Yang Shansong listened to it outside, and couldn't help but come in and persuade: "Even if my father doesn't pity himself, he needs to cherish the country, and he can't live up to the emperor's grace." ”

"The emperor's holy grace can only be repaid in the next life......" After all, Yang Sichang has been the secret minister of the emperor's side for many years, and his kung fu of cultivation and calmness is superior, and when the words came to his mouth, he endured it and did not say it, and the words turned sharply and said: "For more than ten years, the reason why the thieves are uncontrollable is that they are good at flowing away, taking advantage of the void, and suddenly thousands of miles, the officials and soldiers are tired of chasing them, and the defense is weak, and it is not a day's work to suppress the thieves. Fortunately, Hong Hengjiu and Sun Baigu set up an ambush in Tongguan, and the thieves were almost wiped out. The sacrificial thief Agate Mountain was defeated, and the wives and concubines were captured by the officers and soldiers. It's a pity that Zheng Chongjian has tens of thousands of horses, surrounded by several months, and let the thieves escape, which is really puzzling. The hateful Zuo Liangyu didn't listen to the tune, supported the troops and watched, missed the opportunity, sat back and watched Zhang Xianzhong go to Xing, return to the mountains and breathe peacefully, and then go to Kuidong to join forces with Cao Cao......" The more he spoke, the more angry he became, his cheeks flushed, and his breathing became heavy.

Wan Yuan Ji was worried that he would be angry, so he intercepted the topic and persuaded tactfully: "At present, it is important for adults to treat their diseases, so there is no need to use troops in a hurry." The most important thing to do is to give the emperor a break as soon as possible, ask the emperor for the loss of Xiangyang, and use the military strategy to slow down. ”

"Let me think again." Yang Sichang was covered in a thick quilt, sitting on the bed for a long time, very tired, Wan Yuan Ji said goodbye and withdrew, tears couldn't stop rolling down, he was really sad for Yang Sichang. Despite repeated failures, there is no omission in the various strategies put forward by the teacher, and the mistake is that the soldier will not be killed, and the soldier has no fighting spirit, even if there is a good strategy, it is difficult to see it in action, and it may not be effective in action. Known as an army of more than 100,000 horses, it seems that the thief has become a matter of the master alone, this kind of drudgery is that the Daluo Immortals will be helpless, not to mention the flesh-and-blood mortals. Wan Yuan Ji tossed and turned on the couch and couldn't sleep, and after about three watches, he felt a little tired, but there was a knock on the door, "Lord Supervisor, have you slept?" ”

Wan Yuan Ji heard that it was Yang Shansong's voice, hurriedly turned over, and promised, "The eldest prince, please come in." Has the teacher taken the medicine, how is the condition? ”

"I went to see it just now, and after taking the medicine, the illness is a little mild, but it's just ......, Lord Wan! Look at this. Yang Shansong took out a piece of paper from his sleeve, Wan Yuan Ji opened it and looked at it, and a poem was neatly copied on it: Last night, it rained in the boat, how about the night when the river was full of wind and waves? Looking at the lonely tent of the test paper today, there are still many green mountains and green trees. He locked his eyebrows and said, "This is Zhu Zi's poem, where did it come from?" ”

"It was copied by the adults of the family, and it fell at the head of the bed, so I secretly picked it up."

"Playing with the meaning of the poem, the division still has the ambition to cheer up, Xu Tu recovered, rectified the armor, may not be impossible to turn defeat into victory, make up for the loss of the two prefectures, three states and nineteen counties."

"Look at this again, sir." Yang Shansong took out a book slip and handed it to Wan Yuan Ji and said: "This is a letter written to Song Yihe, the governor of Huguang, and it has not yet been issued. The foolish nephew is worried about the family...... Once...... But how can it be good? Please persuade the adults tomorrow, cheer up quickly, and agree on the next step to suppress the thief, so as to make up for the loss. As for personal honor and disgrace, there is no need to worry about it for the time being, wait for the holy order, and then make arrangements. According to the foolish nephew, a holy family has not yet completely declined, and the edict of the "Governor and Auxiliary Minister" clearly says, "Qing has resigned from the court since the sixth day of September last year, and there is more than half of it. There is no suspense for the day. and the soldiers in the line toiled and tasted, and the beard was white, and the deep ...... was really a blessing that other ministers had never had; The second is the situation of thieves and the ills of soldiers, and the emperor has already learned from it, even if it is ......"

