After Yu Shiji agreed to Yu Wenshu's request, he visited the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, and Yushitai with great fanfare early in the morning. Compared with the latter two, Liang Kun, the minister of the Ministry of Punishment, was the person he directly recommended, saying that Liang Kun was It’s not an exaggeration to be a member of the Yu sect. He handed the matter over to Liang Kun. All he wanted was a result. As for what Liang Kun would do, he didn't care.
But Liang Kun arrived a step too late. When he arrived at the county government office, everyone including Yang Ji, Yu Wenzhi and the two culprits were all released by Dou Qing. In addition to a lot of confessions and testimonies, there was not a single witness in the county government office. Without it, it would be difficult for Liang Kun to operate secretly and favor Yu Wenzhiji.
Liang Kun didn't know who the witness was for a while, and he had to complete the task assigned to him by Yu Shiji. Thinking that the cause of the matter was Yu Wenzhi and Yang Ji's friends, he hesitated for a long time, so he had to grit his teeth and lead his subordinates to the Palace of Wei to ask for people.
But after the concierge came in and announced, there was no news. Liang Kun and dozens of soldiers from the Ministry of Justice waited in front of the palace gate for more than an hour. The chief steward Gongsun Huan walked out unhurriedly and said cheerfully: "It turns out to be the Minister Liang. Let the Minister I'm really sorry for the long wait. But there's nothing I can do about it. The palace is fighting against corruption these days, and the accounts just happen to be collected these days. I'm handling tens of millions of dollars every moment. It's not a detail. Counting is definitely not enough. If there is an extra copper coin, I will have to pay for it; if there is a missing copper coin, if the people below do not agree or tell, I will be charged with corruption..."
After talking a lot, Gongsun Huan asked: "Shilang Liang came here and decided to buy the land in Luoyang South City, right? Sorry, the price has doubled! The concubine said that the Dugu family, the Dou family, and the Yuwen family , the Shangguan family, and the Zheng family have all taken a fancy to it, and each family is willing to pay a few percent more, so the Liang family, haha, I'm really sorry."
Although Gongsun Huan was deliberately arrogant to Liang Kun, his words were true. The outline of Luoyang New City had already been revealed, and the drawings of the new capital had been officially announced on the notice walls of every square in Daxing City. It was clear at a glance which areas were valuable.
Because of Yang Zhao, Yang Ji had obtained the drawings of Luoyang New City designed by Yu Wenkai a long time ago, and then asked Dugu Min to "according to the drawings" to buy all the areas destined to be prosperous. A late-minded, powerful person wants to get a good location from Dugu Min. How can he do it without paying a high price?
Large families like the Dugu family, the Dou family, and the Yuan family all have their own business networks. They not only want to buy homesteads in good locations, but also buy land on both sides of the Luoshui River and in the market to build docks, warehouses, and shops. In some prime locations, there are even dozens of companies competing. The land Gongsun Huan mentioned was a golden treasure land.
"I'm not buying land, but I'm here for official business." Although Liang Kun didn't come for the land, he heard that the price of the land had increased, and he secretly resented it. The two parties had already negotiated the price, but the palace Bian suddenly said that the price had increased and he would not sell it. This is obviously aimed at himself deliberately.
Just because he had told the concierge about the mission of this trip, the palace made him unhappy on the land and private matters. And with the Dugu family, Dou family, Yuan family and other behemoths involved, how could the Liang family compete? Can you pass?
"What official business?" Gongsun Huan pretended not to know.
Although Liang Kun felt resentful in his heart, he had no choice but to repeat: "I am here for the case of not returning to the liquor store until you are drunk. Now I need some witnesses. Can you ask the Chief Executive Gongsun to help summon people?"
Gongsun Huan suddenly said: "I see, everyone in the palace has always obeyed the law and is willing to cooperate with the government. However, there are many people in the palace. I wonder who Minister Liang is looking for?"
