Chapter 126: A Thought of Life and Death
At the beginning of the day, a news that shocked the whole of Chang'an came out from the Daming Palace, and the general of the Shenwu Army was disobedient to the Son of Heaven and had been imprisoned by the Yulin Army. In the eyes of the people, this Zhonglang general has just punished the black-hearted grain merchant and stabilized the price of rice, which can be said to be deeply trusted by the Son of Heaven, how can he be convicted and imprisoned in a blink of an eye?
But there are also people who secretly speculate that while the Shenwu Army Zhonglang will dispute the black-hearted grain merchants, he will also offend the real proprietors behind the grain merchants, those people are all prominent nobles, as the saying goes, "cutting off people's wealth is equivalent to killing parents", this kind of hatred that is close to killing his father's hatred is likely to make this young Zhonglang become the target of public criticism.
All in all, there are many rumors in the market, and no one can say why. However, the hundreds of officials in the court all got the exact news that when Qin Jin was pushed out of the Daming Palace and escorted to the Beiya Yulin Guard, all the crowns and robes on his body had been taken off. Moreover, the place where Qin Jin was imprisoned was itself contrary to common sense, and it stands to reason that officials should be handed over to the department responsible for detention and interrogation if they were convicted, and there was little concern about being in the Northern Ya Forbidden Army.
Of course, this situation is not unprecedented, when it comes to gathering troops to rebel, the Son of Heaven will detain the rebellious courtiers in the forbidden army just in case.
As a result, some officials have come to a conclusion that is inconceivable to everyone. That is, Qin Jin was suspected of rebellion and had been arrested by the Son of Heaven on the spot.
Some people also believe that it is impossible for Qin Jin to rebel. Regardless of his background, even the Shenwu Army Zhonglang General has only been in office for more than half a month, a month ago, this person was only a county court official from the ninth grade, much stronger than this kind of Zhonglang General who has neither background nor qualifications, and is a lot stronger than the military attache in Beijing, who grabbed a lot in Chang'an City, and why rebelled?
Regardless of the truth, many people are already clapping their hands behind their backs. Just because Qin Jin offended too many officials and magnates when he was rectifying the patrol of Chang'an, there are still thousands of gentlemen who are still imprisoned in the forbidden garden waiting for trial and punishment.
In the evening of the same day, just when the discussion gradually subsided, the arrest of Qin Jin made waves again. It was confirmed by Gao Lishi that Qin Jin's arrest was caused by the impeachment of Yang Guozhong, the prime minister of the current dynasty. It really stirred up a thousand waves with one stone, and no one could have imagined that Qin Jin would dare to impeach Yang Guozhong, the favored minister of the Son of Heaven and the prime minister of the dynasty, how is this different from a mayfly shaking a tree?
However, Qin Jin did just that. The officials couldn't figure it out, compared to Ge Shuhan's suppression everywhere, Yang Guozhong also frequently showed favor to Qin Jin, what kind of stimulus did this person bring, and he actually bit people like a mad dog?
On the west window of the moon, Qin Jin wrapped the quilt as hard as a wooden plank on his body, he was not sure whether he would win or lose this gamble, but there was a voice in his heart that kept urging him to take this step, and at this moment he was much calmer.
A sigh came from the dark hallway into the cell. Qin Jin opened his half-closed eyes, looked through the wooden bar of the cell, and only saw an old figure standing there, it was Gao Lishi.
"Why is General Qin asking for hardship?"
Qin Jin had no ill feelings towards this old eunuch, and replied: "If the national thieves and silverfish are not removed, the Tang Dynasty will be in danger!" Since he has torn his face, he has no scruples.
"Holy edict, Qin Jin, you have to answer truthfully!"
Despite being in the prison cell, Qin Jin still got up and saluted according to the Tang etiquette law.
"I treat you well, why are you so unkind and unrighteous that you have such rebellious words?" Gao Lishi paused and said: "Maybe you are tired and lose your mind, and occasionally talk nonsense, if you take back all the words you said during the day and admit your gaffes, I will not be guilty of the past!"
With that, Colliers added with a sharp voice.
"General Qin, the saint is extraordinarily gracious after dissipating his anger, you have to think carefully before answering!"
He didn't have to say this, but he did, and Qin Jin suddenly had a good impression of him. It's a pity, since it has been opened, how can there be any reason to give up halfway?
"The general's good intentions are good, and he understands his heart, but isn't it child's play to see the country?" and then said with a straight face: "What the minister said, every word comes from the heart, if the national thief is not removed, the court is in danger, and the Tang Dynasty is in danger!"
Gao Lishi didn't seem to have much hope originally, and when he heard Qin Jin answer like this, he didn't look surprised, but sighed heavily, didn't say another word, and turned around and left the cell.
Qin Jin wrapped his body in the quilt again, and the air leaking from all sides of the prison room was extremely cold, and if he didn't cover it tightly, he would inevitably freeze his limbs. Suddenly, the iron lock rattled, the wooden door creaked open, and two guards brought a copper basin filled with burning red coal, which fell heavily into the center of the cell.
"General Gao saw that you were pitiful, and he was afraid that he would freeze to death, so he specially ordered you to come down and add a pot of charcoal......"
Putting aside the cold words, the cell guard locked the door and left.
Qin Jin stretched out his hands that were almost frozen, and roasted them on the brazier, the fiery temperature flowed along his arms to his whole body in an instant, and his body, which was stiff because of the cold, gradually became active.
