Chapter 54 Impeachment
In the silence, the prince took a step forward, his tone becoming softer and more cordial:
"Since you are drunk, please take the medicine, General."
Having come to this point, Zhu Qiquan could only look around, his drunken eyes almost squeezing out tears - he really hoped that someone would come down from the sky and free him from this terrible dead end. Unfortunately, the ordinary guests were indifferent, and the royal family members who came with him turned their heads away, making it clear that they didn't even want to take a look at this secret little pill.
At this point, Zhu Qiquan was really helpless and could only grit his teeth and drink a cup of hot water with something added to it. Then he immediately tilted his head and vomited violently, almost vomiting out the yellow bile.
After the two men vomited in succession, the banquet fell into deathly silence. Even the most vicious and domineering royal family members had their eyes wide open and could not utter a word - it was obvious that if they dared to get drunk and act crazy again, the next cup of spiked potion would be poured into their mouths!
Seeing that the situation was finally settled, Prince Mu sighed and carefully put away the remaining life-threatening pills. To be honest, during the decades when Lao Deng was in power, the royal family's close relatives were the most difficult bug to resolve in the government, and they were the kind of people that everyone avoided. The power of the royal family might not be that strong, and their tactics might not be that sophisticated, but under the deliberate tolerance of the imperial power, they were absolutely as disgusting as a mop stuck with shit. If there was any possibility, he really didn't want to confront this group of despicable people.
But there is really no other way now. Since Emperor Gaozu, the dynasty has strictly prohibited officials from hiring prostitutes for entertainment during banquets. Although the ban has been relaxed now, no one dares to violate it openly. If a few members of the royal family really brought in prostitutes and singing girls today, not to mention that everyone present would inevitably suffer the consequences, even the poor men and women who were forcibly recruited would not be able to escape punishment later, and the charges would be ready-made - "debauched and shameless, seducing the royal family!"
This is a dead end in which people are cannibalized alive and there is no room for resistance. Instead of letting these scumbags prey on the people, it is better to feed them a glass of urine to sober them up.
Of course, offending the royal family is no trivial matter. The prince stood there for a moment, but still did not feel any joy that his plan had been successful. He shook his head and spoke calmly:
"I need to go change my clothes, so I'll leave you for now."
Still no one spoke. Everyone sat there in a daze, watching the prince leave the banquet with a look of astonishment and awe.
·
Mu Qi rested for a while in the quiet room specially set up in the Earl's Mansion. He took wet wipes and soap and wiped his hands repeatedly. He heaved a sigh of relief only when he could no longer smell the faint smell of urine. He dismissed the servants and was about to sit in the quiet room for a while to sober up, but suddenly he heard the long-lost ding-dong sound:
【Major historical changes detected】
[Judging from later data on the type of change… this change should be classified as literature. 】
[Related information: "The Birth of the Sixth Heavenly Demon King: The Succession and Revival of "The Story of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality"]
Mu Qi:? !
Major historical changes are extremely rare achievements and can almost be regarded as the most glorious medal for a time traveler. The inertia of history is so strong that it is naturally incredibly difficult to change history. Mu Qi has been stumbling around in this fictional dynasty for the past two or three years, but has not yet brought about any general level of historical changes, let alone any major changes. From his point of view, only if Zhao Fei and Liu Li succeed in the Northern Expedition can it be considered "important" and safe.
How come a pie in the sky fell today and hit me on the head?
How come such a rubbish novel could become research material in later generations?
Is there something wrong with this damn world?
Mu Qi was so confused that he almost suspected that there was something wrong with his drinking. But fortunately, the system was very considerate and read out the searched information for him in time:
[…The middle and late Da’an period is regarded as a critical turning point in which citizen culture triumphed over scholar-official culture. With the tremendous progress in printing and papermaking, the originally expensive books expanded at a rate a thousand times faster. Literary works entered the homes of ordinary people along with technology and were inevitably influenced by the tastes of the middle and lower classes. The elegant and refined highbrow gradually declined, and popular and shallow novels and operas emerged.
In this magnificent historical wave, what can be regarded as a benchmark work, and even completely changed the aesthetic taste of the market culture, is the Sixth Heavenly Demon King, which has been controversial for hundreds of years since its birth.
Mu Qi: ...Ah?
Only now did he recover from his shock and noticed the bizarre wording in the information—what "Sixth Heaven Demon King"? It's just an ordinary toilet paper novel that's purely for the pursuit of excitement. Does it deserve such a big boss-level title? !
