Hearing the eunuch singing, the officials from various ministries who were noisy outside the mansion fell silent, and Chang Sheng and Qian Zhonglin, who were scolding each other inside the mansion, also fell silent at the same time.
"Kowtow to the Emperor." The sound of worship came from outside.
Although there were officials paying homage and shouting, there was no reply from the emperor. Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, a large group of brightly armored Yulin soldiers holding torches rushed in. They came to the backyard and lined up on the left and right, paying attention.
Not long after, the emperor, dressed in regular clothes, came to the backyard surrounded by several masters.
"See your Majesty." Changsheng bowed and saluted.
While Changsheng was saluting, Yu Yi and everyone in the Qian family also saluted.
The emperor's expression was stern, and he did not speak in the face of everyone's attention. He just frowned and looked at everyone in the courtyard.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty," Qian Zhonglin cried, kneeling down and coming to the Emperor's feet, "Your Majesty, if you come a moment later, I won't be able to see you."
Qian Zhonglin started to wail at the top of his lungs after saying this. The emperor frowned even more when he saw this. He tilted his head and looked at the bodyguard on the side. The latter understood, stepped forward to pick up Qian Zhonglin and pulled him away from the emperor's feet. open.
"Your Majesty, you have to make the decision for me." Qian Zhonglin cried miserably.
Seeing Qian Zhonglin crying with snot and tears, and his face covered with blood, the emperor sighed helplessly and turned to look up at Changsheng, "What's going on?"
"Your Majesty," Changsheng pointed his finger at Yu Yi and said sternly, "Not long ago, Shifang Nunnery, a nunnery belonging to Master Yu Yi, a subordinate of Weichen, was bloodbathed by gangsters. More than ten people, old and young, were not spared. The thieves not only killed those bhikkhunis, but also He chopped off all their heads, and then planted gunpowder in the nunnery, and deliberately let one person go, so that he could come to Chang'an to inform Yu Yi, and tried to blow up Yu Yi who came back for help after hearing the news. At the time of the incident, Wei Chen They were nearby and quickly went to capture all the thieves. According to the confession of the thieves, this matter was secretly ordered by Qian Zhonglin, the minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the gunpowder they used came from the Manufacturing Office of the Ministry of War."
Hearing Chang Sheng's words, the emperor frowned. Without waiting for the emperor to speak, Chang Sheng said again, "When Wei Chen and his party were passing through Yuzhou, they also encountered a group of thieves. They actually planted gunpowder on the road and tried to blow up Wei Chen and others. , and the gunpowder they used also came from the Manufacturing Office of the Ministry of War."
Before Chang Sheng could finish his words, he was worried that the emperor would speak, so he said urgently, "The thieves who massacred the bhikshunis of Shifang Temple carried a carrier pigeon with them. After Wei Chen returned to Chang'an, he released the carrier pigeon, and the carrier pigeon flew straight to the backyard of Shizhong Mansion. Son, and Qian Zhonglin confessed to plotting against Wei Chen and Wei Chen's subordinates, Wei Chen became angry and beat him."
After listening to Chang Sheng's words, the emperor's expression changed drastically, and he turned to look at Qian Zhonglin, who was being supported by two guards, "Servant Qian, is what General Li said the truth?"
"Yes," Qian Zhonglin broke away from the support and knelt on the ground, "Treacherous ministers deceive the king and harm the country and the people. Everyone can punish them. It is indeed the old minister's idea to eradicate the traitorous ministers and their accomplices, but I don't know why those heroes would do it. Kill those nuns.”
"Ah?" The emperor stared in shock. He must have thought that he could not lose his composure and majesty in public. He quickly calmed down his emotions and asked in a deep voice, "Who is the traitor who deceived the king and brought disaster to the country and the people?"
