On the 20th of the first lunar month the next day, another court meeting was held in Daqing Hall.
Also around the fourth quarter of Yinshi, drums sounded from the drum tower in the palace. Immediately, the palace door opened, and hundreds of officials who had been waiting outside filed in and went straight to Daqing Hall. Then they waited on the terrace in front of Daqing Hall, while waiting. At the beginning of the meeting, I searched for someone with my eyes.
Different from the last time, this time the courtiers noticed Zhao Yang standing on the corridor outside the palace, and some talked about him privately, or looked at him coldly, or snorted coldly.
Most of the courtiers obviously did not realize what would happen today. They just whispered about the remarks that came from the Dianqiansi military camp in the past two days. By the way, they also speculated whether a certain young man who had been promoted to an official position would still be there today. After humiliating Qian Mingyi in public, the nineteen officials invited to the banquet by Qian Mingyi last night remained silent, whether they left in the middle or stayed until the end.
Later, a visitor walked up to Prime Minister Chen Zhizhong and reminded: "Ms. Chen, it's almost time."
Chen Zhizhong nodded slightly and shouted calmly: "Everyone, be quiet and enter the hall one by one."
The courtiers immediately calmed down and followed Chen Zhizhong into the palace in order of rank.
When passing by Zhao Yang who was standing on the corridor of the palace, many people looked at him sideways, including Qian Mingyi. Of course, he didn't dare to take the initiative to provoke at this time. He just glanced at Zhao Yang with a seemingly incomprehensible smile on his face.
And Zhao Yang looked at him with a half-smile.
The officials who noticed this were secretly happy: It seems that there is another good show today!
Most of these officials would not have thought that the show today would be even more exciting than it was five days ago.
When the last person in the team also walked into the hall, Zhao Yang let out a light chuckle and followed him into the hall, still standing at the end of the courtiers' team.
Ban Zhi, who was on duty at the palace gate, turned a blind eye to this, even though Zhao Yang was still wearing regular clothes today.
Not long after, the officials also led Wang Shougui and others into the hall. Their eyes glanced at Zhao Yang, who was the only one wearing ordinary clothes in the hall, and then walked to the throne as if he didn't see anything. After sitting down, he accepted the worship of the ministers from the dynasty.
"All officials come to pay homage."
Chen Zhizhong received the ceremony. The court officials in the palace bowed to the officials and paid homage to them. The officials then raised their hands to signal.
"Your Majesty, please excuse me."
After the ceremony, today's court meeting begins.
Prime Minister Chen Zhizhong took the lead in making a salute speech: "Deng Guogong Zhang Shixun passed away on the 17th of this month. His second son Zhang Youzheng sent an obituary to the court."
The official didn't seem surprised. He probably knew the news in advance. Hearing this, he sighed: "I heard that the Duke was ill, so I sent someone to visit him with the royal medicine. Unexpectedly..."
"The official family expresses condolences." Chen Zhizhong advised: "The Duke is in his eighty-sixth year, so it is considered a time of mourning."
The official nodded slightly and said solemnly: "The Political Affairs Hall and the Hanlin Academy will prepare a posthumous title as soon as possible, draft a eulogy, and submit the articles of condolence and posthumous conferment together."
"As commanded."
"Will any of his descendants serve as officials in the court?"
"The eldest son, Zhang Youzhen, used to be the school manager of Mi Pavilion and Tongzhi Liyuan. He was born as a Jinshi and knew Xiangzhou. Due to the failure in suppressing bandits, he was dismissed from the Jixian Hall to compile books. The youngest son, Zhang Youzheng, did not take care of the family affairs and lived in a small pavilion to study calligraphy. "Chen Zhizhong reported again, obviously having done a lot of work in advance.
The official thought for a moment, nodded and asked no more questions. He just told Chen Zhizhong to pick up a posthumous title and draft a eulogy as soon as possible.
Immediately, Song Xiang, the privy envoy, spoke: "Daming Mansion reported that Khitan people looted villages in the border area, injured 29 people, killed eight people, and kidnapped two women, two cattle, three sheep, and several poultry... "
The official said angrily: "I ordered the Daming Mansion to notify the Khitan of the negotiations and ask them to arrest the perpetrators, so as not to undermine our reputation in the Song Dynasty."
