ushernet Chapter 222 Demoted to Common People
Chapter 222 Demoted to Common People
Chapter 222: Demoted to Commoner
Wang Yun was dragged out of the back hall by the guards while shouting.
After Prime Minister Yang Biao's "receiving the order", the palace was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Most of the people present knew that Wang Yun's sinister tactics must have angered Liu Bian, but they had never imagined that it would reach such a severe level as "extermination of three clans"!
The court officials bowed their bodies and lowered their heads, their expressions more solemn than ever before.
Since the current emperor ascended the throne, he has always boasted of his "benevolence", but this is the first time that he has taken the initiative to "exterminate" important officials of the court!
In just a moment, some people's eyes fell on Liu Xie, Fu Wan and Cai Yong.
Although Wang Yun was the left servant of the Shangshu Tai, he was still far behind Liu Xie, Fu Wan and Cai Yong in terms of dignity, power and status.
There is no need to say much about Liu Xie. He is the son of the late emperor and the younger brother of the current emperor.
Fu Wan's wife was Princess Yang'an, and his son-in-law was Liu Xie, both of them were true royal relatives.
Cai Yong was even more special. His grandson was the eldest prince named Shao, and his daughter was very favored in the palace. According to past historical experience, it would not take long for him to be promoted to the rank of "general" and have great power in the court!
None of these three people can be easily moved!
Liu Bian picked up the teacup and drank a sip of tea quietly.
He had not yet made up his mind about Liu Xie, Fu Wan, and Cai Yong.
After Wang Yun was dismissed, all affairs were delegated to the Six Caos, but Liu Xie, Fu Wan and Cai Yong were all involved in his various arrangements.
The others are Zhu Jun, Liu Yu, and Ding Yuan!
"His Majesty,"
Xun Yu suddenly stood up and raised his hand, saying, "The Prince of Bohai, Fu Zhongcheng, and Cai Taichang were all bewitched by Wang Yun, and they are not cliques. The Prince of Bohai and Fu Zhongcheng are in the palace, and they were recommended by the emperor. They are aboveboard and not treacherous. Your Majesty, please look carefully."
Xun Yu's words echoed in the back hall, making the lifeless and extremely depressing hall seem to suddenly come alive.
Queen Mother Dong quickly took over and said to Liu Bian: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Liu Xie was young and ignorant, and was bewitched by Wang Yun, but he acted uprightly and had no ill intentions. Your Majesty, please understand."
Upon hearing this, Fu Wan said in a hurry, "Your Majesty, I was confused and deceived by Wang Yun's sweet words. My intention was to recommend the prince to Your Majesty. I have no evil intentions. Please understand clearly, Your Majesty!"
Cai Yong immediately fell to the ground and said, "Your Majesty, I am guilty. Wang Yun told me that it was Your Majesty's idea to establish Prince Shao, and I did not think much about it... I did not agree with it and was not a member of the group. Please forgive me, Your Majesty..."
Liu Bian's eyes twitched slightly as he listened to the three people's excuses.
Are these people really stupid?
Queen Mother Dong wanted to continue defending Liu Xie, but she was afraid that she would make mistakes if she spoke too much, so she could only sit there with an uneasy look on her face.
"His Majesty,"
Empress Dowager He spoke up, snorting coldly, "These people are not sincere in what they say, and who knows how many things they are hiding behind their backs!"
Liu Bian glanced at her and thought, this cheap lady finally showed her cleverness for once.
Cai Wenji, who was not far away, was so nervous that she almost cried.
Liu Bian glanced at the people present, still thinking about how to deal with the situation.
Now the business is too big, and these people are in important positions, so they can neither be too heavy nor too light, and they need to strike a balance carefully.
"His Majesty,"
Xun Yu raised his hand again and said, "I think that although the King of Bohai, Fu Zhongcheng, was bewitched by Wang Yun, he acted uprightly and did nothing wrong. He should be punished and warned severely, and Xi Yu should be punished severely."
Liu Bian narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Xun Yu.
