"Chen Wenqi, in decades, you are the first person who dares to talk about Huangguan in front of the royal family, and your courage is not small. Zhu Youzhu said in a cold tone.

"Your Majesty, it was the Marquis of Shouning who asked first, and Weichen answered later, and Weichen also told the truth. Chen Wenqi is not afraid, Zhang Luan is fascinating, and he himself does not want to stay out of it.

"Hmph, I didn't give you a half-official position, but you called yourself a 'Weichen'? You are telling the truth, and it is also a fact that the Emperor Yongle Ye Ge has no honor in addition to Huang Guan, why don't you 'tell the truth'?" Zhu Youzhu did not follow Chen Wenqi's "train of thought" to pursue the interrogator Zhang Luan.

"Back to the emperor, the student was about to say that it was the princes who interrupted the student's words, so he didn't have time to say it yet. ”

Chen Wenqi changed his words quickly, but Liu Jian and some other upright ministers sank: Why didn't the emperor want Chen Wenqi to call himself a "micro-minister"? Do you have to let him be the second Huangguan?

"Well, then you can talk about it. Zhu Youzhu still said with a calm face.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Huang Guan won the championship in the Xinweike Palace, which is a piece of history. In addition to "Dengkelu", there are also "Records of the Same Year", as well as "Cheng Wen" and "Jinshi Inscription Monument", which are recorded, in addition to the word of mouth of the same imperial examination people and folk markets, even if it is removed from the "Dengkelu", it is difficult to erase this fact. As for whether he was loyal or treacherous after that, it did not affect his achievements in the scientific expedition in the slightest. ”

"According to your words, the removal of Huang Guan from the list in "Dengkelu" is wrong?"

"Moving the capital to Beijing, the Son of Heaven guards the gate of the country and praises the world; opens up the territory to protect our China from dominating the world; dredging the canal to benefit the people of Li for thousands of years; and goes to the West seven times, 'dazzling soldiers in foreign lands' to make all countries come to court...... As the so-called 'strategy of martial arts, it is the same as Gaozu. The six divisions have come out repeatedly, and the dust in Mobei is clear. In the year of its quarter, Weide was served, and he was ordered to pay tribute. The width of the fall is far from the Han and Tang Dynasties. There is no doubt that the great achievements of the old emperor Taizong are in the annals of history. But Yu did not hide his flaws, and removed Huang Guan from the "Dengke Lu", which was indeed the old emperor Taizong's lack of thought. Chen Wenqi spoke eloquently, regardless of what kind of punishment he would receive.

"Your Majesty, this Chen Wenqi has slandered the ancestors of the emperor many times and committed the crime of bullying the king, if it is not dealt with strictly, where is the majesty of the royal family?" Zhang Luan took the opportunity to fan the flames.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Luan's fire did not burn Chen Wenqi, but set himself on fire.

Zhu Youzhu snorted and said to Zhang Luan: "Chen Aiqing is talking about things, how did he slander the emperor's ancestor?

Only then did the civil and military officials understand that the emperor had previously reproached Chen Wenqi in order to suppress the anger of the royal kings. If Chen Wenqi is exonerated at the beginning, it will be like adding fuel to the fire for the kings, although the emperor has supreme authority, but the energy of the entire imperial family cannot be underestimated, if the kings are dissatisfied with the emperor, internal strife together, the light imperial power will lose its authority, and the heavy will shake the throne. What's more, Zhu Youzhu has not succeeded to the throne for a long time and his foundation is not strong?

The kings' anger subsided, and they calmed down and thought about it, it is true, although Chen Wenqi said, in fact, the root cause is still in Zhang Luan's question, and the emperor excused Chen Wenqi and blamed Zhang Luan, which is indeed good.

Rao is Zhang Luan is old and calculating, and he didn't expect the emperor to be angry on his head, although it was a cold spring, his body was hot. If you can't suppress Chen Wenqi today, although you will not have a big deal with the daughter of the queen, I am afraid that the end of the gray face will be inevitable. He was determined to take a desperate gamble and throw his trump card.

