Chapter 282: Prison
There is a high probability that Li Guangli, Marquis of Pingnan, is going to return to Beijing, and he can return to Beijing.

But before that, he had to follow the steps given by the emperor and go through the formal procedures of the court, that is, lead the troops, go to war, win the battle, and return to the court.

It was the second day when the ministers in the Prince’s Palace met for a meeting.

Just as Liu Ju had expected, the emperor’s edict to prepare for war issued from Ganquan Palace was officially announced to all officials in Chang’an.

then.

Chang’an exploded.

“Your Majesty, on such a major military and national matter as mobilizing troops, did you not even consult with the ministers?”

“The Minister of Agriculture, who is in charge of finance, doesn’t know. The Prime Minister, who is in charge of all officials, doesn’t know. The Grand Marshal, who is in charge of the three armies, doesn’t know. No one knows!”

Your Majesty actually “executed first and reported later”! ?

Amid all the voices of astonishment and even anger, it seemed that the ministers had overstepped their bounds and were somewhat insolent and disrespectful.

Is it possible that the emperor, who is so arbitrary, still needs to seek the consent of his subjects?

but.

Things are not so one-sided. The ministers were angry, not because they wanted the emperor to seek their opinions, but because they wanted the emperor and his ministers to discuss matters and work together.

The ministers were angry because they cared about the court and state affairs. As the saying goes, the deeper the love, the more severe the criticism.

If they are all just sitting there doing nothing and only caring about their own selfish desires, why should they be so surprised when they find out that Your Majesty is not following the rules and is showing signs of acting arbitrarily?

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to let Your Majesty pursue your grand ambitions and let them pursue their own struggles for power and profit?

but.

Still that ‘but’.

It is true that the high-ranking officials sitting in the court have selfish desires, but they also have the integrity and impartiality to govern their country, just to a greater or lesser extent.

Then, the scene that had taken place in the Prince’s Palace was re-enacted in Chang’an.

When he first heard that Your Majesty was going to “execute first and report later,” and that the money issue had not yet been resolved, but the war, which cost money like water, had been arranged first, Dongfang Shuo was so shocked that he lost his voice, and afterwards, one could hear a pin drop in the Jiaguan Hall.

today.

When the officials in Chang’an suddenly heard the imperial edict to mobilize troops in southern Xinjiang and found that the Three Dukes, the Grand Marshal and others knew nothing about it, they were shocked at first and talked a lot. But after just a few days, the noise quickly died down.

Everyone fell into silence, as if they had lost their voice at the same time.

It was surprisingly quiet for a long time.

This silence was filled with a hint of uneasiness and anxiety.

If the last time Your Majesty made a dictatorial decision to send troops to Yunnan was just an accident, then this time the dictatorial decision to send troops to Kunming means that it is no longer an accident.

Your Majesty, who used to summon ministers to discuss every major event, seems to have lost trust in them and has more faith in himself.

of course.

Perhaps a certain disrespectful word that the ministers dare not say is more suitable to describe the current situation…

But since these are words that one dare not say, then naturally there is no way to say them. In such a delicate situation, all officials are speechless. Similarly, in such a situation, some people still have to speak up, as it is their duty.

After soliciting opinions from all officials, the Grand Marshal and the Prime Minister –

Silence is also an opinion.

With their “silent opinions”, the two important officials of the Han Dynasty court went to Ganquan Palace, hundreds of miles away from Chang’an, to meet the emperor.

What the Grand Marshal and the Prime Minister talked about with the Emperor during this period is unknown to outsiders. Before the Emperor allowed them to stay together in Ganquan Palace, Wei and Shi had spread the word:
“Everything remains the same.”

Just four words, just four words, and it sounds unclear whether His Majesty wants to return to the old days of discussing matters with ministers, or to ask all officials to stay calm and keep everything as before.

But the words coming from the Grand Marshal and the Prime Minister must be good for all officials…

In short.

A subtle crisis of trust between the emperor and his subjects just passed like that. Before the subjects could savor it, or ponder it, or let it leave any traces in their hearts, another more explosive incident forcibly diverted everyone’s attention.

what’s up?

The struggle for the throne and the continuation of sending troops to Kunming!

