The magpie stayed on the eaves for a while and then left.
Life has its ups and downs, and being an official in the court also has its ups and downs. Talking about freedom with the emperor is a very stupid thing.
The emperor wants you to be an official. If you don't do it, you are disobeying the emperor.
"I will go to the palace by myself early tomorrow morning." Zhang Yang said while drinking tea.
"Will something happen to my husband?" Li Yue whispered, her expression still full of worry.
"If nothing else, I can go home in time for lunch."
…
Early the next morning, after the couple had breakfast, Ju Wentai went to the palace to meet Li Shimin in the morning. There was also an official impeachment in the court.
"I will take your husband to the Suzaku Gate." Li Yue forced out a smile.
"Then when you get to the door, you go home. Even if I am in jail, don't take out the movable type printing technology easily."
Li Yue nodded vigorously.
Zhang Yang glanced at the palace gate, "Don't worry, I don't think impeachment is so scary. Besides, we have prepared a way out."
"I'm waiting for you husband here." Li Yue said firmly.
Taking a deep breath, he walked into the palace gate, walked in from the Imperial City, entered the Chengtian Gate first, then turned through a path and entered the boundary of the East Palace.
The prince is not in the East Palace. At this time, he should go to Taiji Hall to attend the court meeting.
There were many maids and eunuchs at the entrance of the East Palace, and they all cast sympathetic glances.
Zhang Yang smiled bitterly. Bad things spread thousands of miles, and the impeachment of civilian officials could not be hidden from anyone. There was news even before the early morning.
The two guards of the East Palace looked at the back of the consort, who was walking towards Chongwen Hall.
"There was news yesterday that there will be several officials impeaching the consort today?"
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince values him so much. With such a big thing happening in Gaochang, he must be in bad luck."
"I heard that this person's horoscope is very strange. It seems that he is not suitable for being an official?" a passing eunuch whispered.
"It seems like it should be like this." The guard nodded thoughtfully.
…
Zhang Yang came to Chongwen Hall and pushed open the door of Chongwen Hall. The sunlight fell into the dim hall.
Picked up a volume from the bookshelf, this volume is written about the previous life of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty passed away, Chen Shubao was mediocre, and there was a lack of good ministers in the court. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty at that time deliberately planned to kill Chen Shubao.
Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty's road to the throne was also full of killings, and he encountered a rebellion in the south of the Yangtze River. At that time, Yang Guang was still just the military commander.
"Chao Yilang, Your Majesty has summoned me. Please go to Tai Chi Hall immediately."
Zhang Yang put down the book in his hand and said, "I understand."
The eunuch bowed and said, "Please."
Some are like settling old accounts, and we still have to face what should be faced.
What Li Shimin wanted in his heart was Gaochang. Tian Khan might help Ju Wentai rehabilitate him, but Gaochang would definitely belong to the Tang Dynasty in the future.
Follow the eunuch all the way to the Tai Chi Hall.
All the ministers were among them. Ju Wentai stood behind the court, and beside him stood Xu Jingzong, Zhang Xiangxiang and Zhang Dashu.
I haven’t been to Tai Chi Hall for some days, and I miss this place inexplicably.
"Your Majesty, Chao Yilang has arrived."
"Come in!"
Li Shimin's voice came from the hall.
Zhang Yang took a step forward, with the ministers on both sides. Before he walked to the court, he saw Ju Wentai. His eyes were dull, his complexion was dark, his eyes were dark, he looked like a guy whose body had been hollowed out by food and wine.
"Your Majesty." Zhang Yang bowed slightly.
"It's you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Ju Wentai's words, and he said sharply: "It's you who caused the rebellion in Gaochang today."
Ju Wentai pointed at Zhang Yang and the other three, "Tian Khan, kill them quickly. Send troops to help Gaochang. Gaochang is willing to support Tian Khan forever."
The man's finger was still pointing.
The feeling of being pointed at was very uncomfortable. Zhang Yang took a deep breath and planned to do a move that was likely to be punished.
After thinking for a long time, I couldn't wait for Li Shimin to ask.
Zhang Yang raised his foot and kicked Ju Wentai to the ground.
"Don't be rude, Chao Yilang." Wei Zheng shouted immediately.
He was kicked to the general's side, and Cheng Yaojin quietly kicked him hard.
Just as Ju Wentai wanted to stand up, he was kicked to the ground again by Cheng Yaojin, leaving him in a state of embarrassment for a moment.
At this moment, Zhang Yang wanted to give Cheng Yaojin a thumbs up. The general's movement was very secretive. If he hadn't been at this angle, he wouldn't have been able to see his quietly raised kick.
The movement is small, but it can make him lose his balance. The kick is on the opponent's calf. Both the angle and the force are just right. He is worthy of a general who has led troops in wars for many years. He is very skilled in using dirty tricks.
