Han Shizu

In the East Palace, in the Hongde Hall, a palace meeting is going on, the atmosphere is not good, and it makes people feel very depressed. The person discussed is undoubtedly the most eye-catching "28 ministers case" in the current imperial court.

From the "Xue family's unjust extermination case" to the "Zhang Jinjie case", from the "overthrowing the king case" to "abolishing the Imperial City Council", in just over ten days, the turmoil in the Luoyang court has intensified, and the situation has continued to escalate. Up to now, another "28 officials case" has emerged.

There were 28 people in total including Zhang Xun and Lv Mengzheng who were imprisoned by Emperor Liu for punishing Wang Jien with their joint names. "28 Gentlemen".

For a while, Zhang, Lu and others became virtuous gentlemen who rebelled against villains in power and upheld the justice of the country's laws. The reputation of the 28 people became even louder. Many people spontaneously publicized their "stories" and told the ins and outs of the incident, and even became market leaders. talk between.

Of course, some people secretly pushed behind this, wanting to further expand the influence of this matter, let Emperor Liu feel the raging public opinion below, and open the eyes of the old emperor, the public sentiment is irreversible, and the public opinion cannot be violated.

However, what is this kind of behavior in the eyes of the old emperor, forcing the palace!Such a situation would have been impossible even ten years ago.In Emperor Liu's view, this is a group of bureaucrats who are unwilling to be lonely and have ulterior motives, plotting wrongdoing, bullying him when he is old and weak, and wanting to use this to wrestle with him!

With Emperor Liu's current state of mind, it is conceivable how he would react to such a situation.There is absolutely no possibility of retreating at all. If they make concessions this time, they will have to retreat again and again in the future. On such a matter of principle, there cannot be any compromise with the group of bureaucrats, otherwise there will be endless troubles.

The power of kings and ministers has always loved and killed each other, rising and falling one after another.So far, Emperor Liu is even more convinced of his previous suspicions. The fundamental purpose of this group of bureaucrats is himself, and they want to limit the imperial power and restrain his power.

And the old emperor is no longer what he used to be. He did not hide his attachment to power and desire to control. Whoever wants to use his brains in this regard will only be severely punished by him. The death of Jiang Mu is a warning. .

It's just that some people didn't take it too seriously, or they said that there was no turning back when they opened the bow, and they had to struggle with Emperor Liu for a reason, trying to solve the problem within the political rules.However, today's old emperor is still a reasonable person. In his heart, only suspicion, fear and anger are left in his heart, and only those irrational questions are left.

If at the beginning, Emperor Liu had no intention of killing, then when the reputation of "28 ministers" reached his ears, the killing intent was almost boiling.The same is true for Zhang Xun and Lu Mengzheng, no matter how much they appreciated and valued before, in the heart of a single husband, they are all insignificant.

To be honest, whether it is killing General Mu or imprisoning Zhang, Lu and others, Emperor Liu's actions have caused great harm to the imperial system. A system that is full of rationality and relatively pursues fairness.

It is conceivable that when the emperor himself doesn't care about the rules, it will have a bad impact on the country's court and on the country and society.This kind of influence may not explode like a raging fire, but its profoundness and heaviness are difficult to measure.

It is not easy to establish a set of systems and rules, and it will take a long time to make it deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and accepted by the public. However, to shake its foundation, perhaps all it takes is the capriciousness of the old emperor in an extreme state of mind. .
Prince Liu Yang has been paying attention to these, and is also very worried about them.It's really not easy for a big man to have what he is today. It was achieved after decades of hard work.Liu Yang really didn't want Emperor Liu's anger to affect the overall situation of the court, ruin the system, ruin his reputation, and chill people's hearts.

In fact, Liu Yang also only cautiously expressed concern about the behavior of Lu, Zhang and others before, neither supporting nor opposing, and prepared to wait and see.It's just that the changes in this situation were too rapid, which made Liu Yang a little overwhelmed, let alone others.

Liu Yang didn't have much opinion on Wang Ji'en, this old eunuch, traitor is traitor, ability is ability, although he doesn't have much integrity, but he is also really loyal to the royal family, and has always been respectful to himself. Better than the vast majority of bureaucrats in the court.

Leaving Wang Ji'en aside, Liu Yang certainly has an opinion in his heart about the Huangcheng Secretary's behavior style over the years and the various chaos and evils it has caused.

Of course, more importantly, looking at it from the perspective of the superior, Liu Yang clearly felt the anger of nobles and bureaucrats caused by the rampant imperial city department for these years.

