After a brief conversation in the warm room, Li Yuanzhao took Fang Zhengyi back to the East Palace.
He immediately said impatiently: "Old Fang, you are not really going to reason with those people, right? This is not your style. Besides, those scholars are stubborn and it is impossible to reason with them."
Fang Zheng cursed: "Talk to them! I just sent people to beat them up. These bastards are worthless and only know how to cause trouble for the court!"
"I don't know what kind of education you're studying. If you fail the exam, you can either retake it or go to work in a factory. Why are you making such a fuss?"
Li Yuanzhao's eyes were dull.
Sure enough, Lao Fang is not a good person, this matter is not that simple.
"Then how are you going to solve it? This kind of thing will definitely get bigger and bigger if it's delayed any further! If you delay it any further, I'm afraid other people will be dragged into it. Once those scholars incite, maybe even the common people will rise up and attack you." Li Yuanzhao said anxiously.
Fang Zhengyi walked straight to the table and sat down, poured two cups of tea, and waved to Li Yuanzhao.
Li Yuanzhao stared at him motionlessly, waiting for an answer.
Fang Zheng slapped his thighs and said, "Ah, aren't you tired? You act as if the sky is falling and the earth is collapsing at the slightest disturbance. If all officials have this mentality, they will be courting death."
"In a country this big, something must happen someday, right? Not to mention the country, even at home, something must happen someday."
"If you are an official, you should not be afraid of trouble. If something goes wrong, just deal with it and it's over. Why would I be an official if I am afraid of trouble?"
"Besides, you will face many more things in the future. Come and have some tea, Your Highness."
Li Yuanzhao sighed and walked to the table. "You are even more heartless than me. I don't know why I am so anxious for you. So you have found a solution."
"No, I can only say that I have a little clue."
"......"
As soon as the teacup was picked up, Li Yuanzhao put it back again and said in surprise, "Then I can't figure it out. How could you take on so much responsibility by yourself?"
Fang Zheng spread his hands and said, "There's nothing I can do about it. I want to establish the Doctor of Science title, and I won't let anyone influence me. If the court were to make the decision, I would have to give in, and the Doctor of Science title might be abandoned. I can't take that risk."
"This is the future promotion channel for civilians. The sooner it is stabilized, the sooner many people will benefit from it."
"In addition, we must find a proper way to stabilize those scholars who are causing trouble. Temporary retreat can certainly stabilize the situation, but if the root cause is not resolved, it will sooner or later become an obstacle."
"But there is really no need to rush now. I have already surrounded the Marquis' Mansion, and people can leave but cannot enter. I want to see how long they can last without food or water. Let's wait and see what happens, and come up with a plan when we get to the scene tomorrow."
"By the way, Your Highness, would you like to come with me tomorrow to take a look? I plan to bring a few reporters to record the whole process secretly. I think this matter is of great significance!"
"Okay, look at that!"
......
The next morning.
Outside the gate of the marquis's mansion, a large group of sickly scholars were still sitting in groups.
Some were standing in groups of three or four.
After a night of tossing and turning, it was obvious that these frail scholars were in very bad condition.
Not only were they severely beaten at night, but they also had no food or water and were frozen all night. The morale was really hit hard.
Everyone knew that the Marquis' Mansion was guarded by the Embroidered Uniform Guards. They could leave, but they could not enter again.
They would certainly not be able to defeat the Jinyiwei by forcing their way in, and everyone had already agreed to give Fang Zheng fifteen days.
A scholar’s word is worth a thousand gold. If they start trouble in advance, it will be too embarrassing for the scholar. If the news gets out, they will be in trouble!
Therefore, no one chose to leave and everyone remained holding their ground.
Zhou Maoxue sat among the crowd, his lower abdomen felt bloated and he couldn't help but feel the urge to urinate.
Looking around, I saw people everywhere and couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed.
You can't pee in the street in public...that's really uncivilized.
But defecation is a human physiological instinct, and it cannot be suppressed.
After enduring for a long time, Zhou Maoxue finally stood up with difficulty, supporting himself with a broken branch he had picked up from somewhere.
He limped to the gate of the marquis' mansion.
The high spirits of last night were gone, and his originally fair face became bruised and swollen.
Zhou Maoxue felt a little relieved when he saw many people below squeezing their thighs together, trying to hold back the urge to urinate.
It seems that everyone is the same, so that's easy.
Zhou Maoxue raised his cane and said tremblingly: "My dear brothers, the hooligans took the opportunity to cause trouble last night. It must be Fang Zhengyi, the villain. He knew he was unreasonable, so he used all means to launch a brutal attack on us. But I want to say..."
"The more the enemy opposes, the more it proves that we are doing the right thing!"
"Right now, the Royal Guards have blocked us from entering and leaving freely. I know everyone has had a hard night, but I hope everyone will exercise restraint and not conflict with them. The Mid-Levels Daily is in Fang Zheng's hands. If we take the initiative to take action, we will be given an advantage and may even be slandered as rioters. If we lose the support of the people, we will be hindered everywhere..."
Fang Zhengyi and Li Yuanzhao were watching Zhou Maoxue speak at a nearby corner.
He was accompanied by Jinyiwei, Xie Xian and other reporters.
Fang Zhengyi asked the Jinyiwei: "Have you found out who the leader is?"
Jinyiwei said, "Sir, according to my humble observation, the most active person in the crowd right now is the one who is speaking. His name is Zhou Maoxue. His identity was found out last night. He is the eldest son of Lord Zhou Hongzhou."
Zhou Hong! ?
Fang Zhengyi and Li Yuanzhao looked at each other and both felt a little unbelievable.
Zhou Hong, whom Fang Zhengyi met, was the Right Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, a second-rank official in the court, and his official rank was higher than his.
This man has a righteous character and is decisive in his work. He is an old minister who fought with Emperor Jing.
The position of Youdu Yushi required him to travel all over the country frequently. Three years ago, he applied for retirement as his health could not take it anymore.
Therefore, in the past, the two of them did not have much communication in the court, and their relationship could only be described as average, but there had never been any conflicts.
Why did his son jump out to cause trouble?
Fang Zhengyi asked, "What else is there about Zhou Maoxue?"
"I have found out that this person is good at making friends. He has been active in all the major restaurants and brothels in Beijing, but he has failed the imperial examinations many times..."
As the Imperial Guards were talking, Li Yuanzhao was eager to try: "Old Fang, that's easy. Can't we just ask his father to call him back?"
Fang Zheng raised his hand and thought, "No, he is not important at all, he is just a fuse. Even if Zhou Maoxue didn't exist, someone like Zhang San or Li Si would jump out in the future to take the lead in causing trouble. With so many people making trouble together, it is not something that can be started by one person alone, so what we need to solve is the deep-seated contradiction."
"Old Fang... Look, he seems to want to pee in front of your door!" Li Yuanzhao suddenly patted Fang Zhengyi's shoulder and pointed towards the door of the marquis' mansion.
Fang Zheng glanced to the side, and his eyes suddenly became red with anger.
"Fuck, this is so fucking uncultured!"
......
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