Xun Yu met Liu Bian's gaze and said, "Your Majesty, Wang Yun is plotting to succeed you, and his intentions are unpredictable. But the King of Bohai, Fu Zhongcheng, is doing this for the country, not for personal gain, and he made a clear report to the emperor, so he should be treated differently from Wang Yun."
Xun You suddenly came to his senses at this time, raised his hand and said, "I second the motion."
"I second the motion." Zhong Yao did not hesitate.
Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, Sima Jun and others paused for a moment and said, "We second this motion."
Liu Bian had a blank expression on his face. He glanced at Cai Yong and said thoughtfully, "In this case, King Bohai, I will pay you a one-year salary fine. I hope you will be more careful and reflect on yourself in the future, and know what you can and cannot do!"
Liu Xie, Fu Wan's stiff expression suddenly relaxed, he knocked his head to the ground and said, "I accept your command and thank you."
When Empress Dowager Dong saw this, she also felt relieved. Suddenly, she held her head with her hands and fell backwards, staggering.
"Grand Empress Dowager..."
The palace maids and eunuchs were terrified and rushed to help.
Empress Dowager He was somewhat dissatisfied with Liu Xie being let off, but she also knew how to pretend. She screamed and turned around to come to Empress Dowager Dong.
Seeing that her eyes were tightly locked and she was barely breathing, he immediately said, "Quick, call the doctor!"
Liu Bian ran over, picked up Queen Mother Dong, and said, "The rest of the matter will be handled by the Prime Minister."
No one expected such a change and could only watch as Liu Bian, holding Empress Dowager Dong, Empress Dowager He, Liu Xie and a large group of people rushed out.
In a short while, only a few eunuchs were left in the back hall, and the rest were court officials.
After a brief panic, everyone's eyes fell on Yang Biao in front of them.
Cai Yong sat there, gently wiping the cold sweat from his head, breathing heavily.
Wang Yun, Liu Xie, Fu Wan, and finally it was him.
Yang Biao came back to his senses at this moment, and looked at Cai Yong with a dignified look, and said: "Cai Yong, do you admit your guilt?"
Cai Yong smiled bitterly, raised his hand, and said, "Prime Minister, I acknowledge my guilt."
How could he not know? Wang Yun was about to be exterminated along with his entire clan.
Seeing that he did not resist, Yang Biao pretended to be silent for a while and said, "My dear colleagues, Wang Yun is rebellious and lawless, and his entire clan should be exterminated. In addition to inciting the King of Bohai and Fu Zhongcheng, he also deceived Cai Taichang. What do you think, how should the case be closed?"
No one spoke.
No matter what, Cai Yong is still the grandfather of Prince Shao. Who can guarantee that one day he will not rise to the top and sit in front of them?
Seeing that everyone was silent, Yang Biao looked at Xun You with a trembling face and said, "Minister Xun, what do you think?"
Xun You raised his hand, his face solemn, and said: "Prime Minister, I suggest that we compare it to the King of Bohai and Fu Zhongcheng, and give a small punishment and a big warning."
Yang Biao looked thoughtful as he looked at Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi, then suddenly turned to Sima Jun and asked, "What does the Criminal Department think?"
Sima Jun raised his hand and said, "Prime Minister, my opinion is the same as that of Minister Xun."
Yang Biao stopped talking and looked down at his big belly.
Among so many people instigated by Wang Yun, Cai Yong was undoubtedly the most special one.
He is Cai Wenji's biological father and Prince Shao's grandfather. In this farce of "plotting to establish a crown prince", Cai Yong or the Cai family is actually the biggest beneficiary!
Yang Biao has always suspected that Cai Yong might not have been bewitched, but might be the mastermind, or at least an accomplice!
In addition, Yang Biao had no idea what Liu Bian was thinking, so he was unable to make a decision.
Xun You, Xun Yu, Zhong Yao and others looked at each other and said nothing more.
'Crown Prince', who is the heir to the throne, has always been a very sensitive matter, and there have been countless bloody incidents caused by this.
