Empress: Your Majesty, please respect yourself, I don't want to be promoted

Hearing the empress's concise and decisive response, everyone couldn't help being slightly taken aback.

There was no detailed questioning or negotiation.

That's it... decided?

After Jiang Xu realized it, he frowned immediately.

"Your Majesty, Lu Chen committed such a horrific crime, do you still want to use him again?"

Facing Jiang Xu's questioning, the Empress' answer was still short but powerful:

"I don't think Lu Qing is at fault, nor has he committed any crime."

After confirming the attitude of the empress, Jiang Xu's face suddenly showed disbelief.

"Your Majesty, that fellow Lu Chen is blatantly attacking King Yu!"

The empress leaned back slightly, leaning lazily on the back of the chair, leaning her elbows on the armrest, resting her fair chin with one hand, and said indifferently: "So what?"

Hearing this, Jiang Xu suddenly clenched the fluorene board in his hand, then took a deep breath, and said solemnly:

"According to Daxia's law, the royal family decides on its own, and non-royal people can't intervene anyway, otherwise it will be a treason and must be punished with death!"

"No matter what the character of King Yu is, what he did in Yuzhou, as long as it is not a rebellion, no matter what the reason is, no one can hurt him, let alone put him to death. Lu Chen's move is completely disregarding the royal family. Weiyi, challenge Tianwei!"

Having said that, he bowed heavily again, and raised his voice:

"A villain like Lu Chen who despises the majesty of the heavenly family, challenges the imperial power, and has no respect for the orthodoxy of the royal family. If he does not punish him vigorously, the supreme authority of the Jiang family will definitely be damaged."

"The royal family is the foundation of the world. If Lu Chen killed Queen Yu this time and was safe and sound, there will be a next time, even the next Lu Chen, and the next Lu Chen. From now on, how can the people of the world still respect us and the royal family as always?" How can we coerce the world? Therefore, this case must not be opened, otherwise there will be endless disasters, and even the country will be destroyed!"

At the end of Jiang Xu's speech, he was almost hoarse, like a unparalleled loyal minister desperately admonishing the king.

Behind him, the faces of the royal family members of the Tianzong Mansion were all moved, as if they were saying: The Eighth Emperor Uncle is really a national scholar!

However, after Jiang Xu's tirade ended, the Empress's face did not fluctuate at all.

She lowered her eyes slightly, stared at Jiang Xu, and then, while opening and closing her red lips, said a sentence that seemed to hit the soul directly:

"Zongzheng, let me ask you, what spiritual outfit did Lu Qing use to kill King Yu?"

Hearing this, Jiang Xu's face froze slightly.

"Your Majesty, no matter what spiritual outfit Lu Chen is using, he will kill King Yu..."

He didn't answer the Empress' question directly, and even his tone was not as forceful as before.

"Don't gossip about him."

The empress's voice suddenly became extremely sharp, and before Jiang Xu could finish speaking, she interrupted:

"Answer my question!"

Jiang Xu's eyes darkened slightly, and then he sighed inexplicably, and said, "Return to Your Majesty, what Lu Chen uses is the sword of the ultimate way."

The empress said again: "Tell me, what does the sword of the extreme way mean?"

"The Holy Monarch of Destiny, the Way of the Emperor, and..."

Having said that, he paused for a moment, and his tone became more bitter: "The right to life and death."

"very good."

click...

The empress stood up slowly, and at the same time as the Hongling dragon robe left the dragon chair, the twelve jade crystals of the Tongtian crown made a crisp sound in the slight shaking.

"I'll ask you again, what did I say when I handed over the Sword of Extreme Dao to Lu Qing?"

Jiang Xu smiled wryly.

"The face of the sword is like the face of the king, and the person holding the sword can [cut the rebellious sect at the top, punish the ministers who are not, cut first and then play, the emperor's special permission], and can also order the four directions, except for your majesty, not subject to anyone's restraint."

"Zong has a good memory."

The Empress boasted flatteringly, and continued:

"Since you remember, you should know that before I took back the sword of the extreme way, Lu Qing's words and deeds were all my will. His orders are equivalent to imperial decrees. Complicity!"

As she spoke, she raised her footsteps lightly, walked down the steps slowly, and walked towards Jiang Xu.

"At that time, King Yu not only did not obey Lu Qing's order, but also used his power to force others to excuse him. Later, he even ignored Lu Qing's repeated warnings and went to Yuzhou Prison in Lu Qing's presence. , Zongzheng, tell me..."

Seeing the empress gradually walking towards him, feeling an increasingly fierce imperial coercion, cold sweat gradually oozes from Jiang Xu's face, and the aura lost on his face at the beginning.

