Rebellious officials bow their heads

Xie Linze turned around, leaned on the wine rack and sat down slowly, took a porcelain cup casually, and groped for the wine jar with the other hand, but accidentally knocked over the wine jar, there was a loud splash, and the wine flowed from the mouth of the jar It trickles down and flows freely on the white jade floor.

Ji Han smiled mockingly.

Xie Linze didn't care when he heard his laughter, stopped taking the wine, put his hands on his knees, and said, "Since you don't want me to die so quickly, write a prescription for me and pass it to the Imperial Hospital."

Ji Han said: "Is it Zhou Yuan's prescription?"

"You do know."

"How does that prescription compare to the previous one?" Ji Han said, "Can it save you?"

Xie Linze let out a long breath, and his eyes fell on the void, "I knew that no one could save me, it was just suppressed temporarily."

Ji Han paused, got up and walked in front of him with his hands behind his back, looked down at him and sneered, "In that case, as you wish, get ready to go to court tomorrow, Your Majesty."

He took a pen and paper from the side, wrote down the prescription Xie Linze said, and stopped writing for a while, "Speaking of which, the death anniversary of the Empress Dowager Huijin is approaching, and the national teacher at Duyun Taoist Temple will go out to pay homage. If you don't come out Cause twists and turns, for the stability of the government and the public, for the future of the Ji family, you really should end the claustrophobia for so many years."

The attendant took the pen and paper, Ji Han squatted down, faced Xie Linze, raised his chin with his hand, so that his face could be revealed from the obscure shadows, "I'm back in the government and the public, I can see the light of day, and I hope to be cautious in my words and deeds." Yes, Your Majesty."

Xie Linze nodded at him with an ambiguous smile, "Listen to what Ji Shoufu said, is it like you are giving me alms in today's situation?"

"Are you trying to say that it's thanks to Ji Liu who severed ties with Ji's family?" Ji Han also laughed, "After he knew your identity, he understood that you have been using him."

Xie Linze's expression changed slightly, and he said to him after a while: "You really have nothing to say, Ji Shoufu has a lot to do every day, so don't waste time with me, please go ahead."

Ji Han squinted his eyes at him, let go of the hand pinched on his chin coldly, and strode away with a flick of his sleeves.

When he returned to the cabinet, the attendants sent several papers. He unfolded them and found that it was delivered to the palace by the highly respected old minister Chen, saying that the emperor had recovered from his serious illness. The place where the papers should be sent in the future should be the imperial study, not the cabinet. .

Opening the rest of the books, there are also documents requesting an audience with the emperor.

The news of Emperor Xuanhe's appearance in Lingbei was widely spread, and the entire capital was about to experience storms, both openly and secretly, and the common people relished in talking about the emperor's presence in court. The Xie family's orthodox bloodline rule continued for nearly a thousand years.As a result, the attitudes of various forces towards Ji's family became more subtle, and I don't know how many families stayed up all night.

More than a hundred courtiers waited outside the Chengqing Palace before dawn, until the bell rang outside the palace, and the forbidden army pushed open the high palace gates to both sides, and then they all rushed in, standing quietly in the palace and waiting.

When Xie Linze appeared from behind the golden screen on the left, he was wearing a black-bottomed golden Kesi robe with a ribbon tied around his waist. The wide sleeves were embroidered with patterns of dragons that were about to take off from the shoulders to the hem of the sleeves. When the two jade beads swayed slightly in front of their foreheads, everyone couldn't help but feel as if they had passed away.

Xie Linze sat down on the dragon chair, saw all the officials prostrating to the ground, shouting long live, Ji Han was at the top, staring at him, he paused for a few breaths before bending down to salute.

He raised his hand and said, "Your gentlemen are at peace."

After all the officials got up, all eyes were on the man on the dragon chair, and there was no sound for a while.

Xie Linze said casually: "It's been a long time since I've been away from you all. I'm just recovering from a serious illness, and I'm unfamiliar with political affairs. I still rely on your gentlemen for guidance."

It was still quiet down below. He waited for a while, glanced at the ministers, and said, "What? I'm so speechless after thinking about it so far? Do you want me to repeat that there is a book to play and leave the court without incident?"

This is just like that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who was famous for his reckless behavior back then. All the officials secretly let out a sigh of relief. The luck of the next official, the blessing of Dazhao..."

Xie Linze tapped on the table with two fingers, interrupting him, "I have something to say."

Zuo Shilang stopped awkwardly and glanced at Ji Han. The other party's expression remained unmoved. He could only say: "The ten counties in Shezhou have been plagued by locusts for years. , may I ask His Majesty how to arrange disaster relief?"

There was no sound from above for a while, Zuo Shilang carefully looked up, and saw Xie Linze pensively tapping his fingers on the table, and suddenly asked, "Where is Pang Qing?"

Pang Qing came out from the line, cupped his hands and said, "The last general is here."

"How much silver did you confiscate from Lingbei Dusi and Yuan Mansion?"

"600 taels of gold, 5000 taels of silver ingots, and nearly a hundred boxes of treasures are listed." Pang Qing said in a deep voice.