Liang Kun swallowed his anger and said, "I'm looking for those friends of King Wei who witnessed the case."
Gongsun Huan laughed: "Shilang Liang, have you looked in the wrong place? If you want to find someone, you should go to the Daxing County Government Office. Aren't they still in the County Government Office?"
Liang Kun said with a dark face: "They have already come to the palace with King Wei, and they should be in the palace at this time. I just want to ask them some things. Can I ask Chief Gongsun to go and take a look?"
"Okay, please wait a moment. Let me ask."
"Good work!"
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, the government and the people cooperate."
Gongsun Huan happily turned around and entered the palace, but nothing happened after waiting for a while. Liang Kun and others waited stupidly in the ice and snow for another half an hour, and finally realized that they had been fooled again.
As for Gongsun Huan or Yang Ji, they didn't take him seriously as the minister of punishment at all, but they were deliberately playing tricks on him.
He said angrily: "Forget it if there is no witness. The worst we can do is put the blame on King Wei. We will see if they still dare to be so arrogant..."
"Pah!" Before Zheng finished speaking, Liang Kun was slapped in the face by gritting his teeth with hatred, and yelled: "Where do you think this is? Who do you think King Wei is? Do you think King Wei can do whatever he wants?" Sentenced cats and dogs? You want to die, but I don’t want to die."
"Then what should we do?" The manager covered his face, glanced at Liang Kun aggrievedly, and said to himself: This case was originally handled by the county government. As long as they reported it to the Ministry of Punishment, the Ministry of Punishment only needed to review it. If you hadn't taken advantage of it and insisted on messing up the procedures to intervene, why would everyone have to suffer here?
If you had the guts, you could break into the palace and arrest someone! The door is open.
"Go back to the county office! Let Dou Qing come." Liang Kun knew that Yu Shiji must have accepted Yu Wenshu's benefits, so he intervened in this case. He, Yu Shiji, was confident and bold in reaping the benefits, but left such drudgery to himself. Now that King Wei doesn't cooperate, what should he do?
Break in and arrest someone?
Please forgive him for not having the courage, he doesn't want to die yet.
"Here!" Zhang Zhi felt even more disdainful. Since you can't stand this tough meal, why did you step in? When things come to a head, you don't dare to provoke King Wei, but you want to bully the county magistrate. You are really a weakling who bullies the weak and is afraid of the strong.
At this time, in the side hall of Xuanwu Hall, Yang Ji was discussing with the direct descendants of the royal family such as Gongsun Huan, Song Zhengben, Hao Yuan, Ling Jing, Wei Zheng, Xue Ju, Li Daliang, Yuchi Gong, Dugu Pingyun, Zhu Can and so on.
"Young Master, Liang Kun, the Minister of Punishment, was recommended to the position by Yu Shiji. He is Yu Shiji's person." Gongsun Huan stayed in the capital for a long time and had an extremely clear understanding of the composition of the central forces. He said to Yang Ji: "Yu Shiji's involvement also made this matter The matter has escalated further. Master, what do you think we should do?"
Yang Ji said: "I am not only a prince, but also a prince with high authority. No smart person will wade into this muddy water; but when the cause, process and result of the case are clear, Yu Shiji actually came forward. I think There are two reasons: first, the price offered by Yu Wenshu is extremely high, too high for Yu Shiji to refuse; second, Yu Shiji has other plans, which are big. If not, he will not go against me, the prince."
Everyone nodded after hearing this, and Song Zhengben said: "Bizhi believes that it has both. The former is a real benefit; the latter is probably because Yu Shiji wants to show his existence in this case."
"Show existence?" Yang Ji was moved and asked, "Does Lord Bo mean that Yu Shiji wants to use this case to establish his authority?"
