Chapter 262 Causes and Consequences
In the imperial study, the only sound that could be heard was the deep and shallow breathing.
After a long while, the emperor suppressed his anger and gave a scolding.
“Bold.”
Zheng Xinglan immediately lowered his head and knelt on the ground, not daring to breathe.
Huo Jin looked at the letter that the emperor had thrown out and vaguely saw the words "food and grass". His eyes turned and he advised, "Your Majesty, please take care of your body and don't get angry."
The emperor panted, glanced at Huo Jinjian, but didn't say anything else.
He rubbed his brows, his eyes filled with a sinister look of impending storm.
Seeing this, Huo Jin turned his head and gave Xiao Wang a calm look.
The prince understood what he meant and picked up the important letters and placed them neatly on the table in front of the emperor.
Huo Jin picked up a letter casually, read the contents, and his eyebrows jumped.
No wonder the emperor, who never showed his emotions, was so angry.
Li Mingce not only wanted to rebel, but also colluded with three nomadic tribes on the border.
He even made a promise that as long as he ascended the throne, he would give up three border cities to the three nomadic tribes that helped him.
It took the late emperor almost ten years to defend these three cities.
Li Mingce made the promise and sent it out so easily.
The emperor just sent the letter out, and that was good enough.
"Jinjian, what do you think should be done?" The emperor suddenly looked at Huo Jinjian with a deep look in his eyes.
Huo Jin knew that the emperor's question to him must be more than just a simple one.
"Your Majesty, please allow me to ask Envoy Zheng a question first." Huo Jin asked the emperor.
Seeing the emperor nod, he put down the letter in his hand and glanced at Zheng Xinglan lying on the ground, his tone undisguised in questioning.
"Envoy Zheng, how did you escape from the border without being discovered by the prince?"
According to common sense, since there is an attempt at rebellion, it must be strictly guarded against. People like Zheng Xinglan, even if they are exiled, will be the focus of attention.
After all, they would want to redeem themselves from their crimes and return to the court.
Huo Jin's words awakened the emperor.
Such a serious act as treason was done by his most trusted younger brother, which almost made him lose his mind with anger and overlook such an important point.
Seeing the emperor's eyes become full of suspicion, Zheng Xinglan smiled bitterly.
"Your Highness is indeed very clever. Nothing can be hidden from you."
Huo Jin saw that his expression was indifferent and he did not show any self-satisfied joy from being praised. He continued to look at him calmly.
Zheng Xinglan sighed heavily and kowtowed again: "It was the Prince of Zhenbei who specially released this guilty minister."
The air in the imperial study was frozen.
Huo Jin felt the murderous aura emanating from the emperor beside him. If Zheng Xinglan continued to respond like this, the emperor would probably be furious.
He put his fist to his lips and coughed lightly: "Your Majesty, please make your words clear once and for all."
I don’t know what’s wrong with these people. They always have to finish their sentences halfway and wait for the emperor to chop off their heads?
Zheng Xinglan was afraid of the power of heaven.
They were different from the extremely favored Huo Jin, and were born with a fear of the king.
Even if the emperor in front of him was the most benevolent and kind emperor in history, his heart was unpredictable. If he made a mistake, he would probably just be beheaded, but his family might also be implicated.
Therefore, no matter which dynasty, people developed the habit of looking at the emperor's expression before speaking.
After receiving Huo Jinjian's clear instructions, Zheng Xinglan quickly explained the whole process.
It turned out that Zheng Xinglan was highly valued by the King of Zhenbei when he was at the border.
The reason was simple. Zheng Xinglan was demoted because he wrote a poem, which was maliciously copied by his political enemies.
The poem was originally just his praise of the night scenery of Solitary Mountain, but people twisted its meaning into that he was satirizing the emperor's incompetent rule.
Leaning on the railing, I look out into the distance, where the wild smoke reaches the horizon and the autumn weeds stretch for thousands of miles to the distant shore.
The willows on the embankment are blown by the wind, their shadows are in disarray; the river waves crash against the shore, making the water muddy and fishy.
Huo Jin had seen this poem and found it very well written.
It’s a pity that because of the last sentence, the person who reported him said it was a beautiful scenery but followed it with a sentence that the river god was turbid and had a fishy smell. Doesn’t this mean that the officialdom seems calm but is actually filthy?
In order to frame him, the man bribed Zheng Xinglan's servants in advance and hid many poetry collections expressing dissatisfaction with the emperor in his home.
Even Zheng Xinglan's concubine came forward to testify.
However, even though his outrageous remarks were confirmed, the emperor only demoted him to be a frontier governor, which shows his mercy.
However, such a talented person was demoted, and naturally felt depressed and frustrated.
On the first day Zheng Xinglan arrived at the border, Li Mingce treated him with courtesy and showed him respect and courtesy.
At the beginning, Zheng Xinglan was very grateful to Li Mingce, but later he gradually found something wrong.
Li Mingce always held a big banquet on the fifteenth day of every month, but he did not allow Zheng Xinglan to attend.
Although Zheng Xinglan didn't care, he was also curious.
Until one day he seized the opportunity, sneaked in and saw that Li Mingce was actually receiving the tomb guards of three surrounding nomadic tribes, and immediately realized that something was wrong.
"From then on, I flattered the prince and gained his trust. I followed him around, imitated his handwriting, and replaced these letters with real ones."
Zheng Xinglan paused and continued, "This trip to the capital is an opportunity given to me by the prince. It is to let me, a guilty minister, inform Your Majesty that the border is unstable and needs food and fodder support to quell the rebellion."
"If that's the case, why doesn't Your Highness write a letter and tell us directly?" Huo Jin frowned.
He already had a guess in his mind.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
