The Imperial City of Tokyo, where the emperor and his courtiers went to court, is the Dakei Hall. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

Above the court, the civil and military attachés were divided into two sides, and the emperor of Zhou, who was sitting on a high seat, was looking at his courtiers angrily.

As for the cause of the anger, it is like this. Now, just after spring, floods have occurred in the Tongzhou area, and all the newly grown seedlings have been soaked in water, destroying hundreds of houses and killing and injuring tens of thousands. Half a month ago, the emperor sent Wang Youqi of the household department to take the silver taels of the imperial court and grain and clothing to relieve the disaster, but he did not expect that this person was corrupt and bribed, and privately swallowed three-quarters of the silver taels and grain, and when he arrived in the same state, the local officials swallowed several layers, and finally reached the grain in the hands of the people, which lasted less than two days, let alone silver taels.

The people had no food and clothing, and their homes were destroyed, so naturally a large number of refugees left their homes and poured into the capital.

Originally, this matter had been suppressed by the officials of the DPRK and China, and the emperor did not know. It's just that the first two **** took Sikong Jun out of the city on a whim, but they didn't expect that when they walked outside the city, they saw refugees fleeing from the same state, and they only knew what was going on after asking. The scene in the city was very good, but I didn't expect that all the refugees had been driven out of the city.

So he immediately asked Sikong Jun to secretly investigate the matter with the Privy Council, only to learn that half of the disaster relief money allocated by the imperial court had not been shipped out of Tokyo, and most of them were greedy by the officials of the DPRK and China. If it's usual. He will also turn a blind eye and pretend not to know, in all dynasties and dynasties, corrupt officials have always existed, and if they are not allowed to be greedy, how can they work hard. However, this time the greed was too excessive, and now there are a lot of redundant personnel in the DPRK and China, and it seems that it is necessary to get rid of some unnecessary people and reduce financial expenditures.

This morning, the emperor told the matter in court, and because it was a secret investigation, the people involved did not receive any news in advance, so naturally they did not make any preparations. The human and material evidence are complete, the emperor ignored anyone's opposition, acted resolutely, acted in lightning, and the king of the household department Youqi and the assassin Shi Yanben of the same state were immediately imprisoned and executed after the autumn. Wang Youqi is Wang Pu's cousin, and Yan Ben is a member of the Yuan family.

"Your Majesty, this matter is a big matter, and it is the senior members of the DPRK and the Central Committee who are involved, if you are convicted at this moment, I am afraid it will affect the operation of various ministries." Prime Minister Wang Pu said.

The person on the dragon chair slapped the dragon head on the chair and said angrily: "The Son of Heaven broke the law and committed the same crime as the common people, and I am still like this, does the prime minister think that they should not die?" The two of them killed more than one or two people, but thousands! ”

"Wechen didn't mean this, Wechen thought that this matter was widely implicated, if we didn't investigate whether it was framed by others, or if the crime was not to death, resulting in wrongful killing, then it would be a pity that the court lost such a talent."

"What does the Prime Minister think?"

Wang Pu was a little weak-hearted, he couldn't figure out the emperor's temper, and he didn't know what he was calculating, but he had to bite the bullet and say: "The Criminal Department and Dali Temple will investigate this matter and get conclusive evidence before the case can be decided." ”

"I tell you, the evidence I have listed is the evidence jointly found by Dali Temple, the Criminal Department, and the Privy Council, if it is not conclusive, will I come up with it? Well, this matter ends here, whoever intercedes again will be guilty. ”

Specializing in criminal cases, this is the responsibility of Dali Temple and the Criminal Department, what is the matter with the Privy Council? The Privy Council is in charge of the military. Wang Pu said: "Your Majesty, the Privy Council is the body in charge of the military, and if you exceed your authority to participate in cases other than the military, I am afraid that the duties of the imperial court will be confused. ”

"The people in the Criminal Department are too weak to catch a prisoner, I just asked the people of the Privy Council to help arrest people. The prime minister can rest assured of this. He also knew that this was not appropriate, but there was no one he trusted in the Criminal Department now, so he could only let Yetian do it for him. Although Yetian is nominally his Privy Councillor, this is just a double identity, and he has a lot of things to do!

Wang Pu was very puzzled, Dali Temple and the Criminal Department had their people, but they didn't receive any news. Obviously, there are also people sent by the emperor here, not to mention the Privy Council, which was originally an institution set up by the emperor himself, and naturally they are all loyal to him. Now that I think about it, I can't help but be shocked, but fortunately he didn't meet many of these people, most of them relied on correspondence, and they burned them after reading them.

Wang Pu broke out in a cold sweat, hurriedly knelt down, and said, "The emperor is sage." When the officials saw that even the prime minister knelt down, they naturally had to kneel down, and the mountain shouted, "The emperor is shengming." ”

Since he is the emperor's sage, let's set the rules! "From now on, it is proposed that all provinces and ministries, up to the three provinces, down to the county order, the officials at the next level shall supervise the officials at the next higher level, and if they are found to have done something to the law, expose and report it, and if it is verified to be true, the officials at the next higher level shall be dismissed, and their crimes shall be carried out according to the law, and their positions shall be filled by the officials at the next level, and so on. If he indiscriminately exposes the whistleblower, he will be removed from his official position and will never be allowed to re-enter the office. ”

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live."

