Chapter 435: Evidence (End of Book)
The autumn wind was rustling, the sun was setting, and in the Mingdao Palace in Bozhou, Huainan East Road of the Song Dynasty, there was an interweaving of light and shadow and the air was refreshing and warm.
Not only that, at this moment, in this huge complex that serves as a temple, garden, and palace, armored warriors and nobles in red and purple can be seen everywhere. It can be seen that countless civil and military officials of the Song Dynasty are here.
Among them, the highest hill at the rear hall is the most tightly guarded and well-ordered. From afar, the Jinwu flag, which already looks old but still represents the supreme authority, is fluttering in the wind.
Everything is exactly the same as it was ten years ago, and everything is completely different from it was ten years ago.
The itinerary had been posted long ago on the bulletin boards in various passages - it was very tight. Today was the deadline for the rendezvous, and tomorrow they had to burn incense, bathe, and meditate. Three days later, they would hold a sacrifice. After the sacrifice, they would only have one day of peace and quiet before another banquet would be held to discuss matters. The total trip was only six or seven days, so naturally, the civil and military officials had a lot of discussions.
Even important officials like Chen Gui, Liu Ji and Yan Xiaozhong were somewhat nervous.
Of course, as Prime Minister Lu Gong is old and virtuous, he can naturally rest early. While Hu Yin is not here, Prime Ministers Zhao Ding and Zhang Jun can still stroll leisurely in the garden as they did ten years ago. Even Minister Lin Jingmo can fill their places to make up the three of them.
The atmosphere is very harmonious.
"By the way, have you read the last chapter of 'Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons'?" Zhao Ding chatted casually as he walked.
"I saw it." Zhang Jun laughed out loud on the spot, ignoring the people around him. "Guanyin said that the eighty-one difficulties were not enough, which led to the introduction of the old turtle turning over, which had been hidden for dozens of chapters, and exposed the wordless scriptures... As a result, Tang Sanzang suddenly realized that the Buddha's seat still needed to be pacified, and there were still demons in the Buddhist country of India, but the Dragon King of the Tang Dynasty rained at the wrong time, and the emperor's plea was in vain. It can be said that the government was in order, the people were harmonious, and the laws were strict... It can be seen that Buddhism had already spread eastward, and India had already become an empty shell. The scriptures were in the East, and practice was at your feet... He became a Buddha as soon as he said it... It was really the work of Wu... Master Wu."
Zhao Ding also laughed and twirled his beard: "It is indeed the work of Master Wu."
Just like that, the two of them plus Lin Jingmo laughed together for a while, and after a while, they saw a stone table and stone bench under the shadow of a tree, and the three of them walked over together, but they didn't sit down, but just stayed beside it for a while, and then continued chatting... After this action, the people around who knew what was going on had already avoided it.
"Prince Jingsai wrote a letter to oppose this trip?"
Under the shadow of the trees, Prime Minister Zhao Ding seemed to be lost in thought.
"yes."
Zhang Jun stood with his hands behind his back, his face calm. "It is said that Mingdao Palace is unlucky for the emperor... The sacrificial offerings can be performed by the prime minister, and the promotion of grace can be performed in Tokyo... In short, the memorial conveyed by the Privy Council strongly advises the emperor not to come here."
Zhao Ding nodded, then shook his head again: "What does Xifu think?"
"How can I see it?"
Zhang Jun remained calm. "The emperor did fall into a well here, and Prince Yang also had some embarrassing experiences here... When he executed Kang Lu, I and Prime Minister Lu were standing by, so it's normal for me to feel a little bit uneasy. But..."
"only……?"
"But Prince Yang submitted his letter to the Privy Council instead of the secret letter. I don't know what his intention is."
"It's impossible not to follow the secret code."
"The secret letter was sent together with the Privy Council," Zhang Jun said seriously. "The reaction seems to be a bit excessive... Is there really some inside story that you and I don't know?"
"What does Minister Lin think?" Zhao Ding hesitated for a moment, then looked at Lin Jingmo who had been silent.
"I think that Prince Yang is nominally the commander-in-chief, but in reality he is the leader of the eunuchs. Whatever he says and how he says it will be taken care of by the government... We other officials don't need to think too much about it." Lin Jingmo answered without hesitation.
"I thought so."
Zhao Ding nodded and passed it over. "It's another matter, have you heard about it?"
"What?"
"The incident that Wanqi Yuanzhong caused... He said that he wanted to make a special exception for the Restoration and directly canonize Zong, Lü, Wang, and Zhang. Zong and Lü will be canonized into the Confucian Temple, and Wang and Zhang will be canonized. Then, they will be officially canonized during this sacrifice."
"Forgive me for speaking frankly, but this guy is probably trying to get rid of the Duke of Pei by dancing with a sword... He wants to lift these four up so that they don't have to compete with everyone else for the 18 positions... But he is a little too anxious, and his methods are too crude. How can a living person like Lu Gong be ranked with three deceased people? And what does Lu Xianggong in Yanjing say? They say that this northern expedition has hollowed him out, and he can hardly survive the next winter... Do you want to go in together? Into the temple or as a deity?"
"My foolish brother also thinks so. Scholars like us do not care about any title, nor do we seek any godhood. As for the Confucian Temple, it is not based on merit, but on knowledge. It is a matter of one thing and another... Let's talk about this in private today. If we really want to talk about the Confucian Temple, only Prime Minister Lu Gong will have a better chance of success in the future."
"What is it that Prime Minister Lu is not sure about?" Zhang Jun shook his head and smiled bitterly. "However, this matter is not Wanqi Yuanzhong's fault... When the eighteen kings came out, everyone was still talking about it, but now it's the turn of the civil officials to compete for these eighteen positions, but everyone thinks it's too little, and Wanqi Yuanzhong's contribution is really a bit far... It's not just Wanqi Xie who is jumping up and down on this matter."
"That's true."
"I think this may not be the case." Just as Zhao and Zhang were discussing this matter frankly, Lin Jingmo, who had been silent behind them, suddenly spoke, causing the two people in front to stop and look back.
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