Chapter 159 Today’s Zhonghe Hall is Too Scary (Part 2)
Yang Guofu quickly lowered his head, not daring to look at the empress again.
But my heart suddenly skipped a beat for no apparent reason.
Li Jiulang suddenly knelt down and asked, "Your Majesty, what are you looking at me doing?"
Is it to see my reaction?
Or what do you want me to do.
Yang Guofu lowered his head, speculating secretly in his heart.
But immediately, Yang Guofu was suddenly surprised, because he thought that he was actually guessing the emperor's intention.
Own
Are you actually trying to guess the Holy Will?!
Three years ago, when the new emperor ascended the throne, he didn't care at all about the little girl sitting above him. What empress? She was just a little girl in the royal family who had obtained the throne.
No intention at all!
Therefore, during the past three years, although he found that this little girl always looked at everyone in a timid manner when attending court, he naturally cared less about it.
Sometimes when I noticed that little girl was looking at me, I would just look back at her. There was nothing to be afraid of.
It has come to this.
Not to mention guessing what that little girl is thinking. Why bother guessing? I just do whatever I want to do!
But now
Yang Guofu found that he didn't dare to look directly at Her Majesty, and even began to wonder what she was thinking!
In addition to Yang Guofu
Almost everyone in the hall was surprised that Li Jiulang suddenly knelt down and apologized.
Li Jiulang naturally knew that everyone was looking at him. He took out another memorial from his arms, held it in both hands and said loudly: "My crime is that after the death of the previous emperor, I assisted Li Nishang in her treacherous behavior, and even assisted Li Nishang in forming a clique with my father's former students Wang Maoqing, Ding Ruzhen, Zhu Kewen and other senior officials in the court. They planned to form a treacherous party to humiliate Your Majesty's youth, disrupt politics, cause chaos, and disrupt the imperial examination. The clique members also used Li Nishang and my reputation to claim military merits, cause chaos to the people, and enclose land and occupy land. These crimes are unforgivable! There are ten major crimes in total!"
"The first crime is that when your Majesty first ascended the throne, Li Nishang ordered Wang Maoqing and Zhu Kewen to consult with the ministers on everything that your Majesty did. Zhu Kewen used his position as the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel to do things that were convenient for him, and arbitrarily tampered with your Majesty's intentions to achieve his own interests. Even if your Majesty occasionally spoke out and issued an order, Zhu Kewen would arbitrarily tell others that the emperor had no such intention at first, and that this matter was decided by Li Nishang, probably because he was afraid that people in the world would not know that the power of the matter came from him. This concealed the emperor's achievements in governance and told people in the world that your Majesty was mediocre and inactive, and that all the things that benefited the world were done by Li Nishang, Zhu Kewen, Wang Maoqing and others. I knew about this, but because I thought that Li Nishang was my sister, I turned a blind eye and did not stop her from doing this. This is my first crime."
That's all.
Li Jiulang looked at Xia Fengxiang.
Xia Fengxiang looked at Li Jiulang expressionlessly.
Because I already knew that Li Jiulang would apologize in this way, after all, it was agreed upon.
In the name of apologizing, he exposed the crimes of Li Nishang, Yan Jingqing, and Zhu Kewen.
As for the purpose
Xia Fengxiang has been looking at Yang Guofu.
But everyone in the hall gasped.
Looking at Li Jiulang kneeling on the ground with his back straight and his hands holding the memorial, I felt inexplicably moved.
You are serious about this!
His Majesty took the initiative to help you avoid Li Nishang this morning. Now all you need to do is criticize Li Nishang!
Even some of Xia Fengxiang's close ministers, such as Zhang Gu, did not expect Li Jiulang to behave like this suddenly.
Zhang Gu even planned to go up and stop him, but seeing that the emperor looked normal, he inexplicably remembered that the day before, when he was in the Ministry of Revenue, Li Jiulang came to his office specifically and explained many matters of the Ministry of Revenue in detail.
