I studied in modern times

Chapter 700: Everyone Flees When Disaster Comes

Su Che was invited to Zhang Fangping's mansion again.

As soon as he entered the door, Zhang Fangping took him to his study.

"Ziyou... this time, you may have done something wrong!" Zhang Fangping said earnestly, "You should go to the palace as soon as possible and apologize to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor!"

Su Zhe was stunned when he heard this. After a long while, he asked, "Uncle, why?"

"Because..." Zhang Fangping sighed and said, "Ziyou may have wronged Ye Jingwen (Ye Kangzhi's courtesy name) this time."

"We went to Yulin Lane and met Uncle Lu Hui. We learned from Uncle Lu Hui that when Ye Jingwen was an official in Guanghua County of Jinghu North Road, he was praised by the people. There was a ballad praising his governance: Ye Guanghua, Fenggu City, clear as water, flat as a balance! The late emperor heard about it and promoted him to be an official in the capital! This matter was even reported in the court newspaper back then..."

When Su Zhe heard this, his whole body shook.

"Did I wrongly accuse someone?"

How can a scholar-official who is praised by the people as "clear as water and smooth as a balance" be a villain?
And he is a mysophobe.

I feel disgusted when I see others are dirty.

Not to mention the fact that you might get yourself dirty!

"In addition, Zeng Zikai's claim that 'Ye Kangzhi once served Li Xian as a slave to escape punishment' is also completely false!" Zhang Fangping continued, "Lü Huishu was the Privy Councilor at the time and experienced that incident."

"He told me that Ye Kangzhi was framed by the eunuch Liang Tong, but was later vindicated after investigation by Wang Anli!"

"The late emperor therefore issued an imperial edict to commend Ye Kangzhi and promoted him to a higher position!"

Su Che listened with his eyes wide open and his mouth opened.

Ye Kangzhi was really wronged? !
This was something he had never expected!
"Uncle, did you know this earlier?" he asked in a low voice, thinking of the day before yesterday when Zhang Fangping specially sent someone to invite him to his house and had a conversation with him.

At that time, Zhang Fangping had already hinted to him, either explicitly or implicitly, to be cautious and careful.

However, at that time, he was immersed in the fantasy of uncovering a traitor within the scholar-officials and overthrowing a powerful eunuch. How could he have the mind to think about these things?
Now thinking back, Zhang Fangping had actually hinted at him.

Zhang Fangping sighed and said, "I didn't have any evidence at that time."

“It just feels wrong!”

Zeng Xiaokuan slid to his knees too quickly!
This is too abnormal in official circles!

In all his decades of official career, Zhang Fangping had never seen a court minister slide to his knees so quickly.

Most people, when caught making a mistake, will deny it and refuse to admit it.

Moreover, in order to prevent themselves from being implicated, they usually try every possible means to help their own people get rid of the crime.

This is the so-called reason why officials protect each other!

Zhang Fangping had rarely seen anyone like Zeng Xiaokuan who would kneel down and admit his mistakes at the first opportunity!
Is Zeng Xiaokuan a gentleman of high moral character who does not care about fame or fortune?
How can it be!

Although Zhang Fangping had little dealings with Zeng Xiaokuan.

But he had a history of love and hatred with Zeng Xiaokuan's father Zeng Gongliang.

Speaking of which, Zeng Gongliang was Zhang Fangping's recommender at the beginning!
However, the two eventually fell out over the issue of Wang Anshi.

Zhang Fangping was very familiar with Zeng Gongliang.

Naturally, he also understands how his son Zeng Xiaokuan rose to his current position.

So when he learned that Zeng Xiaokuan had come to the palace to apologize, he immediately felt goose bumps all over his body.

Political conspiracy!

This was his subconscious feeling at the time.

But he had no evidence and was not sure what Zeng Xiaokuan intended to do.

I can only watch for the time being!
But the changes in public opinion in the past few days have made him shudder!
Forget about the Bian Jing righteous report!
What is the story behind the Bian Jing Xin Bao?

Why is it rushing to the front?
At the same time, news came from the palace that even Lu Gongzhuo's request to see the Empress Dowager was stopped.