After all, it is a serious research material. Why do you only do this kind of childish and cruel work every day?
But the system didn't care about the indescribable speechlessness in his heart, and continued to narrate calmly:
[The so-called "Sixth Heaven Demon King" is a general summary of the historical status of "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality". The so-called "Five Great Books" in literary research during the Da'an period listed five works that had a great influence in the field of popular culture, namely "Water Margin", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Journey to the West", "Jin Ping Mei" and "Peony Pavilion". They were regarded as the absolute pinnacle of literature over the centuries and great works that represented the style of an entire era, also known as the "Five Wonders".
But no matter how critics of later generations adjusted the standard of this "wonderful book", they could not ignore the later and more successful "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality"; this book may not be comparable to many famous works in terms of content, but its influence and spread are still far greater, even spreading overseas and becoming famous in foreign countries. No matter what means are used to eliminate such popular works, the credibility of the list will be seriously damaged; but if the list is expanded to include the six great books, it will be a great shame that critics with a little aesthetic sense will definitely not tolerate, and it will be an absolute betrayal of literary tradition. So after much deliberation, they created a special name for it: The Sixth Heaven Demon King.
The Sixth Heaven Demon King is the lord of Mahadeva. He is a powerful god who corrupts spiritual practice and hinders the Dharma with desire and pleasure. Buddhists call him "Mara". The naming of this work, "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality", undoubtedly reveals the profound and unspeakable feelings of critics of all generations. On the one hand, they despised the crude and shallow writing style, the theme without connotation, and the cheap and ridiculous wording of this novel, and denounced it as an absolute heresy and a twisted creation that cannot be tolerated by the righteous law; but on the other hand, they could not help but admit that this book had an incredible attraction and influence, which seduced countless readers like a demon and provided countless desires and happiness.
In addition, this name also contains some profound metaphors. Although the literary world has always sneered at and fiercely criticized The Sixth Heaven Demon King, the long-lasting opposition just illustrates the book's extraordinary historical status. In fact, from today's perspective, although many novelists have expressed their criticism of "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality" in their writings, they always intentionally or unintentionally imitate the methods of the devil in the ups and downs of their own works, setting up suspense, creating exciting points and hidden foreshadowing, all of which are techniques pioneered by "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality". To put it even more seriously, the so-called "citizen literature" after the rise of capital industry and commerce in the late Da'an period was simply called "the son of the sixth devil."
Therefore, the criticism of "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality" is not so much about traditional literature's instinctive aversion to new things, but rather that this peculiar novel has hit upon a sore spot that the literary world will always find difficult to resolve: which is the core of a novel, technique or content?
Is there any meaning for a novel that only has techniques but no core?
At least so far, we have not seen a reasonable and accurate answer. On this issue, the literary world often practices two sets of standards in parallel.
Of course, this cannot be simply described as "mouth hates but body is upright" or "really good". For example, a hundred years ago, when Zhou, Wang and other masters taught comparative literature in Beijing, they also severely criticized the vulgarity and low level of "Mortal's Journey to Immortality" in class. However, the students in the class soon discovered that the professors would sneak into nearby bookstores after class to buy illustrated copies of "Mortal's Journey to Immortality" for their wives and sons. When the matter was exposed and faced with questioning by students, the great professors were so confident that they gave a famous reply:
"I am not a Buddha, how can I be like the demon king of the sixth heaven?"
——Yes, we must criticize vigorously, but mortals are not Buddhas after all, so how can we resist the temptation of the devil's confusion and delusion? The complex mood of the literary world over hundreds of years can be seen from this. 】
Mu Qi: …………
To be honest, when he was preparing "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality", he had thought about the consequences of being laughed at and ridiculed by scholars after the book was circulated. He could even guess how these Confucian scholars would make up jokes to humiliate him for being ignorant, shallow and vulgar. However, the reputation of the Prince of Mu was already irreparable, and Mu Qi didn't want to care about what these corrupt scholars would say about him.
...But, being laughed at by a mere generation of pedantic scholars is one thing, but being written into history books and criticized and blamed by millions of writers from beginning to end is another thing entirely!
What's this? Isn't this the standard historical pillar of shame? Isn't this the standard thing that will be infamous forever? ! I'm afraid that after he completes his mission and travels back in time, he will still be able to see the 360-degree weirdness of literati from all dynasties in textbooks!