At that time, Zhang Gu wondered whether Li Jiulang suddenly behaved like this because he wanted to focus all his attention on the affairs in Japan and hand over many matters of the Ministry of Revenue to him.
But now it seems that Li Jiulang might have already been prepared for this at that time.
Yang Guofu lowered his head, not daring to speak, let alone say anything, not even daring to breathe.
Because of what Li Jiulang said
They Yang Dang also did it!!
And because the Taifu was the minister entrusted with the care of the young emperor, his actions were even more excessive than those of the Empress Dowager's party!
When Yang Guofu heard Li Jiulang mention the crime, he dared not say anything.
Not a single sentence mentioned the Yang Party, but every single sentence was also talking about the Yang Party!
Li Jiulang continued, "In the past, the censor Yan Ci met the Queen Mother, Zhu Kewen, Wang Maoqing and others who oppressed Your Majesty, so he wrote a memorial to impeach them. However, Wang Maoqing intercepted them halfway, and the memorial did not reach the ears of the emperor, let alone the hands of the Minister of the Central Secretariat. Later, Zhu Kewen and Wang Maoqing retaliated and framed Lord Yan Ci for abusing his power in the prison for three months. Although he was rescued by Your Majesty, Lord Yan Ci was upright and upright. After he was released from prison, he insulted Wang and Zhu in the street as traitors. Although Your Majesty tried his best to protect him, how could Your Majesty protect Lord Yan with his strength at that time? Therefore, Wang and Zhu held a grudge and used the Queen Mother's handwritten order to exile Lord Yan Ci to the poisonous insects and scorching heat in the southern border until now. Although I knew about it, I did not stop the two of them. I watched them die without saving them and turned a blind eye. Although I did not participate, I watched the loyal and good people of Daxia being harmed by traitors. This is my second crime!"
Everyone heard the name Yan Ci.
They all bowed their heads, and many loyal and honest people bowed their heads in shame.
Because at the beginning they were also hindered by the powerful influence of the Queen Mother's party. Even though some people tried to protect Yan Ci, they were ultimately unable to prevent the old man from being exiled.
Beads of sweat had already appeared on Yang Guofu's forehead.
He is also involved in this matter!
Although the people who were openly involved were Zhu Kewen, Wang Maoqing, and Li Nishang.
However, Yang Guofu hated Yan Ci, a troublemaker, and Yan Ci had once insulted him and his father Yang Shanchang in public, so he secretly gave him a push.
Instead of being demoted to a frontier county magistrate, Yan Ci was exiled to a remote place like Raojiang. He was even demoted to a county magistrate.
Yang Guofu almost forgot about this matter.
But if this matter is brought up now and a severe overturning of the verdict is given, it will definitely be discovered that Yang Guofu was secretly behind it.
Although he is not as guilty as Zhu Kewen and the other main culprits, how could this matter be known to His Majesty now?
So beads of sweat appeared on Yang Guofu's forehead.
Li Jiulang looked straight at Xia Fengxiang: "In the first year of Tianshou, Your Majesty ascended the throne and opened the special examination. Zhu Kewen, Wang Maoqing, Luo Shiwang and others made a lot of money during the special examination, disregarding the name of the imperial examination in Daxia, and took bribes under the pretext of the imperial examination. They ignored the examination papers of the poor students and only accepted the students who bribed them. During this period, there were 37 students, including Du Hong, the current governor of Fuyang in Xiangzhou, Ning Ling'er, the governor of Lin'an in Jiaodong, who were the ones who took advantage of the special examination. Later, they bribed Li Nishang, Zhu Kewen, and Luo Shiwang, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and their careers prospered. I knew about this, but did not stop it. This is my third crime."
"The second year of Tianshou."
Li Jiulang continued to talk about his crimes.
Tianshou was the reign title after Xia Fengxiang ascended the throne.
but
Every time Li Jiulang said this, Yang Guofu broke out in cold sweat on his forehead and back!
And it's not just him.