After Song Xiang, Ye Qingchen, the envoy of the third minister, spoke: "Hebei urgently reported that the plague did breed after the flood. The states and counties urged the court to deliver the epidemic medicine as soon as possible..."
The official was a little displeased and said: "This matter can be left to the Sansi Yamen to urge the transfer envoys at all levels in Hebei."
Ye Qingchen continued: "Someone reported that Hebei is short of food and begged to move local military rations..."
Before he could finish speaking, Privy Council envoy Song Xiang frowned and interrupted: "If you divert local military rations to help the victims, how can you support the army?"
As the deputy privy envoy, Pang Ji also helped Song Xiang and expressed his disapproval.
But Ye Qingchen said: "The Daming Prefecture can be ordered to allocate money and food to support the army."
The three people argued about this matter, and finally the official made a ruling: "If Hebei's transshipments at all levels fail to transport grain, some of Hebei's military grain can be moved first to benefit the people, and the military grain can be supplemented in the future."
Song Xiang, Pang Ji, and Ye Qingchen saw the official's decision and stopped commenting.
Immediately, Qian Mingyi, who had the authority to serve in the Kaifeng Prefecture, reported that a fire had occurred in the capital in the past five days.
It’s not that Kaifeng Prefecture only cares about fires, nor does it mean that there are no examples of fights in Bianjing that hurt people or even cause death. It’s just that fires pose the greatest threat. In comparison, fights that hurt people or even cause death The death of a person is not qualified to be mentioned in the court meeting.
After Qian Mingyi, there were more officials below the fifth rank reporting and delivering speeches, talking about the official's performance, birth, old age, illness and death. There were also doctors and Yuanwailang affiliated to the Sansi Yamen who reported on the matter of salt, iron and rice, such as iron smelting to officials and craftsmen. Casualties, where people died in the mines, and where there were leaks in the warehouses where grain was stored, causing dampness, rodent infestation, etc.
This part of the report was the most complicated. Not to mention the officials, even Zhao Yang felt dizzy after listening to it, secretly dumbfounded by the difficulty of managing such a large country.
When the last official finished playing, silence finally returned to the hall.
As usual, it was time for Tai Jian to speak next. The court officials who had been drowsy after being disturbed by the complicated reports now cheered up and waited to see today's show.
To everyone's surprise, Zhang Bin, the imperial censor in the palace, took the lead and said: "I, my foot disease has recurred recently and the pain is unbearable. I sincerely ask the official to ask me to come out."
Seriously?
All the courtiers who had attended the banquet at Qian Mingyi's house yesterday looked at Zhang Chen.
Zhao Yang was also a little surprised by this. He thought that Zhang Chen, who took the lead in the prelude, wanted to impeach him, but he did not expect that the other party actually wanted to be appointed as a local magistrate.
Foot disease returns?
Zhao Yang muttered secretly.
The same doubts were expressed by the officials, who expressed consolation: "Since Zhang Dianyu has relapsed into foot disease, why not report it early? After the court meeting, I will order the imperial medicine hospital to diagnose and treat you. Recently, you have been recuperating at home... …”
Zhang Fen bowed and said thanks: "Thank you for your consideration, but my illness is caused by diseases of my eyes, ears, and heart. My eyesight is unclean and my ears are unclean, so my heart is full of resentment and resentment, which will lead to my illness over time. If I continue to serve in the palace as an imperial servant, Shi, the heart disease is difficult to cure, so I sincerely ask the official Xu Chen to come out to know the place."
These words made some courtiers secretly angry. Liu Yuanyu, who was also the imperial censor in the palace, snorted: "Did Zhang Dian have any intentions?"
Zhang Fen glanced at Liu Yuanyu and said coldly: "Do you want me to explain it clearly?"
Liu Yuanyu's face turned pale for a while, but he didn't want to cause trouble and kept silent.
Zhao Zhen looked at Liu Yuanyu and then at Zhang Fen, vaguely guessing something in his mind, and sighed slightly: "Since Zhang Qing has made up his mind, I will not force anyone to make things difficult for me, so I will allow Zhang Qing to serve as the censor. In the state, the political affairs hall will discuss it. In the past few days, you can rest at home and recuperate. I will also send people to deliver the imperial medicine. Please don't refuse."
"Thank you for your concern, I am... ashamed." Zhang Fan bowed and thanked him again, with a sad look on his face.
