Chapter 549: New Lihuatang Police Chief Takes Office (5k)
In the imperial study, Zhao Duan's expression was very serious.
On the secret letter in his hand was a "confession" from an official of the Qingliu Party, who confessed that he had obeyed the orders of Yuan Li, the Imperial Censor of the Censorate, and colluded with Xu Jingtang, the Prince of Mu.
Zhao Duan’s first thought after seeing it was absurdity.
Yuan Li, the second "friendly" court figure he encountered after arriving in this world, besides the Empress, has always been very clear-cut. In the past, she was a bitter enemy of Li Yanfu, and she teamed up with the Empress to purge the court on numerous occasions.
Although he does not belong to the "Royal Party", there is no big problem with his butt.
Xu Zhenguan said calmly, "It's just a confession, it may not be true."
Zhao Duan's heart moved: "What's going on?"
Xu Zhenguan did not hide anything and described the situation in a few words.
It's not complicated.
Some time ago, the entire court was dealing with the aftermath of the demise of the Li Party. Due to the many vacancies, the Imperial Party was able to grow stronger.
The court is now divided into two factions: the "Imperial Party" and the "Pure Stream Party".
However, when the six rebel kings entered the capital and the situation was turbulent, the officials who secretly colluded and defected to the rebel kings were certainly not only members of the "Li Party".
There were also many officials in Yuan Li's "Qingliu Party" who were suspected. However, they had not been able to investigate them before, and for the sake of political stability, they had not been investigated in detail.
As the situation stabilized in the past two months, Ma Yan began to continue screening the court and successfully discovered some traitors within the Qingliu Party.
At first, he only investigated secretly, but was discovered while tracking. He had no choice but to arrest a minor official and throw him into the imperial prison for torture. However, the official insisted that he was following Yuan Li's orders and providing intelligence from the capital to the Yunfu rebels.
"This confession may not be true, it may also be a false accusation." Zhao Duan thought for a while and said.
Xu Zhenguan sighed softly and said:
"I don't believe Lord Yuan would do that. But many people in the court might not think so. Moreover, although you took the blame for Emperor Wei Xianzong's crime, it is still a stain on Yuan Li."
Wei Xianzong, the commander of Qingzhou, was recommended by Yuan Li and later betrayed the court.
Last time, Zhao Duan took the initiative to ask for Wei Xianzong to come over and quelled the attacks against Yuan Li, but some doubts about Yuan Li were always inevitable.
Besides... after all, who can really be sure that Yuan Li, the "party leader", really did not collude secretly with the rebel king?
Zhao Duan was also not sure.
"Your Majesty, what do you think we should do?" Zhao Duan decided to play it safe and test Zhenbao's thoughts first.
Xu Zhenguan said calmly:
"The corrupt officials within the Qingliu Party who are colluding with the rebels must be eliminated. But Yuan Li cannot fall, at least not now."
Li Yanfu has fallen.
If Yuan Li also falls for "collaborating with the enemy", the court that has just stabilized will be in turmoil again.
People's hearts will also be unstable.
Therefore, although it is a bit cruel, as long as Yuan Li does not have clear evidence of collaborating with the enemy, this flag cannot be brought down.
Of course, for safety reasons, it is necessary to restrict Yuan Li's decision-making on the current direction of the war and intelligence acquisition to a certain extent.
Zhao Duan understood. He pondered for a moment and analyzed:
"Those traitors definitely understand this principle. So regardless of whether Lord Yuan is guilty or not, once arrested, the traitors will all speak with one voice and drag Lord Yuan aboard the warship.
Whether it's to protect himself or to drag others into the water, it's a good strategy. Even thinking deeper, isn't the rebel king deliberately letting these people throw dirty water to alienate the relationship between Your Majesty and Lord Yuan?
Zhao Duan, who had just used a strategy of sowing discord, smelled a conspiracy.
He continued:
"But without concrete evidence, Your Majesty cannot take action against Lord Yuan. And if we arrest Qingliu Party officials en masse, Lord Yuan, as the 'party leader', cannot sit idly by.
If he does nothing, his prestige will be completely lost, which is definitely not a good thing for him, his family, or the stability of the court."
Xu Zhenguan sighed:
"That's why I'm so hesitant and undecided about how to proceed. I'd like to discuss this with you."
Zhao Duan said nothing, frowning in thought.
The situation is very delicate.
Ideally, all the traitors within the Qingliu Party should be uncovered and eliminated without damaging Yuan Li's prestige.
