Hanhou

Due to drought and locust plagues, people in Hedong County rushed to other counties in large numbers in order to survive.As a result, after the disaster passed, spring plowing began, and no one cultivated the fertile land in the county, and a large area was abandoned.

Zhou Yangyou and Shen Tugong were busy with political battles, and they had a quarrel that was almost endless.

The officials of the counties and counties acted recklessly and exploited the people with clever tricks, making the people's livelihood difficult, and the people who returned to the county fled again.

In order to avoid the leakage of the news, several subordinate officials united with Zhou Yangyou's family, borrowed the name of the captain, and dispatched county soldiers to intercept the people, and almost killed people in the process.

For a time, the people complained, and the people complained, and the tragedy was no less than that of natural disasters.

Really unable to survive, some young and strong people gathered as bandits and hid in Wuxian Mountain.

The prefect ordered the county magistrate of Xia County to send troops to encircle and suppress, but returned without success twice in a row.

The county captain reported that the thieves were cunning and hid in the mountains, but they could not be found anywhere.In fact, the army was full of sympathy, and the thunder was loud and the rain was little, and they had no intention of encircling and suppressing them.Unless it is because of orders, they will not send troops at all.

The incident became more and more troublesome, and even the nearby Hongnong County was full of rumors.

Shen Tugong and Zhou Yangyou finally knew that something was wrong, so they rarely put aside their past suspicions, joined hands to distort the truth, and shifted all the responsibility to the "treacherous people" and "thieves and bandits". .

It's a pity that the people in Hedong County have had a long-standing grudge against these two people, and they can't hide the matter at all.

Before and after the natural disaster, even if they devoted two or three parts of their energy to dealing with the disaster and relocating the people, things would not develop to the point where they are today.

Forcing the hungry people to gather together to become bandits, the army sympathized with the suffering of the people, and almost openly disobeyed, it is an unforgivable crime!

Shen Tugong and Zhou Yang sent the memorials to Chang'an, thinking that they would escape the catastrophe as usual.Unexpectedly, the prefect and captain of Hongnong County are upright people. When they heard about the disaster in Hedong County, they sent people to investigate in private, got solid evidence, and jointly reported the two.

The evidence is conclusive and cannot be denied.In addition to the previous two people attacking each other and competing to deliver black materials, the imperial court sent people to the county to check and confirm.

"The crime should be punished!"

Knowing the truth about Hedong County, Liu Che was furious, and lost his temper in the propaganda room.

"Such officials should be killed!"

If Emperor Jing hadn't abolished a large number of corporal punishments, Liu Che would have wanted to arrest them immediately, and tried them one by one according to the punishment in the pre-Qin period.

"The shepherd guards the side and bears the trust of the imperial court. They should be diligent in governing and caring for the people. It's good for them, they only care about fighting for power and profit, forgetting their duties as officials and even people!"

"I'm going to kill them!"

The Son of Heaven gnashed his eyes and teeth, and flew into a rage, and the memorial was swept to the ground, making a mess in sight.

The eunuch did not dare to make a sound, let alone bend down to tidy up immediately, and carefully stood against the wall pillar, waiting for Liu Che to vent his anger before winking at the palace servants and carefully serving tea soup to let the emperor further calm down his anger.

"Come here!" Liu Che paced back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back.After stopping, he ordered Xuan Tingwei.He will never take Zhou Yangyou and Shen Tugong lightly, as latecomers to the police, these two must die!

Ting Wei was called into the Xuan room and got the emperor's oral order.

Soon, an official of the court lieutenant went out of Chang'an to arrest the prefect Shen Tugong and the captain Zhou Yangyou in Hedong County.The subordinate officials in the county were often shackled, and as many as 230 people were arrested for their relatives and child servants.

Since Liu Che came to the throne, it was the first time that he was so angry with the officials of the DPRK and China, especially the two thousand shi's feudal officials.

The Son of Heaven is clearly going to kill people, and not just one or two. Depending on the posture, once all the charges are verified, it is likely to be the barbarians.Such a major case was not only discussed in the court, but also heard in the palace.

Empress Dowager Dou's condition improved slightly, and when she heard the news, she immediately ordered the eunuchs to invite Liu Che to find out what was going on inside.

Killing the prefect, the captain, and dozens of subordinate officials at once, the county officials in Hedong County were almost killed.

Such a big move is not a heinous crime, it is really rare.Empress Dowager Dou has gone through three dynasties, and she can count similar situations on her fingers.

"What the hell is going on?"

Due to her serious illness, from the fifth year of Jianyuan, Empress Dowager Dou seldom interfered with government affairs.He will be raised for a long time, and his health has finally recovered. When he heard such news, he had to go to invite Liu Che immediately, otherwise he was really worried.

"Mother, Your Majesty is not a person who acts willfully and recklessly. Something serious happened in Hedong County, and these people really deserve what they deserve." Chen Jiaoxuan sat beside Empress Dowager Dou's bed, took the lacquer cup from the palace servants, and personally delivered the decoction to her .

