With just a few words, the expressions of all the ministers present immediately changed. This week’s prince is indeed very sophisticated!
Yu Qian just said a lot, and it was all true. These explanations, even if they were put in the court, were fair and aboveboard.
To put it bluntly, these things all happened because of the tricks used by these vassal kings themselves. It was not that Yu Qian wanted to cause trouble intentionally.
Therefore, Yu Qian is destined to be entangled in the specific process of the matter. However, the King of Zhou did not ask what happened and directly asked him if he had an imperial edict.
A sentence of reporting in advance or reporting afterward can be seen that King Zhou came prepared this time. Of course, there is no imperial edict. The affairs of rectifying the military camp are complicated, especially since Yu Qian works very quickly and has to move around. If everything has to be done in advance by requesting the imperial edict, then delaying it until next year may not make much progress.
The emperor was obviously aware of this, so when he heard King Zhou's question, he was a little embarrassed for a while.
Seeing this situation, Yu Shiyue couldn't help but stepped forward and spoke.
"Your Majesty, I believe that since the princes have differences with what Yu Shaobao said, they should send officials to conduct a thorough investigation. Once the results are found, it will not be too late to deal with them." The intention of this sentence to delay time is too obvious. Therefore, almost as soon as Yu Shiyue finished speaking, the eyes of several vassal kings immediately glanced over.
King Lu, the oldest among them, immediately darkened his face and scolded.
"Insolent, the prelude of the palace is customized for you. Your Majesty is talking to the King of Zhou. He dared to interrupt without asking you, and you are really disrespectful." After saying this, King Lu turned his head to look at the emperor and said.
"Your Majesty, I haven't been in the court for a long time. I don't know when. Since then, the ministers have dared to be so shameless. It seems that now it is time to give a good warning to the court." Among all the clans today, King Lu is the oldest. Although he is usually low-key, his seniority and seniority are there and no one can ignore them.
In fact, among the many vassal kings in the palace now, he is the only one who is so sensitive to the etiquette of kings and ministers, and he is the most qualified to say this.
For no other reason than because this King of Lu was born in the 21st year of Hongwu. Compared with other vassal kings who were born in the late Hongwu period, he had really seen the atmosphere of Hongwu. Although he was only the prince of Lu vassal at that time and was still young, as for the style of the monarch and his ministers at that time, Still impressed.
In the Hongwu era, when Emperor Taizu and the clan kings were arguing, if anyone dared to interrupt, they would be pushed out and punished with a stick.
These words contained a hint of a lesson, but as King Lu said it, the emperor could only continue with a wry smile.
"Uncle King Lu, please calm down. I know your good intentions. However, it is not worth getting angry over a trivial matter. Besides, it would be better to play it out privately and in a more relaxed atmosphere. Don't let your anger break your body." This is obviously not what King Lu wants. In reply, he frowned, King Lu stood up, cupped his hands, and said seriously.
"Your Majesty's generous nature is a blessing to all people, but you should not indulge your ministers too much."
"Otherwise, when there are ministers who deceive your majesty when you are young and disturb the dignity of superiors and subordinates, this is not a long-term solution. Before I came to the capital, I heard about this situation. The prelude to the palace often happens. It can be seen that it is not accidental. Your majesty still can't be too Too tolerant." A group of ministers below looked at each other, no one expected that King Lu would attack him relentlessly over such a trivial matter.
But having said that, this is indeed their fault. If King Lu wants to go online, there is nothing they can do.
Moreover, King Lu used this excuse to launch an attack. Even if they wanted to persuade him, they couldn't persuade him. They couldn't just interrupt him when he said he couldn't play it right, and then they immediately interrupted him. This was not showing off. To add fuel to the fire... Yu Shiyue on the side looked a little ugly when he saw this.
However, it was not because King Lu made a fuss about what he had just said without permission, but because King Lu's words seemed to be borrowing the topic, but in fact they were a subtle reminder to the emperor that the ministers outside were not reliable, only his own Only the elders will truly care about the authority of the emperor.
It seems to be a light writing, but in fact it is extremely heart-wrenching! This King Lu is indeed not an easy character to deal with.
At this thought, Yu Shiyue's heart became more worried. One King of Zhou was not enough, now another King of Lu came.
One of these two people is highly respected, the other is older and more resourceful, and underneath there is a group of vassal kings who are very hostile to Qian. With these people joining together, Yu Qian may not be able to survive today's test.
Faced with this situation, the emperor was obviously in a dilemma. Looking at King Lu who stood up and saluted uprightly, the emperor hesitated for a moment, and finally turned to Yu Shiyue helplessly and said.
