Chapter 158

Chapter 158

After the Mid-Autumn Festival in the forty-third year of Huayuan, rumors about the secret Buddhist temple became common in the court.

When everyone thought that this Buddhist sect, who was highly trusted by the emperor, was about to make an official appearance, something went wrong.

"Have you heard that they are cheating in order to compete with the living Buddhas?"

"Yes, they made some steam, and the main hall door opened automatically. They also made some red Buddha light."

"It was exposed on the spot."

"Isn't this deceiving the emperor?"

"Yes, it is deceiving the king."

There was a lot of discussion about this inside and outside the capital, and the Buddhist enthusiasm that had just arisen in the court and the country cooled down again.

It’s no wonder that people’s emotions come and go so quickly. It’s just that these things are too outrageous.

And in order to win the emperor's trust, it seems that he can do anything.

If this matter had not been exposed, who knows what they would have done.

But speaking of it, the matter of the Secret Buddha Temple actually allowed the Living Buddhas to benefit from it.

There's nothing we can do. It's just that they were too impatient.

"They did a very thorough job, so how come it was discovered to be a scam?"

"Ji Zhuangyuan! He exposed it right on the spot!"

ah?

Is Ji Zhuangyuan here too?

Everyone in the capital city knows the name Ji Yuan.

If he found out, that would be normal?

After all, he is too smart.

"Anyway, the emperor has more trust in Ji Zhuangyuan and has even announced that all rubber trade in the world will be under his control."

"People in Jiangnan have been saying that Ji Yuan is the God of Wealth. If he really controls the rubber trade in the world, he is indeed the God of Wealth."

"So how was this handled?"

Everyone in the teahouse was listening with great interest and couldn't help asking.

"It seems that he has handed it over to Ji Yuan. He said that he happened to be in the capital and investigated the matter of the Secret Buddha Temple."

"Some people say that if this is done well, he will be the head of the Rubber Division in the future."

Everyone couldn't help but envy.

How old is Ji Yuan? Why is it taken so seriously?

Well, it’s not an exaggeration to call him the God of Wealth.

When we arrived at Ji Yuan's house, everyone had a different feeling.

This matter seems to be a dilemma in the era.

On the one hand, he must get to the bottom of the matter of the Secret Buddha Temple.

On the other hand, if he does an exceptionally good job, he will really have to stay in the capital.

Given the current situation, should we stay in the capital?

What a joke.

The emperor had been so fond of the Secret Buddha Temple before, but now he has sent people to jail just like that.

That day, a group of monks in the Secret Buddha Temple kowtowed and begged for mercy, saying that they did this for the emperor's health and that they were truly considering the emperor.

They even produced evidence, saying that if the emperor took the elixirs given by the living Buddhas, not only would they be useless, but they would accelerate the aging of his body.

Anyway, these words were spoken sincerely, and even if Ji Yuan came to hear them, he would know that they were all true.

But is what the emperor wants to hear the truth?

In the Secret Buddha Hall, everyone was crying and talking nonsense, saying that the emperor's health had been poor for a long time and that this was the result of their meticulous care over the years. Neither prolonging life nor immortality really existed.

The old emperor was furious.

This time I was really angry.

It was like the anger of being deceived, but also the anger of having the dream exposed.

It's funny too.

When everyone in the Secret Buddha Hall told lies, the emperor believed them without a doubt.

Now that I have finally told the truth, the emperor doesn't believe it.

It can be seen that when it comes to deceiving people, it doesn’t matter how sophisticated the deception is, but whether the other party is willing to believe it.

The defeat of the Secret Buddha Hall this time was just another proof of the old emperor's mood swings.

So Nie Shiming was ready to leave.

He was actually a little unwilling, and even told his family about it, otherwise he would follow Ji Yuan to do things.

It's also nice to go to the Northwest. Although the area is vast and sparsely populated and the conditions are extremely poor, it's better than living a mediocre life.

But now I can't wait any longer.

Who knows what the emperor will do next.

Besides, given Ji Yuan’s current situation, it is most likely that he won’t be able to leave.

Whether or not we can get out is not important in this era.

What he has to do now is to handle the case of the Secret Buddha Temple.

This matter was incorporated into the Ministry of Personnel, and he was temporarily transferred over and naturally worked with the Ministry of Personnel.

Although it was said that Ji Yuan would do it, in reality he didn't have to do it.

The Minister of Personnel was the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion and had always followed Prime Minister Li.

