There is a kind of scholar

Chapter 871: The "treacherous official who caused harm to the country" who induced the Queen

Miyagi.

Ouchi.

Vientiane Shrine.

All the ministers gathered in the main hall and waited for a long time for the Queen to not arrive. Although they didn't know why, they were not idle. They spontaneously discussed and elected three envoys.

To be precise, he was an envoy to Nanchen and Shu.

The purpose is naturally to negotiate for the purchase of cattle.

There was a shortage of plowing cattle in Daliang, which seriously affected spring plowing. The only way they could think of was to buy as much as they could from Nanchen and Shu, no matter the cost.

The head of the envoys was Qian Zhongshu, a senior official in Zhongshu.

This mission to Nanchen and Shu will be extremely difficult. Their cattle are not easy to buy, and many ministers are unwilling to take on this important task.

Only Qian Zhongshu, who was eager to get out of the predicament and win credit for the prince, was not afraid of any difficulties. Even if he risked his life, he would go to Nanchen and Shu Kingdom.

In addition, there are two deputy envoys in the envoy group, respectively from the Menxia Province and the Shangshu Province, and they are also prime ministers.

"Three of you, especially Qian Zhongshu, this mission to Nanchen and Shu will be extremely difficult. You have worked really hard!"

Although the ministers are constantly fighting in private, on such occasions they can be integrated, at least on the surface they are very harmonious:
"This year's spring plowing of my beam, as well as the food rations of the people in the world, all depend on you three. If this trip is successful, you will definitely go down in history!"

"Yes, all the heavy responsibilities of our country and the country have been placed on your shoulders, especially Qian Zhongshu's shoulders... I admire Qian Zhongshu's ability to step forward!"

"We are all waiting for your good news!"

"..."

Qian Zhongshu was surrounded by all the ministers, and everything he said was very pleasant to the ears. He couldn't help but feel elated. This feeling of being complimented was rare for him.

"Everyone."

With a serious face, he bowed his hands to all the ministers, with an appearance that he could sacrifice for the great Liang at any time, and said loudly:

"For the sake of Your Majesty, for the country of Daliang, and for the common people of the world, I am on a mission to Nanchen and Shu this time. Even if I risk my life, I must still buy back enough cattle to relieve the need for spring plowing. Sleepy!"

Although the ministers had different positions and factions, they all bowed and said in unison:
"Qian Zhongshu is so upright and upright that the lower officials and others admire him greatly!"

"..."

At this time, an old eunuch entered the hall, holding a whisk in his hand.

All the ministers fell silent at once, and all turned their heads to stare at the old eunuch with burning eyes.

Liu Shizhong hurried up to greet him and asked:

"May I ask this father-in-law, where is His Majesty? We followed the emperor's order and entered the palace before dawn. However, we waited until the sun rose high. It was almost noon, and Your Majesty has not appeared yet!"

Some ministers shouted:

"Yes, what's wrong with Your Majesty? Are you feeling unwell? It's okay for me to wait here all morning. I just hope that Your Majesty is fine."

Facing the noisy ministers, the old eunuch shook the dust in his hand and shouted loudly: "Everyone, your Majesty has already left the palace this morning. He did not send someone to inform the ministers. Please forgive me."

The ministers said:
"The ministers dare not have the slightest complaint, let alone mention the word forgiveness. We are just curious, why did His Majesty leave the palace? Where did he go after leaving the palace?"

The eunuch replied: "After your Majesty left the palace, he went directly to Fan Yanghou's Mansion."

"Fang Yanghou's Mansion?" The ministers were all stunned.

"Isn't that the Taiwei's residence?"

"Early in the morning, His Majesty left us and went out of the palace to the Taiwei's house. What was the reason?"

Qian Zhongshu stood up, frowned and asked:

"Your Majesty ordered us to enter the palace to discuss the difficulties of spring plowing, but Your Majesty left the palace to go to the Taiwei's house. Could it be that... the affairs of the Taiwei are more important than the difficulties of spring plowing?"

The prime minister of Shangshu Province guessed:
"Perhaps His Majesty suddenly left the palace because the Taiwei had a solution to the difficulties of spring plowing. In his excitement, Your Majesty forgot about us."

"No!" The Prime Minister of Zhongshu Province retorted:

"Your Majesty is the most respected person in the world. Even if the Taiwei really has a solution to the difficulties of spring plowing, it should be the Taiwei who comes to the palace to see His Majesty, rather than His Majesty condescending to go find the Taiwei!"

"It makes sense...then why did your Majesty leave the palace to look for the Taiwei? Is it more important than the difficulties of spring plowing?"

"It's really confusing. Spring plowing is related to the stability of the country and the country, and it is even more related to the rations of the people in the world. What can be more important than this?"

While the ministers were wondering, another eunuch came to the hall and said to the ministers:
"Your Majesty left the palace and went to the Marquis Mansion because the Taiwei got a prescription called 'Women's Beauty Prescription'. Women who take it for a long time can keep their youth forever!"

After speaking, the entire Vientiane Shrine fell silent.