The crimes that Li Jiulang mentioned were all serious enough to punish the death penalty, and many members of the Yang Party were involved in these crimes.
As mentioned above about the third crime, Yan Jingqing did the same thing every year during the imperial examinations.
In addition, there is also the matter that Li Jiulang just said that Wang Maoqing embezzled the river construction funds. In that matter, Yan Jingqing and Wang Maoqing split it in half! There are also other things such as several people from the Queen Mother's Party enclosing land. The people of the Yang Party have also done a lot, and they fought in the name of the army.
so.
Yang Guofu was sweating profusely and stood there without daring to utter a word. The same was true for Yan Jingqing and other members of the Yang Party.
Li Jiulang said nine things in one breath. Although he was talking about the Queen Mother's Party, the Yang Party did more or less the same things. In some cases, the Yang Party even went further, such as in the imperial examinations.
Li Jiulang continued, "My tenth crime is that I am unworthy of being a scholar. I am ashamed of the late emperor, the people of Daxia, my original intention, and even more so of Your Majesty. The late emperor was critically ill and entrusted us with the task of serving Your Majesty and strengthening Daxia to fulfill the late emperor's unfulfilled ambitions. However, I disregarded the late emperor's will due to personal feelings. This is a crime of deceiving the emperor and being disrespectful. In addition to the ten crimes, there are countless smaller crimes. Please read them, Your Majesty."
Having said that, Li Jiulang held the memorial high in both hands.
After hearing the last sentence, Yang Guofu was completely certain that this was not an apology at all.
This is talking about him, this is talking about the Yang Dang!
Although many of these things were forbidden by the Grand Tutor, Yang Guofu rarely did anything above the ten crimes.
But I did it!
The most important thing.
What are the nine sins above?
It’s nothing compared to the tenth sin!
The tenth crime apparently means that he did not obey the late emperor's will and turned a blind eye to the humiliation of His Majesty by powerful officials.
But
Who is the powerful official and who bullied Your Majesty?
And also
Is Li Jiulang the only one entrusted by the late emperor?
His father was even present when the late emperor entrusted him with this task! !
Yang Guofu raised his eyes and looked at Li Jiulang, who was kneeling on the ground with his forehead touching the ground because his memorial was taken away by Feng Chun.
Subconsciously, I raised my eyes again.
Then
Yang Guofu saw that His Majesty was looking at him, and looking at him again!
And this time.
Yang Guofu was stunned for a moment.
When he saw the emperor who had just ascended the throne three years ago, he laughed at him and said he was unworthy of being an emperor, like a hungry young dragon waiting to be fed.
But now, looking back, it was as if there was a ferocious dragon behind him, with sharp teeth and claws, majestic and terrifying. The blood-red eyes stared directly at him, and he was terrified!
Sudden.
Yang Guofu saw Xia Fengxiang looking at him and smiling.
Yang Guofu was horrified, as if he saw a giant dragon behind Xia Fengxiang looking down on him. Oh, yes, Xia Fengxiang had also looked at him and smiled like this three years ago.
What happened at that time? It seemed that after returning home, I told Yan Jingqing and the others that I was just a young girl and could only smile foolishly when sitting on the dragon throne.
Three years
No, that's not right. I have been hiding my shortcomings from before, and they are just showing now.
"His Majesty!"
At this time, Zhang Gu stood up.
This sound brought Yang Guofu back to his senses, but when he did, he found that his inner clothes were already wet with cold sweat.
Zhang Gu stood up and bowed to the empress, then said, "Your Majesty, what Lord Li said about the crimes of Wang Maoqing and Zhu Kewen is true, but I think the crimes committed by the villains Wang Maoqing, Zhu Kewen and others cannot be attributed to Lord Li. Moreover, Lord Li has a very good reputation among the people. During festivals, he would send food, clothing and other items to the villages around the capital, and it was all in the name of the Ministry of Revenue, not in his own name. The Ministry of Revenue is the Ministry of Revenue of Daxia, and Daxia is your Majesty. The people are all in love with your Majesty!"
