Great Tang princess

"If I answer yes, what should you do?"

Li Yuechen picked up the teacup and asked provocatively.

Usually Li Yuechen would never use this kind of expression and tone to talk to others, but now that the court is under threat, she will naturally not have a good face.

Kong Huiyuan took a deep breath, and became a little earnest: "Your Highness, do you know that the court's actions will lead to instability?"

"Oh? You can talk about what Scholar Kong has to say!" Li Yuechen waved his hand to reassure him.

The fact that he can say such words means that his emotions are gradually letting go, which is exactly the effect Li Yuechen thought of.

This kind of old fox, like other officials in the court, is very cautious in his speech, and digging holes for others has become instinctive.

But today Li Yuechen didn't want to talk about it, as if he wanted to find out the detailed reasons behind this incident, so he expressed his attitude very wildly from the very beginning, and didn't give him a chance to gather momentum.

"Since ancient times, emperors and scholar-bureaucrats have ruled the world together. No matter how wise a king is, his energy is limited. It is impossible for one person to handle everything well. Does Your Highness agree with this?"

"I agree!" Li Yuechen nodded.

Kong Huiyuan nodded and continued: "But the current reforms of the imperial court are all about concentrating imperial power and weakening the gentry in all aspects. Even if it succeeds one day, how will the imperial court manage this world?"

Li Yuechen put his left leg on his right, and asked softly: "The gentry and the official are two different things. Doesn't it mean that Scholar Kong thinks that without the gentry, no one can be an official?"

"Your Highness would be a little fanciful if he sent his hope to the children of the poor family." Kong Huiyuan shook his head, "Nowadays, there are very few officials from the poor family in the court. How can we maintain the country's operation? Besides, from this library, we can see the intention of the court. , is to allow everyone in the world to read, isn't this move afraid of causing chaos in the world?"

However, Li Yuechen shook his head lightly: "Actually, Scholar Kong may have made a mistake. Humans are inherently lazy. For millions of people, as long as they are well fed and warm, there will be no rebellion." heart of."

Still the same sentence, even after more than a thousand years, how many people dare to stop everything and start their own businesses to become their own bosses?
After all, there are still a small number of people who have such ambitions, and most people are still just looking for food and clothing, just find an ordinary job and go.

There are not many people who really go to start a business and become a boss. Many people are forced to choose to start a business.

Kong Huiyuan shook his head slightly: "This is what His Highness said..."

"Heh..." Li Yuechen chuckled, then moved his body forward a little, stared at him and said, "If I tell you that my eyes can see the scene after a thousand years, would you believe it?"

Hearing this sentence that has nothing to do with the current topic, Kong Huiyuan was stunned for a moment, and then shook his head: "Your Highness, you don't need to joke, the lower officials naturally don't believe it."

"Since that's the case, there's no need to continue the conversation." Li Yuechen shook his head, "This time, Scholar Kong incited students to abstain from power, causing the court to lose many talents, what should be the crime?"

"This is a way of admonishing the lower officials, how can we judge crimes?" Kong Huiyuan asked rhetorically.

"As an official of the court, openly obstructing the policy of the court, this is disloyal! As a direct descendant of Confucius, it is unfilial to cause many Confucian students to lose the opportunity of the imperial examination because of inciting the same sect! Go to the novel, this is deceiving the emperor; To put it bluntly, this trip is no different from treason! How dare you say that you are innocent?" Li Yuechen asked sharply.

Kong Huiyuan really didn't expect that Li Yuechen would judge him from this angle, and he didn't know how to answer for a while, so he froze in place: "This...this is..."

Li Yuechen didn't give him a chance to explain, and continued: "This palace gives you two choices! First, admit to instigating students to abstain from voting, voluntarily resign from the post of Hongwenguan University Bachelor, and return home; second, punish the crime of treason, and From then on, the descendants of the Kong family will not be allowed to enter the court for three generations!"

"How could this be so, Your Highness?" Kong Huiyuan asked in horror.

"What? Do you think I have no proof?" Li Yuechen asked back, "Those poor students who missed the imperial examination because of your words, and now if I allow them to make up the exam, do you think they will reveal the details of their meeting with you?"

It sounded like they were trying to scare him, but in fact the hidden guards were already doing this, and the court couldn't suffer in vain.

It is impossible for these poor students to convict them of crimes, but with a little frightening, all those who should be recruited will be recruited.

Li Yuechen gave him a choice, but she didn't want to let the court and the Kong family do it now. Now her energy is all on the outside, and she really doesn't have time to fight with them here.

In this incident, as long as others can see that the court has won overwhelmingly, and the Kong family can't beat the court at all, that's enough. At least some people can be calmed down first.

After all, the current talent reserve is not enough, and it is really impossible to kill all the noble officials.

Kong Huiyuan is also an old man in the officialdom, and he knows that this is because the princess is unwilling to make a big deal, but since she has already achieved this step, she must not be afraid.

If you are tough with her at this time, you will be a little ignorant.

