Chapter 120 The Second Seizure of the Teahouse "Zhaozhao, the teahouse has been shut down."...
Inside the imperial study, Emperor Qing's face was grave. "Take a look for yourself, Prime Minister Zhuang!"
Zhuang Ziyang knew that it must be because he had been investigating the salt permit case too frequently these past few days, which had caught the Emperor's attention. He immediately knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
"Prime Minister Zhuang, what crime have you committed?" Emperor Qing sneered, revealing his extremely foul mood.
this--
Having served in the imperial court for many years, Zhuang Ziyang knew that it was best to adopt a humble attitude first and let Emperor Qing vent his anger.
Thinking of this, Zhuang Ziyang continued to lie prostrate on the ground, his voice trembling as if he were terrified.
When Emperor Qing saw the Prime Minister, who was usually second only to the Emperor, now kneeling before him, completely devoid of his usual arrogance, with only a few strands of white hair protruding from his head, he couldn't help but sigh.
"Get up, you old bones, save your kneeling."
Zhuang Ziyang hurriedly kowtowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Xu Fangtong, who was standing next to Emperor Qing, hurriedly stepped forward to help Zhuang Ziyang to his feet. However, Emperor Qing did not offer him a seat, so Zhuang Ziyang remained standing below the throne, gently frowning as he expressed his gratitude.
Emperor Qing: "Tell me, why is the Prime Minister inquiring about this salt certificate case?"
Since Emperor Qing asked this question, he must have already understood the matter quite well. Between the emperor and his minister, who have been together for many years, they know each other well, so there is no need to hide anything. As long as one is wholeheartedly devoted to the affairs of the country and does not harbor any disloyalty towards the emperor, it does not count as offending the emperor.
Zhuang Ziyang said, "Your Majesty, I have a daughter named Zhuang Shutong."
Emperor Qing, composed and at ease, replied, "I remember."
"Shu Tong has a daughter, who is now the wife of salt merchant Chen Junbai." Zhuang Ziyang told the truth. Regardless of the emperor's attitude, he had already been questioned. If he continued to lie, he would lose the emperor's favor in the future.
Emperor Qing sneered, "So, Prime Minister, this is... favoritism and corruption?"
Zhuang Ziyang knelt down again and said, "Your subject dares not!"
Then, he knelt up and looked up at Emperor Qing, saying, "I have learned from Chen Junbai that since Zhang Youdao took office as the Salt Commissioner of Songshan Town, he has often asked salt merchants for preferential treatment, and he is also narrow-minded. He once had a grudge against Lin Yihuai, Chen Junbai and other salt merchants because of his unclear accounting of the surplus silver."
Emperor Qing stared at him intently, and Zhuang Ziyang continued, "The other day, my son-in-law was suddenly arrested, supposedly because of the salt permit issue. Therefore, I am worried that it is the work of a villain who is trying to influence Your Highness's judgment."
Emperor Qing scoffed, "I am not senile yet. As the prime minister of the country, Prime Minister Zhuang does not care about his own affairs of state, but presumptuously interferes in the salt affairs. Prime Minister Zhuang, what are you trying to do!"
"Your subject dares not!" Zhuang Ziyang was greatly alarmed, for Emperor Qing's words today showed that he would not listen to any of his explanations.
"I think you're quite bold!" Emperor Qing slammed the memorial on the table to the ground. "Take a look for yourself!"
Zhuang Ziyang crawled forward on his knees in confusion, picked up the memorial and read it. It turned out to be a memorial impeaching Zhao Zhao for misconduct at the teahouse, which had led the people to use the "Big Rat Song" to criticize the court for its inaction.
He clutched the memorial, feeling utterly ashamed of the man!
"Your Majesty, I have been wronged!" He hurriedly bowed deeply to apologize.
If it is implicated that he was involved in salt affairs without authorization, then there is still room for rebuttal, since he was only hinting indirectly.
However, the other party actually used the "Song of the Big Rat" as an excuse. Such things have always been a major taboo for Emperor Qing, especially since he is an important minister of the court. If he is involved in such matters, it will be a great worry for the emperor.
"Injustice?! That Tea Lady is your granddaughter, Chen Junbai's wife, and that 'Shuoshu Ge' is nothing but praise for her. How is any of this an injustice to you!" Emperor Qing slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "Zhuang Ziyang, Zhuang Ziyang, everyone praises your granddaughter, while I've been labeled that shameless 'Shuoshu'! Prime Minister Zhuang, is this how you run the household!"
