scourge the qing dynasty

Chapter 71

Liancheng county magistrate Xie Dongxie also deserves the coffee table. I have never seen or experienced the auspicious power of Fatty Lu, a scourge. I saw Fatty Lu exchanged a evergreen tree worth less than ten cents for a yellow jacket and a handle. Yu Ruyi saw that Fatty Lu was in a good mood, and Xiao Mazi was in a good mood. The usually timid Master Xie didn't know where he got a burst of courage. Relying on the goods in his hands, he knelt down and held himself up in both hands. Treasure bought with a lot of money, boldly said loudly:

"My minister Xie Dong has heard about the emperor's wonderful calligraphy for a long time, and he especially likes Dong Qichang's calligraphy. This minister exhausted his family resources and bought the authentic work of Dong Qichang's "Bai Juyi Pipa Xing". Please accept it from the emperor!"

To Master Xie's great disappointment, he had finally plucked up the courage to show off, but after the words were spoken, the wise and mighty Emperor Kang Mazi not only didn't look ecstatic or happy, but was stunned, and then his pockmarked face showed anger.Over there, Wu Yingxiong, Lin Tianqing, Kong Sizhen, Shang brothers, Geng brothers, Li Tianyu and others were all stunned and tongue-tied, almost suspecting that their ears had misheard.Only Fatty Lu was slightly startled, glanced at Xie Dong, and said in his heart: "It turned out that he was bought by this kid again. I'm lucky. This time I can get some small prizes."

"What did you just say?" Xiao Mazi finally spoke, staring into Xie Dong's eyes, and asked with incomparable majesty: "What gift are you going to present to me?"

"Back to the emperor, I'm going to present..." Mr. Xie was frightened by Xiao Mazi's eyes, and replied tremblingly: "Dong Qichang's original copybook of "Bai Juyi Pipa Xing", please accept it from the emperor."

Such a big joke was made at the New Year's New Year's New Year's Writing and Sealing Ceremony for the first time after pro-government. Xiao Mazi almost wanted to strangle Xie Dong to death. He wanted to cover up this scandal. Over there Ao But Bai said that he would not let go of this opportunity to beat the dog in the water - Ao Zhongtang was very willing to do it to attack Xiao Mazi's prestige and authority.So Ao Shaobao turned his eyes, and immediately shouted loudly: "Bold slave, you dare to bring the stolen goods to our emperor, come, someone, take this dog slave down for me!"

Ao Shaobao's breath was full of energy, his voice was like a bell, and when he drank loudly, everyone in the square of the Hall of Supreme Harmony could hear him clearly, and everyone was speechless—they presented the stolen goods to the emperor at the New Year's Ceremony, and they were exposed on the spot It seems that such a scandal has never happened in thousands of years.When Mr. Xie Dongxie heard this, he almost peed out of fright, kowtowed desperately, and shouted: "Your Majesty, I am wronged! The treasures offered by my minister are not stolen goods, they were stolen by my minister the afternoon before yesterday. Liulichang bought it for 500 taels of silver! Your Majesty, I am wronged, my minister is wronged!"

"The afternoon before yesterday?" Wu Yingxiong was not stupid, and immediately seized this opportunity to fight back, and knelt down in front of him and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say. Just now, Lord Shangzhi Xiaoshang said that his authentic painting of Dong Qichang was made the day before yesterday." It was stolen between night and yesterday morning, and it has been reported to the Shuntian Mansion for record. And this Mr. Xie bought it in the afternoon of the day before yesterday, and the time is very contradictory, please check it out."

Hearing Wu Yingxiong's words, this time it was finally Kong Sizhen's monk's brothers and the others who looked ashen.Xiao Mazi and Aobai both reacted quickly, "That's right, the time is wrong. Shang Zhixiao's home is the original Dong Qichang's work that was lost between the night before yesterday and the early morning of yesterday. Why did Xie Dong buy it at Liulichang the afternoon before yesterday?"

Discovering this contradiction, Xiao Mazi held on to the last ray of hope, quickly snatched the gift box from Xie Dong's hand, opened it, took out the copybook and examined it carefully, and a few more prestigious people present, such as Aobai and Ye Bilong, also surrounded him , together with Xiao Mazi to identify the authenticity of the copybook.Over there, Kong Sizhen and the others prayed to God and Buddha in their hearts, "God bless, it must be fake, and it must not be true. If it is fake, Xie Dong, a dog slave, will die if he doesn't get involved. On the old men. If it is true, then it will be troublesome."

