"Xiao Rui! What a Xiao Rui! The emperor has to compromise with us, how dare he come out to show off his power?" The patriarch of the Fanyang Lu family was so angry that his teeth itched.
"Come here, go find the Lanling Xiao family and ask clearly. If Xiao Rui is not one of them, then don't blame us for being rude."
The person from the Lu family next to him advised: "Clan leader, would you like to contact the Zheng family in Xingyang? The champion Hou Xiaorui is famous all over the world, and now he is targeting more than just our family."
"Third brother, please make a trip yourself and invite people from the Zheng family in Xingyang to go directly to Luoyang to meet Xiao Rui."
The reaction of the Zheng family in Xingyang was not much different. The emperor had suppressed them because of the prince's affairs, and he knew that he was in the wrong, so the two families tolerated it and made many concessions. I thought this matter was over, but I didn't expect that Xiao Rui would come to Luoyang again to find fault. This is so unruly!
Outside the gate of the Governor's Mansion in Luoyang, a large group of people blocked the door. They were all brought by the Lu family and the Zheng family to avenge their grievances.
It's a pity that Zhang Liang is not an ordinary civil servant, but a full-fledged military general. When the guards flashed their swords, everyone only dared to stand outside the door and shouted, but did not dare to crowd in anymore.
"Master Marquis, there are more and more people making trouble. Almost all the gates of the government offices in Luoyang City are blocked by them, which has affected the normal order in the city. You see..." Zhang Liang came to Xiao Rui.
Xiao Rui raised his eyebrows, "What? Are there not enough troops?"
Ahem...
"Enough, enough. Lord Marquis, this is not about using troops. No matter how sharp our swords are, we can't draw them on the people. You'd better think of a way." Zhang Liang urged.
Xiao Rui nodded, "Are those two families the ones who came to cause trouble? Do they want to use this method to force me to release them?"
Zhang Liang shook his head and said: "Not entirely, more of them are relatives and hired servants of the arrested people. It was their self-rescue."
"The letter has been sent to the Fan Yang Lu family and the Xingyang Zheng family, but no one from them has come forward to Luoyang. I don't know what their intentions are. Maybe they also want to see how you solve the current problem."
Xiao Rui thought for a moment and smiled slightly: "Just now you said that the blades of our Tang Dynasty cannot be pointed at the people?"
Zhang Liang nodded in confusion, yes, that's what I said.
"Haha, that's easy. Then turn the blade and point it at the nobles. The nobles are not ordinary people."
puff……
Mr. Hou, what do you mean?
Xiao Rui asked: "How many good people are there among the many people we arrested?"
Zhang Liang shook his head, "I haven't checked."
"Then go and investigate. This gang of people is entrenched in Luoyang, the fish and meat town, and they plunder brutally. Ninety percent of the people have bad deeds. No one dares to say that they have not done a single bad thing." Xiao Rui smiled slyly and said: "Grand Governor, A group of heinous people who had violated the law were found, and with conclusive evidence, they were beheaded in public in accordance with Tang law."
"Ah? Lord Marquis, what are you doing?" Zhang Liang hadn't reacted yet, "According to Tang law, beheadings need to wait for review by the Ministry of Punishment. Every year after autumn..."
Xiao Rui waved his hand and said: "No need to wait. This is the strategy to retreat from the enemy. When you kill the first batch, tell them that we will slowly investigate and prove the guilt. If you still dare to come and block the Yamen to complain, you are making excuses for the evil people. It will be regarded as contempt of the imperial court and contempt of national law, and shall be punished with the same crime."
hiss……
This move is too cruel.
Zhang Liang's eyes lit up and he quickly went to supervise the matter in person.
Five hundred adopted sons are not for nothing, they come in handy at critical moments. Why is he so obsessed with having an adopted son? If you are a child of a noble family, who would want to recognize someone else as your father? They must all come from poor backgrounds. Zhang Liang is also discerning, and ordinary people cannot be his adopted son.
The five hundred adopted sons are the five hundred capable men. If they are spread out and run their own business, they can slowly penetrate into every corner of Luoyang. In the end, in this way, they can help themselves control the power in their hands, which is actually to fight against the forces behind Luoyang.
Li Chengqian asked like a student: "Brother-in-law, what if they accuse us of lynching? After all, execution on the day of conviction is against Tang law."
Xiao Rui said jokingly: "It doesn't matter, we are always making trouble. Arresting people first and then convicting them is not in line with the law of the Tang Dynasty. Now that there are already people participating, we don't care about such an additional rule."
"Ah? Will Father punish us?" Li Chengqian was a little worried. He was not worried about being punished, but worried that if this happened, things in Luoyang would not be done.
Xiao Rui taught patiently: "You have to figure out our true purpose. We arrest people, kill people, and so on, all this is to force the other party to come out and give an explanation. It is not really to help Luoyang eliminate cancer and eradicate evil. Follow As for the imperial court, you can just find someone to drag it out for a few days."
"But the people of the Fanyang Lu family and the Xingyang Zheng family cannot afford to delay it. From today on, every day, there will be a few more clan members who have been found guilty of capital crimes and a few more lives. We can afford it, but they can't afford it. .”
"As for the court's conviction of us? Haha, that will happen after we return to Chang'an. They are the ones who are worried now. Do you understand?"
Li Chengqian's eyes lit up with little stars, and he said with admiration: "Brother-in-law is so awesome, why didn't I think of that?"
Xiao Rui ruffled his hair and said: "You are the prince. From now on, you must follow the right path and not be cunning. But you must not be ignorant of these devious methods. You must know that it is easy to hide with open guns and hard to guard against hidden arrows. Everything is lacking in the world, but not An unscrupulous villain."
Li Chengqian nodded, then quickly shook his head and said, "No, my brother-in-law acts openly and aboveboard, he is not a villain."
Xiao Rui laughed loudly and said: "Silly boy, you don't understand. Am I a good person or a bad person? A gentleman or a villain? In fact, it doesn't matter. The name is given by others. They can label me casually. Is it because others give me names? With a title, we have to change our behavior? Change our way of living? "
"Confucius once said: A gentleman has no power!"
"Remember, we have the final say on who we are, and others are not qualified to define us. Never care too much about other people's opinions or evaluations. As long as we can achieve the results we want, let them criticize us as much as they want."
"Now people outside are calling me a villain? A drug addict? Haha, that's because they hate me, and they hate me so much that they can't do anything about it."
"In the past, some people praised me as a living Bodhisattva and a great benevolent person. Are they really grateful to me? Not necessarily. They may also be hoping that I can bring more benefits to them, that's all."
"Seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages, this is human nature! Can you tell who is the real good guy and the bad guy among these two types of people?"
Li Chengqian shook his head, grateful that his brain was a little swollen, "Brother-in-law, it's too difficult, human nature is too complicated."
Xiao Rui nodded and said: "Yes, human nature is too complicated to bear to look at directly. So the principle I have always adhered to is: I would rather be feared by everyone than loved by everyone!"
Li Chengqian nodded in agreement, and Li Junxian next to him opened his mouth, seemingly hesitant to speak.
"Fifth brother, do you have a different opinion? But it doesn't matter." Xiao Rui saw it.
Li Junxian hesitated for a moment and said: "Sir, you can't teach the prince like this. The prince is the prince and will be the emperor in the future. What the Tang Dynasty needs is a wise and kind king, not a violent and majestic tyrant who is feared by everyone."
