"Your Majesty, there is a memorial from Liaodong." Yu Yunwen presented the memorial.

This memorial was written by Liu Yanzong.

Zhao Huan opened it and read it. It was the same content, a memorial to the prime minister and a memorial to the emperor, only the tone was different.

The ministers stood below, and the atmosphere in the hall was solemn.

By midnight, almost all the ministers knew about the events in Liaodong.

Zhao Huan sat firmly on his throne, saying nothing, his meaning clear: My beloved ministers, please begin your performance.

The ministers remained silent.

Zhao Huan glanced around and asked, "No one has anything to say?"

Ding Qiu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that the actions of Imperial Censor Liu were inappropriate."

"What do you mean by that, Ding Qing?"

"According to my understanding, Liu Yusi imprisoned Guo Huaiyi and subjected him to severe torture without any conclusive evidence, which is suspected of forcing a confession."

Zhao Huan remained silent, as did the other ministers.

After a short while, Zhao Huan asked, "Where are the others? No one else has anything to say?"

Chen Yang, the Vice Chancellor, stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, Guo Huaiyi is a third-rank official of the court, in charge of transportation and finance in Liaodong. It is indeed inappropriate for Liu Yusi to abuse his power and impose punishments.”

According to normal procedures, the case would first be detained, then reported to the emperor, and the prime minister would be informed, so that the central government could discuss and make a decision.

You have to understand, that was a high-ranking official of the third rank!

Clearly, the ministers in the court felt that Liu Yanzong had overstepped his authority too much.

This time it was Guo Huaiyi, but what about next time?

High-ranking officials of the imperial court cannot be imprisoned so easily.

Where is the Hall of State Affairs located?

Ding Qiu and Chen Yang only said that Liu Yanzong's handling of Guo Huaiyi was problematic, without denying Guo Huaiyi's guilt, and avoided talking about what was happening in Liaodong.

Clearly, neither of them wanted to get involved.

Everyone in the court knows perfectly well who Guo Huaiyi is working for.

Zhou Chao, the Minister of the Three Departments, stood to one side, silent as a block of wood.

The Vice Chancellor seemed unconcerned about Guo Huaiyi's fate, only thinking about taking this opportunity to make Liu Yanzong suffer.

Meanwhile, the ministers were still focused on Grand Chancellor Yu Yunwen, waiting to see what he would say.

It was an unspoken understanding that Guo Huaiyi stepping down was definitely the best thing for Yu Yunwen.

He now has the opportunity to send his own people to manage Liaodong.

The court was deathly silent; you could hear a pin drop.

Zhao Huan said calmly, "Is no one going to speak?"

“Your Majesty, Liu Yusi’s actions were indeed inappropriate.”

"I second that proposal!"

"I second that proposal!"

...

It was as if a floodgate had been opened, and ten ministers emerged in an instant.

Clearly, everyone is now going to give Liu Yanzong a good dressing down.

The situation has become very delicate.

Who is Liu Yanzong working for?

Yu Yunwen? Zhou Chao? Chen Yang? Or the Military Governor's Office?

Neither!

The Censorate and the Imperial Censorate were separate entities, responsible for supervising all officials.

He's the emperor's man!

His words and actions represented the emperor's will.

Now, the ministers have complaints about the emperor's indulgence of Liu Yanzong.

The emperor's gaze began to sharpen.

Zhao Huan asked, "Prime Minister Zhou, what do you have to say?"

Zhou Chao, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up: "Your Majesty, the most urgent matter is not the trip of Imperial Censor Liu, but the case in Liaodong. This case has far-reaching implications, involving the entire Liaodong officialdom. If it is not handled properly, it could easily lead to war."

Zhao Huan's gaze shifted to Yu Yunwen: "Where is the Grand Chancellor?"

"I believe that what Prime Minister Zhou said is absolutely right. Now is the time to deal with the Liaodong case and solve the most urgent problem first."

Zhao Huan's expression softened slightly.

The other ministers each had their own thoughts.

Ding Qiu lowered his head and glanced at Zhou Chao, thinking to himself: It seems that Minister Zhou has completely given up on Guo Huaiyi and does not want to get involved in this mess anymore. He doesn't even want to seize such a good opportunity (to bring down Liu Yanzong). It is probably because he is getting old and wants to retire after serving for another two years.

Thinking of this, Ding Qiu also fell silent. Since Zhou Chao was thinking of living peacefully for two years, there was no need for him to confront him head-on at this time.

However, I was the first to stand up and impeach Liu Yanzong today, and I'm afraid I'll be held a grudge.

On the emperor's desk were two memorials, one written by Liu Yanzong and the other by Li Gang, and a letter written by Liu Yanzong to Yu Yunwen.

Liu Yanzong was responsible for reporting on the situation in Liaodong, while Li Gang, in addition to reporting on the situation, also wrote many solutions.

Zhao Huan's expression returned to calm, and he said indifferently, "What is Prime Minister Zhou's view on Liaodong?"

"The root cause of the Liaodong case lies not in the officials, but in the former nobles. The former nobles of the Jin Dynasty are like centipedes, which do not die but remain attached to Liaodong, corrupting integrity and blinding the emperor."

Every wrinkle on Zhou Chao's face exuded an aura of integrity and uprightness: "To eliminate the troubles in Liaodong, we must first remove the old nobles."

The "old nobles" here naturally refer to the Jurchen nobles, the Bohai nobles, and the Han Chinese aristocratic families.

According to Liu Yanzong's memorial, the current situation is that the capital city has been controlled and these people have been imprisoned. The next step in the decision still depends on the central government's decision.

Zhao Huan asked, "What should be done about the officials, big and small, involved in the incident in Liaodong?"

"Naturally, we will punish them severely according to the laws of the Great Song Dynasty!"

Zhao Huan shifted his gaze to Chen Yang: "Prime Minister Chen, what do you think?"

"I believe that what Prime Minister Zhou said is absolutely right. The Liaodong region is corrupt and chaotic. Without severe punishment, there will be no way to restore order to the court!"

The other ministers felt a slight unease, for there were quite a few people from Chen Yang and the Zhou Dynasty in Liaodong.

It now seems that both of these bigwigs are going to sacrifice the pawns to save the king.

This Liaodong region was essentially handed over to Yu Yunwen!

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!