"It's true! Your Majesty, this is the real work of Dong Qichang!" Aobai's roar shattered the last hope of Kong Sizhen and others—in fact, Ao Shaobao, who is not inferior to Lu Fatzi, has no ability to appraise cultural relics at all. The bigger the incident, the bigger the blow to Xiao Mazi's prestige and authority, right?So Ao Shaobao didn't hesitate, just yelled, "Your Majesty, this matter must be investigated carefully. Why did Lord Shang and the others lose this authentic painting the night before yesterday? This dog slave bought it at Liulichang the afternoon before yesterday? Could it be that The thing grew wings and flew to Liulichang by itself?"

Of course Xiao Mazi knew Ao Shaobao's sinister intentions, but it was a pity that this copybook was indeed Dong Qichang's authentic handwriting, so although Xiao Mazi was trembling with anger, he had nothing to say.In desperation, Xiao Mazi could only shout: "Shang Zhixiao! Shang Zhili! Li Tianyu!"

"The slave is here." The three unlucky guys came out together, afraid to go directly in front of Xiao Mazi, they knelt down on their knees ten steps away from Xiao Mazi, and climbed down in front of Xiao Mazi.

"Tell yourself, what is going on here?" Xiao Mazi threw the copybook in front of Shang Zhixiao and others.The two brothers, Shang Zhixiao and Shang Zhixin, also recognized at a glance that this copybook was indeed the copybook they sent to sell cheaply to Fatty Lu as a bait. Shocked and puzzled, the two brothers didn't know how to answer it. .

"Back to the emperor, maybe the servants have misremembered it." After a while, Shang Zhili finally remembered a reason and said, "Perhaps this copybook was stolen at noon the day before yesterday, and the servants only discovered it yesterday morning, so they thought it was the night before yesterday. lost."

"That's right, it must be so." Shang Zhixiao nodded desperately.Over there, Li Tianyu wanted to strangle the pair of good-for-nothing brothers to death—you two idiots, in order to put the charges to death on Fatty Lu, you clearly stated the time of the theft when you reported the crime, and you specifically mentioned that you were the night before yesterday I also admired this copybook, and determined the time of the theft to be between the night before yesterday and the early morning of yesterday. If the emperor reads the case file later, I will see how you explain it.

"Do you think I'm a fool?" Xiao Mazi roared in his heart, knowing that Brother Shang Zhixiao was not telling the truth, but he hesitated deeply, wondering if he should continue to investigate—after all, this was Xiao Mazi's first new year after taking office In the ceremony of opening the pen and opening the seal, the bigger the scandal, the more pockmarked Xiao Mazi will be.

At this point in the matter, of course, Fatty Lu probably guessed the ins and outs of the matter-obviously, this matter was carefully set up by someone, and he was going to use this copybook to make himself a big ugly, a deceitful person with a big ceremony on his back. He was charged with the crime of the king, and then made himself lose his job and even beheaded and ransacked his home!Among the people who designed themselves, the two brothers Shang Zhixiao and Shang Zhili were willing to escape, Li Tianyu was at least an accomplice, and as for the unlucky Liancheng County Magistrate Xie Dongxie, he must have been involved in this matter unintentionally I was so unlucky that I accidentally bought the original Dong Qichang that Xiao Erlang sold into Liulichang, but I used it as a shield for myself, and I was not happy to pay for it.

Secretly rejoicing that he was lucky enough to escape unintentionally, Fatty Lu quickly weighed the pros and cons. If this matter is investigated in detail and all the truth is found out, it is certain that the unlucky Xie Dong will be dismissed from office. The group of people may also be unlucky -- but the possibility is relatively small, Xiao Mazi's political balancing act is not a cover, it is impossible to turn against Shang Kexi and his son for such a trivial matter.As for myself, not only will I not get any benefit from this matter, but the fact that I secretly sold Dong Qichang's authentic works may have been exposed, what will Xiao Mazi think of himself then?
As a courtier, I have good things that Xiao Mazi likes most. Not only do I not dedicate them to Xiao Mazi, but I secretly sell them for my own pockets. With Xiao Mazi's narrow mind, I can't live my life in the future? ——Except for Zhang Tingyu, none of the prime ministers of Xiao Mazi's dynasty had a good death!When dealing with such a hypocrite with a narrow mind and a sharp mouth, it's better to be more cautious. What's the harm in building a step?

Thinking of this, Fatty Lu raised his head resolutely, and said, "Your Majesty, I think that this matter is actually not complicated at all. To put it bluntly, it is very simple. It is all due to the great blessing of the Emperor."