Even so, such a huge number still caused an uproar among the ministers.

"It is said that the Yuan family's wealth is worthy of the country's reputation." Xie Linze then looked at Zuo Shilang, "Since the locusts have plagued Shezhou for many years, I knew that starvation was everywhere, why did I report it to discuss the solution today?"

Zuo Shilang was sweating profusely, he groaned but couldn't tell the truth, he lowered his head, not daring to look at the other person's expression.

At this time, Ji Han, who was at the front, dressed in a court uniform, said, "This is the end of the matter, we should discuss disaster relief earlier."

Another white-haired old man came out next to him, bowed and knelt on the ground tremblingly, and said: "To report to the emperor, we should thoroughly investigate and pull out the root cause."

Xie Linze said: "Old Minister Chen is old, so there is no need to be courteous, just give me a seat."

The attendant placed a chair for Chen Shangshu who was behind Xie En to sit down.

"I want to know why. Most of the local bureaucrats are full of private pockets. On the surface, they are singing and dancing. If it weren't for the seriousness of the disaster, I don't know how long it would take to hide it." Xie Linze said, "In this way, the 500 taels of money seized from Yuan's mansion will be allocated. Collect grain and grass nearby, open porridge sheds, and exempt taxation and corvee.”

"It's unavoidable to peel off layers of buckles. General Pang Qing led a thousand cavalry to escort the silver and grain, and took Yuan Xuanfeng's head and hung it in the most conspicuous place. Let's see who dares to make false reports. Do you have any objections?"

Ji Han raised his eyes lightly, and looked at the man above, who also lowered his eyes to meet his gaze, and behind him Pang Qing bowed his hands and saluted: "The last general will obey the order."

A minister broke the silence and said: "Your Majesty, there are different opinions about Lingbei. May I ask when you led the Xuanxie Guards to leave the capital and go to the capital?"

"Speaking of this matter, I would like to thank Ji Shoufu for his performance. I realized that Yuan Xuanfeng and Bei Rao had a close relationship. Sooner or later, his power-grabbing power would break out. Just kidding." Xie Linze said lightly, "If I don't show up in this situation, do I have to wait until the soldiers from the capital's battalion mutiny and Beiluo's army enters the pass and the soldiers approach the city before we can solve it?"

Silence below.

The Minister of the Ministry of War said: "Your Majesty, do you think the soldier who took down Yuan Xuanfeng's head should be an official?"

"As promised before, he will be named Zhongyonghou, and the official worship is the governor of the five armies' governor's mansion."

As soon as the words fell, Ji Han said: "I think it's not appropriate. The capital of the five armies is stationed in the capital. Let him start with the commander who is staying behind, and then make plans after familiarizing himself with the defense of the capital."

His tone of voice couldn't be more firm, without any intention of negotiating.

Old Shangshu Chen paused, and said: "From my point of view, it is precisely because Tongzhi is old that it is the best policy for the governor to assist him in managing military discipline and training as soon as possible..."

"Northern Lingbei is no better than the capital. Besides, Yuan Xuanfeng intends to seek rebellion first, so how can he easily place the battalion of the capital in the capital of the five armies? If something goes wrong, who can afford it?"

There was a echo from behind Ji Han, and he stared straight at the man on the dragon chair without turning his head.

Xie Linze looked at him coldly for a while, and said, "What Ji Shoufu said is true."

-

Thousands of miles away from this resplendent temple, Lizhen is sunny and sunny.

After lunch, Xu Yan wore a commoner coat with the cuffs tied up with cloth strips, and stood under the shade of a tree chopping firewood.

Next to him, Zhou Yuan was leaning on a wicker chair with one leg on the other, holding a painting in his hand, and looked at it carefully with a smile on his face, "Look, how similar the portrait Ah Zhong painted, he painted it yesterday. You also asked me why Ye Liuzhou didn't come back with you, you said, how should I answer?"

There was no response from the other party, and the wood was chopped in half with a bang.

After nearly half a month, Zhou Yuan still clearly remembered the day when Xu Yan came back, the heavy rain poured down, and there was a faint knock on the door. As soon as he opened the door, he saw Xu Yan standing outside in a state of embarrassment, completely drenched, Not even the humidity could cover the bloody smell on his body.

He was shocked immediately: "Didn't you say that you went to Lingbei to earn money? Why did you come back like this?"

The other party stepped into the door wetly without answering.

Looking at his expression, he suddenly realized: "Could it be a loss-making business?"

It wasn't until he checked the Lingbei matter and the carrier pigeon flew back that he recalled it. Zhou Yuan put the painting on the small table next to him, unfolded it on the folding fan and shook it, saying: "I found that something is wrong with you recently, don't hold back in everything. In my heart, brother, I will enlighten you, aren’t you just being cheated? No, I often walk by the river, so how can I not get my shoes wet.”

Xu Yan turned his head to look at him, his eyes were cold, comparable to the knife in his hand.

