Just as Xu Ying said, after the incident in the prison of the Criminal Department, although the officials in Beijing had a lot of discussions about it, and there were many people who suspected that this matter was related to Jinyiwei, but none of them dared to stand up and directly accuse Yang Zhen and Jinyiwei of being aggrieved for the Xu family. Pen ~ fun ~ Pavilion www.biquge.info because they know very well that the current situation is very unfavorable to the Xu family, and if they speak for them again, they will only trap themselves in it.

It is said that (female cousins) are ruthless and the drama is meaningless, but in fact, the people in the officialdom have no bottom line compared to these two industries. For the sake of their own future positions, officials can trap those who are kind to them, and they can also become close allies with their father-killing enemies, and in their eyes there is only profit and nothing else.

In the past, the officials of the DPRK and China would speak for the Xu family and constantly impeach Yang Zhen, just because they could get a lot of benefits from it, and they hardly had to bear any consequences and risks. But now, the situation is completely different, if the Jinyi Guard, who has the initiative, wants to deal with anyone, he just has to pull the case of the prison on him, and that person will have to walk around without eating.

So in the end, the Manchu officials all chose to remain silent, even after they learned that the three brothers of the Xu family were suddenly taken down by Jinyiwei, they only shouted a few times for them behind their backs, but they did not dare to fight for Shangshu.

In the face of such a situation, even Zhang Juzheng was a little helpless. He knew very well what Yang Zhen was going to do next, but even so, he didn't dare to stand up and intervene because of his very sensitive identity, after all, Yang Zhen and their investigation and punishment of the criminal department's prison case was done by the emperor's will, and the name was right.

In this case, even if he is as calm as Zhang Juzheng, he is very uneasy in his heart, looking at the official documents piled up in front of him, his mind is completely useless, so he can only put down the things at hand for the time being, and think hard about countermeasures in the room.

But obviously, Yang Zhen did not drag the matter down, let the other party find a way to deal with it, and in only two days, a case file was sent to the palace. Fortunately, this time Zhang Juzheng kept an eye on it, so this Chen Song was not sent to the emperor bypassing him, but was handed to Lord Shoufu.

After scanning the file at a glance and ten lines, Zhang Juzheng's already deeply locked brows wrinkled into a Sichuan character, and he whispered what was written on it: "The investigation of this case is that Wu Baipeng, the main hall of the Criminal Department, wanted to exonerate the Xu family, and wanted to make a group of witnesses change their words, so he treated him with torture. In order to cover up their crimes, they instructed the guards of the prison to poison all the witnesses in a vain attempt to confuse the public and cover up their crimes...... Hmph, what nonsense! ”

Although there is a lot of evidence mixed in this Chen Song, including the confessions of several prison guards, and some other so-called physical evidence that looks similar, it is impossible for Zhang Juzheng to believe in such a result.

Is Wu Baipeng stupid or crazy, willing to do so much for the Xu family? And after he did something wrong, would he make mistakes again and again, and use such shoddy means to cover them up? This is no longer called a cover-up, but a search for death.

In this regard, Zhang Juzheng is naturally very disdainful, and this report can be said to be full of errors and omissions. But then, a hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes - even if this matter seemed to be full of mistakes? Is anyone still willing to say a fair word for the Xu family now? Do you dare to come forward to argue? Not to mention those officials who have not settled down and want to oppose him, just if he wants to get involved in this matter, he may be criticized by the world, and Zhang Juzheng will not be able to make this decision.

Xu Jie was indeed kind to him, but he had also taken care of the Xu family too many times over the years. Otherwise, with what the Xu family has done in Jiangnan over the years, they would have been convicted by the imperial court a long time ago, and it would be Yang Zhen's turn? It is precisely because of Zhang Juzheng's protection that the Xu family can have such a great momentum in Jiangnan, and even the government over there has become a vassal of his family.

And now, when the Xu family once again needs Zhang Juzheng to do his best, even his own reputation, to protect them, Zhang Juzheng no longer intends to do this. He has his own higher ideals, and now that the Ming Empire is getting better little by little, he doesn't allow himself to make any mistakes at this time. So, it's time to let go of something.

After closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Zhang Juzheng finally made a difficult decision: "I just hope that the teacher can understand my hardships, don't blame me......" Thinking of this, he put the Chen Song and a few copies of the notes that needed to be handed over to the Son of Heaven for approval, and called someone to come over and ask him to send them to the emperor.

And after more than an hour, Sun Hai came again, saying that the emperor had invited Zhang Ge to discuss something in the past. Knowing why the emperor was looking for himself, Zhang Juzheng was still a little hesitant, but in the end, he was invited to come to the emperor.