In terms of governance security and peace of mind, the nobles and bureaucrats, the elite ruling class of the two big Han, need to be appeased, and certain measures can be taken against Wang Jien and Huangcheng Secretary.

However, Liu Yang is not Liu Hui. He has a much deeper understanding of the Imperial City Division. Even if it is necessary to rectify the Imperial City Division, it is necessary to ensure its stable combat effectiveness. The emperor, serving the heavenly family.

As the heir, he would support such a stupid suggestion unless he was paralyzed in order to ban the Imperial City Secretary.Among the two major spy organizations, the Imperial City and Wude, the Wude Division has a wider influence, but the Huangcheng Division has a greater role in controlling the emperor's officials, because its duty is to monitor the public opinion in Gyeonggi and the internal and external courtiers.

If there is no Imperial City Secretary, how can the old emperor live in Ziwei City?I still don't know what it will be like to be deceived by the courtiers below!Based on this understanding, even if Liu Yang ascended the throne in the future, he would still be useful to the Imperial City Secretary. How could he destroy his own eyes and ears, and cut off his minions?
Therefore, Liu Yang's current mentality is somewhat contradictory. On the one hand, he is annoyed by ministers such as Zhang and Lu who have caused this turmoil; Unprofitable.

But the current situation is already awkward and on the verge of danger. Once the old emperor comes out of his guts and issues an edict, it will be irreversible.However, with such persuasion, how to calm down the turmoil and make the dispute land as smoothly as possible is a bit of a test for Liu Yang.

After thinking about it for a long time, he couldn't find a solution, so he called his staff and asked about countermeasures. However, few of the staff could follow his train of thought and understand his thoughts.One by one, they were obviously the prince's retainers, but their buttocks also went to Zhang, Lu and others.

Looking at the righteous and sincere dissuasion, Liu Yang felt disgusted for no reason. After his training, it is not a big problem for this subordinate official to do things, but it is still necessary to discuss important matters. It lacks a lot.

Since Murong Defeng and other princes and old ministers were released, Liu Yang has only three or two big and small cats around him.Of course, this does not mean that the prince's power is withered, but that his influence is hidden in a relatively imperceptible depth.

In fact, with Liu Yang's accumulated strength in the past 30 years, he doesn't need too many people to help him wave the flag, that will only attract hatred.But it is undeniable that if Liu Yang really wants to make some big moves, it will also set off a huge wave for the Han court.

A letter from the prince can command most of the bureaucrats in the world, and even a part of the army. This is the prestige built up by a smart prince in 30 years.Confronting Emperor Liu head-on, there is a high probability that he will not be able to bear the loyalty and filial piety brought by his father, and Liu Yang is not something that Emperor Liu can handle at will.

The more this is the case, the more cautious Liu Yang is. It is true that being a prince for more than 30 years has been too long and has been too hard, but after waiting for more than 30 years, he is not afraid of waiting for another two years.

And Emperor Liu's body.
When I came back to my thoughts, a group of Eastern Palace officials were still discussing, talking about 28 ministers, loyal and virtuous, with a touching integrity, who needed to intercede for forgiveness. If they were executed, it would be a great loss for the court.
Hearing this, Liu Yang didn't feel bored, and couldn't help knocking on the copper case in front of his body. The prince's majesty was still very strong, and the Hongde Hall quickly fell silent.

Looking at the crowd, Liu Yang said indifferently: "Your Majesty has not yet issued an order to deal with it. What are you panicking about?"

Faced with such a question from His Highness the Crown Prince, the emotions of the subordinate officials immediately cooled down, and several of them even flushed with embarrassment. After all, the mockery in Liu Yang's tone was too obvious.

"His Royal Highness calm down, it's the minister who will take care of it!"

And Liu Yang didn't listen to these people's thoughts anymore. After all, he couldn't hear any constructive opinions. After pondering for a while, he waved his hands at everyone: "That's the end of today's discussion, you all stand down!"

Seeing this, all the ministers did not dare to talk too much, and they all bowed and resigned, regardless of whether His Royal Highness accepts it or not, their thoughts have already been stated, which is enough to show their loyalty.

"Xu Shilian stay here!" Liu Yang suddenly called out while observing the ministers from the corner of his eye.

Xu Shilian was the scholar who knocked on Wengu to sue the imperial court 16 years ago. Because it was finally found out that Li Fang was not favoritism, Xu Shilian was sent to Fengzhou in the final disposition.

