Chapter 041: Storm (IV)
On the first day of October in the nineteenth year of the Zhengyuan reign, the emperor issued an imperial decree regarding the "Chongyang Injustice" case at Dengwen Drum Court, punishing his uncle Wu Jikang for defying the new policies and committing fraud and murder.
Grand Tutor Wu Dai knelt for a long time at Yongding Gate until he fainted. Imperial Concubine Wu requested to see the emperor several times but was unable to do so.
It rained heavily that day.
The city of Yunjing was bustling as always. The people all applauded and praised His Majesty for his virtue and justice, and spontaneously burned paper for Ni Qinglan who died unjustly.
The thirty-six scholars who were sentenced together with Ni Su in the Drum Courtyard that day took advantage of the Cold Clothes Festival to write petitions for Ni Qinglan and burn incense and paper.
"Brother Jiming, if you knew about this in the afterlife, would you feel relieved?" He Zhongping burned the petition he had written and raised his head. The cold gold-painted characters on the black tablet behind the incense table immediately made his eyes red. "If the government is willing to punish Wu Jikang, it must be a death sentence, but Brother Jiming..."
His Adam's apple rolled, "I only hate his life, but it can't bring you back to life."
"Brother He, please don't be so sad. Today is the day when we should really cheer up. I'm sure Brother Jiming should be happy today even in the underworld."
A tribute student patted He Zhongping on the shoulder and burned the petition he had written. "Brother Jiming, although you and I have never met before, we are both disciples of Confucius and Mencius. I have read your poems and essays and know what kind of person you are. I hope that in your next life, you can rely on the back of Kunpeng, follow your heart's aspirations, and soar thousands of miles!"
As he spoke, he stood up, lit incense and bowed.
The room was not big and was packed with people. Some people even stood in the eaves. Everyone lit incense and bowed to the tablet behind the incense table.
All of them had been beaten with sticks, so it was not easy for them to walk, but they forced themselves to get up from the couch, walked out of the house, and staggered together to come to Ni Su to burn paper and offer sacrifices.
Ni Su had been beaten with sixteen sticks and it was actually very difficult for her to stand up, but she still asked Cai Chunxu to change her into a mourning dress and gritted her teeth to get up and burn two sets of winter clothes for her brother.
It was not known whether it was because of the paper ash in the copper basin or because of the pain from the wounds on his body, but Ni Su's eyelids twitched from time to time and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.
She let go of Cai Chunxu's hand and bowed to everyone: "Thank you all for coming here today to pay tribute to my brother. On that day in Dengwen Drum Court, you made me realize that justice in this world lies in the human heart, and as long as the human heart is alive, justice will not die."
"Brother was not good at making friends during his lifetime, and his close friends were few and far between. But after his death, you all felt sorry for him and campaigned for him. I think that even though brother is dead or alive, his spirit in heaven can be considered as knowing and being friends with you all."
"Miss Ni, what you said is very true. What does it matter if we are in the two extremes of life and death? After this incident, we can now be friends with Brother Jiming!" A scholar bowed and returned the greeting.
They all had injuries on their bodies and did not stay long. After paying tribute to Ni Qinglan, they left one after another.
"Sister Axi, please go back and lie down. It's not easy for you to stand for such a while in your condition..." Seeing that the clothes behind Ni Su were soaked with blood, Cai Chunxu called Yu Wen to help her support Ni Su.
As she was about to step out of the threshold, Ni Su suddenly turned around. There was wisps of white smoke on the incense table. Her brother's tablet and her mother's tablet stood together. She pursed her pale lips and her eyes were slightly wet.
"Where is the medicine that the emperor gave me this morning? Yu Wen, get it here quickly."
Cai Chunxu helped Ni Su to lie on the bed, and then he hurriedly ordered Yu Wen to do it.
This morning, as soon as Emperor Zhengyuan issued an edict to punish Wu Jikang, a eunuch from the palace came with the emperor's oral order, praising Ni Su for her courage in seeking justice for her brother and her chastity and loyalty. He also rewarded Ni Su with some gold, silver, cloth, and the best medicine in the palace.
Although the wound medicine was good, the process of applying it was extremely painful. Ni Su was in so much pain that she was confused and clutched the soft pillow tightly. She heard Cai Chunxu say beside her: "Sister Xi, it's all right now."
