"gone?"
Niu Yuan let out a heavy breath, closed the name book, and glanced at the clerk at the door.
"Yes, I sent all the soldiers away."
"That's good. Anyway, I have won over Zhang Tian today, and it will be worth all the hard work we have been waiting for. You can go and rest in peace, and you will also have a share of the rewards when the job is done." After that, he saw the little official. Went away happily.
"Sir," Hong Lizhen saw that no one was around and said to Niu Yuan quickly, "when we discussed it just now, you didn't agree on a date. How long do you want to wait?"
Niu Yuan smiled and said: "I borrowed the name book this time for a conspiracy. After the reward, they must take more precautions to prevent internal changes. And I have the name book in my hand, so I am naturally sitting there like a mountain. Why should I worry about him? Rather, I have the name book in my hand. They will become more and more uneasy and will come to me sooner or later to ask for the name book. I will take advantage of the moment when they leave the camp and send someone to ask Zhang Tian to start an attack immediately, which will definitely catch him off guard."
Hong Lisan praised: "It is a good plan to serve the prime minister! This can not be limited to a certain period of time, and the cause must be elusive. But this matter is related to the overall situation. I wonder if I should report it to Mr. Liu first?"
"Well..." Niu Yuan took two steps forward and then turned around, "I don't think we need to let him know. Although this may seem self-absorbed, we are not just trying to keep him as emperor. It’s not like he did anything bad to enjoy the glory and wealth in his later years. How can there be any reason for him to refuse to sit on the throne when the emperor is in front of him? By then, we can also become meritorious ministers if the tide goes along. "
"But if it fails..."
"Don't think about failure," Niu Yuan immediately interrupted him, his tone was extremely firm, "Those who look forward and backward cannot achieve great things."
Hong Lizhen only said yes.
"Oh, by the way, there is still an urgent matter that has not been dealt with. Mr. Liu gave me an answer yesterday, asking me to deal with Yan Wen by myself. This means killing people. Please help me quickly draft a memorial called Gui Taiwei Cao The imperial edict is to kill this person for the crime of forming a faction to harm the country. Since he is from a high family, he will not be allowed to see blood before his eyes, and he will only be hanged."
Hong Lizhen bowed his head and said: "Understood. I will write it now."
"After you hand it over, you can write another decree for me." Niu Yuan suddenly looked at him.
Hong Lisan suddenly became nervous, but he didn't know what he meant, so he had to ask: "What, what order?"
"I don't think Li Wenshou needs to stay in Zhongshu Province," Niu Yuan said with a cold face, "Look for a reason to arrange for him to leave. It's best not to be too close to the capital."
Hong Lisan was secretly delighted for being granted such great power. He suppressed a smile and replied, "I understand," and then withdrew.
Deep in the prison, a few candles flickered in the dark corridor, and the flames flickered in Yan Wen's eyes. As soon as he woke up, flies kept ringing in his ears, and fleas also got into the rough prison clothes, sucking on Yan Wen's scars, causing pain like needle pricks, but he had been used to it for a while. , has long ignored this.
Suddenly, there was a sound of hollow footsteps in the distance, rapid and powerful, heading in this direction.
"Where is Yan Wen?"
The long and thin voice entered Yan Wen's ears. He was not surprised, but just raised his eyelids.
"Eunuch, it's in the single room on the east side."
Yan Wen looked around and saw a man wearing a gold embroidered robe, stopping slowly in front of him - it was the eunuch Lu Xinzhong.
"Yan Wen, listen to the order." He was rude to the former prime minister and refused to even lower his head, looking very arrogant.
Yan Wen knelt down reluctantly and raised his hands high, as if to accept the order.
"Presumptuous! Take your hands off, you are a sinner, how can you touch the edict?" Lu Xinzhong scolded him with an angry look.
Yan Wen realized that he had lost his etiquette and quickly put his hands on the ground.
Lu Xinzhong cleared his throat and read out: "The edict says: The criminal Yan Wen was originally a minister of the country, and he was greatly favored. However, he only used the new policy to confuse the public, was good at forming factions, did not distinguish between good and bad, repeatedly killed people, and was overthrown. The heart of the ancestral temple is to deceive the heaven and disregard the saints. Fortunately, it has not yet appeared, so it will be killed. According to the law, the punishment for the owl leader should be asked now. However, I still have mercy and can stop him from hanging to death and allow his family to bury him. Corpse, admire this!"
"The guilty minister Yan Wen, accept the decree!" He knocked his head firmly and replied without hesitation in a particularly high-pitched voice.
Lu Xinzhong winked at the accompanying eunuchs on both sides. Those people understood and took out a thick and long hemp rope, kicked open the cell door, stepped forward, and put it around his neck, gradually beginning to tighten it.
"Yan Shenzheng," Lu Xinzhong knelt down and looked at him, smiling ferociously, "You were here to read out the edict and force Ye Long to die... Now you will also die here. This is a blessing from heaven. return?"
Whether out of fear or anger, Yan Wen trembled all over and replied in a low voice: "I did not harm Ye Long... On the contrary, at that time I also persuaded Duke Liu to implement benevolent policies and spare his life, but it was a pity that it failed."
Lu Xinzhong laughed: "You still have the nerve to mention this benevolent policy? Our family doesn't understand, but we still have eyes. Your old New Deal treated human life as nothing and killed innocent people indiscriminately. Is this how those sages taught you benevolent policies? "
"...Kill me as soon as possible." Yan Wen was silent for a moment, and in the end he was speechless, as if he had given up, and quietly closed his eyes without making any arguments.
"Well, we won't make things difficult for you anymore," Lu Xinzhong stood up and gave the order, "Execution!"
Several eunuchs were behind him, and they immediately tightened the rope violently. Yan Wen could no longer breathe. His face gradually turned red and then turned blue. The pain forced him to keep pulling on his neck with his hands, and his feet began to move. He was kicking wildly; but his strength was getting smaller and smaller, and his movements were getting slower and slower, until no part of his body could move. His eyes suddenly straightened up and widened, and his frightened and powerful eyes seemed as if they were about to burst. Out.
"Let go."
Lu Xinzhong lowered his hands, and several eunuchs also loosened their hands and saw Yan Wen falling down against the wall.
"I wonder if someone will collect his body? Or should we send it to his home?"
"The emperor will make it clear later that this person's home will be ransacked, so there is no need to return him. Feel free to find an open space and bury him."
"Yes." Several eunuchs took the order, lifted Yan Wen's body together, and walked towards the darker part of the prison - all the candles there had been extinguished.
Shortly after Yan Wen's death, Niu Yuan immediately issued a second order to have his younger brother Yan Liang hanged in the Ministry of Punishment, and sent people to search for money at home and use it for state purposes. When Li Wenshou saw this, he thought it was unfair. He hurried to Zhongshu Province and wanted to argue with Niu Yuan; but when he arrived at the door, he only saw Hong Lisan, waiting for him arrogantly.
