Chapter 49: Cow Cat and Erha Make Trouble in Tang Palace and Shock Everyone
When his wife took off her hairpin to apologize, Li Shimin was still unaware of this. He was secretly discussing with Guo Ziyi, Li Guangbi and others how to reduce the power of the military governors.
The palace servants did not dare to disturb him and waited until Li Shimin finished his discussion before reporting.
Li Shimin immediately became anxious after hearing this. Looking at the heavy rain outside, he glared at the palace maid fiercely, feeling anxious and angry:
"Why didn't you tell me about the Queen earlier? If you do it again, I'll kill you!"
The palace maids immediately knelt on the ground and apologized in fear, but Li Shimin had already rushed out with an umbrella.
Seeing his wife kneeling outside for who knows how long, soaking wet from head to toe, with her clothes clinging to her body, he felt so distressed that he quickly ran over to help her up:
"What are you kneeling here for? Get up quickly! It's raining heavily and it's cold at night. Be careful not to get sick!"
It's my fault, I just told you that I would take action against Wei family."
That was what he said at the time, but Li Shimin changed his mind today and made up his mind.
However, when he saw his wife kneeling there, her whole body cold and wet, he felt heartbroken.
After all, he is a relative of his wife's family. Since his wife pleads for mercy, he will not kill him.
At worst, we can just switch families and target them.
[Ah? No, Erfeng, are you such a tyrant?]
[Luckily, our Empress Changsun has always been virtuous. Otherwise, I even suspect that Erfeng would have become a love-crazed emperor!]
However, Empress Zhangsun remained unmoved. She pushed away the umbrella that Li Shimin had given her in the rain, knelt on the ground, and said:
"I am a member of the Wei clan, and instead of reflecting on my actions, I intend to use you to influence government affairs. This is a grave sin.
Wei is guilty, and I am also guilty. I am not worthy of being the mistress of the six palaces. I request Your Majesty to take back the Phoenix Seal.
If Your Majesty does not punish severely, it will be difficult to appease the public opinion and stabilize the people's hearts!"
Li Shimin was shocked when he heard this. He half-knelt on the ground, hugged his own queen, and used his sleeves to shield her from the heavy rain. With red eyes, he said:
"Are you blaming me?"
Empress Changsun shook her head:
"I know Your Majesty is a rare and good monarch in the world. If it is because of me that Your Majesty is unable to do what he wants to do, then it will be my fault."
"Your father once provided a lot of food and fodder. The Wei family's affairs have nothing to do with your father and brother's lineage. They were not involved."
“Although my father and brother did not participate, they did not stop it, so they are also guilty of this.
I have read in history books that the Han Dynasty suffered many disasters caused by relatives from outside the family, and the lessons of the Yang family are still before my eyes. I feel like I am walking on thin ice, and I only hope that Your Majesty will punish them severely."
After hearing this, Li Shimin hugged his queen and cried in the rain:
"With a wife like this, what more could a husband ask for!
I will obey you and punish the Wei family severely! Those who are guilty and those who fail to report the crime will be punished.
But the sins of one family are never committed by a married daughter. This matter has nothing to do with you. Get up quickly, or I will be really sad."
Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun hugged each other and cried in the rain for a long time before they got up and returned to their bedroom.
Li Shimin quickly asked someone to boil water and cook ginger and scallion soup according to the instructions on the sky curtain. He also made her some cold medicine to prevent her from catching a cold.
[Wow, the Queen is truly a good queen!
The Queen has made a great contribution to Erfeng's success as a wise ruler! Kneeling for a long time on a rainy night is too harmful to your health. Next time, remember to kneel down!
"What's easy about kneeling?" Li Shimin asked curiously.
Tianmu explained that this was something they learned from watching movies and TV dramas when they were young, to sew cotton or padding on the knees.
[Since your ancient clothes were so loose, what's wrong with using some padding?
We workers kneel like this when we work for you, otherwise we will get tired of our knees after working for you every day!
Justified.jpg]
No wonder those modern workers kneel so actively and neatly when they kowtow up and down every day!
These modern people are such a clever bunch!
Li Shimin was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, but he was very tempted and told his wife immediately.
Empress Changsun shook her head and said that if kneeling was so easy, how could she show her determination and make His Majesty make up his mind?
After hearing this, Li Shimin was so moved that his eyes were filled with tears. He immediately hugged his wife and took her to take a hot bath.