"That's right!" Song Zhengben nodded slightly. He took over Yang Ji's previous topic and analyzed step by step: "Young Master and Yu Wenshu are in high positions and are in great power. Most people would try to avoid them, but Yu Shiji stepped up to the challenge. , what does this mean? It means that he has the status, strength, and courage to compete with Young Master and Yu Wenshu. The outcome of the case is not important to him. What is important is that he has the reputation to fight against you two. etc. He has this sparkling reputation, who will dare to underestimate him in the future? Why should lower-level officials have to work hard to please him?"
Yang Ji suddenly nodded. He thought for a while and then asked, "Isn't he afraid that I will settle a score with him?"
"I think Yu Shiji is gambling." Song Zhengben said with a smile: "On the surface, this case is a dispute between the young master and Yuwen Zhiji. Even if the young master wins, only Yuwen Zhiji himself will be punished, and has nothing to do with Yuwen Shu. "So Yu Shiji believed that this case would not hurt Yu Wenshu, so he bet that after the young master had a strong enemy of Yu Wenshu, he would not dare to antagonize him as an internal minister."
"What Master Bo said is absolutely true!" Hao Yuan said: "In other words, if the young master goes to Yu Shiji and is willing to spend a lot of money, he will also participate. In the end, he will not only gain fame and fortune, a prominent official position, and affiliated power, I also gained the friendship of the young master.”
Dugu Pingyun let out a hissing laugh and said, "This dog-like thing is really well thought out. Aren't you afraid of losing everything?"
"He's really not afraid!" Hao Yuan said with a smile, "After all, he didn't do anything."
Ling Jing, who was next to him, silently added: "He did it!"
"What did you do?"
"The visit of Liang Kun, the Minister of Justice, is the result of Yu Shiji's influence! And I believe all the important officials in the court understand this truth." Ling Jing paused and smiled: "Liang Kun's visit is to disrupt the local trial. The rules of review by the Ministry of Punishment. If Yu Shiji had asked Liang Kun to come without the consent of the saint, to put it mildly, he would have broken the rules of the Ministry of Internal History to draft edicts, the Ministry of Menxia to review, and the Ministry of Shangshu to implement them; to put it more seriously, it would have deceived the saints. , arbitrary."
He glanced at Yang Ji and continued: "If the fault of this case lies with the young master, then Yu Shiji and Liang Kun acted righteously, and bad rules have become trivial matters. The saint can only symbolize a penalty point and a salary; on the contrary, if it is Yu Wen If the father and son get the punishment they deserve, then their bad behavior is to corrupt the law and help the tyrants to commit evil. Even if the young master does not go to find trouble with them, those important ministers who covet the positions of the Minister of Internal Affairs and the Minister of Punishment will infinitely expand their faults .”
"Not bad, not bad!" Song Zhengben said with a smile: "Under the verbal criticism of all the ministers, even if Yu Shiji did not suffer any losses, Liang Kun was afraid that he was going to die. This also means that Yu Shiji lost a minister of the Ministry of Justice. This is not a loss of money. ?”
Yang Ji nodded frequently after hearing this. This is the first year of the great cause, and Yu Shiji is far from being indispensable to Yang Guang. The important thing is that he has only been serving as the Minister of Internal Affairs for a short time and lacks the strength, power, and prestige to suppress the ministers. . If the ministers who are jealous of his position take the opportunity to attack in groups, I'm afraid Yu Shiji will also have a hard time.
This is the fate of those who cheat.
In fact, officialdom has been like this since ancient times. When I stare at you, he is also staring at you. This kind of officialdom also reminded Yang Ji of a modern poem:
You stand on the bridge and look at the scenery,
People watching the scenery are watching you upstairs.
The bright moon decorates your windows,
You decorate other people's dreams.
He thought for a while and said: "As expected, the saint will discuss the case tomorrow. The civil and military officials who are not well prepared will be caught off guard and miss the opportunity. We have to give them sufficient preparation time."
"What do you plan to do, Master?" everyone asked.