"Your Majesty, Wei Chen's words are unscrupulous, and he has committed a royal taboo, so please ask the emperor to punish him. But Chen Wenqi is a great rebel, and he also asked the emperor to punish him. ”

"What do you mean by that?" Zhu Youzhu frowned.

"Returning to the emperor, Chen Wenqi despised the family rules and was disobedient and unfilial. Zhang Luan deliberately wanted to say goodbye, so as to arouse the emperor's anger.

"Shou Ninghou has something to say quickly, so you don't have to swallow it. ”

"Emperor Qi, Chen Wenqi's hometown of Chenjiazhuang, is a 'shrimp land' feng shui, because the shrimp is red after death, so the Chen family has forbade the clansmen to wear red clothes for generations. Today, Chen Wenqi is wearing a big red robe, and his hat is inserted with a big red hairpin, isn't he despising the clan rules and disobeying and unfilial?"

When Liu Jian and the others in the audience heard this, they secretly said that it was not good. Zhu Youzhu "rules the world with filial piety", and the most disgusting and intolerable are the unfilial people. If there is such a rule in Chen Wenqi's family, Chen Wenqi will not only lose his reputation, but also be severely punished.

Weng Junding on the side was even more emotional, not long ago on the night of the Lantern Festival, he also talked to Chen Wenqi about the issue of the champion robe, but unfortunately he did not pay attention to it at that time, otherwise, there would not be today's situation.

Chen Wenqi was still calm as usual, and there was no panic. It's just that I have doubts in my heart: Although the taboo red color of our clan is not a secret in the local area, Zhang Luan has lived in the capital for a long time, how can he know the customs of my Chenjiazhuang thousands of miles away? Could it be him? Chen Wenqi remembered the back of the Tongfu Inn.

Zhu Youzhu also thought of this question, and he asked Zhang Luan:

"The Marquis of Shouning has lived in the capital for a long time, how do you know that Chenjiazhuang has this custom?"

Zhang Luan said hesitantly: "Weichen...... a ...... The girl Situ Yan is the same villager as Chen Wenqi, and she told Weichen. ”

Situ Yan, Situ Jiao! Chen Wenqi instantly understood everything. Without waiting for him to think about it, Emperor Zhu Youjiao's voice came without being angry and threatening:

"Chen Wenqi, is what Shou Ninghou said true or false?"

"Back to the emperor, our people do avoid red, slightly ...... The students had never seen a clansman dressed in red since they were young. However, there is no explicit provision in the clan rules of our people, it is just a tacit tradition that everyone has tacitly understood for hundreds of years. ”

When Liu Jian and the others heard that it was not a clan rule, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Your Majesty, even if the clan rules are not explicitly stipulated, the customs of Chenjiazhuang and the people surnamed Chen have never had a precedent for wearing red clothes, which is enough to prove that Chen Wenqi despises the clan rules and is disobedient and unfilial, and there is no difference between this. Zhang Luan fell into the well, for fear that the emperor would be soft-hearted.

Zhang Luan is pressing step by step, and there is a great tendency to not give up if he does not get rid of Chen Wenqi. Liu Jian was anxious, but if he came forward to argue, it would be difficult for Zhang Luan to make a fuss about his teacher-student relationship with Chen Wenqi, and add another charge of "friend", and the consequences would be even more difficult to imagine. He looked at Xu Pu, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, hoping that he could defend Chen Wenqi.

Xu Pu saw Liu Jian looking at him, and he already understood his meaning, so he hurriedly said:

"Your Majesty, since it is not a family rule, Chen Zhuangyuan wearing a red robe is not unfilial. Besides, this big red champion robe was given by the emperor, if Chen Zhuangyuan didn't wear it, wouldn't he have committed the crime of deceiving the king? Not wearing the champion robe is disloyalty, wearing the champion robe is unfilial piety, people say that loyalty and filial piety cannot be both, under the dilemma, of course, the national law is greater than the family rules, can only care about the family rules and ignore the national law? Therefore, Weichen thought that Chen Wenqi was a person who took the overall situation into account and understood the general situation, and there was nothing wrong with wearing this big red robe, and I implored the emperor to be clear. ”

Xu Pu said this, Zhu Youzhu nodded slightly, and the anger that had just risen in his heart dissipated by more than half.