It was not the first time that Cai Chunxu saw the wounds on Ni Su's body, but every time she saw them, she felt shocked. She tidied Ni Su's clothes, sat on the edge of the bed, wiped the cold sweat from Ni Su's forehead with a handkerchief, and said, "Now, you have finally survived..."
She couldn't help but feel a little sad. "You lost half your life, but at least you got justice for your brother."
"So Sister Cai, I'm very happy."
Ni Su's voice was still hoarse. There was a sound of heavy rain outside the window, but she smelled the damp and cold fragrance of grass and trees, which was refreshing.
Cai Chunxu saw her half-open eyes, her cheek against the soft pillow, sniffing the rain. She couldn't help but reach out and touch Ni Su's sweaty hair, and whispered, "Sister A Xi, you are the girl I admire most in my heart."
Ni Su smiled and said, "Sister Cai is the best sister I have ever met in Yunjing."
"Now that you can let go of everything, just have a good sleep. When you wake up, I'll have dinner with you." Cai Chunxu couldn't help but smile, then got up and went out.
The room fell silent. Ni Su closed her eyes and murmured, "Xu Ziling."
"Um."
Through a screen, a light mist condensed into the shape of a person.
Ni Su's hands tightly grasped the edge of the quilt, but she did not open her eyes, "Will Wu Jikang really be sentenced to death?"
Although the emperor has issued an imperial decree, the crime is still being discussed today.
"The government has promised to reintroduce the new policy, and one of Wu Jikang's crimes is 'disrespecting the new policy', which has already sentenced him to death. Although the charges are still being discussed today, I think the focus is only on the date of execution."
Xu Hexue sat on the couch with her back to the gauze screen, "And..."
"what else?"
"Perhaps the execution will not be so soon, because punishing Wu Jikang is probably just the beginning. The government may have to deal with some officials of the Censorate and the Imperial Academy first."
He said.
Ni Su was silent for a moment. She probably understood that even Han Qing and Mr. Meng were not there to help her get justice out of pure motives. They were in the officialdom and had their own bloody struggles.
"I can wait. I must watch him die at the execution ground, but I always feel like I'm dreaming. Once I fall asleep and wake up, there will be nothing left."
Perhaps it was the pain from the wound that made her feel dazed, causing her to feel like she was in a dream.
"Are you afraid to do it again?"
"No."
Even if she had to do it all over again, she would not be afraid to seek justice for her brother once again.
Xu Hexue raised her eyes slightly and stared out the window. The mist and rain were thick and the autumn atmosphere was endless. "Then let's go to sleep."
His voice had a soothing power. Ni Su's mind became more and more confused. Listening to the autumn rain by her ears, this was the most peaceful sleep she had had since she came to Yunjing.
…
Just as Xu Hexue had expected, the imperial edict in early October to punish the emperor's brother-in-law Wu Jikang was just the beginning. Emperor Zhengyuan's purge of the Censorate and the Hanlin Academy continued until the end of the year.
The torture pool of the Yiyesi was almost filled with blood. Dozens of officials involved were demoted, had their property confiscated, or were tortured. The entire Yunjing City was shrouded in a dark cloud.
Officials who embezzled funds for dredging the river were also punished one by one, including the Grand Tutor Wu Dai, who was stripped of his clothes and his official titles were revoked.
"You've been busy lately, and I see you've lost a lot of weight."
Meng Yunxian had just returned home and had not had time to change out of his official uniform. He just took off his long-winged hat and put it aside, then took the tea bowl handed to him by Han Qing.
"It's a good thing to be busy. Many of those who opposed you the most have been eliminated after this incident." Han Qing could not hide the fatigue in his eyes, but he was in a very good mood.
There had long been a struggle between the Censorate and the Hanlin Academy, and Meng Yunxian secretly pushed Jiang Xianming to submit the winter examination case to the emperor, because he guessed that the emperor would ask officials from both academies to jointly discuss the case.
Disputes are inevitable.
Meng Yunxian had expected the fight between the two sides to turn into an irreconcilable one.
They were not really arguing over a candidate for the winter examination who they had never met before. The fact that the dispute had escalated to such an extent that the anger could not be quelled was nothing more than a case of "uniting the party and attacking the dissident".
