"Your Majesty, the fact is that Duke Yansheng really did carry three treasures that looked like Confucius' tablets and went south. Everyone in the world knows this." As expected, it was Li Guang, the Chief Censor, who couldn't hold back his temper. "Moreover, he was such a special person. He took three holy objects with the Empress Dowager and went south. If he didn't leave them to the Jin people, it would be equivalent to keeping his loyalty and fulfilling his duties. And everyone in the world knows this... Why should Your Majesty pretend to be deaf and dumb?"
Zhao Jiu reacted and felt embarrassed for a moment.
"Your Majesty," Zhai Ruwen came out to smooth things over after seeing this. "Actually, there are some other versions of this matter..."
"oh?"
"Your Majesty, besides Duke Yansheng himself, there is also a 46th generation grandson of Confucius on the list, who is none other than the uncle of Duke Yansheng Kong Duanyou, Kong Ruogu... Rumor has it that Kong Ruogu was the one who pushed Duke Yansheng to abandon his family temple in Qufu and follow you and the Queen Mother south. But no matter what, it is certain that Duke Yansheng remained faithful to his husband."
Zhao Jiu was completely speechless... At this point, he didn't understand that he might have really encountered a weirdo from the Kong family. Or maybe it was the other way around, maybe it was because those who were willing to keep their chastity went south this time that the people left behind in another time and space would develop a family tradition of going with the flow, and then the old lady Jiujin, each generation is worse than the previous one.
In fact, with Zhai Ruwen's detailed introduction, Zhao Jiu learned some more specific information:
For example, uncle and nephew Kong Duanyou and Kong Ruogu went south, while the one who stayed in Qufu to guard the ancestral temple was his younger brother Kong Duancao, who was taken to Jinan by Liu Yu for control.
Later, after Qufu was recovered, Kong Duancao was detained in Jinan by Liu Yu. Kong Duanyou immediately sent his cousin Kong Ruogu back to take charge of the situation. Then, after Yue Fei defeated Li Cheng, he personally led his family back north with the three sacred objects.
When he arrived in Qufu to meet up with his uncle, he learned that his brother and Liu Yu had been abducted to Hebei by E'lubu. This contemporary Duke Yansheng quickly wrote a letter to the capital to plead guilty for his brother, pointing out that his brother was abducted after he stayed behind in the ancestral temple, and hoped to be pardoned.
It does not matter whether this series of measures was led by Kong Duanyou or his uncle Kong Ruogu, because anyone who faces the Kong family's performance from the time when the Jingkang Kingdom changed to the present time has to admit that they have done things cleanly and beautifully, and their integrity, filial piety and family affection are beyond reproach.
The way this matter was handled was enough to shame a certain official who was sitting in the pavilion listening to the story.
In fact, even Zhao Jiu, who had been looking at the Yanshenggong family through tinted glasses for nearly a thousand years, had to personally approve the list with commendation recommendations for Kong Duanyou and Kong Ruogu after sighing for a long time, and then pardoned Kong Duancao remotely.
What can I say?
Can he still go out and complain, saying that he happened to meet a Yansheng Duke who didn't let down his guard? Do you despise the Kong family for being righteous to the Zhao family?
Please don’t embarrass yourself... Even a fool can see that during the Jingkang Incident, the Kong family was much more shameless than the Zhao family!
"The Kong family is so outstanding, and their family is so special, they should be commended." Zhao Jiu signed and sealed the thick list, and then the senior official Lan stepped forward to stamp the seal. Taking this opportunity, the official thought for a moment and asked the important officials in front of him again. "But I saw that the provincial government only gave the purple robe to Kong Duanyou and the red robe to Kong Ruogu... Considering the role of the Kong family as an example, isn't this reward a bit too light?"
Liu Ji, who was in charge of this matter, nodded and said seriously: "To be honest with you, we have indeed discussed this matter and there is this view. But now that all the positions in the library have been abolished and the national finances have been simplified, there is really no other way... We can't let the Duke of Yansheng go to Qingzhou, right?"
Zhao Jiu nodded slightly and was about to let the matter go.
However, Emperor Zhao's fingers brushed across another list on the stone table in front of him, and he suddenly remembered something, and then his heart moved slightly: "I remember when I just looked at the first booklet, we talked about Han Xiaozhou's reward?"
"Yes." Prime Minister Zhao Ding pointed out sharply, bypassing Liu Ji. "Han Xiaozhou was originally appointed as a Chengwulang by grace, and served as a secretary in Kaifeng Prefecture. Then he was granted the same status as Shangshe, and was appointed as a junior minister of the Imperial Guards. He was also appointed as the governor of Jiangzhou. He has a lot of experience. With such experience, plus his merits in being an envoy to the Northern Kingdom to seek the favor of the two emperors and the Queen Mother, and his integrity in being detained by Nianhan but never losing his integrity, he should be rewarded accordingly to convince people. However..."
"However, with this background, qualifications, integrity and merit, it is impossible to be satisfied unless he is given a position as prime minister." Zhao Jiu understood. "But how can he be prime minister? And there are some things that you didn't say, but I know in my heart that this person has a background that others can't match. He was a Yin official in Kaifeng Prefecture and was able to wear a purple robe and jump to the position of Shaoqing. Later, the diplomatic mission was also opportunistic... Besides, I have also seen this person and know that he is an honest and incompetent person. It is impossible to entrust him with important military and national responsibilities."
Zhai Ruowen could not help but cough dryly, apparently not used to Emperor Zhao's directness. However, as long as the others remained silent, he knew that Emperor Zhao was obviously hitting the nail on the head.
"So we have to think of a way to give some explanation to Han Xiaozhou, the uncle and nephew of the Kong family, but we can't give a proper place to those who are properly sent." Zhao Jiu finally said what he meant. "I just thought of it... Aren't we gradually matching the official positions with their actual status? Only the title of the Secret Council is an additional status, so why not give them an explanation like the Secret Council attendee status?"
"Your Majesty, are you saying that we should build a fake secret pavilion?" Prime Minister Zhang Jun suddenly realized and couldn't help but blurt out, "For example, we can use the empty old Shangshu Province compound outside Xuande Building to build an outer pavilion?"
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