Crown Prince, Prime Minister Li has always disliked the emperor's superstition about these things. Now that this matter has been handed over to them, they have been able to handle the case very quickly.

What Ji Yuan needs to do is to find the archives of the construction of the palace in the files.

After reading these files, I learned that the palace in the suburbs of Beijing had been under construction since the 36th year of Huayuan, and had been in the works of an official from the Ministry of Works named Wang.

In the 38th year of Huayuan, things changed. The official surnamed Wang was transferred and died on the way to office.

It was not until the 39th year of Huayuan that the palace was rebuilt by Lord Cheng, who was blamed for the snow disaster.

Around the forty years after the founding of Huayuan, Lord Cheng also met with an accident. After that, two officials were replaced, and the palace was finally repaired in the fortieth year of Huayuan.

Let’s not talk about the officials after Lord Cheng for now.

Lord Wang, who got there before him, was rather odd.

He was transferred and died on the way to exile.

If there really is a mistake, or if the mistake is really found, he should be sent directly to prison like Lord Cheng.

If it was just a minor mistake, he shouldn't have died on the road.

Something must have happened during this period.

Ji Yuan had a blank expression on his face, thinking about something.

Ji Yuan saw the nameplate of the Ministry of Justice from the corner of his eye and his eyes widened.

In the thirty-eighth year of Huayuan, the year when Lord Wang met with the accident, wasn't that the year when the Meng Mansion and even temples in various places met with accidents?

As a result, Monk Bai was still kept in the capital and could not be assigned an official position.

In the 38th year, monks in temples across the country seized people's land and bullied men and women. The Ministry of Justice investigated the matter for a long time.

If you look at it that way, then everything makes sense.

“So that’s how it is.” Ji Yuan thought to himself.

The rampant behavior of those folk temples is mostly related to the secret Buddha temples.

This Lord Wang was in charge of building the palace, so he must know its contents and also knew that the emperor was a Buddhist.

Many years ago, the world knew that the emperor loved child prodigies, and countless child prodigies emerged. The families of these child prodigies also received much attention and preferential treatment.

After learning that the emperor loved Buddhism, those quiet Buddhist places were no longer quiet.

It started in the thirty-sixth year of Huayuan and became so rampant that he was discovered in the thirty-eighth year.

Even Qingyun Temple, where Monk Bai worked, became increasingly money-making during those years.

Everything has signs.

Ji Yuan is now in the Ministry of Justice, so it is not difficult for him to look through the old files.

The rampant cases in Buddhist temples did in fact occur during those years.

So Lord Wang was secretly executed.

The reason why it was not said directly was because this matter was caused by the emperor, and the emperor still believed in Buddhism.

It is estimated that because of this turmoil, the Secret Buddha Temple was completely hidden.

The dislike between the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Li probably started from here.

After reading this, Ji Yuan didn't feel relieved, but helpless.

After unraveling these things, we finally found the source and the root.

The story of the child prodigy is very similar to the story of Buddhism today.

The time came to the thirty-ninth year of Huayuan.

The Emperor unexpectedly discovered that Lord Cheng was extremely useful, and regardless of the fact that Lord Cheng was trapped in the snowstorm and people died, he asked him to replace Lord Wang and go to the practice palace.

This matter was nothing at first.

Later, Lord Cheng was found to be corrupt, so he was demoted and exiled.

But it is not enough to just be corruption.

There must be something else going on.

These are what Ji Yuan wants to investigate.

With a direction, the next thing will be easy.

After all, all the people in the Secret Buddha Temple were locked up, so it was very difficult to interrogate or ask them any questions.

Of course, not much information about the case can be revealed, otherwise the emperor will definitely be unhappy and this matter will damage his reputation.

During this period, the living Buddhas from the southwest naturally accompanied the emperor.

These living Buddhas are obviously more "professional". After all, they are the ones who are most like masters and are found by various small countries.

Ji Yuan was busy from morning to night, and this time he also brought Cai Fenglan with him. Cai Fenglan had studied law before and was like a fish in water in the Ministry of Justice.

During this time, they also saw Nie Shiming off, as he was about to head to his third assignment.

What surprised Ji Yuan was that the place he went to this time was no longer Zhengrong County with a good foundation, nor the economic center Yingtian Prefecture.

But he went to the northeast, a place known as a bitter and cold land, where people made a living by fishing and hunting. He also brought many craftsmen with him, and he should have been the governor of a place.

Yes, I can only say that I have ambition.

