After the cannon fodder fell into my arms

nine,

In the early morning of this day, Ding Ye, the magistrate of Shuntian, participated in the performance of Shandong Ling County officials who were greedy for disaster food, killing tens of thousands of people in the county.

And there was a Linxian student who was entrusted by someone to go to the capital to file a complaint with hundreds of people's blood letters as evidence.

Last summer, there was a severe drought in Shandong.

There was no drop of water for several months, and [-] of the counties suffered severe drought, and no grain was harvested.

The autumn tax of the imperial court had not yet been confiscated, and the treasury silver had been sent to the border troops to prepare winter food and grass, so it was unable to allocate funds for disaster relief.

As a last resort, Emperor Jianzhao and the six ministries agreed to let the affected counties open their own granaries to release grain. After the autumn tax of the imperial court comes up this year, they will allocate funds to supplement the granaries of the counties.

Let me talk about it here, why would you rather transport food all the way for disaster relief than open a local granary after the disaster?

Mainly, the primary purpose of establishing granaries in ancient counties and cities was to ensure military rations, followed by disaster relief or others.

The granary is related to military affairs and the country.

Therefore, if a certain place wants to open a warehouse to release grain for disaster relief, it must first be a major disaster, and then officials at all levels will count the disaster situation, and finally report it to the imperial court for discussion and approval by the emperor and various ministries. .

Therefore, it is often seen on TV that officials who do not want the people to suffer and open granaries privately are beheaded in the end.

However, the imperial court responded quickly to the drought in several counties in Shandong last year, and agreed to directly open warehouses to release grain. Even the relief money has been paid after the autumn tax came up, so there should not be many casualties.

The Ling county in the Shuntian magistrate Ding Ye's memorial is an upper-class county in Shandong, with about 4000 households, or a population of about 2.

However, according to Ding Ye, during the severe drought last summer, the death toll in Ling County was nearly [-], that is, almost half of the people died.

How horrible this is, it can be inferred that the county magistrate of Ling County did not carry out disaster relief at all last year.

So, what about the grain in the granary?

Looking at the bloody handprints on the letter of love, not only Emperor Jianzhao was angry, but all the courtiers also looked sideways.

Hey, it's too bad...

Emperor Jianzhao was furious about this matter.

Greedy granaries are a thousand times more abominable than private granaries, this is the rat of the country.

Moreover, last year's drought was not reported until this summer, and there must be someone covering it up for Shandong's high-level officials and even the Six Ministries of Central Beijing.

Emperor Jianzhao immediately sent Gu Siyuan to lead the guards of the Imperial Forest Army to Ling County to investigate.

Firstly, it was naturally because he trusted Gu Siyuan; secondly, it was because the first accuser, Ding Ye, the prefect of Shuntian, was the sixth prince Xie Xuan.

Gu Siyuan and Xie Xuan have always been at odds, so they will definitely not be biased against him, and the results of the investigation are the most authentic.

Gu Siyuan didn't delay for a moment.

When he received the oral order, he lightly rode his horse and rode out of the city immediately.

"Forbidden Army is doing business, all pedestrians give way!"

Gu Siyuan rode his horse galloping forward, his black hair fluttering, while the Imperial Forest Army behind him waved loudly to clear the way.

On the attic of the Four Seasons Pavilion, the highest in Beijing, glance at the group of people speeding below.

Ding Ye, the magistrate of Shuntian, frowned: "His Royal Highness, let Gu Xun check it out, won't there be any accidents?"

He naturally also knew that the general of the Royal Forest Army and the promotion of the Beijing Camp were most at odds with His Highness the Sixth Highness.

After speaking, there was no response for a long time.

Ding Ye glanced to the side hesitantly, but saw that His Highness Sixth Prince was leaning on his chin, lowering his eyelids slightly, looking wholeheartedly at the direction of the speeding Imperial Forest Army team, and there was a trace of helplessness on his face, which could never have been colder in the past. She concealed a gentle smile, as if she was looking at her most intimate lover.

Ding Ye first sighed, the Sixth Highness is still a young man after all, it is normal for a young Muai and a young boy to be passionate.

But in an instant, something was wrong.

He immediately stretched his neck and looked under the window. Because of the arrogant way of the imperial guards, the people on the street had already avoided them, and there were no pretty girls nearby.

So, His Highness is really looking at the imperial forest army, but the imperial forest army is a group of old men...

And there are no good-looking people.

The only one with outstanding appearance was the consultant who had a big feud with His Highness.

Could it be that His Highness is looking at Gu Xun and smiling?