At the same time, she explained to Queen Mother Dou based on what she knew.

"I also heard from my mother that these two people have committed serious crimes and should have been beheaded long ago."

During this period of time, Chen Jiao has been guarding Changle Palace all the time, with her clothes untied, taking good care of Empress Dowager Dou.

On the other hand, the Empress Dowager, taking advantage of Empress Dowager Dou's weak condition and Chen Jiao's lack of skills, summoned Tian Fu several times and wantonly placed people in the palace.Xu Meiren was unable to win over the four sealed family members, and the other three were summoned one after another, and each of them gained a lot of benefits. When they saw the queen again, their attitudes were obviously different from before.

Not wanting to disturb Empress Dowager Dou, Chen Jiao strictly ordered everyone to tighten their mouths and not to reveal anything.

As everyone knows, Empress Dowager Dou has been in the Han Palace for decades, no matter how seriously ill she is, the news in the palace cannot be hidden from her.What happened in the previous dynasty was that she let go voluntarily, for the sake of Dou and Chen, and also for the emperor to remember her well, and treat Chen Jiao kindly after she left.

Inside the Han Palace is another matter.

Even though Chen Jiao ordered her to keep her mouth shut, she still had a channel of news, and she knew everything about what had happened recently, especially the many actions of the Queen Mother.

The reason why she didn't deal with it was to see how Chen Jiao would respond.

As she said before, she couldn't protect Chen Jiao for the rest of her life.After she left, Chen Jiao had to face everything in the Han Palace by herself.If the current "crisis" cannot be resolved, the road ahead will be even more difficult.

What Empress Dowager Dou didn't expect was that Chen Jiao never fought back against the aggressiveness of the Queen Mother, but just endured it silently and served her wholeheartedly.

The Queen Mother wants power, and Chen Jiao will give it to her if she can; the Queen Mother puts eyeliner, but Chen Jiao turns a blind eye;

In the end, Guantao couldn't stand it anymore, rushed into the palace angrily, and made a fuss directly in front of Wang Zhi.

The Queen Mother counted on Liu Che's greetings in the future, and deliberately showed weakness to make Liu Che be unreasonable and unforgiving.

Unexpectedly, Liu Che didn't intend to vent his anger on her at all, instead he sided with Guan Tao and Chen Jiao.Due to filial piety, it is not good to openly contradict the queen dowager, but she is merciless. The efforts of the queen dowager for several months were in vain in an instant.

Wang Zhi was trembling with anger, but Liu Che still didn't let go, and directly separated her from the "palace authority" on the grounds that the Queen Mother was ill and needed to rest.He wanted to embarrass Chen Jiao with his sickness, but was also stopped by Liu Che on the spot.

"Jiaojiao wants to serve the eldest mother, and she can't get away. The elder sister must have known her mistake after closing the door these days. This time, the mother is ill, and the elder sister should serve. The second elder sister is in Yuyang, and there is no time to go back and forth. The third elder sister is with her." Chang'an, you can be called into the palace."

Seeing Liu Che's attitude, Guantao's anger disappeared completely. If it wasn't for the occasion, he would have laughed three times just seeing Wang Zhi's lack of anger.

Probably wanting to further anger Wang Zhi, Liu Xun said bluntly that he would tell the third princess after returning and let her enter the palace to serve Wang Zhi.

The family members who took refuge in Wang Zhi were disrespectful to the queen, even though they were pregnant, they were rejected by Liu Che.

All the rewards that were originally decided have been postponed.Even if they give birth to a prince, as long as the emperor doesn't change his mind, they will stop being a beloved in this life, and it is impossible to lose their rank.

As a descendant of the family, Wei Zifu was not even a good man, but a young envoy who was slightly higher than the palace servants.

In the past, the Queen Mother was very powerful, and she was also the birth mother of the son of heaven. Like the other two sons of the family, she thought she had found a backer.After all, Empress Dowager Dou is seriously ill, and it may not be long. Chen Jiao has no children. It is impossible to think about it like the abolished Empress Bo.

Who would have thought that half of the dream would be shattered by reality.

It was no one else who did it, but the emperor they were thinking of.

Several family members were pregnant, and according to Chen Jiao's arrangement, they moved out of Yongxiang two months ago and moved into Weiyang Palace.As a result, he acted carelessly and aroused the disgust of the emperor, so he was directly moved out of Weiyang Palace and moved into a side hall not far from Yongxiang.

Wei Zifu was not reconciled, but it didn't seem like the other two had lost hope. Instead, he paid attention to the palace servants and eunuchs, and when he saw the palace servants serving Xu Meiren, a look of joy flashed in his eyes.

"Master, it's time to go."

Knowing that the three of them would never be favored again in this life, the eunuch's attitude was respectful, but his tone was contemptuous.

Wei Zifu pretended to be obedient, and followed the crowd to the stone steps. When the palace people were not paying attention, he suddenly lifted the hem of his skirt, and walked quickly to Xu Meiren's bedroom regardless of his heavy body.

