A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1240: It is difficult to escape from Luzon

Zhang Liang, who was named, stood up and saluted the emperor first.
"Your Majesty, after a joint trial by the three courts..."

Zhang Liang talked a lot of nonsense, about joint investigation, how to collect evidence, how to track down, and how many related people had been arrested, but in the end, the real culprit behind the scenes was still not found.

The emperor's face became uglier and uglier as he sat there. Zhang Liang's waist was bent lower and lower. Beads of sweat could be seen on his face.

"enough,"

The emperor interrupted Zhang Liang's nonsense with an angry rebuke.

"You've been busy for nearly a month, and this is the result?"

Zhang Liang lowered his head and dared not utter a word.

The atmosphere in the hall was oppressive and tense.
Wu Huaiyu was not surprised to hear this result. In fact, the Wu family had already begun to investigate the matter, but had not found any useful clues so far.

No one knew the identities of the four female assassins. It was as if they had fallen from the sky. No one knew who they were or where they came from. No one had even seen these four people before.

We investigated Chang'an, Luoyang and other places, but found no relevant clues.

Not to mention that Zhang Liang and his three judicial departments were unable to find out anything, the emperor's three secret intelligence agencies, the Hundred Cavalry Department, the Imperial City Department, and the Criminal Justice Department, were also unable to find out anything.

Anyway, this has become an unsolved case.
This was something the emperor could not accept, Wu Huaiyu also found it a little unacceptable, and even Changsun Wuji, who was reflecting at home, probably could not accept it.

If the real culprit cannot be found, it means that the emperor may have to continue to bear the blame.

Li Shimin felt very wronged, so he would suspect Changsun Wuji and even Wu Huaiyu.

Wu Huaiyu naturally also suspected the emperor.

After all, he had been investigating for such a long time but could not find out anything. The emperor also sent three departments but could not find out anything. This shows that the mastermind behind the scenes was hiding very deeply or was extremely powerful, or the mastermind behind the scenes was the emperor. It was normal that Li Shimin sent people to investigate for a month but could not find out anything.

The emperor was furious.
He scolded Zhang Liang, Li Daozong, Liu Dewei and others.
After scolding,

We still have to deal with the assassination case. The mastermind behind it has not been found yet, so we have to deal with the problem at hand first.

The first is the imperial guards who are guarding Wu Huaiyu.
"Captain Yang Shouxian, team leader Liu Guangting and other officers will all be executed, and their families will be exiled to Suiye."

"All the escorting 100 cavalrymen will be exiled to Beiting Suiye Town, and their families will be exiled as well."

This punishment was just as Wu Huaiyu had expected, the court did not let them off easily.

"Your Majesty, the incident happened suddenly, so they can't be blamed entirely. Moreover, the 100 knights fought desperately to protect the assassin and killed him on the spot. I hope Your Majesty can forgive them."

"Their negligence almost caused me to lose a prime minister. How can I let them off easily?"

"I beg Your Majesty to be lenient with the loss, especially the two officers Yang and Liu. I feel uneasy about executing them for this matter."

None of the other ministers in the palace stood up to speak for the Hundred Riders.
According to the law, the emperor's decision was not wrong.

If on the battlefield, personal soldiers fail to protect the commander and the military flag, they will also be severely punished by military law.

"Prince, if this matter is handed over to you, what will you do?" the emperor asked Cheng Qian.

"Your Majesty, I think there is nothing wrong with your handling of the matter, but it is also right for the teacher to plead for them," Cheng Qian suggested that they should accept Wu Huaiyu's request and give a lighter sentence to this team of one hundred riders.

Li Shimin said sternly, "Then you can handle it."

The prince made the decision in the palace. All the officers and soldiers in this team of one hundred cavalrymen were dismissed from their military posts, and then they and their families were moved to Anxi Suiye.

It was not exile, but relocation to the frontier to cultivate land and guard the border.

They regained their civilian status and were no longer soldiers. They immigrated to the Western Regions and contributed to the Tang Dynasty's defense of the border.

