Emperor Que Shaohua

The three divisions interrogated, and everyone was terrified. For more than a hundred years, there was only one case where the Ministry of Justice, Dali Temple, and Yushitai co-trialed.

But after the shock, there were voices of approval and second opinion. The inside story of the Langhuan case was complicated. It was related to the fall of Shao’an and the changes in the palace. Since Tianyi’s 12 years, from the border to the court, the impact has been immeasurable, and he was directly involved in it. There is a queen, several concubines, the eldest prince of Yu Zhou, many important ministers in the court, and thousands of knights and righteous men, not to mention tens of thousands of soldiers at the border, and countless Youyun sixteen prefectures who were robbed and trampled by the Liao people. common people.It is indeed difficult for the Ministry of Criminal Affairs to try such a serious case clearly and make it known to the public. No matter how you look at it, it is appropriate to adopt Yu Zhou's highest regulations.

Emperor Tianyi once again felt the pain of digging his heart out. He didn't want to face this old case, and hoped that the noise would be as small as possible. It is his life to leave the mistakes of the past for future generations to criticize.

"Luo Yanhua!" He said through gnashing of teeth, "You should stop as much as you want, it's about the clan and the harem, it's an extra honor for me to agree to a retrial by the Ministry of Punishment, how can I allow it to be publicized to the outside world!"

"The queen mother is the former suzerain of Langhuan. She was falsely accused of collaborating with the enemy and treason for ten years. There is no more grievance in the world than this." Luo Yanhua said, "The joint trial of the three justices was originally set up to vindicate major grievances. If it is not used even now, I'm afraid it doesn't make sense anymore."

Compared with the unconscious ferocity on the emperor's face, his expression was quite calm: "Besides, the empress mother was the empress when she was alive, and her mother was honored all over the world. Unfortunately, the dust behind her is the real damage to the clan and the court; now the defilement is washed away. I don’t know what my father thinks is wrong with using the truth to tell heaven and earth, and to comfort the people.”

Hearing this, Luo Pingyuan didn't feel emotionally excited, and took a step forward: "Father, the words of the elder brother are also what I think in my son's heart. Your empress has made a lot of contributions to Yu Zhou during her lifetime, please allow me to play it." please!"

Yun Wangchao glanced at him, his expression remained unchanged, and said indifferently, "My minister seconded the proposal."

There were voices of second opinion rising and falling again in the Zichen Palace. Even though the old Langhuan case involved the clan, it was a matter of state affairs, and it was indeed led by the Ministry of Criminal Justice. The emperor had an extremely ugly expression.

"Your Majesty, the Tian family has no personal affairs." The grey-haired King Changping came out of the clan and persuaded in a harmonious voice, "Since a retrial is confirmed, why not tell the subjects frankly, so as not to make people feel half-covered. Even It involves some clan affairs, the old man sees, the First Prince and the ministers are all people who know the importance, so they will take care of themselves."

As he spoke, he sighed: "Your Majesty and the Empress were young couples after all. It took ten years to cross the boat, and it took a hundred years to sleep together. There are many doubts about what happened back then..."

Although the tone was slow, the meaning couldn't be more clear. It is also a second suggestion, Your Majesty, please read it.

Emperor Tianyi's face turned purple, he was very aware of the prestige of this uncle in the clan, and speaking out at this time undoubtedly represented the attitude of the majority of the clan.In the golden palace full of courtiers and relatives, he has become completely alone.

The so-called one-boom, then decline, and three-time exhaustion, after several twists and turns, he is like a defeated rooster, and he can no longer raise his momentum.

Indeed, since he agreed to a retrial, he made the most fundamental concession, and it would be of no use to insist on opposing it.

How long can Luo Yanhua's life last, two years, one year, half a year, or even, as long as he refuses to give medicine, he can't even survive tonight.Didn't he know that such a fleeting and fragile fate, like fluff in the wind, quietly controlled Yu Zhou's luck, and forced the emperor into a dead end.Is it because it is doomed to be short-lived that the courtiers and clan relatives put aside their worries and distractions and become irresistible?The poisonous wine that forced Jing Wang to drink at the beginning has produced bitter fruit for himself today.

