Chapter 13: Impeachment in the Court
Li Yueyao almost laughed out loud after hearing the answer from the Ministry of Rites.
I have seen Zuo Xiang cure the disaster!
What the hell is this answer?
The first meaning is that I have no experience, and the second meaning is that I am the left prime minister?
After hearing this, Li Yueyao couldn't help but look Gao Hongchen up and down.
It seems this old guy is responsible!
This Grand Master Zong is like a clay Buddha, not caring about anything. The Right Prime Minister is both good and evil, which is a bit out of place. The Left Prime Minister is taking advantage of this opportunity to dominate the situation.
Li Yueyao listened and said, "The three of you should come up with a plan for disaster relief. His Majesty will hear your ideas and decide who is the most suitable person to appoint."
After the three of them considered it for a while, Li Yueyao asked the person from the Ministry of Rites to speak first.
As expected, what he said was fragmented.
Then he called on Censor Zhang from the Censorate and said something, but to Li Yueyao, these things were far from enough.
Finally, Cui Mingyun, the left assistant minister of the Ministry of Works, stepped forward and spoke eloquently about the flood problems in Lingnan and proposed solutions one by one.
Judging from the current situation, the Minister of Works' Left is the most experienced, but Li Yueyao asked the main hall:
"My fellow ministers, does anyone have experience in disaster relief and flood control?"
After hearing this, Master Zong was the first to stand up. He had indeed dealt with floods when he was young.
Then Gao Hongchen also stood up, followed by eight or nine people standing sparsely from the crowd on both sides.
These people had different positions, and those with the lowest positions were almost standing outside the hall.
Li Yueyao asked, "If His Majesty were to send you to provide disaster relief, would you be willing?"
"Your Majesty, I am willing to share your worries."
Li Yueyao smiled and said, "Very good. You are all the backbone of our Great Jin. It is a blessing for His Majesty and a blessing for all the people to have your assistance."
Then he continued, "Come here, write down the names of all those who will appear today in detail. Your Majesty will study them in detail after the court session and make sure the candidates are selected before noon today."
The attendant who was in charge of recording nearby quickly looked up and wrote down the names of the people who stood up one by one.
After everyone left, Li Yueyao asked again, "How much silver is needed for disaster relief? Has the Ministry of Revenue done a detailed calculation?"
Minister of Revenue Jiang Xun stepped out and replied, "Based on past disaster relief efforts, this flood affects two states and seventeen counties, requiring at least 1.1 million taels of silver for disaster relief.
But last year, there was a drought in the northwest, a frost in the north, and war in the southwest, and the national treasury was unable to make ends meet..."
Upon hearing this, Li Yueyao waved her hands repeatedly and said, "This matter is already clear to me. The disaster relief personnel will be selected first, and the money will be settled within three days.
My dear, please wait a little longer. There will be news within three days."
Jiang Xun was skeptical after hearing this. One million taels was not a small amount, so why did the Grand Princess of Jinyang say it so casually?
But he still obeyed and returned to the queue.
After Li Yueyao finished speaking, she looked at the courtiers below and said, "Let's leave the Lingnan flood issue here for now. Do you have anything else to discuss?"
"I have something to report."
A thin man with a dark face and long beard stepped out of the line.
Li Yueyao took a look and had no idea who this person was.
"Your servant, Zheng Yuansheng, has something to report."
"Please speak, Lord Zheng," said Li Yueyao.
"I impeach Princess Zhaoqing for allowing her slaves to commit violence, bullying others, and robbing others by force.
In order to take over a gold and silver shop on Ximen Street, he ordered his servants to beat up the shop owner, Chen Sanlang, and then burned down his house.
The shop owner was forced into a corner and had no choice but to transfer his gold and silver shop to Princess Zhaoqing at a low price.
The Jingzhao government dared not accept this complaint, and Chen Sanlang, with nowhere to turn, knelt at the gate of the Jingzhao government for three days without getting up, and is now near death.
The emperor listened at the top of the table and looked up at the censor Zheng with dissatisfaction.
He said, "Princess Zhaoqing must have been deceived by this servant. Why would you impeach her in the court?"
Li Yueyao was secretly delighted when she heard this. She was just worrying about not being able to find an opportunity to deal with Zhao Qing, and now it came right to her.
