Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Tyrant x3
Ning Wujie stepped into the imperial study, and the scene before him made him pause.
Piles of memorials formed several small hills on the huge desk. Because it was so full, many memorials fell to the ground and covered the gold bricks that paved the floor.
Ning Wujie frowned.
How big is this backlog?
He picked up a letter casually and saw a small word written in red ink on the lower right corner of the cover: 贰.
After opening it, he took a quick look and saw it was a greeting letter.
Just as he was puzzled, an old voice came from behind him: "General Ning."
Ning Wujie turned around and saw Fang Bingyuan, followed by several eunuchs, walking in with a memorial in his hands.
"Master Taifu." Ning Wujie bowed.
Fang Bingyuan helped Ning Wujie up and said, "I am grateful to General Ning for saving me the day before yesterday. I have come here to express my gratitude." As he said this, he took a step back, clasped his hands in front of him and bowed respectfully.
Ning Wujie quickly supported the old man and said, "It's my duty. No need to thank me, Master."
Fang Bingyuan nodded and said, "These are the memorials that have been piled up with me." As he spoke, he signaled the eunuch to put down the memorials.
The eunuchs glanced at the piled-up table and realized there seemed to be no place to put the documents. They saw the memorials dropped on the ground, so they bent down and threw them to the ground.
Crash——
The memorials piled up on the ground like several small mountains. Ning Wujie saw at a glance that there was a zero marked on each one.
Fang Bingyuan angrily rebuked him, "The memorial is a matter of national importance. How can you treat it like this?"
The eunuchs knelt down and apologized.
Fang Bingyuan had no choice but to bend down and pick up the memorials one by one. Ning Wujie immediately stepped forward to help when he saw this.
Ning Wujie saw Fang Bingyuan carefully arranging the memorials on the table. The messy desk became neat and tidy in an instant, and a lot of space was freed up.
He also folded the papers he had picked up neatly and placed them on the table in the same way.
Ning Wujie was busy as he asked in confusion, "Why are there so many backlogs?"
Fang Bingyuan sighed and said helplessly, "Your Majesty became ill a few months ago. He said he couldn't bear to read memorials, as they would make him sick. Since then, these memorials have been piling up."
Hearing this, Ning Wujie recalled that he had just seen the emperor suffering from heart pain today, and also remembered that the imperial physician had said that if the condition was serious, his life would be in danger, and he couldn't help but frown.
But is it true that someone would get sick from reading memorial documents?
Ning Wujie found it unbelievable and always felt that this was a case of a foolish emperor using illness as an excuse to be lazy in governing.
"Later, the government affairs became so overwhelmed that we, the old ministers, jointly petitioned Your Majesty to take charge of the government. Your Majesty then came up with this agile development method."
Ning Wujie was stunned when he heard the words "agile development".
Seeing his confusion, Fang Bingyuan picked up a memorial and pointed to the number marked in the corner. "It's to grade the contents of the memorial according to their severity. Urgent and important ones are marked with a zero, important but not urgent ones are marked with a one, and other general ones are marked with a two. The zero must be approved, and the others can be postponed as appropriate."
"Except for wholesale and retail, which will be handed over to the senior ministers, all other memorials will be handled at the discretion of the six ministries."
Ning Wujie frowned: "Your Majesty, are you completely indifferent?"
Fang Bingyuan shook his head: "That's not the case."
"Every two weeks, His Majesty comes to the Imperial Study to hear us report on important matters."
Ning Wujie's brows relaxed.
It seems that the incompetent ruler is not completely incompetent.
Fang Bingyuan looked at the tall and graceful young man, staring at his handsome face with complicated eyes for a while, and said meaningfully: "General Ning's position is not easy to sit in."
Ning Wujie lowered his eyes: "It is difficult to disobey the Holy Order."
Fang Bingyuan sighed, "Even if Your Majesty has made up his mind, as a minister and Your Majesty's teacher, I still have to say what I should say."
His meaning was very clear. He would persuade the emperor to revoke his order and wanted to see Ning Wujie's attitude towards the matter.
Ning Wujie couldn't help but understand. As he stacked the memorials, he said, "The responsibility of approving official documents is grave, and whoever holds the position will become a target of public criticism. Your Majesty's illness is understandable. If your subjects fail to show sympathy for Your Majesty and continue to threaten your own life, it will inevitably drive a wedge between the ruler and his subjects."