"Enough, don't say any more!" He leaned slumped on the back of the imperial seat, and a sentence that some predecessors had said flashed through his mind-who does Qingshi spare if the historian has a pen?

"Since the eldest prince insists," he said hoarsely, under the gaze of hundreds of scorching eyes, he squeezed out a few words with difficulty, "The three divisions will interrogate, I, yes!"

After Zou Peisheng, Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Song Xiang, Minister of Dali Temple and others solemnly received the decree, the court meeting came to an end, and the emperor left with the support of two servants. The officials were either excited, or sighed, chatting in low voices in small groups , some went forward to greet King Jing, and after a while they went out of the palace to disperse.Before exiting the hall, many people couldn't help casting complex glances at another figure.

Xue Songnian stood in the hall with a blank expression. Ever since King Ning revealed Qiu Hanbai, he has not said a word.The defeat was irreversible, and the emperor's vigor was also frustrated, and he no longer made the decision to kill. When the scattered souls gradually gathered together, he suddenly realized that the official career that he had worked so hard for for many years had come to an end, and in the future, what awaited him would be a prison , interrogation, and a thorough liquidation.

He didn't leave immediately, because Jing Yuwei might have been guarding outside the palace gate, and even if he stepped out of the Zichen Palace, he would be taken away by the Yulin guards. Out of the little pride left, Xue Songnian hoped that this scene would not fall into the trap as much as possible. In the eyes of other courtiers.

It wasn't until the voices around him faded away that he recovered from his numbness, walked out with heavy steps, and then saw King Jing who was talking to King Yun not far ahead.

Xue Songnian paused instinctively, neither advancing nor retreating. Seeing that they had met each other, he had to cup his hands with a gloomy face: "Congratulations to His Highness for fulfilling his wish and bringing many people to be buried with him!"

In his mind, if it wasn't for his bad luck, the prince's moral failure and his subordinates' betrayal, King Jing might not have won at the last moment.

Luo Yanhua didn't reply immediately, his eyes swept over the Fuzheng's decadent face, the deep grooves on his forehead and the corners of his eyes, and the sporadic gray sideburns, and he vaguely recalled that handsome middle-aged scribe back then.

"Xue Fuzheng, there is one thing that I still don't quite understand." He said indifferently, "You did not hesitate to betray your mother for the sole purpose of ascending to a high position and showing off your strengths. Over the years, you have indeed been a first-rank official, and you can be described as an extremely person Minister, but in terms of government affairs, what achievements have you made? What practical things have you done for the national economy and people's livelihood?"

Xue Songnian knew that he was unlucky, and his sarcasm was just for venting, he suddenly froze when the other party had this question.

In the past, he served as the master of Zhuanjin Ling. Although he was a famous scholar in Luo City, he did not have an official position. When he saw his old classmates, they were promoted and reused in the same year. However, resigning from the post of Lingzhu and re-entering the official position, I don't know how long it will take to get through the qualifications.

Through Wei Wuze, he established a relationship with Concubine Han, and imitated the handwriting of Empress Langhuan and Right Envoy Xiao Suyu to forge their letters. During the process, he felt guilt, guilt and fear.But choosing this path means that there is no possibility of turning back. At the beginning, Xue Songnian most often used to comfort himself, that is, those who achieve great things do not care about small things. He is a high-ranking man, and he must show his strengths and live up to what he has learned in his life.

It's just that his official career is as deep as the sea, and open and secret struggles abound. He entered the court with the influence of Concubine Han Gui and the second prince, and he was able to get promoted quickly.He can only be cautious, not to be classified as a princeling, causing the emperor's suspicion, but also to take into account the interests of the prince and the imperial concubine, so as to avoid offending them.Walking all the way like walking on thin ice, striving for stability in everything, I have long forgotten what ambition and ambition are.

After four years as a co-administrator, facing King Jing at this moment, he felt that everything he had done in the past was mediocre, and he couldn't think of a single achievement worth mentioning.

Luo Yanhua waited for a while, seeing that he was speechless, he said no more, turned around and walked out of the Zichen Palace with the two imperial brothers.