Zhang Luan saw that the emperor showed an approving look at Xu Pu's words, and hurriedly said: "Lord Xu's words are wrong. The sage said: Those who want to be clear and virtuous in the world in ancient times will rule their country first. Those who want to rule their country must first gather their families. Those who want to gather their families must first cultivate their bodies. Self-cultivation followed by family Qi, family Qi followed by national governance, and national governance followed by world peace. If Chen Wenqi can't abide by his family's rules, how can he be loyal to the country?"

Although Zhu Youzhu did not approve of Zhang Luan's strong argument, he was also dissatisfied with Chen Wenqi: Since your Chen family has this family rule, even if it is an unwritten custom, as a clansman, you should follow the rules. Even if the current family rules of the national law cannot be taken into account, you should make it clear to me in advance, and I will make the decision for you. It seems that abandoning the family rules is disregarded, even if it is not a big unfilial piety, it is also a bad family custom, in short, it is definitely not the behavior of a moral gentleman. However, Chen Wenqi was in a proper manner in his words and deeds, so how could he treat this "family rule" so rashly? Zhu Youzhu thought about it and felt that the matter had not yet been clarified. However, today is the Qionglin Martial Arts Banquet, and there is no need to make it like a three-hall trial, since the abbot wants to embarrass him, I will fulfill the wish of the abbot, and lock him up first. Thinking of this, he waved his hand to Xu Puyi, who was about to argue with reason, and said:

Xu Aiqing doesn't need to say any more. Whether it is 'clan rules' or 'customs', as a clan, you should practice them. If it is difficult to achieve both of them because of the contradiction between the law of the country and the family rules, it should be made clear to me and I will adjudicate it. Chen Wenqi did not abide by the clan rules, nor did he ask for a holy judgment, and acted arbitrarily on his own initiative, if he was not punished, wouldn't I say in vain 'rule the world with filial piety'?" After speaking, his face turned cold, and he shouted: "Come on, take down Chen Wenqi and put him in prison." ”

Zhu Youzhu gave an order, Liu Jian's side, Zhang Luan's side, and Jinyiwei's side, all parties had reactions. Liu Jian's side was terrified and complained bitterly; Zhang Luan's side was overjoyed and triumphant; and the people in Jinyi were like wolves and tigers, and their momentum was violent. But these three groups of people have a common performance: confusion.

According to the custom, if you want to be imprisoned for the crimes of the court officials, you must first remove the official uniform and crown that symbolize fame. Now that the emperor has not yet made it clear, this will inevitably cause them to be confused: Zhang Luan, Yin Zhi, and others wondered, why didn't the emperor take away Chen Wenqi's fame? Could it be that he was fooling himself by making a show? Liu Jian and others speculated that the emperor did not explicitly say that Chen Wenqi's fame would be removed, and there might be room for things to turn around. The Jinyi guards didn't know how to start with Chen Wenqi, and the emperor didn't open his mouth if he got rid of his champion clothes;

Zhu Youzhu saw that Jinyiwei was reluctant to make a move, and Zhang Luan and the others were about to speak, so he waved his sleeves and said coldly: "What are you doing in a daze?

"Your Majesty, the minister has a plan to play. In a hurry, Liu Jian could no longer care about the suspicion of "friends", and said loudly.

Zhu Youzhu didn't give him a chance, and said coldly: "There is a replay tomorrow morning, today is the Qionglin Martial Arts Banquet, everyone drinks." Come, let's have a drink together. ”

Wen Zhuangyuan Chen Wenqi was imprisoned, and the festive atmosphere of the banquet plummeted, especially those new scholars who "ascended to the Tianzi Hall at the end of the court." How could they ever have seen such a battle? At this time, everyone was frightened, and how could they have the heart to drink? Everyone reluctantly followed the emperor to raise a glass and drink, without any previous festive atmosphere. Seeing this, Zhu Youzhu was also uninterested, and after drinking a few glasses of light wine, he sullenly ordered to drive back to the palace.

