Chapter 24: Mediocre People
The Sun Mansion was actually not far from the imperial palace, but ministers who were summoned privately by the emperor could only enter and exit through the Donghua Gate.
So he had no choice but to follow the eunuch who summoned him, and like a fool, he passed by the gate three times without entering, and went all the way from the northwest corner of the inner city to the east side of the imperial city.
Perhaps because Sun Shaozong was too big and strong, the imperial guards guarding Donghua Gate took him to the side room and searched him inch by inch twice, almost pulling out the weapon in his crotch to measure its length.
After finally passing the security check, I followed the summoned eunuchs and walked around in the corridors along the palace walls. Suddenly, the view in front of me opened up and a magnificent hall appeared.
Sun Shaozong knew that he had arrived at the place, and was about to cheer himself up to deal with it, but he heard a noise coming from the left side of the palace gate:
"Oh my god! Why did the car break down anywhere else but in front of Wenying Palace?!"
"What should we do? What should we do? This is the green stem rice that was just delivered as tribute. If it gets spilled, none of us will survive!"
Following the sound, I saw a flatbed carriage loaded with rice lying on its side not far to the left. Two eunuchs were jumping up and down around the carriage, shouting and yelling.
What an exaggerated acting!
Sun Shaozong came to the above conclusion after just two glances.
The mountain of rice bundles on the carriage seemed like a pile, and half of the wheel was broken into two pieces. At first glance, it did look like an accident caused by being unable to bear the weight.
But how vicious are Sun Shaozong's eyes?
With just a quick glance, he spotted several flaws.
First of all, the wheel looked like it had a clean break, with no signs of bending due to stress. It was obvious that it was removed first and then cut with a sharp weapon.
Secondly, the rice on the cart was still neat and tidy after the rollover accident, without any tilt at all - it would have been fine if it was tied very tightly, but there were only a few thin ropes, and if it was suddenly subjected to force, it would have been scattered all over the ground.
Of course, the most obvious flaw is the lines of the two young eunuchs - it is now the coldest time of the year, and it is impossible for new rice to be produced. And who in the world would dare to pay tribute to the emperor with aged rice?
Therefore, just the words "newly tributed green-stem rice" are enough to prove that this is a well-designed farce.
As for the purpose of their performance ...
Alas~
Sun Shaozong sighed helplessly. The actor he was acting with was so bad, he really didn't want to be the leading actor!
What a pity, the person who choreographed this terrible play was the emperor, and he would not be allowed to back down on the spot at all - if he offended the director, at most some of his scenes would be cut; if he offended the emperor, what would be cut would be his life.
"These little bastards!"
The summoned eunuch complained in a fake tone, then turned back and said to Sun Shaozong, "Wait outside. I will go in first and report it to you."
"Thank you, Grandpa."
Sun Shaozong bowed quickly.
Before leaving, Brother Bianyi specifically told them that these eunuchs were most concerned about their reputation, and no matter what they thought in their hearts, at least they had to observe the outward manners.
Of course, in addition to this, Sun Shaozu also pulled him aside to confess a lot of trivial things, which can be summed up in eight words: "think more, talk less, hide your shortcomings and show your weakness."
"Think more and talk less" is easy to understand. As for the four words "hide your shortcomings and show your cowardice", it means to try your best to cover up your shortcomings in front of the emperor while not appearing too shrewd.
However, as soon as the summoning eunuch entered the gate of Wenying Palace, the third extra... uh, the third little eunuch appeared on the stage.
He was holding a wooden wheel in his arms, trotting along and shouting, "Here I come, here I come, the wheel is here!"
Seeing that this guy is as thin as a hemp root but there is no trace of sweat on his face, I know that he must have been hiding behind the palace wall, waiting for the right opportunity to show up.
"Very good!"
The two young eunuchs beside the carriage cheered in unison at first, then grumbled in embarrassment: "But there are so many things on the carriage, how can we replace the wheels?"
The reason why we put quotation marks around the word "mumble" is because these two guys spoke so loudly that even a fool could tell that they were deliberately speaking for Sun Shaozong to hear.
Then Eunuch A suggested, "How about unloading the rice from the cart first?"
"You're courting death!"
Eunuch B raised his fingers and poked Eunuch A's chest a few times, saying coquettishly, "If the tribute rice is spilled, won't we all lose our heads?!"
Eunuch Ding suggested at the right time: "Why don't we find a few guards to help lift the cart up and replace the wheels."