Ji Yuan thought about it and wrote down the method of making a kang with floor heating for him.

Everything else is easy to handle. Let’s make a sturdy, practical and warm kang for everyone.

If his cement is produced, it may benefit the people there more.

Nie Shiming was so moved by this incident that he almost hugged Ji Yuan and cried.

Well, enough talking, let’s get on the road.

It was not until mid-October that a conclusion was finally reached as to what had happened to Lord Cheng.

The file was not long, even light, and it was in Ji Yuan's hand.

It describes Mr. Cheng Huayuan's experiences from thirty-nine to forty years.

To be precise, it can be traced back to Huayuan thirty-eight years ago.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival of the thirty-eighth year, Lord Cheng received the task of repairing a house outside the city. However, at the end of the thirty-eighth year, something broke down in the house and he has been under investigation ever since.

It was not until the spring of the thirty-ninth year in the Ji Yuan period that Lord Cheng was personally appointed by the Emperor to go to the practice palace.

Everyone thought that the cultivation palace was a turning point.

According to Mr. Cheng's aesthetic taste and ability, it is indeed repaired very well.

The things in the Secret Buddha Hall are absolutely impeccable from an aesthetic point of view, let alone other things.

But these things must be kept secret from family and even colleagues. Lord Cheng knows about the affairs of the previous Lord Wang, so he will definitely keep silent about it.

all is well.

Until Lord Cheng encountered something while checking the materials.

He encountered the great master of the Secret Buddha Temple being intimate with a woman.

This woman was a maid in the palace, and the two of them were whispering to each other, which was very lively.

The monk was intimate with the palace maid and even talked about some method of spiritual practice.

People like Lord Cheng are just disgusting.

But he had experienced the world and was no longer young, so he pretended not to know.

Unexpectedly, he encountered another unspeakable thing.

The palace maid was actually beaten by another woman. During the argument, Lord Cheng found out that this woman had given birth to a pair of children for the great wizard.

The woman discovered the great wizard's affair and came to him.

At this point, Lord Cheng already wanted to leave.

Even though this garden was designed by him carefully, it was the most beautiful garden he built with the lowest cost.

Seeing this, many people would think that Lord Cheng was slandered because he discovered the magicians' affairs.

In fact, this is not the case.

The reason why Mr. Cheng was slandered was that he built the most beautiful garden with the lowest cost.

Not only that, the accounts are clear and the handover of materials is also clear.

He even gave the craftsmen what they were entitled to.

You are innocent.

Others will have no benefits.

When Mr. Cheng was still hesitating about how to resign, someone reminded him that he must not leave because he was still charged with the crime of the snow disaster and he had to do a good job on this matter.

But what happened next took a sharp turn for the worse.

The monks disliked that Lord Cheng was too innocent and would not give them any advantage, so they designed a plan to make Lord Cheng express his opinion on the Buddhist temple.

Lord Cheng said that although the Buddhist temple is good, it is also the people's hard-earned money, so we still have to be careful with the materials and it is best to build it at a lower cost.

The old emperor listened with a grim expression.

The people’s hard-earned money, the lowest cost.

Later, they planned to have Lord Cheng knock over the Buddha statue, and at that time, there happened to be a problem with the secret incense used by the emperor.

All this made the emperor believe that it was Lord Cheng who failed to do his job well and angered the gods and Buddhas, so they punished him.

Mr. Cheng was pressed in front of the Buddha statue to atone for his sins.

The incense filling the room made his eyes hurt, but he was not allowed to close them.

Until the gods and Buddhas forgive me.

Mr. Cheng was tortured for nearly ten days. He listened to Buddhist scriptures, lit incense, and knelt on the ground to atone for his sins every day.

Just when the emperor was beginning to feel better, he fell ill again.

Lord Cheng was sent directly to prison. At that time, his eyesight was already failing. He was then severely tortured in the private prison, and eventually he became completely blind.

Have the gods and Buddhas forgiven him?

Forgive me.

But his "mistake" made the emperor sick.

So he was "corrupt", he was "disrespectful", and he was exiled.

That's the whole process.

As for revealing that the great masters had families and had affairs with palace maids, that became one of the charges against them by Lord Cheng.

That's not a false accusation, it's all the truth.

Because in October of the 43rd year of Huayuan, all these things were confirmed.

This further proves that Lord Cheng was slandered from the beginning to the end.

This group of people controlled the emperor's body to achieve their own goals.