"I have failed in managing my household affairs; there must be something fishy about this matter!"
"shut up!"
Emperor Qing didn't allow him to finish speaking, "The way of the gentleman is to cultivate oneself, regulate one's family, govern the state, and bring peace to the world. Prime Minister Zhuang, since you are not managing your family well, you might as well rectify things at home before attending to state affairs!"
"Your Majesty!"
"Xu Fangtong!" Emperor Qing shouted.
"Your servant is here."
"Issue the decree: Prime Minister Zhuang is unwell and shall remain in seclusion for recuperation from today onwards."
Having said that, he flicked his sleeves and stood with his back turned.
Upon receiving the imperial decree, Zhuang Ziyang knew that his involvement in the salt administration was merely a trigger; what truly angered Emperor Qing was the "Shuoshu Ge" (a famous Chinese poem). There was no point in arguing further, so he decided to stay home and allow the emperor and his minister to calm down.
Since the imperial decree ordered him to stay home and recuperate, Emperor Qing probably didn't truly blame him, but was merely using this opportunity to reprimand him out of anger. Thinking of this, Zhuang Ziyang slowly straightened up, feigning deep emotion, "Your humble servant accepts the decree and thanks Your Majesty for your great kindness. State affairs are heavy; I hope Your Majesty will take care of your health." He finished speaking with tears in his eyes, performed another deep bow, and then slowly rose, supporting himself on his knees, before leaving the imperial study.
When Zhuang Ziyang brought the news back to the Zhuang residence, Li Yang felt as if the sky had fallen and the earth had darkened.
Originally, she had pinned her hopes on her maternal grandfather regarding Chen Junbo's situation, but now, because of her insistence on disaster relief, her maternal grandfather has been forced to close his home to recuperate!
Am I some kind of jinx? Everyone who's with me will run into trouble, and everyone who tries to help me will become the emperor's hated enemy.
Zhuang Ziyang was still comforting her, "Zhaozhao, don't think too much about this. His Majesty is just taking his anger out on her. It will be fine in a few days."
He snorted and said, "Those thieves are so shameless. How could they frame my Prime Minister's Mansion? Zhaozhao, don't be afraid. As long as your grandfather is here, he will protect you."
These words struck Li Yang's heart like a pestle, one blow after another, leaving him feeling a dull, aching sensation.
Chen Junbo was simply upholding the law, which offended Zhang Youdao, and he was falsely accused and imprisoned. He was merely providing disaster relief in the capital, yet he was accused of treason, which resulted in his grandfather being dismissed from his post.
Why should those who have done nothing wrong have to suffer these accusations, framing, and slander?
Why is Zhang Youdao so arrogant despite his corruption and abuse of power?
Why is it that none of the civil and military officials in the court made any decisions, yet none of them were reprimanded?
My grandfather was merely helping me set things right; what did he do wrong? For so many years, he had served diligently and conscientiously in the position of prime minister, yet a nursery rhyme of unknown origin could bring down such a prime minister.
She knew that serving a ruler was like serving a tiger, and she always thought that she should take this as a warning and never be lazy or do anything wrong.
But now, for the first time, she wavered.
Are monarchs truly just?
Is there really a place in this world where justice can be served?
If so, why did so many mistakes happen right under the emperor's nose?
If so, then why would he take his anger out on his most loyal minister over a children's rhyme?
If so, why do those bad people get to live so smoothly, while Chen Junbai and Lord Lin are arrested and imprisoned for their loyalty to the salt administration, Li Yuhan is imprisoned in the mansion for years for helping those in need, and even Liu Yitong, who has never been short of money in his donations, is now being held captive in the mansion by corrupt officials.
What did they do wrong?!
The more Li Yang thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. His heart ached so much that it reached his nose, forcing tears to well up in his eyes.
"Zhaozhao, don't be sad. Grandfather will return to court in a few days." Zhuang Ziyang kept trying to comfort Li Yang, but this only made Li Yang's frustration ferment even more uncontrollably.
"Grandfather, did we do something wrong?" she asked, her voice tinged with confusion and accusation.
She went through all these things in a jumbled and disjointed way. Did she really do something wrong?
Chen Junbo has always said that there is no right or wrong in the world, and people only care about the word 'interest'.
When she was about to carry out disaster relief, Chen Junbo also suggested that doing so in Beijing might offend people.
In retrospect, he was right.
But where exactly did I go wrong?