"Childe's opinion is good. Among the ministers, there are only two ministers who can do things for the imperial court, Master Shi and Hong Hengjiu. If the emperor didn't see him as a rare talent, he would never have been promoted so successively and relied on so much faith. Is the chaos in the world today the fault of one or two officials? The emperor still wants to use people, and if the teacher has no mourning for death, he will not cause trouble. Wan Yuan Ji comforted Zhan Xin to take a closer look, and the end of the letter seemed to have a desperate meaning, "Strange disasters fell from the sky, suddenly in the Xiang Domain, the servant vomited blood and was sad, tied to death, and there was nothing to say." Secretly screaming that it was not good, and was about to tell Yang Shansong to keep a closer eye on his father, when he suddenly heard a chaotic footstep in the courtyard, and the entourage shouted outside the door: "Eldest son! Big Prince! ......" tone is both panicked and sad.

Yang Shan got up and opened the door in a hurry, and asked in surprise, "What's the matter, so panicked?" ”

The attendant threw himself on his knees on the steps and cried, "Master, master has gone." ”

"How so?" Yang Shansong and Wan Yuan Ji suddenly felt a buzz, and they were shocked, and asked together, "When did you go?" ”

"The little ones don't know ......"

Yang Shansong and Wan Yuan Ji didn't have time to ask carefully, and ran to the backyard together.

Yang Sichang was lying on his back on the bed, blood oozing from the corners of his mouth and nostrils, his bedding and hair were a little messy, and there was a silver seal of the superintendent and auxiliary ministers, an edict, and a sword from Shang Fang neatly placed at the head of the bed. Wan Yuan Ji watched Yang Shansong rush to the bed and cry loudly, constantly hitting the big bed with his head, he wept and pulled out a hand in Yang Sichang's sleeve, his nails were blue, and he looked over the pillow, there was a crumpled piece of straw paper underneath, and there were dots of white powder sticking to it. "Arsenic----" His heart suddenly tightened, and the blood in his body was about to coagulate, and he complained infinitely sourly: "Master, why are you looking for such a short view? ”

The news of the fall of Luoyang came to Beijing, Chongzhen was shocked, stopped the dynasty for three days, and learned that Zhu Yousong, the son of King Fu, fled to Anqing, and sent 10,000 taels of silver to the emperor, and Empress Zhou and others also made up 10,000 taels of silver. The two had just set off, and Zhenzhen received an urgent document from the Zongren Mansion to King Fuqing, the second son of King Xiang, and Xiangyang was also lost. Where is Yang Sichang, and how can he allow Zhang Xianzhong to be harassed everywhere? For such a big event as the fall of Xiangyang and the death of the king of Xiangyang, why didn't he see a piece of paper? Luoyang fell, he was far away in Sichuan at the time, the whip was out of reach, and the blame was on Li Xianfeng, the governor of Henan, but Xiangyang was the station of the superintendent, and there were heavy troops to defend it, how could it fall into the hands of thieves? Chongzhen sat alone in the Dongnuan Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace, and in front of him was a large stack of notes on the impeachment of Yang Sichang, he looked through them one by one, and shook off a piece of paper from the recital, on which were written two poems, both of which were borrowed from the theme of irony:

One of them:

Salt plum wine is unparalleled, and the governor is responsible for the emperor.

It was originally a scaby on the extremities, and Yang Junzhi was rejected.

Second:

Xiangyang lost Luoyang, and a tripod of soup boiled Fu Wang.

In vain, he disappoints the will of heaven to dry the city, and he is bound to death and sorrowful.

Bet on a line of small print: Jingshi's new proverb, I don't know who it came from. Chongzhen's face changed greatly, he threw the fold on the case, and ordered outward: "Quickly Xuan Liubu Jiuqing Kedao to enter the palace!" ”

Wang Chengen, who was on duty outside, agreed, trotted out, and after a while, all the officials of Kedao arrived. Chongzhen glanced at everyone, suppressed his anger and said: "Yang Sichang contributed to the suppression of thieves for the imperial court in Jiangnan, you have not experienced the situation and experienced it personally, how can you tell the truth and know the details of the army?" is often impeached, why don't you understand his difficulties! ”

"Your Majesty, as an official, the ministers have the right to participate in the performance."

Chongzhen glanced at the speaker and asked, "Zuo Maodi, what is the embroidery on your body?" ”

"It's embroidered with a mythical beast."

