Zhao Pu walked quickly under the corridor of the palace with hurried steps. Zhao Pu's old legs had not been so flexible in recent years, and his strength was well controlled. The sound of stepping was very small, and he did not stop until he reached the side of the palace door.
After taking a few deep breaths to calm down his rapid breathing, and adjusting his clothes a little, Zhao Puchong followed Yan Tuo who was beside him and said: "Your Majesty, Zhao Pu wants to see you!"
"My lord, please wait a moment!" Yan Tuo bowed and entered the palace first.
There are really not many people in the world who can control Yan Tuo. Among the ministers, Zhao Pu is one of them. On normal days, he might pay attention to his tone, but now is an emergency, so naturally he cannot be polite.
Not long after, Yantuo came out again. The officials summoned him and asked Mr. Zhao to enter the palace quickly. Zhao Pu did not dare to neglect, and adjusted his appearance subconsciously before taking a steady step.
Zhao Pu was very familiar with Chui Gong Hall and could even find the exact location with his eyes closed. However, when he came in this time, Zhao Pu paid more attention to the familiar hall. He quickly and silently observed the people in the hall. Especially when he saw Wang Yuchen, he frowned.
"I see you, Your Majesty!" Zhao Pu came forward and bowed.
His cold gaze lingered on Zhao Pu for a moment, Emperor Liu stretched out his hand and said with a straight face: "Give me a seat!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
However, as soon as he sat down, Emperor Liu asked coldly: "Qing Zhao, I heard Wang Yucheng say that he gave several memorials to the court to eliminate the shortcomings of Chen Helong's governance. Is this possible?"
"Return to your majesty, I have checked it out and it is indeed true!" Zhao Pu said calmly.
"Then why haven't I seen even one of them? What's the secret here? Is someone trying to deceive me?" Emperor Liu said coldly, his eyes as if he wanted to eat people.
"Back to Your Majesty!" Zhao Pu stood up and spoke at the same speed: "Wang Yucheng's memorial was submitted to the Political Hall, but after reading it, it was refuted by the senior ministers!"
"Oh?" Emperor Liu raised his eyebrows, and there was obviously a deeper meaning in his eyes: "So it was Zhao Qing who intercepted it?"
"Your Majesty!" Seeing that the old emperor was about to be filled with suspicion, Zhao Pu's tone finally became a little more anxious, and he cupped his hands and said: "The veteran thought that Wang Yucheng's original performance was biased and exaggerated. The campaign is at a critical moment, and the imperial court and the northwest Daozhou should work together to avoid unnecessary influence and unrest in people's hearts. Therefore, the veteran made his own decision and pressed the memorial."
After hearing Zhao Pu's explanation, Emperor Liu's expression became a little warmer, but his brows furrowed even more tightly, feeling that something was wrong.
After thinking for a while, he said: "The circumstances mentioned by Wang Yucheng are serious. Even if Zhao Qing has doubts, he should send someone to inspect and verify it! Why didn't he ask about the obituary? If what he said is true and the situation is even more serious, then how can it be Aren't you just watching the fire from the other side and watching the people suffer?"
"This is indeed the negligence of the veteran!" Zhao Pu quickly admitted his mistake: "The veteran has been focusing on the overall situation of the national tax reform before, so he has neglected other matters."
Having said this, Zhao Pu took out three memorials from his sleeves and held them respectfully in his hands: "Your Majesty, this is what Wang Yucheng originally played. Please check it out!"
Seeing this, Emperor Liu waved his hand gently, and Yan Tuo immediately went down and presented the memorial. Emperor Liu's every move was still full of energy, and he quickly started reading. For a moment, the only sound in the entire palace was the sound of Emperor Liu turning pages. Looking at the contents of the memorial, Emperor Liu frowned so much that he almost twisted his eyebrows.
What is said in the memorial is similar in connotation to Wang Yucheng's memorial in the Shicai Palace, but there are some differences after all. The expressions are only concise and concise, lacking details, so they appear to lack support and are more like the wild imagination of an official.
In his memorial, Wang Yucheng emphasized to the imperial court the shortcomings of the Western Expedition, calling for an end to the war and an end to the campaign, and to practice martial arts and cultivate literature, so as to alleviate the plight of the people and restore their livelihood. In addition to complaining about the grievances of the people, the core was to oppose the Western Expedition. I hoped that Emperor Liu could change his ways and stop being obsessed with meritorious deeds and attacking talents.
