Chapter 196
"Your Majesty, the offender, Ganzhou County Magistrate Ding Wenhong, abandoned the city and fled when the Huns came south to invade our border areas, disregarding the safety of the people in the city. He was greedy for life and afraid of death, and was unworthy of being the head of a county. He has now been escorted to Yandu. I hope Your Majesty will punish him severely." Xia Yi said.
"Your Majesty, I have an objection," Xia Yi had just finished speaking when someone immediately said, "It is true that County Magistrate Ding abandoned the city and fled, but it was because the army's western expedition against the Xiongnu failed, allowing the Xiongnu to take advantage of the situation and enter Ganzhou. Ganzhou was poorly guarded and had no elite soldiers or generals. It was difficult for County Magistrate Ding to hold on without any soldiers or generals. It was a matter of reason, and his situation is sympathetic and excusable."
Xia Yi smiled and said, "If everyone is like Ding Wenhong, who only cares about his own life when the enemy is at the gates of the city, I am afraid that the Great Yan will be in danger. Moreover, Ding Wenhong is the magistrate of Ganzhou County, and he should take on the responsibility of protecting the people. If he escapes, the people in the county will be uneasy. If it were not for the county magistrate and the county lieutenant who brought soldiers and servants to defend the entire city, the Xiongnu would be unstoppable. Under the attack of the army, it would not only be the people of this county and this city who would suffer. If the Xiongnu broke through the defense line, Weijun, Longxi, and even the capital of Yan would be in danger."
"Master Xia, I want to ask you where Magistrate Ding fled to?"
Xia Yi said, "We will head south to Weijun. We will drive the carriage very fast. I think even if the Xiongnu cavalry wanted to chase us, they would not be able to catch up."
Lin Shuge laughed in his heart. Xia Yi was really interesting. However, the Ding family's words were probably an excuse for Ding Wenhong.
Sure enough, just as Xia Yi finished speaking, an official of the Ding Party said, "As far as I know, although County Magistrate Ding fled to Wei County when the Xiongnu came, he was not running for his life, but to seek help. The situation was urgent at the time, and there was no news from the Western Expedition Army. He could not go to the Duwei Mansion or the County Magistrate's Mansion, so he could only go to Wei County to seek help."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the court became so angry that their faces turned red. This was truly a distortion of right and wrong. How could a coward who was greedy for life and afraid of death become a hero who saved lives?
Lin Shuge stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say. I want to ask this lord, is there any witness that the criminal Ding Wenhong went to Weijun to ask for help? If there is no witness, lord, please do not distort the facts and confuse right and wrong to excuse Ding Wenhong."
"Of course, Your Majesty, I have the Weijun official as a witness."
Under the crown of Emperor Yongyuan, a pair of dark eyes were deep, and he said, "Send him in."
The eunuchs shouted a few times, and then a dark-faced middle-aged man walked in, "Weijun Gongcao Shi Xuequan greets Your Majesty."
"Stand up, Lord Li, can you testify for Ding Wenhong that he went to Weijun not to escape for his life but to seek help? Is that true?" Emperor Yongyuan's voice was gentle, but it carried a majesty that no one dared to offend.
All the officials in the court looked at him. Xue Quan was timid. When he looked up, he met Ding Wenbo's eyes and said immediately, "This is true. County Magistrate Ding came a thousand miles away and traveled a lot just to spread the news that Ganzhou County was besieged by the Xiongnu. He is really..." He trembled slightly and said, "He is really loyal. Heaven can bear witness to this."
As soon as he finished speaking, an official said, "Master Xue, please don't brag. There are many loyal people in this court. There are also people who did not bring their servants and wives to ask for help when the Huns invaded the border, but instead led the people to defend the city and held out for more than a month. Master Xue, there is no room for any ghost tricks in front of His Majesty. Do you know how to punish the crime of deceiving the emperor?"
Xue Quan looked flustered, his legs went limp and he immediately knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, everything I said is true, I dare not deceive Your Majesty."
An official laughed and said, "Master Ding went to protect his family first, and even took his wives and concubines with him when he went to get reinforcements."
