Sima Hong looked at Su Jin, whose face turned from black to purple in response to his words, but he showed no trace of pride. Instead, he said with an expression of one-third frustration and one-third unwillingness: ""Old man is the last number one scholar in arithmetic in the Sejong Dynasty, so he is naturally proficient in arithmetic. And for those who are proficient in calculating, do you think their calculations will be bad?"
"If I really stole and sold the royal items, how could I be caught by you, a nerd who hasn't even left the capital for many years? Stop being so sentimental. Today, I will tell you clearly. The old man is unlucky because he offended the prince because of his position as the governor of Jun Kiln."
"Later on, I was involuntarily involved in the overt and covert fight between the prince and King Jing. It was unlucky. The officials from the Ministry of Works who were involved by you are completely different. In fact, those officials from the Ministry of Works are also It was not because of your intervention. It was because it fell into the hands of King Jing, because the Ministry of Industry has always been controlled by the prince's party, and it is the prince's earliest money bag."
"The other kings have long been unable to see it, and have been trying every possible means to find trouble with the Ministry of Industry. It happened that the theft and sale of imperial porcelain in Jun Kiln happened, and King Jing caught the handle, and together with King Rui, they took action. Only then did the original The Minister of Industry, two ministers, and more than 40 officials below were dismissed from their posts and imprisoned."
Huang Qiong ignored the quarrel between the two. Instead, he just sat there and listened quietly. It wasn't until Sima Hong revealed the true situation of the case that year that his eyebrows moved slightly. A public case five years ago actually involved a grudge between the prince and King Jing and King Rui. This was something Huang Qiong did not expect.
Junzhou, where Jun Kiln is located, is now under the jurisdiction of Zhengzhou Prefecture. Given King Jing's behavior, after taking over Zhengzhou, it would be abnormal for him to not interfere with Jun Kiln, which was making money every day. However, the five-year prospect king has actually been controlled by the king of Shu. In other words, the case back then may not have been really done by King Jing. The person who took action was most likely the King of Shu behind it.
As for King Jing, he just became the scapegoat for this matter. Moreover, he provokes fights between others and sits on the sidelines to reap the benefits. This seems to be the consistent style of the King of Shu that he has come into contact with since he sent troops to quell the rebellion. However, stealing and selling royal items is a death sentence according to the laws of this dynasty. This person is able to survive until now, probably because there are people behind him to protect him.
However, to be able to save an official from such a huge case, and who is very likely to be at the center of the whirlpool, this person should be no ordinary person. You must know that as the governor of Jun Kiln, there was a case of stealing and selling royal items in Jun Kiln. It is impossible for him, the governor, to be less guilty than others. Even if he didn't participate, a single oversight would be enough to cost him his head.
Although this person is not in a good situation right now, he is still alive and well, which is enough to show that he is protected secretly. Otherwise, even the minister of the Ministry of Industry will fall, and he, a fifth-grade governor, will have no major problems. To be honest, Huang Qiong was not very interested in Sima Hong being unlucky for whatever reason. But Huang Qiong was very interested in who was protecting him behind the scenes.
Although Su Jin, who was busy arguing with Sima Hong, did not notice the subtle change in the expression on Huang Qiong's face. But Sima Hong, who was obviously much more cunning and cunning, saw it. Thinking of this young prince, he went on a killing spree in Zhengzhou Mansion and beheaded more than a hundred people in one breath. If you include the servants in Prince Jing's Mansion who are relying on their own power, there are a total of 200 people.
Even the son of Princess Xincai, who was also his direct cousin, was killed. And the Magistrate Su in front of him was the long history of his Royal Palace before he was transferred to the Magistrate of Zhengzhou. This means that this Magistrate Su is a member of the King of England. If you find fault with Su Jin here, isn't that the same as finding fault with him? Thinking of this, Sima Hong immediately wisely shut his mouth.