As she said, it is impossible for those poor children to keep their mouths shut. At this time, they probably already hated him to the bone, but because of the problem of face, it is not easy to stand up and expose him.

But if the princess really gave them a chance to make up the exam, they might run faster than rabbits one by one.

Speaking of it, it is not difficult to refuse the benefits, but when the real benefits are really in front of them, few people can continue to refuse.

He sighed slightly: "Your Highness's meaning, I understand. Now I will resign from the position of Grand Bachelor of Hongwenguan, and return to my hometown..."

"In addition, you have to write an article and publish it in the newspaper to express your repentance for your crime!" Li Yuechen reminded, "Of course, the imperial court will also read it on the behalf of Confucius and exempt him from punishment. Live this lesson."

"Your Highness, is this a bit too much?" Kong Huiyuan stood up and saluted, "I am Kong..."

Li Yuechen directly interrupted him: "You decide for yourself, whether to publish it yourself, or to be notified by the court!" "Zuo Zhuan" says: There is nothing good that can be changed after passing by. Publishing by yourself may get a good reputation, but if the court Inform..."

She didn't say the following words, but the meaning was self-evident.

What he said by himself may be regarded as a virtue among the people, and it can leave a good reputation... But everyone in the court knows that this is a complete loss, but the court is unwilling to be too fussy because of Kong Sheng's face.

What Li Yuechen wants is this effect. For now, don't worry about what the people think, but you must let the gentry understand that the imperial court will never accept any form of threat!
……

Not long after Kong Huiyuan was taken away, many ministers had already received the news.

After all, he was the only one who was taken away, and the servants were not taken away. This was also Li Yuechen's intention. If the news didn't get out, the deterrent requirements would not be met.

When the servants saw that the master was taken away, they would immediately notify the officials who usually had a good relationship with the master in a hurry. In this way, the news would naturally spread.

No one expected that the court's attitude would be so tough that people who faced Kong would dare to arrest him directly.

This is undoubtedly a signal that even if it is the Kong family, the court will not compromise easily, and now it depends on the follow-up results.

For a while, everyone was waiting for the news, wanting to see what the final result would be.

But not long after receiving the news, it was discovered that Kong Huiyuan had been released!
In fact, he didn't stay there for long, less than two hours, which was basically enough time to go in and have a cup of tea and chat for a while.

After Kong Huiyuan was released, the others did not visit immediately. They were all waiting and watching at this moment, trying to figure out what happened inside the hidden guard.

In fact, the secret guard is a very mysterious place in the eyes of the officials. Almost all those who were taken away before were imprisoned for various crimes. Kong Huiyuan is currently the first to be able to come out completely.

So they were not sure about the situation at the first moment, and planned to see the card situation.

……

However, the next day, Kong Huiyuan wrote a letter stating that he was guilty and unworthy to continue to be a bachelor of Hongwenguan, and applied for resignation.

Wu Zetian also pretended to keep him for a while, seeing that he was determined to go, finally agreed to his request helplessly, and at the same time gave him some money and sent someone to escort him back to his hometown.

This kind of development caused a certain official to widen his eyes and look incredible.

The Kong family actually lost?

It's normal to lose, but this voluntary resignation from the official position is a bit too thorough. What happened inside?
It seems that his behavior is normal, and he doesn't look like he was tortured inside. Why is this the result?
In fact, they all overlooked one point. With the power of the current imperial court, they just don't want to see blood, but they are not afraid of seeing blood, mainly because they are afraid of trouble.

Kong Huiyuan himself knew very well that if the trouble was really going to be to the point of tearing his skin apart, with the power of the court, Qufu could be completely flattened within a day.

In this case, the Kong family didn't dare to tear their faces apart, but Li Yuechen did!
When it really came to the point of flipping the table, the Kong family would definitely not be able to resist Li Yuechen's thunderous tactics. The chips of the two sides were not equal, so this time the Kong family lost completely.

What Li Yuechen believes in is the truth that political power grows out of the barrel of a gun, not to mention that with her policies and prestige, she will definitely win the support of the peasants at the bottom. Even if all the aristocratic families in the world unite to rebel, after the war, it will still be her who wins .

The reason why Kong Huiyuan was not killed was because he did not want wars to break out in the country, otherwise it would be ordinary people who would suffer, not because he was afraid of him.

A few days later, Kong Huiyuan wrote an incriminating article and published it in a newspaper, explaining the incident of candidates abandoning the exam, admitting his mistakes, and hoped that the court would give these students a chance.

It stands to reason that the newspaper is issued every two weeks, but two days later, the court issued an additional issue to explain the incident.

First of all, give Kong Shengren a face, and don't pursue Kong Huiyuan, but don't make an example.

As for the candidates who abstained this time, they abstained only because of instigation by outsiders, which means that they have not read enough sage books. They will not be given a chance to make up the exam, and they will still be banned from the exam for life, but their descendants can be allowed to take the exam normally.