Chapter 466 Pressuring for Responsibility
Emperor Longqing was furious, but he could not show it on his face.
Mr. Mei was not only a veteran of three dynasties and his mentor, but also a renowned Confucian scholar.
The most respected person among scholars all over the world.
These scholars are all pedantic and aloof, so much so that they seem to have gone mad from reading too much. They take pride in bitter remonstrances and even dying for their principles.
If these scholars were to die at the palace gates today, his reign as emperor would probably be coming to an end.
Emperor Longqing turned to Cai Chong with a stern face and gave him instructions.
"Go and invite Mr. Mei to the palace to speak with you personally."
Cai Chong bowed and withdrew. Soon after, Mr. Mei, dressed in a scholar's robe and with white hair and beard, strode in.
Although he is nearly eighty years old, he has a ruddy complexion, is in good spirits, and exudes a dignified aura that commands respect.
Just as Mr. Mei was about to kneel down and pay his respects, Emperor Longqing quickly stood up and stopped him.
"Sir, you are my mentor, there is no need for formalities."
Mr. Mei straightened his clothes, his face serious, and insisted on kneeling down.
“Your Majesty, etiquette cannot be disregarded. Your Majesty is the ruler, and your old ministers are the ministers. It is the proper way for ministers to observe the etiquette between ruler and minister when they see their ruler.”
Having said that, he prostrated himself on the ground and kowtowed.
"Your humble servant Mei Xuwen greets Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor!"
The Longqing Emperor's lips twitched, and he said stiffly, "Please rise, sir."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Mr. Mei did not stand up, but continued:
"Just now I performed the etiquette of paying homage to the king; now I must fulfill the duty of a subject."
Now that the truth has been uncovered and the evidence is conclusive, Your Majesty, please restore the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion and give the Lu family justice.
The Longqing Emperor's face turned ashen.
"Does Your Excellency truly believe their so-called evidence and refuse to believe me? Does even Your Excellency believe that I am the one killing meritorious officials?"
Mr. Mei took out a letter from his pocket, held it in his hands, and said loudly: "Thirteen years ago, Consort Yu wrote to me, asking me to stand up for justice for the Lu family army."
I promised Consort Yu, but due to health reasons, I was unable to investigate the matter.
Over the years, the old ministers have felt guilty and have secretly investigated this matter.
Your Majesty knows my character. I have always been an upright person, never lied, and would never do anything against my conscience.
If there were even the slightest falsehood in this matter, this old minister would not be standing in this hall today.
As the Longqing Emperor gazed at the letter in his hand, a chill instantly rose from his tailbone, running down his back to the top of his head.
That damned Lu Yu, he's been dead for over a decade, yet he still left behind such a mess.
While Lu Yu feigned compliance with him, he secretly investigated the Liangzhou case and even managed to secretly contact Mei Xuwen.
He was too late after all.
The Longqing Emperor asked with a gloomy face, "What exactly is the old gentleman trying to say?"
Mei Xuwen raised his head and said loudly, "Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the earth, all people are subjects of the king."
Whether they are subjects or commoners, they are all Your Majesty's subjects. As Your Majesty is the sovereign and father, you should have a kind and compassionate heart. This is the way of a benevolent ruler.
Your Majesty has ordered the slaughter of meritorious officials without cause. Such a cruel and inhumane act is contrary to the way of a ruler and will affect the fate of the nation, Your Majesty.
How will future generations judge His Majesty in this glorious historical record?
Mr. Mei spoke eloquently, and at this point, his voice suddenly rose two decibels.
"Your Majesty, please immediately order the execution of Marquis Anding, the executioner who slaughtered meritorious officials."
Your Majesty should also issue an edict of self-reproach in order to stabilize the state and reassure the people.
Should he issue an edict of self-reproach?
Should he apologize to the Lu family? Should he admit his mistake to those ignorant people?
What wrong did he do?
A sudden surge of fury flashed in the eyes of the Longqing Emperor.
"What if I don't issue an edict of self-reproach?"
Mr. Mei touched his head to the ground, his voice firm and resolute.