Everyone burst into laughter. Xue Quan was at a loss and could only look towards the Ding family again and again. Lin Shuge smiled and asked, "Why does Master Xue keep looking at Master Ding? What instructions does Master Ding have?"
Ding Wenbo cursed the waste in his heart, glanced at Lin Shuge, and said nothing.
Lin Shuge said to Emperor Yongyuan: "Your Majesty, whether Ding Wenhong was escaping or seeking help, we cannot just listen to Lord Wu's one-sided statement. It is better to listen to what the people of Ganzhou say."
Emperor Yongyuan said, "That's right, go ahead." After saying that, he looked straight at Xue Quan. Xue Quan naturally knew that Emperor Yongyuan obviously wanted to kill him, but he really had no way to do anything.
A young man dressed as a scholar walked in. He had a handsome face and proper manners. It turned out to be He Qingran. "Your Majesty, I am here to greet you. I am a minor official in Ganzhou County."
"Your Majesty, He Qingran heard that Your Majesty was going to interrogate the case of the Ganzhou County Magistrate, so he came to Yandu to say a few words for the people." Lin Shuge said.
Emperor Yongyuan looked solemn, neither sad nor happy, and said loudly: "Since you are from Ganzhou, then let's talk properly."
"When the Xiongnu moved south, the only news in Ganzhou County was that the Xiongnu had besieged Qingquan County. The people of the county, including us county officials, had no idea that the Xiongnu were about to arrive in Ganzhou. On the third day of October, I went to the county office as usual, but heard that Ganzhou County Magistrate Ding Wenhong had fled with his wives, concubines and servants. County Magistrate Zhou took us to the magistrate's house, but found that it was already empty. We asked the servants who were sweeping the house and found that Ding Wenhong and his family had left in the middle of the night."
"We felt that this matter was of great importance. It was not until the soldiers guarding the city came to report that the Xiongnu were less than 50 miles away from Ganzhou County that people in Ganzhou knew that the Xiongnu were coming. Ding Wenhong, the head of the county, had already received the news and had already abandoned the city and fled."
"Everyone in Ganzhou knows about this. When Ding Wenhong fled, the entire county was in chaos. County Magistrate Zhou and County Lieutenant Wu were ordered to lead the people and soldiers of the city to fight to the death, but the Xiongnu still abducted a large number of people. The land of Nanxiang was devastated, and Ding Wenhong has long been enjoying wealth and honor in Wei County. I hope Your Majesty will severely punish these evil thieves to comfort the people and soldiers who died in the battle of Ganzhou."
He Qingran knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, this is a petition from the people of Ganzhou. Please take a look at it."
The eunuch came down, took the petition from He Qingran's hand, and presented it to Emperor Yongyuan.
Emperor Yongyuan lowered his head and read the letter. It was covered in blood, with the handprints of thousands of common people. Every word was stained with blood. It not only told about Ding Wenhong's desertion of his post and abandoning the city in the face of the Huns, but also about his actions in Ganzhou, including oppressing the people and being an unkind official, which made him unworthy of being a county official.
Emperor Yongyuan was furious. He threw the petition to the side of the Ding family with a bang and said, "This is the Ding Wenhong who claimed to be a talented person. My dear Ding, what else do you have to say?"
Ding Yanhe knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, I am terrified. My family, the Dings, are loyal to the Lord, but we have such a son. It is because I failed to teach him well. Please punish me, Your Majesty."
Yi Chi immediately said, "Grand Marshal, please get up. When the late emperor was dying, he appointed Grand Marshal to support the country. Grand Marshal has been working hard every day and has not dared to slack off for a moment. The matter of County Magistrate Ding was really a helpless move. The governor of Dingyuan County failed to do his job and failed to stop the Xiongnu's advance, allowing the Xiongnu army to penetrate into Dingyuan. Moreover, the Xiongnu army was really powerful, which led to the matter of County Magistrate Ding. Your Majesty will definitely see through it. How can you blame Grand Marshal for the words of a petty official? Isn't Grand Marshal embarrassing Your Majesty this time?"