"I have your Majesty's heir, who dares to stop me!"

Wei Zifu pushed away the palace man blocking the way, and said to the other two family members: "I don't want to go to Yongxiang again, come with me to beg Your Majesty!"

The two were enlightened, and immediately stood on the same front with Wei Zifu.

Relying on their pregnancy, the three forced their way in, but the eunuchs and palace officials did not dare to stop them. They actually came to Xu Meiren's bedroom and met Liu Che who was visiting the eldest daughter.

"what happened?"

Hearing Liu Che's voice, the three immediately prostrated themselves on the ground. The two cried out their grievances and begged Liu Che not to let them leave Weiyang Palace.

"Your Majesty, my concubine is pregnant with your child."

"I don't want to go back to Yongxiang!"

Liu Che was tired of crying.

According to his temperament, once he hates a person, it is impossible to turn around.Really impatient to look at the two of them again, he immediately ordered the eunuch to pull them away and forcefully send them to the side hall.

Seeing Wei Zifu lying on the ground crying and never making noise, Liu Che frowned and said, "Take her away too."

Just as the eunuch was about to step forward, Wei Zifu suddenly raised his head, unlike the other two whose eyes were red and swollen from crying, on the contrary, the pear blossoms were raining, looking very pitiful, which can arouse people's desire to protect.

"Your Majesty, I don't want anything else, but I just want to see brother."

"Oh?"

Wei Zifu bit his lower lip lightly, and said sadly: "Your Majesty, my concubine went south with the army, and I don't know if he will return safely. I rarely get news in the palace, so I dare to risk disrespect. I am too anxious. If I can let my concubine see my brother On the one hand, this concubine is willing to suffer any punishment!"

Speaking of the soldiers of the Southern Expedition, Liu Che's anger eased a bit.When Wei Zifu told Wei Qing's name and his identity as Zhao Jia's soldier, the image of a handsome young man quickly flashed in his mind.

"It's him?"

Look carefully at the eyebrows and eyes, Wei Zifu and Wei Qing are indeed somewhat similar.

"Your Majesty, I beseech Your Majesty to be fulfilled, I am willing to accept any punishment." Wei Zifu fell on the ground, looking more and more pitiful.

Liu Che was about to wake her up, when Xu Meiren strolled over, looked down at Wei Zifu, with a flash of coldness in her expression, but said: "Your Majesty, Young Envoy Wei told his concubine earlier that she has a brother Brother is in the army, swords have no eyes on the battlefield, worry is inevitable."

"One brother and one brother?"

Liu Che grew up in the court since he was a child, and was taught by Emperor Jing, so his grasp of people's hearts is incomparable.

Wei Zifu's thoughts were immediately exposed.

"My compatriots, they are so different."

"Your Majesty..." Hearing that Liu Che's tone was wrong, Wei Zifu was horrified and could no longer maintain his composure.

"Take it down." Liu Che waved his hand, feeling waned.

There are not many concubines in Emperor Jing's harem, and most of them are old people from the Prince's House, but that doesn't mean there will be fewer fights.He has seen a lot of women like Wei Zifu, just like his mother, how docile in front of his father, but what about behind his back?

How can one stand tall without ambition.If you don't reach a high place, how can you stand aloof from the world.

Liu Che doesn't hate ambition, if Chen Jiao doesn't act like she is now, he doesn't mind pampering such a woman.The situation is different now, such "meekness" is of no use to him, as for Wei Qing, he will have the reward he deserves.

Wei Zifu was taken down, Liu Che looked at Xu Meiren, scratched her nose with his fingers, and said with a smile, "On purpose?"

"The concubine's thoughts, of course, cannot be hidden from His Majesty." Xu Meiren laughed.

"It's not an example."

"No." Xu Meiren smiled and curved her eyebrows, looking more and more delicate and soft.

Liu Che's heart moved, suddenly an eunuch came to report, the empress dowager invited him.After thinking about it for a while, Liu Che understood what was going on, and immediately put away his thoughts and drove to Changle Palace.

After respectfully sending the emperor away, Xu Meiren returned to the bedroom, bent over to look at her daughter who was sleeping soundly, the smile on her face was more real than before.

"Send a letter to Jiaofang Palace to report what happened just now to His Royal Highness the Queen."

"promise!"

In Lin Yuan, Wei Yue handed a silk cloth to Zhao Jia.

After reading the above content, Zhao Jia didn't smile at all, but instead frowned and pinched his forehead.

"I should have acted earlier." If Zhou Yangyou and Shen Tugong acted quickly, they would not continue to cause trouble, and the people of Hedong County would suffer less.

"Aduo, you can't help yourself." Wei Yue lifted Zhao Jia's chin and brushed the corners of his lips with his fingers, "If you act hastily, you will be harmed if you don't kill the snake. If you don't uproot it, it will cause serious trouble in the future."

Not letting him die would be a danger to Zhao Jia, and what's more, it would bring disaster to the people in Hedong.

Zhao Jia closed his eyes, after a long time, finally nodded.