Fang Bingyuan heard this and thought for a moment before saying, "It is indeed as General Ning said."
"As the Emperor's tutor for eighteen years, I understand His Majesty best. He has always been humble, respectful, benevolent, and filial. He has never..." He recalled how Wen Xing had addressed him by name in front of the entire court the day before, and how he had recently refused to even see him. He shook his head and sighed, "I never imagined his temperament would change so drastically once he was bedridden."
Ning Wujie nodded and said to the old man, "Since Your Majesty's temperament is different from before, and the Grand Tutor is experienced in state affairs, why don't you stay out of the spotlight for a while?"
Fang Bingyuan's eyes flickered when he heard this, "I'm grateful for your advice."
The two chatted for a while about the handover of government affairs, and then Fang Bingyuan left.
After Ning Wujie watched the old man leave, he glanced at the neatly arranged table, lifted his clothes and sat down.
The lights in the imperial study stayed on all night long until dawn.
*
The begonias in Funing Hall are in full bloom.
Wen Xing slept until noon, washed up, had lunch, and then went to the corridor to appreciate the flowers.
He had just bent down to sit in the recliner when he heard Li Dequan say, "Your Majesty, General Ning requests an audience."
He frowned and looked up to see a tall figure standing at the end of the yard.
"What's the matter?"
Wasn't the last scare enough? Why did this stubborn donkey dare to come again?
Li Dequan smiled awkwardly and reminded, "Your Majesty, you should have gone to the Imperial Study this morning to attend to government affairs. General Ning waited for you for half a day and didn't see you, so he came to ask for an audience."
Wen Xing blinked, a little dazed.
It seems that there is a meeting to be held.
hiss......
He rubbed his twitching brows, remembering that when the decree on agile development was first issued, it was unanimously opposed by all the civil and military officials in the court. Even the empress dowager came to Funing Palace to nag him all day long. He became impatient with the nagging, so he made a concession and agreed to hold a meeting every two weeks.
Although it didn't mean much to him and the important thing was participation, the symbolic significance of the emperor's participation was huge for this feudal dynasty.
But it’s okay. In my previous life, I listened to reports from my subordinates, and now I listen to reports from court officials. It’s just a formality, it’s all the same.
"Let him come over. We won't go to the imperial study today." He said lazily while lying on the chair.
The figure slowly approached.
Wen Xing looked up and saw that the man was wearing a dark green straight-sleeved robe. The long robe dragged on the ground, subtracting some of the sharpness and adding a touch of elegance and grace.
The young man had a calm expression, his eyes were still red, perhaps because he had stayed up all night, his complexion was not very good, but it still couldn't hide his handsome appearance.
Wen Xing looked at the beauty for a few more seconds out of admiration, but he saw a eunuch following behind her, holding a huge pile of memorials. Because the pile was too high, it blocked the eunuch's vision and he almost bumped into Ning Wujie's back.
Wen Xing's face changed. He was just listening to the report. Why were so many memorials brought in? Did they want him to read them?
He was going to have a seizure just thinking about it.
Ning Wujie walked up to the steps and saluted expressionlessly, "Your Majesty, I have recently sorted through 738 memorials in the Imperial Study, and have now processed them all."
Hearing this, Wen Xing's frown relaxed slightly.
All dealt with?
He is worthy of being Emperor Wu of Zhou. With such efficiency, hundreds of officials from the six ministries combined are not as efficient as him.
Wen Xing secretly praised himself for his good eye for selecting people.
Ning Wujie: "For matters such as memorials of respect and astronomical images from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory that do not require approval, they have been sent back to the Fanglue Hall for archiving. Regarding matters concerning judicial and criminal cases, the Supervisory Commission, and the transfer of officials, I have already approved them as appropriate."
Wen Xing nodded with satisfaction, picked a grape from the ice jar and put it into his mouth.
Ning Wujie said, "However, matters concerning military affairs, people's livelihood, finances, and so on, I believe they are all matters that concern the nation's destiny and must be personally reviewed by Your Majesty. No one in the court can interfere."
Wen Xing's eyes turned cold, and before he could say anything, he saw Ning Wujie take a letter from the eunuch behind him and was about to hand it to him.
Wen Xing held his forehead and said, "I won't look at it."