Emperor Yongyuan's face was livid. Before he could speak, Lin Shuge said with a smile, "Your Excellency the Imperial Court Justice is wrong. The incident of Envoy Wei escorting grain and grass was caused by the traitor Han Jue who betrayed the news. Your Majesty has also ordered Envoy Wei to make meritorious contributions while guilty. How can you excuse Ding Wenhong for this? As for what the Imperial Court Justice said about the strength of the Xiongnu army," Lin Shuge sneered, "As officials, how can we be afraid of death just because the Xiongnu army is so fierce and evil? We have to know that there are thousands of people behind us. If we take a step back, the people will die and the city will be lost. I don't know who can bear the infamy for all eternity, and how can we live up to your majesty's trust? Lord Yi is trying to boost others' morale and destroy his own prestige."
Emperor Yongyuan was overjoyed, clapped his hands and laughed, "Lord Lin, what you said is very much to my liking. Lord Ding is the minister entrusted by the late emperor to take care of the young emperor. He has worked hard all these years and it is indeed very hard. But Ding Wenhong is really hateful. For Lord Ding's sake, I will not implicate other people. As for Ding Wenhong, I will first interrogate him thoroughly, and then," Emperor Yongyuan lifted his robe and said sternly, "behead him and let everyone see, and all his wives and children will be made official slaves. Lord Ding, you are busy with state affairs, and you should also worry about family affairs."
All the officials immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise."
Ding Yanhe's face looked very ugly. The little emperor was becoming more and more powerful. If he couldn't protect Ding Wenhong today, would the Ding family still have a place in the court in the long run?
"Xue Quan," Emperor Yongyuan said with a murderous look in his eyes, "Since you said Ding Wenhong was looking for reinforcements, then you, the reinforcement, should go to Dingyuan. Send Xue Quan to Dingyuan County and hand him over to the county governor. I will make sure he goes and fights the Xiongnu."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please spare my life, Your Majesty," Xue Quan knelt on the ground and kowtowed desperately, "Your Majesty, it was...it was Lord Ding who told me to say this, Your Majesty...please understand."
"You are talking nonsense, Your Majesty. I am not familiar with him. He just wanted to take credit, so he came to me and said that I could testify for the criminal official..." Ding Wenbo said anxiously.
"My dear Minister Ding, you don't know people well. Since he is so concerned about you, you should send him off in person. Let Wen Qi take over the task of guarding the palace. My dear Minister Ding, my dear Minister Yi, what do you think?" Emperor Yongyuan said to Ding Yanhe with a gentle smile on his face.
Yi Chi said happily: "Your Majesty is wise."
Ding Wenbo's face was full of anxiety, and he looked at Ding Yanhe anxiously, "Father..."
Ding Yanhe bowed and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
"Also, He Qingran, I just noticed that you have extraordinary conversation skills and the ability to deliver letters thousands of miles away. You should stay in Yandu. Lord Lin is still short of a subordinate, and you can fill the position." Emperor Yongyuan said again.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I will obey your command."
After the court session, Lin Shuge and Xie Chen went to see Emperor Yongyuan.
"It is thanks to you, my dear minister, that we were able to deal with Ding Wenhong so smoothly today." Emperor Yongyuan said as soon as he saw the two of them.
Not only was Ding Wenhong eliminated today, but Ding Wenbo was also forced to lose his position on the pretext of something. Although the post of Weiwei fell into the hands of Ding Wenqi, how could Ding Wenbo let it go this time? A drama of brothers fighting each other is bound to begin.
After thinking this through, Lin Shuge said, "Your Majesty is still a smart one."
"My two beloved ministers, please be careful these days. Ding Yan is a vindictive man. He suffered a loss today and he will definitely get back at you. You must be careful."
"I know, Your Majesty, thank you for your concern." Lin Shuge and Xie Chen said in unison.
"But is there any follow-up to the matter of Wang Heng you mentioned?" asked Emperor Yongyuan.
Lin Shuge replied: "There will be news tonight."
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