Chapter 214
At dusk, the two men were riding in a carriage back home, only to see a general leading soldiers to search a house. Standing on the roadside were several men and women, young and old, who were shouting and screaming. They seemed to be the family members of the officials being searched.
Lin Shuge slowly lowered the curtain, thinking that it was time to go meet Emperor Yongyuan, but the noise outside was getting louder and louder.
"Erlang, Erlang, please save us."
When Lin Shuge heard the voice, he suddenly felt a surge of anger in his heart. He hadn't noticed just now that the one who was copied was actually the Wei family.
Xie Chen had no expression on his face, as if he hadn't heard anything. He just said in a cold voice, "Axun, go back home."
"Yes, sir." Axun drove the carriage and prepared to move forward, but Wei Huan actually shook off the soldiers, rushed up and directly stopped the carriage.
"Erlang, uncle knows he was wrong. The Ding family is so powerful that we can't do anything. It's all their fault. It was Ding Yan who forced us. Uncle knows that you are the most filial. Please help us to plead for mercy in front of His Majesty. Do you have the heart to let your grandfather be exiled at such an old age? Do you have the heart to let your cousins go to the wilderness to live a hard life?"
Lin Shuge was so angry that he almost laughed. He was about to lift the curtain and go out, but Xie Chen stopped him with his hand, "Brother, I'll do it."
When the Wei family saw Xie Chen coming out of the carriage, they were immediately excited. Wei Shu had a hunched back and no longer had the wealth and honor he once had. The other Wei family members around him were also dressed in plain clothes and shivering in the cold wind.
"Erlang, your grandfather knew that you still cared about us." Wei Shu, with tears streaming down his face, stepped forward and tried to pull Xie Chen's sleeve, but was stopped by a soldier on the side.
"Greetings to Captain Xie. We are following the order of His Majesty to exile the Wei family to Cangxi County."
Before Xie Chen could say anything, Wei Shu angrily said, "Why are you stopping me? The man in front of you is a favorite of His Majesty. He is my grandson, Erlang. Now only you can save the Wei family."
Xie Chen raised the corner of his lips, "Grandfather has been trying to curry favor with the rich and powerful for many years. Did he ever expect this day to come?"
Wei Shu's face changed, and Wei Huan immediately shouted: "Little beast, what do you mean? Father, you'd better not beg him. He is now in the limelight and probably wants to sever our relationship. But don't forget that your mother is also a member of the Wei family." Wei Shu wiped his tears and said: "Erlang, do you really have the heart to let the Wei family be destroyed? If Yan knew about this, he would also say that you are unfilial."
"Really? You should be thankful that your mother is a daughter of the Wei family, otherwise how could she allow you to be exiled so easily?"
When Wei Shu heard this, he knew that Xie Chen would never help them, and he cursed, "You are such an unfaithful and unfilial person. His Majesty can use you now because you are still useful. When you have other knives in your hands in the future, who knows if your fate will be better than ours?"
"Then we'll wait and see. By the way, I'd like to tell you that Cangxi County is surrounded by mountains and is said to be full of insect pests and diseases. Grandfather and uncle, please take care of yourselves. I'll be waiting for you in Yandu."
After Xie Chen finished speaking, he turned to the officer in charge of the house search and said, "Sorry for interrupting your official duties."
The young general bowed and saluted, "Send the lord away," and then shouted, "Take him away."
When Xie Chen entered the carriage, he could still hear all kinds of curses mixed with desperate cries. He rubbed his brows and sat there for a long time without moving.
"Axun, send someone to follow them. If anything happens, don't show mercy." Axun responded loudly outside. Lin Shuge knew that Xie Chen was in a complicated mood, so he said in a comforting tone: "Cangxi County is located in the southern part of Dayan, which is not as good as the Central Plains. These people have been pampered in Yandu for many years. The malaria disease alone is enough for them to bear."
Xie Chen nodded. Betrayal from family members is the most deadly, especially twice. If it wasn't for his mother's sake, he wouldn't let them off so easily.