Yang Ji pondered for a long time and then said: "I remember that there were many 'idlers' at the gate of the Daxing County government office. These should be domestic slaves sent by noble families and dignitaries to find out the news. Liang Kun has nothing to do with me. I'm afraid he has no choice but to go to Dou." Celebrate.”
He said to Li Daliang, who seemed reckless but young and careful: "Jingde, Daliang, Liang Kun needs witnesses now. You two go to the county government to have a quarrel and say that I snatched it from Yuwen Zhiji." This thing is evidence of Yu Wenshu's serious crime of manipulating military exercises, and Yu Wenshu's letter of allegiance to force outstanding warriors to be loyal to him. This is why Yu Wenzhiji drew his sword and chopped me."
"Young master, what a good idea!" Everyone laughed, Song Zhengben nodded and said: "The evidence that can make Yu Wenzhi and his sword slash the prince is naturally not small, so those who are watching must be convinced. Then point out Yu Shiji appropriately. , Liang Kun broke the law, and the matter was settled. When the news came out, the results of our analysis were revealed to the ruffians in several nearby neighborhoods."
"I humbly obey my orders!" Yu Chigong and Li Daliang said with smiles and cupped their hands.
"This method is indeed good, but it's a bit fake." Gongsun Huan added cheerfully: "If you two make a fuss, I'm afraid you will have to visit the county government as guests for a few more days. Let's do this!" He looked at Dugu Pingyun He glanced at them and said, "Master Dugu, you go too. After they are captured, you, young and energetic, will make a fuss at the door and tell the 'truth' while making a fuss. This will be much more real."
"Here!"
. . . . . . . .
Just when Yu Chigong, Li Daliang, and Dugu Pingyun were high-spirited and ready to go to jail, Yu Wenshu had been waiting outside Qianqiu Palace (the second hall of Zhonghua Palace) for a long time.
Yu Wenshu had already finished his meeting with Yu Shiji. When he heard that Liang Kun had intervened in the case, he knew that Yu Shiji had already taken action. In order to make Yu Shiji support him to the end, Yu Wenshu reluctantly presented Wang Xizhi's "Kong Daizhong Tie" and "Chu Yue Tie" and Wang Xianzhi's "Yatou Wan Tie" on top of the 10,000 taels of gold and 20,000 silver promised in advance. 》.
Yu Shiji is a master of contemporary calligraphy. He has always regretted that he did not collect the authentic works of Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi. The three authentic paintings given to him by Yu Wenshu had a fatal temptation that he could not refuse. The degree of temptation far exceeded that of real gold. Bai Yin, of course, promised to support it to the end.
This is also the reason why Yu Wenshu seeks Yu Shiji instead of Pei Ju, because he knows that Pei Ju has a bottom line far better than Yu Shiji. Compared with Yu Shiji, Pei Ju can be regarded as a model of a gentleman. As long as Yu Shiji couldn't restrain his greed and got involved in this case, the emperor would definitely intervene in the case; as long as he won the case and the emperor didn't want to punish Yang Ji according to Yu Wenzhiji's injuries, he would definitely gain a lot.
At the very least, Yuwen Wenhua and his officials could be reinstated. As for the blood feud of his younger son and the humiliation he suffered today, there is no harm in repaying it in the future. At this time, he, Yuwenshu, could afford to wait.
At this time, a eunuch walked in and out quickly and saluted: "General, the saint asked you to go to the imperial study room to meet the saint."
"Well!" Yu Wenshu straightened his clothes, followed the eunuch into the Qianqiu Palace, and walked quickly towards the imperial study.
In the imperial study, Yang Guang was listening to the reforms of Taichang Qing Gao Jun and Taichang Shaoqing Pei Yun.