"Brother Huang, do you need someone to arrest him?" Luo Pingyuan asked in a low voice.Although Jing Yuwei is no longer in charge, but a little arrangement is just a matter of little effort.

"No need." King Jing shook his head slightly, "Let him go back to the mansion, the Ministry of Punishment will arrest him."

The snow had stopped, and the sunlight pierced through the thin clouds and shone on the heavy tiles of the cornices covered with silver, shining brightly.There was a trace of regret in his heart, not for the seal and gold envoy back then, but for those beautiful years that once belonged to him and Yingchuan.

As night came, the lights in Prince Jing's mansion were brightly lit, and the guards were tighter than usual.All the subordinates gathered in Lancangju, tacitly found all kinds of excuses and refused to leave, which made Luo Yanhua quite dumbfounded.It wasn't until Xu time passed that everyone was relieved to confirm that the master was safe and sound, and there was no discomfort from the poison. Everyone couldn't hide their joy, and they retired to the room to rest.

Because it was the first month after getting rid of the cold poison, Luo Pingyuan was also worried and did not return to his Ning Palace.The excitement and excitement brought by the court meeting had not yet subsided, and he intended to rest in the main courtyard and have a long talk with the emperor, but seeing that King Jing's face was a little tired, he turned to Hanxiaozhai instead.

Luo Yanhua did feel tired, but when he walked to the side of the bed, he couldn't feel sleepy again.Xu Shi has been too accustomed to bearing heavy burdens for a long time. Even if the mission is about to be completed, his heart feels like he is warming up after the severe winter, and he cannot feel comfort and relief quickly.

He sat quietly in front of the desk for a while, until the oil lamp in front of him formed a flower and burst open with a "pop", then he recovered, stood up and ordered the cloak to be fetched.

"It's so late, the lord is still not resting, do you want to go out?" Gu Yu held the white fur cloak, his face was full of puzzlement, "But it's very cold outside."

"It's just a short walk." King Jing smiled, indicating that he didn't need to follow.

It was already late at night, everything in the mansion was silent, a whitish full moon hung obliquely in the sky, the snow on the ground reflected the moonlight, it was as clear as silver.Luo Yanhua left Lancang Residence, walked along the cobblestone path until he reached the lotus pond in the back garden.The water lilies have long withered, and a thin layer of ice has just formed on the surface of the water, just like the phrase "smoke cage, cold water, moon cage sand".He stopped and took out a small white jade bottle from his sleeve.Before leaving the palace at noon, Wu Yong sent it by holy order. It contained only one medicine for suppressing cold poison and prolonging life.

For a year and a half, he had taken seventeen pills of the same antidote, although each time he was accompanied by fever and pain, but without it, he would die in endless pain like falling into hell.

Luo Yanhua opened the jade bottle, took a look inside under the twilight of the snow, and then turned his hand, allowing the mung bean-sized pill to roll down from the bottle and disappear into the ice water of the lotus pond.

He doesn't need any more.

On the same night, Xue Songnian hanged himself in the study of his home.From the ashes in the charcoal basin, it can be seen that the auxiliary government should have dealt with the funeral affairs and burned some letters and items, but as an important court official and a recognized calligrapher, he did not leave a single word.

In the days that followed, the door of Prince Jing's Mansion was deep and quiet, but news from the outside kept coming.The joint trial of the three divisions is a major event that attracts the attention of the government and the public. Zou Peisheng, Shangshu of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, Song Xiang, Minister of Dali Temple, and Zeng Ke, Zhongcheng, the censor, all put up a lot of energy. The Ministry of Criminal Justice took the lead in summoning witnesses and detaining criminals. With the cooperation of all parties , began to investigate the case in detail and sort out the evidence non-stop.

Lin Huai'an's brother's family letter mentioned at the court meeting was quickly grasped by the three courts, and the late Concubine Han's relative, An Yuanhou, was immediately taken to the Ministry of Criminal Justice to interrogate the inside story of the incident.

Liu Kedu of Yuzhou had only waited for an amnesty not long ago and was able to get out of prison, but now he has been arrested again and brought to justice. This time, it may be the end of the road.

