Chapter 119 Brother, Please Come On Stage
childish--
Hearing Zhao Duan's light words, the Jinyi officers present all cast "sympathetic" looks at the green-robed civil servant lying in the flower bed.
In the end, He Zheng couldn't understand why Zhao Duan didn't take the more "smart and safe" method, but chose the simplest and most brutal one.
Just as he emphasized "rules", victory or defeat in this world has always been determined by fists.
"Let's go. Since he said that the Supreme Court Justice is personally 'interrogating' our Lord, I have no choice but to go and ask for him in person."
Zhao Duan walked forward with his hands behind his back.
Behind them were Hou Renmeng and Chen Juan, each leading a team to clear the way on the left and right. Anyone who dared to obstruct them along the way fell down.
"Oh no! Someone named Zhao is calling. Go and report it..."
It's a mess.
…
…
In the back hall of the Dali Temple, Fang Fu lit the lights in the room.
At this moment, Xia Jianghou, who was imposing and had a fine beard, bowed slightly.
He personally picked up the brewed teapot and poured the light green and yellow tea into the square tea bowl, stirring up a vortex:
"Your Excellency, please have a taste. This precious 'Spring God Tea' of ours is listed as a top-grade tea on par with royal tribute in the 'Tea Classic' compiled by Jiangnan tea merchants.
The taste is different from tribute tea, it is even more refreshing and delicious. I was lucky to get a little bit of it."
There was a table between him and him, sitting upright in a large square mahogany chair.
He was a civil servant in his sixties, with a square face, wearing a black gauze hat, and deep river-shaped wrinkles on his brows, wearing a red robe.
He is the highest official here, the Dali Temple Minister, a third-rank official.
Although compared with Li Yanfu, Yuan Li is slightly inferior.
However, his position in the court was no less important than that of the fallen Pei Kaizhi, and even higher.
After all, although both of them were of the third rank, the Dali Temple Minister was one of the "Nine Ministers".
Although he and the Minister of Public Security are ranked at the end of the Nine Ministers, they are different after all.
Historically, whenever a major case occurred, the Dali Temple Minister would preside over the trial, and the Minister of Justice would always take a back seat.
He is the absolute powerful figure in the court.
"Haha, Lord, this tea is delicious, but I'm afraid it's not drinkable."
The Dali Temple Minister seemed to smile, but still picked up the tea bowl with one hand and put it to his nose to sniff:
"Well—it's really good stuff."
The "bad" here naturally does not mean that the tea is bad, but the price behind it.
Xia Jianghou laughed heartily, as if he didn't understand, and said cheerfully:
"If you like it, I will order my servants to bring all the tea in the palace to you tomorrow. Good tea has a good home only when it falls into the hands of people who understand tea. If it falls into my hands, it will be ruined."
All the words were meant to flatter the other person and belittle oneself...
So, it’s not that he really relies on his status to look down on ministers other than nobles, but he mainly looks at the importance of the person in front of him.
"Haha," the Dali Temple Minister said nothing, but slowly closed his eyes and took a sip.
After a while, his eyelids slowly opened, but he did not continue the topic. He just put the teacup back on the table and said:
"I'm old now. I can't drink too much after dark. I can't sleep. Tell me, what happened? Who did you offend that made you rush to me for refuge?"
Xia Jianghou smiled apologetically and said:
"Your Excellency, it's not a big deal..."
Then, in a few words, he told how he learned from Princess Yunyang that she had been wronged, and how he agreed to help her vent her anger.
How did Zhao Duan catch him in the act? He told the whole story.
"I only ordered my subordinates to find an opportunity to teach Zhao a lesson, but I didn't expect them to be so bold and take the initiative to kidnap Feng Ju's family, hoping to set a trap..."
Xia Jianghou looked aggrieved as if he had been implicated by his subordinates:
"When the incident happened, Zhao thought I had arranged it and came over with murderous intent. I had no choice but to surrender myself to the Dali Temple."
What a great "surrender"...
What a "liar with open eyes"...
The Dali Temple Minister glanced at him calmly with his slightly cloudy eyes, with an expression of "seeing through but not saying anything":
"My Lord, you are truly good at managing your subordinates. They are considerate and dedicated."
Xia Jianghou was also a little embarrassed and said:
"It's also my fault that I didn't stop it in time after I found out. I was mainly thinking that Zhao Duan's false accusation against the Prime Minister was known to everyone.
As the saying goes, justice is clear, if we can restore the prime minister's innocence to the world, and restore the clarity of the laws of Dayu... a little bit of deviance is not bad intention after all."