"During the time when Lord Li was the Minister of Revenue, the Great Xia treasury was full. Whenever there was a war or a disaster, the Taicang treasury in the capital was enough to solve the problem. Other treasuries were even expanded once every three years. This is all thanks to Lord Li!"
"In addition to the crimes mentioned by Lord Li, Lord Li has never participated in them. How can he be guilty? Lord Li and I have worked together for decades, and I admit that I am not as good as Lord Li. Although he helped the Queen Mother when Your Majesty ascended the throne, the situation at that time was that even if Lord Li did not help, the Queen Mother could stop him with her power. Even if Lord Li had stopped her, would the evil woman have returned to her right path?"
"Although we have tried our best, we are helpless in dealing with Lord Yanci's matter. However, I learned afterwards that Lord Li secretly sent people to take care of Lord Yanci's journey of a thousand miles to Raojiang. It was Lord Li who made arrangements for Lord Yanci to be appointed as the county magistrate of Yifu County, and Lord Li also took care of him in secret. How can such a thing be considered a crime? I hope Your Majesty will understand!"
After saying that, Zhang Gu seemed to have remembered something and immediately added: "The tenth crime that Lord Li mentioned is that when the late emperor passed away and entrusted him with his duties, many people in the court were present. It is not Lord Li's fault alone. Even if most people were watching, there were still treacherous ministers who disregarded the late emperor's legacy."
thump!
Just when Zhang Gu said this.
Yang Guofu slid down to his knees beside Li Jiulang, and after interrupting Zhang Gu's words, he bowed and said to Xia Fengxiang loudly: "Your Majesty, Lord Zhang is right. I think Lord Li is not only innocent, but also meritorious! The evil woman in the court disturbed the court affairs. If it weren't for Lord Li's mediation, he seemed to be of the same mind as the evil woman, but he was willing to compromise and protect Lord Yan. Not only did he protect our Great Xia from chaos, but he also protected the people of Great Xia for their well-being."
"The Ministry of Revenue is the foundation of the country. When the national treasury is full, the food and money of Great Xia are full, and the soldiers and horses of Great Xia are strong, and they are not coveted by the barbarians, Tubo, and the Western Regions. That evil woman Li Nishang has disrupted our government, but Lord Li has stood out from the crowd and has not been involved in corruption with the evil woman. You are worthy of being the pillar of Great Xia!"
At this point, Yang Guofu put his forehead to the ground and said loudly: "Your Majesty, please be careful and don't listen to what Lord Li said about asking for forgiveness and blaming himself."
Yang Guofu was shaking.
Many people saw it.
However, some of them did not understand what Yang Guofu was talking about.
Some people also guessed a little.
But only a few people know the truth.
And Yang Guofu himself knows this matter better.
The reason is simple. The only one who can plead for Li Jiulang is Yang Guofu, and only he can plead.
Because he is the leader of the Yang Party.
If Your Majesty wants to keep Li Jiulang, the person who pleads for him must be him, or his father.
This morning's game was to kill Li Nishang, but now this game
It was arranged for their Yang Party!
Is it necessary to make such a big fuss about the matter of that crazy woman Li Nishang?
It's a bunch of mess. After receiving the memorial, let the interrogators over there intensify the interrogation, and then go and ask those who no longer follow the Queen Mother and follow His Majesty, and that's it!
Then announce it to the world, etc.
Why is there such a big show? That woman is unworthy! Traitor! !
This is a fucking setup for their Yang Party!
They want their Yang party members, their father Yang Shanchang, and Yang Guofu to come out and protect Li Jiulang!
besides
Yang Guofu was also very clear that his plea had already been defeated.
It can be said that the Yang Party surrendered to Your Majesty.
This is the situation that Your Majesty has set up.
What happens next.
Maybe it's gradual erosion, maybe it's purging, maybe it's completely sidelining them.
Your Majesty has done all of these.