Liu Jian was concerned about Chen Wenqi's safety, and when he saw the emperor getting up, he hurriedly left the table and left Qionglin Garden, and knelt down in front of Zhu Youjiao, who was about to board the dragon chariot: "Your Majesty, the ministers ......."

Without waiting for Liu Jian to continue, Zhu Youzhu intercepted and said: "Liu Aiqing has something to say, please follow me to the imperial study." The tone changed from the previous coldness to a much gentler tone.

When Liu Jian heard the emperor's tone, his heart suddenly felt a lot easier, and he quickly stood up, followed behind Long Yuan, and came all the way to the imperial study.

After Zhu Youzhu entered the imperial study, he did not immediately summon Liu Jian to meet him, but sent the little eunuch beside him to send the Jinyi guard commander Mu Bin.

"Mu Aiqing, Chen Wenqi, the champion of Wen who was put in the prison cell, you move him to a secret place and detain him, and send a reliable person to take care of him, don't treat him like a prisoner. Got it?"

Wechen understood. ”

"Wait. Also, you can explain that no one is allowed to visit the prison if you don't see the royal gold medal. ”

"Yes, Weichen will arrange it. ”

After Mu Bin left, Zhu Youzhu announced that Liu Jian, who had been waiting outside the door of the imperial study for a long time, came to see him.

"Minister Liu Jian knocked to see the saint, long live my emperor, long live, long live. ”

"Mr. Liu, don't be polite, give me a seat. Zhu Youzhu was much gentler at this time than in Qionglin Yuan, and ordered the eunuch to bring a seat for Liu Jian.

After Liu Jian thanked his seat, he didn't care about polite foreshadowing, and went straight to the point: "Your Majesty, Chen Wenqi is wearing a big red robe today, his feelings are pitiful, and his actions are forgivable. If you don't wear it, you will be vulgar, it is a big sin to bully the king, and it is a small mistake to be unconventional, so Weichen thinks that Chen Wenqi's choice today is not inappropriate. Moreover, Chen Wenqi is talented and courageous, and he is really a rare young talent in our dynasty. Taste the words of people: employing people is like using wood, and there is no need to abandon the material of the embrace. I implore the emperor to forgive Chen Wenqi's so-called 'unconventional' mistakes, and leave a pillar of talent for the imperial court. ”

Zhu Youzhu did not completely agree with Liu Jian's words, although there was a conflict between the national law and the family rules, if he had made it clear to me in advance, that I would have made the decision for him, how could he get to such a point? It can be seen that this Chen Wenqi's "courage and wisdom" is false, and "courage but ignorance" is true. But Zhu Youzhu knew the truth that "the king does not argue, and the argument is less powerful", and he was unwilling to discuss with Liu Jian whether Chen Wenqi was "knowledgeable" or "ignorant", so he just said lightly:

"The laws of the court cannot be abolished because of people. I advocate 'filial piety to rule the world', and the people we use must not only be loyal, but also filial piety. Chen Wenqi is certainly talented, but if he is misbehaved, how can he be worthy of a great responsibility?"

"Your Majesty, with Weichen's understanding of Chen Wenqi, he is not so confused, there must be a hidden secret, and I implore the emperor to find out. Liu Jian was a little unwilling to argue.

Since this is the case, I asked Mr. Liu to go and inquire to see if he really has a hidden secret. ”

"The Holy God ordered Wechen to investigate? Chen Wenqi and Wechen have a teacher-student friendship, this is ...... I'm afraid it's not appropriate, right?" Liu Jian was a little surprised.

Zhu Youzhu smiled and said, "Mr. Liu is a decent and dignified person, who doesn't know about the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty? I have ordered Mu Bin to transfer Chen Wenqi to a secret place for special care. There is a gold medal side to this, and Mr. can just use this gold medal to find Mu Bin. ”

"Emperor Xie is in love, and Weichen will go to inquire about Chen Wenqi. ”

Liu Jian held Zhu Youzhang's gold medal, withdrew from the imperial study, and stepped out of the Forbidden City, his official sedan chair was still waiting outside the door. was about to get on the sedan chair, and suddenly a person turned out from behind the sedan chair and prostrated on the ground: "The teacher is on top, and the student Weng Junding will meet you." ”

"Ah, it's you. Why haven't you been back to the inn yet?"

