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On this day, the court meeting had just begun. Before Emperor Deqing could speak, some Qingliu officials couldn't wait to impeach Zhao Junchen.
"Your Majesty, I want to impeach Zhao Junchen, the Minister of Household Affairs!"
Young Master Guo Tang quickly walked out of the queue, his expression full of indignation, and he said loudly.
Seeing Guo Tang's indignant look, Emperor Deqing glanced at Zhao Junchen from the corner of his eye. He seemed to have guessed the reason why Guo Tang wanted to impeach Zhao Junchen. A trace of helplessness flashed in his eyes, but he still said: "Guo Aiqing wants to impeach Zhao Junchen." Zhao Junchen? What is going on? "
Guo Tang turned his head and glanced at Zhao Junchen bitterly, as if he and Zhao Junchen had some deep hatred. For an old scholar like Guo Tang, what Zhao Junchen did yesterday really exceeded his psychological bottom line.
At the same time, Guo Tang was still a little proud in his heart. After all, Zhao Junchen had become more cautious in doing things in recent years. The "princeling party" could no longer easily find a handle. Now that he had finally discovered the flaw, he was naturally eager to get it. Make Zhao Junchen look good!
Then, with righteous words on his face, Guo Tang said: "Your Majesty, our court has a rule that officials are not allowed to take girls from brothels as concubines! But as far as the veteran knows, Zhao Junchen has always been indulgent and lustful, and yesterday he actually ignored the court. According to the law, not only did he take a lowly brothel girl as a concubine, but he also held a banquet with hundreds of officials, lest the world would not know about it! Such actions not only corrupted the customs and despised the law, but also brought shame to the entire court! Your Majesty, what do you think the people will think when they see that Zhao Junchen, the imperial minister of household affairs, is trying to flatter a woman from a brothel? In this case, where is the reputation of the imperial court? What about the officials? How to be a herdsman? Zhao Junchen’s crimes have made everyone in the world angry. Your Majesty, please remove him from his official position and punish him severely!"
As Guo Tang finished speaking, everyone in the "princeling party" was ready to impeach Zhao Junchen together with Guo Tang.
At the same time, Prince Zhu Heyu remained silent and showed no intention of stopping him.
Although Zhao Shancai had always hoped that Prince Zhu Heyu and Zhao Junchen could improve their relationship, Zhao Shancai died of illness yesterday in endless pain. At the same time, Zhao Junchen was taking concubines to fill houses with great fanfare. Prince Zhu Heyu was naturally a little unhappy. Balance, so although he did not directly attack Zhao Junchen, he did not stop the "princeling" officials from impeaching Zhao Junchen. He just stood aside and watched what happened.
However, as soon as Guo Tang finished speaking, before the "princeling party" officials came out to support the young master Guo Tang, Zhao Junchen had already made a statement first.
Zhao Junchen's expression was serious and cold, and he raised his voice and said: "Your Majesty, I want to impeach Young Master Guo Tang!"
Seeing Zhao Junchen's tit-for-tat behavior, Emperor Deqing raised his eyebrows slightly and asked: "Oh? Zhao Aiqing also impeached Guo Shaofu? Tell me, what do you want to impeach him for?"
Zhao Junchen raised his voice and said: "Your Majesty, I want to impeach Young Master Guo Tang for spreading rumors and slandering ministers! Yesterday, I did marry a concubine named Fang Ru. Your Majesty, you have also met her! I and They fell in love and loved each other, and finally got married yesterday! Fang Ru was virtuous, gentle, and of pure origin. She was also a matchmaker for her, but Mr. Guo maliciously slandered her, claiming that she was from a brothel. Such slander Slander and slander not only damage my reputation, but also hurt my family, which I cannot tolerate at all, and I hope that your majesty will make the decision for me!"
After saying that, Zhao Junchen turned to look at Guo Tang, his eyes were extremely cold. Guo Tang didn't dare to look at Zhao Junchen for a while, and couldn't help but look away.
However, Zhao Junchen still did not let Guo Tang go, and asked in a cold voice: "Young Master Guo, I have always respected your reputation and knowledge, but you must be responsible when you speak in front of His Majesty and all the officials! What do you think of me? I have always been indulgent and lustful, so I would like to ask Master Guo for advice... In my house, there is only one concubine, Fang Ru, who I took in yesterday! Since I have only one concubine, Master Guo thinks that he is relaxed and lustful, but I don't know that I have always been a concubine. How many concubines does Mr. Guo have in his house? Could it be that he only has one old wife? "
Hearing Zhao Junchen's rhetorical question, all the officials couldn't help but feel stunned.
After the propaganda of the Qingliu people over the years, Zhao Junchen has a rather bad reputation among the government and the public. Under the propaganda of the Qingliu people, Zhao Junchen can be said to have all the five poisons. Zhao Junchen can be said to have all the bad habits of treacherous ministers and corrupt officials since ancient times. There is no shortage of the same! Of course, there are also comments about lust, greed, corrupt style, and even robbing wives and daughters!
As the saying goes, "three people make a tiger", after hearing too many similar propaganda, most of the officials thought that Zhao Junchen was indeed a womanizer! Greed for money and lust are always compared by people. Since Zhao Junchen is a corrupt official, he must also be a pervert!