The ministers looked at each other.

Qian Zhongshu straightened his back and looked serious, as if possessed by the "God of Justice". He spoke righteously and filled with righteous indignation. He broke the silence first:
"A traitor to the country!"

He first labeled Su Xian as evil, and then shouted in a fearless voice:
"This morning before dawn, Your Majesty summoned us to the palace to discuss how to solve the difficulties of spring plowing. Your Majesty is so concerned about the country and the people, which is really a blessing to me!"

"We worked tirelessly to enter the palace under the stars and the moon. Some of us didn't even eat breakfast. We just waited for His Majesty to arrive and strive to reach a conclusion as soon as possible to calm the hearts of the people in the world."

"But who would have thought that Su Xian, who has brought disaster to the country and the people, in vain of His Majesty's favor to him, and even more in vain of being the Grand Lieutenant of Daliang, would actually do things that bring disaster to the country and the people at such a critical moment!"

"Then what's a 'female beauty remedy' that can keep you young forever? Bah! How is this different from those sorcerers in history books who induced emperors to swallow 'elixirs'?"

"Everyone, if we have this disaster in Daliang, our very bones will be damaged, and our country will be in danger!"

"..."

Just after Qian Zhongshu finished speaking, Liu Shizhong, who has always remained neutral in the court, also stood up and said with a heavy eyebrow:

"Regardless of whether the beauty prescription has any effect, it is extremely inappropriate for the Taiwei to offer the prescription at this time to induce His Majesty to abandon the government and ignore the government!"

The prime ministers of Shangshu Province were stunned for a while, but soon realized that they were under the command of Princess Lanling, so they naturally had no brains to protect Su Xian's reputation.

As a result, the main hall, which had been "peaceful" just now, suddenly became noisy and noisy like a vegetable market.

They relied on the strength of their numbers and were so stunned that Qian Zhongshu and Liu Shizhong were speechless.

This made Qian Zhongshu very angry.

In his opinion, the prime ministers of Shangshu Province were confusing right and wrong. Su Xian's move was clearly a disaster for the country and the people, but in their eyes, he was a great loyal minister who shared the king's worries!

It just doesn't make sense!
"His Majesty is here!"

"Princess Lanling has arrived!"

"The captain is here!"

Following the eunuch's loud voice, it penetrated the hall.

The commotion in the hall suddenly stopped.

After looking at each other, the ministers quickly returned to their seats.

Although the hall became quiet, some ministers were suppressing anger in their hearts, especially Qian Zhongshu, who was ready to explode completely in front of the Queen.

After a while, the queen walked into the hall, her head held high, her expression unpredictable, and it was impossible to guess what she was thinking. She walked straight to the dragon throne and sat down.

Su Xian and Lan Ling also slowly entered the hall and found their respective places to stand.

Su Xian's official position is the first-rank Taiwei, while Lanling's Shangshu Lingcai is the second-rank official. In terms of official rank, Su Xian should stand in front of Lanling.

But Lan Ling was always a relative of the emperor, and the princess was of the first grade, so Lan Ling stood first among the ministers, followed by Su Xian, followed by Qian Zhongshu and Liu Shizhong.

"I'm waiting to meet your Majesty!"

"No gift, flat body."

After performing the courtesy of a monarch and ministers, the queen glanced at the ministers and said slightly apologetically: "Everyone has been waiting for a long time. Someone is here and I will give you a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The ministers were indeed a little tired after standing all morning. Seeing the eunuch bring stools, they all thanked him and took their seats, but Qian Zhongshu was an exception.

He was filled with righteous indignation, with "seeing death as home" written all over his face. In front of the Queen, he repeated what he had just said and denounced Su Xian for causing harm to the country and the people.

The Queen's expression suddenly darkened.

Before the court meeting was held, it was really inappropriate for her, as the emperor, to abandon all her officials and go out of the palace to find Su Xian.

She was also in a daze at that time. Once she heard that the "Women's Beauty Prescription" had been obtained, she didn't care about anything else.

But Qian Zhongshu's words sounded really poignant, and he also pointed the finger directly at Su Xian, blaming all the mistakes on Su Xian, and denounced Su Xian as "a traitor who brought harm to the country and the people"?
This made the queen feel guilty.

Because he informed her of the woman's beauty prescription as soon as she got it, she personally requested it. Su Xian did not do anything wrong.

Furthermore, Su Xian did not know that all ministers were gathered at the Wanxiang Palace to discuss the difficulties of spring plowing...

In fact, when she was in the Hou Mansion just now, if Su Xian hadn't reminded her, the Queen would never have remembered that there was a group of ministers waiting in the Vientiane Palace for most of the day.

The Queen frowned and prepared to beat Qian Zhongshu.

The reason why she kept Qian Zhongshu in the court was just for balance. If Qian Zhongshu dared to go too far, she could kill him at any time.

However, at this moment, Su Xian suddenly stood up and said loudly without even looking at Qian Zhongshu:
"Everyone, it is true that Your Majesty came to the humble house today for the purpose of 'beautifying women', but at the same time, it is also to discuss solutions to the difficulties of spring plowing."