Ju Wentai looked back. At this moment, Cheng Yaojin seemed to be in trance with his eyes closed. He glanced at the row of generals and couldn't find the culprit for a while. Finally, his eyes fell on Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin and Hou Junji.
Zhang Yang saluted quickly, "Your Majesty, above the court, King Gaochang points his finger at me, full of malice. I have a bad temper. Please forgive me."
"Bad temper?" Li Shimin gritted his teeth and said four words.
"I come from a rural background and don't know how to tolerate. He pointed at me like this. It's a good thing that I didn't beat him up..." Zhang Yang thought for a while and continued: "Even if I am guilty, King Gaochang should not If you point at me like this and your Majesty will punish my sins, why should King Gaochang boss him around?"
"I..." King Gaochang hesitated for a moment.
"Your Majesty, I think Chao Yilang is right." Cheng Yaojin took the opportunity to interrupt.
"I didn't let you speak." Li Shimin glared.
Cheng Yaojin closed his eyes again, and when he had finished speaking, shut up, just shut up...
"How dare you, a person of no rank, kick me?" Ju Wentai gritted his teeth.
Zhang Yang stood up straight, faced King Gaochang and said with a smile: "King Gaochang, even if you treat any of our subjects in the Central Plains, even if you are an ordinary citizen, you should not be so bossy, otherwise we will be angry. As an outsider, You should watch your behavior.”
"Do you think you are still the Minister of Rites? Why are you lecturing me?!"
"Although I am not the Minister of Rites, I am Chao Yilang? Does King Gaochang know what Chao Yilang does?"
Ju Wentai was stunned, blinked, looked at Yan Guan aside, and asked, "What does Chao Yilang do?"
Zhang Yang explained: "Chaoyi Lang has the right to give advice, and he can also provide His Majesty with state-governing strategies through statements. It is our good fortune that Tian Khan opens up his voice and works diligently to accept advice... In short, I am a good person and you are a bad person. .”
"Cough cough cough..." Li Tai coughed very loyally.
Zhang Yang bowed again and said, "I'm sorry."
He was neither humble nor arrogant in front of the ministers of the court, and made Ju Wentai speechless. Li Shimin felt a little more appreciative, thinking that he had also relied on such rebuttal skills to get Tuyuhun to hand over the Hexi Corridor.
"Your Majesty, why are you calling me?" Zhang Yang asked suspiciously.
"Pfft..." Li Tai couldn't hold back his laughter.
Li Shimin sat on the throne, put his hands on his knees, looked at Ju Wentai again, and said with a straight face: "The King of Gaochang said that the strategy of the Ministry of Rites led to the Gaochang rebellion. Did this strategy come from the Ministry of Rites?"
"Your Majesty, that strategy was written by Minister Xu." Zhang Yang replied immediately, "But..."
Xu Jingzong's legs went weak and he almost knelt down to cry out.
Zhang Yang sighed and said, "Everyone knows what happened in Gaochang. I have a few things I want to ask the King of Gaochang."
Ju Wentai blew out his nostrils and his eyes were filled with anger.
If looks could kill a person, he might have died many times. Seeing that Li Shimin had no objection, Zhang Yang cleared his throat and asked, "May I ask King Gaochang, is the strategy given to you by the Ministry of Rites useful?"
"It's not useful!" Ju Wentai shouted loudly: "Gaochang has been occupied by those rebels, and you, the Ministry of Rites, cannot escape the blame."
"It seems that King Gaochang has not read enough. It is terrible to be uneducated. He can't even distinguish the priorities of responsibilities. Fortunately, it is in the Taiji Hall. If you were sold outside, you would still be counted by others. It’s money.” Zhang Yang shook his head and sighed: “Please use some wisdom before you speak.”
"You mean I'm stupid?" King Gaochang clenched his hands into fists and trembled all over.
"I didn't mean that, I just said you're not very smart."
"Hmph!" Ju Wentai snorted coldly.
Li Tai, standing behind Li Chengqian, was thinking, this Zhang Yang is really destructive. He was clearly scolding him for being stupid, couldn't he hear it? Is there any difference between the two?
It’s really like being sold and counting money for others.
Are all people from the Western Regions so stupid?
Li Tai frowned in confusion.
Zhang Yang continued: "I dare to ask King Gaochang, was it Gaochang who came to pay homage and seek advice from the Ministry of Rites to resolve the Yanqi Rebellion?"
Ju Wentai did not object and remained silent.
Zhang Yang then asked: "Our Ministry of Rites did give the strategy, and Gaochang accepted it gladly, and used our strategy voluntarily?"
Ju Wentai nodded stiffly.
Zhang Yang smiled and said: "Since everything is done voluntarily by you, what do you have to do with us?"
The Taiji Hall was very quiet, and Zhang Yang's words continued, "What can be confirmed first is that you are voluntary to use the strategy of the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Rites has not asked you to do so."
"Secondly, did this strategy work very well at the beginning, solving your Gaochang's difficulties and allowing more of Gaochang's wealth to be concentrated in the hands of the King of Gaochang?"