After the entrance examination, the Chinese-style jinshi moved from the inns and inns where they stayed to the post house of the official family, and waited for the palace examination to be appointed to the post.

"The student wanted to inquire about the news of Brother Chen. Weng Junding said in a panic.

"Oh, Wen Qi doesn't have a big problem for the time being, and the emperor still needs to find out what is going on with his 'clan rules'. In this way, you go to the post house to get Wenqi's luggage and follow me around. ”

Weng Junding was naturally happy, and hurriedly took Chen Wenqi's package, followed Liu Jian's official sedan chair, and followed him to the edict prison step by step.

Although the edict prison is heavily guarded, there is a gold medal from the emperor, and there is no obstruction to pass everywhere you go. After a while, Weng Junding supported his mentor Liu Jian and came to the place where Chen Wenqi was held.

It's quite funny to say, Chen Wenqi is in the center of the cell, but he is still wearing a red champion clothes, which looks a little nondescript. Seeing the arrival of his teacher, Chen Wenqi hurriedly greeted him. Liu Jian didn't greet him, and said officially: "Chen Wenqi, this official is ordered to inquire, and you have to answer truthfully." ”

Chen Wenqi saw that Liu Jian was indifferent, so he had no choice but to respond: "The adult's inquiry is that the student is not lying." ”

"This official asks you, since your family surnamed Chen is forbidden to wear red clothes, why do you ignore the clan rules and wear red robes?"

"Lord Hui, it is true that the clan taboos red clothes, but there is no explicit rule prohibiting the clansmen from wearing them. Moreover, the students wore champion robes, which were also licensed by the current patriarch of the clan, Uncle Chen Nansong. ”

"Concession? The emperor only appointed you as the new champion the day before yesterday, and your uncle is thousands of miles away, how can he know and how to 'license'?"

"The student has the handwritten evidence of Uncle Chen Nansong, the current patriarch of the clan. ”

"Where's the note?"

Chen Wenqi took the package from Weng Junding's hand, took out an unopened letterhead from the package, and presented it to Liu Jian with both hands.

Liu Jian tore open the envelope and took out the letterhead, only to see that it read:

"Wen Qi went to Beijing to take the exam this time, if he was lucky enough to take the lead, he should take the national rules as the priority, wear red and wear flowers, and do not take family customs as a constraint. Chen Nansong. On the sixteenth day of the first month of the third year of Hongzhi. ”

"Brother Chen, you haven't opened this letterhead, how do you know that what Uncle Zun wrote is the meaning of allowing you to wear red?" Weng Junding recalled the scene when Chen Nansong handed over the letter that day, and couldn't help asking.

"Do you remember what my uncle said at that time?' If you are lucky enough to pass the examination and win the first prize, you can open it and look at it, and if you do not take the lead, bring it back to your uncle as it is.'" Only if you win the champion can you read the letter, and it must be related to the champion wearing. My uncle was afraid that he would embarrass me by saying it, so it is not difficult to guess what he wrote. Chen Wenqi said lightly.

When Liu Jian saw that his patriarch had allowed the handwriting, his heart was relieved, but he remained silent and continued to ask:

"Since you know that the patriarch has a special document, why didn't you say it during the banquet?"

"The students are afraid that they will not be good for their teachers, so they dare not say it. Unconsciously, Chen Wenqi changed his name to Liu Jian, and Liu Jian couldn't help but feel relaxed because Chen Wenqi had a note that his patriarch had special care, and the inquiry turned into a teacher-student dialogue.

"It's not good for the old man?" Liu Jian frowned.

"Do you still remember the 'buying official question' case after the exam?"

"Are you saying that if you say that the patriarch has allowed you to wear red and green, it will leave people with the truth that you and I colluded in advance to buy official issues?" Liu Jian's thinking was very quick.

