"The evidence of guilt was given to Gu before arresting him."
Zhu Gaojie tapped the book beside the table and said, "But it has no meaning now. Murders, house raids, and Gu found a total of more than 6,000 pages of relevant accounts, involving various forces in South Zhili. From the princes and nobles, officials from the Six Ministries of Nanjing, to local officials, landlords and gentry, if these more than 6,000 pages of accounts were exposed alone, many more people would be killed than in the empty seal case."
Kang Shike gasped: "Are you afraid that your Highness will force chaos in the south?"
"More than just the chaos in the south?"
Zhu Gaojie stood up, walked to Kang Shike's side, patted his shoulder, and said lightly, "The world is in chaos, Prefect Kang."
"Gu Yu wants to reformulate the distribution of benefits to the world's elites. How can they agree? They will inevitably fight with Gu to a bloody end."
Kang Shike couldn't help but ask: "Your Highness knew that it would cause chaos, why did he..."
"Why insist on going your own way? You want to say this, right?"
Zhu Gaojie closed his eyes lightly and said calmly, "This has nothing to do with you. Don't ask if you shouldn't. Just do whatever I need from you."
Kang Shike lowered his head and asked, "What does Your Highness need me to do?"
"When I need you, I will give instructions."
Zhu Gaojie waved his hand and said, "Stay back. I will leave Yangzhou in the next few days. You know how to go next."
"My lord, please retire."
…
…
After the others left, Zhu Gaojie was the only one left in the room.
He slowly opened his eyes. Under the deep black eyes, there were extremely difficult to detect emotional fluctuations. He put his hand on the book next to the armrest of the chair and took out a piece of letter from the book.
The envelope page of the book is marked red with cinnabar, indicating an emergency.
Zhu Gaojie opened the letter with complicated eyes.
"Your Highness, Yang Rong, may I wish you peace and prosperity."
"This matter is of great importance. Please forgive me for being rude and speaking frankly. On February 29th, there was a heavy snowfall in Beijing. The next day, His Majesty was critically ill. Please return to Beijing immediately to preside over national affairs and safeguard the foundation of the country."
"I am guilty of capital punishment. Because I was afraid that the news about His Majesty's critical illness would cause turmoil, I mobilized the imperial guards of the East Palace without asking for instructions, detained the Imperial Guard General Fan Zhong, and blocked the news. However, I am dedicated to serving the country and have no selfish desires. Please ask Your Highness the Crown Prince to return to Beijing after Then punish the minister."
Zhu Gaojie read it over and over again and sighed.
There's no time.
Although he had arranged everything perfectly, he was still too hasty in the face of the old man's life that could be extinguished at any time.
He originally didn't want to settle the matter in one battle and force chaos in the south, but things turned out to be unfavorable. What could have been solved by slowly sharpening a blunt knife forced him to cut through the mess with a quick knife.
…
…
Beijing, the city is closed due to heavy snow.
It had already passed the snowing season, but for some reason, a heavy snowfall suddenly occurred, covering the center of the empire with silvery snow.
This heavy snowfall comes at just the right time. At the very least, it can block the news that is usually difficult to cut off, so that big and small events in the city will not spread quickly.
"Yang Rong, do you know that this is a death penalty!"
"You're rebelling, you know that!"
From the high walls of the palace, a man's roar could be heard, as well as the clang of iron chains.
Fan Zhong, the guard general of the Forbidden Army, had his hands locked with iron chains. He struggled to break free, grinding his wrists until they were bloody, but he could not take a step forward.
Opposite him, Yang Rong was neatly dressed in official robes, with a calm expression. He put his hands behind his back and said slowly: "General Fan, your majesty is critically ill. This matter must not be spread. The prince is in the south now, your majesty." Once it fell, no one was in charge of the overall situation, so it was a helpless move for me to temporarily take over the defense of the palace."
"Bah! Fuck you, you are fucking rebelling!"
Fan Zhong spat on the opponent's face, "How many heads do you have that are worthy of being chopped off? Are you the one who decides on national affairs? You mobilize sergeants without permission, detain the escort generals, and take over the defense of the Forbidden Army. What, you want to imitate Cao Cao?" Are you trying to hold the emperor hostage to order the princes?"
"I don't dare."
Yang Rong said calmly, "When the prince returns to Beijing, I will ask him to die."
"You should fucking die now!"
Fan Zhong couldn't suppress the anger in his heart, and cursed, "You are a civil servant in charge of the cabinet, and your authority is only to assist Bian Hong. You should do your duty well in the Wenhua Palace. Er'an dares to mobilize the army without permission?"
Yang Rong paused for a moment, then lowered his head and looked at Fan Zhong: "General Fan, if I had not seized power and taken over the palace's defense, what would have happened to you?"