"My court supplements are all set by Emperor Taizu, do you know the deep meaning?"

Zuo Maodi is worthy of the background of the two lists, quoting scriptures, and replied: ""Ai Zi Miscellaneous Sayings" said: When Yao, there was a divine beast called a hedgehog, and in the court, the evil seekers who identified the ministers touched and ate it. "On Balance" says: The one who is a pig is also a sheep with a horn. Sexual guilt. Gaotao ruled the prison, and his crime was suspicious, so that the sheep touched it. "Miraculous Records" said: There are beasts in the Northeast Wilderness such as sheep, one horn, hairy green, four-legged, loyal and straight, and they can't touch it when they see people fighting...... The name is called the hedgehog, a law beast. "Foreign Matter Chronicles" says: There are beasts in the Northern Wilderness, famous hedgehogs, horns, and straight genders. Seeing people fighting, those who can't touch straight. Hearing people fighting, why don't you be right. "Hanshu Yinyi" said: Jie Zhi is like a deer and a horn, and the punishment of the king is born in the court, and the lord is not straight. Emperor Taizu Gao regarded his ministers as the hedgehogs of the imperial court, picked up the missing and filled the vacancies, served as a virtuous person, and punished the traitors. ”

"You're right, there's a rule. But don't forget, the rumors are not chasing after the wind, and the rumors should also be played on the basis of reason, not absurd. Relying solely on will, in vain, how can there be public opinion? You said that Yang Sichang supported the army to defend himself, but he has not succeeded so far, what is the merit of Agate Mountain? Although this merit cannot hide the crime of the fall of the two feudatories, it will not be so big that the six can be beheaded, the family will be destroyed, and even if it is dead, the coffin will be broken and the corpse will be killed! Are you so patient? Yang Sichang is the minister of Mi Bei who is used by me to promote the special and simple, and the use of troops is ineffective, and he has his own discretion to punish him. Where have you put me in slandering him like this? Where did you impeach Yang Sichang, it is clear that you are coming towards me! The more Chongzhen spoke, the higher the pitch, he got up and left the case, pacing and saying: "Yang Sichang is not easy!" Asking for his life in danger, running thousands of miles, exhausting his heart, and saying that he was so worried that his hair turned white. With good news, you all sing praises of merit; Is it fair to say that you have suffered a defeat and you have condemned him in all your mouths? Zuo Maodi, Lei Zhuozuo, you are in the position of Sixian, shouldn't you figure out my thoughts, vote for my favors, take my likes and dislikes as right and wrong, so unfair, can you be worthy of the supplements on your body? Aren't you afraid that the pig will bite you, bite you, and eat you? ”

Zuo Maodi snorted: "The minister is not selfish, just ......"

"Just what?"

"Xiang and Luo are victorious in the world, but they are easily broken by thieves, but it is a pity that the great rivers and mountains of my Ming Dynasty for three hundred years have been allowed to be ravaged by thieves like this! The minister is really sad......" Zuo Maodi whimpered.

"Is Yang Sichang willing to do this?" Chongzhen sighed and said: "Why do you have to take attack as a thing, instead of thinking about making a good plan for me, offering a good strategy, thinking about going out of the capital on behalf of me, and begging for thieves for the world?" Cracking down on thieves is not Yang Sichang's personal business, why is it that he must bear the responsibility alone if something happens? From the cabinet ministers, the six ministries, down to the governor, governor, general soldiers, adjutant generals, prefects, and prefects, it is difficult to excuse the guilt! Why don't you participate? The ancients said: The rise and fall of the world is the responsibility of the husband, how come it is that in the season of crisis, it is all pushed away? Where is the loyalty, and where is the conscience? I will keep all these excerpts in the middle and deposit them in the cabinet treasury, and when you return to your hometown, I will give them back again, and they will always be a warning. ”

Zuo Maodi was not convinced, kowtowed: "I have to give an explanation to the people of the world!" ”

"I will give an account to the world." Chongzhen saw that he was aggressive, sneered, and said: "I have been in the imperial pole for four years, the country is troubled, and thieves are rampant, and I have caused my uncle to lose his protection, all of which are caused by my immorality, and I really deserve to die!" I have made an edict against myself and introspected myself, which is enough to thank the world, right? ”