The live broadcast from the sky screen was suddenly cut off, leaving only a group of modern audiences beating their chests and stamping their feet!
[I should be in the car, not here!
Erfeng drove without me, treating us like outsiders. I'm so angry!
What kind of real-life Mary Sue version of the domineering CEO novel is Erfeng's family performing every day?
But the problem is that I never get to see the cars I love most! Erfeng, tell me, are you doing the right thing?
Is this fair? Is this reasonable? Why shouldn't I be allowed to participate in your two families?
The audience on the sky screen were extremely anxious because they couldn't see the key points, but at this time the Wei family outside the palace received news that the queen took off her hairpin and knelt for a long time.
Although we don't know what the emperor and empress said exactly, it is said that they cried bitterly after they finished speaking, and then reconciled as before. So the Wei family was immediately overjoyed, thinking that everything was settled.
The queen from their family must be so powerful!
These few words saved the entire family's lives. It seemed that the Wei family was destined to rise to great heights in the future.
This is a sure win!
Therefore, when the imprisoned members of the Wei family were brought to the court the next day, they thought they were going to be pardoned by the emperor and even reinstated.
None of them looked as miserable as after being imprisoned. Instead, they had rosy faces and were waiting for Li Shimin to give them a way to admit their mistakes.
Li Shimin then told her what happened last night and what the queen said. Finally, he cried and said:
"I have such a virtuous wife, and the Queen has made such a request, so I must listen to her advice.
The Wei family is my in-laws, and I treat them with all my heart, but I have made up my mind.
Come, according to the law, drive all those sentenced to death out of the Meridian Gate, announce their crimes to the world, and then behead them in public!"
Everyone:!!!
Good man, so your queen is kneeling on the ground for a long time, just to beg you to kill us more, right?
All the officials were very surprised. Li Shimin wiped the tears from his eyes and was very moved. He sincerely praised his queen for her virtue and understanding of justice.
In short, in order to highlight the feelings between the emperor and the empress, and to show that the emperor and the empress are fully aware of the righteousness and will not bend the law for personal gain, Wei must be treated as an example and punished severely!
Everyone at Webster: ...?
So our Wei family is just a tool to highlight the affection between you two, right?
Killing us is just to help you two have fun?
[Ahahahaha, Er Feng’s dog food slapped everyone in the face!
Wei was completely devastated. Erfeng was crying while killing someone, saying it was for him and his wife. Who wouldn't be devastated by this?
What's this new way of showing off your affection? I'm so shocked!
In short, the court officials were also shocked. They did not expect that the queen could be so wise and righteous, and even risk the lives of her entire family to build her reputation.
Some people think that the queen is a cruel person, while others think that she is truly virtuous.
In short, all the civil and military officials complimented His Majesty again and again, and the historians also recorded Erfeng's words after hearing this, and she cried and executed the foreign relative.
This time, everyone made money except Wei!
Anyone who committed a capital crime was dragged out by the Wei family, tied up like a pig, and pushed into the market.
The officials read out the crimes of these people, and they were beheaded one by one amid everyone's shouts and hatred.
In an instant, the blood in the East and West Markets of Chang'an almost flowed into streams.
At this time, many people who heard the news gathered together. Among them were people whose land was forcibly confiscated by the Wei family and forced into bankruptcy and slavery, merchants who were robbed and oppressed, and minor officials who were suppressed.
Every time the executioner killed someone, they applauded and cheered.
Some people even lamented that these people died too easily, and that they should be tortured to death, with their flesh cut off piece by piece and distributed to the people to eat!
This shows how deep the resentment the people of the mid-Tang Dynasty had towards the aristocratic families.
At this time, Li Shimin was still dealing with the finishing work after killing the Wei family.
Guanyinbi's father and brother were not involved in this matter, and since they had made contributions by donating grain during the previous defense of Chang'an, their merits and demerits offset each other.
As for other clan members who had not committed any crime, such as Wei Yingwu and others from the Wei family's branch mentioned by Tianmu, Li Shimin did not implicate them.
[After all, we can’t just kill all those with the surname Wei with one blow, that would be too extreme!
There were also people like the Empress's father who refused to surrender to the rebels and would rather die than yield, and there were also people like Wei Yingwu who had compassion on the people.
If it's too extreme and the entire clan is implicated at once, it will easily cause the aristocratic families to retaliate, and they might rebel next time.
"I do not like to be implicated, but I want the laws of the Tang Dynasty to be strictly enforced, and punishments should not be imposed on high officials or common people!