Zhao Zhen nodded and glanced at the ministers in the palace. From the side, Wang Shugui also urged: "Who else wants to play? If there is a memorial, it will be played early. If there is no memorial, the court will be dismissed."
After the words fell, there was silence in the hall again.
Did I guess wrong?
Zhao Yang also felt a little puzzled. He thought he would be impeached today.
At this moment, Qian Mingyi saluted and said: "I have a memorial from my minister Qian Mingyi."
"Correct." Zhao Zhen said calmly.
Qian Mingyi bowed his hands and said loudly: "I want to impeach Zhao Yang, the commander of the first battalion of the Fifth Tianwu Army, Shangshu Gongbu Yuan, Youzhengyan Zhao Yang!"
There was like a burst of thunder on the ground, and all the courtiers in the palace were whispering.
Some uninformed officials secretly thought: This is Qian Mingyi's revenge.
With Zhao Zhen nodding his head in acquiescence, Qian Mingyi said loudly: "I heard that there was a comment from the military camp in front of the palace recently, saying that when Zhao Zhengyan was giving a lecture in the army, he called the sergeants a good man. This is why Disobeying Taizong’s instructions is a treasonous act!”
Before he finished speaking, Li Dui, the minister who knew the miscellaneous affairs of the imperial censor, echoed the words: "My minister Li Dui also impeached me... This son has a strange origin. I don't know why he gained the trust of the officials, so they made him an official of the seventh rank. He is sincerely a hundred The first is the suspicion of an official; the second is that this son relied on the official's favor and was arrogant and arrogant. He despised the magistrate in the Kaifeng government office and was lawless. Furthermore, he also slandered officials at court meetings, and he will be retaliated against. This is shocking. ; Thirdly, the chaos in the late Tang Dynasty is still before us, and this son wants to promote the military. I suspect that he is here to destroy the foundation of the Song Dynasty!... There was a solar eclipse in the sky before, and there was a flood in Hebei. I thought it was God. An early warning to make us vigilant."
"Your Majesty Liu Shi has attached an impeachment memorial!"
Liu Shi, the imperial censor, immediately echoed: "I heard that Qian Neihan said that Zhao Zhengyan was a demon star who came to the world. I didn't think so at first. However, after observing the recent times, I realized that the official family has been deeply obscured by it. ... I watched Zhao Zhengyan. Even if he is young and famous, he is only in the ninth rank. Zhao Zhengyan has a strange origin. I have not heard that he is a virtuous man. Whether his ancestors have made great contributions to our dynasty is just a lie. Tu was living at the official's side, but a few days later the officials made an exception and granted him a seventh-grade official, tacitly allowing him to enter and leave the palace freely, and he could enter the palace without wearing court clothes. He was also awarded the official title of Zhengyan before, which had never happened before. Thing!...If this son hadn't used evil magic to deceive the officials, I really don't understand why the officials indulged in this."
Upon hearing this, the officials who were closer to Zhao Yang glanced at the former intentionally or unintentionally.
As Liu Shi, the imperial censor, said, Zhao Yang was the only one wearing regular clothes in the entire palace.
"Your Majesty, Liu Yuanyu, hereby submits an impeachment memorial."
Liu Yuanyu, the imperial censor in the palace, also wrote a memorial and echoed: "This son has only been with the officials for ten days, and the official position he has been awarded is worth twenty years of hard work. Moreover, the officials are conniving in private, which makes this son become more and more unscrupulous. This is something that has never happened before! ... If this evil star hadn’t used evil methods to deceive the officials, I would still be puzzled.”
"The minister Jia gradually attached an impeachment memorial..."
"I have attached an impeachment memorial..."
"Your Majesty Yang Wei attached an impeachment memorial..."
"Your Majesty Wang Zhi attached an impeachment memorial..."
As the courtiers looked on in shock, Jia Jian, the supervisory censor, Wu Shi, Yang Wei, and Wang Zhi of the Zhijian Yuan successively echoed Qian Mingyi's impeachment.
Including Qian Mingyi, a total of eight courtiers with Taiwan admonishment status jointly impeached Zhao Yang.
Even the numbers are increasing.
"My minister, Gao Ruona, attaches an impeachment memorial."