Seeing Sima Hong shut his mouth, Su Jin over there was choked by Sima Hong's previous words and couldn't speak for a while. The quarrel between the two finally came to an end. Huang Qiong smiled faintly and said to Sima Hong: "I just heard what Mr. Sima said about the case back then. I wonder if Mr. Sima can tell me in detail. If there is really an grievance, I can help you." Representation.”
As soon as Huang Qiong finished speaking, Sima Hong, instead of showing gratitude, actually looked a little pale. After a long silence, he sighed and said: "Redress for grievance? I have long since stopped thinking about it. As long as the prince reigns for one day, there will be no place for me to express my grievances. The King of England, you can't offend the prince for the sake of a man who has been dismissed from office." "
"Back then, the old man was ordered to be transferred to the position of Superintendent of Jun Kiln as the royal minister of the Ministry of Industry. I originally thought that I would get an opportunity to be released to the outside world and finally be able to flex my muscles. But I didn't expect that I would be involved before I took office. In the middle of a battle. The reason why I can take this position is that the most important position in the Ministry of Industry of Qi Dynasty, besides the Water Control Department, is actually the result of calculation. "
"I was not a close confidant of the Minister of Works at the time. It can even be said that in the Ministry of Works, which was dominated by the prince's best friends, I, a little fifth-ranking official, was an alternative. My appointment as the Superintendent was a fierce battle behind the scenes. The final compromise. Later I found out that the predecessor I replaced was the prince's best friend."
"I have two responsibilities in Junzhou. One is to make money and pay filial piety to the prince, and the other is to monitor King Jing in Zhengzhou, which is close to Junzhou. The transfer of the governor is a heavy loss for the prince. . In the end, I, the chosen successor because I never took sides, became the target of the prince’s rectification. And King Jing, who tried to install his confidants but failed, also disliked me extremely. "
"Originally, in the Imperial Affairs Department, although I had to suffer from the anger of the eunuchs in the Ministry of Internal Affairs on weekdays, my life was relatively smooth. Moreover, in the Imperial Affairs Department, I was in charge of the production of various imperial utensils, which was also considered a fat position. I Although this person has never taken sides, some people are afraid that I will cause trouble, so I have everything I need."
"I thought that after I was transferred to Jun Kiln, which was regarded as one of the top three vacancies in the Ministry of Industry, the two-year term turned into a nightmare. Jun Kiln is a semi-government-run and semi-private-run kiln, which is beyond the scope of the specialized kiln for firing imperial porcelain. Unlike other kilns that are allowed to sell porcelain produced by Ru kiln, it has been a government-run kiln since it was re-opened during the reign of Emperor Taizong of this dynasty."
"It was first under the supervision of the Imperial Palace of Internal Affairs. Later, due to too many shortcomings, it was placed under the control of the Ministry of Industry during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong. The porcelain produced by Jun Kiln has the same color as the one praised by the Guilin King at that time as saying that the rain has broken the sky and the clouds have broken the virginity." In the future, compared with Ru porcelain, which is said to be similar to jade, not jade, but better than jade, the glaze has five colors, is gorgeous and unique, and is unique."
"It has the same color when entering the kiln, and the magical transformation of the kiln when it comes out of the kiln. It has always been famous for its endlessly changing graphics and colors such as lakes and mountains, clouds and mist, humans, animals, flowers, birds, fish and insects, as well as its wonderful charm. As the saying goes, rare things are valuable, and in this market The rarer something is, the higher its value is."
"Jun porcelain is worth thousands of gold. In addition to being an imperial porcelain and rarely spread among the people, the main reason is that Jun porcelain is difficult to fire. After hundreds of porcelains are put into the kiln, the finished product is only about 30%. The two reasons combined make it popular among the people. It is said that gold is valuable, but Jun is priceless. And in overseas countries and the Northern Liao Dynasty, Jun porcelain is a rare treasure."