"Is it because of my great fortune?" Xiao Mazi's nose almost turned out of anger, and he thought to himself that it was Lao Tzu's great fortune to make such a big joke in the first ceremony of writing and opening a seal after taking office?Annoyed, Xiao Mazi shouted: "Okay, tell me, how easy is this matter? How come it is my blessing?"

"Back to the emperor, in fact, two sentences can explain it clearly." Fatty Lu said calmly: "The authentic Dong Qichang's handwriting that Mr. Xie Dongxie presented to the emperor is indeed true. ——But still attached The Dong Qichang copybook they threw away was a fake."

"Is the Dong Qichang copybook they lost in Shangerfu a fake?" Xiao Mazi was stunned, and didn't understand Fatty Lu's implication for a while.

"Back to the emperor, the truth of the matter should be like this." Fatty Lu said loudly: "Although this is the first time I met Mr. Xie and I have no friendship, I still want to say a good word for him-he was in Liulichang. To come across this Dong Qichang’s authentic work, and spend all his family’s resources to buy it and present it to the Emperor as a gift for the Emperor’s New Year’s Ceremony, this is indeed his devotion and loyalty to the Emperor, and his heart is commendable!”

"As for Shang Efu and them, they really planned to donate a copybook of Dong Qichang's "Bai Juyi Pipa Xing" to Long Live the Emperor, but unfortunately, Shang Efu did not know enough about antiques and cultural relics, so unfortunately they bought a fake copy ! Unfortunately and fortunately, just last night, this forgery was stolen by thieves."

"Your Majesty, my lords, please think about it." Having said this, Fatty Lu glanced around at the people present, and said loudly: "If it weren't for the emperor's long live and great blessings, and the thieves who stole the fakes like ghosts and ghosts, I still attach them to the counterfeit goods today." Wouldn’t putting up fakes ruin this grand and solemn New Year’s ceremony? Wouldn’t Shang Efu and them have to bear the crime of deceiving the emperor by offering fakes?! But things have evolved to this point, the fakes were stolen, but the authentic ones appeared in the It can be seen that there is God's will in the dark, which just proves that my emperor is blessed and blessed by heaven!"

"My emperor's blessings are equal to the sky, and the heavens bless me. Long live, long live, long live." Fortunately, Fatty Lu still had a more reliable ally at the ceremony. Get down on your knees and shout long live.

"My emperor's blessings are equal to the sky, and the heavens bless the heavens. Long live, long live, long live!" Lin Tianqing was fine, and other officials were not stupid. Kneel down, kowtow and shout.All of a sudden, the tense and embarrassing atmosphere before was also swept away.

"Lord Lu..." The one who was most excited was the unlucky Mr. Xie Dong, who looked at Fatty Lu with tears in his eyes, and cried bitterly in his heart: "Good man! I treat you like this, and you still pull me like this, repaying a grievance with virtue, A good man who repays evil with virtue."

"This Fatty Lu is really smart, I can finally end with dignity." After realizing that Fatty Lu was building steps for himself, Xiao Mazi also heaved a sigh of relief, and said with a smile: "I see, I almost wronged Xie Aiqing All Ai Qings, please get up, Xie Aiqing, Lu Aiqing, please get up too."

"Thank you, Your Majesty..." Xie Dong, who escaped from death, shed tears, kowtowed heavily, and then stood up with Fatty Lu.Kong Sizhen, monk Zhixiao and the others over there knew that Fatty Lu was talking nonsense, but considering that if they continued to make trouble, they would be accused of disrupting the grand ceremony and plotting misconduct. So Kong Sizhen, monk Zhixiao and others had no choice but to knock out their teeth and swallow their blood, and obediently shut their mouths.

"Xie Aiqing has meritorious service in the treasure, and the bounty is as good as you want." After successfully passing the embarrassing crisis, Xiao Mazi felt a lot more relaxed, and generously threw a bone to Xie Dong, and asked the eunuch to put away the authentic painting, before turning to Fatty Lu She smiled and said: "Lu Aiqing, although you have made merit in discerning the facts, I have already rewarded you, so I won't reward you any more. How about this, after a while, I will reward you in a yellow jacket and sit at the head of three tables. as a reward."

"Thank you for the emperor's gift, but I dare not take credit for it." Fatty Lu thanked him with his hand cupped, and said, "I just ask the emperor not to forget the real hero in this matter - Shaobao Ao Zhongtang! Thank you sir for presenting Dong Qichang's authentic work." At that time, among the people present, only Ao Zhongtang came out to question it first, which is enough to prove that Ao Zhongtang is loyal to the emperor, and no one is allowed to intentionally defile the holy scriptures."