This punishment is already very light.
If it is exile, then they are criminals and going to the Western Regions will be like serving as prisoners. But if it is immigration, then they are still good people after all. If they immigrate there now, they can also be given fields and land.

"Then let the prince decide."

There are still many people to be punished next.

The first one was Yang Guangwu, the chief officer of the Luozhou Military Governor's Office. Although no connection between him and the assassination had been found, he was eventually demoted to a commoner and his entire family was ordered to move to Qiuci.

Not only Yang Guangwu, but also officials from Luozhou Military Governor's Office, Luozhou, Henan County, Luoyang County, as well as Henan Dao Zhidushisi and Zhuanyunshisi were all dealt with this time.

Some were dismissed from their posts, some were demoted, some were transferred to other frontier areas.

It was like the officialdom in Luoyang collapsed, the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing.

Yang Guangwu was the most miserable. He had been promoted from a seventh-rank county magistrate to a fifth-rank chief secretary in five years. He was in high spirits and had the support of the emperor's uncle. But now he was suddenly exiled to Qiuci, which was tantamount to exile, and his official career ended.

Longxing Temple did not escape this time.

Although they were not found to have any connection with the assassins, the assassination took place in their temple.
Even if nothing can be found out, the emperor will be furious. Will he care about you three hundred bald donkeys?
Abandoned Longxing Temple,

The monk certificates of the 300 monks in the temple were taken back, and they were all ordered to return to secular life.

All the Buddha statues in the temple were also required to be demolished.
"After Longxing Temple was abolished, officials were ordered to rebuild this place into a palace and awarded it to the Prime Minister."

The emperor awarded Longxing Temple, which occupied half of Ningrenfang and had an area of ​​more than 200 acres, to Wu Huaiyu with a wave of his hand, and also required the relevant departments to demolish the Longxing Temple and convert it into a residential area.

The emperor ordered the construction of the Taiwei Mansion.

It is much bigger than the Mansion of Duke Song that Wu Huaiyu built in Xuanyangfang, Chang'an, and even bigger than the one before half of the land was divided to build Longmen Temple.

Wu Huaiyu wanted to refuse, but the emperor did not allow it.

The 300 monks of Longxing Temple lost their temple and finally could not even continue to be monks. They were ordered to return to secular life, but the punishment did not end there.

The Imperial Censor Zhang Liang was a prime minister, but he failed to conduct the investigation properly this time, so he was fined 20 kilograms of copper, his salary was suspended for two months, and he was transferred to be the Minister of Punishments.

Li Daozon, the Minister of Punishments, was also fined 20 kilograms of copper, suspended from salary for two months, and was transferred to be the Minister of Rites.

Liu Dewei, the Minister of the Dali Temple, was fined 20 jin of copper, suspended from salary for two months, and appointed as the Inspector of Yongzhou.

Xiao Yu was dismissed from the post of Prince Taibao and appointed as Imperial Censor.

Xu Jingzong, the Minister of Rites, was transferred to be the Inspector of the Dali Temple.

Zhang Liang was still the prime minister.

Li Daozon was transferred from the Minister of Punishments to the Minister of Rites, which can even be said to be a promotion of half a level.

Liu Dewei was demoted from the Minister of the Dali Temple to the Inspector of Yongzhou, which was equivalent to the Prefect of Jingzhao, so it was not actually a demotion.

The one who was really unlucky was Xu Jingzong. The Minister of Rites was reduced to the Minister of Dali Temple, and the word "Jianxiu" was added.

He was shot even while lying down.

"Huaiyu, Wei Zheng is seriously ill and can no longer manage the affairs of the Ministry of Personnel, and Liu Li has been transferred to the position of Palace Attendant. Now the Ministry of Personnel is managed by the Imperial Court Assistant Minister Chu Suiliang, but Chu Suiliang has little experience. I hope you can manage the affairs of the Ministry of Personnel on his behalf."