The first of the two officials who came later, like Lord Cheng, was unwilling to take advantage of the matter and resigned on his own initiative.

The last one who went along with the gang and made a fortune has been imprisoned.

This major case had even the people in the Ministry of Justice looking at each other in bewilderment.

Who tried this case in the first place?

Looking again, those people smiled awkwardly and pointed upwards.

Who else can give the instructions to quickly resolve and handle the case?

After all, on the surface, the evidence is conclusive.

When the case was transferred to them, all the documents and evidence were already prepared, and the emperor had already spoken, so what else could they do?

Even if you have doubts in your heart, you have to suppress them.

After returning home, Ji Yuan picked up a pen and wanted to write a letter to Cheng Yisan.

Now that the matter has been investigated to this point, the Cheng family can be rehabilitated.

But he didn't quite know how to write.

Lord Cheng had suffered too much, but he didn't say a word. He just wanted to do the right thing, or even just wanted to protect himself.

But this is the final result.

Thinking about the people in the Secret Buddha Hall, they were eventually disliked by the emperor, but they actually wanted to do the "right thing". They wanted to tell the emperor that the elixir was poisonous, but they were not trusted.

It's really ironic when you look at it this way.

Ji Yuan had no guilt about what he would eventually do, and now he felt even more at ease.

But facing Cheng Yisan, he found it difficult to write.

After considering for a long time, Ji Yuan wrote a letter, explaining the whole story and telling them that the Cheng family's affairs would soon be resolved.

Finally, Ji Yuan asked them if they still wanted to return to the capital.

Ji Yuan guessed that most of them would not come back and it would be better for them to stay in Ning'an Prefecture.

It had been less than ten days since Ji Yuan's letter was sent.

As he expected, all the people involved in the Secret Buddha Temple case were re-investigated.

These magicians basically have families outside, and they are also connected with many temples. They provide incense at high prices, and even provide magic weapons given by the emperor, in exchange for silver and money.

Most of the palace maids in the imperial palace were tricked by them into "practicing" and among them was even a palace maid who served as the emperor's personal attendant.

That palace maid also served the emperor.

As well as the women, petty officials, officials, and so on who were framed, threatened, and even oppressed to death by them.

The case was so serious that the old emperor was so angry that he vomited blood.

For so many years, he has been deceived by such a person? !

At the final stage of the investigation, the old emperor didn't even want to look at it anymore, and just said: "Kill them all."

As for those officials who were framed?

The old emperor didn't want to care.

Lord Cheng knew that the monks were wrong but did not expose them, which is equally hateful.

But the news accidentally leaked out.

Everyone in the capital knew about this shocking case.

This really wasn’t done by Ji Yuan.

He would not do such a dangerous thing. After all, it has come to this point. Rehabilitation of the Cheng family is inevitable, and there is no need to do anything else.

But this matter is too outrageous. There are many people investigating this case, so it cannot be concealed.

Once there is a hole, it will spread naturally and quickly.

If the impression of the people in the capital, and even the people all over the world, about the emperor is still that he is young.

But things are different now.

If we think about what has happened in recent years, many people have been discussing: "Why is the emperor getting more confused as he gets older?"

Yeah, that's why.

Some people also said that the prince is already 34 years old this year, which is really pitiful. He may have to be the prince for half his life.

There are indeed traces of these things.

It even explained why the old emperor suddenly became superstitious about the living Buddha at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet.

If there were public opinion lists in ancient times.

The old emperor's reputation plummeted during this period.

But who can be blamed for this?

The truth will come out sooner or later.

In late October, the weather in Beijing had begun to get cold.

In the past few years of the era, I basically didn’t wear thick clothes in winter, so now I have to dig them out and put them on again.

Even the small countries in the southwest that had planned to leave were blocked by the heavy snow in October.

Many of them were seeing snow for the first time and were extremely happy.

They are happy for other reasons, of course.

The Living Buddha is now the guest of honor of the Emperor of Tianqi State. The rice seeds and even gold and silver rewards they want are simply innumerable.

The specific figures are still being calculated with the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Revenue.

But with Prince He Hui here, this number is absolutely astonishing and will satisfy all the small southwestern countries.

Ji Yuan didn’t have time to deal with them for the time being as he was still dealing with the case in the Secret Buddha Temple.

To be honest, he has removed the biggest obstacle for the Living Buddhas. If these Living Buddhas can no longer accomplish anything, they would be useless.

This major case became the talk of everyone in and outside the capital, and the rehabilitation of the officials involved also attracted the attention of many people.