—Damn it, I just asked someone to write a toilet paper novel about licking the emperor's hook, how did I suddenly get such a infamous treatment? !
In an instant, millions of "why"s came flooding in, making Mu Qi's brain dazed, his eyes wide open, and he wished he could faint on the spot, especially after hearing about "Zhou, Wang and other great people" - he vaguely guessed who these great people might be, and his shame and anger erupted like a volcano, which could roast him alive from the inside out into a half-cooked barbecue.
The general shame is called social death, so his case should at least be social lingchi or social extermination of the nine clans, and the skeleton after lingchi should be hung on the pillar of shame for people to watch for five hundred years - what sin did this prince commit to deserve such an end?
Facts have proved that even madmen have a bottom line, and their defenses will be broken once their shame exceeds the bottom line. Mu Qi slumped down in the chair with his eyes wide open, and even his brain could hardly work. But the system is still doing its job and continues to broadcast:
[Perhaps it is precisely because of this twisted mentality of contempt mixed with desire that the academic community has always wanted to explore the origins of this magic book. But unfortunately, to this day, we still know very little about the origin of this book. Although many studies point to Wu Cheng'en, who was a retainer of Duke Mu's mansion at the time, as the author, Wu Cheng'en's style is very different from this book, and he repeatedly refuted this theory in his diary during his lifetime, so the credibility of this research is not very high. The only thing we can be sure of is that "A Mortal's Journey to Immortality" was supposed to be a tribute hidden in the palace, but a part of it was spread by some royal family members in an improper way, and then it was widely spread, and finally the whole book was leaked...】
Mu Qi shuddered and suddenly came to his senses. He put his hand into his sleeve, and his expression changed immediately:
All the sample books he carried with him were gone!
The sleeves of clothes worn outside are fastened with hidden buttons so they won't come loose easily. But when Mu Qi touched his sleeve again and again, he found that the buttons had been quietly unbuttoned at some point, and there was a very long and narrow crack underneath, which was obviously cut open by a sharp weapon.
Those two books were obviously stolen!
Thinking of this, Mu Qi's face turned green. When he stood up to leave, he happened to pass by the seats of several vassal states. Considering the vague hints in later records, the reason becomes quite obvious. It must be that some member of the royal family was really resentful towards him but didn't dare to challenge him openly, so he simply used this magic move when passing by him.
A member of the royal family actually becomes a thief. This is probably a plot that cannot even be made up in a novel. But in reality it is not far-fetched at all. The princes and vassals of higher positions were strictly forbidden to participate in politics. They were truly idle all day long. Those with noble interests knew how to study mathematics and music, those with ordinary talents focused on food, clothing and enjoyment, and those with peculiar hobbies were completely unreasonable and often stole or robbed officials' property and enjoyed watching the embarrassment of local officials. Obviously, such clever tactics honed in the local areas would be equally useful on the prince.
But even if he figured out the cause and effect, Mu Qi was really helpless. Not to mention that he had no concrete evidence and could not find the real culprit; even if he had concrete evidence, he would definitely not be able to do anything to these members of the royal family. Lao Deng had invited these distant relatives from afar in order to show the royal family's harmonious friendship during his birthday celebration, not to study the bizarre quirks of his uncles and aunts. If Mu Qi really exposed the theft and slapped Lao Deng in the face, not only would he not be able to get the books back, but he might also anger Lao Deng and cause some unknown incident.
——The vassal kings of Da'an are so arrogant, and the vassal kings under Master Feixuan are even more arrogant; as long as they are willing to give in, they are basically invincible. Even a noble mansion like the Duke's Mansion is often helpless against these unscrupulous good-for-nothings.
It is difficult to defeat an equipable chess player, and a general should not be arrogant when facing a talented person. Mu Qi was stunned for a moment, and finally felt some rare and powerful threat.
He thought for a long time, but could only sigh and force himself to hold it in.
·
Although several volumes of text were stolen, Mu Qi still held out some hope, thinking that the royal family member who stole the book would most likely come to his house with evidence to humiliate him and extort some money. Obviously, the gift to be presented to Master Fei Xuan could not be leaked in advance, so he had made some mental preparations and collected some money to spend to ward off evil. He would endure this moment first - as long as the relatives returned after the emperor's birthday, the capital would be his world again; and by then, he could make some moves in the cabinet and return this disgusting thing in its original form.