"Boy, you..." Aobai wanted to scold Fatty Lu for hypocritically saying good things, but then he thought, if he accused Fatty Lu like this, wouldn't he admit in disguise that he actually wanted to disrupt the ceremony and attack the emperor's authority?Thinking of this, Aobai changed his mind and said with a smile: "Don't give this old man too high a hat. If it weren't for your cleverness and timely analysis of the truth, this old man would almost have misunderstood Mr. Xie."

"This Fatty Lu is really exquisite, as slippery as an oiled glass bullet." Most of the officials present also saw that Fatty Lu was deliberately speaking good words to Oboi, and while they were contemptuous, they all murmured in their hearts: "I heard that Fatty Lu was the only one who spoke well of Wang Xu when he was arrested, and left money to take care of Wang Xu's family. Although Fatty Lu was a bit more naughty, he never fell into a well at a critical moment. Instead of being pushed by everyone, he likes to give charcoal to others in a timely manner, and he is also a good friend in the officialdom—at least, such a person will not stumble in the back and stab a knife."

"Lu Aiqing reminded me that I almost forgot Ao Zhongtang's contribution to this matter." Although he knew that Ao Bai had no good intentions just now, but due to the situation, Xiao Mazi still smiled hypocritically: "Pass the decree, bestow Ao Shaobao's yellow jacket is a reward for Ao Shaobao's loyalty to me." Ao Bai had no choice but to kneel down and thank him.

…………

After the turmoil subsided, everyone returned to their respective positions, and the ceremony continued. At noon, the New Year's ceremony, which was cursed by Fatty Lu hundreds of times, finally came to an end. After changing clothes in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the civil and military officials, including Fatty Lu, had a little time for free activities.

"Lord Lu!" As soon as he was able to move freely, Xie Dong couldn't wait to rush in front of Fatty Lu, knelt down on his knees facing Fatty Lu in front of countless officials, and kowtowed three times on the head.

"Master Xie, what are you doing?" Fatty Lu pretended to help Xie Dong, and said: "Master Xie, please hurry up, I am an official at the same level as you, how can I treat you as such a big gift?"

"Master Lu, I'm sorry for you." Xie Dong burst into tears, choked up and said: "In order to compete with you for position, this official didn't look good towards you, and even resented you very much, but you repaid your hatred with virtue. When the official was so dangerous I helped the subordinate official and saved his life. I, Xie Dong, will never forget your kindness, and if you are asked to send me from now on, I, Xie Dong, will go through fire and water, and I will not hesitate to do so."

"It's a little effort, Mr. Xie, you don't have to be polite, there's no need to do this." Fatty Lu said everything, and finally pulled the crying Xie Dong up, and pretended to say in front of the onlookers: "Mr. Zhonghao practice, you and I only need to keep in mind three points - say good things, do good deeds, and have good intentions! Just keep these three points in mind, even if no one pulls you at critical moments, God will pull you."

"Your Excellency's advice, I will keep it in my heart, and I will never forget it.... Say good words, do good deeds, and have good intentions!" Xie Dong cried and agreed, and the civil and military officials who watched beside him also nodded, and they had a good impression of Fatty Lu—— People with such a mind are indeed worth paying for.

Since then, Fatty Lu's three good names of saying good things, doing good deeds, and having good intentions have also become famous in the capital. For a long time before Fatty Lu's criminal face was exposed, the officials in the capital mentioned Fatty Lu's name. For - Lu Sanhao!This is something to say later, I will skip it for the time being.

After finally calming Xie Dong who was crying and crying, Fatty Lu went to meet Wu Yingxiong and Lin Tianqing who were watching from a distance.As soon as we met, Lin Tianqing cupped his hands to Fatty Lu and said with a smile: "Master Lu, I have to admit that I really underestimated a little bit, apart from anything else, you are very comparable to others with your heart of repaying grievances with virtue. "

Fatty Lu returned the courtesy and modesty, while Wu Yingxiong over there smiled and said, "However, it would be a pity to let the real culprit go. If it wasn't for Yifeng, who was smart enough to take that thing decisively when you found something wrong, you would be dead today. Pingxi Palace, You have to be implicated to some extent."

"Don't blame me, my son." Fatty Lu replied in a low voice: "At first, I wanted to follow the vines to find out the real culprit, but tomorrow the salary will be negotiated. One more big trouble."

