The news that Princess Yongping had cut her head off with her hands and bodyguards and escorted all her followers to Dali Temple spread throughout Kyoto in less than an hour.
Chen Zuzhi, the minister of Dali Temple who had just taken office, was stroking his beard and joking with his subordinates when he heard the letter. Suddenly he heard the news. When he was shocked, the strength in his hand lost its weight. Without noticing for a moment, he almost missed it. The beautiful beard that he was proud of was bald.
If it weren't for the wrong occasion, he would have liked to remind Princess Yongping that there is a place in Kyoto called Shuntian Mansion.
To be honest, his main responsibility at Dali Temple is to cooperate with the Ministry of Justice and the Metropolitan Procuratorate to review and finalize the case and make the final decision.
It is their responsibility to rehabilitate serious cases; but in the initial review, even the Ministry of Punishment did not accept this task, which is the responsibility of the provincial government offices.
The reason why the imperial court set up a grievance drum outside Dali Temple was just to provide ordinary people with an opportunity to appeal.
But as a powerful member of the royal family, how could Princess Yongping not know the respective responsibilities of the three major departments and provincial government offices? !
Although Chen Zuzhi had been working in the local area for a long time, he was able to stay in Beijing and sit in the position of Minister of Dali Temple because of his excellent political performance in Beijing. However, there are records within Dali Temple about previous officials, and the records are very detailed.
Especially the record about a certain female official surnamed Sheng was spared no effort in pen and ink.
Therefore, he is not unfamiliar with the behavior of the powerful people in Kyoto.
After much deliberation, Chen Zuzhi sent Qing Yousi to receive him, while he himself, under the cover of his servants, took a detour through a small door and went to the classics hall where the cabinet was located.
It is right to say, "When you are in doubt, find someone tall and strong-headed to support you."
Chen Zuzhi thought he was not stupid. Princess Yongping's move of Xiangzhuang's sword dance made his hair stand on end.
His career has been ups and downs in the officialdom, from a sixth-rank official to a third-rank official, not because of his financial background, but because he put aside his status and worked with his own hands at the local level, endured the pain that ordinary people could not endure, and stayed in the loneliness and loneliness that ordinary people could not endure, and worked hard to produce real results. political achievements.
After finally being able to enjoy the blessings in Kyoto with his whole family, how could he allow himself to fall down again because of the petty thoughts of the rich and powerful.
Even a top-ranking royal family member like Princess Yongping would never think of using him as a pawn!
At worst, Dali Temple would propose a meeting with the Six Ministries, the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the General Affairs Department!
Is the Jiuqing meeting grand enough? ! Is it enough to give Princess Yongping face? !
…
When Emperor Yanping received the letter, his pen suddenly stopped.
"Tell me again, who did Yongping hand over?"
The originally rosy face suddenly turned pale. Emperor Yanping covered his chest and looked at Third Assistant Cen Minzhou with bloodshot eyes.
When Cen Minzhou saw this, he also complained secretly. The silent emperor scolded the first and second assistants who had escaped several times, and then he cautiously said: "Your Majesty, as far as I know, that person's surname should be Lu."
He was afraid that his words would irritate the emperor, so he spoke softly, just a few words. They seemed simple, but they were his choices after careful consideration.
"Cough cough cough cough!"
But no matter how careful Cen Minzhou was, Emperor Yanping still broke into a violent cough when he heard the word "Lu".
Almost instantly, his pale face turned red from coughing.
Seeing the emperor coughing himself up until he was out of breath, Cen Minzhou suddenly remembered the speculation about the emperor's dragon body a few years ago, and his hands and feet became cold with fear.
"Quick! Call the imperial doctor!"
…
When Sheng Ran heard the news, her first reaction was to order her close followers to guard the Yongxiang Palace and not allow anyone to approach her daughter Zhiwa: "But anyone who approaches Princess Zhaode will be punished for treason!"
After the arrangements were made, she took the palace maid and ran all the way without caring about etiquette and gestures.
Panting, she rushed to Lanzheng Hall and glanced at Emperor Yanping. Sheng An's tears flowed out uncontrollably.