Fan Zhong said without hesitation: "Of course we will be on strict guard, sealing the palace gates and prohibiting anyone from entering or exiting. We will also report to His Highness the Crown Prince and apply for an order to change the defense of the Nine Gates of Beijing. We will wait for His Highness the Crown Prince to return to take charge of the overall situation."
"Yes, you are right to say that. This is your duty. You are a soldier. The teachings of the martial arts academy are that soldiers must obey orders as their bounden duty. But sometimes, things don't work that way."
Yang Rong said slowly, "If you just follow the rules, you won't make mistakes, right?"
Fan Zhong frowned slightly: "What do you mean?"
Yang Rong said calmly: "If we follow your regulations, seal the palace gates, and switch defenses to the nine gates, not to mention how long it will take to go back and forth, just because you make the matter so big, the whole of Beijing will be The city is in an uproar, and all fools know that His Majesty's dragon body is ill. I don't need to say more about the consequences."
Fan Zhong retorted disdainfully: "You know the basics. Once the regulations are set, they are to be followed. Do you really think you are a saint because you have read two more sage books than others? Can a saint know how to fight?" "
"Saints don't know how to fight, and I've never believed in saints."
Yang Rong shook his head and said, "It is better to trust others than to trust yourself. My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror. Everything I do is righteous. I should have a clear conscience."
Fan Zhong sneered and said: "You think too much of yourself. Do you think you are the savior of the Ming Dynasty? How virtuous and capable are you? You dare to steal the country like this. I think you are the biggest sycophant of the Ming Dynasty!" "
"In the Ming Dynasty, apart from Your Majesty, only the Prince can call the shots, and you, you are just a dog kept by the Prince's side. Even Lu Chaoyang knows that you have to ask the Prince for advice before doing anything, but you are here to act first and then tell me. Let’s see how you can ask the prince to die!”
Yang Rong remained silent, as if he was a little bit stopped by Fan Zhong.
Although he is dedicated to serving the country, his current act of usurping military power while the emperor is critically ill is no different from Huo Guang, the powerful minister of the Eastern Han Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty, Huo Guang was in dictatorship. After the death of Emperor Zhao, he appointed Liu He, the weak-established king of Changyi, to ascend Dabao. Twenty-seven days later, he was deposed and replaced by Liu Xun, the great-grandson of Emperor Wu, who became Emperor Xuan.
After Emperor Xuan succeeded to the throne, Huo Guang took over the power, and the Huo family became famous.
But now Yang Rong was walking in the direction of Huo Guang.
"Yang Rong cannot be Huo Guang, and the prince is not Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty."
At this time, an old and deep voice came from the room.
Yang Rong and Fan Zhong looked over after hearing the sound, but it was Xia Yuanji who was wearing a red official robe and walking with a stick. His long hair showed his vicissitudes of life, but he could not hide his strong aura.
After Zhu Gaojiu came to power, the Donggong Party became the largest political party in the dynasty. Xia Yuanji, as his most capable arm, naturally became the leader of the Donggong Party with one person outnumbering ten thousand people.
Old Shangshu Xia holds the positions of the Ministry of Revenue and the Vice-President of the Academy of Arts. He holds the empire's money bag in one hand, and controls the ups and downs of the empire's top officials in the next few decades with the other. As the vice-president of the Academy of Arts, he has separated the official The Ministry assesses the power of officials, and it is easier to talk about the background than the official minister.
The prince was not in the capital, and all matters of the East Palace Party were left to Xia Yuanji to decide. The members of the East Palace Party were so prosperous that they spread all over the world. The power in Xia Yuanji's hands far exceeded his position.
Therefore, in addition to the "Old Minister" in the past, more people in Beijing called Xia Yuanji "Xia Xiang".
"Yang Rong is not the material to be the powerful minister Huo Guang. If he wants to be a powerful minister, he will have to wait until I am dead."
Xia Yuanji said indifferently, "As long as I am still alive, even if His Majesty is ill and even if the Crown Prince is not in the capital, the city of Beijing will not be in chaos. Yang Rong wants to control Beijing, but he is not qualified yet."
"What's more, the prince is not Emperor Zhao and Emperor Xuan, nor is he Liu He who was deposed on the 27th day after he succeeded to the throne. The prince is a hero of his generation, whether it is political means, military command, or in governing the country and ensuring peace. His majestic power and strategies are unprecedented, and it is really just a fool's dream to think of him as Huo Guang."
Yang Rong did not retort, but bowed to Mr. Xia to show his respect. The other party didn't return the gift, but just waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to be polite.
Xia Yuanji walked up to Fan Zhong and said quietly: "Fan Zhong, you talk about the regulations and I do the practical things. Neither of us is right, but you are not qualified to express your opinion. His Majesty fainted, the prince left Beijing, and there are only Two people are qualified to adjudicate important matters.”