"That's right, it's a big deal, and it's not good for our Pingxi Palace." Wu Yingxiong nodded, agreeing with Fatty Lu's way of calming down the matter.At this time, Wu Yingxiong caught sight of the Shang brothers peeking at them from a distance, so he winked at Fatty Lu, left Lin Tianqing where he was, and let Fatty Lu accompany him to the Shang brothers alone.The Shang family brothers looked gloomy and did not take the initiative to speak to Wu Yingxiong, Fatty Lu and the others.

"Brother Zhixiao, the Pingxi Palace will let you go today." Wu Yingxiong sneered and whispered to the Shang brothers: "If you still want to engage in internal strife, the Pingxi Palace will accompany you to the end—but after you return to Guangdong, I'm afraid there is no way to explain to Prince Pingnan, right?"

"Brother Ying Xiong, what did you say?" Shang Zhixiao forced a smile and asked back: "Why can't you hear clearly, little brother?"

"Second prince, you are a smart person. That thing appeared in Liulichang. Don't you understand the kindness of Prince Pingxi?" Fatty Lu took the opportunity to cheat Jinhua, and said with a sneer, "If the prince didn't let his humble job destroy the evidence , but to send all the personal and material evidence to the emperor—Second Prince, the charge of intentionally disrupting the New Year’s Ceremony, it seems that you can’t bear it alone, right?”

"You guys already knew?" Shang Zhili was a waste, his face turned pale from fright when Fatty Lu bluffed, and he couldn't help asking back.

"If I didn't know, why would I ask Yifeng to transfer that thing? Save it for today and let Yifeng die?" Wu Yingxiong sneered and asked back with a sneer—as if he had arranged all of this. .

"Second Prince, Shang Efu, do you know who betrayed you?" Fatty Lu asked with a wicked smile.

"Who?!" Shang Zhixiao and Monk Zhili were bluffed by Wu Yingxiong and Lu Fatty, his face changed drastically, and he asked in unison.

"Who? Besides the one who set you off, who else could it be?" Fatty Lu replied with a sinister smile.

"The one who set us up?" Shang Zhixiao and Shang Zhili's brothers changed their faces at the same time, subconsciously stealing eyes to see Kong Sizhen in a man's uniform in the distance—Kong Sizhen was also peeking here.

"It really is her!" Wu Yingxiong and Fatty Lu nodded in their hearts at the same time, and they already understood that Kong Sizhen was the real mastermind behind this matter.

After understanding this, Wu Yingxiong lowered his voice and said: "Brother Zhixiao, I know the reason why you got so close to her, but why did she get so close to you and play such a big trick on you? Don’t understand? Sacrifice your Pingnan Palace and Jingnan Palace to please her, are you worth it? Even if you think it’s worth it, have you ever thought about it? When you return to Guangzhou and Fuzhou, how do you explain to your father? Now that you are a son, don't you worry that you won't survive the day when your father abdicates?"

This time, Wu Yingxiong just hit Shang Zhixiao's heart, Geng Juzhong is fine, Shang Zhixiao once held the military power in Guangdong on behalf of his father, but it's a pity that his talent and ability are not as good as his brother Shang Zhixin, so Shang Kexi personally wiped it down—— ——Even if Shang Zhixiao sacrificed the Pingnan Palace and the entire San Francisco this time, and exchanged for a prince from the Pingnan Palace who was canonized by the court, will he really be able to sit still after returning to Guangzhou?
"I'll stop here. Brother Zhixiao and Zhili, please think twice." Wu Yingxiong observed his words and said calmly, "Yifeng, let's go."

"Wait." Shang Zhixiao made up his mind, quickly called Wu Yingxiong to stop, and said in a low voice to Wu Yingxiong: "Brother Yingxiong, today is the first day of the new year, and my younger brother plans to join hands with Brother Juzhong to pay New Year's greetings at the house tonight. Brother Ying Xiong, do you have time tonight?"

After finishing speaking, Shang Zhixiao hastily added, "Of course, we won't take irrelevant people with us."

"Brother Zhixiao and Brother Juzhong are here, and my younger brother will sweep the bed and wait." Wu Yingxiong said with a smile: "As for the irrelevant people-brother Zhixiao, don't worry, after 17 years of Shunzhi, she has never had the face to come to my door .”

PS: Sorry, in the last chapter, Huang Ji, Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, was written as a second-rank official. In fact, the six ministers of the Qing Dynasty should be from the first rank, and the Ming Dynasty is the second-rank official.I hereby apologize.

(End of this chapter)