Jiang Qing

Qianjin Terrace in Pingdu plays songs and sings all the year round, and the lights are brightly lit.

The gamblers have long been blinded by the gambling table, and no one noticed that a middle-aged man came in from the side door, and was welcomed into the private room on the second floor by the lady proprietress whom Qianjintai hadn't seen for many years.

The layout of the private room was incompatible with the Qianjin Terrace, and the entire wall was made of bookcases, creating a space for books in this extravagant and chaotic place.

The middle-aged man entered the private room, took off his coat and handed it to the woman who was following him. His eyes paused on her face, but he still looked away.

Even though he has seen it more than once, he is still not quite used to having his own son having sex with a woman who looks similar to his late wife, but in front of Daye, he can still tolerate these slight discomforts.

"A Yuan. You go out first." The young master also knew that his perverted thoughts would not be able to catch the eyes of his high-minded and self-sufficient father, so he took the initiative to let the hag out.

He looked at the slightly tired eyes of the middle-aged man, stepped forward to hold his shoulders and neck for him, and said distressedly: "Although the great cause is important, father should be more concerned about his own body."

"It's just that I've had to deal with Zhang Jiudai in the past few days. Fortunately, the current situation can be stabilized." The middle-aged man closed his eyes and rested, and asked, "How about the people sent to Minzhou?"

"I've been caught." The young master replied lightly, as if he didn't take it seriously, "The ghost woman went to assassinate two days ago, and she happened to run into Mei Shao in Bai Bingchen's room, so she wouldn't go one by one. found."

"It's important to be careful when you start lightly."

"The ghost woman has a sense of proportion, so she won't let him know that it's a fake assassination." The young master paused, and said: "If you count the time, they will go back to the capital."

"It's good to be back, Zhang Jiudai is almost at the end." The middle-aged man lovingly stroked a green bronze tiger ornament on the table, slowly playing with it in his hands.

The young master hesitated for a moment, and asked: "Zhang Jiudai knows a lot about us, is he really not going to stay?"

"The value of his existence is for this moment. If he doesn't die, how can Mei Shao take over?" The green copper tiger ornament in his hand was actually detachable. He pried open the teeth of the tiger's mouth and pulled out its teeth one by one. When he got down, he counted slowly: "The Marquis of Jinxi died, the Marquis of Nanyang rebelled, and the Marquis of Pingdong was seriously injured, so there is only one Marquis of Zhenbei left... When Zhang Jiudai dies, the power of civil servants will belong to Bai Bingchen. Let's all look at Mei Shao, they can't support such a big stall, it's easier than me to find and attack one by one from all over the world."

Although Li Guojun's malpractice is deep, he has to admit that the armies under their respective jurisdictions sincerely worship their Lord Marquis. Now that the imperial court has taken the opportunity to collect forces from all sides, many of their subordinates are naturally dissatisfied. It seems that the military power has returned to Zhao Zhen In his hands, in fact, the bottom has not been trained. It is a mess.

The young master looked at a woodcut statue of Maitreya Buddha placed in the most conspicuous place on his table, one of the strokes was quite organized, and some strange emotions arose in his heart, and he replied: "But Bai Bingchen will not let himself be in such a situation, he Since he dared to let Mei Shao swallow so much military power, he naturally had a way to teach him. Moreover, his relationship with Mei Shao... If they were the heads of court officials and military generals, I am afraid that the pattern of civil and military opposition for many years would be broken. Father Haven't you always admired his talent?"

The middle-aged man naturally knew who he was talking about. In the final analysis, his son has been brooding over the fact that he chose Bai Bingchen in the first place. What he has been targeting is not Bai Bingchen, but the Fudi Pavilion that he has given to him. Cabinet status.

With a slight movement of his fingers, he disassembled the entire copper-green tiger, and slowly put it back together.

He knew that the young master used a lot of tricks to get rid of Bai Bingchen behind his back, and this kind of hatred made him very satisfied, so he was not going to tell him that Bai Bingchen was not chosen by him at all, and he needed to use his son's continuous efforts to get rid of Bai Bingchen. The hatred and unwillingness to do the rest for him.