"Saint!" Gao Jie, the lecturer, introduced: "Taichang Temple originated from Fengchang in the Qin Dynasty. It was changed to Taichang in the Han Dynasty. The responsibilities are roughly the same. They are in charge of the sacrifices in the mausoleum and temples, etiquette, music and rituals, astronomy, and clothing. But today, Taichang Temple actually has 16 upper offices, four middle offices, and 19 lower offices. Among them, there are countless departments with overlapping responsibilities and positions with overlapping duties. Due to the overlapping responsibilities of those official offices If responsibilities are not clear, troubles can occur even when nothing happens, and responsibilities are passed off to each other when something happens, not only is it not beneficial to Taichang Temple, but it also creates huge hidden dangers."
"What Mr. Gao said is very true!" Yang Guang was very happy to hear it and nodded: "It is inevitable for every dynasty to have excessive officials and overstaffed personnel. Faced with a huge number of overstated officials and overstaffed personnel, the only way for the court to It means downsizing, but how to reduce it and who to reduce it? It is a big headache. If it is not handled properly, it will cause turmoil. Therefore, when faced with excessive officials and excessive personnel, most rulers in the past dynasties just let it go, so as not to shake the foundation. But that is This kind of letting things go has led to the increasing number of arrogant officials becoming a heavy burden on the court. When they endanger the country, there is no way to deal with it. I have always believed that officials should be appointed appropriately, not too many. Taichang Temple was withdrawn and merged I am very fond of the idea of cutting down government agencies and cutting off officials. But I wonder if you have any plans to improve it?"
"Yes!" Gao Jun handed a memorial to Yang Guang and said, "After sorting it out with the old minister and Pei Shaoqing, it was decided to reduce the Sixteenth Upper Department, the Fourth Middle Department, and the Nineteenth Lower Department of Taichang Temple to Taile, The six departments are Advocacy, Imperial Physician, Taibu, Xixi, and Fenci. Without affecting daily life, all overlapping positions will be abolished, and musicians will also be classified into the six departments according to their duties. The positions of Taichang Sixth Department , has also been re-established based on daily management and practicality.”
Yang Guang looked at the memorial and found that in the joint memorial between the two of them, more than 300 official positions were cut. The positions and responsibilities of the newly established six departments were also listed one by one, and even the official ranks of each position were given. Suggestions, it can be seen that the two of them did it very carefully. Just for a while, he couldn't make a conclusion.
He closed the memorial and said: "The positions in the Sixth Department are very reasonable. I have no objections. It's just about the official rank. I have to think about it carefully and hold a small court meeting another day to discuss it. In addition, when the late emperor re-established the five rites, due to the Time was too hasty, which led Yang Su and others to ban all music other than Zhengsheng Qingshang and Jiu Bu Si Yan. Even the sacrificial music that has been passed down from generation to generation in some places was banned. This seemed quite excessive, so I don’t think the imperial court can be so one-size-fits-all. To avoid dissatisfaction among the people, you should also change the music and temperament and relax it appropriately. After that, we can recruit some outstanding music students from various places to serve as Chen Taichang."
"I obey!" Gao Jun and Pei Yun bowed and obeyed.
"And..." Yang Guang was about to continue pointing out the shortcomings when he saw Yu Wenshu walking in.
After Yu Wenshu came in, he knelt down directly in front of Yang Guang.
The three people present were shocked.
The Sui Dynasty did not like to kneel three times and kowtow nine times. Even the common people and beggars could only kneel to the ground when they saw the emperor. They only knelt down when they were offering sacrifices to heaven or when facing their elders; and kneeling to outsiders was usually Filial sons and grandsons greet visitors in front of the coffins of their elders.
Now, there are no situations that require kneeling, so Yu Wenshu's move scared everyone!
Although Yang Guang was bold and had a supreme status, he stood up at this time and ran to the side quickly, refusing to accept Yu Wenshu's kneeling ceremony.
He and Yu Wenshu were of the same generation, and ministers did not have to kneel to the emperor. If he accepted Yu Wenshu's kneeling ceremony, it would be the ceremony of a dead person and his life would be shortened.