But Yang Guofu didn't know what it was specifically because he couldn't guess it, just like he couldn't guess what the late emperor was going to do before.
But the only thing he knew was that His Majesty did not take direct action because of Wen Daozhi and because there were still no actual crimes they had committed.
otherwise
Today's Li Nishang can also be today's Yang Shanchang or Yang Guofu!
Yang Guofu didn't know whether his father had seen through all this and therefore asked him to come, but he felt that his father must have noticed something but didn't see it all clearly, otherwise he would have come in person.
Think of this
Yang Guofu once again lamented how terrible the current emperor was, because he let his father do the interrogation and even let Su Wenqing watch.
How can I let my father do anything?
In this game, if I make any mistakes, it will all be because of me!!
Thinking of this, beads of sweat fell on Yang Guofu's forehead.
Because he thought of the memorial in his arms, it was a good thing that he did not submit it but dictated it directly. In the dictation, he told everyone everything about the King of Shu's people.
However, I had some thoughts in mind that I didn't write down on the memorial.
Thank goodness I didn’t pay!!
Fortunately, I was able to say it all out when I dictated it.
Yang Guofu knelt and pleaded for mercy.
Many people in the hall were stunned, especially Yan Jingqing and other members of the Yang Party.
However, everyone was puzzled, but when Yang Guofu did this, Yan Jingqing and others also stood up and knelt down together.
"Your Majesty, I second Lord Zhang's statement that Lord Li is not guilty."
"I second the motion!"
"I second this motion."
…
All of a sudden, many ministers of the Yang Party knelt down.
In addition, many good officials who knew that although Li Jiulang had been with the Queen Mother, he had actually done many good deeds and things that were beyond his conscience, also stood up and pleaded for mercy.
I don’t understand why Yang Dang came out to plead for mercy.
But you just beg for mercy, that's all.
Moreover, even you Yang Party members are begging for mercy, which further proves that Lord Li and that evil woman Li Nishang are not in cahoots with each other! !
And many people in Yang Party knelt down.
This also made the other ministers' hearts tremble. Looking at Xia Fengxiang's playful expression, they were surprised and extremely excited.
Three years.
Three years!!!
Your Majesty ascended the throne! After that, first the Queen Mother, then the Imperial Tutor and others controlled the government!
Thanks to the Grand Tutor and others for their hard work in the court!
But even so, the emperor was still bullied.
But now
Now I’m kneeling!
All these people knelt down!
What will be Li Nishang’s end? It must be death!
Moreover, the execution had to be done in the palace and it could not be paraded. After all, Li Nishang was the empress dowager in the past, and this was a matter of reputation for the court and dignity for the royal family.
Then there are the father and son duo of Taifu!
Although the Grand Tutor is not here now, Yang Guofu is kneeling on the ground and trembling!
How many years
This one-eyed wolf who usually showed off his power and arrogance has now knelt down before the emperor whom he despised!!
Although some of these officials wished that the emperor would order Yang Guofu to be sent to prison.
But he also knew that it was not the right time and that matters of state should never be handled in this way.
But when I saw Yang Guofu like this.
Enough!
That's enough!
My late emperor! Your Majesty is worthy of being your daughter! !
The four words "feel proud and high" were almost shown on the faces of those officials who had been secretly fighting against the Yang Party and the Empress Dowager Party from the beginning and who had only now spoken out!
Xia Fengxiang stood up.
Feng Chun, who was standing by, saw His Majesty was about to leave, and immediately lowered his head and followed beside him.
All the officials lowered their heads.
When Xia Fengxiang walked downstairs and stood in front of Yang Guofu, he looked at the one-eyed wolf trembling and asked, "I thought Lord Yang would learn from Lord Li and apologize, but I didn't expect him to plead for Lord Li."
Everyone in the hall was shocked when they heard this.
Yang Guofu was horrified and didn't dare to ask anything. Instead, he pressed his forehead to the ground and kowtowed: "I know my crime! Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