The emperor's approach is nothing more than to give a message to everyone in the court that he is going to start purging the government. When the Zhou State was first established, Zhou Taizong gave them powers in order to comfort the people who fought with him, and tacitly acquiesced in putting their nepotism into the provinces and ministries, resulting in the phenomenon of redundant officials and multiple people in one position. After the death of the first emperor, the current emperor ascended the throne, this emperor is not as merciful as the previous emperor, and now he has set up his own military institution, the Privy Council, to recruit a wide range of capable people and wise men, and some useless people who only eat dry food are gradually replaced. At the same time, the military power was gradually withdrawn, and it seems that Fan Ai's military power will not be able to be held for long.

Soon after the founding of the Zhou Dynasty, many systems still followed the system of the previous dynasty, and the great clan families were intertwined and inextricably linked, and there were a large number of drawbacks such as corruption and redundant officials. If these shortcomings are not rectified, more than half of the politics of the Zhou State are controlled by these big families, then he, the emperor, is not a puppet.

The courtiers were frightened all morning, thinking that they could almost disperse the court, but unfortunately, the heavens did not fulfill people's wishes, and a long procrastination raised their newly calmed hearts again.

"Report ......"

A majestic sound dragged a long tail note, from the palace gate to the Daqing Palace. The master of the voice wore armor and a sword at his waist, and rushed straight to the Daqing Palace, until the emperor knelt down and shouted three times.

Everyone in the hall, including the emperor, looked solemn, and the person kneeling down was just a small soldier, but no one dared to underestimate him, because the red and yellow brocade military flag he was holding in his hand was an urgent report, an urgent report from the military.

"Say."

Although the soldier was out of breath and his face was anxious, his voice was clear and powerful, and it was sonorous. "Report to the emperor, General Wei Zhen, the general of Shu State, was ordered by Emperor Shu to throw 100,000 troops and approach the border of Zhou State, and the prefect of Jinzhou was timid and fearful, and had abandoned the city and fled. Luo Yang, the defender of Jinzhou, was killed due to being outnumbered, resulting in the loss of Jinzhou. The thunder of the Shu army was unstoppable, and it asked for the support of the imperial court. ”

A few days ago, Shu took advantage of the flood in Zhou, thinking that the time had come to take down Zhou in one fell swoop, even if it couldn't take Zhou, it could also deal a heavy blow to Zhou's arrogance. Therefore, he waved his troops to the east and broke through the states and counties on the border of Zhou and Shu.

Zhou Guolu stipulates that in order to prevent local officials from supporting troops and self-respect, they threaten the capital. Therefore, after the establishment of the country, no more than 2,000 guards remained in the states, and these soldiers belonged to the imperial court, and the local prefects only had the right to call but not to control, and were only used to maintain law and order in peacetime and assist officials in handling cases. These soldiers have been away from the battlefield for a long time, and their natural combat effectiveness has declined, how can they resist the 100,000 army of Shu.

Daqing Palace, back to the beginning of the silence, no one dared to speak, just out of the corruption and bribery case, now there is a border emergency.

The emperor asked the little soldier to go down to rest, and then looked at the ministers in front of him with their heads shrunk, and sarcastically in his heart: Why are they all dumb, weren't they all justified just now! "Talking, what, it's dumb."

An official said: "The ambition of the wolf son of Shu is really hateful. Taking advantage of the current disaster in our Zhou country, it is even more shameful to kill my people. ”

The people on the dragon chair sneered, and the country fought with each other, and it was a thousand shots. If such a disaster occurs in Shu today, he will also raise troops to attack. "Let me say a few words of grief and indignation! Now the question is, how to drive the Shu army out of my Zhou country? ”

Wang Pu walked to the middle of the hall, bowed down and said: "The old minister thinks, but according to the current situation, after the flood in the imperial court, the situation of my Zhou country has not yet recovered, and the people are now homeless, without food, and farming in the coming year is a big problem." It is not advisable to make a big move, and the situation of my Zhou Kingdom will be worse. ”

Hubu Shangshu said: "What the Prime Minister said is right, now the treasury has no extra silver taels to compete with the Shu army. According to the old ministers, envoys should be sent to Shu, and when the treasury is full next year, they can counterattack. ”

Fan Ai is a military general, so he naturally disagrees with Wang Pu's statement. "Your Majesty, I'm a rough person and don't know how to drag texts, but this battle must be fought, and I can't let others bully me to the butt, and I have to make a smile with others."

