Military generals benefit the general public, and civil servants value righteousness. This is the view of civil servants. No matter how dirty and arrogant they are in private, civil servants have told the world and themselves this since ancient times. So they can do whatever they want and forget their own good, but if a military general does that, they will definitely attack him in groups, break his bones and throw away the dust, and then use a carving knife to carve it on the letter, so that it will be infamy for thousands of years. Never be able to stand up again.
The mottled history is vivid, but the truth has long been hidden in the dust of history. "Wang Mang was humble and did not usurp the time." Who can really tell what is true and false, right and wrong?
So at this moment, Fang Jun followed Li Chengqian's wishes and refuted Cen Wenwen, which made Cen Wenwen extremely disdainful and angry.
But he did not stop Fang Jun immediately, but listened calmly.
Fang Jun didn't know that he had been classified as a "sycophant" by Cen Wenwen, the head of the civil service. With a teacup in his hand, he said in a manly voice: "Mr. Yu, Chai Zhewei is the Duke of Qiao. His father Chai Shao followed Emperor Gaozu in the past. It was the example of Zhenguan's honorable ministers to raise an army and make great achievements, and his mother, Princess Pingyang Zhao, was even more meritorious and a woman who would not be outdone by men. If he was deprived of his title, or even stripped of his official status, because of this defeat, then he had been beaten to the end. What will those Zhenguan ministers who have watched the fire from the other side and never sworn allegiance to His Majesty think? I am afraid that no one will think that Chai Zhewei deserves it the most, but everyone is in danger."
Cen Wenwen frowned. Although he was not ashamed of Fang Jun as a "sycophant" and knew that he was quibbling, he also admitted that this was indeed a big problem.
At present, because Yuchi Gong drove straight into Chang'an and defeated four armies in a row, his momentum was unparalleled, and the people in Guanzhong changed their minds. At this time, the troops stationed in Guanzhong and the civil and military forces of North Korea and China must be appeased, otherwise the situation will worsen.
Fang Jun took a sip of tea and continued: "Privately, Princess Baling is your Majesty's sister. She has golden branches, jade leaves, and a noble stomach. After your Majesty ascended the throne, you generously rewarded all the princesses, and they were praised by the government and the public. At this moment, Ba Ling's severe punishment of Chai Zhewei caused Ba Princess Ling's reputation will be damaged, and she will even become estranged from her husband's family and have discord with her husband in the future, which will naturally make it difficult for Your Majesty. Therefore, I believe that although Chai Zhewei cannot escape his guilt, he should not be severely punished and needs to be carefully considered."
Everyone in the study was silent, no one wanted to take a stand on this issue.
Chai Zhewei's defeat was indeed extremely serious, but as Fang Jun said, compared with the current situation caused by the defeat, it is more important to appease Zhenguan Xunchen. It doesn't matter whether Chai Zhewei lives or dies, but if he can Therefore, it is obviously more important to stabilize the hearts of Zhenguan ministers and make those Zhenguan ministers who had not stood by the East Palace before feel relieved and believe that His Majesty will not settle accounts later.
Cen Wenwen had a gloomy face, lowered his head and took a sip of tea without saying much.
As an emperor, how can he clearly distinguish between family and state affairs? Your Majesty is a kind man who loves brothers and sisters. If his insistence on severely punishing Chai Zhewei leads to disharmony between Princess Baling and her husband, and a harmonious life, I am afraid that he will be blamed in the end.
What is particularly important is that Chai Zhewei is a military commander. As one of the leaders of the civil service, he should not talk too much about this matter, otherwise he will inevitably be suspected by His Majesty because he has never let go of the civil war.
Don't let the small lose the big...
…
After the major and minor matters were discussed and decided, everyone dispersed. Li Chengqian stopped Fang Jun and returned to the back hall with him. After a simple wash, without taking a shower or changing clothes, he took Fang Jun to the side hall and met Queen Su and Princess Baling.
Queen Su and Princess Baling stood up together and saluted.
Li Chengqian waved his hand and said with a smile: "My family, why do you have to be so formal?" When he walked to the main seat and sat down, a palace maid offered him tea.
Fang Jun salutes and greets the two women, and the two women return the favor.
Everyone sat down, Princess Baling looked at Li Chengqian eagerly, and said directly without beating around the bush: "Dong Qiao is defeated in this battle, and he cannot escape the blame. I just don't know how the court plans to deal with it?"
Li Chengqian's face darkened and he said calmly: "Chai Zhewei lost his troops and suffered a huge defeat, which caused the rebels to march straight in, causing the situation in Guanzhong to become very bad. When we were discussing things in the front hall just now, there were people shouting and killing, although there is no conclusion yet. , but basically everyone agrees to severe punishment."
Although I must have made up my mind to let Chai Zhewei go, selling favors cannot be straightforward. Instead, we must first put enough pressure on him to scare him, and then only when the net is open can he receive the goods with joy and gratitude.