Few people really care about the name "Ni Qinglan". They just used this name to turn a case of fraud and murder into a political struggle to attack and suppress the opposition party.
Meng Yunxian and Han Qing were also involved in this struggle. As the saying goes, while the snipe and the clam quarrel, the fisherman gains. They facilitated this struggle that went beyond the winter test case itself, and took advantage of it to eliminate several stubborn people who had opposed the new policy and attacked Meng and Zhang.
Meng Yunxian took a sip of tea and said, "What you and I removed were a few stones that obstructed the new policy, while what the emperor removed were the termites who opposed his enthronement and colluded with the royal family to make money."
"Isn't this just right? The government has the money to build a temple, and you can get rid of a few smelly and hard stones. But it seems that Mr. Meng is not very happy."
Han Qing observed his expression.
"I just remembered that twenty years ago, your sister was saved and released from prison. At that time, you came to kowtow to me, your head was broken and blood was all over your face, but you still smiled at me. I was very happy too."
Meng Yunxian's frown slightly relaxed and he smiled, but he quickly restrained himself, "At that time, you and I both thought we had won."
"Isn't it?" Han Qing was confused.
Meng Yunxian shook his head, "The winner is actually the official family."
"How is it the official family?"
Han Qing was stunned and became more confused.
"At that time, I was in my forties and was appointed as the Minister of State Affairs for the first time. I felt that the Great Qi had been plagued by problems for a long time, so I submitted a memorial to the emperor to ask him to implement new policies. The emperor's agreement made my blood boil. I asked Chongzhi to join me in rectifying the administration of officials. I did not leave any room for others and offended many people in the court. At that time, I thought that if I wanted to achieve great things, everything was worth it. The emperor's trust gave me enough confidence."
"But later, when General Yujie was tortured to death for treason in Yongzhou, and Chongzhi and I were abandoned by the government without hesitation a year later, I wondered if the new policies that Chongzhi and I had implemented had changed anything at all for Da Qi. It was only after I was demoted to Wen County a few years later that I realized that the aborted new policies had not changed the country or the people at all, but one thing had changed."
"What?"
"The power held by the government, and the power of our subjects to advise the government."
Meng Yunxian's expression became more serious. "Han Qing, I thought I was doing great things for the country and the people, but in fact, I was just a knife in the hands of the emperor. He held me in his hands and pierced the courage of the ministers of the Qi Dynasty."
It is not known since when the literati and the king of the Great Qi Dynasty could no longer rule the world together.
"According to the law, your sister was sentenced to death, but why was she able to save her life? You were too young at that time, and I was too distracted to think deeply about it."
Meng Yunxian asked him, "Your sister was able to save her life because of me, but it's not entirely because of me. Do you know what the word 'king's law' means?"
Han Qing lowered his head and thought for a moment, then shook his head: "I don't know."
"The King is above the Law."
Meng Yunxian sighed slowly.
The king is above the law.
Han Qing looked stunned.
The government made the emperor's decree more important than the law under the pretext of promoting new policies, so his sister was able to bypass the law and save her life. However, it was difficult for Han Qing to say whether it was good or bad that the emperor's decree was more important than the law.
Privately, he was glad for it.
But in justice, he couldn't help but feel sad for Meng Yunxian. The imperial edict was based on the king's temporary preference, while the law was the principle and law that was revealed to the world. Once the imperial edict was greater than the law, it would be of no benefit to the country.
"Then the emperor asked you and Mr. Zhang to return to the capital to promote new policies. Would you also..."
Han Qing was somewhat unable to continue.
"The government implemented new policies in the past for the sake of power, and this time it may not be really prepared to withstand the pressure from the royal family."
Meng Yunxian listened to the sound of rain and smiled: "The emperor can't stand seeing the royal family amassing huge wealth, while he has no money to spend in his own Taoist temple. Chongzhi and I are the tools he invited back to shock the royal family and officials."
"What he wants is money."
"But I don't really care what the government wants now. Anyway, I can achieve the government's wish and remove my stumbling block..."
The rising tea smoke diluted the expression in Meng Yunxian's eyes, "After all, everyone is happy."