After a long silence, the middle-aged man raised his head, and his eyes were filled with complex emotions that the young master could not understand. It was a kind of detachment as a bystander to see through the world, but it also carried some sadness of being in the middle of the matter. He didn't understand why there was such a contradiction. The affection will appear in his father's eyes. The father in his impression has always been a decisive and murderous person. It is impossible for such a weak expression to appear in his eyes.

"Time." The middle-aged man said suddenly.

"what?"

"Since the fall of ancient dynasties, there has been no shortage of talented and talented people who want to turn the tide and turn the building from falling. Their biggest opponent can be stopped, not the monarch's suspicion, not the treacherous minister's instigation, but time. The first two are still possible. The manpower to restore, but the latter is the will of God that is difficult to move half a point, without time, even if he is the best in the past, he can't use it." The middle-aged man sighed, "This is the biggest difference between manpower and the way of heaven."

"Besides, it's still a bit difficult for Mei Shao to swallow such a large army by himself. I can find someone to share it for him." The middle-aged man looked at the young master with a smile, "With such a pair of eyes, the north side can also relax."

The young master was stunned for a moment, and said: "Father, what do you mean, Yan Bei can move now?"

The middle-aged man touched the head of the wooden statue of Maitreya Buddha, "Let them take a breather, when Zhang Jiudai dies, they will have no time at all."

-

The court hall, which has been silent for a long time, is like a pot of oil on the fire. On the surface, it looks calm, but as long as a drop of water falls, it will immediately boil and splash.

And this drop of water is now dripped in by Bai Bingchen himself.

On the second day after he returned to the capital, he presented a full picture of the cause and effect of the Marquis of Nanyang's rebellion. The memorandum lost half of the gentleness of the past, and every word pointed out that Zhang Jiudai colluded with Ren Heming to provide him with the benefits of water transportation and manpower to help him fight against the rebellion. .

"Your Majesty. I have been in Pingdu all year round, and Ren Heming is in the South. Generations of military lords are not allowed to return to the capital except for His Majesty's edict. I have only met this traitor for a short time. It may not be as much as Lord Bai. I don't know where Lord Bai is going. I went to the South and listened to someone, so why do you think that the minister and the rebel are in collusion?" Zhang Jiudai glanced at Bai Bingchen and said coldly.

"Mr. Zhang didn't go to Nanyang, but a lot of money went there." Bai Bingchen knew that he would not admit it easily, took out the water transportation account book he had prepared a long time ago, and said: "Over the years, Mr. Zhang has made money in the construction of water transportation. But it’s quite a lot, you scrape off the money allocated by the Ministry of Industry, and Ren Heming scoops up the oil and water of the past merchants, the two of you can be regarded as a good division of labor, but it takes a lot of effort for Mr. Zheng, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, to equalize the accounts every year.”

"If your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can transfer the account book registered by the Ministry of Industry and compare it with the one in the hands of the minister, and you will see the difference!" Bai Bingchen said to Zhao Zhen.

"The Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry is an old man who is an official in the court. His Majesty personally appointed a second-rank official. Fang Min, a prefect of Cangzhou, can bite the important officials of the court at will!" Zhang Jiudai said sharply: "Besides, if I remember correctly, Fang Min Min is a student brought up by Lord Bai himself, and Lord Bai has always been at odds with his ministers, so it is unknown if he wants to use this to frame his ministers."

Bai Bingchen sneered, "Master Zhang, you mean that you don't recognize Master Zheng as your subordinate? At the beginning of the invasion of Benzhou, His Majesty sent Master Zheng and Master Guo to Pingdong and Nanyang to collect water transport. Taxation, after Mr. Zheng investigated the land invasion in Benzhou, not long after, there was a dispute among farmers in Benzhou. Mr. Zheng got off the two water transport officials on the Shunjiang official road. Later, Ren Heming transported troops to Shencheng. It was those two sections of road that I walked, there are all kinds of coincidences in this world, wouldn't they all just happen to happen to Master Zheng?"

