North Town Fuji.

Zhang Zhou appeared here, and Li Zhang, the commander of the East Factory, personally led the way for him, and at the same time he was greeted by the commander Mu Bin and the Beizhen Fusi Zhen Fu envoy Guo Ang, there were six or seven thousand households and hundreds of households on the side, and Jin Yiwei's greeting of Zhang Zhou was of the highest standard.

Zhang Zhou's arrival this time was not for Xie Qian's case.

Because from Zhu Youji's point of view, he didn't want Zhang Zhou to be too involved in Xie Qian's affairs, but Liu Yu was the one Zhang Zhou went to get after all, and Liu Yu's case had to be handled by Zhang Zhou personally.

But after Zhang Zhou arrived at Fusi in Beizhen, the first criminal he wanted to see was Xie Qian.

"Sir, wait a minute, Elder Xie Ge will invite you out soon, don't publicize today's meeting. This is what Your Majesty meant. Li Zhang said respectfully to Zhang Zhou.

"Hmm."

Zhang Zhou sat on a chair in a banquet parlor in Fusi, Beizhen, and drank the tea specially prepared for him by Jinyiwei.

The sky has begun to be a little dark, Zhang Zhou still has guests to see that night, thinking about the things arranged after dark, Zhang Zhou couldn't help but get up and look at the window, the snow in the courtyard of Jinyiwei is cleared more timely than other places, only some traces of snow can be seen on the roof.

"Sir, someone has arrived." When Li Zhang came back, he was followed by Xie Qian.

"Oh."

Zhang Zhou turned around and looked at Xie Qian, Xie Qian's state was very bad at this time, the whole person was a little desolate and lonely, the clothes on his body were also slightly shabby, and there was a feeling of dust, even if he didn't receive any inhuman treatment in the prison cell of Fusi in Beizhen, but he didn't come for a vacation, the people of Jinyiwei knew how to see the wind and steer the rudder, and knew that Xie Qian was not favored by the emperor now, and he would definitely wear small shoes for Xie Qian behind his back.

"Sir, you talk first, and our family will retreat first." After Li Zhang finished speaking, he waved his hand to let the people standing on the side retreat, and even he walked away.

After going out, Li Zhang personally closed the door.

Zhang Zhou pointed to the seat next to him and said, "Elder Xie Ge, please take a seat." ”

Xie Qian didn't sit down, and said in a somewhat abrupt tone: "Why are you?" ”

Zhang Zhoudao: "I went back to Beijing yesterday, and I also learned the news of the victory in Jizhou Town last night, and I finally rested for a few hours when I returned home today, and I was invited here by Gonggong Li. ”

"What's wrong with him?" Xie Qian asked.

"It's a very bad thing, corrupt and pervert the law, and fill your own pockets. It caused a lot of complaints from the local gentry and the common people, and had a very bad impact on the imperial court. Zhang Zhou replied.

Xie Qian frowned and looked at Zhang Zhou, as if to say, are you sure that these crimes you are talking about are Liu Yu's? How does it sound like a review of your past mistakes? Didn't you do it?

Zhang Zhou said: "Xie Ge Lao heard that the north has won a great victory? ”

Xie Qian turned his head to the side, this time he seemed to put down the shelf, and also put down the reserve of being a literati, sat down with the armrest of the chair, and adjusted it slightly before saying: "It's not that you said, where did I hear about it?" The old man has become a person who closes his eyes and listens here. How do you deal with the old man, even if you say it, the old man doesn't frown. ”

Zhang Zhou smiled.

Although he hadn't come to visit Xie Qian before, he knew Xie Qian's situation very well.

Li Zhang had already told him that Xie Qian was in the Fusi Edict Prison in Beizhen, even if he was not punished, he suffered a lot because of rheumatism and other problems in an old bone, especially when it was cold outside, and the temperature in the cell was below zero, so he covered a quilt to sleep, and the cell boss was in a good mood to provide a brazier, and the Xie family had to come to give gifts, but in fact, Xie Qian had long been sick because of cold and other problems these days, which is also the reason why people look haggard.

Don't frown?

It's because you want to frown and don't have a chance, and then your face will be tightened, so that your face will not change!

Zhang Zhoudao: "Your Majesty didn't tell me clearly, but Gonggong Li said that Your Majesty is ready to let Xie Ge Lao resign and return to your hometown, and raise your life with peace of mind." ”

"Humph! That's it? Xie Qian looked very disdainful.

Arrested the edict and made me suffer so much, just to let me resign and leave the court?

Xie Qian paused, and said sharply: "The next step is for you to enter the cabinet, right?" ”

Zhang Zhou said: "What is Elder Xie Ge talking about?" What does your resignation and return to your hometown have to do with my entry into the cabinet? At present, there are still three cabinet elders in the cabinet, thank you for not many pavilion elders, and you are a lot, is it possible that without Xie Gelao, the Ming Dynasty Hall will be suspended? ”

"Shutdown?" Xie Qian pondered the meaning of the word for a moment, and then said angrily, "Are you entertaining the old man?" ”

Zhang Zhou sat down on the chair next to him, and even crossed Erlang's legs.