Qin Jin was not crazy, impeaching Yang Guozhong was a last resort, and this was also the best he could do to rescue Gao Xianzhi.
If the Son of Heaven wants to kill Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing, it is very important to find a scapegoat for the fall of Luoyang, Tokyo, in order to appease and deter the government and the opposition. Secondly, because of An Lushan's rebellion, the already suspicious Son of Heaven was very jealous of Gao and Feng, the border generals who led troops in the Western Regions all the year round, and once the seeds of doubt took root in his heart, he would soon grow into a towering tree.
Qin and Jin impeached Yang Guozhong's corpse and brought disaster to the country and the people, which was basically to choose a scapegoat for the Son of Heaven. It's just that the candidate for this scapegoat is not what the Son of Heaven is happy to see, but the crimes listed on the bullet seal are real, and the state affairs are corrupt, and the prime minister must also have an unshirkable responsibility.
Qin and Jin's bullet seals are not one, in addition to the one submitted in person, according to the Tang system, another copy should also be submitted to Zhongshu Province. The copy that was presented to the Zhongshu Province should be placed on the desk of the Zhongshu Shilang before noon.
Once the content of the impeachment is made public, it will inevitably set off a storm in the government and the opposition, and Yang Guozhong's foundation is too different from that of his predecessor Li Linfu.
If the Son of Heaven is not afraid of the distraction of the government and the people, then cover up the truth of the impeachment and strive to protect Yang Guozhong's position as prime minister. If there is still a trace of national affairs first, we must carefully consider and make a choice.
Therefore, what Qin Jin needs to do now is to calm down and wait quietly for Li Longji's choice.
The Prime Minister's Mansion in Yongjiafang will be a sleepless night tonight. Yang Guozhong, who had been closing the door and pretending to be recuperating, only learned the news of his impeachment after noon, and Dou Hua, a member of the Zhongshu House who came to report the news, was scolded by him.
According to the process, all the official documents should have been sent to the Zhongshu Province before the hour, and as a Zhongshu Sheren, he only found the damn bullet after noon.
After scolding Dou Hua, Yang Guozhong greeted the eighteenth generation of Qin Jin's ancestors one by one, and he was still angry in his heart. He asked himself if he treated Qin Jin well, and even helped him intentionally or unintentionally, why did this guy take revenge so kindly?
At this time, several of Yang Guozhong's personal henchmen gathered in the Prime Minister's Mansion. Among them, in addition to Dou Hua, who is a member of the Zhongshu House, there is also Zheng Ang, who is rarely in the matter, although the official position of these three people is not obvious, but the power is extremely heavy, respectively in the Zhongshu Province, Menxia Province, and Yushitai have a very heavy weight.
Zheng Ang, the servant of the imperial history, immediately suggested:
"The subordinates have heard that Qin Jin has engaged in fraud when he sells confiscated grain, and he can take the opportunity to investigate and clarify the truth!"
"That's a brilliant plan!"
Give the matter to the fresh in the clapping of hands.
Yang Guozhong, who gradually calmed down, nodded, "Very good, this matter will be handled by Zheng Yushi, and if it is done, you can make a statement to the sage and promote you to the middle of the imperial history!"
When Qin Jin cracked down on the price of rice, Yang Guozhong suffered a lot of losses, but he knew that it was the Son of Heaven who really wanted to stabilize the price of rice, and the Son of Heaven sent a lot of gold and silver treasures, so he did not have much grudge against Qin Jin.
It's just that this time, Qin Jin impeached Yang Guozhong for twenty major crimes, and the rules shocked him, and he had to spare this person again.
However, the opinions of the prime ministers are also particularly important, Wei Jiansu, who is also the prime minister with Yang Guozhong, although he has the alias of the shadow prime minister on weekdays, but that is when he is in the limelight, and now someone jumps out to attack him, Yang Guozhong does not dare to confirm in his heart, what is the attitude of this person.
Based on Yang Guozhong's understanding of Wei Jiansu and his person, this person is likely to adopt the method of not expressing his position, but what he should fight for is still to fight for it.
Dou Hua, who was scolded for being bloody, offered another plan: "I heard that Qin Jin and those Xin'an troops he brought have done a lot of unsightly things outside the pass, why don't you also send someone to investigate, maybe there is something unsubordinate, afraid that he will turn over again?"
Dou Hua smiled flatteringly, shaking his head and tail like a dog, just to win a compliment from his master.
Yang Guozhong deeply thought of this, "Very good! This matter will be handled by you, quickly, within three days, the charges must be fabricated!"
After hearing this, Dou Hua even smiled at the folds on his face, just now Yang Xianggong promised Zheng Ang that he could be promoted as the middle of the imperial history after the matter was completed, and he should have a doctor at least to make a foundation after the matter was completed!
The three echoed and resigned from the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Yang Guozhong immediately fell into deep thought. The collapse of Qin Jin is a secondary matter, and the first thing to do for the present is to find out the true thoughts of the son of tomorrow. In this regard, there is an imperial concubine in the palace, and he is not very worried, but he still can't wait to ignore it, he is thinking about whether he should enter the palace overnight and plead guilty on the ground to show his heart!
After thinking for a long time, Yang Guozhong called to the slave standing outside the door in a low voice.
"Spare Car ......"