"Master Zhang, you don't need to plead guilty, but Zheng Shangshu cannot escape. You know what he will say after he is released from prison, so you don't need to say more."

"These two ministers were not the only ones who went to Nandi during those days. Didn't Lord Bai also go to Cangzhou before that?" Zhang Jiudai said fiercely: "Isn't Lord Bai even half suspected? The minister is already so high , why did you join hands with a bandit?”

"According to Mr. Zhang, it's even more impossible for me to be here." Bai Bingchen chuckled lightly, and said with disdain: "I was the right minister of the Li country before, and I have already stood shoulder to shoulder with Mr. Zhang. She is quite a bit taller than Lord Zhang. Chen's sister is the queen of the court. When I quelled King Jing's rebellion and Nanyang's rebellion, where was Master Zhang? I didn't expect Chen to be too self-effacing in recent years. Let Mr. Zhang forget that even if he loses the right-hand position, he is still a righteous emperor! Mr. Zhang, you are a small left-hander. What do you want to punish me? Do you have plans, or do you, a half-face who has been subordinated to others for a long time, have more plans?"

No matter how much the two of them confronted each other in the court, they never confronted each other beyond the rules. Bai Bingchen's words were fast and harsh, and every word pierced Zhang Jiudai's heart.

The root cause of his discord with Bai Bingchen for so many years is that he disobeys Bai Bingchen.Dissatisfied that this boy who is nearly 20 years younger than himself is actually superior to him. In his opinion, he just missed a chance. When the princes competed for the reserve position in the former emperor's time, he stood on the wrong team and chose the wrong person So much so that the veterans of the two dynasties only got the position of the left minister, and they are still inferior to others when they are nearly half a century old. How can they be reconciled!

Zhang Jiudai's chest was heaving and heaving, obviously a little unstable, Mei Shao took advantage of the victory and chased after him: "Master Zhang will not recognize it if you just punish him here, I found the letters of Master Zhang and Ren Heming in Nanyang Hou Mansion of Minzhou, It is enough to directly prove that Mr. Zhang and Ren Heming are not casual acquaintances."

"Zhang Qing might as well take a look. I will decide what is right and wrong, and I will not wrong a good person." Zhao Zhen, who had been silent for a long time in the superior position, finally spoke.

Zhang Jiudai took the letter from Mei Shao, glanced roughly, and silently clenched his hands. Behind him, Zheng Yuanbo stretched out his head to take a look, and couldn't help but said: "This is not Zuo Xiang's handwriting at all."

Zhang Jiudai glared at him, and before he could speak, Mei Shao took over the conversation and said, "Master Zheng has good eyesight, this is indeed not a letter written by Mr. Zhang, but written by Mr. Zhang's master."

These letters are indeed the ones he secretly sent someone to take away from the Nanyang Marquis Mansion, and they should not have appeared in his hands in this way. Zhang Jiudai tried his best to stabilize his mind, and said: "I am guilty, I only care about it." The affairs of the court, but the negligence of the subordinates in the government, this is the fault of the minister, and the minister is willing to accept the crime of incompetent discipline."

"Zhang Qing admits that this letter came out of your house?" Zhao Zhen's sharp eyes swept over Zhang Jiudai's scalp.

But he still bite the bullet and said: "Your Majesty, there is no private seal of the minister in this letter. It is really that the subordinates in the mansion have lost their discipline and have the heart of a wolf, or this is Ren Heming's eyeliner planted in the mansion. possible."

Seeing that he was still holding on, Bai Bingchen laughed and said: "Master Zhang is worthy of being the Prime Minister of the Left. Even the masters in the mansion are so detached. He can actually bypass Master Zhang and directly negotiate with a military lord, and he can also mobilize Mr. Zheng from the Ministry of Industry. Go south to cover Chencang secretly. Compared with Mr. Zhang Xiang, Bai is indeed much inferior."