Wang Pu retorted: "General, now that the refugees are still outside the city, still waiting for food and life, where is the money in the imperial court to go to war!" The general is a soldier, and he should know that the soldiers and horses have not moved, and the grain and grass go first. Now that there is no harvest, and the people have no food in the autumn, how can they survive the winter? ”

Someone chimed in: "The minister agrees with what the prime minister said, and an envoy should be sent to the peace talks." ”

"Who will make peace with you, Shu is clearly taking advantage of people's danger, do you believe that the envoy sent to kill him with a knife?"

An official said: "The two countries are at war, and they will not kill ......"

"You think that fighting a war is storytelling, and you say that if you don't kill people, you won't kill people. They will kill people and bring back the heads to you, and hang the bodies on the gates. What not to chop to make, bullshit. ”

"You are presumptuous, how can you talk like this in front of the emperor......"

"Don't talk to me."

The emperor sat on the ninety-five throne, looking at the main battle lord and the two parties in the court, the sword rattling, it was really a headache.

The main battle was led by Fan Ai, the general of Zhenguo, who believed that Shu was too arrogant and should be beaten back to Shu by force. Moreover, if you don't fight, the Shu army will be able to break through the city defense within two months and take Tokyo directly.

However, the people of the Lord and the people confirmed that after the spring floods, the treasury was empty. As the saying goes, before the soldiers and horses move, the grain and grass go first, and now there is no food to eat, how can the soldiers be allowed to fight next to each other hungry. An envoy should be sent to negotiate with Shu, cede land and pay tribute for peace, and when Zhou recovers, he can counterattack in one fell swoop.

I was tired of the noise, my mouth was thirsty, and I had no strength. They finally came to their senses, and no matter how much they argued, the final decision was still the person in the high position who wore a dragon robe and a dragon crown, so they stood up again and turned their heads to look at their lord.

"Please let the emperor decide."

Seeing that the palace was quiet, the emperor said: "The general has a point, but the prime minister's concerns are also a problem. It makes sense, but can't I come up with a tael of silver when I am in Zhou Guo? ”

Wang Pu said: "Your Majesty, the northern army and grain and grass must not be moved, the Northern Han Dynasty has been eyeing my Zhou State, if it is transferred now, the minister is afraid that he will follow the example of Shu State, and then my Zhou State will suffer from the enemy!" ”

Wang Pu was right, if the army and grain and grass in the north were called, the Northern Han would never let go of this opportunity. Taiyuan and Tokyo are only separated by a few states, if you take advantage of Zhou's domestic and foreign troubles to wave troops to the south and take Tokyo directly, then the Zhou country will be destroyed.

The emperor is a soldier in the first place, and he naturally wants to know this. In addition to the north, the south is close to the Southern Tang, if the grain and grass are transferred from the south, the Southern Tang will not let go of this opportunity, and the rest is only a few states in the east, but on the contrary, it is the east that is affected by the disaster.

If there is no money to raise food and grass, will this battle really be fought?

He didn't believe it. sneered: "You say that the treasury has no money, then if the treasury still has no money next year, the year after tomorrow, five years later, and ten years later, the treasury will not have money, will this battle be won't be fought, will it be when the Shu army enters the city of Tokyo, kills the people of my Zhou country, and slaughters the city of my Zhou country, this treasury will have money!" Yes! "The emperor holds the dragon heads on both sides with both hands, and he wants to sit in this position, and he wants to sit firmly." My decision is to fight, to fight hard, and I will not allow anyone to encroach on a single point. If anyone dares to trample on an ear of rice in my Zhou Kingdom, I will use his blood as fertilizer. ”

The courtiers were shocked into a cold sweat when they heard Ruci's cold words. They seem to realize that they seem to have forgotten the most important thing, their emperor is the one who helped the first emperor to conquer the country, how can an emperor who relies on his hands to conquer the country allow others to invade his land without fighting! Even if he hasn't been on the battlefield for a long time, even if he is already the emperor, the passion for the battlefield and the love for blood in his bones have not diminished by half a point.

"Your Majesty."

No one dared to say anything other than that he was holy. Because whoever dares to question the emperor's decision is guilty of the following crimes, and the crime cannot be punished.

"The Ministry of Households, the Ministry of War, will start preparations from now on, with the assistance of other departments, departments, and temples, and will unite the prefectures and counties to raise food and transfer troops, and after ten days, the troops will be ordered. As for how to adjust it and how much to adjust, the Chinese book province will draft a draft and submit it to the court tomorrow morning. ”

Zhongshu ordered Ji Gang and Yang to kneel down. "Yes."

All the officials are pale, and the people have nothing to eat, where can they find money? But the emperor has already issued an order, and when the time comes, they will not be able to come up with money and food, and their family will be reunited with the underworld. It's not okay, after all, the number of soldiers is there, as long as you think about how to dispatch, but the household department is worried, money and food are not said to be available!

"Retreat."

With the emperor's closing words, the tense court meeting finally ended. The officials walked out of the majestic and empty Daqing Hall, walked down the steps, and returned to their respective homes.

At this time, the sky is full of clouds, clean and white, and occasionally a few birds fly by, which is really a quiet beauty. But below the sky, in this beautiful land, there were indeed wars, and everywhere there were cries of poor people.