With the combination of acupuncture and massage by the imperial doctor, Emperor Yanping stopped coughing and looked a little haggard.
Hearing the noise, he opened his eyes and smiled weakly in the direction of Sheng Ran: "Zitong is here."
As he spoke, he struggled to sit up.
Sheng Ran hurriedly ran over and helped him lean on the cushions with her own hands. While stroking his chest to help him calm down, she asked the imperial doctor who was saluting her: "Does the emperor need to cultivate his holy body?"
Emperor Yanping's eyelids moved slightly and he looked over with a smile.
The imperial doctor, who was under double pressure, immediately understood: "Your Majesty was in a moment of impatience and became angry, causing the recurrence of old injuries. He must take a good rest and must not be worried due to work... Recently, I will discuss with my colleagues on the strategy of acupuncture for Your Majesty. Therefore, I kindly ask Your Majesty to stay away from government affairs for the time being, take more rest, and preferably not see other people."
Cen Minzhou stood with his hands down: "..."
Everyone present counts as one, it seems...he is the only one who counts, right?
Before he could think about it carefully, he heard Queen Sheng Ran calling him: "Cen Sanfu, did you hear clearly what the doctor said?"
"Old minister... I heard you clearly." Although he guessed that the couple above were going to cause trouble, Cen Minzhou still answered honestly.
"Just listen carefully. Then I'll trouble Cen Sanfu to go back and bring a message. His Majesty will be in retreat for recuperation in the near future. All the affairs of the court are of concern to the cabinet ministers."
"Then the daily memorial..."
"Your Majesty has always cared about the world. If you really don't hear what is going on outside the window, you may not be able to rest well. Therefore, the memorial will remain as usual. If there is an approval, the Chief of Ceremonies will pass it on to the cabinet."
Cen Minzhou: "..."
Got it, this means: only the memorial but no people!
"Then Princess Yongping..." Cen Minzhou gritted his teeth and asked boldly.
Sheng Ran glanced at Emperor Yanping, saw him nodding slightly, and then said with a smile: "Your Majesty certainly trusts all the important ministers and pillars, and the specific matters need to be investigated and handled by the cabinet ministers... However, your Majesty has a noble character, so as long as I hope you will remember that punishing criminals severely is the only way to punish them, and there is no need to go too far."
She drew a red line for the cabinet's affairs, but Cen Minzhou felt that this errand was becoming increasingly difficult to handle.
…
"This man is the grand-nephew of the Lu family after the crime. Not only is he related to the assassination of the late emperor, but he also intends to unite with Arong, the remnants of the former Qi Dynasty, and certain aristocratic families to subvert the imperial court."
Facts have proved that Cen Sanfu's intuition is still very accurate.
No, every time Princess Yongping said something, Jiu Qing's face became a little embarrassed. At the end of the sentence, several people winked and hurriedly sent people to report it.
"Old matters can still be discussed again; but if it concerns A Rong, it cannot be ignored! Now the two armies are fighting, and the outcome is uncertain. We must not make the war difficult because of this." The Minister of the Ministry of War and the Minister of Hubu An Suiyun followed the three elders to report .
Among them, An Suiyun was the most excited.
He would not accept anything that would make the Ministry of Household's investment go to waste, would strongly oppose it, and would fight to the end!
The first assistant Yanyuan and the second assistant Gu Chengyun stopped hiding and ordered the Jiuqing meeting to be moved to the classics hall for everyone to have a meeting together.
"In urgent matters, follow authority. Princess Yongping is the granddaughter of the great ancestor. She was valued by the late emperor. She is reserved and cautious. But now she has killed her relatives for the sake of the imperial court. We shall take what she said as true."
At the end of the meeting, Yan Yuan stood up: "If that's the case, then the cabinet will issue an edict, and the nine ministers will work together to mobilize the guards to protect the country and arrest the family members involved here one by one!"
When he said this, no one objected.
Thus, an action that caused panic to families all over Da Chu began.
Although Emperor Yanping had previously authorized the cabinet, ministers represented by Yan Yuan still reported it.
In response to this, Emperor Yanping's reply was only one word: Yes.
Happy New Year to everyone!
