Jiang Shuang was so frightened that he knelt on the ground and whispered, "Your Majesty, please calm down. Don't hurt your body because of Prince Rong's matter."
"Fu Yao, you are right. I have been too indulgent towards these vassal kings."
It's so outrageous that everyone wants to climb over his head and shout at him.
Fu Yao bowed to the emperor. "Your Majesty, please calm down. Prince Rong's fault lies in his poor parenting. He shouldn't have allowed Prince Nanping to cause such trouble. Prince Rong is foolish. Your Majesty, please don't let this go so easily."
The emperor had been with Fu Yao for a long time and knew that the old man was setting a trap for others again.
He is taking advantage of the situation to divert the blame.
The emperor was too lazy to bother with him. He just wanted Prince Rong's huge fortune to settle the bad debt.
As for whether his son was a fool or a traitor, he didn't care at all. These were just accusations, and they served no purpose other than adding icing on the cake.
But it can be used as an excuse.
He cleared his throat and said, "Lord Jiang, since this matter was reported by Jiang Xuqing, I will leave it to you to handle."
Shi Chong jumped out and was the first to object. "Your Majesty, this is unacceptable. How can the whistleblower be the presiding judge of this case?"
That’s true.
If you want to blame Prince Rong but don't want to take responsibility, you can only apply for a joint trial by three judges. However, the selection of the judges for the joint trial must be carefully considered.
The emperor thought for a moment and said, "Pass on my oral order. Order the Minister of Justice Wei Ming to be the chief judge, with Fu Yao and Prince Cheng assisting."
"Your Majesty is wise."
"Step back, Fu Yao stay."
After everyone left, Emperor Mingguang asked, "What's Jiang Xuqing up to? How could a mere fifth-rank official, leaving Jianzhou's affairs behind, meddle in Prince Rong's family affairs? Could it be that the two of them have a feud?"
Fu Yao smiled and shook her head. "He and Prince Rong didn't have a feud, but Luo Ying did."
"Oh?" Emperor Mingguang was immediately interested, wanting to hear his ministers' gossip. "My dear minister, could you please tell me what the feud is between Prince Rong and Luo Ying?"
Fu Yao's answer was flawless and quite provocative.
"Bai Yong went to Jianzhou and brought back some strange news. He said that the day the Jiannu attacked Jianzhou at night was exactly the day of Luo Ying's wedding. Luo Ying ignored the daughter of a family with a long history of officials and chose a girl from a peasant family. As a result, on the wedding day, before the two of them even got married, something unexpected happened.
When Luo Ying returned, the bride had run off with the Prince of Nanping. Your Majesty, don't you think this is a strange thing?"
Emperor Mingguang felt the focus wasn't on the war, but on the peasant girl. "What's so alluring about this peasant girl that makes both sides fight for her? Could it be her beauty?"
"Not really. Compared to the ladies in the harem, even peasant girls can be described as plain-looking."
The emperor was very pleased to hear this. He smiled and said, "If that's the case, how does it involve treason? Could it be that Ye Changge was the one who sent the message about the Jianzhou night attack?"
"Your Majesty is wise. You saw something fishy going on at once."
The emperor glared at him. "If you have something to say, say it quickly."
"A peasant girl has climbed up the high branch of the Prince of Nanping, so naturally she doesn't want to go back to being Mrs. Luo.
So she borrowed the power of the Prince of Nanping and went to the prefectural government office to clear herself of the fact that she was a fickle woman. She didn't want to hit a wall.
The emperor was no longer sleepy. He looked suspicious. "Are you saying that Jiang Xuqing and Luo Ying are colluding?"
Fu Yao smiled and said nothing.
"In that case, we can't let him control Jianzhou. Otherwise, the northern gate will be breached by the Jiannu."
"That's why Jiang Xuqing exaggerated the matter and used Prince Rong's wealth to offer his loyalty to His Majesty."
Emperor Mingguang suddenly understood. "You said he did it on purpose."
"Yes," Fu Yao confessed Jiang Xuqing's desire to leave Jianzhou. "He gave gifts to Bai Yong and then to me. Wasn't it all about escaping this barren land of Jianzhou?"
"He really has no ability to govern the country, but he is full of ulterior motives. But what's the use?" He can't govern the country, so it's a waste of food to keep him around.
Fu Yao smiled slightly and said, "He is extremely capable. How can Your Majesty deny one person's efforts because of a momentary prejudice?
Jiang Xuqing had been in office for less than half a year, yet he had managed to convince his immediate superiors and manage the affairs of both civil and military officials. Even someone as picky as Eunuch Bai praised him highly. "Isn't this just his ability?"
To govern a country, one needs talents who are good at both soft and hard tactics.
In Fu Yao's view, there is no difference between an honest official and a corrupt official. As long as one can do good things for the country and the people, he is a good official.
The imperial court lacks everything, and what it lacks most is a panacea.
In other words, as long as it can bring tangible benefits to the country, he can do anything.
Fu Yao often liked to get to the point. "Your Majesty, isn't it enough to make the people suffer for three years?"
Emperor Mingguang sighed heavily after hearing this. "So, tell me, should I keep him there, or promote him to the capital?"
"Of course, staying outside is better than staying in the capital. I remember that Jiangnan is severely corrupt, and the amount of taxes paid this year is less than half of previous years. If Your Majesty wants to test Jiang Xuqing's talents, you might as well transfer him to Jiangnan, which will also help Your Majesty solve his urgent problems."
The emperor frowned and accepted Fu Yao's kindness.
Jiang Xuqing has earned money for the national treasury for three years, so naturally he has to give Jiang Xuqing some benefits.
"It's just that I remember there were no vacancies in Jiangnan."
Fu Yao smiled and said, "Yes, I heard that the Gusu prefect submitted a letter of resignation, but His Majesty has been hesitant to approve it."
The emperor sighed. "Alas, that old fellow is very cunning and has no intention of resigning. He just wants to test my opinion."
"Your Majesty, why don't you just go with the flow and agree to his request?"
"No," the emperor refused bluntly. "Jiang Xuqing has only just been promoted to fifth-rank prefect. If he's promoted straight to fourth-rank prefect, I'll have Shi Chong and the others yell at him to death."
"Your Majesty, why do you speak of death? If Your Majesty were to make a mistake, it would truly be my fault."
Fu Yao knew this matter couldn't be rushed, so she had to find another topic. "Your Majesty, the trial will take over half a year. How about waiting until this matter is over before promoting him to Gusu prefect?"
"Yes." The emperor's frown finally relaxed. Now the censors had nothing to say.
A few days later, the news from the capital reached Xu Jing via carrier pigeon.
The fact that the emperor could initiate a joint trial showed that he approved Xu Jing's proposal. The reason for holding a joint trial was just to find a ready-made excuse.
It took more than half a year for the capital to send people down to investigate and close the case.
During the six months, he could free up some time to govern Jianzhou properly.
Through Yanhong, he introduced Li He to the government, which brought in a lot of income.
Xu Jing spent most of the money on the construction of Jianzhou, and a small part was used to provide welfare to Jianzhou officials.
If you want your subordinates to be motivated, appropriate incentives are essential.
Xu Jing first improved the welfare benefits of Lin County Magistrate and several others.
This made County Magistrate Lin so excited that he was willing to work overtime and even wanted to live and eat in the yamen.
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