“Grandfather, is there really no ‘right and wrong’ in this world, only ‘interests’? Or should we just stand by and watch someone die, only caring about weighing the pros and cons? Grandfather, did I do something wrong?” Li Yang seemed to be asking Zhuang Ziyang, but also seemed to be asking herself. For the first time, she felt that what she had always insisted on was crumbling little by little.
Hearing her question, Zhuang Ziyang took a deep breath. "Zhaozhao, in officialdom, one must think things through carefully; in business, one must be willing to sacrifice profits. But regardless of whether one is an official or a businessman, one should only strive to have a clear conscience. You did nothing wrong. The ones who are wrong are those who have forgotten how to be a decent human being."
"Hmm," Li Yang didn't know where the sound came from, but this one sound pushed out the grievances and resentment in her heart.
Seeing this, Zhuang Shutong quickly stepped forward and hugged his daughter, saying, "Your maternal grandfather has been an official for many years and has encountered all sorts of things. He is only claiming to be ill and recuperating for a few days. It's just that His Majesty is slightly angry. It's good that your maternal grandfather can have a few days of peace and quiet. Don't overthink it."
Li Yang struggled to suppress the emotions welling up inside her, and gradually stopped crying under her mother's gentle comfort. "Yes, let's think of a way together, there's always a way."
Now that Chen Junbo has been arrested, the people of Songshan Town are in a predicament. The grandfather's mansion has been sealed off, and only the teahouse has been able to reopen, though it's uncertain how long it will remain open.
She couldn't let these things defeat her. Chen Junbo was still waiting for her to go home together in prison. "We'll definitely find a way. Hmm, Bi Fang's accounts are almost finished. I'll finish copying them today, and then we'll think of other ways."
During dinner time, none of them could eat, and Li Yang found the food bland and tasteless.
Then a servant came to report that soldiers were guarding the gate of the mansion, and the servants inside were unable to enter or leave the mansion.
"That's too much!" Li Yang tried to rush out, but Zhuang Ziyang stopped him.
He said, “Zhaozhao, thunder and rain are all imperial favors. It’s just that the mansion is closed. It’s nothing to worry about.”
She was indignant and finally sat down, but she was so angry that she only ate a few bites of food before going back to her room to check the accounts.
Originally, Li Yang only felt that Bi Fang's silent recording of the accounts took too long and might delay things.
Now that the Zhuang family mansion has closed down, this is the only thing left to pass the time each day. Less than ten days later, Bi Fang completed the accounts of the Chen and Zhang families since Chen Junbai took over.
Three days later, Liyang also completed the proofreading work.
With nothing else to do, Zhuang Ziyang looked at their account books and marveled at them.
"In my many years as an official, I have never seen anyone who can recite the accounts of the past few years from memory."
“Of course, Grandfather. When it comes to doing business, the salt merchants are the real experts. Bi Fang was personally trained by Old Master Zhang, and he learned from Chen Junbai.” Li Yang’s tone was light and cheerful.
She made everyone in the room laugh.
The once gloomy Zhuang family mansion has gradually calmed down in the past few days, but the laughter and joy of the past have been absent for a long time.
Suddenly, a maid knocked on the door, "Master, Miss, Young Miss."
Hearing the urgent knocking, Li Yang hurried to open the door.
The visitor was an old woman from the kitchen. "Granny, what can I do for you?"
"Young Miss!"
A figure flashed past behind Granny Zheng, her beauty shining through despite the rough clothes and tattered hemp.
"Sister Ziyan! What brings you here!" Li Yang was both amused and heartbroken to see her sister Ziyan dressed like this. Her sister Ziyan was a natural fairy, but now she had been transformed into a country bumpkin.
At that one call, everyone in the house poked their heads out to look.
Li Yang thanked the kitchen maid and led the people into the house.
“Grandfather, Mother, this is Sister Ziyan who came to the capital with me.” Liyang held Ziyan’s hand.
"Sister Ziyan, this is my mother, and this is my maternal grandfather. You've met them before," Li Yang introduced everyone to Ziyan.
"By the way, Sister Ziyan, how did you get in today?" Li Yang asked.
Ziyan tugged at her sleeve and said, "We stayed at the teahouse for a few days and didn't see you come back, so we thought something might have happened. The day before yesterday, we came to the gate of the Prime Minister's residence and saw that there were soldiers at the gate, so we knew that you couldn't get out."
After observing for a few days, I see that trucks delivering vegetables and garbage are still allowed to enter the house daily. That's why I'm here today to deliver vegetables.
Upon hearing this, all of them were filled with emotion.
Seeing this, Ziyan turned to Liyang and said, "Zhaozhao, the teahouse has been shut down."
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