Chen Wenqi nodded and said: "As the teacher said, the emperor only appointed the student as the champion of the new subject the day before yesterday, and my uncle is thousands of miles away, how can he know and 'license' the student to wear the champion clothes? And there is only one possibility to take the lead in the palace examination where a group of talents gather, that is, students will definitely be able to know the palace examination questions before the palace examination, and they will be fully prepared, so they are not afraid of falling behind. The teacher is the reader of the examination of the current science hall, and he is also the master of the second examination of the student township and the second examination, and the person who leaks the question must be the teacher. ”

Liu Jian thought for a while, then slowly shook his head and said: "No, the official of the palace examination is a temporary candidate appointed by the emperor after the examination, and there is a period of time between you coming to Beijing to take the examination, can you still not predict the prophet?"

"Since Zhang Luan, the Marquis of Shouning, is deliberately trying to disadvantage me, he will inevitably make a big fuss about the collusion between his teacher and his students. He can say that the teacher had already expected that the emperor would appoint him as the palace examination paper reading officer, and he could also say that other palace examination paper reading officials had a great friendship with the teacher, and they could also leak the questions, etc. In short, none of this is important, what matters is the fact that the student has the permission of the patriarch to wear the crown of the champion before passing the examination, and based on this fact alone, you and I are afraid that you and I will be at a loss for words. ”

Liu Jian smiled dumbly, pointed at Chen Wenqi and said, "Wenqi, Wenqi, you underestimate the current emperor." Although the emperor is young, he is a generous, peaceful, wise and wise virtuous king, how can he be convicted by listening to one or two slanderous words? However, although you are not careful about this matter, I still accept it to protect the old man's wishes. By the way, when did you have a grudge against Zhang Luan?"

"A few days ago, the students were also puzzled, and I didn't know Zhang Luan for the rest of my life......"

Without waiting for Chen Wenqi to finish speaking, Liu Jian seemed to have an understanding and said: "Yes, as the saying goes: if the wood is beautiful in the forest, the wind will destroy it; Presumably it was you who connected the three yuan, and his eyes were red and jealous, so he was embarrassed by you everywhere. ”

Chen Wenqi shook his head and said, "At the banquet today, it was said that his girl's name was Situ Yan, and the student knew that there was something else hidden. ”

"Huh, you know Situ Yan?"

Although the student didn't know Situ Yan, he had a bit of a holiday with a scoundrel named Situ Jiao. Do you remember the 'Kung Fu Teahouse' next to Huangzhou Road last year?"

Liu Jian sneered: "Remember, why don't you remember?" It was the old man's friend Brother Xia Yao who suddenly had a whim, what kind of talent test to do, and the old man had to play with him. Didn't you meet for the first time in that teahouse?"

"Zhong Lilan, the female shopkeeper of the teahouse, do you still have an impression?"

"Why not? I'm quite impressed. Although the girl is a woman, she has the boldness of a husband, and she chased the old husband and brother to return half a day's rent that day. Hey, why did you talk about her all of a sudden?"

"The teacher doesn't know. On that day, as soon as you and the old man left on the front foot, a group of people came on the back foot, led by this Situ Jiao. Then Chen Wenqi told Liu Jian about Situ Jiao's troubles in the teahouse, coerced Zhong Lilan, and persuaded Situ Jiao to complain, abolish the engagement contract between Zhong Lilan and Situ Jiao, and later Situ Jiao brought people to Chenjiazhuang to make trouble, and saw Situ Jiao in the "Tongfu Inn", etc., and told Liu Jian again, and finally said: "This Situ Jiaowen can't use a pen to measure words, and he can't defend himself with a sword, but he has repeatedly made trouble and rampaged in the township. ”

Liu Jian nodded: "It seems that all this is Situ Jiao's ghost." But now is not the time to delve into the relationship between Situ Jiao and Zhang Luan. The old man should tell the emperor the meaning of the patriarch as soon as possible and eliminate the emperor's misunderstanding of you. After that, he instructed the jailers not to abuse Chen Wenqi, and quickly left the prison with Weng Junding.

Before leaving, Weng Junding, who had not spoken for a long time, walked to Chen Wenqi's side, held his hand and said comfortingly: "Brother Chen, I have both the permission of my uncle and the help of my teacher, I believe that it will not be long before the emperor will be acquitted, please cherish it." ”

Chen Wenqi nodded and watched the two leave the prison.