Xie Qian was surprised by Zhang Zhou's demeanor in front of him.

Even in his mind, Zhang Zhou is the representative of hostile forces and the embodiment of Shameless Bastards, but in his eyes in the past, Zhang Zhou can be regarded as a polite bastard, and he still looks like a literati...... But now, Zhang Zhou seems to be a powerful villain.

"Elder Xie Ge, have you done something wrong, you don't let people say anything wrong, and you even plan to put the blame on me? Think I hurt you? Zhang Zhou looked complacent.

This is the gesture of the victor.

Xie Qian said angrily: "What's wrong with the old man? ”

Zhang Zhoudao: "The British Duke is out on an expedition, and your ministers don't provide assistance, but they pretend to say that they want to support, and even the basic grain, grass and baggage can't be supplied, and the household department has been prevaricating, in fact, His Majesty knows this matter, if you don't take responsibility, you need the household department to take responsibility, you pick one." ”

"You ......" Xie Qian was a little speechless.

But think about it, and that's there.

There was no result in the war in the north before, and the emperor would not take the household department to open the knife, but now the results have basically come out, although the multi-front battlefield is currently blooming in the east, but the emperor has the confidence to rectify the household department.

Zhang Zhou said again: "This is your first mistake. The second mistake is that you are looking for someone to impeach Xinbo, you know that Xinbo's sending troops to assist the British Duke is His Majesty's will, and you also know that this is just a coordinated operation, but it is just a link in the dispatch of troops in the northwest, but you ignore the friendship of your ministers, attack Xinjian Bo with inexplicable crimes, and even manipulate the officials behind your back, is this your responsibility as a member of the cabinet? ”

Xie Qian said coldly: "There is no evidence. ”

Zhang Zhoudao: "It's okay, it's better to choose one of the two, either you take responsibility, or Your Majesty will take a good look at who is behind the scenes, and think about it to see if you want to burn this fire to the entire cabinet, I don't know how much Liu Ge Lao and Li Ge Lao have to do with this matter." ”

Xie Qian was speechless for a while.

He felt as if he had been grabbed by seven inches.

It is true that he Xie Qian did not do the matter alone, but now if he only cares about Xie Qian, and does not hold the household department and the department officials accountable, and does not implicate this matter on Liu Jian and Li Dongyang, then it seems that it has become the best option for him Xie Qian to bear the responsibility alone.

He's pondering, too.

This is being put on the moral high ground, forcing me to bear it.

Can I say that I don't bear it, can you just love to involve whomever you want, who you love to impel and who to prison? Wouldn't that be a model of the literati?

Zhang Zhoudao: "If Xie Ge Lao agrees, the colleagues in Kedao who were held accountable for this incident before will not be blamed in the past, what should they do, and even the literati will return their innocence, so that they can claim to be clear." There is no double punishment for one crime, and after this matter has passed, His Majesty will not bother with them again. ”

Xie Qian remained silent.

Zhang Zhou seemed to be negotiating at the table with Xie Qian, but in fact, only he Zhang Zhou had the power to open conditions, Zhang Zhou continued: "Xie Ge Lao went out from here, returned to his hometown, and the people in your family have no influence, I forgot to tell you that your family's wife and children have now left Beijing and returned to Yuyao, only Ling Lang Xie Pi still stays in Beijing to prepare for the next year's examination." ”

The muscles on Xie Qian's face moved, still pretending to be deaf and dumb.

Zhang Zhoudao: "This is what Gonggong Li told me before. Now I will say what I think. In my opinion, in this matter, His Majesty has regressed and made concessions, and has not cared about the affairs of the ministers of the DPRK and China forming parties for personal gain, nor has he been excessively harsh on anyone, which is the best result, isn't it? ”

Xie Qian said in a cold tone: "With me alone, in exchange for the stability of the entire court?" ”

"Let's just say that. Xie Ge Lao is in a high position, and he must bear more responsibilities than others, and only your shoulders can pick up so much, do you change the line of others? If Xie Ge is unwilling, you might as well wait for a few years, after I lose power, after this court restores your so-called order, it is not impossible to make a comeback to clean up your situation. ”

Zhang Zhou said in a joking tone, as if he was making fun of himself.

Xie Qian snorted lightly: "Da Ming has you, it's not good!" Your Majesty has been deceived by you. ”

"When the Holy Hearing is blinded, there are also times when the clouds are cleared, and everyone in the world says that this flower is not red for a hundred days, and I myself have no idea of falling in love with power, how can I come to Xie Ge Lao, but I am so pessimistic? Take a step back and say, in a few years, another powerful minister will emerge in the court, and my position will be squeezed, maybe what he does is not as good as me, what he did is not to take a step back, but to kill them all, what did Xie Ge Lao think at that time? ”

Zhang Zhou easily analyzed the things that he might encounter in the future for Xie Qian.

