043. Admonition

Liang Shenyu had put up his thin armor. When Rong Se entered the room carrying the food box, he had already changed into a cloud-white long-sleeved brocade robe and was sitting on a short couch by the window, with his long legs crossed and his hair hanging loosely, looking a bit more romantic like a young man from an aristocratic family.

There was not a trace of the coldness he showed when he was killing people. The light-colored robe softened his cold temperament very well. His face also looked a little pale, as if what he took off was not a suit of armor, but a mask of toughness that he pretended to be calm.

It's quite changeable, Rong Se secretly complained, lowered his eyes and opened the lunch box, the steaming tomato bone soup was served on the small kang table, he himself was not particular about etiquette, he just put the bowl and chopsticks on the table, and said: "The medicine is boiling in the stove, when you finish it, it will be almost ready to drink, eat it first."

He is so considerate.

It was difficult for Liang Shenyu to remain indifferent to this, so he could only allow himself to indulge.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Liang Shenyu smiled warmly, looking non-threatening. The Huns probably couldn't have imagined that the Marquis of Dingbei, who had frightened them to death, still had such a face.

Rong Se was also polite to him, "This time, Jizhou's incident is all thanks to you. It's just a meal, eat quickly."

The two of them started eating together. The bone soup was thick, and the sour taste of tomatoes made it not greasy. The ribs with green plum vinegar and honey had no fishy smell. The sweet and slightly sour fruity aroma combined with the meaty aroma perfectly without any conflict.

Liang Shenyu had no appetite to begin with. He had no appetite and slept poorly all the way back from Jizhou. But this meal was really appetizing. He ate two bowls of rice without realizing it and also drank a lot of bone soup.

So the Regent is truly amazing.

This is also the superb cooking skill.

Liang Shenyu lowered his eyes and thought secretly. The people he sent to investigate the old events in the palace did not find out anything. Most of them were things he already knew: the son of a famous prostitute, his mother who committed suicide after serving two kings, and his honest and dutiful behavior during those years in the imperial mausoleum. The subsequent plan to seize power by joining forces showed how much he could endure and how cunning he was.

But Liang Shenyu felt that these things were incompatible with the person in front of him, and there was something wrong everywhere.

Either the world has a profound misunderstanding of the King Regent, or he is too good at hiding his abilities.

He was deep in thought with his eyelashes drooping, not revealing a single word.

"Prince." Yun Chu's voice suddenly came from outside the door, "The medicine for the Marquis is ready."

Rong Se just happened to put all the tableware back into the lunch box and said, "Bring it in."

The medicine was still hot, with a wisp of white mist floating in the air. In an instant, the bitter aroma of the medicine dissipated the aroma of rice that filled the room.

Yun Chu left the medicine and left with the food box containing tableware. He gave up the idea of ​​persuading his master and decided to let the situation develop.

He claims to be older than the prince, and wants to see what the Marquis of Dingbei is trying to sell by hiding his true colors!

Liang Shenyu didn't care about Yun Chu's defensive look at all. He didn't touch the bowl of medicine. Instead, he talked about the Jizhou case with Rong Se and told him about what he had done in Jizhou. He deliberately skipped the reason for caning Zhang Haicheng and said, "The person is still alive and has left a confession. Your Highness can order the arrest of Zhu Lanshan. The evidence is now clear."

In fact, Zhang Haicheng is not necessarily a necessary witness. Zhu Hong, Xue Shao and others have confessed a lot these days. According to past practice, these two people would have been "suddenly killed" after being imprisoned. However, Yun Zhi was on high alert and the imperial guards wanted to surround the Dali Temple Prison so that no one could get out. So they were allowed to stay alive for a few more days.

But Rong Se still wanted the truth to come out, so he delayed for two days. Only now did he gently nod and exhale: "It's time to hurry up. The longer the night, the more trouble. Besides, they have been free for long enough."

Rong Se was also under pressure during this period of time in the morning court. Cao Lun and Xi Yan were both old foxes who had become cunning and it was still a bit difficult for him to deal with them, but he could not show weakness. After all, whether this unjust case could be overturned depended on him, the regent.

Only a regent with a noble enough status can contend with the extremely powerful uncle of the king. Once Rong Se is incapable of doing so, this case will most likely be left unsolved, and even Lu Shangqian and Yu Qingzhou will be in danger.

Rong Se was carrying these lives, both living and dead, and he did not dare to relax for a moment.

"But..." Liang Shenyu hesitated.

Rong Se looked at him, "What's wrong?"

Liang Shenyu said apologetically: "I was too harsh. Zhang Haicheng was stubborn and it took a lot of effort."

In fact, Zhang Haicheng couldn't even last half a day, and the real torture was useless.

But Rong Se believed it to be true. He was silent for a moment, trying to find a balance between torture and retribution. He shook his head slightly and said, "It's okay. Just consider it as him paying off his debt."

He killed so many people that his own life was not enough to pay for it, so it didn't matter if he suffered a little.

After leaving a bag of homemade preserves for Liang Shenyu, Rong Se went to write a handwritten note despite being sleepy, ordering Yun Zhi to arrest the Minister of Revenue Zhu Lanshan.

Liang Shenyu picked up one and put it into his mouth. The sweet and sour fruit diluted the bitter taste of the medicine. He looked at the direction Rong Se left, his eyes a little heavy.

He couldn't sleep and was upset. The moment Rong Se stood up, he even wanted to hold him back.

Let him stay here, right before our eyes, and he can't go anywhere.

But in the end Liang Shenyu did nothing and just ate the candied fruit left by Rong Se one by one.

.