After a pause, he observed the other's expression and added:
"Especially considering your friendship with the Prime Minister..."
"My Lord, be careful with your words."
The Dali Temple Minister suddenly interrupted and said calmly:
"Everyone in the court, civil and military, knows that the Dali Temple does not interfere in factional disputes. If we must say who we are loyal to, it is only to Your Majesty."
"Yes, yes, I spoke out of turn, haha." Xia Jianghou apologized.
But in my heart I cursed hypocrisy.
Although the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple was not a member of the "Li Party" on the surface, he had a close relationship with Li Yanfu.
Secretly, any case involving the Li Party will be more or less biased.
This is no longer a secret.
The two sides have secretly exchanged interests countless times.
This seemingly righteous old man is actually an insatiable "glutton" and is extremely greedy.
In order to make connections, Xia Jianghou plundered a large portion of the huge amount of money from the Red Flower Society and put it into the mouth of this glutton.
Therefore, he dared to act so recklessly and ordered people to kidnap Feng Ju's family.
Just because he has done similar things more than once.
Even if the truth is revealed, it will be covered up by the Dali Temple Minister.
The reason why he chose to deal with Zhao Duan by "overturning the verdict" this time was indeed to please Princess Yunyang.
More importantly, they actually want to take the opportunity to give the gift of "overturning the verdict" to the "Taotie" in front of them.
Or to be more precise, it was given to Li Yanfu.
Thus selling a favor.
This was also the reason why he had previously said with Princess Yunyang while drinking that if the case was overturned, he would not need to be involved.
This is a gift for the Dali Temple Minister.
As a result, something went wrong, but this old guy acted like he didn't want to care about him... so realistic.
"Sir," Xia Jianghou took a deep breath and said seriously:
"Although I'm not afraid of a mere police officer like him, he's a ruthless person. He's come to arrest me with such fanfare, perhaps with Ma Yan's tacit approval. If I fall into Ma Yan's hands, I'm afraid..."
The Dali Temple Minister's face suddenly darkened.
"Are you trying to threaten me?"
"Your Excellency has misunderstood!" Xia Jianghou swore to the heavens:
"This duke and your Excellency have a clean and honest relationship, and it is a friendship between gentlemen."
The Dali Temple official looked at him for a while, then suddenly said:
"I heard that the Marquis's mansion has a blue and white dragon-patterned gallbladder vase from the previous dynasty, and I've been wanting to borrow it to play with for a few days."
"...Tomorrow, I will order my servant to take it to your residence."
"A vase without flowers is not beautiful at all."
"...I happen to have a peach tree with jade-green and golden stamens in my mansion, and I'm sending it to you for your enjoyment."
"Hehe, what about this Spring God Tea?"
Don't go too far, damn!
Xia Jiang Hou suppressed his anger and said:
"Of course, the adults will not be left out."
At this moment, he even felt a little regretful that he should not have come here to seek refuge. It would have been more worthwhile to fight against Zhao.
The Dali Temple official with a square face and deep wrinkles between his eyebrows finally smiled and said:
"In that case, my Lord, please stay here for a while. A mere police officer wouldn't dare come to my Dali Temple to snatch someone away."
Xia Jianghou smiled and said, "Thank you so much..."
Before they could utter the rest of the sentence, they suddenly heard a loud commotion outside.
After a while, a green-robed official came running from the front and shouted:
"Sir, this is bad, Zhao Duan is breaking in!"
What? !
At this moment, Xia Jianghou suddenly stood up, and was shocked at first, surprised that this person could be so arrogant and domineering?
It would be fine if you just came to ask for someone, but you actually dared to force your way in?
Immediately, a hint of joy appeared between his brows.
Suddenly, I felt that the antique jade and even the few kilograms of "Spring God Tea" that I had just promised were worth the money.
He turned his head to look at the Dali Temple Minister, only to see that this third-rank official had a gloomy expression on his face.
I understand.
After all, he was slapped in the face just after he made his statement, and he suffered an offense that he shouldn't have suffered given his position.
"Where is this thief?"
The scarlet-robed civil servant stood up and asked.
However, the next second, the half-closed gate of the rear courtyard was opened by a huge force!
Two rows of dark-robed officials rushed in like a torrent.
The encirclement of the Dali Temple Minister and Xia Jiang Hou was completed in an instant.
Then, Zhao Duan, a tall and handsome man dressed in a black official robe embroidered with silver thread, walked into the courtyard slowly and said with a smile:
"Oh, it's quite lively. I thought I heard someone calling me just now. It must be the Minister of Justice."