In the future, if anyone stops the sedan chair to seek justice, you must not punish them, and you must not ignore them either! "
Li Shimin quickly issued a series of decrees, such as strengthening the direct appeal system of Dengwen Drum, and prohibiting the people from being hindered from beating the Dengwen Drum to appeal.
Moreover, if other families had experienced similar situations as the Wei family before, and had returned the land and finances to the people, he would not pursue the past.
However, any future offenses will be dealt with according to the law. Officials who fail to address the situation or protect the public will also be punished!
The officials from the aristocratic families were all dispirited, because they all knew very well that every one of Li Shimin's actions was aimed at the aristocratic families.
It doesn’t really matter that the Wei family fell. It’s better for me to die than for my friends to die.
But the emperor still wanted to continue with the imperial examination. Would he let them continue to have fun?
Therefore, when Li Shimin proposed to continue to reform the imperial examination system to implement fairness, the children of aristocratic families all claimed that they had no talent or casually put forward some opinions that were of no use at all.
Your Majesty, don't you want reform? Aren't you very capable?
You've killed so many people from aristocratic families. The worst that can happen is that we'll just give up and quit!
Do you really think that our family, which has grown big and strong over hundreds of years, is made of clay and so easy to control?
The aristocratic families relied on the fact that they occupied a large number of official positions in the court and dared to openly disobey the order and refused to implement the imperial examination reform.
Although there were also people from humble backgrounds, such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Li Mi, Yuan Zai and others, there were too many things to do and not enough people to handle the workload.
Moreover, there are those who are very likely to die from overwork due to old age, those who are too greedy to be imperial examination examiners, and those who constantly want to quit their jobs and return to Taoism to seek immortality...
[Wow, this group of people are really 666, they actually want to control Erfeng?
We modern people don’t even dare to think about it! 】
"Great! If they don't do it, we'll do it! They're on strike, that's perfect! Kick them all out of the court! We modern people will do it!"
[So it’s really not good for ministers in ancient times to work. They received high salaries, high benefits and high status, but they collectively refused to work and openly gave up?
Let's teach them a lesson!
Li Shimin also laughed out of anger.
Fine, if you don't want to do it, there are plenty of people who can do it nowadays. He simply threw up his sleeves and walked away.
Li Shimin soon planned to recruit modern workers and then secretly surprise everyone!
After he returned from court, he quickly began to read the manual on imperial examination reform sent by modern people.
Some of the proposals made by modern people are diverse and seem refreshing, but many of them are actually not in line with the reality of the Tang Dynasty.
It was not until Li Shimin had flipped through the documents for a long time and came across a series of reform measures proposed by Lu Shuyuan that his eyes suddenly lit up.
Only those who have lived in the Tang Dynasty can better adapt to local conditions!
Li Shimin was watching intently when he suddenly heard a heart-wrenching cry of "Meow".
Then the booklet in front of him followed by a black and white cat flew away and disappeared?
Li Shimin was stunned, then looked up and saw several cows and cats jumping up and down in his bedroom!
The candles next to it were kicked over with a crackling sound, and the things on the table were swept to the ground one by one.
Guanyin Bi came back from bathing and was about to go to bed. When she saw her dressing table was covered with cat paw prints stained with lipstick, she quickly opened her mouth in shock.
What happened? Are the Turks attacking?
"What are you guys still standing there for? Hurry up and catch the cat!"
Li Shimin tried to catch the cat but failed. He was so angry that he glared and immediately ordered all the palace maids, eunuchs and guards to catch the cat.
However, this time it was not just the cats. Suddenly, more than a dozen black and white Huskies rushed out from a distance and began to howl around the cats.
So for a moment, the cat flew up and down and spun in the air above the palace, as if it were entangled in a quantum storm.
The Husky grabbed Li Shimin's dragon robe frantically and refused to let go. No matter how Li Shimin threatened or hit his mouth, it was useless.
Some Huskies were digging wood everywhere, going into house-demolition mode, leaving wood chips all over the floor. A piece of the bedroom door was even broken...
【Ahahahahahahahaha, I’ve finally waited for this scene! 】
[Heaven has its own way of retribution, no one can escape the misfortune of cats and dogs!]
Even Erfeng and Guanyinbi weren't spared! As someone with a furry friend, I felt relieved!
【Come and accept the attack and invasion from modern black and white furry creatures!
