Back in Zhangzhou, Hong Lishen first allowed Governor Song to send the Ling Chi officer's recital, and he himself played another performance, explaining to Niu Yuan the mistake of attacking, and impeaching Governor Song for mishandling his subordinates, blaming others for covering up his negligence, etc., which could almost lead to his dismissal.

Niu Yuan has been anxiously waiting for news from the south. When he saw Governor Song's letter, his eyes lit up, although he was a little puzzled about it, he felt that it should be Hong Lishen's report; But he still raised his hand and opened the notebook.

He didn't even hesitate, and read aloud in front of the provincial officials: "Fujian Governor Song...... Yesterday, three ships arrived on Dongshan Island with artillery, but because of a verbal dispute, an officer ...... his voice became quieter and quieter, and when he read this, he swallowed the words he was about to read back to his throat and closed his lips. His majestic momentum suddenly withered, and his eyes were a dull gray.

When all the henchmen saw that he had suddenly ceased to be silent, and knew that the situation had changed, none of them dared to ask, but they all craned their necks and waited for his coming rage.

But this time, Niu Yuan was not too aggressive. It's not that he suddenly became steady, but he understands in his heart that under the guidance of his own policy, there is such a serious incident, and the responsibility must not be escaped, and there is no strategy to deal with it. He had long forgotten the power that had covered the sky and the sun, and now he only felt that he had fallen into an abyss from which he could not recover, and powerlessness and fear surrounded him, so that he could not even care about anger.

"An officer mistakenly thought that he was a coward, and ordered his subordinates to shell. …… This offender has now been brought to custody, and he is to be punished as if he were guilty of treason. He finished his previous words word by word, then folded the recital, and looked at everyone listlessly.

Everyone was so frightened that their faces changed greatly, how could they dare to speak in front of Niu Yuan, for fear that a word of loss would make them die without a place to be buried. But they also knew that someone needed to come out at this time to reassure Bong Sang-an, so they set their sights on one of the most famous figures.

That person is the new Imperial Historian Cheng Su Zongzen. When he saw such a situation, he was also terrified, but he couldn't bear everyone's expectations, so he had to stand up and say: "Prime Minister Feng, what responsibility can a border officer in this district bear?" Even if Ling Chi is punished, it will not help, but it will only relieve his depression a little. For the sake of the adults and the country, it is necessary to remove a few local officials in a resolute manner, so that they can block the mouth of Youyou and appease the hearts of the people in the DPRK. ”

"Of course I know that I need to find someone who can take responsibility," Niu Yuan sighed, "but we don't know what the situation is in the south, and which officials have made big mistakes." ”

"Prime Minister Feng, Hong's secret performance in politics!"

Niu Yuan was still hesitating, and when he heard the news, it was really like a life-saving straw, and he stood up excitedly, his face full of red light; But then thinking of the current situation, the mood returned to loss, and slowly sat down: "Okay, take it." ”

He unsealed the book, quickly glanced at its contents, and then smiled at Su Zhongcheng: "Look, we just talked about the guilt, and Hong Lishen's impeachment is coming, he really sees the long term!" With him in the lead, the next step is easy. Send it to the Imperial Observatory immediately, and trouble Captain Gui. ”

The big incident of the accidental attack of the warship caused a sensation in the entire court. The opponents were ecstatic, and did not seem to think that this was a matter of great sorrow, especially the "main force" of impeachment headed by Zeng Liang, who showed their ability to write and frantically denounced Niu Yuan's new policy, attacking his already precarious position; the supporters also changed their faces in an instant, impeachment, scolding, and brazenly flaunting the greatness of cutting off their robes and breaking righteousness, and calling on everyone to join them in denouncing the great cause of social welfare. And those who have a deep relationship with Liu Zhennian and others can't be so simple, so they have to take leave to recuperate, temporarily avoid the limelight, envy their current invincibility, and hate themselves for befriending the wrong person at the beginning.

Niu Yuan tried not to pay attention to those rumors, and went to Zhongshu Province to work as usual, but there were still people shouting at the gate in groups, so that he couldn't sleep and couldn't calm down. After suffering for several days, with the assistance of Yu Shitai, he finally passed the emperor's edict and announced the first step: that is, to put all the responsibility on the governor of Fujian, saying that he 'deliberately exaggerated the truth in order to pass the buck to his subordinates, and wanted to use the capital punishment of others to cover up the negligence of his own duties', so he was dismissed from his official post and escorted to Beijing immediately.

After all, there is a personal letter from the governor as evidence, and such an explanation can convince the people a little, but Zeng Liang and others can not be satisfied with this, they continue to chase and fight, accusing Niu Yuan of not knowing anyone, and deposing the officials involved again to thank the world. In Niu Yuan's view, this goal is very clear: if you don't scrape a few pieces of meat from yourself, they won't be finished.

But if he wants to make a comeback, he must make all kinds of humiliating compromises. As a result, Niu Yuan's confidant Hong Lishen was deposed from the capital province and made him return to his hometown; And selected the imperial history of Su Zongshan and Gui Fu to enter the Zhongshu Province, Su Zongshan worshiped as a political participant, Gui Fu is the right and concurrently served in this position, temporarily in charge for one year, and then recommended by the hundred officials to take over.

Su Zongshan's appointment did not receive much opposition, which Niu Yuan was fortunate for. Although this thirty-eight-year-old newcomer to officialdom is a confidant of Fengxiang and is from a full Liu Party background, he is tactful and has never done anything to offend people (also because he has not been valued by Liu Zhennian), so the courtiers have a good impression of him and approve of him as a provincial minister. As for Gui Fu, the ministers didn't care too much, this figure who was just running errands for the Liu Party was like a puppet and had no opinions, and seemed to be indifferent to the overall situation. What they attach importance to is the official who will take over this position next year, there are not a few people who covet power, and a bloody battle is inevitable - Niu Yuan deliberately left this thought, which they never expected.

But Niu Yuan can't do anything now, his blind compromise has made him majestic, and he can no longer have the power to influence the situation. In view of such a mess, Niu Yuan had to turn to Liu Zhennian, an old man who had faded out of the decision-making center for many years.

"Liu Gong!" Niu Yuan was dressed in plain white clothes, kneeling in front of Liu Zhennian, "The lower official is guilty, the lower official is guilty......"

"When you insisted on killing Yan Wen, did you ever think about today?" Liu Zhennian asked in a stern tone.

"Xia Guan is wrong, deeply wrong. But people can't be resurrected after death, and this burden can only be carried by your old man......" Niu Yuan wiped his tears and snorted, "How many courtiers are staring at your position, you will go out of the mountain to govern again for the sake of the world!" ”