"Yu Cifu, as a cabinet minister and an official in the Crown Prince's Palace, you should abide by etiquette more closely so that you can set an example for the Eastern Palace. My uncle, King Lu, interfered with your troubles. What you said is reasonable and I have good intentions for you. I am punishing you with a small punishment but giving you a big warning." , I will temporarily fine you half a month's salary, are you convinced?" Yu Shiyue glanced at King Lu and others, his eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn't say anything more, he just cupped his hands.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness!" These words made King Lu next to him look ugly again. The emperor asked Yu Shiyue if he was convinced, but the other party's answer was wrong. The implication was that he was still dissatisfied.
Moreover, just now he was telling the emperor not to be too lenient with his ministers, but Yu Shiyue turned around and said thank you for the emperor's kindness. If there was no hint of tit-for-tat in this, even ghosts would not believe it.
However, after all, he was in front of the emperor, so King Lu couldn't go too far. If he wanted to teach others to respect others, he had to respect others first.
Although he is an elder, the emperor is the emperor, and the golden words have already been finalized. If he talks more, he will be disrespectful.
Therefore, King Lu glanced at Yu Shiyue coldly, then stopped pursuing the matter and sat back down again.
But despite this, the effect of King Lu's troubles was still very obvious. At least, under his glance, other ministers also swallowed the words that were on their lips.
So, the topic got back on track, and King Zhou continued to ask.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I am here just to give you an explanation. The rectification of the army and the garrison is a major matter of the imperial court. As members of the clan, I should fully cooperate with you. Even if there are one or two unreasonable people, your Majesty only needs to give a little warning. Naturally, You can also find your way back after getting lost.”
"However, it is one thing to support the imperial court and respect His Majesty's will. It is another thing to be arrogant and domineering under His Majesty's name. Please let Your Majesty make it clear whether it is right or wrong." This... faced with King Zhou was pressing forward step by step, and Zhu Qiyu couldn't help but feel helpless. He glanced at the ministers below, thought for a moment, and said.
"The incident in Prince Yin's Mansion has caused a storm in the city, and there has been a lot of discussion in the government and the public. Therefore, I do have a decree and order Yu Qian to investigate this matter thoroughly. As for other matters, because the reorganization of the military camp involves many complicated matters, when Yu Qian left the capital , I also gave him the right to take advantage, so..."
"Your Majesty!" This time, it was King Zhou himself who interrupted the emperor. He stood up and cupped his hands, saying.
"I have misbehaved, and I am willing to be punished by Your Majesty. However, what Your Majesty said was wrong, and I have to remonstrate. Please give Your Majesty a clear warning." This... the emperor's expression became more and more helpless. King Zhou could say this, but he After all, he is the feudal king and an elder, so how can he really be punished for this?
Therefore, after a short pause, the emperor had no choice but to gain enlightenment.
"Uncle King Zhou, please tell me."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." King Zhou bowed his hands to express his gratitude, but his eyes glanced at Yu Shiyue at the side intentionally or unintentionally. His movements were not deliberately concealed, so all the ministers present could see clearly.
This is a demonstration! King Zhou knew very well that with his status, the emperor could not really punish him for such a trivial matter.
Originally this was a trivial matter, but with the episode between King Lu and Yu Shiyue just now, the current situation has become particularly dazzling.
And this was exactly the effect that King Zhou wanted. The same thing is wrong for civil and military officials to do, but it is not necessarily wrong for a vassal prince to do it. This is the status of vassal princes and clansmen, which is different from the status of civil and military officials.
Therefore, it can be seen from this point that the purpose of the kings' coming today is not just Yu Qian alone, but to give a blow to the entire civil servants.
Or perhaps, this is their revenge for the rectification of the military camp. After a slight pause, King Zhou continued to speak.
"Your Majesty, although you have the right to make decisions in advance and report later, it is not all-encompassing. As the Minister of the Ministry of War, Yu Qian has the right to make decisions first when it comes to court affairs and civil and military officials. However, there is no such thing as Including the clan members of the feudal lord."
"In the ancestral system of our dynasty, the civil and military officials of the imperial court, and ministers of honor and honour, can only be ordered to summon the vassal king to the capital and be interrogated by His Majesty in person. Otherwise, they are not allowed to use imperial edicts, talismans or official documents to interrogate, accuse or deal with the vassal king. If there is, the vassal king can capture it and send envoys to the capital to listen to the holy teachings."
"Anyone in the army or civilians who dares to insult the vassal king will be taken to the capital and held accountable according to the law."