Hey, Ding Ye felt shuddering and shook his head quickly. He probably drank too much tea just now and his mind was not clear.

Watching off all the riders disappeared at the end of the avenue.

Xie Xuan turned his head slowly, looked at Ding Ye who was sitting next to him, and answered his previous question: "Don't worry, we have enough evidence this time, and it's not easy to cover up the past, and with Gu Siyuan's character, he probably won't To avenge personal revenge on such a big matter."

"Oh..." Ding Ye responded leisurely.

But he was in a trance for a while.

His Royal Highness the Sixth Prince is actually saying good things about Gu Consulting?

No way, his guess just now, no way...

Xie Xuan squinted his eyes and looked at this strange guy: "Master Ding, what's wrong?"

Ding Ye hurriedly replied, "Nothing."

He suddenly felt a sense of responsibility that he had mastered the big secret.

Shandong Mausoleum County is [-] miles away from the capital, but this time Gu Siyuan traveled all the way, except for changing horses at the post station, eating and resting for a while, the rest of the time was spent traveling day and night without sleep.

The original journey of nearly ten days was compressed to six days.

None of the comrades in Beijing who were in a hurry to report the news were faster than him.

It was late at night when Gu Siyuan led his people to Ling County.

He opened the gate of the county government with a sword, and the current magistrate of Ling County, Jiang Chengming, was sleeping soundly on the bed reeking of alcohol.

Two days later, Gu Siyuan brought the evidence obtained from the investigation, and the county magistrate Jiang Mingcheng and the county magistrate Fu Yan began to return to the capital.

Hearing that the Imperial Forest Army had come and left with their people, the messengers immediately took off their armor and clothes, and never returned. There is no way to recover from this matter.

Gu Siyuan escaped the inspection all the way, and after returning to Beijing, he presented all the evidence and the arrested people.

Since Shuntian Mansion was the first to report this matter, after some debate, Emperor Jianzhao ordered that Shuntian Mansion and Sanfa Division jointly try it.

And the county magistrate Jiang Mingcheng is obviously a soft bone.

After entering Shuntian Mansion Prison, he confessed directly before the punishment started.

Jiang Mingcheng was originally a Jinshi with a serious imperial examination background. After he became the county magistrate of Ling County, he originally wanted to do something big.

However, it is difficult to move an inch locally.

Because the local county magistrate, county magistrate, including the arresting head, etc. were all tightly clenching into a line, and he, the county magistrate, was yin and yang.

After that, he proudly told him a secret about Ling County.

Ling County is well-known throughout Shandong, and even the whole country.

Because it is rich in a kind of turmeric wine, which is extremely delicious, and a certain emperor in the previous dynasty wrote poems and compositions for it, which made turmeric famous.

By the time of this dynasty, turmeric wine had also become a tribute, and only [-] barrels were produced a year, all of which went to the Imperial Palace Household Department, which ordinary people couldn't ask for.

So more than ten years ago, a certain local county magistrate, as well as the county magistrate and the villagers began to think about it.

Ling County can't sit on the treasure mountain and not cherish it, wouldn't it be a waste of everything.

They started making tulips privately.

At the beginning, it was just secretly given to those local Shangguans in Shandong to prepare for their future.

After all, the wine is gone after drinking, and there is no evidence, unlike other tributes, people will find out if they use it, and they may be sued by colleagues.

And once the ambition is opened, it is impossible to be satisfied. Not long after, they finally decided to start selling tulip wine.

Liang has been in peace for a long time, and there are many rich merchants, especially in Jiangnan and Shanxi. They don't lack money, but they lack things to decorate their status.

As a tribute, tulip wine is of course noble enough.

As a result, a jar of wine can be sold for thousands of taels of silver, which is more than the salary he received as a county magistrate for ten years.

The merchants who bought the wine naturally did not dare to speak out, the sellers were guilty, and those who stole the tribute were also guilty.

As for those Shangguans in Shandong, most of the money they get from selling wine is taken care of safely every year, so naturally they will not cut off this source of income.

The county magistrate changes every three years, but the county magistrate and village elders are locals and have always been here.

As a result, six county magistrates in Ling County have changed so far, but they were all forced to join this business in the end and left with a lot of money.

And because of the relationship in the officialdom created by this glass of wine, those county magistrates who went out from Ling County often had a much smoother career than their colleagues.

After so many years of protecting each other, the higher-ups knew nothing about the smuggling of tribute wine in Ling County.

However, the reason why turmeric wine is more delicious than ordinary wine is because of the local specialty food and water, and because the number of refined brewing is more than ordinary wine.

