military affairs against the captives and neglected to protect the king of Chu. He also mentioned in the memorial that the Fuzhou Navy and the Hangzhou Navy urgently needed to be organized like the camps in the south and north of the Yangtze River, and he wanted King Beijing to go south. Rectify the navy so that he can do his best to detect the case and uncover the traitors." Emperor Chongping's face was gloomy, but there was no trace of happiness or anger on his face.
Empress Song said softly: "Your Majesty, Ziyu seemed to be doing his best to deal with the captor incident some time ago."
Emperor Chongping said coldly: "These rebels must have thought that the Han Dynasty could not deal with the Jurchens, so they sneaked into Jinling to stir up trouble and took the opportunity to cause trouble. Now they are even more frenzied and assassinating the vassal king."
My mind couldn't help but think of the snowflake-like bullets in Jiangnan earlier. Did King Zhao rebel against the party and want to take the opportunity to ruin his affairs?
Perhaps seeing that his country was stable, they could not start a secret rebellion, so they deliberately sabotaged it.
In fact, as Jia Heng had previously expected, the emperor fell into a rumbling paranoia of persecution.
Jiangnan officials still have a small group of anti-party forces that are like poisonous snakes, waiting for the opportunity to move, waiting to cause trouble when the big man is weak.
Thinking of this, the emperor's eyes were full of anger, but he still suppressed it forcibly and said to Dai Quan: "Send someone to summon Shui Rong into the palace. I have something to ask you."
Dai Quan's heart trembled, he respectfully obeyed the order, and then went to the military aircraft office to look for Shuirong.
Daming Palace, inner study room
Shui Rong was dressed in a silver-white python dragon suit, with a black gauze official hat on his head, and a piece of green emerald buckled in the middle of the hat. The green color was eye-catching. He was in his early twenties, with handsome appearance and slender figure.
"Your Majesty has arrived."
Shui Rong followed the sound and went up to the middle-aged emperor with a face as clear as water. He saluted and said, "I am a humble minister, Shui Rong has met the Holy One. Long live the Holy King. Long live the Holy One."
"Shui Qing is flat." Emperor Chongping said, and he came to the study and sat down on the chair behind the imperial desk. Because it was winter, the chair was also covered with a mattress.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Shui Rong stood up, with respect on his young and handsome face, and said, "I don't know what your Majesty has ordered when he summoned me."
Emperor Chongping did not beat around the bush and said: "This time I summoned the Water Minister because I had an errand. Jia Ziyu came up and mentioned that the land in the south of the Yangtze River is particularly important for the navy. The camp in the north and south of the Yangtze River has been reorganized, and the navy in the Guangdong Sea has also been reorganized." We can guard Guangdong Bay, but the naval divisions of Hangzhou and Fuzhou are in urgent need of rectification after previous defeats. Jia Ziyu strongly recommends me to be the water minister."
When Shui Rong heard this, he was shocked and said happily: "Uncle Yong Ning recommends a minister to the Holy One?"
At this moment, Shui Rong's heart was excited, and he felt quite excited and excited that "Ming Gong actually knows my name".
No wonder Shui Rong is like this, because Jia Heng's current reputation has such meaning.
Emperor Chongping muttered: "Jia Ziyu said that Shui Qing is a loyal and wise man who can handle the great task of rectifying the navy of the two places. Shui Qing also knows that the Jurchens invaded our Han territory through the sea before. As Jia Ziyu said, the navy will be the leader in the future. This is the main direction for my Han Dynasty to use troops to invade the Jurchens."
In fact, the emperor was a little confused deep down in his heart.
Judging from the results of the previous army reorganization in Datong and Taiyuan, Shui Rong was too young, not vigorous enough, and his talents were somewhat inferior. However, Jia Heng praised Shui Rong in his memorial as a talented man who was worthy of a big task.
When Shui Rong heard what Emperor Chongping said, he was very excited. He cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I would like to go to the south of the Yangtze River to rectify the navy in Fuzhou and Hangzhou."