His gaze also passed over Marquis Xia Jiang and fell on the important official in the court who was wearing a crimson official robe.
Tingwei is another name for "Dali Temple Minister".
"You are Zhao Duan."
The Dali Temple Minister had a gloomy expression on his face, and his cloudy eyes looked down at him.
The big boss in the court who has been in power for a long time is awe-inspiring in every move he makes.
Although surrounded, they were not at all vulnerable.
He was completely the master of this place, with a calm and composed demeanor.
at the same time.
Outside the gate of the rear yamen, a large group of officials affiliated with the Dali Temple also swarmed in.
There were more people, so they simply formed a big circle and surrounded everyone in Lihua Hall.
But after all, everyone has their own expertise.
Although they had a large number of people, they were completely suppressed by a group of troublemakers in Lihua Hall in terms of momentum.
"Haha, I didn't expect that I am so famous. Even the Chief Justice knows me." Zhao Duan smiled.
The Dali Temple Minister had no time to waste time talking to him, and said coldly:
"I don't know when the Imperial Court gained the power to intrude upon the Three Judicial Departments."
Zhao Duan said with a smile:
"Don't misunderstand, Your Excellency. We are here only to arrest the criminal."
Then, he calmly recounted what he had said to He Zheng.
"He Sicheng insisted that it was the Dali Temple that first arrested the person for questioning, but I was a little skeptical, so I had to come in and see for myself."
Zhao Duan sighed softly:
"Now it seems that it was indeed that He Sicheng who was telling lies and deceiving his superiors. The Chief Justice was clearly drinking tea with the Marquis, so why did he insist on arresting and interrogating him?
But there's no need to be angry, Your Excellency. I've already taught him a lesson on your behalf. As for Lord Xia Jiang, you're suspected of being involved in a case. Please come with us."
Shameless!
brazen!
After hearing what Zhao Duan said, this thought came to the minds of the Dali Temple officials present at the same time.
It was clearly he who hit someone, but he insisted that it was He Zheng's fault. He is indeed the infamous White Horse Zhao Envoy in the rumors.
Even with the Dali Temple's skill in cultivating qi, he almost laughed out of anger.
He did not try to reason with Zhao Duan or argue about right and wrong.
Instead, he said directly: "With your status, you have no right to arrest a hereditary marquis."
Zhao Duan raised his eyebrows: "Old Zheng."
Behind him, Zheng Laojiu took a step forward and shook out a "royal letter" with Ma Yan's seal on it, and shone a light on it to ensure that everyone could see the bright red ink.
"Is this enough?" Zhao Duan asked with a smile.
This bastard is indeed prepared... Did Ma Yan really allow him to do so?
...Hou Xiajiang was startled, feeling relieved but also confused.
The Dali Temple Minister's expression remained unchanged, his gaze as calm as ever:
"Not enough. The case of Marquis Xia Jiang has been placed under the jurisdiction of the Dali Temple. Today, let alone you, even if Ma Yan comes, you will not be able to take him away from my territory."
After a pause, this powerful official in a red robe, one of the nine ministers in the imperial court, raised the corner of his mouth:
"But you, forcing your way into the Three Courts, really thought that once you entered the Imperial Court, you could ignore the Great Yu Law and act lawless?"
He suddenly turned his head to signal Xia Jianghou who was standing beside him, and said:
"Zhao Duan, the chief of the Imperial Court, has violated the law. I will borrow your martial arts skills to capture him. I say so."
Xia Jianghou's eyes lit up and a smile appeared on the corners of his mouth.
Since the Dali Temple Minister was carrying him, he would not refuse. Immediately, his Qi sea roared, and the surging Qi flowed through his meridians.
The unique pressure of Shenzhang Wufu spread in the night wind.
He took a step forward, raised his fist, and moved straight towards Zhao Duan.
"My Lord, be careful—"
The officials at Lihua Hall changed color.
However, Zhao Duan looked calm, and the smile on his lips seemed lazy.
He ignored the approaching Marquis Xiajiang and the countless eyes watching the excitement, and only stared at the Dali Temple Minister:
"You said Ma Yan is coming, so forget it?"
He sighed softly, looked up helplessly, and shouted towards the night sky:
"Master... Governor, you heard me, my position is too low and I'm useless. It's time for you to show up!"
The next second, the wind suddenly blew.
A thin and tall figure, as cold as a snow-capped mountain, appeared silently in front of Zhao Duan.
His eyes were cold as he scanned the entire room, which was completely silent.
The governor of the imperial court, Ma Yanwang, has arrived!
…
Typos should be corrected first and then replaced
(End of this chapter)
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