But this itself is a problem.
Because what Ma Yan had was definitely only evidence of some officials collaborating with the enemy, and there might not be enough evidence to arrest more traitors.
Eliminating the traitors would inevitably force Yuan Li to take action and confront the empress.
In this confrontation, no matter who wins or loses, the only one who suffers is the imperial court.
Hiss... These princes actually came up with a scheme, and the villains actually have intelligence... Zhao Duan was amazed.
He also realized the dilemma Zhenbao was facing.
He pondered:
"Purge the Qingliu Party. This major goal must be achieved, without a doubt. Confrontation with Yuan Gong is also unavoidable.
But the key point here is that someone needs to do something specific and control the scale.
If the limit is crossed, it will likely cause another upheaval in the imperial court... and with the battle going on in the front, chaos will ensue in the rear... We absolutely cannot allow this to happen."
But who can control this degree?
There is no shortage of outstanding talents in the court, but there are very few who are capable, have a clean stance, will never betray, and can fight against old foxes like Yuan Li.
"I'll do this." Zhao Duan took a deep breath and said seriously:
"Now that I have a healthy body, I can handle this matter. However, I am still planning my next move to alienate Xu Jingtang, so it would be best not to reveal my identity for the time being.
Perhaps, I can act under a new identity.
Well... the position of Lihuatang's Chief of Investigation has been vacant for a long time. Your Majesty can issue an edict to give me the position of Acting Chief of Investigation."
Xu Zhenguan said "yes", his eyes soft and a little apologetic:
"But I have to trouble you again... You won't have a moment's rest."
Zhao Duan winked playfully:
"If your majesty feels bad, how about you wait until I reach the celestial realm and then compensate me?"
Xu Zhenguan gnashed his teeth, turned around, and turned his face away from him:
"You're dreaming. You haven't even reached the peak of the worldly realm, but you're already dreaming of becoming a celestial being."
No…if you can practice dual cultivation, you don’t necessarily have to advance…Zhao Duan complained.
Xu Zhenguan waved his sleeves and said:
"Go away. Now that you have a body, go home and visit your family. I will make arrangements for the temporary arrest."
Whoosh——
As she finished speaking, a pure white mask and a token of offering flew out from her sleeve and were caught by Zhao Duan.
He smiled, and with his right hand, he pressed the "white face" on the puppet's face. With his left hand, he put away the token that allowed him to travel in and out of the palace.
"My lord, I obey the order."
As I stepped out of the door, I suddenly heard a cold voice behind me:
"By the way, there have been some rumors about you in the capital lately. You should be careful and take note."
Rumors against me?
Zhao Duan was surprised. He already had such status now, how could anyone dare to attack him?
…
…
Wearing a mask and holding a "offering" badge, Zhao Duan left the palace unhindered.
Go straight to Zhao Mansion.
Instead of going through the main gate, he climbed over the wall into the backyard, acting sneakily.
“Woof woof——”
When he reached the inner courtyard, he suddenly heard a dog barking from the corridor. A Pekingese dog, which he could kill with one punch, stood on the ground with its four short legs, arched its back, barked its teeth, and barked at him vigilantly.
"Steamed bun?"
Zhao Duan smiled, walked over, bent down, picked up the curled-up puppy, rubbed it violently, and laughed loudly:
"Why are you so cowardly? You're relying on me to guard the house and that's it."
Suddenly, a beautiful girl wearing an embroidered jacket, with her hair loose behind her head and eyes as clear as autumn water rushed over when she heard the sound.
Seeing a strange man holding his pet dog, he was startled, put his slender arms in a defensive posture, and was about to shout for help.
But Zhao Duan took off his mask:
"Shh—keep your voice down. Don't let anyone know."
Zhao Pan was struck by lightning. He stared at the familiar face with wide eyes. He subconsciously covered his mouth with surprise in his eyes.
"Brother? You're back?"
…
A moment later.
In the inner hall in the afternoon.
After sending the servants away, You Jinhua and Zhao Pan happily brought a fruit plate and brewed tea, as if it were the New Year's Festival. They chattered and asked Dalang, who was playing with the dog around the table.
The mother and daughter had no idea that Zhao Duan, who was supposed to be on the front line, would return quietly.
It was autumn now, and the beautiful stepmother was still wearing her favorite dark green long skirt, but with an exquisite embroidered jacket on the outside. Her hair was tied up in a bun, which set off her fair and plump cheeks. The neckline was tight, and the lines of her figure were full.