“If Your Majesty does not issue an edict of self-reproach, then it is the fault of this old minister. It is my dereliction of duty to raise such a cruel monarch.”
This old minister is ashamed before the late emperor and before all the emperors of the Great Wei Dynasty. I have no choice but to smash my head against this very hall and die.
"You!" Emperor Longqing was furious.
Mr. Mei's face was filled with grief and indignation.
"And the scholars kneeling outside the Meridian Gate, they are all the future pillars of our Great Wei Dynasty."
If Your Majesty does not issue an edict of self-reproach today, they will all perish outside the Meridian Gate, along with the old ministers.
"If the ruler is unkind, then it is the fault of the subject."
As soon as the words were spoken, a eunuch outside the door called out in a trembling voice:
"Your Majesty, there are more and more scholars outside the palace gates. I heard that students from the capital's academies have all come."
Students from the Imperial Academy were already kneeling at the palace gates, unable to keep up with the demand.
The Longqing Emperor trembled with rage, "You...do they intend to rebel?"
Prince Heng stepped forward and said, “This is outrageous! My father is the ruler of the world. How can he be controlled by these scholars?”
"Father, let me go and negotiate with them. If they remain obstinate, I... I will have the Imperial Guards deal with them..."
"You bastard!" Before he could finish his sentence, the Longqing Emperor grabbed the teacup beside him and smashed it over.
"You bastard, what do you want? Do you want the Imperial Guards to chop them all up?"
Although he secretly wished he could kill all those people, he knew he couldn't.
Those were all scholars, and scholars have always been adept at killing without bloodshed; with just a word or a pen, they can kill without leaving a trace.
How could that brainless bastard Prince Heng suggest that the Imperial Guards kill scholars?
The blue teacup, its color tinged with the afterglow of the rain, landed squarely on Prince Heng's temple, spilling tea all over his face.
Tea mixed with blood flowed down, and tea dust clung to his eyebrows.
Prince Heng was completely bewildered by the impact.
He didn't say to have the Imperial Guards kill those scholars; he just wanted the Imperial Guards to come forward and either intimidate or deceive them first.
They'll get rid of the people first, then find the leader and take them down one by one.
Before the emperor could finish speaking, the teacup was smashed at him.
Prince Heng felt wronged, "Father..."
Before he could finish speaking, the voice of a palace attendant came from outside the hall.
"Your Majesty, some commoners have already knelt down outside the Meridian Gate, some scholars have fainted, and some have even vomited blood."
Emperor Longqing felt as if a breath was stuck in his chest, unable to come up or go down, making him want to collapse.
Just then, Mr. Mei and He Zhengxiang led all the officials of the Inspectorate to kneel down and plead.
"Your Majesty, please restore the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion and give the Lu family justice!"
Emperor Longqing clutched his chest, feeling an even greater tightness in his chest.
He looked at the dense crowd kneeling in the hall, his gaze finally settling on the Marquis of Anding.
He blurted out, "It's not my fault; I was also deceived."
It's Marquis Anding, it's Zhou Qi, yes, that's right, it's Zhou Qi.
Thirteen years ago, Zhou Qi sent me a secret letter saying that the Duke of Zhenguo and the Lu family army had treasonous intentions.
I was misled by his slander, which is why I ordered him to investigate. I did not order him to kill anyone.
He deceived me.
Marquis An Ding's expression changed drastically, and a strong sense of fear rose in his heart.
"His Majesty!"
"Shut up! Don't call me 'I'!" Emperor Longqing pointed at Marquis Anding and cursed angrily, his face dark.
"If you hadn't used slander to frame the Duke of Zhenguo and the Lu family army back then, how could I have believed you?"
I am only asking you to investigate the matter thoroughly. If you truly harbor rebellious intentions, then we will deal with you accordingly.
You, on the contrary, ordered the execution of my meritorious officials without even informing me, and then falsely claimed military merits.
"Guards! Drag this disloyal and unjust traitor, who murdered innocent people and claimed credit for them, away! His entire family will be confiscated and exterminated!"
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