Everyone knelt down together, and the courtiers around Zuo Maodi reached out to pull the sleeves, plackets and even boots of his robe, Chongzhen said angrily: "Don't stop him, just say what he has to say!" ”

was at a stalemate, Wang Chengen hurriedly came in and reported: "Long live the lord, Xiangyang six hundred miles to expedite the paperwork." ”

Chongzhen grabbed it, opened it and looked at it, silently, his face was full of grief and anger, and the document in his hand trembled slightly, trembling. There was an abnormal silence in the Qianqing Palace for a while, and the hissing sound of red Luo charcoal could be heard. The officials knelt on the ground, and Wang Chengenhu stood aside, staring at the documents in Chongzhen's hand, not knowing what was happening. After a long time, Chongzhen let out a long sigh and said sadly: "I can't punish him if I want to, Yang Sichang passed away on March 1." Go down! I will write a memorial to him in my own handwriting. ”

In the elegant seat of Liuquanju, Wu Changshi drank rice wine alone, ate half a pot of wine, Wang Dehua, who was dressed in civilian clothes, pushed the door in, he hurriedly got up and gave up his seat, Wang Dehua waved his hand and said: "You're welcome, I've been waiting for you." As soon as we came out of the Yamen, we summoned the emperor into the palace and asked about the movements of the first assistant Xue Guoguan. He heard that the emperor was dissatisfied with the ministers when he summoned the official of Kedaoyan, and he was restless all night. ”

"If he hadn't been so vegetarian, the thieves wouldn't have been rampant." Wu Changshi let Wang Dehua to the upper seat, he had already hated Xue Guoguan into the bone marrow, before Jingcha, he asked his nephew Wang Qiyan to send silver, the position of the Ministry of Langzhong has been Xue Guoguan mouthful, but unexpectedly went to the Qingshui Yamen Rite Department to do a master, the reason for which was not a word to explain, he took the opportunity to give gifts to Wang Dehua many times to complain.

Wang Dehua smiled and said: "Brother here, you don't have to be in a hurry, this time you can be angry." ”

"Thank you, father-in-law." Wu Changshi's eyes were blazing, and he was busy pouring him full of wine.

"You don't have to thank us, if you do too much injustice, you will kill yourself, it's all his own sin!" Wang Dehua drank the cup, picked up a piece of dragon egg with chopsticks and ate it, and said: "As an official, corruption is inevitable, but you can't be too greedy, only pull silver into your arms, and there is no leakage in your hands, always thinking that the scorpion tail is unique, so how can it be done?" You also know his two deals of selling official beards back then. Our factory guards found out, but they just wanted to share a little money, and they didn't have to be embarrassed by him. He was so good that he secretly played it to the emperor, saying that the factory guards were disturbing the people. Later, he said bad things about me in front of the emperor, do you think you are angry? ”

"It's really unbelievable."

"That time, the emperor summoned the right platform, and between idle conversations, he sighed: 'Corruption and bribery are all the rage now, but what! How! Xue Guoguan glanced at us and said, "If Dongchang wins people, which of the big and small courtiers dares to show favoritism?" At that time, we were so scared that we sweated profusely, and we didn't dare to defend a word. After leaving the palace, we didn't go back to the Yamen of the Celebrant Supervisor, went straight to the East Factory, told Cao Huachun about it, and sent more than a dozen right-hand men and fans to stare around Xue Guoguan's mansion day and night to see how clean he was? ”

"Presumably something?"

"How did he have less of a handle? The reason why we have been holding back is that the time is not right. Now it's time, a few days ago, he told the emperor to donate money to Qi Wan, Zhou Guozhang, Tian Guozhang and other relatives of the emperor are in danger, and they grit their teeth with hatred, and the fifth son of the emperor died because of this, which is the emperor's heart! and that shall be reckoned with him. He thinks that he has the trust of the emperor very much, and he dares to take any silver, but the corruption and bribery are actually involved in the thieves, isn't this his own family looking for death? ”

"He's in a relationship with a thief?" Wu Changshi was taken aback.

"Isn't it! Zhang Xianzhong was chased by Zuo Liangyu and had nowhere to hide, and sent his subordinates to Ma Yuanli to bring a lot of gold, silver and jewelry into Beijing to present to Xue Guoguan, wanting to return to the imperial court, he was greedy for money and merit, and worked very hard. ”

"Why did my father-in-law delay it until now?"