The emperor issued an edict from Ganquan Palace, appointing Li Guangli, the governor of Nanhai County and Marquis of Pingnan, as the vanguard general, leading soldiers and prisoners of the Jiaozhi governor’s department, and sending troops to Kunming in mid-autumn.

The war in the south will take some time to start, but the conflict in Chang’an has already begun.

First of all.

The fourth prince Liu Bo’s family has already met its end, so there is no need to say more about who Li Guangli is.

Secondly, just when the crisis of trust between the emperor and his ministers in Chang’an was temporarily resolved, the event that strongly attracted the remaining attention of everyone came!

Late June –

“Mrs. Ding, the Grand Master of the Imperial Cult, cursed the barbarian enemy troops in the southwest with her magic, and she was rewarded with merit. The Emperor issued an edict to restore her title of Marquis of Yangdu!”

Madam Ding was the descendant of Ding Fu, the eighteenth marquis of the founding dynasty.

He was suddenly conferred the title of Marquis, and for such a… ridiculous reason. Everyone who heard about it was extremely surprised, “Isn’t this a bit absurd?”

But soon, the doubtful voices disappeared, because Ganquan Palace issued another edict, “Shaofu Qing Zhao Yu, due to old age and frailty, was transferred to the position of Prime Minister of Yan State!”

As soon as this order was issued, all doubts in Chang’an disappeared, and sudden realization and surprise followed.

Who is Zhao Yu?
He was a cruel official, one of the Nine Ministers, and the minister who once managed the emperor’s purse – the Shaofu. In other words, he was a close and trusted official of Your Majesty!
And who did the prime minister of Yan State assist?

The third son of the emperor, Prince of Yan Liu Dan!

Looking back now, it suddenly dawned on me, who was this Madam Ding who was made a marquis for a seemingly trivial reason?
He was the Minister of Imperial Households, a descendant of a noble family, and someone who had visited Bu’s residence and expressed her loyalty. To whom did Madam Ding express her loyalty?
The emperor’s second son, Prince of Qi Liu Hong!

Thinking about it again, is it still inexplicable that Mrs. Ding was suddenly and inexplicably conferred a title of nobility?

No.

There are clear clues!

Your Majesty conferred the title of Lady Ding on the emperor in order to promote the second son; he transferred Zhao Yu in order to promote the third son; and he summoned Li Guangli in order to promote the fourth son.

We have helped so much openly and honestly, what is your Majesty’s intention?

The princes of the Han Dynasty had secretly ridiculed him more than once, “You, Liu Che, are ruthless in dealing with your brothers, but wait until your backyard catches fire in the future, and see if you can still be ruthless!”

It turns out.

The emperor’s heart is cruel and impartial.

He was cruel to his brothers and no less cruel to his sons. Before the fire in his backyard even started, the emperor took the initiative to add fuel to the fire!
This fire started with Li Guangli. Although the emperor’s primary intention in employing Li Guangli was not to strengthen the prince, there is a saying that goes:

It’s all used, so make the best use of it.

Li Guangli could be used to counter the Wei family, and he could also be used to strengthen the Prince’s Palace. The emperor thought again, one is good, two are also good, so he simply gave the second and third sons a push to keep everything fair.

Liu Che was like a ferocious beast crawling in the shadow of Ganquan Palace, playing the game of “deep love between father and son” while coldly watching the slightest movement in Chang’an City.

There was movement and he got up quickly.

The emperor father increased the strength of Liu Ju, and the second, third, and fourth brothers were all pushed out at once. How could Liu Ju not react?

It was supposed to be there a few days ago, but it’s even more necessary now!

Well, of course, the time in the book is a few days ago, but it was actually updated last month. I guess most of the readers who are still persisting have forgotten it.

Here, let me recall it for a moment.

When they heard that the emperor had appointed Li Guangli, Zhuang Qingzhai, Dongfang Shuo and others had expressed their concerns to Liu Ju, who said to them:

“National affairs are the most important, I will take care of everything!”

After giving his subordinates and retainers a reassurance, Liu Ju instructed Jin Midi: “Hold a welcoming ceremony for Li Guangli.”

There will definitely be a ceremony.

Following a series of actions by the emperor, the momentum of the “Anti-Crown Prince Alliance” has become increasingly powerful. Recently, there have been obviously more ministers interacting with the Imperial Censor Bu Shi. Even the Minister of the Imperial Clan Han Shuo has stopped pretending and has become the eyes and mouth of the Prince of Yan in the capital.