"What's the matter, General? You'd better get up and talk! You can't solve anything by kneeling like this?" Gao Jiong next to him was the 'boss' in charge of these etiquettes. When he saw Yang Guang running to the side, he quickly stepped forward and asked Yu Wenshu Help him up.
"Sage, forgive me! I was bullied, but I couldn't get justice. I was anxious for a moment, so I got confused. I disturbed the saint. I really deserve death." Yu Wenshu stood up and swallowed with a sad expression. : "The old minister has been serving the late emperor since the previous dynasty. Although he has no merit, he has been loyal and loyal in supporting the prosperity of the Sui Dynasty, which can be regarded as a bit of hard work... I only hope that the saint will remember that when the old minister is old and frail, he will serve two generations of kings with trembling hands. For my own sake, I will make the decision for my veteran."
All three people present understood it!
Yuwenshu couldn't cure Yang Ji who injured his son, so he ran to the palace to complain.
Gao Jun and Pei Yun looked at each other and silently stepped aside.
When Yang Guang saw Yu Wenshu standing, he sat back down and asked, "Are you talking about King Wei and the murder case that happened in the tavern?"
Yu Wenshu said in a pitiful voice: "It doesn't stop! Princess Wei beat dozens of old ministers and domestic slaves at the county government office yesterday evening, and today, King Wei beat my eldest son outside the county government office and seriously injured him."
"..." The three people's faces darkened when they heard this. Yang Ji's family was really tough. First, the husband injured his youngest son and killed his slave. Then it was the wife's turn and she was beaten very tough. There are dozens of domestic slaves in this family, but the husband seems to feel that his wife has robbed him of his prestige, so today he beat his eldest son again.
Yang Guang looked at the sad Yu Wenshu. Instead of being angry, he wanted to laugh!
At this moment, a thought quickly occurred to him: The two little tigers were so fierce. If the bigger tiger was in the capital, wouldn't it mean that Yu Wenshu, an older and lower-ranking "junior", would also be beaten severely? pause?
As long as he thought about it, although he felt something was wrong, he actually felt a sense of expectation.
He took a deep breath, tried to remain serious, and said in a deep voice: "Tell me the whole story."
"Here!" Yu Wenshu told the story in detail about why he was not drunk and was not returned to the police. Then he also told what happened today. He also filed a complaint against the county magistrate Dou Qing, saying that he was unfair in enforcing the law and had caused trouble. Liang Kun, Minister of Criminal Affairs.
Yang Guang listened expressionlessly, but Pei Yun next to him heard the clues. In this case, even Liang Kun, the minister of punishment under Yu Shiji's control, also came forward. I really don't know how much Yu Wenshu spent on Yu Shiji. And Yu Wenshu is willing to pay such a high price, which shows that this case is not just as simple as one death and one injury.
Yang Guang thought for a moment, gave Yu Wenshu a meaningful look, and said calmly: "The final verdict has not yet come out, so it is hard to say whether Dou Qing will enforce the law impartially, but the Ministry of Punishment strongly intervened before the county government verdict came out. Don’t you think this case is excessive?”
"Perhaps this matter concerns King Wei and the old minister, so the Ministry of Punishment came forward." Yu Wenshu said sophistry.
"That's also possible!" Yang Guang nodded speciously and asked, "Do you want me to hear this matter personally?"
"I don't want to protect my son, but I will never allow others to bully me." Yu Wenshu bowed deeply: "I am worried that others will not dare to enforce the law impartially, so I sincerely ask the saint to uphold justice."
Yang Guang heard the determination and perseverance in Yu Wenshu's tone, and he was a little surprised: Could it be that Yang Ji was really at fault in this case? After all, based on his understanding of the boy, if he had reason first, he would definitely solve it himself instead of letting Xiao Ying enter the palace and ask the queen to come forward.
He thought for a moment and then said: "Well, since it involves you and King Wei, I will personally review the case tomorrow morning."
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