"However, although the population of the southern counties is small now, if they are well developed..." Lin Shuge murmured. The previous dynasty had already begun to develop the south. If we want to reproduce the splendor of the south in later generations, it will probably take many years. Why not start now?
"Brother said that Nanjun will be developed?" Xie Chen asked.
"Yes, although the south is hot and humid and there are many diseases, if it is well developed, the whole Dayan will benefit. No, I have to think about this matter carefully and discuss it with Your Majesty in detail." Lin Shuge said with a restrained expression.
Xie Chen was used to seeing him like this, so he stopped asking questions and just let Axun drive back.
The next day.
Lin Shuge went to Yunfu Palace to meet Emperor Yongyuan. Just as he was about to report, he saw the eunuch beside Emperor Yongyuan running over happily, "Doctor Lin, please come in. Your Majesty has been waiting for a long time."
In Yunfu Palace, Emperor Yongyuan was writing something with his head down. Lin Shuge seemed to have returned to the time when they first met. Before he could salute, he heard Emperor Yongyuan say, "No need to be polite. I thought you would hide for a while, but you came to see me today. Tell me, what do you want to advise me?"
"Your Majesty, I am not here to give you advice today. I just want to discuss the affairs of the southern counties with Your Majesty." Lin Shuge bowed upright and said.
"Oh? How are things in the southern counties?" Emperor Yongyuan put down his pen and looked up at him.
"I heard that Your Majesty exiled many people to the southern border counties these days, so I have some ideas..."
Emperor Yongyuan's expression changed, and his face was immediately covered with a layer of frost. "You said it was not an admonition, don't you think I should exile those people?"
"Your Majesty, please listen to me. I want to say that the southern counties of Dayan are underdeveloped, and it is advisable to send these people to open up wasteland. I heard that the south has rich soil and water, and rice can be harvested twice a year. There is a place called Champa in the southern region. The rice here is excellent and can be harvested three times a year. However, there are many epidemics in the south. Your Majesty can select various doctors to accompany us to prevent various epidemics."
“We should build water conservancy projects, bring the iron plow and ox-drawn plowing technology to some places that our Great Yan has not yet set foot in, and assist with education. By then, the culture will be flourishing, which will benefit Great Yan.” Lin Shuge told Emperor Yongyuan about the development policies of later generations towards the south one by one.
"Great, it's Lin Huaiting as expected." Emperor Yongyuan was overjoyed and said after thinking for a moment.
"I will ask Ah Yun to bring people to draw up a set of rules. It just so happens that a number of criminal officials have been dealt with recently, and there is probably no more room in the prison. Let them all go to open up wasteland for me."
"Your Majesty, I have something to advise you. Party strife is detrimental to the foundation of the country. The Ding Party has been eliminated. All the ministers in the court should work together to do something practical for the people and Dayan instead of attacking each other. If this continues, there will be great trouble." Lin Shuge's voice was firm, ignoring the suddenly ugly face of Emperor Yongyuan.
"Lin Huaiting, is this what you want to say? Do you think I am too cruel and ruthless?" Emperor Yongyuan said coldly.
"That's not the case," Lin Shuge said hurriedly, "Your Majesty's swift and decisive handling of the Ding Party is a good thing. It can not only remove the cancer in the court, but also deter the scoundrels. However, we cannot simply identify them as Ding's party based on whether they have contact with the Ding family. It is an overreaction, and it may backfire."
"Throughout the ages, people in the court have formed cliques and factions in response to the struggle for fame and fortune, and then formed factions. They viewed the other side as a ferocious beast in troubled water. Any person or thing supported by the other side, no matter if it was right or wrong, would be opposed. Even when foreign enemies invaded, they continued to argue and fight, and in the end the entire country became the price of factional fighting." Lin Shuge thought about the consequences of party fighting in later generations and couldn't help feeling fear. When he spoke, he didn't notice that Emperor Yongyuan's face was getting darker and darker.