True Lord Feixuan was certainly lenient to the princes and vassals, but the imperial power also had its reverse scales that could not be touched. As long as one managed to arouse the defensive instinct of the imperial power, the princes and vassals would not be so reliable. Didn’t Shezong use the same method to deal with the King of Liao in the future?
Mu Qi was furious and planned thousands of ways to deal with the royal vassal in his mind, but after sitting in the mansion for several days, he never saw any enemy coming to slap him in the face. A few days later, he had no time to wait any longer. The imperial edict of the Ministry of Rites' joint examination was finally posted. A total of 138 candidates passed the examination, and the number of selected candidates was basically as expected. Zhang Taiyue ranked ninth, Hai Gangfeng and Wu Chengen failed, and only Gui Zhenchuan was lucky. He didn't know which butterfly flapped his wings, but he actually broke through the inertia of history and jumped over the dragon gate. Although his ranking was low, he did not fail after all.
As soon as the imperial edict came out, they had to get busy with the palace examination. The prince of Duke Mu and other noble sons had to practice all the etiquette of the imperial procession and the riding parade. Even the etiquette of congratulating and comforting several followers in the mansion had to be done by the butler. Of course, they had no time to take care of a harmless and refreshing novel.
At 1:15 am on March 18th, Lord Feixuan arrived at the Huangji Hall and summoned members of the Ministry of Rites and the Cabinet. At 2:15 am, nobles and the Embroidered Uniform Guards escorted more than a hundred successful candidates in the joint examination to the east side of the Meridian Gate and waited outside the Huangji Hall. At 3:15 am, the Cabinet drafted the questions for the Emperor to review and approve, and the candidates entered the hall one by one, paid homage to the Emperor, and were then led by eunuchs into the hall to sit at tables and chairs that had been prepared long ago. After the cabinet reads out the imperial edict, all outsiders are asked to leave and the palace examination begins immediately.
For the candidates who had fought hard to come to the fore, this was probably a glimmer of hope that they had finally seen after more than ten years of hard study. It was difficult to suppress their excitement and joy, let alone write calmly. But for the nobles who acted as ceremonial officials, this was basically commonplace and did not arouse the slightest interest. Compared with the examination questions that were taken every three years, they were more interested in the changes in the candidates in the palace - as usual, Lord Xia took sick leave; but in addition to Li Jurong and Li Mianhua, Lord Xu and Lord Yan, who had been missing for many days, unexpectedly reappeared among the cabinet ministers, and even personally participated in the formulation of the examination questions, as if they had regained their former power.
The palace examination was an extremely solemn occasion. Even after retreating outside the door, no one dared to speak and could only communicate with each other through eye contact. But in this mysterious and strange atmosphere, Mu Qi was suddenly pulled by someone on his sleeve.
Gao Suqing, the scholar of the Spring Office who was ordered to seal and seal the documents, came over at some point and whispered softly:
"Does the Crown Prince have any grudges against the vassal states outside the region?"
Mu Qi was stunned for a moment and nodded slightly.
"No wonder." Master Gao said softly, "Yesterday, His Royal Highness Prince Yu received news that Prince Yin, who was enfeoffed in Luoyang, was also ordered to come to the capital to pay tribute. Prince Yin likes Taoism and has presented poems to Your Majesty many times. This time he also brought an alchemist to the capital..."
They are all vixens who came from Lao Deng's group. As soon as Mu Qi heard them, he knew that this King Yin must be an extremely difficult character to mess with. According to the hierarchy of family order, the contemporary King Yin is considered the elder among the clans and vassals. Such a person also believes in Taoism and presents Qingci to the emperor, which undoubtedly provides strong clan support for the absurd behaviors of Master Feixuan and Master Wanshou. For such a considerate and caring person who can serve as a model of royal friendship, Lao Deng will definitely be close to him, trust him, and indulge him in every way.
"This Prince Yin must be very popular with the emperor." Mu Qi said in a gentle tone: "...But I have no connection with Prince Yin's Mansion."
"Is that so?" said Gao Xueshi. "But, before entering the capital, this Prince Yin, together with General Zhu Chongzhuo, submitted an impeachment petition, cursing everyone in the cabinet. He was particularly rude to the Crown Prince. In addition to impeaching him for various crimes, he also quoted the Taoist's deceitful words, saying that the Crown Prince was 'possessed by evil spirits' and that was why he behaved so 'erratically'..."
Hearing this, Mu Qi's face suddenly changed!
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