The perfect match between Husky and Cow Cat, Erfeng deserves it! 】
So that night in the Tang Palace, cats were roaring, dogs were barking, and people were chasing each other.
The key is that each one of them runs very fast.
By the time everyone had caught almost all the cats and dogs, the entire bedroom was filled with black and white fur floating in the air.
It turned out that these cow cats somehow broke free from their guards, ran to the Husky's cage to provoke it, and bit the cage open, which led to the chaotic scene just now.
Li Shimin lay in bed, doubting his life, and even took out a ball of cat hair from under his pillow and threw it away.
Is there something wrong with modern people?
Why would they raise these black and white creatures to cause trouble instead of just having a well-behaved pet? How much free time do they have?
And those black and white cow cats, why do they fly when there is a road to walk on?
Empress Changsun also collapsed on the bed exhausted, staring blankly at the ceiling, sighing:
"Erlang, how about I find some Taoist priests to exorcise the evil spirits from these black and white furry creatures?"
Li Shimin never believed in these things. Just as he was about to speak, there was a sudden "bang" and a round black and white cow cat fell directly from the ceiling onto his chest.
Then with a "meow", he sat down with the leather swallow pointed at his mouth!
Li Shimin: ...
[Ahahahaha, a cat car hit Erfeng! ]
[Erfeng, are you okay? I hope you didn't vomit blood. If you didn't, just accept Kitty's love!]
Li Shimin picked up the cat that had escaped the net and threw it to the palace servant, then immediately agreed:
"You're absolutely right! Quickly get the Buddhists and Taoists to exorcise these things!"
Caught off guard, the hexagonal warrior General Tian Ce was defeated by a group of cats and dogs, and his bedroom suffered heavy losses, but fortunately his memorials and other items were not seriously damaged.
After reading Lu Shuyuan's report on imperial examination reform, Li Shimin found it very pleasing to his eyes.
So the next day when he went to court, he summoned Lu Shuyuan directly and asked her to explain everything clearly to all the officials in the court.
By the third time a woman stood in the court, the officials' opposition was less pronounced.
This time, Li Shimin did not give them the opportunity to object, and asked Lu Shuyuan to explain the various systems first.
"The blind-name system involves sealing the names on the test papers, while the copy-copy system involves having all completed test papers copied down again.
This is to prevent examiners from recognizing candidates through handwriting and names and thus cheating."
Yan Zhenqing and others nodded frequently after hearing this, thinking that this could be implemented directly and there was nothing worth discussing further:
"My dear, your idea is very good, but what does it mean to write in separate volumes?"
"This is an optional subject. I see some of you are proposing to add poetry and other topics, while others are advocating for more discussions on government policy.
Everyone has different strengths, so it's better to add compulsory and optional sections. Candidates can choose two of the three options in the optional section based on their strengths."
"But if the answers to the questions are all different, how can we determine who has a higher score and who has a lower score?"
"So this requires the use of a percentage system, using quantitative scores to replace vague concepts like A, B, C, and D."
[Wow, isn't this the same as the college entrance exam, which consists of liberal arts and science exams, and then when the results are announced, everyone's rankings and scores will be announced?]
[Hahaha, roll it up, roll it up!]
The people of the Tang Dynasty are also starting to focus solely on grades. I'm so happy that they're suffering as much as I am!
Lu Shuyuan quickly explained the general content of the test paper. The compulsory answer paper covered multiple-choice questions, true-or-false questions, fill-in-the-blank questions, material analysis questions, and open-ended policy questions.
It mainly includes the Four Books and Five Classics as well as thoughts, qualities and morals.
The multiple-choice test paper is divided into two categories: written classical Chinese knowledge, such as poetry and songs, and content that focuses on practical case judgment, farming, economics, and legal application.
“Of course, some people have excellent literary talents and are suitable for writing books, and they should also be selected based on their talents.
We cannot lump together and compare people of varying talents. That would be a loss to our court and to Your Majesty."
"Okay, Madam Lu's suggestion is exactly what I want!"
Li Shimin applauded repeatedly and asked his ministers to circulate the sample papers to understand what the multiple-choice, judgment, fill-in-the-blank questions and material analysis questions were.
[Hahaha, isn’t this the basic paper of our civil service exam!
It's pretty much the same, I just incorporated the situation of the Tang Dynasty into the material analysis! 】
Can I try it too?
As someone who practices test questions, maybe I can even take advantage of my preparation to get a high score and become the top scholar in the Tang Dynasty?