"You can approve all memorials as appropriate. There is no need to ask for my opinion again."
Anyway, he doesn't know how to govern the country. Can't professional matters be left to professionals?
He might not be able to get it done if he intervened, and besides, his heart ached whenever he saw the memorial.
Reviewing documents is his job, and this job could cost him his life.
He seriously suspected that he must have died in such pain that it became a conditioned reflex.
As if he had anticipated his words, Ning Wujie withdrew his hand and calmly opened the memorial.
"After the Huainan flood, we petitioned to defer the collection of grain taxes and levies, listed the disaster situation in 28 counties, and requested work-for-relief, recruiting victims to repair the river..."
"Ning Wujie." Wen Xing was a little shocked. "Are you going to disobey the order?"
Ning Wujie looked up at him neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Your Highness dares not."
He stood up, snatched the memorial from Ning Wujie's hand, threw it to the eunuch behind him and said, "You, take all the memorials back to the imperial study."
The eunuch nodded repeatedly and retreated with the memorial in his arms.
Wen Xing looked at Ning Wujie with some pride.
There are no more memorials. Let’s see what else you want to read.
The young man's dark eyes were as still as an ancient well. He looked at Wen Xing calmly and said, "Please borrow 50% of the spare funds allocated from the unrelated reports and start work immediately..."
Wen Xing: ...
Wen Xing rubbed his twitching temples.
Very good, great, you have a photographic memory, right?
What should I do? How can I make this guy shut up? If he doesn't shut up, he's going to have a seizure.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Suddenly, he thought of something and stepped forward.
The distance between the two suddenly shortened.
The wide hem of his robe fluttered in the wind, and the scent of ambergris penetrated into Ning Wujie's nostrils.
Wen Xing was standing in the corridor, while Ning Wujie was standing in front of the steps. The height difference made the boy who was originally taller than him now half a head shorter than him.
He reached out and pinched the boy's chin condescendingly, a smile on his lips, and slowly moved closer.
Ning Wujie was forced to look up, and his sight met a pair of blue-gray eyes like ripples. The eyes were half-covered by the drooping eyelashes like fans, revealing half of the glow.
The two of them were so close that their noses were even touching.
Ning Wujie suddenly clenched his hands that were hanging at his sides.
The emperor's face was so close to him that he simply closed his eyes and continued in a low voice, "The fields are flooded, and the farmers who can't afford to borrow seeds..."
Wen Xing watched with interest as Ning Wujie closed his eyes tightly, his whole body tense, revealing his anger.
The jade-white skin at the base of the ear looked like a piece of drawing paper that had been quickly dyed red by a drop of cinnabar.
It's really funny.
"As usual, after the autumn harvest, the warehouse will be returned without interest."
Wen Xing raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Although the sounds were made with gritted teeth, the stubborn donkey still insisted on reading the memorial.
It seems that I have to use a big move.
At this time, an attendant announced: "Your Majesty, the Grand Tutor and the six ministers of state request an audience."
Wen Xing didn't want to see this group of old men, but when he caught a glimpse of Ning Wujie's red ears and his irritating thin lips that were still chattering, he realized the opportunity to use his ultimate move, and his voice darkened: "Announce."
After saying this, he leaned close to Ning Wujie's ear and whispered, "If you say it again, I'll kiss you. Do you want all the ministers to see it?"
Ning Wujie suddenly opened his eyes and took two steps back, looking at Wen Xing with disbelief in his eyes.
"faint......"
The word "tyrant" almost came out of his mouth.
Ning Wujie suddenly gritted his teeth, finally shut up, and looked at Wen Xing with extremely cold eyes.
So shameless!
Shameless!
Wen Xing picked up the feather fan and sat back in the recliner. Looking at Ning Wujie's humiliated and extremely angry expression, he felt like a winner and his mood suddenly became very good.
The eunuch led the court officials over.
Everyone bowed, and just as Grand Tutor Fang Bingyuan was about to speak, Wen Xing, without even looking up, waved his fan and stopped him. "If you're here to persuade me to retract my decision, Grand Tutor, there's nothing to say."
Fang Bingyuan sighed, lifted the corner of his robe, knelt down and said, "This old minister has come to apologize to Your Majesty."
Wen Xing raised his half-closed eyelids and glanced at the old man.