While speaking, the empress had already walked down the steps and came to the carpet in the center of the hundred officials. She looked directly at Jiang Xu's unsteady eyes with a slightly cold gaze, and said unhurriedly: "It is Lu Qing who challenged the imperial power. To kill King Yu; or is it that King Yu despises me as an emperor and doesn't take me seriously?"

"Mianjian is like a face-lord. Lu Qing is holding the sword of the extreme way, just like I am in person. How dare King Yu be so arrogant and domineering when facing me, and don't take me seriously at all, and you, as the Tianzong Mansion Zongzheng, but he defends him so much, and even confuses the public and beat him up, do you think that I am not qualified to be the emperor and should give up this position to King Yu or King Qin?!"

These words are not only extremely heavy, but also fatal to the courtiers, especially the royal family.

Jiang Xu was shocked immediately, and then hurriedly explained to King Yu: "Your Majesty calm down, I have absolutely no such intention, and I dare not have any unsuitable thoughts, please learn from Your Majesty!"

Not only Jiang Xu, but other courtiers, including those important ministers standing near the steps, couldn't help showing a hint of surprise on their faces.

Your Majesty's favor towards Lu Chen is so terrifying!

Of course, those court chiefs knew that if this matter was serious, there would be nothing wrong with Lu Chen holding the sword of extreme law in terms of legal principles.

A sword with a face is like a king with a face, this is not empty talk.

King Yu was so arrogant and domineering in front of the sword of the extreme way, if he didn't take Lu Chen seriously, it would be tantamount to challenging the emperor's authority.

This is the way to die!

However, having a sword in your hand is one thing, but being able to use it is another.

In any case, King Yu is a first-rank prince, and Lu Chen himself is just a foreigner after all. Once he gets serious, he will really use the authority of the extreme sword to kill an elder with a high status in the royal family. It's not about committing crimes above, but in the eyes of the royal family, it means committing crimes above and challenging the imperial power!

After all, in the Great Xia Empire, sometimes it wasn't just right if it didn't break the law.

Being an official must not only be reasonable, but also reasonable.

Be sensible, know how to advance and retreat, and grasp the scale.

Especially when it comes to the issue of the royal family, don’t let the emperor give you the power to “kill the rebellious sect first, kill the royal family first and then act later”. In many cases, this kind of power is just a kind of deterrent. If the deterrence of foreign ministers is taken seriously, It would be too naive to cause trouble for the emperor.

Obviously, Lu Chen is such a "ignorant" courtier.

And it got into a whole lot of trouble.

You must know that King Yu is the only younger brother of the late emperor... When the late emperor seized the throne, King Yu contributed a lot, and he is also the uncle of the current emperor.

Whether it is merit or power, status, wealth, lineage and seniority, he is a first-class big shot.

The empress can push Lu Chen to quell the anger of the royal family, so as to stabilize people's hearts. Even if she wants to protect him, she should pretend to be confused like Jiang Xu, the Tianzong's mansion, and hide the matter of the sword of the extreme way. Dismissed from office, sent to prison, so as to block the mouths of the royal family, and wait for the storm to pass, and then find a chance to use it again.

Instead of directly raising the sword of the extreme way like now, and putting a layer of legal cloak on Lu Chen, in this way, not only is he not at fault, but he is still a loyal minister who desperately defends the emperor's authority.

King Yu, who was seriously injured, directly became a rebel who lacked virtue and oppressed others with power.

Of the three options, she chose the most radical one.

In this way, the one who benefited the most this time is Lu Chen, a stunned young man.

At this point, the empress still defends him like this, even the first-rank prince can't do anything to him. From now on, if the court is not related to matters of fundamental interest, or is forced to the point of no return, who would dare to easily provoke this evil spirit? star?

Didn't you see that almost all the people who opposed him, from the Queen Mother Zhao to Hu Yan, a fifth-rank official, were all bad luck?

Even King Yu, such a noble and incomparable royal family, he would kill as soon as he said it, and he would be safe afterwards. The operation of the empress was enough to raise his prestige and authority to a very terrifying level.

Not only did the empress herself have nothing to gain, but she might be alienated from the royal family because of this, and even be dubbed a tyrant.

Taking such a big risk, using the affairs of King Yu to let Lu Chen establish supreme authority in Yu and Sui states... The empress was so well-intentioned that all the ministers couldn't help being speechless, and even Fang Ping felt a surge of emotion in his heart Unspeakable envy.

If you are like this, what more can you ask for...