"One is the British Duke Zhang Fu, and the other is me."
Fan Zhong turned pale: "It turns out that it was Yang Rong who was behind the scenes."
"I never instructed Yang Rong. We can come together because we are loyal to the prince. And we are loyal to the prince for the sake of the Ming Dynasty."
Xia Yuanji shook his head and said, "The prince wants to change the day and make new rules. Now is the time when the world is in turmoil, and your majesty is not in good health. Today's empire is already on the eve of a storm. If it can survive , we will usher in an unprecedented peak. If we fail to survive, everyone will die without a burial place."
"You don't understand these principles."
He fluttered his sleeves and turned to leave, saying to Yang Rong, "Mr. Yang Ge, let's go and let General Fan calm down alone."
"We're not running out of time."
The two left one after another. Fan Zhong was trembling with anger all over, and the chain in his hand was dangling.
After a long time, General Fan's roar was heard.
"The literati bring harm to the country, and the officials are traitors and traitors!"
"Deserves to be killed!"
…
…
The strong smell of medicinal herbs overflowed in the Qianqing Palace. His majesty, the former heroic and burly emperor, was lying on the dragon couch, his eyes closed, sweating profusely, soaking the pillow embroidered with dragons.
The doctors at the Tai Hospital were very busy. Some were boiling medicinal soup, some were busy giving the emperor acupuncture, and some were discussing prescriptions. All in all, the disputes continued, and it seemed that a fight was about to start at the next moment.
"Your Majesty suddenly fell into a coma, which lasted for three days and three nights. So far, it seems that he has no symptoms of waking up. If it continues like this, I'm afraid..."
"Afraid of what?"
"I'm afraid something big is going to happen."
"You bastard! Why are you talking so carelessly?"
In anger, Tang Cheng kicked the old imperial doctor to the ground, pointed at him and said angrily, "The imperial court gave you losers snacks and salary, but in the end you didn't do anything. Let me tell you, if His Majesty's illness If there is still no improvement, our family will have everyone in the Taiyuan Hospital beheaded to apologize!"
"Tang Gong calm down!"
The old imperial doctor hurriedly knelt down and begged for mercy, "It's not that we are incompetent, but His Majesty's condition has reached the point where there is no way to save him. If His Majesty's body was poked a small hole in the porcelain cup before, it was used to bake the porcelain The craftsman can still paste it, but now the porcelain cup has been smashed to pieces, and even the best porcelain baker can't paste it!"
"Our family doesn't care about that much!"
Tang Cheng waved his hand and shouted, "As long as your Majesty cures you trash, no matter what method you use, no matter what difficulties you have, our family doesn't care about these."
"Don't talk nonsense to our family. Your Majesty is our sky. If the sky collapses, no one will be able to survive. If our family can't survive, you will all die too!"
The old imperial doctor thought that this would cost him his life. The emperor's condition was impossible to cure because all the imperial doctors present were well-trained.
He was already half-buried in the earth, and his death was only a matter of breath. Now that the emperor closed his eyes, he might never be able to open them again.
The old imperial doctor rolled his eyes, seeming to remember something, and grabbed Tang Cheng's thigh as if grasping a life-saving straw: "Mr. Tang, there is a doctor in the world who can save His Majesty! And this is the only one!"
Tang Cheng frowned slightly: "Who is it? Please tell me quickly. Even if we go to kidnap him, we have to be kidnapped by this person."
The old imperial doctor quickly said: "Your Highness the Crown Prince!"
"The last time His Majesty fell ill, it was His Highness the Crown Prince who saved His Majesty's life. The Crown Prince's medical skills are not controversial in our Imperial Hospital. Many of the imperial doctors in the Imperial Hospital were with the army during the Jingnan Campaign. As a military doctor, everyone, including me, has received guidance from the Crown Prince!"
"If there is anyone in the world who can cure His Majesty, it must be the Crown Prince!"
This time it was Tang Cheng's turn to be dumbfounded: "The prince is in the south. Even if our family has great abilities, it is impossible for the prince to move us."
Even if the prince has wings, it will still take ten or twenty days to return to Beijing from the south.
After ten or twenty days, I'm afraid Zhu Di will have finished kowtowing to Taizu in the ground.
"You guys, please step back."
In the main hall, tired voices came from.
Everyone heard the sound and looked around, only to see a slightly slovenly young man standing in front of the main entrance of the hall. There were heavy dark circles under his eyes, and his face was covered with mud. Perhaps because he had traveled all night, even his green shirt was stained. It was dyed an earthy color, and even the hair scarf was not tied up, and the hair was disheveled.
Zhu Gaojie looked at Tang Cheng and forced a smile: "Mr. Tang, it's not too late to come back alone, right?"
(End of chapter)