When she was talking happily, the tassels in her hair swayed, dazzling her eyes.
Beside him, Zhao Pan, who looked more and more like a grown-up girl, also had more and more the temperament of a lady from a wealthy family. She was no longer as fierce as she used to be, holding a dagger and learning martial arts.
Now she has become somewhat elegant and sweet, but her lively eyes and pointed oval face reveal a cat-like wildness.
"This time, I'm using some magical means to secretly return to the capital. My identity must remain secret, and I can't stay at home openly for long. This time, I'm also traveling as a 'palace attendant.'"
Zhao Duan picked up the blue and white covered bowl, took a sip, and found that the substitute was indeed powerful, almost the same as the real person. He asked his family to help keep the secret.
The mother and daughter nodded quickly to show their understanding.
Eugene Hua said with some anticipation, "Then we can always have a meal at home, right?"
Zhao Pan also said pitifully: "If it really doesn't work, you can talk to her."
Zhao Duan met the eager eyes of the mother and daughter, and his heart softened. He said:
"No need to eat for now, but it would be nice to talk."
The mother and daughter were a little disappointed, but they became happy again when they thought that Dalang would stay in Beijing for the next period of time.
Zhao Duan simply shared with them what he saw and did on the front line.
The mother and daughter listened attentively, even though Zhao Duan had deliberately skipped the thrilling parts and only talked about the interesting parts.
But they could still hear from the lines how thrilling Zhao Duan's work was in suppressing the rebellion.
I can't help but feel worried and proud at the same time.
"Dalang, you are capable of great things. All I can do is protect this family." Eugene Hua said softly.
Zhao Pan hurriedly played the role of a close-fitting little cotton-padded jacket, took her mother's hand with her fair hand, and said with a smile:
"Then I will protect my mother."
The autumn sun shone through the crack in the door and fell on the table like a straight, burning golden line.
It illuminates the brilliant autumn chrysanthemums in the vase on the table in the house.
Zhao Duan felt an inexplicable warmth in his heart and asked with a smile:
"Has anything major happened in the capital while I've been away? By the way, are there any rumors about me?"
The beautiful stepmother hesitated and said:
"There aren't many major events. If there are, they are confidential matters of the court, which women like us don't know about. As for those related to Dalang..."
Zhao Pan spoke quickly, "I know that the scholars in the Imperial College have been praising Big Brother recently."
Zhao Duan was curious: "Oh? Flattery?"
The girl said "Yes" heavily and said:
"Ever since my eldest brother returned triumphantly from suppressing the rebellion in Qingzhou, I don't know when, people have started comparing my eldest brother to Privy Councilor Xue.
However, there were not many at that time. But after the news that my eldest brother defeated Su Dan in Taicang Prefecture and prevented the city from burning down spread back to the capital, rumors began to increase.
Many scholars say that Xue Shence is not as good as you, big brother. Whether it is leading troops in battle or saving the people and the country, he is far inferior to you. "
Zhao Duan frowned.
Eugene Hua also spoke:
"The scholars in the Imperial College are still arguing about which of the two, the western front led by you, Dalang, or the eastern front led by Xue Shumishi, will defeat the rebels first and recapture the lost territory.
This matter has been a hot topic in the streets recently. It is said that the officials in the Privy Council were very unhappy after hearing about it, and some people in the Ministry of War also said some strange things.
"Praising me for being better than Xue Shence? Proclaiming a debate, between me and Xue Shence, who will conquer the Huai River first?"
Zhao Duan sneered, a hint of murderous intent flashing across his brows:
"What a flattering move."
He finally understood what the empress meant when she asked him to pay attention to the rumors.
That's right.
With his current status and military achievements, no one in the capital city doubts his ability anymore.
But on the contrary, it started to overpraise.
Zhao Du'an had always been at odds with scholars in the literary world. This feud began when he entered the imperial prison and arrested scholars on a large scale, and it has since deepened.
Last year, when he debated with Mr. Zhengyang, he proposed the "Xin (New) Learning", which was recognized and followed by a group of scholars including Master Dong.
But at the same time, it also made a large number of scholars who believed in "old learning" increasingly unhappy.
However, Zhao Duan was always busy with state affairs afterwards and was too lazy to bother with a group of insignificant scholars. Unexpectedly, these scholars now turned around and praised him to death.