As soon as he finished speaking, the three of them couldn't wait to turn their eyes to Sun Shaozong.
This acting...
It sucks, doesn’t it?!
Sun Shaozong felt so sorry for them when he was watching from the side. Compared with these three, the young handsome guy with expressionless face could be called a "professional".
At this moment, the three eunuchs called out in unison: "Sir, sir, can you lend us a hand?"
If this play had not been directed by the emperor, Sun Shaozong would have definitely covered his face and walked away!
Now……
He could only walk step by step to the "center of the stage" under the "expectant" gazes of the three little eunuchs.
Seeing him approaching, Eunuch A immediately recited the lines excitedly: "Sir, let's give it a try first. If it doesn't work, we can look for other options..."
Unexpectedly, before Eunuch A finished his lines, Sun Shaozong snatched the wheel, stepped forward and grabbed the bottom of the carriage, and with a single arm, he lifted up the overturned carriage, then aligned the wheel's slot with the axle and slapped it in.
"alright."
Gently putting the thousand-pound carriage back on the ground, Sun Shaozong waved his hand with little interest: "You're welcome. Goodbye."
The three eunuchs stared blankly as he returned to the gate of Wenying Palace. They were stunned for a long time before they remembered that they had forgotten to say the line "The general is mighty".
Not to mention how many alpacas were galloping in the hearts of the three little eunuchs.
It was not long after Sun Shaozong returned to the gate of Wenying Palace that he saw the eunuch who summoned him come out. He flicked his whisk and said in a shrill voice, "Your Majesty has ordered Sun Shaozong, the captain of the Xuanlong Imperial Guard, to enter the palace to see the emperor!"
Sun Shaozong quickly suppressed his disapproval, bent his waist, and followed the eunuch respectfully into the hall.
The eunuch who summoned him also knew that he had not been trained in the Ministry of Rites, so after he entered the palace gate and led him a few steps forward, he whispered to him, "Why don't you kowtow to your Majesty?"
As he spoke, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Sun Shaozong has been brought here."
Sun Shaozong didn't even have time to see what the emperor looked like before he knelt down in a hurry and shouted, "Your Highness!"
After waiting for a while, someone responded calmly: " Stand up."
While getting up, Sun Shaozong secretly glanced around and saw a fifty-year-old man sitting behind the bright yellow desk - the emperor retired at the age of seventy, so Emperor Guangde was already forty-three years old when he succeeded to the throne. Now, nine years have passed, so he is naturally over fifty years old.
Emperor Guangde has been on the throne for nine years. Although he has not been able to completely control the political situation due to the existence of the emperor emeritus, his aura as a person who has been in a superior position for a long time is far beyond the reach of ordinary people. Especially his pair of slender eyes that are half open and half closed, making it even more difficult to guess what he is thinking.
However, what concerned Sun Shaozong more than Emperor Guangde was the middle-aged minister who was glaring at him not far in front of him.
Who is this?
"Sun Shaozong."
Sun Shaozong was just guessing the identity of the minister when he heard Emperor Guangde ask casually, "I heard that you just helped the eunuchs to lift a carriage full of tribute rice?"
Tsk~
This is what we call 'asking questions even though you already know the answer'!
Sun Shaozong complained in his heart, but at the same time he quickly and honestly told what had just happened.
Emperor Guangde did not comment, but turned to the minister and asked, "What do you think, Earl Yongyi?"
"Return to Your Majesty!"
The Earl of Yongyi bowed and said firmly, "I think this man should be dismissed and investigated, and never employed again!"
Dismissal and investigation? Never employ again?!
When Sun Shaozong heard this, he was dumbfounded - why was he dismissed when he hadn't said anything yet?
Then, Earl Yong Yi explained, "He couldn't even see through such a crude setup, which shows that he is a mediocre person. The spies infiltrated the Qianxiang Embassy, which led to the assassination of the imperial envoy, all because of his incompetence!"
After a pause, he continued, "As for the half-day pursuit of the murderer, it is indeed a strange story. I think it is either his luck or the intention of the mastermind behind the scenes. It is really unreliable! Therefore, I think that such a mediocre person who made such a big mistake is useless to keep, and it is better to dismiss him from office."
Oh my god!
After hearing this, Sun Shaozong was really speechless.
He cooperated with the emperor with good intentions, but the emperor did not play by the rules and gave him the title of "mediocrity"!