"The Minister of the Central Secretariat Ma Zhou has not been in good health recently. You will be the Minister of the Central Secretariat, and then take charge of the affairs of the Central Secretariat and the Ministry of Personnel. I trust your ability and loyalty." "Before, many people impeached you, and I mistakenly believed the slander. Fortunately, the prince asked me to order the three departments to jointly investigate. In the end, I found that many impeachments were untrue, and some people even deliberately made false accusations. I blamed you wrongly."

"Your Majesty is wise, but you are busy with many things every day and cannot see through everything. If someone deceives your Majesty, it is not the fault of the saint." Wu Huaiyu still refused the emperor's reward, on the grounds that he had some sequelae after the assassination. Although the two wounds have now scabbed over, the poison on the crossbow arrow has not been cleaned up and some remains.
It is still hurting him, causing him to suffer from frequent headaches, dizziness, nausea, and lack of energy throughout the day, and even causing his legs to have difficulty moving.

In short, Wu Huaiyu just opened his mouth and said that even your imperial physician could not diagnose these symptoms.

"I request to rest at home, but the weather in the north is cold. I want to go to Luzon Island for recuperation after the New Year. There is no winter all year round, which is suitable for recuperation."

Li Shimin was silent for a long time.

"Since your injuries have not healed, you should first recuperate in Beijing. The journey to Luzon is thousands of miles away, and it is not convenient to travel back and forth to recuperate."

"You should rest at home first. When you are well, you can come to the Secretariat every two or three days to discuss government affairs. If there is anything, ask the officials to come to you for instructions."

"Your Majesty, how can I sit in office and do nothing? The Secretariat is the core of the court. I dare not delay the court's business in my current state. Please allow me to rest and recuperate at home."

The emperor was silent for a long time.
"Well, it's more important that you take care of your health first."

The emperor accepted Wu Huaiyu's resignation from the two positions of Inspector of the Secretariat and Director of the Ministry of Personnel, but he did not accept his resignation from the positions of Grand Marshal and Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince.

Wu Huaiyu still retained the title of prime minister and the co-director of the Secretariat. When he was in better health, he could come to the Council of State every two or three days to discuss state affairs.

"It is said that if you listen to both sides, you will be enlightened, but if you listen to only one side, you will believe it. However, most of the ministers flatter the monarch by saying nice things, and some even openly deceive the emperor and deceive him.
This time I listened to the slander and false accusations of certain people, which led me to wrongly blame the Grand Commandant and caused him to be in danger in Luoyang. I regret it very much.

Today, everyone is free to speak. I want to hear about my mistakes. Lord Ying, you go first."

Li Ji, the Minister of War, the Third Rank of the Secretariat, and the Duke of England, was named.
He stood up and said, "Your Majesty is wise and decisive, and has created a peaceful and prosperous era. I only see your greatness, not your faults."

The emperor was somewhat unhappy with this obvious flattery, but he did not blame him.

"Mr. Yang?"

Yang Shidao, the Minister of Personnel and the third rank official of the Secretariat, praised him even more, "Your Majesty has expanded the territory and all the barbarians have submitted. The territory of our Great Tang Dynasty extends to the sea in the east, Persia in the west, Linyi in the south, and the desert in the north. All of them are prefectures and counties, covering 1918 miles from north to south and more than 20,000 miles from east to west.

His martial arts achievements surpassed those of the Qin Emperor and Han Emperor, and his achievements will be remembered for thousands of years..."

The emperor was a little speechless about this brother-in-law who loved writing poetry and making friends the most. Flattery should be considered according to the occasion. Although Li Shimin felt that what his brother-in-law said was not entirely flattering, he was indeed a great martial arts master, but at this moment he wanted to hear something different.

Liu Li, the Palace Attendant and Councillor of State Affairs, stood up.

He was currently a Palace Attendant, a position of a censor who served the emperor and admonished him for his mistakes. However, he was a high-ranking official of the third rank, and could not be compared with the Imperial Attendant who held the title of Prime Minister.
"Your Majesty has educated the people and surpassed the ancients. His military achievements are great and will be remembered for thousands of years. This is indeed as Li Ji and others have said. However, when ministers write to Your Majesty and say things that do not meet Your Majesty's wishes, Your Majesty sometimes confronts them and keeps asking them, making the people who write to you feel ashamed and leave. I am afraid this is not a way to encourage ministers to make suggestions.