"They don't dare criticize me, but instead flatter me... They're comparing me to Xue Shence, so that the military officers of the Privy Council will be dissatisfied with me... Haha, they don't have the ability to kill the enemy in battle, but they play internal strife and disgust people with their tricks, each one more beautiful than the other."
Zhao Duan commented with a sneer.
Zhao Pan's eyes lit up, and they shared the same hatred and hatred:
"I also think they're holding back evil. Although it's praise, it's annoying. Big brother, when you come back this time, you have to teach them a lesson."
Zhao Duan shook his head:
"No rush. They're just a bunch of worthless scholars. There's no need to get angry. But I'm more concerned about who's behind them inciting them."
The flattery directed at him wouldn't be without reason. Zhao Duan suspected that those foolish students from the Imperial College were just tools.
The ones who are really against him might be the "traitors" within the Qingliu Party.
"Many people in the Qingliu Party came from the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial College... Most of them are scholars and Qingliu people. It would be reasonable if the traitor was secretly instigating it."
"If I can use this public opinion to create a rift between me and Xue Shence, or even make the group of dynasty generals headed by the Privy Council hostile to me, it will be in the best interests of the anti-king."
"However, flies don't bite seamless eggs. There are indeed some people in the Privy Council who want to fight for power. I'm afraid it's true."
Zhao Duan pondered.
Looking through history books.
In peacetime, the power of civil officials always outweighs that of military officials.
But in times of war, the situation is reversed.
Now that the Li Party has been destroyed, the Imperial Party is immature, and the Qingliu Party is facing internal troubles... The military officer group headed by the Privy Council and the Ministry of War in the State of Yu has also begun to rise up, trying to gain more say.
"The Qingliu Party, the Imperial College, the Privy Council... Very well, I'm fighting for my life in the front, and you're causing trouble in the back."
Zhao Duan's eyes turned dangerous, he tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and raised the corners of his mouth:
"Then, come one by one."
…
…
That day, Zhao Duan stayed at home for a long time. After taking some silver, he left home and found an inn to stay in.
Afterwards, his soul returned to Linfeng and received the news from the shadow guard that Feng Xiaolian had successfully delivered the blank letter to Gongsun.
The plan was initially completed. Zhao Duan immediately instructed Song Jinxi to make some follow-up arrangements.
I slept soundly that night.
The aftermath of a disturbance in Yongjia City continued to spread.
It will take some time for the news to reach Xu Jingtang and the capital.
…
The next day, early morning.
In the capital, Zhao Duan walked out of the inn, wearing a white mask and a green gown, and walked along the bustling streets.
Bathed in the autumn morning light.
Arrived at the familiar imperial court.
"Who?"
The gatekeeper stopped him and stared at him warily.
Zhao Duan, wearing a white mask, calmly took out the offering plaque and said in a slightly changed voice:
"I have been ordered to come to Lihua Hall to take up my post."
Last night, the empress issued an edict and sent it to the imperial court.
Therefore, after a while, Zhao Duan met Ma Yan in the Governor's Hall.
The eunuch's face remained the same, tall and thin, cold and stern, giving people a sense of cruelty.
Only a year had passed, and perhaps due to overwork, a few strands of Ma Yan's hair had turned white.
He held the offering badge in his hand and examined it carefully. Then he raised his head and looked suspiciously at the "new police chief" wearing a white mask that could block divine sense detection. He threw the badge back and nodded.
"The identity is correct. Zhou Cang, send him to Lihua Hall to take up his post."
The captain Zhou Cang next to him responded and made a "please" gesture to Zhao Duan.
Zhao Duan smiled and nodded to Ma Yan, then nodded to Captain Zhou, who was also an acquaintance.
"Thank you."
When I turned around to leave, I heard Ma Yan's voice behind me:
"The Lihua Hall is a group of unruly and rebellious people. Originally, only Zhao Duan could control them.
He is currently on the front lines, and the Lihua Hall's Investigation Officer position has been vacant for a long time. Since His Majesty has transferred you to act as Investigation Officer, I hope you will be prepared for your subordinates to disobey your orders. If that doesn't work out, you can come to me."
Zhao Duan paused, the corners of his mouth slightly raised under his mask, he turned around and politely bowed to Ma Yan:
"Thank you for your guidance, Governor. However... I don't think it will be too much trouble for you, Governor."
After saying this, he strolled leisurely and headed straight for the Pear Blossom Hall.
(End of this chapter)
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