"I also know that Mr. Zhang Xiang always likes proof when doing things. Unfortunately, Bai is preparing proof for him." Bai Bingchen snorted coldly, and said: "The subordinate sent by Mr. Zhang to Minzhou to silence the rumors and steal the letter is being captured by the minister. After being detained and brought back to Pingdu, Mr. Zhang can go to the prison of the Ministry of Justice to listen to his confession carefully. On the way back to the capital, the minister was also sent by Mr. Zhang to silence him. On this point, Mr. Mei can testify."

"I'm just a civil servant. There are indeed a few students in the house, but they don't have such good skills. They dare to assassinate Lord Bai. Unlike the precedent that Lord Bai assassinated King Xie En, now..." Zhang Jiudai glanced at Mei Shao , snorted coldly: "Now that Master Mei is by your side, in terms of power in the Jianghu, who can snatch the letter from Master Bai and destroy people's lives?"

"I can testify to this point." Guo Zhengyang, Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, stepped forward and said, "I have followed Master Zhang for a long time. When the water transport collected taxes, I also went with Master Zheng. The funds allocated for the repair of the water transport also came out of my hands. Yes, after receiving His Majesty's will, Zhang Xiang also specially instructed his ministers. In order to protect the majesty and face of the world, the invasion of Benzhou should focus on peace and stability, and do not disturb the vitality of the place. Zhang Xiang is so considerate of Li, but Being framed like this in the court, I am deeply disturbed!"

Zhang Jiudai's face changed, and he suddenly looked at Guo Zhengyang, his eyes full of disbelief.

"Oh? The second-rank official book that I have personally appointed has to be taught by Zhang Xiang in private. Is it not enough to be taught by me on weekdays?" Zhao Zhen leaned forward slightly, stared at Guo Zhengyang and chuckled, "Or, Guo Zhengyang Shang Shu couldn't wait to embrace the new lord, so he worshiped and kowtowed in advance?"

"I dare not!" Guo Zhengyang knelt down in a panic and said, "I am loyal to Your Majesty and have no second thoughts!"

"You didn't, where is your master! Do you dare to guarantee that you don't!" Zhao Zhen scolded.

"Chen..." Zhang Jiudai knelt down in response, and as soon as he uttered a word, Guo Zhengyang hurriedly picked up the conversation.

"The minister did not receive any order from Prime Minister Zhang to be unfavorable to the country. In Benzhou, the minister and even the local officials went to meet with Mr. Zheng. The bankers and ministers who left the treasury have other records in the account book, and there is no partiality! "

Ledger?What ledger?Hasn't the account book of the Ministry of Accounts out of the warehouse been re-balanced according to his own wishes?What is another account book?

Zhang Jiudai grabbed the ground with both hands, his eyes were about to burst into flames. Guo Zhengyang turned his back on the battlefield, watching every word defending himself, but he left all the dirty water behind. If he really did what he said, there would be a detailed account book , as long as His Majesty compares them, he will be able to see the clues.

What's more, Zhang Jiudai knew in his heart how many people he had obtained through the hands of the household department this year.

He was able to argue with Bai Bingchen about Nanyang Hou's rebellion, but his subordinates rebelled against him, and he couldn't deny the matter of water transportation. Why don't you admit it first, at least it's less serious than the crime of collaborating with the enemy and rebelling Many, so as not to lose their lives.

The most important thing is that Guo Zhengyang has been under him for many years, and he has won his trust. Zhang Jiudai can't even imagine how much he has in his hands.

Guo Zhengyang is not stupid. Since he has the guts to report on himself, he must be prepared to be implicated. Maybe he is a hidden thread buried here by Bai Bingchen...

Zhang Jiudai stared fiercely at the bottom of Bai Bingchen's official uniform, the intense hatred bursting out of his eyes even wished to burn him, but he could only suppress the resentment in his heart, and knocked down heavily.

As long as he is not dead, as long as he is alive, there is always a way for him to get out of prison and make a comeback.

Bai Bingchen's eyeliner on him has been exposed, but he still has a bargaining chip in his hand that he doesn't know, and it is dormant beside him.

The struggles of the past few years will not end just like this, nor will it simply end with Bai Bingchen!