As for the drinks on the side, a catty of grain can produce three taels of wine, but turmeric wine can only produce one tael, and local grain in Ling County must be used to ensure that its taste remains the same.

Under the ever-increasing trading, food is not enough.

However, the quota given to Shangguan every year cannot be less, let alone a large amount of white money

So naturally, the group came up with the idea of ​​a local granary.

Anyway, Daliang hadn't fought a war for many years, and they couldn't be hit here, and the grain in the granary was just waiting to be put out every day.

But who would have known that last year there was a sudden drought in Shandong, and who knew that the imperial court did not follow the usual practice to provide disaster relief, but asked them to open warehouses to release grain.

When the incident happened, Jiang Mingcheng panicked.

However, under the instructions of Shangguan and the county magistrate, he ruthlessly closed the city gate and did not allow anyone from Ling County to leave.

Shangguan also expressed that he would cooperate and absolutely not allow a single victim to leave Shandong.

In the end, nearly ten thousand people in Ling County could only wait to die in vain in the city.

After hearing the reason, everyone in the court changed color.

This day's great tragedy, the source turned out to be just a glass of wine...

Emperor Jianzhao was even more furious.

Immediately sentenced Jiang Mingcheng, Lingxian county magistrate, county magistrate, etc. to death, and all three clans were exiled; the rest of the Shandong officials involved in the case were hanged and exiled.

In the ten years since the turmeric wine was privately brewed, there are still many officials who have been promoted from Ling County and Shandong to other places.

They are also naturally informed.

Among them is Weng Xiuyong, the former governor of Shandong and the current left servant of the Ministry of Punishment. Just a month ago, His Majesty bestowed a marriage on the daughter of the Weng family. Weng Xiuyong became the future father-in-law of the fourth prince Xie Huan. We are officially getting married.

In addition, there is Yuan Liangping, the former county magistrate of Ling County, who is the only son of Yuan Xian, the most important minister under the eldest prince Xie Honggui.

This time, it is not only the people on Xie Xuan's side who are actively promoting it, but also want His Majesty to severely punish the relevant people.

The second prince, Xie Kuan, is also very active, attacking two opponents at once, who wouldn't like it?

There are good reasons too.

Not to mention that stealing granaries is a major crime against the nine clans, and not to mention the tens of thousands of people who died in vain in Naling County, but to say that the act of secretly brewing tribute wine is clearly trampling on the prestige and dignity of the royal family and emperors.

Those members of the royal family also have to get quotas, and those treacherous officials and merchants are also entitled to inexhaustible enjoyment?

The crowd is boiling.

Emperor Jianzhao could not go against the trend, Yuan Liangping was sentenced to be beheaded, and his father Yuan Xian was only dismissed from office and confiscated his family property because of his years of meritorious service.

The eldest prince's side suddenly lost a household minister, and his heart was bleeding.

What is that from the household department? It is a money bag.

Winning people over, raising private soldiers, which one doesn't need money?

"Xie Xuan, how dare you..." After going down to court, Xie Hong directly blocked his way.

Xie Xuan narrowed his eyes and looked at the person in front of him: "Brother Emperor, do you still remember our conversation just last month, also in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony?"

Xie Hong stared, it would be because he deliberately actively asked the consultant who had a big grudge against Xie Xuan to serve as the Beijing camp to promote him in order to disgust Xie Xuan.

Revenge coming so soon?

Xie Xuan watched people fall into his own thoughts, and nodded with satisfaction.

But at the same time, there is some sadness in my heart.

Hey, why don't these people believe that he is just a simple and good prince who just wants to be the master of the people and punish corrupt officials?

On the other hand, the whole family of Weng Xiuyong, the left servant of the Criminal Ministry, was sentenced to exile in Lingnan, where there is a lot of miasma, and no exiled criminal has ever been seen to survive.

"Xie Xuan, you lunatic." Xie Huan clenched his fists.

Originally, the Weng family had a marriage contract with him. According to the regulations of this dynasty, all members of the clan, except for serious crimes such as rebellion, can be reduced by two grades according to the law; those who are royal in-laws can be reduced by one grade.

The five punishments are flogging, rod, imprisonment, exile, and death. The punishment of exile is reduced by one grade, and the punishment is imprisonment. At this time, food is precious, and there is no punishment of decades. It is because the imperial court is supporting you and letting you Enjoy.

Therefore, the prison sentence is generally only a maximum of three years.