There are also rumors that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor tried to comfort her every day, but the Grand Empress Dowager was still "angry at Zeng, Su and others".

Zhang Fangping finally couldn't sit still anymore and started to take action. He first went to Su Zhe, trying to persuade him to give in.

But Su Che refused. He had no choice but to sacrifice his reputation and go see Lu Gongzhu. Only then did he learn about what happened that year from Lu Gongzhu.

This really made Zhang Fangping break out in cold sweats all over!
Needless to say, this is a trap!
It is obvious that Zeng Xiaokuan holds the key evidence that can make the final decision!

What else could that evidence be?
Naturally, it was the imperial edict that the previous emperor issued to commend Ye Kangzhi, as well as the investigation report by Wang Anli and others.

Thinking of this, Zhang Fangping said earnestly: "Ziyou was misled by Zeng Zikai, Xianyu Zijun and others in this matter. Moreover, I have also read Ziyou's memorial to return the title of the poem... It says, 'I now know that Zeng Zhao and Xianyu Qun's letter directly pointed out Ye Kangzhi's crimes, so it is difficult to write a poem. I would like to ask the court to verify whether what Zhao and Qun said about Ye Kangzhi is true. If so, punish them. If not, I beg to correct Zhao and Qun's false crimes!' Now that Ziyou knows that Ye Jingwen was wronged, he suddenly realized his mistake and went to the palace to confess his guilt. The two palaces and the emperor will definitely forgive him!"

This is natural.

If there is really no other way, he will risk his old reputation and go to the two palaces and the emperor to plead for Su Che.

In this case, Su Che might just be punished by drinking three cups of wine, and it would not happen again.

Su Che lowered his head, thinking of Zeng Zhao, and asked, "Uncle, what about Zeng Zikai and Xianyu Zijun?"

Zhang Fangping sighed: "I can only pray for the best!"

Su Che was an idealist. How could he abandon others and only care about himself?
Even though he had already written in his memorial, "If there is such a crime, Ye Kangzhi should be punished; if there is not such a crime, please correct Zhao and Qun's false statements."

But the problem is that when he wrote these words, he was only thinking about the emperor and giving him face.

In fact, in his heart, Ye Kangzhi had already been convicted.

He straightened his clothes, looked at Zhang Fangping, bowed and said, "Uncle..."

"This matter, my nephew is the same as everyone else..."

"If I abandon everyone for my own selfish interests, how will I face the world in the future?"

"Therefore, I, nephew, have decided to share the blame with everyone else!"

It's nothing more than a demotion!

It’s not like I haven’t been demoted before!
Just ...

"Your Majesty, please forgive me for not being able to serve you any longer..." Su Che sighed in his heart, remembering that day in the Chongzheng Hall, when the emperor was sitting on the cushion and sighing.

The emperor is a holy monarch!

But he is not a wise minister!

Naihe, Naihe...

When Zhang Fangping saw Su Che's expression, he understood that Su Che had made up his mind and it could not be changed.

So, I could only sigh a few times.

What else could he do?
Could he just watch Su Che being demoted and his career, which had finally started to improve, being interrupted again?
No!
The only thing I can do is to go to the emperor and plead for mercy.

See if there is any clemency.

……

After leaving Qingshou Palace, Zhao Xu was on his way to Baoci Palace when he suddenly remembered something. He called Feng Jing over and asked him, "Feng Jing, send someone to tell Tong Guan that he is in the theater tonight and spread the story that Ye Kangzhi flattered Li Xian. It's a pure false accusation..."

"Let someone spread the news that Liang Tong framed Ye Kangzhi!"

"I'd like to see……"

“Who’s going to jump off the boat first?”

Husband and wife are originally birds of the same forest, they fly separately when disaster strikes.

What about so-called political friends?

……

It was already evening and the palace gates were about to be locked.

In Chongwenyuan, Huang Tingjian was still holding a candle, looking for documents related to Ye Kangzhi from the Xining and Yuanfeng eras.

But no matter how hard he searched, he could not find the imperial edict commending Ye Kangzhi mentioned by Feng Jing, nor the memorial written by Wang Anli at that time.