But when they heard Zhao Junchen's rhetorical question, all the officials recalled the fact that Zhao Junchen was only a concubine so far, and there were no rumors of lust at all. If we just talk about his life style, , I am afraid that no one in the entire dynasty can compare with Zhao Junchen!
On the other side, Young Master Guo Tang looked embarrassed and did not dare to respond to Zhao Junchen's question.
However, although the young master Guo Tang did not answer Zhao Junchen's question, everyone in the "Zhao Party" would not miss this opportunity to add insult to injury.
Academician Huo Zhengyuan stepped out of the queue and said to Zhao Junchen with a smile: "Master Zhao, you are so ill-informed! Guo Shaofu is as romantic and passionate as his moral articles! Just at this time last year, Guo Shaofu had just accepted The concubine in the sixth room, I remember that the concubine was only sixteen years old, and Mr. Guo was old enough to be her grandfather. Many officials in the court at that time praised Mr. Guo for being strong and strong in old age!"
As Huo Zhengyuan finished speaking, all the "Zhao Party" officials burst into laughter, which also made Mr. Guo Tang blush.
In fact, this is not so funny. It was originally a common thing for Guo Tang to have six concubines. For example, Huo Zhengyuan himself had seven concubines in his house, one more than Guo Tang. But this time it made me laugh. Being able to help Zhao Junchen vent his anger and humiliate the young master Guo Tang is enough for the "Zhao Party" officials.
In the midst of the laughter, Zhao Junchen's expression remained serious, and he asked Guo Tang again: "It turns out that Guo Shaofu, who has taken six concubines, is a clean and self-sufficient person and a moral role model, while I, the one who has taken concubines, is a lustful and indulgent person. Is he really educated?" !... But I also want to ask Mr. Guo, you said that my concubine Fang Ru was from a brothel, but I wonder if you have any concrete evidence, Mr. Guo? If there is no evidence to prove this, how can my woman rely on it? What are you so slandering?"
Speaking of which, although Fang Ru was innocent and was redeemed by Zhao Junchen very early, she did stay in a brothel for a period of time, but she never showed up. It is not wrong to say that she was born in a brothel.
However, this brothel was originally Zhao Junchen's property. As long as Zhao Junchen refused to admit it, no one would be able to find any evidence!
After all, once Fang Ru's parentage is confirmed, Zhao Junchen will indeed violate the court laws and regulations, and he will be punished at that time. But if Emperor Deqing orders Zhao Junchen to expel Fang Ru from the Zhao Mansion to set the record straight, Zhao Junchen will Junchen couldn't accept it.
It is precisely because of this that after Zhao Junchen heard about Guo Tang's impeachment, he would fight against each other and refuse to give in!
At this time, when he heard Zhao Junchen's questioning again, Guo Tang, who was feeling ashamed and angry, couldn't help but speak arbitrarily and retorted: "That woman named Fang Ru was originally from a brothel and had a low status. Although you have nothing to do with this matter, She is deliberately concealed, but how can she hide it from everyone’s eyes? Who else, besides you, Zhao Junchen, would bring such a humble woman into the palace with great fanfare? "
Zhao Junchen's eyes became colder when he heard that Guo Tang kept humiliating Fang Ru in front of officials by saying "from a brothel" and "low status".
Zhao Junchen found that he always seemed to be too talkative, especially when facing the "princeling party", he would often be tolerant for the sake of Emperor Deqing and Prince Zhu Heyu, and would always Blindly defending instead of taking the initiative to attack, many "princeling party" officials were a little underestimated and always subconsciously thought that Zhao Junchen was a soft persimmon who was easy to bully!
"If you want to gain a firm foothold and establish prestige in the temple, you must not only show kindness, but also establish prestige! In the past, I always killed people from the dark and with soft knives, so many people thought that I would only tolerate it. Lack of awe!... Now it seems that it is time for me to show some tough measures!... Guo Tang, you asked for this!"
When he secretly made up his mind, Zhao Junchen looked at Guo Tang as if he were looking at a dead person!
However, Zhao Junchen did not express his thoughts. It is not very difficult to bring down Guo Tang, but if he wants to completely destroy everything about Guo Tang and take the opportunity to establish the awe of the officials, he needs to It takes a day or two to prepare!
Therefore, Zhao Junchen just asked again in a cold voice: "So, Mr. Guo, you are just following what others say and don't have any evidence? Without evidence, you can maliciously slander important officials and their families at will. Mr. Guo, you are so majestic! Even Nowadays, His Majesty needs concrete evidence to punish officials, but Guo Shaofu’s prestige is actually greater than His Majesty!”
Seeing that Zhao Junchen brought the topic to himself, Emperor Deqing could no longer sit idly by and ignored him, so he shouted loudly with the same serious expression: "That's enough! Two court officials quarreling like this in the Huangji Hall became a matter of course. What's the etiquette? Don't argue anymore, let me judge this matter myself!"
After hearing what Emperor Deqing said, all the officials became silent. Even the two parties involved, Zhao Junchen and Guo Tang, lowered their heads and waited for Emperor Deqing's decision.