After hearing the emperor's words, Li Yueyao coughed and interrupted the emperor's speech.
Then he looked down and asked, "Where is Jingzhao Prefecture?"
Jingzhao Prefecture Governor Jiang wiped the sweat from his forehead and stepped out, saying, "Your Highness is here."
"Since the people have grievances to appeal, why not accept their petitions?"
"Your Majesty, I have been busy with official duties recently and didn't know about this matter." Jiang Fuyin defended himself.
Unexpectedly, Censor Zheng glared at Governor Jiang and said to him:
"The entrance to your Jingzhao Mansion has become a sight in the capital. So many people gather there every day to watch the excitement, and you actually said you didn't know."
After saying this, he turned to the emperor at the top and said, "Your Majesty, I impeach the Jingzhao prefect for being a figurehead and clinging to the powerful, which is a dereliction of duty."
Li Yueyao looked at this censor and felt that he was a good official. She hoped that he was an upright person and did not participate in party struggles.
The emperor was distressed after hearing this and said, "Censor Zheng, don't impeach me just because of a disagreement..."
Li Yueyao couldn't bear to listen any longer and turned around to glare at the emperor.
Only Sun Fu saw this; no one else saw it.
When the emperor saw Li Yueyao's eyes, he shut up.
Li Yueyao said: "Since this matter has come to the court, it must be no small matter.
But we can't just listen to one side of the story. After the court is dismissed, we will invite Princess Zhaoqing to come and ask if this is true."
After hearing what Li Yueyao said, the court officials speculated that it seemed that the Grand Princess of Jinyang was on the same side as the emperor and was preparing to smooth things over.
Unexpectedly, Li Yueyao changed the subject: "Jingzhao Prefecture should first accept the case and properly settle the victim. If the victim is in trouble or dies, you will have to resign as the Jingzhao Prefecture Governor."
After hearing this, Jiang Fuyin of Jingzhao Prefecture repeatedly said yes.
Li Yueyao then added, "As for whether you have been idle in office, currying favor with the powerful, and oppressing innocent people, we will discuss this matter later."
After saying this, he looked at Censor Zheng and said, "Censor Zheng is not afraid of the powerful and dares to speak up for the people. He is worthy of his position as Censor. Your Majesty, should you reward him?"
The emperor listened and sighed, saying, "Well, then I will reward Zheng Yushi with ten pieces of silk, fifty taels of silver, and thirty strings of copper coins as a reward."
Censor Zheng quickly thanked him and said, "I thank your Majesty for your great grace."
After seeing what Princess Jinyang did, everyone rewarded the censor and reprimanded the Jingzhao Prefecture, which was considered fair.
However, the treatment of Princess Zhaoqing was very vague, and it was unclear what the eldest princess was up to.
After the morning court session, Wang Langzhong of the Ministry of Rites followed the Left Prime Minister and asked, "Prime Minister Gao, what does the Grand Princess mean?"
Gao Hongchen shook his head: "I don't know, I haven't had much contact with the Grand Princess of Jinyang before."
After thinking for a while, he said, "Could it be related to what happened in the Taimiao yesterday?"
Doctor Wang was surprised and asked, "The Imperial Ancestral Temple? What happened in the Imperial Ancestral Temple?"
Gao Hongchen said it was okay and walked away in a hurry.
The Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Justice were also walking and chatting. Jiang Xun asked, "Why did the Grand Princess of Jinyang suddenly return to the palace and even accompany His Majesty to court?
What do you see from today's situation?"
Dali Temple Minister Shen Zhengming shook his head: "I don't know the intentions of the Grand Princess of Jinyang. But it must be related to the incident at the Imperial Ancestral Temple yesterday.
Your Majesty and the Grand Princess grew up together, and their bond is extraordinary."
Jiang Xun nodded and said, "Just wait and see."
…
After the morning court session, Li Yueyao and the emperor returned to Taiji Palace together and had some breakfast.
Li Yueyao said as she ate, "Your Majesty, please summon Zhaoqing to the palace later."
"Yeah, okay."
"But, aunt, what are you going to do?" asked the emperor.
"I'm going to beat her up first, and then ask her to pay some money. Anyway, we're short of money for disaster relief."
When the emperor heard this, his eyes widened like bells.
"Aunt, don't joke. Where does my sister get the money to cover the cost of disaster relief?"
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