Yu Lan, the master of the Langhuan Hengdao Order, went to the lobby of the Ministry of Justice, and publicly narrated the details of how the guards of Shao'an City turned against each other, and the Langhuan Order accidentally appeared in the hands of the Liao people, which finally led to the fall of the city, as well as the defense letter of the Langhuan Second Order. He was framed after the pass, and in the end he had to go into exile in the northern border. Many generals and sergeants who had witnessed the incident came to testify, and everyone who heard it sighed.

Yubo, the maid beside Empress Langhuan, as the only surviving witness in Fengyi Palace, narrated the whole story of the shocking events in the palace. Empress Jiang Biyao suffered innocent injustice and was forced to commit suicide for the first time. Know.

The commander-in-chief Li Pinglan sent his subordinates to send the confession of Ji Wuya, who was ordered by the imperial court. It mentioned that he was ordered to sneak attack Xiao Suyu, the right envoy of Langhuan who returned from the Northern Liao Dynasty, and took away the key evidence proving Han Guifei's access to Liao Dynasty. The description is very detailed and the confession is straightforward.

The Jingyu Guards handed over many important criminals including Shao Qingquan and Dai Shifa, among them there was Wen Tianxiao, another former guardian of the Kunlun Mansion who joined forces with Ji Wuya to assassinate Xiao Youshi.

Three former members of Youming from the northwestern frontier confirmed Wei Wuze's resentment at the time when Jiang Biyao, the suzerain, wanted to cut off the order of Youming. He secretly took refuge in Concubine Han Guifei and the second prince, joined the Kunlun Mansion, and plotted in many ways to murder his former companions in Langhuan. for.

…………

Among the many testimonies and evidences, there are two documentary evidences that are particularly shocking:

One is a secret letter presented by Prince Ning Luo Pingyuan, taken from Yelu Shibao, the third prince of Beiliao, which was written by Concubine Han Guifei to Prince Beiliao many years ago. The second is a sealed book tube submitted by the Jinling swordsman Qiu Hanbai. This book was written by Xue Songnian, the deceased assistant minister and the former envoy of seal and gold seals in Langhuan. , Xue Fuzheng took great pains to record his participation in the conspiracy of Han and Wei to frame the suzerain, and imitated the letters between Queen Langhuan and the right envoy Xiao Suyu according to the plan, and the process of falsifying their personal relationship, and sealed them in a special cylinder.

The past is not dusty. Even though the Ministry of Justice, Dali Temple and Yushitai took into account the face of the emperor, many details have not been disclosed to the public, Luocheng, Gyeonggi is still shaken by it, and the hearts of the people in the streets and alleys are boiling, and they are running around.As the joint trial progressed step by step, the case became clear day by day, and it was a foregone conclusion that Yu Zhou's biggest grievance since the establishment of the dynasty had come to light.

People recalled the demure and dignified Empress Langhuan, who cared about the sufferings of the people, and sighed, and turned their attention to Jingwang Mansion, which is located in the northwest of Luocheng.The mansion that had been forgotten by the world for many years belonged to the eldest son of Tianyi Dynasty, who led Langhuan through long and difficult years, and never went astray in the darkest time, even though the persecution, misunderstanding and The imprisonment has never stopped, but because of his calmness and talent, the people of Yu and Zhou were able to get rid of the suffering of war in advance and recuperate.

However, such a talented and well-received eldest prince is suffering from a serious illness and will die soon. How can it not be saddened?

On this side, Luo Pingyuan saw that the rehabilitating of Langhuan would be settled in a short time, and King Jing's health was gradually improving, so he couldn't help but feel a little ready to move: Now that Brother Huang has finally settled his biggest concern, it's over. As the suzerain's responsibility, then next, shouldn't it be considered to explain the situation to the government and the public, and slowly let everyone know that the strange poison has been removed?

In his mind, Yu Zhou's crown prince has always belonged to King Jing, and he should take it back in a legitimate way, so that everything can be back on track.As for cooking wine and admiring the snow in the back garden of Prince Jing's Mansion a year ago, it was agreed that he would be the successor in the future. Given that the situation is completely different, it is naturally impossible to count.