"It is my fault that I failed to show consideration for Your Majesty's health."
"After thinking about it for the past few days, I have finally come to the conclusion that as a minister, serving Your Majesty is my top priority. If I cannot do so, how can I possibly hold the position of one of the Three Dukes?"
Wen Xing sneered, "So, Grand Tutor is willing to share my worries?"
Why didn't this teacher show any sympathy for him when he was in so much pain from work?
Now that he has handed over all government affairs to Ning Wujie, this old man comes out and says he wants to be sympathetic?
It's too late.
Fang Bingyuan said helplessly, "General Ning is young and promising, but he lacks experience after all. If the emperor approves his appointment, it will probably delay state affairs. Moreover, the war in the northwest is tense at this time. Your Majesty, please let General Ning go back."
All the ministers bowed their heads and said, "We second the motion."
Wen Xing swayed on the recliner and said leisurely, "But I think Ning Qing is the most suitable candidate."
"I only learned today that the six ministries had a backlog of over 700 memorials for months, yet Ning Qing processed them all in just a few days."
Wen Xing glanced at Ning Wujie with admiration as he spoke, then cast a sharp glance at the crowd, "Tell me, what use do I have for you?"
The officials were horrified. "All...all?"
Some court officials tried to save face, saying, "It's really because the six ministries are usually overwhelmed with official duties and can't spare staff to deal with memorials. Besides, His Majesty said that the memorials that cannot be approved can be postponed, so..."
"That's enough." Wen Xing just wanted to end this meaningless conversation quickly. "I will not let Ning Qing go. There is no need to discuss this matter further."
Fang Bingyuan's face turned serious. "Your Majesty, General Ning is an important commander at Hantie Pass. Could it be that Your Majesty would rather delay military operations than allow him to remain?"
Wen Xing: "So what?"
If you don't keep him, are you going to let Ning Wujie go back to die?
Besides, among all the civil and military officials in the court, only his family members were left? Were all the other generals dead?
Everyone present was filled with shock and anxiety.
Could those recent rumors be true?
When Ning Wujie heard this, he finally turned around and stared at Wen Xing with a serious look.
Even if you love me so much, I will not do as you wish.
Give up on this idea!
Fang Bingyuan's pupils shrank sharply, and he blurted out: "Your Majesty, could it be that he is really...?"
When he said this, he saw Ning Wujie looking at him out of the corner of his eye and shook his head slightly.
It was futile to question him any further, as he would only respond with a "So what?" response. He might even anger him again.
Fang Bingyuan swallowed his words.
Ning Wujie changed the subject: "My Lords, I have something I would like to ask you for your advice."
"You gentlemen just mentioned that the war in the northwest is tense. I presume you're aware of the military situation on the border." As he spoke, he pulled a memorial from his sleeve. "Then may I ask why my father's memorial requesting military supplies has been withheld for over a month?"
"According to His Majesty's decree, border defense military affairs involve national security and are both urgent and important. They should be marked as wholesale and retail, and their handling cannot be postponed. But why is this memorial not marked at all?"
He cast a stern glance at the ministers and said, "Please give me an explanation."
The situation suddenly changed, and Wen Xing narrowed his eyes with interest.
Fang Bingyuan's pupils widened as he took the memorial from Ning Wujie and flipped through it. He then looked at the Minister of War in confusion, "This old minister has never seen this memorial before. Lord Xu, why is this?"
Xu Chongyun's expression remained unchanged. He knelt on both knees and kowtowed, saying, "I am guilty. It is simply that the Shuofeng tribe has recently revolted, and the Ministry of War has been overwhelmed with affairs. I was negligent and overlooked this memorial. As the Minister of War, I have failed to govern my subordinates properly. Your Majesty, I beg for your punishment!"
"Can you neglect an urgent memorial sent from eight hundred miles away?" Wen Xing said coldly.
Xu Chongyun buried his head in his arms and prostrated himself on the ground. "I will now interrogate all the subordinates involved and give His Majesty an explanation."
Ning Wujie looked at Xu Chongyun suspiciously, as if he did not agree with this statement.
Fang Bingyuan also frowned, seeming to have some doubts about this explanation, but he couldn't find anything to find out.
This is why Wen Xing hates dealing with court officials the most.
