Chapter 1219 Amnesty
The emperor thought about it, but didn't hesitate. He nodded and asked, "Did you ask Minister Feng and the others to plead for mercy?"
The prince frowned, "No, I'll just talk to my father directly. What do I need them for?"
The emperor pondered, "Who found them?"
The next day the emperor knew who had found them. There was nothing he could do because Bai Shan's story was too brilliant. More importantly, he went back and discussed it with Man Bao and Bai Erlang. The three of them filled in the gaps and mixed together stories that were seven parts true and three parts false, which completely fascinated the classmates in the Imperial Academy and their families.
Even someone like Minister Feng was still obsessed with the story after hearing it from his grandson, and he even took the time to go to the Heavenly Prison to see Mingxue.
Good stories always spread quickly, especially when they originate in a place with a strong academic atmosphere like the Imperial College.
Everyone communicated with each other after class and got together after school, so the idea spread from the Imperial College to the next door Taixue, and then to the next door Simenxue.
At the same time, the brothers and sisters at home were also very interested, and the reunion of the sisters spread in the backyard.
The next day, Yin Li told the emperor about this matter as a casual conversation after the court session.
As the prefect of Jingzhao, he would "chat" with the emperor about things in the capital, including gossip about his family, interesting stories or matters involving ministers in the court.
The emperor became interested and asked, "Did Xiang Mingxue really enter a cave that looked like a paradise after falling into the water and find the martial arts secret manual there?"
Yin Li smiled faintly and said, "I also asked Minister Feng, and he said he asked Xiang Mingxue, and Xiang Mingxue said he learned swordsmanship from a knight while fleeing, and there's no such thing as a cave."
The emperor was slightly disappointed. "But he has worked very hard to transform from a weak scholar into a knight-errant warrior in such a short time."
Yin Li said, "When I led the troops to Suizhou, I checked. The Xiang family of Dongxizhuang is quite famous in Suizhou. They moved to Suizhou during the Wei and Jin dynasties. Their ancestors had a governor in the previous dynasty. Unfortunately, due to the subsequent wars, their descendants were not good and no one was able to enter the government. However, the direct descendants have been studying all the time, so they can be regarded as a family of poetry and literature."
The emperor sighed, thought for a while, took out the letter of plea from the Shangshu, signed the word "pardon" on it, stamped it and put it aside.
Yin Li saw it, lowered his eyes and stood obediently aside.
The emperor paid no attention to his movements and continued to ask, "When you went to mobilize the Western Army, did you take a look at their defenses?"
"I've reviewed it. There were some minor omissions, and General Lu corrected them immediately."
The emperor nodded. "Now that you've seen it, what do you think of Tibet's current fighting strength?"
Yin Li was startled and frowned, saying, "It's better than it was more than ten years ago. However, since the third year of Dazhen, Tubo has already pledged allegiance to our Great Jin. Your Majesty..."
The emperor showed him a letter from the Ministry of Rites and said, "An envoy from Tubo has arrived, saying that there has been a snowstorm on the grasslands this year, so the annual tribute has been reduced by half."
Yin Li quickly took it.
The Emperor said, "I don't want to fight, but if they have wicked ambitions, I'm not afraid. You led the Western Army before, and you've guarded the border before. Tell me, if war breaks out, how many troops would we need?"
It's not about whether they can win, but how many troops are needed. Obviously, the emperor believes they can definitely win.
Yin Li also felt that they would definitely win if a fight really broke out, but why did they have to fight?
As the prefect of Jingzhao, he knew how serious this pit was, so he pushed the blame back to the emperor, "I have been away from the border for many years and know very little about the current military strength of Tubo. Your Majesty, why don't you summon Minister Li to ask him about it.
Matters like war should be discussed with the Minister of War Li Zhen, oh, and the Minister of Revenue Liu Hui.
The emperor was slightly disappointed that he could not get any advice from Yin Li, so he waved his hand and asked him to leave.
As soon as he left, the emperor handed the approved memorials to Gu Zhong, especially the one requesting Xiang Mingxue's pardon, which he placed on top. "Tell Tang Qing, who is on duty, that although the empress dowager is ill, her hearing and eyesight are fine. Tell them to be quiet."
Gu Zhong quickly agreed and was about to leave when the emperor called him back. He coughed and said, "Send two smart people out of the palace and listen to what people outside are saying about the Xiang family."
Yin Li was good in every way except that he spoke in a plain and straightforward manner with a stern face. No matter how good a story was, it would lose some of its value once it was told by him.
When Gu Zhong heard this, he knew that the emperor was playing a joke. He immediately raised his voice to respond, bowed and retreated.
As the head of the Censors, Lord Tang had of course heard the stories circulating outside, and he knew them in more detail than anyone else.
This story was made up by the three children. He laughed out loud when he thought about the day when he just returned home and received a gift of Jianzhou specialties from Zhou Man.
From the time the three young men came to Beijing until now, as if to avoid being associated with County Magistrate Tang, they have never visited him in person. Even when he was imprisoned before, their family always passed on information through Wei Zhi and never visited him, let alone gave him gifts.
Now that the dust has settled, they finally came. They came as soon as they came. A group of people from Mianzhou came to see him, the father of the chief official of Yizhou, and what they brought was actually the local specialties of Jianzhou.
Old Lord Tang took the memorial to find Ji Xiang, and took Ji Xiang to find Shangshu Feng. Coincidentally, the government office had not yet closed.
Because there was a big boss reviewing and delivering the memorial, the memorial that should have been sent to the Ministry of Justice early the next morning arrived in the hands of Shangshu Feng shortly afterwards.
Then, after Minister Feng glanced at Ji Xiang and Old Master Tang, he summoned Tao Yi, handed him the memorial, and said, "Release the two men in the prison."
Tao Yi took it and quickly scanned the memorial. He glanced at Ji Xiang and Old Master Tang, who were sitting in their superior's office drinking tea. Wisely, he didn't ask any more questions. He bowed and withdrew, then thought for a moment. He summoned a clerk and said, "Go to Changqing Lane, find the Bai family, and have them pick him up from the Heavenly Prison. Tell them that His Majesty has pardoned Xiang Mingxue out of great grace."
The clerk quickly agreed.
Tao Yi then began to prepare the information to release the person from the Heavenly Prison.
To release someone, you can't just go to the prison and open the lock. You have to go through the procedures. You have to write down clearly why the person was imprisoned and why he was released.
By the time Tao Yi finished writing the document, his other colleagues in the Ministry of Justice had already left the office and gone home. He had no choice but to work overtime to get to the Sky Prison. Zhou Man and the others were squatting on the steps in front of the Sky Prison waiting for him.
As soon as she saw him coming, she jumped up and greeted him with a smile on her face.
Tao Yi couldn't help but sigh, "It's good to have connections. You guys are free and convenient, but I still have to work overtime for you."
Bai Shan immediately said, "Master Tao, we were very grateful for your care when we were in prison. We also brought you some Jianzhou specialties."
Tao Yi paused. He didn't feel that he couldn't accept the gift, but he felt it was strange. "Jianzhou? Aren't you from Mianzhou?"
(End of this chapter)
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