Zhou Yuan scratched his head and smiled embarrassingly, got up from the rattan chair, couldn't say a few words, and then went back to this matter: "No one would have thought that Ye Liuzhou is Xie Linze, the emperor of Dazhao, then he will go with you to Ling Bei, isn't it just to take advantage of the battle between the Ji family and the Yuan family, and regain a foothold in the court and the opposition, he really deserves to be the emperor raised by the Xie family, I am afraid that in his eyes, everyone is a pawn."

Xu Yan raised the knife and dropped it, sawdust flying everywhere.

Zhou Yuan took a step back, "Tsk, I won't let you tell the truth."

After Xu Yan finished chopping the firewood, he casually inserted the knife into the stake and turned to go out.

"Wait!" Zhou Yuan hurriedly called to stop him.

Xu Yan looked back at him, "What else?"

"Don't you think the emperor's affairs are strange?" Zhou Yuan said with a serious expression, "Judging from the clues, maybe the Ji family didn't manage the government on behalf of the emperor all these years, but took advantage of the emperor's illness to seize power and seek the position. ?”

Following these words, the cold wind whizzed past in the courtyard, startling the rustling branches and leaves.

Xu Yan stood there, remained silent for a moment, and said, "What does it have to do with me?"

"After all, we met once. I'm just worried that although he is an emperor, will he be surrounded by hungry wolves when he returns to the capital?" Zhou Yuan folded his fan and smiled meaningfully at him.

Xu Yan didn't respond, turned around and strode out of the courtyard, returned to the house, untied the cloth strips around his wrists, and suddenly smelled a vaguely strange smell.

He looked around and found nothing unusual, and thoughtfully found a dusty box under the bed. When he opened it, a strange musty smell came out. Inside were a few pieces of cakes that had been squeezed into weird shapes. They had been moldy after a long time. It can be vaguely seen that it is a peach blossom cake.

An unspeakable feeling spread in Xu Yan's heart.

With this rough craftsmanship, he could guess who made the peach blossom cake, and with what kind of mentality he didn't bring it up, but kicked it under his bed.

I can still remember the secretive expression on the man's face after he entered the room.

Xu Yan looked at the box of peach blossom cakes without moving, and his voice was like a sigh, overflowing from his lips, "Ye Liuzhou..."

After a while, he seemed to have made up his mind, got up and walked out, shouting: "Zhou Yuan!"

But there was no reply in the yard. Xu Yan came to the stone table and found something pressed with a paperweight on it. He took out the paper and saw that there was Zhou Yuan's handwriting on it - first things first, see you in Beijing.

-

After walking for five or six days from Jiangnan style food and camping, it is close to Gyeonggi, and there are various people in the vicinity. Xu Yan took a rest in the tea shed at the foot of the mountain. It was the anniversary of the death of Emperor Xuanhe and the Empress Dowager Huijin, so far, he had to scold the people of Beiluo and sigh for the former emperor who died early due to an assassination.

The voices of another table became louder, and one of them spat and said: "Speaking of which, the anniversary of the death will be held in six days, and it will be the first time in a year that the Master of the National Teacher will come out to watch. , my old mother is still thinking about Master Guoshi’s sermons!”

The woman's voice said: "I think back in the past when the National Teacher lived in Hetai to give lectures, and the alley was empty for thousands of people, what a grand occasion it was. Now I don't know if the Rituals of Ritual will appear..."

Xiao Er joked: "Could it be that you still miss seeing the Master of the National Teacher?"

There was a burst of laughter from all around, and Xu Yan's consciousness was pulled out of his thoughts a little, and he found a figure appearing on the opposite side, and sat down at the table.

He raised his head and saw a man in a green shirt opposite him. His black hair hung down his shoulders and was loosely tied with a wide belt.

Even with simple clothes, sitting in this crude tea shed still looks very out of place.

Sensing Xu Yan's gaze, he smiled a little, like a breeze and bright moon, and said, "Where did you come from, Your Excellency, but you want to go to the capital, why don't you go together?"

Xu Yan didn't answer, but glanced at the white jade on his waist.

"Do you want to have a look?" The man untied the jade kindly and placed it on the table, "This is a piece of alder red jade."

The white jade is very warm and moist, like a layer of candle water sealed, with a bright red thread in the jade.

"Rare and rare." Xu Yan looked at it for a while, and then spit out four words.

"I think this jade is very predestined to you, so why don't you give it to you?" said the man in blue.

Hearing this, Xu Yan put away his original plan of stealing the jade, looked the other party squarely around, and said, "I've never known this jade as a gift, could it be that there is some trouble with this piece of jade, and I'm in a hurry to throw it away?"

"Since I have never met you before, how dare you leave the disaster on your Excellency for nothing. If you talk about this jade, there are indeed some innocuous stories."

Xu Yanke didn't have time to listen to his stories, he raised his head and drank his tea, got up and was about to leave, but the other party said again: "Your Excellency is going to the capital, why don't you go with me?"

Xu Yan stood still, put his hand on the handle of the knife, looked at him and said coldly: "Who are you?"

The man in the green shirt cupped his hands gracefully, and said with a smile, "I'm giving you my Qing Ci."