Those who can sit in this position are all old loaches. They can just throw the blame on a subordinate for such groundless things, and at most they can be accused of not managing their subordinates well.
Just handle it with care and it will be uncovered.
It is precisely because of this that Wen Xing always feels overwhelmed when discussing matters with court officials. Everyone has their own plans, but he is a modern man with no experience in court. How can he fight back?
Later he simply stopped meeting the ministers.
The country is going to perish anyway, so why not?
Why should he bother saving the country when the original owner couldn't save it no matter how hard he tried?
He was too lazy to dwell on these things. After being active for so long, he had already exhausted all his energy for the day.
I feel so sleepy and want to sleep.
He waved his hand lazily, "Let Ning Qing investigate this matter."
Ning Wujie looked at Wen Xing in surprise. Although he wanted to volunteer, this matter fell under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War. If he came to investigate, he would be overstepping his authority and would be a slap in the face of the Minister of War.
Could it be that this tyrant wanted to use him to warn Xu Chongyun?
Xu Chongyun looked up in shock, "Your Majesty!"
Without giving anyone a chance to refute, Wen Xing closed his eyes and said lazily, "Let's go."
No matter how much they argued, the emperor would not listen at this moment, and the court officials who were ordered to leave had to leave.
Du Fang Bingyuan pondered for a long time and tried to persuade him again: "Your Majesty, you favor one person too much. It is definitely not good for him."
Hearing this, Ning Wujie also looked up at Wen Xing.
He climbed high and fell hard. Being so highly valued by the emperor, he would become a thorn in the eyes of many people, and I wonder if this foolish emperor would listen to him.
If you really love him, let him go.
But Wen Xing said without even raising his eyes: "Anyone who dares to harm Ning Qing is against me, and I will never let him go."
Fang Bingyuan's pupils trembled violently, "Your Majesty!"
Ning Wujie also looked at Wen Xing in disbelief.
What nonsense is this tyrant talking about!
Wen Xing lost his patience and said, "Taifu, please go back."
Fang Bingyuan sighed helplessly and finally gave up the idea of advising Ning Wujie. He gave Ning Wujie an apologetic look and left with heavy steps.
Wen Xing wanted to go back to the house to rest, but when he opened his eyes, he saw the young man still standing there, raising his eyebrows: "Why don't you leave?"
Ning Wujie closed his eyes solemnly, thinking that he must not let this tyrant do whatever he wants!
He said with a cold face, "Your Majesty, is the report on the handling of the Huainan disaster just now approved or not?"
Wen Xing was shocked.
Is this not over yet?
This is no longer a stubborn donkey, this is a stubborn person.
He said speechlessly: "Okay."
Ning Wujie nodded: "Okay."
However, just as Wen Xing was about to stand, he heard Ning Wujie say, "The next letter is a request for the 'Four Strategies for the Transfer of Land Use'. Over 400,000 hectares of farmland in Liangjiang have been missing for the past ten years. Please order all prefectures and counties to re-register their land..."
"Ning Wujie." Wen Xing rubbed his twitching forehead. "What's wrong with you? You've repeatedly disobeyed my orders."
Ning Wujie lifted his clothes and knelt on both knees. "From over 700 memorials, I have selected 32 of them. They all concern matters that are of vital importance to the nation. If I were to handle them without authorization, and if the nation's foundation is shaken in the future, I, too, would face death."
The young man straightened his back and looked Wen Xing in the eye. "However, disobeying your order will also result in death. There is no escape anyway. I would rather Your Majesty grant me death now."
Wen Xing looked at the person kneeling in front of him. The other person's eyes were red with anger and were now wet, as if there were thousands of grievances and anger accumulated in them.
Wen Xing: ...
Forget it.
Why bother a child all the time?
He lay back in the recliner, closed his eyes and fanned himself, saying helplessly, "You read it."
Ning Wujie's eyes lit up slightly, but before he could open his mouth, he heard Xing say, "I'm going to sleep now. How much you can recite before I fall asleep depends on your ability."
Ning Wujie lowered his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Yes."
The author has something to say:
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5j: You'd rather delay military operations than let me go. Do you love me that much? Haha.
Tyrant: Worker Unit 1, stay here and work honestly. Humph.
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① In the 11th year of Daoguang (1831), Wu Guangyue, the governor of Jiangxi Province, submitted a memorial
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