Jiuxi

Chapter 412 Chapter 410 [Qingshan Youyou]

In the Wende Hall, the atmosphere was extremely solemn.

Although many civil servants had a bad impression of Qin Zheng, it was only out of their natural dislike of privileged yamen like the Sutra Weaving Department, and was not directed at Qin Zheng himself.

In fact, there were many courtiers who praised Qin Zheng in private, including those who came from the Jiangnan family, not only because Qin Zheng assisted the emperor as a lone minister, but also because of the level of ability he had displayed day by day for more than ten years.

Therefore, when Qin Zheng revealed the latest discovery, even if the evidence he showed was not perfect and conclusive, no one in the palace questioned it.

The next moment, the crowd was furious and the noise gradually rose.

"Your Majesty, the matter involves the prince of the Tian family. I should not speak nonsense. However, assassinating the commander of the Beijing camp in the street is actually an act of provocation to the Qi court and contempt of national law. I boldly request your majesty to investigate strictly!"

The first person to stand up was Qi Fangyuan, the young minister of Dali Temple.

"I second the proposal! Your Majesty, the sages once said that the law is not noble, the rope is not bent, and the law is imposed. The wise can't say it, and the brave can't fight. Don't avoid ministers for punishment, and don't spare everyone for rewards. This is how we do it. The right way!"

This official with sonorous and powerful words was Lin Mengzhong, the right minister of the Ministry of Punishment.

If we use the words of Ning Yuanfu and others to describe it, these officials are the imperial party that the emperor has won over for fourteen years. They basically do not have too many opinions of their own, and all their actions follow the emperor's wishes.

The eldest prince's face was as white as a sheet of paper, and his whole body seemed to have been drained of all energy. There was no emotion of anger at all. At this moment, he felt like he was floating in the clouds, and all his past ambitions had turned into a sad smile.

Of course, the happiest person in the palace at this moment must be the third prince.

Ning Yuanfu, the Minister of Civil Affairs, was not behind, but compared to his previous doubts about the eldest prince, these words seemed to have the intention of removing the eldest prince. However, what he was really worried about was that the emperor would take the matter away. .

All living beings fell into the eyes of this emperor, and finally he looked at the eldest son standing alone at the bottom left.

A large number of officials, headed by Right Prime Minister Xue Nanting, looked solemn and remained silent.

He knew that he was indeed not as smart as his second brother, nor as good as his third brother in some aspects, but he understood his father's temperament.

On the dragon chair, Li Duan looked at the courtiers below expressionlessly, unable to tell what his mood was at the moment.

"Your Majesty, if what Qin Tiju said is true, then everyone in Prince Chen's residence should be investigated. Only in this way can we find out whether Prince Chen is related to this matter."

Since many years ago, the third prince has tried every means to place spies around his two elder brothers. The eldest prince's house is tight on the outside and loose on the inside. Therefore, the arrangements for the third prince are progressing smoothly. The eldest son Jun has even become a very valued guest of the eldest prince. Then Under the instructions of the third prince, many ambush was laid.

Without his father's tacit consent, Qin Zheng would not dare to act on his own even if he was in a critical situation and openly display the evidence involving a prince in front of the civil and military officials.

On the contrary, the second prince, who seemed carefree and carefree, was extremely cautious. Although the third prince's people were able to get close to the periphery of the palace, they were never able to get close to the second prince.

Thinking that even Qin Zheng had not seen through his clever plan, the third prince could hardly control the expression on his face. He pretended to look at the eldest prince in shock and worry, but in his heart he was hoping that his father would make up his mind to attend today's court meeting. Deprive the boss of his position as prince.

In the past two years, these officials have fought for the emperor, deflating the Jiangnan clan that once had an absolute advantage. Ning Yuanfu and others had long been resentful. Now seeing them finally shut up and unable to say a word, they couldn't help but feel very sad. Pleasure.

In other words, Qin Zheng's appearance was originally arranged by his father.

Among the courtiers who stood up and expressed their feelings, some had received hints from the third prince in advance, some were out of respect for the law of the country, and some were concerned about the overall stability of the court.

The third prince is not in a hurry. As long as he uses the perjury arranged in advance to cut off the eldest prince's hope of competing for the throne, he will be more than half successful.

It turned out to be the case.

There was an uproar in the palace for a while. Although no one dared to openly shout for the emperor to deal with the eldest prince ruthlessly, such a scale of condemnation was enough for the emperor to think carefully, at least not to hold it up high and put it down gently.

He didn't fall into this attitude because of the impeachment of the ministers. At this moment, there were only four words that echoed repeatedly in his mind.

As long as the emperor relents and continues the investigation, there will be no chance of the eldest prince turning over.

As for the authenticity of those evidences, what is the more serious meaning?
The eldest prince took a breath and mustered up the courage to look up at the emperor on the dragon throne.

Lu Chen's stance at the Feng Yuan Garden banquet was already very clear, but he did not immediately choose to withdraw from the competition for the crown prince position.

That night three days ago, his father was ostensibly admonishing the three of them. Now it seemed that he should be reminding him, hoping that he would take the initiative to give in, but he did not understand this meaning.

All this must have disappointed his father, so he decided to ask Qin Zheng to present the evidence at the court meeting, thereby completely killing his hopes of fighting for the throne.

When the eldest prince thought of this, a look of decisive sadness appeared in his eyes.

Li Duan looked at him quietly. The father and son looked at each other for a moment. Just when the eldest prince was about to speak, a clear voice rang through the palace.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the assassination on Qingfeng Street has nothing to do with His Royal Highness Prince Chen." As the victim of this assassination, Lu Chen kept a very low profile in the court today, unlike that day when he led troops and horses to the Privy Council and killed dozens of heads. The violence and tyranny that fell in front of Guo Congyi was completely different, so he also gained the favor of many courtiers.