Before the monarch and the ministers saluted and said business, Wanli looked Zhang Ju up and down for a while, and couldn't help but say, "Master Zhang looks much haggard than before." You can take care of your health, I and the court are indispensable to you. ”

Hearing the emperor say this, Zhang Juzheng didn't know whether to believe that this was his true words. Over the years, the relationship between him and Wanli has gradually become estranged, although he still communicates for a long time on government affairs every day, but the Son of Heaven, who has some of his own opinions, has obviously begun to be wary of himself, the first assistant, or rather disgusted. This kind of thought, it is difficult for the young Wanli to hide it completely, and he is naturally seen by Zhang Juzheng in ordinary communication.

But even so, in the face of the emperor's concern, he still expressed his gratitude according to the rules, and at the same time said: "Your Majesty, rest assured, the minister still has a lot of unfulfilled wishes, and before that, he will never let himself have an accident." His implication was that once he had done everything he wanted to do, he would leave.

It's a pity that Wanli didn't hear this meaning, and only heard him say that he would not leave this position, that is, he would not let go of power, which made the little emperor's heart crooked, and he finally suppressed the anger in his heart, and said in a somewhat blunt tone: "Master Zhang said so, I am relieved." By the way, I specially invited you to come this time, for the Xu family and the criminal department, I don't know if you have ever read the case report sent by Yang Qing? ”

"The minister has seen it, but there are still a lot of debatable points in it, so the minister thinks that this case can be handed over to others to check again." Zhang Juzheng thought for a while and said.

"What does Master Zhang think is debatable? I read the circumstances and motives of the case written above, but I didn't see anything wrong. ”

"That Wu Baipeng, the secretary of the Criminal Department, has been a criminal prison official for many years, and he naturally knows a lot about my Daming Decree, how dare he do such a thing? Isn't it knowing the law and breaking the law, and asking for your own death? ”

"Well, it's actually easy to understand. Yang Qing said above that Wu Baipeng was once a powerful official under Xu Jie, and he can have today's status, and he is also supported and cultivated by Xu Jie. The Xu family brothers begged each other for this reason, and he naturally couldn't refuse. By the way, I don't know Master Zhang, if you encounter such a thing, what choice will you make? In the end, Wanli suddenly asked such a question with a smile.

Hearing the hidden mystery in the other party's words, Zhang Juzheng's heart shook suddenly. The emperor's intention is obvious, he wants to equate himself with Wu Baipeng, and in terms of the strength of Xu Jie's cultivation, Wu Baipeng is far from being able to compare with himself.

After muttering for a while, Zhang Juzheng could only smile bitterly: "Although the minister was also taken care of by Xu Ge Lao back then, the distinction between public and private can still be seen clearly, so even if they ask for the minister, the minister will not abolish the public because of private interests." ”

"Good!" Wanli praised: "Master Zhang really didn't disappoint me. I heard that the two Xu Fan brothers went to your house for help, but they were sent out of the door in only half a tea time, obviously Master Zhang, you are indeed clear about public and private. ”

has said that to this point, what else can Zhang Juzheng do? You can't overturn your previous position and excuse the Xu family, right? Moreover, the emperor has also solved his previous doubts, Wu Baipeng is not ignorant of the problems, but in order to repay his kindness, he has to know the law and break the law, so this crime has completely fallen on his head.

And once even Wu Baipeng is convicted, it is even more unlikely that the Xu family's charges will be changed in the slightest. But when he thought of Xu Jie's affection for him, Zhang Juzheng still couldn't bear it, so he didn't answer immediately.

Seeing this, Wanli continued to exert pressure and said: "Moreover, as Yang Qing said, this case could have been tried a few days earlier, and there would have been no such thing." But the result? Wu Baipeng used the excuse that he was busy with official business and dragged the case on for a day, and then something happened in prison. Master Zhang, if there is no connection between these two things, I can't believe it. ”

Being pressed so step by step, Zhang Juzheng was already a little overwhelmed. Whether it is Yang Zhen or Wanli, this time they have to put the Xu family to death, and judging from the evidence they have shown so far, the Xu family has completely turned over.

Now, even the three Xu Fan brothers are still in the hands of Jinyiwei, if he insists on it, I am afraid that Yang Zhen will even use the three of them to cause some trouble, making himself even more tired to deal with.

After understanding that everything was irretrievable, Zhang Juzheng could only sigh with a long sigh: "Teacher, don't blame me, I have done my best." Then, he arched his hand to the emperor and said: "In this way, this case is indeed as Chen Zuo said, the Xu family's previous charges are true, and now there is one more addition." ”

"Then in Master Zhang's opinion, how should we deal with such a crime?" Seeing that Zhang Juzheng finally relented, the emperor couldn't help but feel excited, and his voice didn't feel a little higher.

"This ...... Everything is up to Your Majesty. The minister has only one request, I hope that His Majesty can keep Xu Ge Lao with a decent result, after all, he is a veteran of several dynasties, and he has made great contributions to the imperial court! At this point, that's all he can do.