Considering the situation of the Western Expedition and the atmosphere of the court at that time, the key was his status as an emperor. When such a memorial was presented, Emperor Liu would probably have no other reaction besides being furious. For Wang Yucheng, regardless of whether the goal can be achieved, his head may not be safe. In the past two years, the old emperor has suffered various blows, and his heart has become increasingly arrogant, making it difficult for him to hear some unpleasant truths.
Even now, it is still like this. The reason for the different reactions is just because Wang Yucheng gave many details when he was in court. More importantly, the two examples he gave deeply hurt the old emperor. .
Obviously, in the heart of the old emperor, because of the Western Expedition, Helong has been plagued by abuses and the people have suffered terribly. This is not an incomprehensible thing. Anyone who seeks great things can never sacrifice and pay the price. Back then, for the sake of reunification and the Northern Expedition, everyone at the top and bottom tightened their belts and lived a life. The people of the Han Dynasty also suffered a lot. Didn't they all survive in the end?
In contrast, those greedy and arrogant officials, lazy and indulgent officials made trouble among them, misinterpreted the emperor's intentions, interpreted the court policies according to their own convenience, persecuted the people, and lived in a land of fish and meat. This was what really made Emperor Liu angry.
Emperor Liu's anger and panic also stemmed from the fact that he saw some situations that he didn't want to see from Wang Yucheng's performance, and saw the bloody facts behind the glamorous "Kaibao Shengshi". Wang Yucheng ruthlessly put the disguise on Tear it open and expose it to Emperor Liu.
The palace was extremely quiet until Emperor Liu put down the memorial and pondered endlessly. His eyes wandered around Wang Yucheng and Zhao Pu, extremely complicated. After pondering for a moment, he said to Wang Yucheng: "I thought Wang Yucheng had changed, but it seems that it was still an illusion. The wind and sand in the northwest could not wear away your will and character! How dare you point it out so directly? Looking at the internal affairs of the government, I am afraid that you, Wang Yucheng, are the only one responsible for my mistakes in decision-making and governance!"
"I am just a person who is loyal to the emperor by eating the emperor's salary!" Wang Yucheng responded with a calm expression.
"Are you really not afraid of death?" Emperor Liu's eyes were deep and his voice was even deeper.
The threat of death still lingered on Wang Yucheng. He pondered for a moment and said calmly: "Your Majesty, I am afraid! However, when I saw that there were babies abandoned by the people in Huangshui River and in the ditches and fields of Shanzhou, I was no longer afraid. "
"Haha!" Emperor Liu laughed again, but this laughter was a bit sad, with tears streaming down his face. He pointed at Wang Yucheng with trembling fingers: "You are trying to kill me with your words!"
"I don't dare!" Wang Yuchen's expression became calmer: "If your arrogance to the envoy can touch His Majesty and warn the court, I will be satisfied!"
Hearing this, Emperor Liu was silent for a moment, and then looked at Zhao Pu. The old man was waiting respectfully, without any signs of panic.
Emperor Liu originally planned to blame Wang Yucheng for the interception of his memorial, not necessarily Zhao Pu, but he still wanted to vent his anger. However, when Zhao Pu simply admitted it, he suddenly realized something. As the Prime Minister of Zhengshitang, he had the right to refute the memorials. The memorials that could be submitted to Emperor Liu for review had to go through one or even several rounds of deletion.
In the past, when Emperor Liu was diligent in his work, he would check it regularly, but now, there are thousands of reports and regulations from various ministries, supervisors, prefectures and counties every day. Even if Emperor Liu is allowed to read them, it will be too much. Can't see it.
Zhao Pu suppressed Wang Yuchen's memorial and did not report it, which makes sense from the perspective of the imperial system. More importantly, Emperor Liu remembered something. Because Wang Yucheng repeatedly made some remarks that were not in line with the Sacred Heart, Emperor Liu took back his right to secretly report to Emperor Liu out of boredom. If Wang Yucheng wanted to report to Emperor Liu, he had to go through regular procedures. .
Since then, the fact that Wang Yucheng's music was able to be submitted to Zhao Pu and the prince already depended on his reputation. Even knowing his nature, it is an unexpected thing to be able to get out of Longyou.
Thinking of this, Emperor Liu asked Wang Yucheng in a sad tone: "I am calling you back to Beijing this time. I intend to use you again."