"Are you done?" Emperor Yongyuan stood with his hands behind his back. There was a sound of pin drop in Yunfu Palace. The sun outside shone in through the open window. In the semi-darkness, Emperor Yongyuan suddenly spoke.
Lin Shuge knelt down and said, "What I said today is from the bottom of my heart. I hope Your Majesty will put the country and the people's livelihood first and not condone it."
Emperor Yongyuan laughed in anger. When Lin Huaiting stood on his side to deal with the Ding family in the past, he felt it was refreshing to listen to him. But now that the spearhead was pointed at him, he finally realized how powerful this mouth was.
"According to what you said, if I kill a few of the Ding party, it will be a hindrance to the country and the people's livelihood?"
"I dare not have such thoughts. I just lament the harm of factional strife. Your Majesty suffered greatly when he confronted the Ding family. Now that the Ding family has been eliminated, Your Majesty should rectify the government, get close to the virtuous, and make good use of talents, so that our Great Yan can be protected for thousands of years."
Emperor Yongyuan heard him talking openly and secretly about recent events in the court. He used to be constrained by Ding Yanhe in everything he did, and he also hated those fence-sitters who depended on the Ding family. As a subject, he should be loyal to the emperor and father, but they followed Ding Yanhe's lead and wanted to worship him.
Some even had the idea of deposing and enthroning the emperor. He knew in his heart that after finally overthrowing the Ding family, this group of people had to be dealt with.
But what Lin Shuge said makes sense, everything has to be done in moderation.
Seeing that Emperor Yongyuan didn't say anything and only looked at him with a sinister look, Lin Shuge continued, "Thunderbolts and raindrops are all grace from the emperor. In the current situation, the important officials in the court know that your majesty's majesty can no longer be violated. We should adopt a gentle policy towards those who have been wronged or are innocent, which will surely convince them."
Emperor Yongyuan suddenly smiled, "Lin Huaiting, you have said all the good and bad things, what else do you think I can say?"
Lin Shuge knew that he agreed, "Your Majesty is kind-hearted. This is a blessing for all the civil and military officials and the people of this court."
"Okay, I won't fall for it, get up." Emperor Yongyuan raised his hand.
Lin Shuge then stood up. Seeing that he was not in a hurry, Emperor Yongyuan asked in surprise, "Aren't you afraid that I will punish you for disrespect today?"
"Your Majesty is a wise ruler and would never do this." Lin Shuge had a smile on his face. The setting sun was as bright as fire, and the light and shadow cast on him, making him look elegant and graceful.
Emperor Yongyuan vaguely remembered that the man in front of him seemed to have never been married, "My dear, have you ever been married?"
Lin Shuge was surprised, wondering why Emperor Yongyuan suddenly turned to this topic, but he still replied: "Not yet, but I already have someone I like, and we are going to get married tomorrow."
"It seems that I have never heard you mention it." Emperor Yongyuan said. He didn't know that Lin Shuge already had a fiancée. However, considering his looks and talents, it was normal for him to have a fiancée. He wondered which fairy could catch Lin Shuge's eye.
"I've been so busy these years that I haven't thought about these things." Lin Shuge could only perfunctorily answer.
Emperor Yongyuan realized that he could not get any information out of him, so he stopped nagging him and discussed with him the issue of land reclamation in the southern border counties, then let him leave.
The night swallowed up the last ray of afterglow. Emperor Yongyuan stood outside the window, looking outside Yunfu Palace. Someone said, "Your Majesty, it's time for dinner."
Madam Ruan came in with a food box, and Emperor Yongyuan hurried forward to take it. The two talked like a normal couple. Emperor Yongyuan complained to Madam Ruan about what Lin Shuge said today, but Madam Ruan laughed and said, "Your Majesty doesn't look angry, but rather happy."
Emperor Yongyuan said: "He is too young and too kind. He needs to gain more experience for a few years to hide his edge."
Mrs. Ruan just listened to him quietly with a smile, serving food to Emperor Yongyuan from time to time, without saying a word.
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