This was already the third day he had been searching in Chongwenyuan.

"Why not?" he murmured.

At this time, the eunuchs in Chongwenyuan began to urge him outside the door.

"Huang Zuolang, the palace gate will be locked soon..."

"Oh!" Huang Tingjian came back to his senses and sighed.

After the palace gates are locked, no one inside or outside the palace is allowed to enter or leave except for important military or national affairs!
Back then, the beloved daughter of Renmiao, Princess Qin (Princess Fukang), had a falling out with her husband Li Wei, so she ran to Xuande Gate and knocked on the door in the middle of the night, then entered the palace and cried in front of Renmiao.

This matter caused a lot of controversy for a while.

There was an uproar inside and outside the government!
Since then, the palace ban system of the Song Dynasty has become increasingly strict.

Not to mention the princess, even for a prince, it would be a dream to leave the palace or enter the imperial city at night!
Only the prime minister could enter the palace to seek an audience with the emperor after the palace gates were locked.

Under normal circumstances, no prime minister would enter the imperial city at night.

That would make too much noise, which could easily scare people and cause panic in Bianjing. Therefore, even if there was an imperial edict, the ministers would not enter the imperial city at night.

I will definitely wait until dawn!

Huang Tingjian had to leave Chongwenyuan reluctantly and rushed out of Xuande Gate before the palace gate was locked.

After leaving the palace, he mounted his horse and, accompanied by two Yuansui, headed towards the place where he rented a house.

When we crossed the Imperial Street and arrived at Zhou Bridge, the night had completely enveloped the city of Bianjing.

Countless lanterns began to be lit by the shops under the State Bridge.

Huang Tingjian rode on horseback and looked towards Zhou Bridge ahead.

The rows of lanterns swayed beside the Bian River, shining like stars, and reflected on the frozen surface of the Bian River in winter, like the falling Milky Way.

This made Huang Tingjian unable to help but pull the reins and stop to admire.

Huang Tingjian was famous for his sharp eyesight and sharp hearing, and his photographic memory since childhood.

So, when he stopped, he could easily hear the idle chatter of several soldiers who were sitting in the patrol station by the roadside, drinking wine and eating offal.

What one of them said caught his attention.

"Have you heard? These past few days, he has been called a traitor and a villain's transfer agent. He may have been wrongly accused!"

Huang Tingjian trembled all over.

Then I heard the man's words: "My uncle's third cousin's son is working in Kaifeng Prefecture..."

"I heard from him that the transport envoy is not a villain or a treacherous official, but a rare good official..."

"It is said that the late emperor even rewarded him!"

Huang Tingjian listened and recalled the expressions of Wen Yanbo and Feng Jing that day.

Then goose bumps appeared all over my body instantly.

He immediately wanted to turn his horse around and head towards the old residence of Zhang Qi where Su Che rented a house.

However, this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment, and Huang Tingjian lowered his head weakly.

He knew it was too late!

Since even the roadside soldiers knew about it, then the entire Bianjing city should know about it as well.

Going to see Su Che again now would not only be unhelpful, but might even make things worse!
Therefore, he shouldn't go to see Su Che now.

Instead, he should go see his uncle, Li Chang, the current Secretary of the Central Secretariat!
Maybe my uncle can find a way.

.........

Xianyu Qun, as a clean official, naturally rented a private house in the capital.

Even though the court offered him preferential treatment and allowed him to rent Zhang Jiu's residence at less than half the market price, he declined the offer.

This is naturally for the purpose of establishing a character.

It demonstrates his noble character and at the same time establishes his reputation for integrity.

At this moment, Xian Yuqian was drinking wine alone in his study.

At the same time, he was holding the Bian Jing Xin Bao and Bian Jing Yi Bao in his hands.

The two tabloids' continuous follow-up reports caused public opinion to boil.

Once he successfully takes advantage of this opportunity, he will bring Li Xian down.

So……

Xian Yuqian licked his lips.

Now that the position of the Central Secretary is vacant, who else but me can take it?!
Thinking of this, Xian Yuqian filled his glass again.

As the wine went down his throat, his mind began to waver.

Just at this moment, there was a knock on the door.

