It is said that in the evening of that day during the storm, Zheng Yinian, who had just returned home after going out to gather information, went straight to his brother Zheng Xiunian's bedroom, and then dismissed the maids and questioned his brother face to face in the bedroom:
"Brother, tell me the truth. Do you have anything to do with the lies about Hanfang Garden? Why is it that after I asked around, they all said that you were one of the people who happened to be at Hanfang Garden that day?"
Zheng Xiunian, who had been at home on sick leave for the past few days, looked pale and was speechless for a long time.
When Zheng Yinian saw this, he understood what was happening. He stood up and stamped his feet vigorously on the ground, then turned around and asked, "Brother, why are you so confused?"
"Isn't it true that I feel resentful?" Zheng Xiunian, who was lying on the couch and wrapped in a small quilt pretending to be sick, was extremely depressed and could only explain in a low voice. "The property is gone, and the official rank of attendant that the Emperor Taishang Daojun bestowed upon us brothers is also gone. All that's left is some floating wealth that we can't live on. Thinking about how prosperous our family was in the past, but now it's gradually declining in my hands, I'm naturally resentful... And that day when I was watching Cuju, I happened to drink some wine in the box with some relatives and friends, and we talked about this matter. When I felt resentful, I wrote that little poem before leaving..."
"So what if I'm upset?" Zheng Yinian was furious. "That must be a military commander!"
"At the time, I felt that the government was not too strict except for military affairs." Zheng Xiunian frowned slightly on the couch. "Who could have thought that the government would turn against us so easily? After all, I always felt that our official positions were granted by the Supreme Dao Emperor. Our Zheng family is also a family of prime ministers for generations, and we are relatives of the Empress Dowager. How could he be so disrespectful? I would say..."
"If you ask me, the Emperor Taishang Daojun is a piece of shit!!" Zheng Yinian was furious when he saw that his brother was still stubborn and jumped in front of the bed. "Emperor Taishang Daojun had to mend his own clothes in Wuguo City! He couldn't stand the hardship and cut his clothes into strips to hang himself, but he didn't even have the courage to die. He cried with his bare chest and finally had to find a gold man to find needles and thread to ask the Queen Mother to help him sew it again... How can such a person be respectable?! You still want to rely on such a person for respect?!"
Zheng Xiunian was frightened by his brother for a moment.
But Zheng Yinian seemed to be completely angry, and his face was ferocious. "Brother, let me ask you, do you know where the word respectability comes from? If you don't know, I do! After I went to Wuguo City, I knew that if you want to be respectable, you need to have this strength to support you. But where does strength come from? Isn't it the two words of soldiers and horses?! And whoever holds the soldiers and horses today can be respectable! Whoever has the strongest and most powerful soldiers and horses is the most respectable! The Jin people had strong soldiers and horses, and respectability was given by the Jin people. Later, the emperor spent five years and gritted his teeth to train 200,000 imperial camp troops, and became the most respectable person in the world! But what about you? You know nothing about respectability and strength! You actually think you can rely on a captive from Wuguo City to talk about respectability with the most respectable person in the world? You are not asking for respectability, you are going to bury our Zheng family for something that has been lost long ago!"
"You're too kind, second brother." With one polite remark after another, Zheng Xiunian was frightened by his brother and could only comfort him slightly.
"What a polite remark!" Zheng Yinian was still furious. "Brother, I only want to ask you one thing. Have you ever thought about what we will do if Yang Yizhong tracks us down? Do you really know what it feels like to be exiled? I tell you, after a trip to Wuguo City, your brothers now think that Dongjing City is a paradise! And you insist on having your entire family suffer with you? Not to mention, you wrote that kind of crooked words. If you are really punished for criticizing the emperor and inciting people, you will not only be exiled, but you will also be in danger of your life!"
Zheng Xiunian thought of the most direct threat in front of him, and softened his tone again: "When I wrote the inscription that day, there was only a servant holding ink beside me..."
Halfway through their conversation, the two brothers were stunned. Then, Zheng Xiunian was about to turn over and get up from the bed, but Zheng Yinian, who looked pale, raised his hand to stop him.
"What do you mean, Old Second?" Zheng Xiunian lowered his voice. "We should learn from the past and punish the person, right?"
"You can't escape..." Zheng Yinian's voice was trembling. "The key is not that person, but the fact that the public opinion is accusing us, and the emperor is very dissatisfied with the fact that I brought the two saints' letters that day. Under such circumstances, those people would like to punish us severely to please the emperor... Therefore, as long as they find us, keeping the servant is of course a witness, but getting rid of him is evidence that we are afraid of the crime!"
"Then..." Zheng Xiunian finally panicked. "Should I go and reward him?"
"How can anyone withstand it under Wu Mu?"
"Is there really no way out?"
"I can't think of it." Zheng Yinian's heart was cold, but he was trying to think. "You wrote an inscription based on my situation, and the words in the poem said 'It's better to go home and be a commoner'. Anyone can think of me. This is the first reason. And you are clearly a suspect among the people who watched Cuju that day. You can find out with a little inquiry. This is the second reason... Therefore, it only took Yang Yi two days to find our house. Since he found it, it is impossible to leave this loophole."
Zheng Xiunian was at a loss.
Zheng Yinian angrily punched the bedside table and said, "If I had known this would happen, I might as well have gone to Jinan. I could have lived another half a year! Maybe I could have been exiled a year or two later..."
Zheng Xiunian was slightly startled, but hesitated to speak.
Zheng Yinian was also stunned when he saw his brother's expression.
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