The Imperial Guards were originally the emperor's personal soldiers, but with the presence of the Governor-General Yun Zhi, they became the Regent's palace soldiers and ignored the emperor's orders. After receiving the imperial edict, Yun Zhi led his troops to break down the gate of Zhu's mansion without hesitation. Zhu Lanshan, who had enjoyed glory for half his life, was put in shackles and handcuffs like a dog and sent to prison.

The evidence on the files signed by officials from the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice was detailed, but Liang Shenyu came back this time with not only Zhang Haicheng's confession, but also confessions from many ordinary people, which were enough to prove that the thirteen merchants were wrongly killed. The crimes listed above were completely false. The irony was that there was also the emperor's red comment on it.

Zhu Lanshan could not come up with the money, so he asked Zhang Haicheng to keep his official hat in this unscrupulous way. Afterwards, he colluded with officials from the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice to suppress the matter. In the end, no one knew about the disaster in Jizhou, and the people died unjustly with no way to defend themselves. Thus, the so-called prosperous dynasty of Emperor Yongshi was achieved.

There is no doubt that this unjust case was condoned by Rong Xu.

Lu Shangqian hesitated for a long time and finally entered the gate of the Regent's Palace.

Rong Se did not dare to neglect him, and invited him to take a seat and ordered people to serve tea and snacks. Lu Shangqian waved his hands repeatedly and sighed, "Your Highness, there is no need to do this. I came here because of the unjust case in Jizhou. This case involves too many people. The officials of Jizhou have been handed over to Dingbei Marquis for disposal. The officials of the Ministry of Justice will be investigated by me, but... this concerns the late emperor, this..."

Rong Se understood. He hated Rong Jing, and even more so Rong Xu. His face became a little cold, and he lowered his eyes and said, "The emperor is guilty of the same crime as the common people."

Lu Shang paused and said, "That is not what I meant. It is just that based on the evidence we have now, it is difficult to determine whether the late emperor knew about this matter. If he insists that he did not know, then Ding Potian is just a fool and incompetent, and he has made a big mistake. Besides, the late emperor has been buried in the imperial mausoleum. Now there is no evidence. Your Majesty, it is not so easy to determine the emperor's guilt."

Lu Shangqian was an old minister. He had witnessed with his own eyes how the censors forced Concubine Yan to death, and how the late emperor treated him, his youngest brother. To be fair, Lu Shangqian also felt that the late emperor had gone too far.

Concubine Yan Shuang's words and deeds have damaged the reputation of the royal family. It is not without the fault of the late emperor. It is said that the concubine deliberately seduced, but the two of them did something ugly, and it is not something that Concubine Yan Shuang could do alone.

After Concubine Yan Shuang committed suicide, he immediately sent the Ninth Prince to guard the imperial mausoleum. This was really unreasonable.

Seeing Rong Se was silent and not looking very happy, Lu Shang hesitated for a long time and advised: "The late emperor has passed away, Zhu Lanshan and Zhang Haicheng have also been brought to justice. Your Majesty, it is too late."

Rong Se didn't think it was too much or too little. He wished that the whole world knew the evil faces of that father and son. The original owner had gone astray, and Rong Xu's family of three were the initiators.

But Lu Shangqian was right. Without evidence, it would be more difficult to convict an emperor than to punish a governor of Jizhou or a minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

The old eunuch beside Rong Xu has not been brought to justice, and the imperial physician who treated Rong Xu has been silenced by Empress Dowager Cao. Now is not the time to shake the late emperor and the new emperor.

After a long while, Rong Se finally said, "Let's do as you say, sir."

Lu breathed a sigh of relief, somewhat surprised at the Prince Regent's sensibleness and good manners. After this case, he had a different opinion of the Prince Regent. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say. Although it may be presumptuous, I still want to tell you. Your Majesty is indeed lacking in strategic ability, but he is gentle and respectful, and he ascended the throne legitimately according to the will of the previous emperor. Why do you have to do this?"

Although they were speaking from the heart, Rong Se's expression became even colder. He stared at Lu Shangqian for a long while, then suddenly smiled: "The late emperor was stubborn, selfish, and cruel. He would rather use the blood and flesh of countless people to stabilize the country, leaving their souls restless and unable to redress their grievances. Empress Dowager Cao was jealous and vicious. How can the two children born to them be called gentle and obedient?"

Lu Shangqian was stunned and said quickly: "My Lord..."

"Minister Lu." Rong Se interrupted him. He really didn't want to hear words to whitewash Rong Xu's family. His expression was full of sneer. "You don't know anything. On what basis can you ask me to let him go? Minister Lu, do you think my mother stayed in the palace voluntarily, or do you think my mother committed suicide as the rumors say? You think Rong Jing is a kind and benevolent person, but in my eyes, Rong Jing is not worthy of being a king, he is not even worthy of being a human being."

Lu Shangqian's persuasion was futile, and he was left speechless by Rong Se's series of questions.

Rong Se looked at him with clear eyes, "Minister Lu, you didn't know about the Jizhou injustice, and you didn't know that the officials signed the files behind your back. How much do you know about the royal family's affairs? You think that I should restrain myself for the sake of the overall situation, but on what basis can the evildoers go unpunished while the victims should restrain themselves? You are the Minister of Justice, the overall situation, the overall situation, am I not a part of the overall situation?"

Lu Shangqian finally reacted. He knew the late emperor's character. He was tyrannical and arbitrary and would not tolerate anyone saying no. So there must be some hidden story about this incident that happened more than ten years ago that he didn't know.

There was silence between the two compartments, and Lu Shangqian finally took his leave: "Excuse me, old minister."

Rong Se said calmly: "No thanks."

After Lu Shangqian left, Rong Se sat for a long time. Even though he was not the original owner, he was born with empathy, so he would be angry about many injustices.

He sat there, confused and aggrieved.