Ju Wentai remained silent and did not deny it.
The strategy was indeed provided by the Ministry of Rites. As for whether it should be used or not, it was Gao Chang's own business. This sounds correct, and Gao Chang was not forced to use this strategy.
"The Ministry of Rites is kind enough to help, but if something goes wrong, you still blame the Ministry of Rites, and even contact the public officials in the court to impeach me. Impeach the Ministry of Rites. Dare I ask King Gaochang if this is worthy of your conscience?"
"I..." Ju Wentai hesitated to speak.
Zhang Yang turned to look at Ju Wentai, "Everything I say from now on really happened in Gaochang. All of this is news sent by Yanqi. If you deny it, we can also ask Yanqi or other small countries in the Western Regions."
Seeing that Ju Wentai still didn't speak, Zhang Yang said loudly: "Then please listen carefully to King Gaochang. The strategy given by the Ministry of Rites worked very well at first, helping King Gaochang gain more wealth on the trade routes in the Western Regions."
"But you are not satisfied with the present. You have enslaved more people from the Western Regions, and forced ordinary Westerners to become your slaves in Gaochang by force, so that you can get more wealth."
"And you desire more. You have torn apart thousands of families. Many Gaochang civilians have lost their freedom and work all day without getting any pay. It is precisely because you forced slavery that you have angered people."
"When there is oppression, there is resistance. You are a spendthrift king. Because of your greed, thousands of people in the Western Regions lost their homes. You are responsible for this consequence. You have nothing to do with the Ministry of Rites."
Seeing the other party's eyes changing from angry to blank, Zhang Yang lowered his head and closed his eyes and said slowly: "You are standing in the Taiji Hall now and accusing me, blaming the Ministry of Rites, do you want Tian Khan to deal with me, or do you want my life?" Whatever."
"These are just your poor self-esteem. Because of your self-esteem, you don't want to put all the faults on yourself. You don't think you are at fault, and you don't admit your atrocities."
"You still want Tian Khan to help make the decision. If Tian Khan really helps you to commit atrocities, how do you think the countries in the Western Regions will view Tian Khan."
Zhang Yang saluted Li Shimin and said, "Your Majesty, I am telling King Gaochang that I want to trap Your Majesty in an injustice. Please be aware of it!"
After finishing speaking, there was silence in the Tai Chi Hall, everyone was thinking about Zhang Yang's words.
A court meeting was originally held to impeach Zhang Yang. At this moment, everyone looked at King Gaochang.
Wei Zheng took a step forward and said, "Your Majesty, the situation in Gaochang is unknown. If King Gaochang really commits such atrocities, the Tang Dynasty must not send troops to help."
Fang Xuanling also stepped forward, "Your Majesty, I think we should ask other countries in the Western Region to testify and find out whether King Gaochang committed such atrocities."
King Gaochang took a few steps back helplessly. This kind of thing cannot be hidden. If you ask the countries in the Western Regions, the court will definitely know about it.
Ju Wentai stood there helplessly, and Zhang Yang's every word was like a thorn in his heart.
The court meeting finally ended with Li Shimin asking the Ministry of War to send people to investigate the Western Regions.
After the dynasty ended, Li Shimin sat in the Ganlu Palace, thinking about Zhang Yang's words over and over again. He looked at Empress Changsun who was sorting out the debris in the palace, "This Zhang Yang gave me an opportunity to establish my authority in the Western Regions."
"Is it Zhang Yang again?"
"If everything is true, as the Khan of Heaven, I punished Ju Wentai, and I can gain a lot of people's hearts in the Western Region."
Queen Changsun's movements stopped, so Zhang Yang was fine, so she continued to sort out the debris in the Manlu Palace with peace of mind.
A court meeting against Zhang Yang ended with Zhang Yang's rebuttal. The Ministry of Rites was not guilty, and Zhang Yang was not guilty either.
Facing the impeachment in the court, Zhang Yang ended the court meeting with a complete victory and even sued Ju Wentai.
Ju Wentai was immediately taken away by officers and soldiers and placed under house arrest.
Under the eyes of the officials, Zhang Yang walked out of the Zhuque Gate. It was already noon, and Li Yue was still waiting here.
Seeing her husband come out, Li Yue ran forward and said, "Husband, how are you?"
Zhang Yang held her hand and said, "It's okay, let's go home for dinner."
"Well, let's go home and eat."
Li Yue narrowed her eyes and smiled happily.
It felt uncomfortable to be followed on the way home, so I looked back at Li Tai.
The little fat man did not hide his admiring gaze at all.
Zhang Yang stopped and asked, "Is His Royal Highness the King of Wei coming to have a meal?"
Li Tai said foolishly: "Brother-in-law, how did you do it?"
"Actually, it's nothing. It just depends on my awe-inspiring righteousness."
"In good spirits?"
(End of chapter)