If he does not dissolve the engagement and marry the daughter of the Weng family as his concubine, then the Weng family will be the royal relatives, and according to the law, they will be reduced to a first-class crime, and if they are locked up for a few years, they will be able to save their lives.

However, he wanted that position, how could he have such a sinful father-in-law, and still do such insane things, unless he didn't want the hearts of the people at all.

But when he resolutely went to break off the engagement, the courtiers he was trying to win over looked at him differently, as if he was so heartless.

At the Empress Dowager Ceremony, the loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and righteousness that he worked so hard to display were instantly wiped out.

Xie Huan's eyes were cold.

What do these people know?

How do these people know his dilemma?

It's all Xie Xuan's fault, damn it, if I knew this, it wouldn't be so troublesome at the ceremony, it would be better to just kill him.

"Xie Xuan, from now on, with you without me, I will not be satisfied if I don't kill you!"

"What are you talking about?" Emperor Jian Zhao walked in from the outside.

Xie Huan quickly restrained his expression: "Father."

Emperor Jianzhao sat on the chair, looked at him for a long time, and then said slowly: "I know you have been wronged this time, but is there something you can say?"

Xie Huan lowered his head, realizing that Emperor Jianzhao was not really angry because of his words about killing his younger brother, and immediately felt better.

Hmph, Xie Xuan, it doesn't matter how beautiful you are, but in fact you are just my shield. You think you love your father the most and don't care about you at all...

Everything is just making wedding clothes for others.

Emperor Jianzhao said again: "It's because I didn't think carefully this time. I originally gave you the daughter of the Weng family to marry you because Weng Xiuyong's reputation in the court is not obvious, but in fact there are many old disciples and a huge network of connections. Who knows? Weng Xiuyong actually made such a mess?"

Xie Huan hurriedly said: "Father has already done his best for his son, no one could have expected this matter."

Emperor Jianzhao nodded: "Let's forget about what happened this time. You are still young and there are plenty of opportunities. I will choose another suitable marriage for you. After a long time, everyone will forget what happened today."

"Yes." Xie Huan replied with a smile.

After a while, he hesitated and said: "Father, Xie Xuan has always been thoughtful, but recently his actions are quite wrong. My son thinks, has he noticed something?"

Emperor Jianzhao's expression turned serious.

As a father, it is not a decent thing to use a son.

After the last ceremony, Xie Xuan may have some doubts, but it should be just a guess, after all, he has always spoiled him.

Except for the matter of appointing a consultant to promote the Beijing camp, he disagreed with him. Could it be because of this that he was discovered?

"I will ask someone to investigate this matter carefully."

……

At this time, in the Sixth Prince's Mansion, after sending away those confidant ministers under the helmet.

As soon as he turned his head, he saw a tall figure that he hadn't seen for a long time on the stone bench in the courtyard.

Therefore, His Highness Xie Xuanliu, who has always been deeply thoughtful, immediately jumped on Gu Siyuan, accusing him angrily: "I went to Ling County for more than ten days, and I didn't come to see me when I returned to Beijing. Did something happen on the way? The little goblin hooked her soul?"

He really missed this person this time.

Gu Siyuan held his slender waist firmly with one hand, curled the corners of his mouth lightly, lowered his eyes and said softly: "With you, a lively and cute little lion spirit waiting in the capital, how can you look at other fairies in the end?"

Hearing this, Xie Xuan was a little proud and a little annoyed.

Lively and cute is right, but how can you say that he is a little lion spirit? Are you so fierce?

He opened his mouth, ready to bite.

As a result, when thin white fingers touched the man's chest and shoulders, although they were still hard and thick, they could clearly feel that they had lost a lot of weight.

Immediately, he was reluctant to bite, leaned forward and kissed the Adam's apple that was more prominent because of his thinness, and muttered between his lips: "I have lost so much weight, why are you working so hard? You deliberately want to make my heart feel bad, so I won't let you go." I have the heart to bite you, don't you? Gu Xun, how can you bully His Highness, you hateful guy? You still use bitter tricks?"

"..." Gu Siyuan.

This is simply a typical case of backlash.

I don't know who it was, who used the beauty trap in the first place?

But of course this cannot be said, otherwise it would be another round of bullying.

He thought for a while, and said softly: "It is His Highness who loves the last general, otherwise it will be useless to use bitter tricks."

"Gu Xun, General Gu Lang, why are you so eloquent today with your mouth? Let Your Highness see, is it possessed by some goblin?" Xie Xuan's fine white fingers slowly groped his lips.

Gu Siyuan stared at the person without changing his expression, and said casually, "What's the use of just touching?"

……