Chapter 329 Questioning

Emperor Zhao’s rage could not be hidden from anyone, especially since he didn’t seem to want to hide it from anyone.

Of course, everyone seemed to understand this anger - they had finally created such a situation in the northwest, destroyed the century-old enemy, established a united front against the Jin Dynasty, expanded the country's strategic advantages, and even returned with two more sons. They should have spent the winter eating sweet and sour fish and roasted earthworms, and maybe even had time to write a few more chapters of "Miscellaneous Notes on Journey to the West", but suddenly some three major cases popped up, and everyone was angry.

But no matter how angry you are, you can't avoid the problem.

After the first snow, the weather became increasingly cold. On the first day of November, a large number of court officials met with the emperor in the Wende Hall. Emperor Zhao was too lazy to hide the matter and mentioned it directly in court:

"Dali Temple!"

Upon hearing this, Dali Temple Minister Lu Yi immediately stepped out, raised his wooden tablet and bowed his head: "I am here."

"Recently, there has been a lot of discussion in the capital about the three major cases of winter. These three cases should be presided over by the Dali Temple. You are the official of the Dali Temple. Do you have any opinion on this matter now?" Zhao Jiu sat upright and answered seriously.

"Reporting to the emperor." Lu Yi said carefully. "All three cases have been handled. Yang Zheng killed his concubine and skinned her alive. He should be executed according to the law. Wang Bo (Pan Guifei's cousin) deceived his superiors and subordinates and defrauded money. He should be exiled according to the law, and he should return the defrauded money and be fined. Only Zhang Zongyan's case is not a lawsuit, but involves military affairs. The Dali Temple has sent a letter to the Privy Council and the Director of the Imperial Camp, asking the Western Palace and the Imperial Camp to report whether they had permission or authorization from their superiors to send troops without authorization, so that they can be punished according to the law..."

This answer was actually appropriate, but unexpectedly, faced with this result that could obviously be explained, the high and mighty Emperor Zhao only frowned slightly but did not respond.

During this gap, Ma Shen, the Minister of Justice who had just come from the south and had only been in office for ten days, suddenly stepped out and raised his wooden tablet to answer sternly:

"Your Majesty, I am from the Ministry of Justice, and I also have something to say about these three cases!"

Now, as Ma Shen came forward, everyone in the palace, from Zhao Ding to Zhang Jun, including the two newly appointed direct officials, almost everyone in the palace, both civil and military, looked at him instinctively. Even Zhao Jiu looked serious... It was nothing else, Ma Shen was a senior censor as early as the Jing Kang period, and was known for his backbone. But the more important point was that at the critical moment when Lu Haowen led many people to turn to the original school of thought, this man, as a famous Taoist, had actually been in Jingxiang all the time, and he insisted on the Taoist stance. He was one of the few top officials in the court who came from a Taoist background, and he could be said to be a standard minority.

In fact, Zhao Jiu decided to appoint him as the Minister of Justice because he valued his strict style and his attitude of employing people in an unconventional way. But who would have thought that not long after the appointment was announced, three politically sensitive cases would emerge?

This person stepped out at this time, probably with the intention of showing no mercy and also aiming at Pei Gong like Xiang Zhuang dancing with a sword.

As expected, Ma Shen nodded slightly as Emperor Zhao nodded, and immediately pointed out the key point: "Reporting to the emperor, as far as I know, there are actually some key points in each of the three cases, and the Dali Temple was a bit negligent and did not mention them... For example, in the pre-sale of treasury bonds case, the criminal Wang Bo confessed that he was originally a hanger-on for his cousin, Pan Yongsi, the uncle of Concubine Pan, and did not do it privately... In other words, the case itself is simple, but the main culprit is unclear! Whether it is Pan Yongsi or Wang Bo who committed the crime, it cannot be ignored!"

There was some restlessness in the hall for a while, and the Dali Temple Minister Lu Yi bowed his head deeply... Everyone knows how big the difference is between the meaning of Concubine Pan's uncle and a cousin with a different surname.

What's more, Pan Yongsi was not just a relative by marriage, he was also an official appointed by the court, and he had made great contributions. He welcomed Empress Dowager Yuanyou to Nanjing (Shangqiu) on behalf of Zhao Gou, who was then Prince Kang, so he could be considered to have some merit in supporting the king... Although he was later driven out because of his status as a relative by marriage, he was given the title of Gate Attendant for his merits and often entered and left the palace.

It is easy to imagine what kind of disturbance would be caused in public opinion if the criminal was identified as Pan Yongsi instead of Wang Bo.

To put it in an extreme way, the imperial concubine's uncle is so greedy, who knows if the emperor is pretending in the harem?

What's more, whether it is issuing national bonds or restarting Qingmiao Loan, including Jiaozi affairs, these three are a trinity in themselves. They are a package of financial reforms launched by the court to raise military funds. In the eyes of ordinary people, they are all the same thing... and if the nobles can make a fortune by doing this, then I dare to ask if the taxes added by the South have really all gone to the military camp?

In fact, this is the key to this case being listed alongside the two major cases in the Imperial Camp... This case actually involves people above the government and the Imperial Camp!

In other words, in the eyes of truly knowledgeable people, the essence of the three major cases, or the seriousness of these three cases, lies precisely in the government and the imperial camp - the government is based on the imperial camp, and the imperial camp is centered on the government, with eight or nine generals and dozens of commanding officers in between. Everyone is interconnected and involved, and eventually forms a whole.

Without the existence of the 200,000-strong imperial camp and the direct dependence of the generals and commanders, how could Emperor Zhao be as stable as a mountain and treat the two emperors as grass?

Without the imperial army's military presence to take in refugees from Hebei and suppress the peasant uprisings in the south, how could the country survive?

He who has the strongest army and the most powerful soldiers will be the king. That's just the meaning of some things. There's no need to say it out loud.

By the same token, if the Imperial Army had not repeatedly resisted the Northern Barbarians and counterattacked to recover lost territory, how could Emperor Zhao have acted so recklessly, pushed aside one vested interest group after another, abandoned one complex system inherited from the Five Dynasties, and forcibly granted land to military garrisons in the Central Plains and Guanxi?

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!