"Xue Guoguan has not yet made a profit to make his mind faint, and he has already thought of a way out when he collects the cashier. In the change of Gucheng, Xiong Wencan was the scapegoat, but he couldn't help it. Now it's different, thieves are rampant, the governor Yang Sichangsha City died, and the emperor was in a very bad mood, especially in the twists and turns found two crooked poems, mocking the emperor for relying on Yang Sichang, and actually saying nonsense that our Ming Dynasty is in the west and sick. The emperor ordered Cao Huachun to visit secretly, and it is estimated that it is difficult to verify, but these excerpts were sent to the palace by the cabinet, and Xue Guoguan, as the first assistant, can't get out of it! Wang Dehua took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and said: "This is a list of all the people who have been in and out of the Xue Mansion, and I remember all the gifts I have prepared, you can use them at your discretion!" As long as the excerpt is impeached, the emperor will definitely order us to visit and see how he can escape this catastrophe? ”

"Xue Guoguan has a lot of enemies, as long as I get on the fold, there will be no less follow-up." Wu Changshi said gloomily: "Pull out the tiger's teeth first, and see how it bites?" As long as it can't bite people, it will soon become a dead tiger. If you want to manipulate Xue Guoguan, you must first expel him from the imperial court. ”

"Hmmm! The elephant flowers you entrusted to Tian Guifei have been sent to the Chengqian Palace, and the mother was full of joy when she saw it, she said that although it was inconvenient to recommend Zhou Yusheng, she could find an opportunity to mention his name in front of the emperor and give the emperor a wake-up. ”

"It's rare to be able to do that."

Wang Dehua took a sip of wine and said: "It's not enough to do this alone, the emperor is wise to observe, and if the concubine says too much, it will be self-defeating and make things worse." Mr. Zhou had better make a break at home, so that the emperor would not think of him. ”

"Good idea!" Wu Changshi raised his glass and drank, took out a silver ticket and handed it over, and Wang Dehua smiled and put it into his arms......

Sure enough, as soon as Wu Changshi's excerpt was on, Qi Wan all celebrated with their hands, and encouraged the courtiers who had close contacts to follow the impeachment, Chongzhen was already dissatisfied with Xue Guoguan, and when Wang Dehua verified it, he didn't wait for Xue Guoguan to defend himself, so he wrote an edict: Xue Guoguan is the first assistant, greedy and selfish, what to say! The five mansions, Jiuqing, sections, and Taoist officials are the ones who heard about it! The wall fell down and everyone pushed it, and everyone discussed to return to his hometown, and Xue Guoguan slipped back to his hometown in Shanxi. Soon, Zhou Yanru's invitation to the excerpt arrived, seeing things and thinking about people, Chongzhen really remembered his many benefits, and criticized on the excerpt: "He still does it." ”

Before the holy decree was issued, Wu Changshi had already learned about it, and immediately sent his servant Wang Cheng back to Taicang with a letter. Zhang Pu re-mounted the pieces of loose paper with the method of garment mounting, and rushed to Nanjing overnight, where Zhou Yanru was living. After the meeting, he congratulated and said: "There is news from the palace, and the will of the teacher's recovery is about to be issued." ”

"Tianru, it's finally time to wait for this day." Zhou Yanru was overjoyed, and then sighed: "At present, there are internal and external troubles, and the first assistant is not easy to be!" ”

"Since ancient times, heroes have been born in troubled times, and the teacher has changed his course, not worrying about no one to contribute, and not worrying about leaving a famous name through the ages."

"Tianru, you have worked hard for several years, I shouldn't disappoint everyone! After the recovery, I will forge ahead to thank you. ”

Zhang Pu took out two thick albums from his arms and handed them over: "Teacher, one of these two booklets is written with the name of the person who should be reused, and the other is written with the name of the person who should be deposed and punished, please put it away." Seeing Zhou Yanru take it and put it in his sleeve, he didn't notice that he frowned slightly. Zhang Pu was in a good mood, "Tomorrow I will set a banquet on the bank of the Qinhuai River, and the disciples and the people of the Restoration Society will congratulate the teacher." ”

"I should thank you, why do you want to break the bank?"

"Please appreciate the light."

"Then I'll thank you in person."

The sky is clear, a huge building boat on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal is slowly moving north, the high mast merchant hangs a red flag, embroidered with black thread "Dongshan recalls" four big characters, the bow of the boat sings and drums, resounding on both sides of the river. Zhang Pu and other people of the restored society waved goodbye and watched the sails sail away......

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