Emperor Deqing first glanced at Zhao Junchen, then turned his gaze to Guo Tang and asked: "Guo Shaofu, do you have any concrete evidence in your hands to prove that Zhao Junchen's concubine Fang Ru was born in a brothel?"
Guo Tang couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed when he saw that Emperor Deqing was also asking him for evidence.
As one of the leaders of Qingliu, he has long been accustomed to casual rumors, so where is the conclusive evidence?
Finally, after Guo Tang hesitated for a long time, he finally said: "Old minister... there is no evidence."
"Since there is no evidence, it is slandering the minister and spreading rumors to cause trouble!" Emperor Deqing did not wait for Guo Tang to explain, and he had already made a conclusion: "This is not a small crime. No wonder Zhao Aiqing reacted violently! This matter It is true that you have not thought carefully enough, but you are an old official in the court, and I cannot bear to punish you severely, so I will fine you a year's salary and come to Zhao Junchen in person to thank Zhao Junchen after you go to court, are you willing?"
Emperor Deqing has made it clear that this is only a "light punishment". If Guo Tang dares to refuse, then Emperor Deqing will definitely be disgraced. The punishment then may not only be a fine and a visit to apologize.
Therefore, although Guo Tang looked embarrassed, he finally nodded and agreed.
Then, Emperor Deqing asked Zhao Junchen: "Zhao Aiqing, are you satisfied with my decision?"
Zhao Junchen lowered his head and said: "Since it is your Majesty's decision, I naturally dare not have any objections."
After hearing Zhao Junchen's answer, Emperor Deqing nodded with satisfaction.
In fact, Zhao Junchen didn't care whether Emperor Deqing's punishment for Guo Tang was light or heavy, because Zhao Junchen had now decided to punish Guo Tang personally!
"If you can still stand safely in Huangji Hall after three days, I will lose this round!"
This is what Zhao Junchen is thinking now!
When Emperor Deqing personally resolved the dispute between Zhao Junchen and Guo Tang, the "princeling party" saw that not only did they fail to punish Zhao Junchen, but they suffered a hidden loss, naturally they were unwilling to let the matter end like this!
Therefore, Lu Chunxiao, the censor of the right capital of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, suddenly came out and said to Emperor Deqing: "Your Majesty, we can leave aside the background of Zhao Junchen's concubines for the time being! But yesterday, Zhao Junchen took concubines with such great fanfare, lest the world does not know , It really hurts the reputation of the imperial court! In addition, Zhao Junchen took advantage of the opportunity to have a concubine and feasted on hundreds of officials, which seems to be suspected of forming a clique. I hope your majesty will investigate! "
Emperor Deqing turned his attention to Zhao Junchen again and asked: "Zhao Aiqing, do you have any explanation for Lu Aiqing's impeachment of you?"
Zhao Junchen came out again and said: "Your Majesty, what I do is all out of a public spirit! I am trusted by your Majesty to be responsible for the rectification of commercial taxation, and I have also established a 'United Shipping Company' to provide financial support! However, the 'United Shipping Company' After all, it was just a start-up, and there were insufficient financial, material, and human resources! Therefore, I used the excuse of taking concubines to entertain some close colleagues and asked them for help. I asked them to raise money from relatives and friends to invest in the "United Shipping Company". Let the imperial court's plan to rectify business taxation see results as soon as possible! Of course, I also know that such high-profile concubinage does have a bad impact, so if your majesty punishes me for this reason, I have nothing to say!"
As Zhao Junchen finished speaking, the "Zhao Party" officials once again keenly sensed the opportunity to please Zhao Junchen, so they came out one after another to plead for Zhao Junchen and say good things!
This time, the new Pavilion Elder Zuo Lanshan seized the opportunity and went out first and said: "Your Majesty, I can prove that what Mr. Zhao said is true. I was also in Mr. Zhao's house yesterday. At that time, Mr. Zhao was indeed asking me. Waiting for help, I hope that I can raise money from relatives and friends, support the 'United Shipping Company', and do my best for the court. I deeply admire Mr. Zhao's loyalty and I also hope that your Majesty will learn from it!"
As soon as Zuo Lanshan finished speaking, Chen Dongxiang, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, walked out of the queue quickly and said: "Your Majesty, I also attended the Zhao family banquet yesterday, but Mr. Zhao mainly discussed the imperial business tax with the ministers at the banquet. Regarding the matter, the so-called concubinage is indeed just a pretext. Lord Zhao is so deliberate in sharing the worries of the court and doing things for His Majesty, which can be verified by heaven and earth! I hope that Your Majesty will never let down Lord Zhao’s loyalty!"
Next, the officials of the "Zhao Party" came out one after another, patting their chests to vouch for Zhao Junchen, proving that Zhao Junchen's concubinage yesterday was entirely out of public concern.
In the end, the "princeling" impeachment of Zhao Junchen failed again. Emperor Deqing only fined Zhao Junchen a year's salary. Such a punishment had no impact on Zhao Junchen at all.
However, for the "princelings", especially for the young master Guo Tang, a disaster is about to begin!
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