A scholar dies for a confidant. In this great Han court, only Uncle Yongning knows him!
After Shui Rong returned to Beijing from Datong and Taiyuan, he actually heard a lot of gossip, mainly questioning his own abilities. All kinds of gossip were very unpleasant.
Seeing Shuirong's sincere expression, Emperor Chongping nodded secretly. No matter what, this initiative to do things did have merit.
After pondering for a moment, he said: "In addition, there is another matter. The King of Chu was assassinated in Jinling and the prince died young. Jia Ziyu is currently handling the matter. You send an order to Ziyu and ask him to use the Jinyi Mansion Guards to investigate the rebels and use the emperor to investigate. Jian Su deals with good and evil, no matter who is involved, if there is any treason, he will be severely punished!"
"I obey the order." Shui Rong answered the order with his hands raised, but there was already a turbulent wave in his heart.
The deposed prince and the traitorous King Zhao are really haunting, causing a bloody storm every time they appear.
After the water dissolved away, Emperor Chongping's face was gloomy, and murderous intent boiled in his heart.
Just thinking about it deeply, it is inevitable that there will be some hesitation.
If Jiangnan continues to engage in wanton involvement, will it damage his sanctity? Make more people miss...that person?
In fact, among Emperor Longzhi's sons, the deposed prince was kind and kind. Compared with today's Emperor Chongping, especially the Emperor Chongping after Shuxing Prison, some older officials in the south of the Yangtze River did treat the polite corporal and the deposed prince kindly. Have a good impression.
Thinking of his eldest brother who was kind and generous to others, Emperor Chongping's eyes were complicated, and the hand holding the red pen in his hand was gently exerting force.
That man's affair with Concubine Jing was originally his plan...
"Crack..." A sound interrupted the middle-aged emperor's long-term thoughts. The crisp sound made Dai Quan, who was not far away, tremble with fright. He quickly lowered his head tightly, his heart awe-inspiring.
Apparently because of too much force, the ink pen in his hand broke off, and the tip of the pen with red ink fell on the yellow dragon robe, immediately staining the dragon head pattern.
Under the thin brows of Emperor Chongping, his eyes looked out the window at the palace in winter. In Chang'an in winter, the northwest wind was strong, blowing the glazed tiles and bringing up a cloud of dust.
The middle-aged emperor's complexion was frosty, and his eyes were firm.
He did nothing wrong. This was all for the sake of the Han Dynasty!
Since he came to the throne, he has worked hard and worked hard to rejuvenate the Han Dynasty, so he had the Beijing camp to quickly put down the chaos in Henan and achieve a great victory in Jiangnan.
And this is just the beginning. In the future, Liaodong will be regained in his hands and the world will be rebuilt again!
Otherwise, how could that man with his weak temperament be able to govern the crumbling Han world?
At this moment, the cold-faced emperor cut off any strange thoughts deep in his heart.
In the city of Shenjing, as King Chu was assassinated in the south of the Yangtze River, and the remnants of King Zhao were behind it, Yang Guochang, Han Huang, Zhao Mo and others in the cabinet also learned the news one after another, and they were all shocked.
Fortunately for Yang Guochang, the Qi Party's base was not in Jiangnan, and they had an indifferent attitude towards whether it was a large prison or not. However, Han Huang and Zhao Mo were different. After hearing this news, they came together to see Emperor Chongping.
Han Huang looked across at Xiang Dai Quan in the Daming Palace, cupped his hands and said, "Eunuch Dai, please let me know. We have something important to ask to see your Majesty."
"Your Majesty has something to say. If you are here because of the assassination of the King of Chu in Jiangnan, there is no need to say anything further." Dai Quan's fair face was expressionless and he said: "Your Majesty said that since Yongning Bo took over in Jiangnan, with his fair temperament , I will definitely be able to do it right, so you don’t have to doubt me."
As soon as these words came out, Han Huang and Zhao Mo looked at each other, feeling slightly startled.
On second thought, it seems to be the truth.