There was Li Guang first, and then he Zhang Zhou.

Who knows if there will be a powerful minister in the future?

Xie Qian frowned and said, "What do you see?" ”

Zhang Zhou shrugged his shoulders and said: "I can see more than Xie Ge Lao, but I may not have the city government and ambition like Xie Ge Lao, I am just an idler who walks step by step and eats and waits for death, Xie Ge Lao, I wish you a smooth journey back to your hometown!" ”

……

……

Under Xie Qian's complicated gaze, Zhang Zhou left the banquet room.

When he walked out, there were small snowflakes outside, and Zhang Zhou didn't feel cold, but just beckoned the people on the side to come over and inform Li Zhang to invite Liu Yu over again.

"Sir, are you done talking?"

Li Zhang didn't expect Zhang Zhou to come out so soon.

Zhang Zhoudao: "I roughly told Elder Xie Ge what Gonggong Li told me, and I didn't listen to what he said before coming out." Let's put it this way, in the future, Xie Ge Lao will not be in the court, I still think it's a pity, there is one less person in the court. ”

Li Zhang said with a smile: "This kind of person doesn't have to be missed, the speed of his tongue is not a big deal, and there will be people like him in the future, who will find something unhappy with you, and you don't have to show mercy." ”

"Huh." Zhang Zhou smiled but did not say a word.

Then Li Zhang led the way, and this time directly took Zhang Zhou to the court of Fusi in Beizhen.

But seeing Liu Yu kneeling there, his unkempt clothes were torn a lot, and there were a lot of blood marks on his body.

I had not received any punishment before, and when I looked at this scene, it seemed that the injuries I had received were all new, and it was just the matter of the past few days.

"Zhang Butang, help, Zhang Butang." When Liu Yu saw Zhang Zhou, he was like seeing a living Bodhisattva, and he was about to grab Zhang Zhou's ankle when he came up, but Li Zhang went up and kicked people away.

Liu Yuren fell to the ground and didn't get up for a long time.

Li Zhangnunu said, "What are you looking at?" Hold people down! The dignified governor of the Ming Dynasty, who is in a high-ranking feudal official, how can he be like a mad dog? ”

Guo Ang hurriedly said: "Father-in-law, father-in-law, you two are angry, there are some cases that are unclear in the past two days, and the above orders are to be interrogated by torture, so that these days are ...... Liu Zhongcheng's condition is not very good, and he is ...... right now It's all good, and the two of them are abrupt. ”

"What's the case?" Li Zhang said, "Does he still need to be interrogated for his corruption and perversion of the law?" Just go to the place where he used to be an official and arrest a few people, and ask a little, isn't it clear? In Daming, people who dare to bend the law for bribes are not looking for death? ”

Liu Yu said: "No, father-in-law, I have never been corrupt and bent the law, even if there is something inappropriate, it is to raise money and food for the imperial court, I am innocent, this can stand up to investigation." ”

Li Zhang didn't bother to pay attention to Liu Yu, but looked at Zhang Zhou with a smile and said, "Sir, this person ...... You give an opinion. Even if you pull it out and chop it, it's just a matter of your words. ”

"Huh?"

Liu Yu was taken aback.

He obviously did a good job as the governor of Jizhou, but he was suddenly taken down, and now he can be killed directly without a detailed conviction?

Zhang Zhoudao: "Speaking of which, he can still do something." ”

"Yes, grandpa, villains can do things, they can do things......" Liu Yu is obviously not a hard bone.

In other words, the methods in this Beizhen Fusi are too cruel, and ordinary literati who have never experienced this kind of battle can easily collapse under the punishment.

But Liu Yu just looks like a wretch, at least in some major matters, it seems that Liu Yu still has a hard mouth and can bite it off, and he doesn't casually admit it or involve others.

This shows that the punishment is still not enough.

Li Zhang said: "Your Majesty's meaning, this person is a dog's life, he has done too many dirty things, and there is no need to use this kind of person in the court!" Eat inside and out, and don't know what to advance or retreat...... Liu Zhongcheng, don't blame our family for speaking ugly, you went to talk to that Ma Shangshu, and now you want to take Cai Guogong's boat, do you think there is such a cheap thing? ”

"What? Gonggong Li, you said so, can't the villain be changed? Liu Yu looked bitter.

Li Zhang waved his hand and said, "It's late!" When you first came in, why weren't you personal? Now that the north is good, you don't need to do anything! Ma Shangshu said to retreat, and the Zhang Butang in front of you will be the official of the Ming Dynasty between words. If you still want to be left and right, then you miss the opportunity and regret it too late! (End of chapter)