"He," Qian Zhonglin pointed at Changsheng, "this person is young and immoral. He sneaks into the court and seizes a high position. He disturbs the emperor's mind with his sensuality and dogs and horses. He pleases the emperor with flattery. He bullies all the officials with brutal means. He is lawless and has no moral integrity. The emperor was deceived by the distinction between superiors and inferiors, cultivated party members, and formed cliques for personal gain. The emperor was deceived by it and indulged it blindly. Veteran ministers repeatedly wrote letters to give advice, but the emperor tolerated and condoned it and did not accept the advice. The veteran minister was born in a noble family, became an official in the imperial examination, and served as an official for three dynasties. He was deeply favored by the emperor. , for the sake of the emperor and for the sake of the court, the old minister just made this strategy. He knew the law and broke the law. The old minister was guilty and did not avoid punishment. He only wanted to remonstrate with the emperor with passion and righteousness to get rid of the traitor. As long as the emperor can accept the remonstrance and expel the traitor from the court, I am willing to die to apologize."
Qian Zhonglin's words were righteous, but he didn't notice that the emperor's face turned extremely ugly. Although this person was impeaching Changsheng, he actually scolded him as well, describing him as a stupid, ignorant, indulgent, sensual, loyal and traitorous person. A stupid king.
The emperor is the emperor after all. Although he was angry, he held it back, "Shizhong Qian, you and General Li are ministers in the same palace. If you have different political opinions, you can debate them. How can you send someone to assassinate him?"
"Your Majesty, this treacherous minister is truly a cruel official who has never been seen in history. Your Majesty's use of such an official is contrary to the principles of Confucius and Mencius. If this continues, it will inevitably shake the country's foundation and tarnish its holy name." Qian Zhonglin said loudly.
The emperor took a deep breath to calm down the anger in his heart. As an emperor, he naturally likes loyal ministers, but in the face of such loyal ministers who have infinite loyalty but are self-righteous, impersonal, and ungrounded, he can neither hit nor scold, although What Qian Zhonglin did was outrageous, but he believed that he was sacrificing his life for righteousness and eliminating traitors for the country. The most important thing was that this man was the head of the civil service and an upright official recognized by the world. If he killed him, he would be scolded as a coward by the world. .
In sorrow, he could only look at Changsheng with helpless eyes.
Changsheng guessed what the emperor was thinking through his eyes. He also knew that the emperor could not kill this old man, so he could only sigh and lower his head, implying that he was aggrieved and giving in, without further investigation.
After confirming Chang Sheng's attitude, the emperor said, "Shizhong Qian, I know that you are a loyal minister, but General Li is not a traitor. He is dedicated to the public and has no desires or pursuits..."
Seeing that the emperor wanted to make peace with him, Qian Zhonglin actually interrupted the emperor, "Your Majesty, please don't be deceived by him. This person is just trying to gain fame and fame, and he is trying to gain favor by grandstanding. Although he has no disloyal intentions at the moment, when he has full wings, he will definitely Conspiracy to usurp the throne."
The emperor sighed helplessly, "Shizhong Qian, you have misunderstood General Li. I will not hide the truth from you. General Li has no intention of pursuing an official career. He submitted his resignation to me many days ago, but I did not grant my permission."
"Your Majesty," Qian Zhonglin said with a tearful voice, "He is clearly trying to retreat in order to advance. You must not be deceived by this."
Being called up in the middle of the night was already very irritating. Seeing Qian Zhonglin's stubbornness, the emperor finally couldn't help but get angry, "Shizhong Qian, do you think I am so easily deceived?"
"Your Majesty is a great man, but he is too young," Qian Zhonglin said enthusiastically, "Your Majesty, Sage Yun said that among three people walking together, I must be my teacher. As a king, you cannot be arbitrary and do whatever you want."
It seemed that this was not the first time Qian Zhonglin had said similar words. The emperor was so angry that he could not hold back, "Okay, okay, it's all a misunderstanding. It's getting late. Let's go back."
"No, Your Majesty," Qian Zhonglin knelt forward, "I have committed a crime, please Your Majesty to punish him. This traitor is also a great traitor and evil person. I also ask Your Majesty to investigate and deal with it strictly, and give me the correct punishment. I am willing to die with him." .”
"No," the emperor waved his hand and shook his head, "Everyone has made mistakes. It's enough for each of us to reflect on it."
"No, impunity is not enough to clarify the law, and it is not enough to eliminate idle talk. Please punish the emperor." Qian Zhonglin hugged the emperor's leg again.