"Ah…"

While everyone was thinking, the empress had already walked to Jiang Xu's side and smiled coldly at him.

"That's the end of the matter, this time I don't have to care about you, but if there is a next time..."

Speaking of this, the Empress didn't say anything further, but Jiang Xu was in a cold sweat and didn't dare to say more.

He, Zongzheng of the Tianzong Mansion, did not dare to open his mouth, and naturally other court officials would not foolishly seek death and intervene in such matters of the royal family where a little carelessness would result in the death of their heads.

Soon, the court meeting ended in a delicate atmosphere.

At night, the Empress and Jiang Chengdao dealt with government affairs in Zichen Hall.

"His Majesty."

The empress had just put down an official document, and Jiang Chengdao, who had been silent for a while, suddenly walked up to the empress and said:

"Weichen feels that if necessary, Lu Chen must be called back as soon as possible."

Hearing this, the Empress subconsciously frowned.

"Why? Brother Huang thinks that Lu Chen is not suitable to be the governor of the two states?"

"Weichen has no such intention."

Jiang Chengdao shook his head and continued: "Fu Wei has been by Lu Chen's side all the time. According to her, after Lu Chen took control of Yuzhou, he not only observed the people's sentiments every day, handled cases impartially, restrained the powerful, and used all kinds of illegal means. The captured fields, houses, shops, etc. were returned to the original owners, the unvirtuous, talented and incompetent officials were eliminated, the people's livelihood was improved in every possible way, resources were allocated to assist Xiao Shangshu in water control, and the past files were reviewed overnight to investigate grievances, think about ways to enrich the people, and design development plans... ..."

He listed to the empress one by one what Lu Chen had done during this time as the governor of the two states.

"In the end, he simply lived in the yamen, buried in all kinds of documents at night, and almost stayed up all night..."

Hearing this, the Empress couldn't help but hold her breath.

Subconsciously, he wanted to directly agree with Jiang Chengdao's suggestion before he finished speaking.

At this time, Jiang Chengdao suddenly sighed with emotion: "Don't talk about conscientiousness, what the governor Lu Chen has done can be said to be dedicated. He has seen countless people, and he has never seen such a noble character, good learning, and A unparalleled national scholar who is dedicated to the people and has the world in mind."

The little hand under the empress' dragon robe suddenly tightened, and her heart beat a little faster for no reason.

How lucky I am to be able to die in the service of such a loyal and loyal minister.

After a while, she took a little breath, and then asked: "What does the emperor mean?"

Jiang Chengdao sighed slightly.

"Lu Chen is too upright."

He said such a sentence inexplicably, the empress thought about it subconsciously, and after a while, her eyes suddenly froze.

"You mean, the case involving official warehouses in various places in the Qingjiang River Valley?"

Jiang Chengdao nodded, then sighed softly, and said helplessly: "Since Lu Chen has discovered this case and has clues, with his temperament, he will definitely investigate it at all costs. Those people are a thorn in their side and a thorn in their flesh."

"When people are desperate, no matter what they do, it is not surprising, let alone they are powerful monks."

Hearing this, the empress' face suddenly darkened.

Jiang Chengdao's meaning was already very obvious.

If Lu Chen continues to investigate this shocking case, as the investigation progresses, those involved in this case will definitely be forced to become desperadoes, and then they will do everything possible to get rid of Lu Chen.

As the saying goes, "It's easy to hide a spear with a bright gun, but it's hard to defend against a hidden arrow."

Even if Lu Chen had the sword of extreme dao in his hand, even if he knew that he was being desperately protected by Fu Yu and other experts, and that it was a matter of life and death, those people would never give up.

At the same time, if Lu Chenming went to investigate this case, he would definitely startle them, which would be very unfavorable for their next actions.

Although integrity is an advantage, sometimes it is a bit troublesome.

Thinking of this, the empress nodded.

"Well, Brother Huang is right. Once the investigation is as expected, Lu Qing will not be suitable to stay in Yuzhou."

As she spoke, she thought for a while, and then continued: "Since that's the case, after Xuanji sends back the news in a few days, I will immediately make another order to call Lu Qing back to Beijing, and then let Xiao Yun work harder, and let her Take over as the governor of the two states, and take full responsibility for the military and political secrets of the two states and the quelling of floods."

Hearing this, Jiang Chengdao couldn't help but look a little weird.

Flood control is an extremely exhausting task. Not only does it need to coordinate various resources, but it also needs to be responsible for designing and arranging various large formations, reinforcing the dam area, and commanding the army to open canals to release floods.

Now also serves as governor of two states

Could it be that my younger sister has something to do with Xiao Yun?