"Pingshen." Emperor Mu was sitting on the dragon chair with a calm expression and his eyes showed unfathomable majesty. "Qi Jin, when you came back from the southern border, did you take a detour to Shuozhou and Liancheng?"
Qi Jin looked surprised, as if he didn't expect to be asked this, and nodded: "Yes."
Emperor Mu said calmly: "What is your impression of Shuozhou?"
"It's good." Qi Jin said honestly as if he didn't know what was going on, "Shuozhou is prosperous and prosperous, and the people are open. I spent four or five days there and saw all kinds of customs and customs. There are many brothels in Liancheng. , the oiran is very beautiful, and it is a favorite place for wealthy businessmen. Every night, the Liancheng River is filled with light, and the beauties on the boat are singing melodiously. It is said that it can float ten miles away, making people forget to leave."
After saying that, Qi Jin flattered everyone: "This is a prosperous age governed by the emperor's sage."
The words slowly fell to the ground, and the atmosphere in the hall became visibly stagnant.
Qi Jin looked around and said in confusion: "What's wrong? What did I say wrong?"
"Prince Qi is joking, right?" Prime Minister Jiang turned to look at him, his face as heavy as water, "Officials from Shuozhou and Liancheng rushed to the capital with several reports, saying that there had been heavy rains in the first month and the crops had been flooded. This year there is no harvest again... The Shuozhou that Prince Qi went to should not be the same place as the Shuozhou in the book."
"There are two Shuozhous in Chu State?" Qi Jin frowned, "The Shuozhou city I went to is indeed prosperous. The people live and work in peace and contentment, and the harvests are good every year. Where did the waterlogging come from? Is Prime Minister Jiang still awake from his sleep?"
"Have a good harvest every year?" Emperor Mu spoke slowly, his voice as if soaked in ice and snow, "Qi Jin, are you telling the truth?"
Qi Jin turned to look at the emperor and nodded respectfully: "Yes, I have also talked with the local people. They said that the emperor is wise and gives subsidies to the people of Shuozhou every year. Although I heard it at the time, it was a little strange, but I I have been staying in the south all year round and don’t fully understand the imperial policies. I just thought that the local officials were good at governance. I originally thought that when I came back, I would praise Shuozhou’s parents and officials more in front of the emperor..."
The air in the hall condensed and the temperature dropped, as if it suddenly went from the warm spring of April to the cold winter of the twelfth lunar month.
Emperor Mu's expression was cold, and his eyes were boiling with anger.
At this moment, the dignity belonging to the emperor seemed to have been severely trampled under his feet, leaving nothing behind!
"Okay, okay, that's really good!" Emperor Mu laughed angrily, his voice filled with a biting chill, "Your Majesty, your sage? How can a sage emperor be kept in the dark by his ministers for three years? I, the emperor, Holy Might? It’s really ironic. I have never felt like this at any time. I feel that I am a complete fool! Idiot! A waste! A fool who has been kept in the dark by you!"
"Your Majesty, please calm down! Your Majesty, please calm down!" The civil and military officials in the court knelt down in fear, "Your Majesty, you deserve to die!"
"What's going on?" Qi Jin seemed to be frightened. He stood blankly for a moment, then turned to look at Emperor Mu, "Your Majesty, isn't Shuozhou having a good harvest? I... did you say something wrong?"
Emperor Mu took a deep breath: "Qi Jin."
"exist."
Emperor Mu looked at him coldly: "Can you guarantee that everything you said today is true and not false?"
Qi Jin nodded quickly: "I...I don't need to deceive the emperor. Uncle, don't you believe me?"
"I'm asking you a question, just answer it truthfully!" Emperor Mu said angrily, "Do you dare to use the head on your neck to guarantee that what you say is the truth?"
Qi Jin knelt down and said, "I guarantee it, I dare to guarantee it... If there is any fraud, Qi Jin is willing to receive any punishment!"
Prime Minister Jiang clenched his hands tightly, his heart falling into an ice cellar.
He didn't expect that Qi Jinlai would emerge from this year's Shuozhou flood. When he returned to the capital from the southern border, he had no luck with Shuozhou Liancheng.
Why would he take a special detour to Shuozhou?
"Dou Hong'an." Emperor Mu said coldly.
The official Dou Shangshu was stunned for a moment before he realized that the emperor was calling him. He quickly stood up and walked out of the queue, then knelt down again: "I am here."
"Who is in charge of Shuozhou?"
"Back...back to the emperor, Chen Shan, the chief envoy to Shuozhou, is...is..."
Emperor Mu slapped the case and said angrily: "Who is it?"
Dou Shangshu was shocked and blurted out: "He is the cousin of the imperial concubine's mother-in-law's sister-in-law."
As soon as he finished speaking, the hall fell into dead silence again.
Emperor Mu narrowed his eyes and said in a serious tone: "So, I have been kept in the dark these past few years?"
Dou Shangshu knelt on the ground and did not dare to speak, sweating profusely.
Prime Minister Jiang's hand hanging by his side clenched and unclenched, unclenched and tightened again. He wanted to say something several times, but the emperor was so angry at this time that all he could do was have the opposite effect.
But the ominous premonition in his heart spread little by little, making him more and more worried about King Chen's situation.
"Prime Minister, you are the head of a hundred officials. All the information about the Shuozhou flood disaster has been handed to you. Have you checked it?" Emperor Mu diverted his anger, "Where has the money for disaster relief gone every year? There are people below. I have the courage to make up a natural disaster to deceive you, are you treating me like a fool?!"
Prime Minister Jiang wanted to defend himself: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty——"
“Who was responsible for disaster relief last year?”
A middle-aged man climbed out and knelt down tremblingly: "Your Majesty, last year... Last year, the veteran minister and His Highness Chen Wang were responsible for the disaster relief matters..."
"Come here!" Emperor Mu pointed angrily, "Take him out and chop him!"
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, spare your life! Your Majesty, spare your life!"
Several royal guards saluted and dragged the official out. The official struggled to beg for mercy: "Your Majesty, spare my life. I am wronged. I am wronged!"
Emperor Mu closed his eyes and his tone returned to the calm before the storm: "Xie Lin."
"I'm here."
"I appointed you as the temporary inspection censor, and we will go to Shuozhou with Qi Jin to find out the truth." Emperor Mu said in a cold tone, "If there is a lie, I will not be lenient!"
Xie Lin accepted the order: "I obey the order."
"Rong Cang, you are responsible for raising the first batch of disaster relief grain and personally leading people to transport grain and grass to Shuozhou. If the flood is true, the relief grain can temporarily alleviate the urgent need." Emperor Mu's voice was cold and ruthless, "If the disaster is false, arrest Shuo immediately Don’t let any of the officials in Zhoucheng who have colluded with Song and Wei be let go!”
Rong Cang accepted the order: "My son, I obey the order."
"From now on, the prince's officials in Beijing are not allowed to leave the capital without an order. Prince Chen's Mansion has sent people to supervise him. I want to know what role he played in the disaster relief!" Orders came one after another as if they were pressed down by the might of thunder, calling the people present. The person was as silent as a cicada, "The Prime Minister is incompetent in his work and has serious dereliction of duty. He has suspended court affairs for three months, fined him a year's salary, and ordered him to stay behind closed doors to think about his mistakes. He is not allowed to go out without permission unless he has a decree!"
Prime Minister Jiang's body softened and he almost collapsed on the ground.