In this case.

Liu Ju’s ‘welcome ceremony’ will only be bigger and more eye-catching!
The prelude to this drama began with an east wind…

……

“After Zhao Yu was transferred to be the prime minister of Yan, Your Majesty transferred Wang Wenshu to take over the position of Shaofu, and moved Du Zhou to be the chief judge. At the same time, Yin Qi was transferred to be the left governor of Fengyi.” “Both of them are cruel officials. Now one is in charge of punishment and the other is in charge of the capital. As soon as they took office, they acted without restraint and framed loyal officials!”

“This morning, the court officials actually rushed into my office to arrest someone. They took Du Zhou’s handwritten letter and directly took the person to the court prison. They were so unscrupulous that all my subordinates were terrified.”

“People are already panicking!”

“Grand Censor, the Prime Minister and the Grand Marshal are both in Ganquan Palace right now. The impeachment memorials we submitted to His Majesty have fallen on deaf ears, with no response at all.”

“Now the only one we can rely on is you, the Imperial Censor!”

“Yes! You must say something!”

In the official room of the Imperial Censor’s Mansion, after a burst of anxious noise, the Imperial Censor Bu Shi’s lamentation began:

“Ugh.”

“You are waiting for me to speak, but you don’t even realize that the current situation does not allow me to say a word.”

“The Prime Minister and the Grand Marshal were left in Ganquan Palace. Previously, I thought it was a move by His Majesty to be close to him, but now, can’t you guess that His Majesty did it on purpose?”

“Your Majesty has ‘gagged’ them in advance, and you come to me again. Regardless of whether I have the ability to plead for the people, let me ask you one question…”

“The prince is also in Chang’an, why don’t you go to him to help?”

After hearing this, the people in the hall, who were all embarrassed, huddled in the back and whispered, “We’ve looked for him, but we can’t find His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.”

“Why?”

“…His Highness said that if the person arrested by the Imperial Court was not guilty, he could go to the Imperial Court to ask for the person, but…”

Before he finished speaking, his voice became so low that it could not be heard.

Because although the Supreme Court arrested many officials, it seemed like they were biting randomly like mad dogs, but in fact, it was not the case, as the evidence was solid!
In other words.

Those officials from various departments who were arrested were all guilty of real crimes.

In fact, as long as one is willing to investigate carefully and thoroughly, the three dukes and nine ministers in the court can all be found to have committed crimes in their daily administration. The only difference is whether the guilt is big or small.

Should we investigate and when should we investigate?

It depends on the person and the case.

At that moment, Du Zhou, the newly appointed Chief Justice, dug up old accounts of some officials and wanted to investigate them thoroughly!

This move has long gone beyond the scope of the three major changes a new official should make.

Ordinary officials did not know why Du Zhou went crazy, at least the ministers who came to Bu Shi today did not know.

But they were confused, while Bu Shi was clear-headed.

“Ugh!”

“What the prince said is not wrong, but that is a real excuse. The prince clearly does not want to wade into this muddy water. Do you know why?”

“Please give us some advice, doctor!” The officials present hurriedly bowed and saluted.

Bu Shi’s face was even more sorrowful. He did not answer, but asked again: “Some time ago, there was a lot of noise in the court about the resumption of the report of the money.”

“I heard that someone recently submitted a petition to oppose it. Is that true?”

Listen.

Some people in the hall were stunned, some were confused, “May I ask, Doctor, is this matter related to the current cruelty of the court judge?”

“I am against restarting the system of reporting the money, but the crown prince, the general and others are involved.”

As soon as he finished his probing words, Bu Shi said with a wooden face, “Then take a look, has anyone in the Crown Prince’s Palace submitted a petition of opposition recently?”

The people present were more stunned, and some people had already reacted.

“The Crown Prince has long understood your Majesty’s determination and ordered his close ministers to stop their actions. Only you…” Bu Shi said in a deep voice, “some people who cannot see the situation clearly are still trying to fish in troubled waters and are singing a different tune from your Majesty.”

Your Majesty supported Du Zhou to take the throne in order to clean out these short-sighted people and suppress the voices of opposition!
Bu Shi did not say the latter sentence explicitly, but everyone understood it.

immediately.