"Because of this, the Tieguanyin tea produced by Junci and the Prince of Guilin has always been the most luxurious item in our dynasty. Not to mention the homes of ordinary people, it is those families of officials and princes. Unless they reach a certain level, they have obtained the most luxurious items in the past dynasties. Rewards from the emperor are rare otherwise. It is precisely because of the high value of Jun porcelain that there were two edicts from Xuanzong of the former Tang Dynasty and Gaozong of this dynasty that Jun should not be buried with him."
"This Jun porcelain is worth tens of thousands of gold, so it will naturally attract the prying eyes of many powerful people. Not long after I took office, I discovered that some people were openly setting up private kilns around the official kilns, and they were even able to use the kiln workers to work for them. They fire porcelain. And these privately made porcelains, both in terms of craftsmanship and appearance, are exactly the same as those fired in official kilns, and even have the seal of the imperial eunuch."
"The only difference is that the inscription presented by someone is missing. You know, there are two kinds of inscriptions on imperial porcelain. One is directly engraved with the imperial eunuch and the year number. Most of this type of porcelain is small. Objects. In order to ensure that the quality of those large objects is sufficient, they generally have two styles. In addition to the style of the Queen's Prison, there is also the style presented by someone."
"Jun Kiln is the royal kiln of the emperor, and the porcelain produced has always been used in the palace. If other families, no matter whether they are noble or not, use it without permission from the emperor, it is a serious transgression. Moreover, because Jun Kiln is an imperial kiln, it must be inspected The strictness is no less strict than that of the imperial mausoleum. If other families open a kiln without permission, if they are found, they will be exiled, and those who are serious will be beheaded."
"At that time, someone actually opened a kiln without permission under the eyes of the official kiln, and even went so far as to use the workers of the official kiln to make porcelain for them. If this spread to the palace, would my whole family still have their heads? What's more, Jun Kiln is on the territory of Zhengzhou Prefecture. And Zhengzhou Prefecture is the territory of King Jing. Without knowing the identities of these private kiln operators, I can only be more cautious."
"Originally, I thought that although I couldn't do a name search, as long as I was careful, I could do a covert search. But I didn't expect that I could no longer investigate after just the beginning. Because I had only been in office for less than three months. In fact, The toilet has been empty. Except for a concubine who is with me to take care of daily life, I can't even find anyone available."
"The real power fell into the hands of the supervising eunuch and the deputy superintendent. The old man, the superintendent, became a decoration in their hands. Even when I took over, the account books they handed over were simply fake. The supervising eunuch, It turned out to be the Neifang Ling beside the prince. The deputy superintendent was the direct nephew of the Minister of Works at the time, and was transferred from the construction director of the Ministry of Works."
"Originally, the capital eunuch, the old man, was a mediocre result. He didn't have a strong backing behind him. Naturally, he didn't want to see the two of them. The two of them worked together in collusion and deceived the superiors and subordinates. Not only did they deduct money and food from the kiln workers, but they also opened the kiln and fired the jun in secret. Porcelain. Sixty percent of the private kilns surrounding the official kilns were set up by them privately. They fired Jun porcelain and sold it privately to make huge profits."
"Although I was ignored by them, I was not willing to accept it. Fortunately, they did not kill all of them. As long as I was honest and obedient, they promised me a benefit of 100,000 yuan a year. They also gave some so-called ice and charcoal gifts according to the season. I thought Use this to bribe the old man and convict them when necessary. After all, if you open an imperial kiln privately, you will die if you are discovered."
"Especially in Zhengzhou, where King Jing has already become a vassal and is only a hundred miles away from Junzhou, they need to find a scapegoat. No one knows whether King Jing will interfere with Jun Kiln. After all, some princes are greedy by nature. The whole world knows it. And Lao Chan, the governor with no backing, became the most suitable candidate in their eyes."
"The old man took advantage of this in their hearts. On the one hand, he was not conceited, but on the other hand, he secretly investigated. The old man knew that they were so upright, even upright, and there must be a guard of honor behind them. They are all people chosen by the prince, and there must be a guard of honor behind them. I’m afraid there won’t be anyone else besides the prince. In other words, this matter will definitely involve the prince.”