"Okay, okay," the emperor shook his head helplessly, "Qian Zhonglin knew the law and broke the law, and slandered his colleagues. He will be punished to reflect on his mistakes and take a year's rest. Li Changsheng violated the law and injured an important minister, and he will be fined one year's salary."
Qian Zhonglin originally wanted to take Chang Sheng to death with him, but he never thought that the emperor would protect him like this, "A year's salary fine? It's too light, Your Majesty."
"Three years' salary fine." The emperor immediately changed his mind.
"It's still too light, Your Majesty," Qian Zhonglin continued to shout, "This person inherited Ni Zhuo's family property and is as rich as the country. How can he value a mere salary?"
"What do you want?" The emperor was angry. "You colluded with the gangsters and assassinated the imperial officials. This is a capital crime. I understand that although you have acted excessively, you have no intention of doing evil, and I will no longer pursue you. Why are you still insisting? Don’t let go of others.”
"This man's cruelty has already been revealed," Qian Zhonglin pointed at his face, "Your Majesty, the blood of this old minister is the ironclad evidence of this man's cruelty and bloodthirsty."
When the eunuch party controlled the government, Qian Zhonglin had always stood unswervingly on the emperor's side. He was often suppressed and ostracized. Thinking of this man's past, the emperor once again suppressed his anger, "Qian Shizhong, General Li is a military officer." If he is really cruel and bloodthirsty for the No. 1 Scholar, how can you stand here at this moment?"
"Your Majesty, this person is flattering and bullying, arrogant and domineering. All civil and military officials in the dynasty dare to be angry but dare not speak out. As a veteran minister..."
Seeing that Qian Zhonglin was still making trouble unreasonably, the emperor's last bit of patience was exhausted, and he angrily rebuked, "Shut up, as a veteran of three dynasties, you don't understand the general situation and the importance. You only do what you want to do. You Have you ever thought about me at all?"
Qian Zhonglin didn't expect that the emperor would be so angry, and was stunned for a moment.
The emperor pointed his finger at Changsheng and said loudly to Qian Zhonglin, "You are obviously not the one responsible for the assassination. If Li Changsheng pursues the investigation strictly, many people will be implicated. Why did he just beat you up but did not thoroughly investigate the accomplices? He wants to You have to give an explanation to those who were killed by you, and you are worried that involving too many officials will make it difficult for me. What is loyalty? Thinking about what I want is loyalty."
"Your Majesty, good medicine is bitter in the mouth and good for the disease, but good advice is hard on the ears and good for action." Qian Zhonglin cried out.
"I don't want to drink medicine that is too bitter, and I don't want to hear unpleasant words." After the emperor said this, he turned around and left.
Presumably worried that Qian Zhonglin would force him to die to fulfill his so-called loyalty, the emperor pointed at everyone in the Qian family and said loudly, "Take good care of Shizhong Qian. If he has any shortcomings, you will all be imprisoned."
Everyone was terrified when they heard this.
The emperor walked to the door and turned around. Seeing Changsheng still standing there, he frowned and scolded, "Didn't the note you gave me say that you were injured?"
"Your Majesty, I am suffering from internal injuries." Changsheng is full of embarrassment.
"Although you are sincere and selfless, you have many flaws in your actions. When you enter the palace tomorrow, I will remind you and severely reprimand you." The emperor turned around and went ahead.
The emperor left, and the Yulin army subsequently withdrew. Changsheng and Yu Yi also left Shizhong Mansion and returned on foot.
"This person really can't be killed, don't blame me." Chang Sheng said to Yu Yi.
"Sir, you have done enough for me." Yu Yi was very moved. She knew that Chang Sheng beat Qian Zhonglin mainly to relieve her anger.
"These rotten civil servants are really abominable." Chang Sheng took a deep breath.
"Sir, if you enter the palace tomorrow, will you be severely reprimanded by the emperor?" Yu Yi was worried.
"You are restless and worried about gains and losses. You were here during the day. You should know that the emperor summoned me to the palace to find out the spies hidden in the harem as soon as possible..."