Because since Jia Heng became the governor of Jinyi, the previous corruption cases in the imperial mausoleum and the Hedao Yamen corruption case have basically been well-founded, and he has never made any accusations or wantonly implicated him, showing a character that is different from cruel officials. An image of uprightness.
In other words, Yong Ningbo's structure is that of a military minister and a prime minister, not a sycophantic and cruel official. The latter is a chamber pot that will be thrown away after use.
Han Huang's expression paused, and he thought clearly about the joints. He looked at Zhao Mo and said, "Go back and leave this matter to Uncle Yongning."
Zhao Mo nodded and put aside his worries for the time being.
…
…
Jinling, the mansion across the street from the manor where Zhen's family lives, was originally a mansion purchased by Zhen Qing.
Four or five days had passed since King Chu was assassinated. After King Chu's eldest son Chen Chun was buried, Zhen Qing left the sad place of the post house and came to the mansion to rest and heal her heartache.
As time passed, the entire Jiangnan officials were also worried about the assassination of King Chu, and the incident involving the remnants of King Zhao.
Especially after Imperial College Prince Fang Yaochun was invited to Jinyi Mansion for tea and detention, this panic was undoubtedly magnified to the extreme.
In the past few days, Jia Heng sent Jinyi Palace guards to investigate Chen Yuan's whereabouts. On the other hand, he retrieved the files of Jiangnan officials from the Ministry of Personnel, mainly looking for officials in their resumes who had contact with the deposed prince and King Zhao.
The latter even frightened a group of elderly officials in Jiangnan.
When the news came out from Jinyi Mansion's Zhenfu Division, Jinyi Mansion's detectives had already begun to read the officials who had written about King Zhao and the deposed prince from the memorial archives.
Jiangnan officials were frightened and kept silent after hearing this.
This is equivalent to tracing historical issues. Who dares to say that there was no mention of the deposed prince and King Zhao in the memorial. If someone took out a memorial and quoted it out of context, and derived from it the admiration for the deposed prince, it would be a disaster.
Chen Xiao said softly: "Do you really want to investigate those gang members?"
She actually didn't know how many gang members Chen Yuan had in Jiangnan. Chen Yuan had been wary of her in the past.
Jia Heng muttered: "We must check, Xiaoxiao, do you think Jinling City is a lot quieter now? Look at the dogs on Suzaku Street who don't dare to bark even more when they see the guards of Jinyi Mansion."
Chen Xiao: "..."
After thinking for a while, he said worriedly: "But if you look for a needle in a haystack like this, you may not really be able to find anything. Are you really going to create a big prison?"
Jia Heng looked at the girl intently and said: "Don't worry, this is not a temporary matter. It can be investigated for a year or two. Some methods can be used, but they cannot be left out."
In fact, he didn't want to cause a big injustice, because not only did he have a bad reputation and easily attract people's hatred, but he was also prone to injustice. Miaoyu suffered deeply from the injustice.
However, he can be used as a cause to plan to break up Jiangnan Province.
Following Kang Mazi's example, Anhui and Jiangsu were split into two parts. Anhui was governed by northerners, and the monolithic Jiangnan officialdom was geographically divided.
But the problem is, firstly, who to recommend as governor, and secondly, the emperor's will and the game between the Qi and Zhejiang parties.
It would definitely be suitable if it were Lin Ruhai, but Lin Ruhai was going back to Beijing to serve as the Minister of Household Affairs.
Li Shouzhong? The former Imperial College held a wine ceremony, and his virtuous reputation spread throughout the country. He was given the title of censor and governor of a province, and his qualifications were barely sufficient. However, this matter should not be rushed, and it needed to be planned slowly.
Of course, it can also be used as a bargaining chip to form an alliance with the Chu Party.
"We're here." Chen Xiao said softly, looking at the mansion not far away, interrupting Jia Heng's thoughts.
Jia Heng responded and got off his horse. Today he planned to come over and take a look at the millstone.
(End of chapter)