Unexpectedly, this proposal, which he thought was logical, was sternly rejected as soon as he said it.

"No," Luo Yanhua categorically denied it without even thinking about it, "Didn't it be agreed that Pingyuan would enter the East Palace? It is about the fate of the country, and it is a major event that has been decided with great difficulty. How can it be changed by child's play!"

"...Brother Emperor, isn't that an expedient measure?" His Royal Highness King Ning now only needs to hear words such as Donggong and Prince, and his whole body is not in a good mood. That's true. Besides, in terms of virtue, talent, learning, and insight, who else can compare with the emperor's brother? The subordinates must be supported by the center, and the four emperors and I are the same. No matter whether you are a descendant, elder, or virtuous, it is you There is absolutely no reason to pass it on to others!"

"Not necessarily." No matter what he said sincerely, King Jing was unmoved and shook his head, "There are a lot of talents in the world. To be a king, you don't necessarily need to be good at resourcefulness, as long as you have the ability to understand people and be tolerant. And if you can hold your body rigorously and make decisions when dealing with matters, then you can be a wise king.”

As he spoke, he smiled faintly: "With Ping Yuan's ability and ambition, he will only do better than me in the future, so there is no need to discuss this matter again. As for the eldest son, it doesn't matter much. Although you are younger, at least you can do better than me." Occupy a word for "di"!"

"No, absolutely not!" Luo Pingyuan saw that his expression was indifferent, but he had no intention of letting go, and couldn't help feeling anxious, "Brother Huang, you are clearly a person with the world in mind, how can you say that you don't care, is it like this? Only caring about Langhuan, ignoring the common people and Yuzhou Jiangshan! Besides, I... what can I do? The empress will never forgive me!"

At this point, there was a burst of grievance for no reason: "Anyway, it's inappropriate, I don't agree, I don't agree, I don't do anything!"

Deep in his heart, it wasn't that he rejected Chengtong himself, but he couldn't help worrying that King Jing would push the throne away after the big event was over, and he would have nothing to worry about from now on. I drifted away.It's just this faint fear that even he himself has not noticed.

"Pingyuan, don't worry." Luo Yuhua saw his younger brother's face flushed red, followed by four "no", he couldn't help being dumbfounded, "After so many things, you should understand that I am not giving in empty words, but I really don't care about that position."

He didn't wait for King Ning to speak, and continued to speak slowly: "Besides, I'm really tired after ten years of deep abyss. Didn't Master Xi Gu repeatedly tell me to avoid mental exhaustion in the next few years and live a quiet and content-free life? Slowly recovering my vitality. With Yuan's hard work to find the antidote, did he change his mind again and don't want me to have a good rest?"

Luo Pingyuan choked, opened his mouth, but couldn't argue.He knew very well how seriously ill King Jing was before, and he was just out of danger at the moment.It is indeed reckless to suggest rashly.

"But, ma'am..." he murmured, Luo Wenxiao and Xue Songnian were ruined, Emperor Tianyi also suffered a serious setback, and it was a critical period for changes in the court situation.If Brother Huang doesn't clarify the condition in time, it won't be long before all civil and military officials will turn their attention to himself and King Yun, forming a new pattern, which is not what he wants.

"Quanxia Youzhi, my queen mother, must have smiled with satisfaction after seeing what you have done for me and Langhuan. Moreover, I believe she will not object to my choice." Luo Yanhua said softly.As the case became clearer, many secrets of the year were revealed and restored one by one, and the truth of Rupin's betrayal was finally no longer a secret.Although Luo Pingyuan didn't show his depressed mood in front of him, it must be very uncomfortable, so it's no wonder that he sometimes looks upset.

"The affairs of the country are numerous, and I am already sick and weak, so I am no longer suitable for holding heavy weapons." He paused, and said solemnly, "I would like to entrust Pingyuan with all the blessings and misfortunes of the country, society, and common people, but I hope my fifth brother understands my intentions." Feelings and difficulties, don't make excuses."