Everyone’s faces suddenly changed color. Many of the high-ranking officials in the capital city, including those from the offices of the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers, came to seek the Imperial Censor Bu Shi to make a decision today.

Some people have lost their backbone and are desperate to seek help from all directions, while others come to test the waters on behalf of their chief officers. Their purposes vary.

After Bu Shi pointed out the key point, everyone immediately came to their senses and stood up to say goodbye, some returned to report, and some ran around to tell others.

however.

Their attempt to remedy the situation and avoid bringing disaster upon themselves was ultimately a little too late.

It is not that the Court Justice Du Zhou is pursuing him relentlessly. As long as the court officials know the current situation and stop going against the emperor, Du Zhou’s mission will be accomplished. He does not mind letting the rest become “heroes”.

But I never expected it.

Du Zhou did not expect that the Emperor, who had suggested to Du Zhou to start this trend of rectifying the administration of officials, also did not expect that although they had the final say on when this trend would start, they were unknowingly out of control as to when it would end!
Signs of losing control began when Taijuling was imprisoned.

Taijiuling was in charge of the horse affairs in Chang’an. It was an official position that rarely caused disputes. This official came from a prominent family and was proud of his status, so he seldom did anything out of the ordinary.

Even Hunshui, who had submitted a petition to oppose the emperor’s resumption of the system of reporting corruption, just stood by and watched.

in other words.

He is not the target of Tingwei Du Zhou!

How did the Imperial Household Official end up in the Imperial Court? Du Zhou initially thought it was an accidental injury. After all, the attack was so widespread that it was inevitable that someone would report it, and the Imperial Court had no choice but to accept the report.

but.

After Dazai Ling was also imprisoned, Du Zhou no longer thought so, because Dazai Ling was not his target either.

He did not order the arrest of anyone, but the person was put in the Tingwei prison? The newly appointed Tingwei official immediately realized:

“There are other people’s hands and feet in the Court of Justice!”

The first person Du Zhou suspected was the former Minister of Justice Wang Wenshu. Before the major reshuffle, it was actually easy for Wang Wenshu’s old subordinates to bypass Du Zhou and make moves secretly.

And then.

Du Zhou naturally thought of the Prince’s Palace.

With Wang Wenshu’s status, he would never dare to take such a risky action without the prince’s instructions and support behind him.

But when Zhonglei Ling bypassed Du Zhou and was thrown into prison, Du Zhou began to doubt his own suspicions.

Notice.

The Zhonglei Ling is under the command of the Praetorian Guards, and the current Praetorian Guards is Li Gan, the prince’s father-in-law!
If you really want to do something bad, there’s no need to insert your own people into it, right?

Just when Du Zhou was suspicious, an even more explosive piece of news made him completely unable to sit still. After the Taiju Order, Dazai Order and Zhonglei Order.

The current Minister of Rites is Du Xiang, Marquis of Yangping, one of the Nine Ministers.

imprison!

Yes, even in the Imperial Court, the prison still chose to bypass Du Zhou, the Imperial Court Minister. It was simply…

Outrageous!

“Oh!”

The cell fence was kicked open roughly. Du Zhou, with a livid and ferocious face, led a group of soldiers behind him and headed straight for the inner prison, saying coldly as he walked:
“The great Minister of State Affairs was imprisoned, but I, the Chief Justice, didn’t know about it. How dare you! You deceived your superiors and subordinates, thinking that I was incapable of using a sword or an axe!?”

The cold voice echoed in the prison, making the already cold prison seem like ice chips could fall. Du Zhou walked quickly and shouted angrily:

“Even if Wang Wenshu came in person today, I would still kill you!”

There was a bang.

Another iron fence was pushed open, and after turning a corner, Du Zhou and a group of soldiers approached the cell where Yangping Marquis Du Xiang was imprisoned.

At this moment, two people were standing in front of the cell, one in front and one behind, both very young, not like Wang Wenshu.

“His Royal Highness?”

Du Zhou, who had barged in, glanced at the room with a hint of surprise on his face, but it was short. He paused, then bowed and said, “Your Highness is honored.”

Liu Ju, who was standing with his sword in hand, turned his head to look at him and said with a gentle smile, “Haha, the Chief Justice is quite angry.”

(End of this chapter)