"Not to mention that Yu Qian only had the so-called advantageous power and did not block the palace or offend the king's imperial edict. Even if he really had the imperial edict in his hand, or even the king's order flag, according to the ancestral system, he could not offend the kings. If he had to, If there must be an offense, the emperor should first receive the imperial edict and summon the kings to the capital to listen to the holy sermons, and then act according to the edict."
"Therefore, I believe that what Yu Qian did is, on the one hand, contrary to the ancestral system and unbecoming of a minister, and on the other hand, it is suspected of alienating relatives. Your Majesty must not ignore it." These words completely blocked the emperor. It is possible to change the situation in the middle, and it is difficult to refute it.
Because what King Zhou said was clearly written in black and white in the ancestral precepts of Emperor Ming. In the final analysis, it was because the clan of the vassal king was different from the civil and military ministers of the imperial court. Yu Qian was a member of the imperial court. No matter how great his advantageous power was, Only the ministers of the court can be managed, but the emperor can only teach the princes and clans.
In this regard, Huang Ming's ancestral training has detailed regulations. When Emperor Taizu established the vassal screen, his biggest concern was that courtiers would interfere with it and alienate the Tian family, so he specially added these regulations. But now, it has become the case for the king of Zhou and others Criticizing Yu Qian is the most powerful weapon.
Seeing this situation, the emperor frowned slightly. It was obvious that he couldn't think of a good solution for the moment. After pondering for a moment, the emperor had to turn his eyes to the ministers present and asked.
"What do you think of this matter?" After saying that, the emperor seemed to hear something again, so he added another sentence.
"The people I am summoning today are all clan kings and important officials of the imperial court. There is no need to be restrained and they can speak freely." A lesson learned, and with the actions of King Lu and King Zhou just now making a fuss about the right regulations, the emperor obviously also Learned well.
With this sentence, no matter what the ministers in the palace say, at least they will not be blamed for speaking.
However, this was obviously not an easy job to do. The ministers looked at each other, and in the end, Hu Hui took the lead and said.
"Your Majesty, I think that what Prince Zhou said is right. This matter is indeed caused by some officials acting carelessly and causing offense."
"However, the rectification of the military garrison is a major affairs of the court and involves many things. There will always be things that the court does not take into account. It is inevitable to have some mistakes. However, the loyalty to serve the country, whether it is the civil and military affairs of the court, or the clan and feudal lords, King, it’s always the same.”
"Everyone here is a member of the Tian family, and they can understand what it means to serve the country. Yu Shaobao went out to the capital this time, traveled through wind and rain, and worked hard to clean up the military villages and return them to the imperial court. After all the hard work, it is still the best. some."
"I hope that Shaobao will serve the country wholeheartedly, and I ask your majesty to forgive me. I believe that the princes do not want to make this matter a big deal, which will not only cause the court to lose face, but also make your majesty lose his beloved minister, right? ?" As the most senior minister in the Manchu Dynasty, Hu Hui had just watched from the sidelines and already had a clear judgment on the situation at hand.
This group of vassal kings all came well prepared. Some were responsible for causing mischief, some were responsible for making peace, and some were responsible for upholding justice. The division of labor was clear.
If you face one of them alone, it will be easy to solve, but when they join forces, it becomes extremely difficult.
Especially when these vassal kings obviously have a common purpose, the only way is to cut through the mess quickly and try to solve the matter with the minimum loss.
Therefore, at this time, it is meaningless to argue with them whether Yu Qian was at fault. The behavior of King Zhou and others just now has actually shown everything.
They would not discuss the right or wrong of the matter, but would insist on the fact that what Yu Qian did was against the ancestral system.
Once things get bigger and bigger and the government and the public know about it, it will definitely be difficult to end, and even the emperor may be dragged into the water, because by that time, the emperor will be extremely embarrassed no matter what his position is.
Therefore, Hu Hui came up and said that Yu Qian was at fault. However, he also stated that he was loyal to the country and had extenuating circumstances. He complimented the kings present and finally deliberately pushed the matter to the extreme.
As long as these vassal kings are not stupid, they will know that it is impossible for the court or the emperor to really dismiss such an important court official as Yu Qian because of this.
If this is really done, things will become difficult to deal with even for the kings, so Hu Hui said this deliberately, hoping that the attitude of the kings could soften a little, at least, not to be as tight-minded as they are now. force.
However, these vassal kings are obviously not easy to deal with. After hearing this, King Lu said straightforwardly.
"Your Majesty, I am here just to clarify what is right and wrong, to distinguish right from wrong, and to get an explanation. As for what to do after you have made a clear distinction between right and wrong, I believe that Your Majesty will make your own judgment. This is not a matter for me to comment on."