After hearing this, all the ministers couldn't help but whisper among themselves and started a heated discussion.

They had speculated on various outcomes regarding this matter, but they never expected that Su Xian would say this——

Not only did he admit the "women's beauty prescription" thing, but he also got involved in the difficulties of spring plowing.

The Queen and Lan Ling were both stunned, especially the Queen, who remembered that Su Xian had promised under the plum blossom tree in the Imperial Garden of the Harem last night that he would find a way to solve this problem.

Could it be that Su Xian thought of a way?

The queen's eyes lit up.

Qian Zhongshu snorted. Naturally, he didn't believe it. He firmly believed that Su Xian was just trying to make excuses. He had done something scandalous and wanted to erect a memorial arch at the same time. It was simply abominable!
As a neutral faction in the imperial court, Liu Shizhong still believed in Su Xian's character. After all, Su Xian had made countless contributions to Daliang.

Just now, he wondered, when did Su Xian become so bad?
Now I finally realized that when people were tinkering with "women's beauty prescriptions", they were also discussing how to solve the difficulties of spring plowing.

Looking at Su Xian's calm and confident appearance, Liu Shi's center was moved and he asked Su Xian:
"I dare to ask the Lieutenant, has the Lieutenant thought of a proper way to solve the current difficulties in spring plowing in Daliang? If it can be solved smoothly, it will definitely be a feat that will be recorded in the annals of history!"

The Queen, Lan Ling, Nangong Wan'er, and the ministers present all looked at Su Xian.

The Queen, in particular, is full of expectations. What surprises can Su Xian bring to her this time?

However, at this moment that everyone was looking forward to, Qian Zhongshu suddenly snorted coldly and said in a strange way:
"The Taiwei's solution, shouldn't it be to go to Nanchen and Shu to buy farm cattle? If this is the solution, it goes without saying, because this officer has already thought of it."

The empress raised her eyebrows, she hated Qian Zhongshu's interruption of Su Xian's actions, and saw her jumping up, pointing at Qian Zhongshu from the air and scolding:
"How presumptuous! Su Aiqing is a first-grade Taiwei, and has repeatedly performed meritorious deeds for our great strength. I can say this, without Su Aiqing, whether you can still stand here safely is a question!"

"And you!"

The Queen focused on Qian Zhongshu several times in the air and said in a cold voice:
"In terms of official rank, you are only in the third rank. In terms of merit, have you ever done anything for Daliang?"

"For someone like you, you dare to point fingers at Su Aiqing. You are disrespectful to Shangguan, and even more disrespectful to our hero, Daliang. You should be punished accordingly!"

In the Queen's rage, the ministers were instantly restrained.

Qian Zhongshu was even more horrified, his knees softened, and he knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy.

The Queen was indifferent and still had a cold face. Finally, the Holy Inquisitor made an arbitrary decision:

"You offended Su Aiqing, so it's up to Su Aiqing to decide how to punish you."

When all the ministers heard this, their hearts trembled.

Qian Zhongshu was still the prime minister no matter what, but the Queen kicked him like a ball to Su Xian and allowed Su Xian to punish him at will.

Su Xian's weight in the Queen's heart was severely refreshed in their hearts again.

Su Xian still didn't look at Qian Zhongshu and said loudly:
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. However, this court is not a court for one person. Everyone can speak freely... As for how to punish Qian Zhongshu, let's just deprive him of three months' salary."

As soon as the words fell, the ministers started discussing heatedly:
"The Lieutenant is indeed noble and upright!"

"Staying in a high position without exerting power is really a model minister, and it is also an object for us to learn from!"

The Queen also nodded slowly. It was good that Su Xian was arrogant rather than relying on favor.

"Thank you, Lieutenant."

Qian Zhongshu endured the boundless anger in his heart, bowed to Su Xian, and then silently stepped aside. He wanted to see what kind of solution Su Xian could come up with.

If Su Xian is just talking nonsense and fooling the Queen and the ministers, he will give this treacherous minister a good beating even if he risks his life!
The Queen had already sat back on the throne, her face brightened slightly, she looked at Su Xian and asked with a smile: "What can Su Aiqing do?"

Su Xian walked to the middle of the hall with his head held high and his chest high, his voice clear and clear:
"The difficulty in spring plowing lies in the shortage of cattle. Who came up with the idea of ​​purchasing cattle from Nanchen and Shu? Is it all in their head?"

Qian Zhongshu stood silently beside him, trembling with anger.

He gritted his teeth and concluded that Su Xian could not think of a better way and did not want to believe it, so he endured it until the moment Su Xian's secret was exposed, that was when he exploded.

"Your Majesty, I know a way to double the efficiency of farmland, saving half of the cattle and half of the manpower." Su Xiandao.

"any solution?"

The Queen stood up, and the ministers looked forward to it. If the efficiency of plowing could be doubled, then the difficulties of spring plowing could be easily solved!

(End of this chapter)