In addition, some officials falsely accused meritorious ministers and soldiers, but Your Majesty did not investigate the matter in detail, but just believed one side of the story and punished the meritorious soldiers. This is not the behavior of a sage monarch. "

This criticism was very sharp, unlike the two new prime ministers Li Ji and Yang Shidao who only flattered the emperor.
The emperor laughed and said, "You are right, my dear minister. I will correct it for your sake."

After saying this, he gave her another dose of stalactite.

"You offered me medicine and stones, so I will repay you with medicine and stones."

Liu Li had stomach problems, and stalactites can ventilate and produce stomach fluids. The emperor gave him medicine, which touched Liu Li very much.

With the precedent of Liu Li,

The following Yanying Memorial Meeting became a forum for the emperor to humbly accept advice. Everyone gave the emperor some advice.

The atmosphere is good.

Li Shimin said to Fang Xuanling and other ministers, "You should also accept advice from others. How can you protect your shortcomings and not accept advice just because it is different from your own? If you cannot accept advice, how can you advise others?"

The court meeting ended in a very relaxed and happy atmosphere.

The emperor also granted Wu Huaiyu the right to leave the palace on foot, and assigned three hundred imperial guards to protect him on a daily basis.

"You should stay at home and recuperate. I will definitely find out who is behind your assassination."

"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."

"Take good care of your injuries. I am still waiting for you to recover soon and return to the center to take on important responsibilities."

"Prince, you personally escort Prime Minister Wu back home. In the future, visit him more often and ask for advice when you encounter any problems."

Riding on a sedan chair, he left Daming Palace.
In front of the palace gate, they changed into the royal carriage.

Wu Huaiyu relaxed, leaned back and let out a long sigh.

His plan to take this opportunity to go to Luzon fell through, but fortunately, under the pretext of recuperating, he successfully resigned from the two important jobs of Inspector of the Secretariat and in charge of the affairs of the Menxia Province.

Next, just lie down for a while and recuperate.

The person who tried to assassinate him still needed to be investigated. He didn't believe that the other party could do it perfectly. As long as he investigated carefully and thoroughly, he would always be able to find some clues.

Hopefully, the mastermind behind this is not the emperor.

Perhaps because he relaxed, Wu Huaiyu actually fell asleep in the shaking carriage.

Until the driver woke him up with a whisper,

Got home.

It had been less than a month since I left home, but I nearly lost my life in Luoyang. An arrow even nearly hit me.

If I really ejaculated there, it would be too tragic with so many beautiful wives and concubines in this family.

Wu Huaiyu got off the bus.
I saw that the plaque on the front door of my house had been changed.

Taiwei Mansion.

Taiwei, first rank,
The head of the Three Dukes.

At this moment, Wu Huaiyu had become the highest-ranking official in the Tang Dynasty, a true official of the first rank, the highest position among the ministers.

Although there were three other masters above the Three Dukes, namely, Grand Tutor, Grand Preceptor and Grand Guardian, these positions had never been awarded since the founding of the Tang Dynasty and had remained vacant.

The Three Dukes were the pinnacle of officials in the Tang Dynasty.

Wu Huaiyu was still standing in front of the mansion, staring at the words "Taiwei Mansion" in a daze.

The family members in the mansion have already run out.

Fan Xuanfu rushed to the front with great speed.

She ran to her husband and tried to tear off his clothes to check his wounds. As she did so, her eyes became red and tears kept falling.

"Who on earth dared to assassinate my Alang? When I find out, I will chop off his head with my sword and make it into a wine vessel, make his skin into a drum, make his bones into a flute, and feed his meat to the dogs!"

Huaiyu couldn't help but laugh after hearing these tough words, and hugged his wife into his arms.
"Okay, okay, I'm back. I'm fine. I don't need anything. It's cold and windy outside. Let's go into the house quickly."

(End of this chapter)