"Who?"

"I..." came an anxious young male voice.

It was his son, Xian Yuchuo, who had always been by his side serving him and providing him with advice.

This is also the tradition of the literati in the Song Dynasty.

If the father is in power, there will definitely be a son who chooses not to take up an official position and instead serves and takes care of his father for a long time.

For example, the prime minister of the time, Lu Gongzhu, was always served and taken care of by Lu Xizhe.

When Zhang Dun went south, it was his son Zhang Yuan who did this.

It is certainly an honor!
By serving your old father for a long time and taking care of him, you can not only participate in government affairs through your father, accumulate connections, and become familiar with officialdom, but also establish yourself as a filial son.

Once the old father passes away, then, as long as this filial son is not too bad, he can generally get preferential treatment from the court and enter the official career, with a starting point no worse than the top ten Jinshi!
If he is the son of a prime minister, he can even be on the fast track to promotion.

Xianyu Chuo was the successor chosen by Xianyu Chuan.

"Come in..." Xian Yuqian said.

Xian Yuchuo hurriedly pushed the door open and said as soon as he entered: "Sir, something terrible has happened! I heard from the servants that it is spreading like wildfire in the theaters tonight that Ye Kangzhi was framed... not only the slavery incident with Li Xian... even the fact that he was imprisoned that year was also framed. The court had vindicated him. The late emperor has an imperial edict, and there is also a memorial from the former ruling Wang Anli!"

"Moreover, the person who framed Ye Kangzhi back then was Liang Tong, the official in charge of Jingyuan Road!"

The wine glass in Xianyu Qun's hand fell out of his hand and fell to the ground.

"What?" he exclaimed.

Immediately, he fell onto the chair, muttering to himself: "Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

There was no way his sweet dream could be awakened like this!
……

Li Chang's residence.

Huang Tingjian bowed to his uncle respectfully.

Then he repeated his purpose.

After listening to this, Li Chang sighed and said, "Is it really like this?"

"Chun Guan, you are really experienced!"

As soon as he heard what Huang Tingjian said, he immediately reacted - those imperial edicts and memorials that disappeared in Chongwenyuan must have fallen into Zeng Xiaokuan's hands long ago.

"Sir, Su Ziyu is a famous person in the world. I hope you can give me some advice for the sake of my nephew..." Huang Tingjian bowed.

Li Chang thought for a moment and said, "It will be quite difficult for Su Ziyu to get out of this matter."

"But there is a solution..."

"If he can go to the two palaces and the emperor to plead guilty tomorrow morning before the morning court session..."

"Then it is still possible to be lenient!"

"Especially, the content of Su Ziyou's memorial to return the words said, 'If this is true, Ye Kangzhi will be punished; if it is not true, please correct Zhao and Qun's falsehoods'!"

"If Su Ziyou can do this, the two palaces and the government will forgive him and at most fine him a copper."

……

Zeng Zhao sat in the chair in a daze, looking completely distraught.

"How could this be?"

"Xian Yu Zijun misled me!" he murmured softly.

If he hadn't listened to Xian Yu Zijun, how could he have gone against the Qingshou Palace?
But he knew that he had no time to complain.

The most urgent task is to save yourself!

So how can we save ourselves?
He was the instigator.

If he wants to save his career, he must obtain forgiveness from the two palaces and the emperor.

Especially the forgiveness of the Empress Dowager!

So how can we obtain the forgiveness of the Empress Dowager?
Zeng Zhao looked up suddenly!

He remembered that his brother Zeng Bu's wife, Wei, had always been favored by the Empress Dowager.

Since the eighth year of Yuanfeng, an imperial edict would be issued for every banquet in the palace.

If I could ask my sister-in-law...

Maybe there is still a glimmer of hope for his career!
Thinking of this, Zeng Zhao immediately ordered someone to call his wife Wang, and ordered her to go to Zeng Bu's house to pay a visit to his sister-in-law, and also explained the seriousness of the matter.

Upon hearing this, Wang did not dare to delay and went there immediately.

Zeng Zhaoze began to pick up his pen and grind ink, preparing to write a letter of apology.

(End of this chapter)