Even if I don't pass, consider this a mock exam for my modern exam! Let's go sisters, let's go to Datang to brush up our scores!
Li Shimin lamented that the modern civil service examination system was quite reasonable, but the Tang officials who were circulating the sample papers were all stunned.
This test paper is so complicated and the questions are so varied, it's really torturous!
Everyone looked around and felt lucky that they had reaped the benefits in advance and entered the imperial court early without having to take any more exams.
If I continue to take the exam like this, I will be killed!
Fortunately, there is a military examination for selecting military officers, which is different from the path for civil officials. Li Siye, Pugu Huai'en and others finally breathed a sigh of relief, but they also planned to go back and urge their children to roll up their heads.
Look, if you don’t practice martial arts well and inherit the family business, you will have to take this devilish test!
"Humph! You women always make things complicated and full of omissions!
The range of test questions you have prepared is so wide. How can the examiners come up with all these questions and give answers?
Are you an examiner who knows everything? Or do you think you are capable?"
Yang Wan, an official from the Ministry of Rites, stepped forward to raise questions.
"If you have any opinions, just raise them. Why do we always have to add the word 'woman' in front of it?
You can't offer the opinions His Majesty wants, so you can only accuse others of gender incompetence and rage! And this woman, do you also want to include the Queen?
What a man, you have no shame at all! "
Lu Shuyuan retorted on the spot without giving any face.
After all, she is an employee and only needs to please her boss. Modern workers don't care about offending others, and they don't need to work overtime or form cliques after get off work.
"I do this to prevent one examiner from monopolizing an exam, which would make it easy for his students to guess the exam style and gain an advantage.
With so many papers and contents, of course there must be at least several examiners working together to set the questions.
Moreover, from the time the questions were set to the time before the exam, these examiners could only eat and live in the Imperial Examination Hall and were not allowed to go out to avoid leaking the questions.
This will ensure the fairness of the exam to the greatest extent possible.”
"With so many different question types and so much variation, how do you expect students across the country to adapt?
Won’t they be helpless the first time they get it?”
Lu Shuyuan immediately took out another thick stack of purple-red-covered materials and handed one to each person:
"So I've already prepared sample question sets, including the introduction, which are enough for candidates to understand the specific format and content of the exam, making it easier for them to prepare."
Li Shimin liked the fact that modern workers were always well prepared and efficient.
He took it and immediately saw the words "three years of imperial examination and five years of simulation".
【!!! Haha ...
The suffering I have endured, the candidates of the Tang Dynasty must also endure! 】
All the Tang Dynasty officials stared with their eyes wide open. Li Bai and Du Fu shook their heads, sympathizing with the future candidates who would be so miserable.
But it must be said that these things are efficient and fair to use, and can also select practical talents needed by the court.
Li Shimin was very happy and made the decision on the spot:
"Since so many of you can't come up with any good ideas, I don't think you need to suggest any more!
I will leave it entirely to Lu Shuyuan. Today, I will appoint you as a doctor in the Ministry of Rites, with full responsibility for the affairs of the Imperial Examination Hall!"
A group of aristocratic families originally wanted to rely on their numbers to embarrass the emperor, but they didn't expect that Li Shimin would once again use girls from poor families and leave them aside.
In the end, everyone gave up and dared not to make trouble again.
Li Shimin had a strong desire to win. At this time, he secretly defeated the aristocratic families in the court and felt very proud. When he went to eat at noon, he ate an extra bowl of hot pot meat.
Just after finishing the meal, someone came to report that the people of Chang'an City, including the surrounding farms, had been notified, and the inspections of the bad guys and the imperial guards had been strengthened, and overseas tourists could be allowed to come.
Tianmu was immediately overjoyed, and a large number of people said they wanted to come to Chang'an City to experience farm life.
[Family, go ahead! I've brought my own shovel and plowing tools. Does anyone have any recommendations for tools that would be useful?]
"Can I just go dig some dirt? The soil over there is unpolluted. I can dig some and spread it in my yard!"
[We fishermen are here! Fishing has to go to the Tang Dynasty! Gear packed, give me a river!]
Li Shimin suddenly became curious:
"No, don't you all want to come to my Huaqing Palace? Why do you have to go to these farmlands?
What fun can there be in a farmhouse?"
Li Shimin couldn't understand it, so he sneaked out in the afternoon to see how these modern people planned to have fun and travel in the Tang Dynasty.
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