He had to ask Princess Baling to bring the court's attitude back to Chai Zhewei, and from then on she would be fearful and virtuous...
Princess Baling's pretty face turned pale, and she stood up hurriedly and said: "Your Majesty, Duke Qiao has realized his mistake after this defeat and regretted it after returning home. But now the Chai family is in a difficult situation. It is not tolerated by the Guanlong clan, but also suffered Zhenguan's ministers are ostracizing her, making her difficult to move forward. My sister is marrying into the Chai family, so she is a member of the Chai family, so I feel the same way. I would also like to ask Your Majesty to bear in mind that my sister is in trouble, and I would be very grateful if you could be tolerant."
As he spoke, tears rolled down his face, his face was filled with sadness, he gathered up his skirt and knelt down.
Li Chengqian said hurriedly: "Sister, you can't do it!"
Queen Su on the side hurriedly reached out and grabbed Princess Baling's arm, and said angrily: "You are the one, His Majesty is your biological brother. It's easy to talk about anything. If he can forgive me, he will naturally forgive you, but he will forgive you." If you have to punish someone because of the court's regulations, wouldn't your actions be an injustice to His Majesty? It's really a mistake."
"Ah!" Princess Baling was a little panicked and realized something was wrong. Wasn't this forcing His Majesty to forgive Chai Zhewei?
He quickly stood up with the help of Queen Su's hand.
What kind of crime is it to use a human subject to persecute Your Majesty? If His Majesty thinks that he is being arrogant again, it will be even more incredible...
Li Chengqian said warmly: "Don't worry, you and I are siblings, why do we need to worry about so many rules? Besides, I haven't finished what I said just now. Although the ministers all advocated severe punishment for Chai Zhewei, fortunately Erlang spoke up and said that Chai Zhewei's defeat will certainly not escape punishment. , but after all, you have your sister's kindness, so you shouldn't be too harsh. Go back and inform Chai Zhewei, asking him to leave the city immediately and return to the Zuotunwei barracks to reorganize the remaining soldiers and reorganize the troops. When the next time the army is used, I will allow him to take the blame and make meritorious service. If If we lose as badly as we do now, then we will be punished for both crimes, so I can't blame me for not caring about my family."
Princess Baling suddenly felt relieved when she heard this. She looked at Li Chengqian gratefully, feeling happy and ashamed. She sobbed and said: "Your Majesty has shown great care for our sisters. We should have fought to the death for Your Majesty." Not only can we not help His Majesty in resolving problems, but we are now making things difficult for His Majesty. This is really a crime worthy of death."
Queen Su stretched out her jade hand and patted her shoulder, and laughed softly: "Your Majesty, how could you not pay more attention to you when you are with your sister? This is also what you should do, and your Highness does not have to do this. On the contrary, the Duke of Yue can be in the court. Speak up and maintain your highness's favor so that you won't be in trouble in the Chai family, but I want your highness to have a good relationship."
As she spoke, she glanced at Fang Jun, her pretty face half-smiling.
Fang Jun: "..."
Queen, how good are you at singing?
Could it be that he thought Wei Chen was a "good princess", so he asked Princess Baling to remember her as a favor and express gratitude for her help, so that it would be easier for Wei Chen to attack Princess Baling in the future?
You really dote on Weichen...
He hurriedly said: "I am ashamed of what the queen said! Because your majesty loves the princess so much and can't bear her to be in trouble, so he hinted to me to explain it to the princess. The ministers also understood your majesty's benevolence." , that’s why I didn’t hold on to him, and I would never dare to take credit for it.”
"Eh!"
Li Chengqian waved his hand and said with a smile: "It's not necessary for Erlang to be like this. If you hadn't distinguished right from wrong on the spot today, those ministers probably wouldn't have given me this face, and they would have severely punished Chai Zhewei. We are all one family, and you don't have to. Don't take credit, Baling should remember this favor, even though people outside say that this guy is a stick, but today for your sake, he didn't even give Cen Wenwen face."
Fang Jun was speechless, thinking, why are you causing trouble?
Princess Baling regained her composure. She looked at Fang Jun with a pair of beautiful eyes gleaming in the water. She lowered her head slightly and saluted Wanfu. Her voice was delicate and gentle: "I will never forget the kindness of the Duke of Yue. Please forgive me." I will repay you later.”
She had heard about Fang Jun's "romantic affairs" with several princesses for a long time. Now she saw that Fang Jun not only didn't care about his previous troubles with the Chai brothers, but even wanted to help her speak up even if he offended Cen Wenwen. You're not making up your own mind, are you?
Then I found that the shame that I should have felt was completely gone. Instead, I was shy, but also had a bit of hidden joy...
It's not that I really want Hongxing to cheat, but as a woman, I always have a certain vanity. How can I not be a little narcissistic when there is such a powerful hero in the world who cares about her body? Woolen cloth?