Among them, Lord Cheng was really miserable. He did nothing wrong, but was framed by a group of evil monks.

I heard that he was blind when he left.

A blind and mentally ill man will never be able to become an official in this life. At most, he can be given a local sinecure and live out the rest of his life in peace.

This was indeed the way the imperial court handled the situation.

The pardon document has been sent out, but who knows when it will arrive.

The old emperor had no comment on this matter.

He was just angry and critical.

Look at the living Buddhas in front of you.

As for whether the pill can be eaten, that is another matter.

When the evil monks cried and complained, they exaggerated and said that the medicine was poisonous and that it was okay at first, but it only overdrawn the body.

The old emperor was skeptical.

These doubts were gradually dispelled as the Living Buddhas personally took the medicine and supervised it every day.

Perhaps he was still not at ease, so the old emperor even found a dozen elderly eunuchs from the eunuch house and asked them to try the medicine first, and then let the imperial doctors check his body.

When Ji Yuan heard this, the old eunuchs were already scrambling to take the pills, and fortunately nothing happened for a while.

Not only that, the imperial physicians' examination results also said that the old eunuchs who had taken the elixir seemed to be in better health and walked more lightly.

This is certain. The elixir recipe handed down from his time must have had some effect and would not have caused the emperor to die immediately.

Otherwise, the Taoists and monks who made the elixir would have been dragged out and beheaded long ago.

But these things, as the monks in the Secret Buddha Temple said, are just drinking poison to quench thirst.

The reasons are not elaborated here.

Ji Yuan took a deep breath.

He stood on the execution ground.

Today is November 1st.

All the people in the Secret Buddha Temple must be executed.

This was the second time he stood on the execution ground after returning to Beijing.

But isn't this why he came back this time?

The first time was Wang Changdong.

He was the one who killed Xiao Jiyuan's entire family.

The second time was everyone in the Secret Buddha Hall.

He was the one who harmed Cheng Yisan's family.

But do you feel happy?

It feels great.

But I feel a little unhappy.

Ji Yuan sat on the high platform at the execution ground, looking carefully at everyone below.

Last time, he examined Wang Changdong in the same way.

Wang Changdong looked at him with fear.

Exactly the same as these people in the Secret Buddha Temple.

The officials continued to read out the charges against these people, and the onlookers were stunned.

Every single thing is unbelievable.

This even concealed some of the charges, and those related to the emperor were either omitted or stated vaguely.

But in the end, it was still enough for these people to die eight or ten times.

He has harmed so many people and done so many evil things.

Damn it.

The winter in Beijing makes people want to hunch their arms.

When they saw the heads rolling, the people couldn't help but open their hearts and cheer loudly.

"good!"

"Good death!"

"Those who bring disaster to people should die!"

"Justice is clear! Good kill!"

The crowd cheered.

This is their most sincere wish.

Ji Yuan subconsciously looked at the cheering crowd.

The unhappiness in his heart was wiped out by the people's excitement.

Yes, some things can't be rushed.

Even if it is just a small victory, we should be happy and feel great.

Ji Yuan couldn't help laughing, and said to his colleagues in the Ministry of Justice, "Let's have some shabu-shabu later. I haven't had it for a long time."

Colleagues: Huh?

In this scene? Can you still eat mutton hotpot?!

You are so good!

Cai Fenglan touched her belly and was the first to nod.

Seeing this, the others quickly said, "I'll go too."

"Take me with you."

"Ji Zhuangyuan, I'll treat you. I know a place that serves delicious mutton hotpot."

???

What's wrong with you?

It's funny. This is Ji Zhuangyuan's dinner party. Who wouldn't want to go?

If nothing unexpected happens, after this incident is over, Ji Zhuangyuan might become the head of the Rubber Department?

What is the scale of the Rubber Company's business?

What is the position of the Chief Secretary?

Don’t you have an idea yet?

Duke Xie, Duke Zhang and others are all waiting for Ji Yuan to be their son-in-law.

In the future, you will have status and money if you want them, so why don’t you curry favor with them?

Speaking of the head of the Rubber Department, Ji Yuan thought that it was time to urge him to take up the position of clerk in the Northwest.

Things are pretty much done.

It's time for him to go.

His steam engine, his cement, and his wheat seeds are all waiting for him!

However, before he leaves, he still needs to take a look at the situation in the small country in the southwest. They have not left yet, so how many good seeds do they want?

He wouldn't want to be given too much.