In Toyosu, I stayed for ten years, the northern part of Saibei was bitterly cold, life was extremely gloomy, and there was no future hope to speak of.The turning point happened during the Yulin Rebellion. Although Fengzhou was at the northernmost end of Yulin Road, separated by deserts and rivers, it was still affected.

There were rebel raids, panic in the prefecture, and at a critical time, it was Xu Shilian and Xu Xuan, who was also a fallen man, gathered a group of village braves to help defend the city, repel the invading bandits, and later defeated the North Dungeon. In the process of Li Ji's moving to the army, Fengzhou officers and soldiers also made a lot of contributions.

It was precisely because of his outstanding performance during the Li Jiqian Rebellion that Xu Shilian completely washed away his bad deeds, was commended by the court, and even entered Emperor Liu's vision again, which he appreciated a lot.

The reason is also very simple, as a scholar who has been exiled in the frontier for ten years, he has suffered a lot, his life has been in the dark for a long time, his future is bleak, and when things are urgent, he still stands firmly on the side of the imperial court and devotes himself to it. Sincerely,Regardless of deeds and intentions, as long as this real performance is concerned, Xu Shilian should be established as a model of loyalty and goodness.

He deserved to be promoted. First, he was directly promoted from an exiled scholar to Fengzhou Sima, and was soon transferred to Jingzhong as the censor, and then promoted to the head of the Ministry of Industry, until he was favored by the prince and transferred to the East Palace as the right concubine. In short, until now.

Xu Shilian's official career experience can be described as brilliant, but the ups and downs, twists and turns, bitterness and suffering during it are also very unbearable.Now, he has become a retainer of Prince Liu Yang, and his future is limitless. To a certain extent, Xu Shilian even has to be grateful for those ten years of hard work.

In contrast, Wu Jichuan, the Jinshi who was accused at the time, was indeed good in talent and learning, but after sixteen or seventeen years, he was still compiling books in Jixian Hall, with no future at all.

For Xu Shilian, Liu Yang still admires him, after all, he is a proven talent.Looking at Xu Shilian, who was neither humble nor overbearing, Liu Yang asked softly: "It was discussed just now, and everyone expresses their opinions, but you have remained silent and have not said a word! This time the turmoil is so big, you have nothing to say? "

Upon hearing this, Xu Shilian was silent for a while, then cupped his hands and bowed to Liu Yang: "I have something in my heart, but I am afraid that what I say may not be what His Highness means, and may even offend His Highness!"

Listening to what he said, Liu Yang was naturally more interested, and stretched out his hand: "Tell me and listen!"

After a pause, Xu Shilian said solemnly: "Forgive me for being frivolous, none of this court is full of mediocrity, and no one is planning for His Highness, and no one talks about the seriousness of this matter!
In my humble opinion, His Majesty's plan for the present is by no means to be lightly involved in this matter, to plead for mercy, but to keep silent and not make a statement. Even if he wants to make a difference, he should make a statement and firmly support any resolution of His Majesty , there is no other choice!

Compared with the turmoil in the imperial court, whether it is the rectification of the bad government in the Northwest, or the national tax reform, they are all more important, and this is what His Highness should really do! "

"You want me to turn a deaf ear and take care of myself?" Liu Yang showed no abnormality when he heard the words, but after a little thought, he said slowly: "Zhang, Lu and others are important officials of the imperial court. It is indeed a big loss, and it also damages your majesty's wisdom. As the crown prince, if I keep silent and sit idly by without admonition, I'm afraid I will chill the hearts of my subjects."

Liu Yang said this calmly, but somewhat insincerely, but he stared at Xu Shilian with great interest, observing his reaction.

As expected, Xu Shilian did not disappoint him, he hesitated a little, bowed his hands and bowed again, with a serious tone: "Let's not mention today's troubles, it is your own fault. I dare to say that even ten Zhangs and Lus are not as important as the safety of Your Highness! "

As soon as these words came out, the Hongde Hall fell silent, Liu Yang pondered for a while, and Fang leisurely said to Xu Shilian: "Xu Qing, you are very good."

Xu Shilian was slightly surprised, but quickly reacted: "Your Majesty, please forgive me for my words and deeds, Meng Lang!"

Waving his hand, Liu Yang said softly: "I already know your opinion, you should also step back!"

"I retire!"

Xu Shilian, it can be regarded as a windfall, he never thought that he would be able to touch his own psychology.After pondering for a while, Liu Yang murmured, "It's not easy to be alone."

Almost chasing Liu Yang's emotion, not long after, the servant king made an appointment to report, and someone from the Chuigong Palace came to announce the decree, and Emperor Liu summoned him.