The eldest prince looked back at Lu Chen in disbelief.

He did not expect that Lu Chen, who had tried his best to keep a distance when he was in Feng Yuan Garden and never responded to his enthusiasm, would step forward now that he was being criticized by thousands of people.

Lu Chen looked calm, met the emperor's gaze, and said calmly: "Your Majesty, I have met His Highness King Chen several times, and we also had a long chat in Feng Yuan Garden. His Highness King Chen may be responsible for his lax control of his Majesty. , but he will never send anyone to assassinate me.”

Li Duan said slowly: "Why?"

Lu Chen raised his tone slightly: "If I die on Qingfeng Street, what good will it do to His Highness King Chen? Regardless of whether he will be suspected by His Majesty, you must consider the causes and consequences in everything. There has never been any grudge between me and His Highness King Chen. At present, There is no conflict of interest. What is the reason why His Highness Prince Chen took great risks and sent people to assassinate the head coach of the Beijing camp on the street? "

The eldest prince used almost all his strength to restrain the tears that were about to burst out of his eyes.

Li Duan could taste Lu Chen's true thoughts from his eyes. It was obvious that this young minister had seen through the reason for Qin Zheng's sudden appearance. Although he did not object to the emperor's serial tactics, he did not want the eldest prince to embark on that path. Dead end.

Li Duan sighed softly in his heart and said with a slightly gloomy look: "Your analysis is reasonable, but now there is evidence pointing to King Chen. If I am vague and perfunctory, how can I satisfy the civil and military officials of the DPRK and the people of Daqi?" Qin Zheng’s explanation.”

"The minister is here."

"I order you to mobilize manpower to conduct a thorough investigation of everyone in Prince Chen's residence, and arrest Chang Sun Jun as soon as possible. You must find more conclusive evidence."

"The minister obeys the order."

Qin Zheng bowed.

"Your Majesty, I have something to say."

Just when everyone thought that the eldest prince would inevitably survive this time, an old man slowly stepped forward and saluted respectfully towards the emperor.

Li Duan followed the sound and looked at the old man's thin body. A complex emotion surged in his heart. He nodded and said, "It doesn't matter if you say it, Prime Minister Zuo."

Li Daoyan straightened his body, like an old tree that had been eroded by wind and rain for a long time, although it was old but tough. A look of sigh appeared on his face, and he said slowly: "I know the mastermind behind the assassination on Qingfeng Street." who is it."

His tone was calm, but there was a sudden commotion in the court.

All the princes and ministers in the court were all expressionless, and all kinds of emotions were flowing in. No one expected that when the curtain was about to fall, the old prime minister, who had been silent for a long time, would say such a sentence.

It can be described as groundbreaking.

Immediately afterwards, many people were deeply puzzled. Since the left prime minister had known the truth about the assassination for a long time, why didn't he make it public earlier? Why did he have to let the court waste a lot of manpower to investigate and put the emperor in such an embarrassing situation? .

Li Duan didn't get angry, he just asked calmly: "Who is the mastermind behind this?"

Li Daoyan glanced at the three princes standing next to the royal steps, laughed to himself and said: "There are two people who conspired in this case, and one of them is the grandson of Left Prime Minister Li Daoyan, Li Yunyi."

When the last three words fell into the ears of the ministers, they were undoubtedly a thunder that shook the world.

The thunder stopped, and there was deathly silence in Wende Hall.

Li Daoyan lowered his head slightly and continued: "The other person is the third prince, King Jian Li Zongjian."

Li Duan slowly stood up.

When the third prince heard the three words Li Yunyi, his brain came to a complete standstill. Now when he heard his own name again, he didn't know what expression to maintain. He felt as if a flower withered in an instant deep in his heart. It seems like today is just a dream.

But no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't wake up and was dragged into the dark depths of the dream.

Li Daoyan looked up at the Emperor, his old eyes full of guilt, and a bit as determined as a strong man breaking his wrist, and said slowly: "Your Majesty, I have been hesitant today because this matter is too relevant. There is such a person in the Li family. He was unworthy of his descendants and almost plunged the Great Qi court into civil strife. It is not a pity for him to die, and the old ministers also have an unshirkable responsibility."

"To be honest with your Majesty, I once had a thought in my mind for a moment, that is, no one can find out the truth of this case. Li Yunyi's role in this matter will never be known. The Jinlin Li family will not be depressed because of this. But……"

Li Daoyan paused for a moment, shook his head and said: "But I remembered that I have assisted Your Majesty in stabilizing the overall situation in the past fourteen years. From the precarious situation at the beginning to now gaining a firm foothold in the south. Although the enemies in the north are still strong, we, the soldiers of the frontier army, They are also brave and good at fighting, and there are young and loyal ministers like Xue Xiang, as well as rising stars like Shanyang Hou who don't care about personal gains and losses. Although there are still many problems inside and outside the court, the old ministers can already see the upward trend. "

"Such a situation is so difficult. It is the result of Your Majesty and the tens of millions of people of Qi who work hard to live without food and clothing. It is also the picture that Your Majesty and ministers have been looking forward to seeing day and night. How can an old minister give it to the general public just because of his own selfishness? Are you going to lay a foundation that will cause the whole court to fall apart? Let the efforts of countless people with lofty ideals go to waste?"

Having said this, Li Daoyan slowly knelt down facing the emperor, bowed his head and said: "Your Majesty, Li Daoyan, please convict the Li family, so as to correct the atmosphere of the court and calm the people of the world!"

(End of this chapter)