Gao Ruona, deputy envoy to the privy council and right-hand admonishment official, spoke after Yiqian Yushi: "This son was able to see the official family that day, and I was also there. The minister saw that although this son was respectful in appearance, he was arrogant and had no manners in his eyes. , humiliating Mr. Chen in public..."
Do you call me Mr. Chen now?
Chen Zhizhong glanced at Gao Ruona and interrupted: "Xiangong Gao's words are wrong. I just caught wind and cold that day, felt unwell and felt dizzy. What does it have to do with Zhao Zhengyan? Although Zhao Zhengyan did have excessive words that day, But it was also for state affairs, and he personally came to my door to apologize to me afterwards. He was so considerate and courteous, how could he be as unbearable as Xianggong Gao said?"
This shameless old thing!
Gao Ruona cursed secretly in his heart, so he had no choice but to put aside Chen Zhizhong and said: "Xinwen, Song, Pang, and Ye were also around at that time, and I believe they also saw it."
Ye Qingchen was also annoyed that Gao Ruona involved him, and said calmly: "Zhao Zhengyan was just interceding for Mr. Fan that day. Although his words offended Mr. Chen, Mr. Chen was not offended. How can I judge?"
"What Xianggong Ye said is absolutely true."
Pang Ji also echoed: "I am not familiar with Zhao Zhengyan, but since Zhao Zhengyan came to apologize to Mr. Chen afterwards, and as Mr. Chen said, he was polite and respectful, I also believe that Zhao Zhengyan did not intend to offend."
Gao Ruona cursed in his heart and turned to look at Song Xiang and Wen Yanbo: "What do Wen Xianggong and Song Xianggong think?"
Song Xiang said calmly: "I am not an admonisher, and I have no right to impeach, so it is not appropriate to say more. But as far as that day is concerned, as the two Prime Ministers Ye and Pang said, since Mr. Chen is not surprised, why bother to say more ?”
There was a hint of astonishment on Gao Ruona's face, and even Wen Yanbo, who was still thinking about his words, couldn't help but glance at Song Xiang and said, "Since it's a misunderstanding, there's no need to elaborate..."
As he spoke, he faced the officials and continued: "I will not comment on what the censors said about the demon star. However, the officials' habit made Zhao Zhengyan disrespectful and talk nonsense about the level of civil and military affairs, which violated Taizong's regulations. It is also an indisputable fact.”
"I sincerely request the officials to stop chasing away the demon stars in order to correct the situation."
"I impeach you."
As Qian Mingyi started playing again, the above-mentioned Taiwanese admonitions attached to the impeachment chorus echoed in unison. The only exception was Wen Yanbo. Although his position was obviously biased towards Qian Mingyi's side, he did not participate in the chorus at this time.
Seeing this scene, Zhao Zhen was shocked and angry. Even he felt as nervous as if he were facing a formidable enemy. After all, there were nine Taiwanese remonstrators who jointly signed the impeachment. If Wen Yanbo was included, that was ten people.
That was the case when Fan Zhongyan was impeached.
What's more important is that when Fan Zhongyan was impeached, Han Qi, Fu Bi, Ouyang Xiu, Tang Jie, Yu Jing and others defended him, but now Zhao Yang is alone - he cannot count on Chen Zhizhong and Ye Qingchen to defend him. In defense, even if Zhao Yang has a good relationship with these two people.
Taking a slight breath, Zhao Zhen said in a deep voice: "Zhao Yang... is he here?"
"I'm here," Zhao Yang replied from the end of the courtiers' line.
"Come forward."
"yes."
In full view of everyone, Zhao Yang walked to the palace, just like the morning court on the 15th.
But comparing the situation of the two days, he impeached Qian Mingyi that day, and today, he impeached Qian Mingyi with nine Taiwanese remonstrators. The difference made even those courtiers who were waiting to see the good show couldn't help but blame it. A cold sweat.
But when Zhao Zhen looked carefully, Zhao Yang still looked calm, which made him nod secretly: Good boy, you have courage!
"Have you heard the words of various remonstrances and impeachments?"
"Yes, official."
"What's your explanation?"
I saw Zhao Yang looking around at the ministers in the palace and bowing calmly: "It's a ridiculous theory. When I heard it, it was like a pack of dogs barking, that's all."
Hearing this, everyone in the palace was shocked, while Qian Mingyi and others were all angry.