Since the two Xuns and others did not speak, Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, Sima Jun and others naturally would not speak either.
Seeing this, Cai Yong smiled bitterly, cold sweat appeared on his head again, and his heart was in turmoil.
Yang Biao blinked his eyes. Seeing that they were silent and not wanting to blame him, he sat up straight again and said in a deep voice, "Then let's settle it for now. I will report to His Majesty later and he will make the final decision."
No one had any objection and everyone remained silent.
When it came to Cai Yong, it felt like a "family matter".
"Gentlemen, His Majesty invites you." At this time, Xu Yan came to the door and said.
Yang Biao quickly stood up, walked to the door, and asked anxiously, "Is the Empress Dowager okay?"
Xu Yan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Prime Minister. The doctor said it was caused by excessive worry. He will be fine after a few days of rest."
"That's good, that's good. Where is His Majesty?" Yang Biao looked relieved.
Xu Yan saw that more and more people were coming out from behind Yang Biao, and there was no room for them to stand under the eaves, so he had to walk forward and said as he walked: "Your Majesty is in the side hall, and the Empress Dowager has taken medicine and gone to bed."
Yang Biao nodded, but his little eyes kept blinking.
Although this matter was Wang Yun's own initiative and Yang Biao kept himself out, once Wang Yun left, he was the only one left in the Secretariat.
Not to mention that everyone suffers when one suffers, he now has a sense of desolation as if the rabbit dies and the fox mourns.
Before everyone came closer, Pan Yin hurried over along the corridor and said, "Gentlemen, the Empress Dowager is ill, and Your Majesty has to take care of her by her bedside. So we need to be brief and not have so many people. The Prime Minister, the Grand Marshal, the two Xun Shangshu, the Sima Shangshu, Cai Taichang, and Zhong Tingwei will be enough."
Lu Zhi held on tight and breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that, but he still looked at Huangfu Song with worry in his eyes.
Huangfu Song sighed inwardly, thinking that this old friend might not be able to survive this winter.
Under Pan Yin's "selection", a group of people came to the side hall, and Liu Bian happened to come out from it.
"Your Majesty, we are here to pay our respects." Everyone bowed quickly.
Liu Bian took the cloak handed over by Pan Yin, looked at the dim sky in front of the door, and saw heavy snow. He said indifferently, "Any results?"
Yang Biao raised his hand with a serious expression and said, "Your Majesty, many colleagues have discussed and compared it with the King of Bohai and Fu Zhongcheng."
Cai Yong hid behind the crowd, staring at Liu Bian's profile cautiously, his eyes full of anxiety.
"What is the result of your discussion?"
Liu Bian snorted coldly and said, "Send an imperial decree. Jiujiang Governor Bian Rang is transferred to the position of Taichang Temple Secretary. Cai Yong is stripped of all his official positions and demoted to a commoner."
"I obey your order." Pan Yin said immediately.
Cai Yong's face was stiff, his expression seemed to be both crying and laughing, he fell to his knees with a thud, unable to utter a word.
Bian Rang was a great scholar of his time, and his talent and reputation were no less than Cai Yong.
Yang Biao, the two Xuns, Sima Jun and others did not speak, but only glanced at Cai Yong occasionally.
Just as Tang Mao was defeated and sank in the battlefield, Cai Yong's "dream of becoming a great general" has now become a pipe dream.
Liu Bian ignored Cai Yong, tied his cloak, walked directly to the snow in front of him, and said, "Let's talk about Wang Yun's case."
When everyone saw that Liu Bian seemed to be about to leave the palace, they hurried to follow him.
The snow had been falling for too long, and many people's legs were covered with snow. It was very difficult to walk, as the snow was crunching.
But Liu Bian enjoyed this feeling very much. Without waiting for the person behind him to reply, he said, "What I am talking about is why this happened? How can we stop it and put an end to it?"
Yang Biao followed closely behind, holding up his belt with both hands, and said, "Your Majesty, I think Wang Yun is selfish and has a flawed character."
Liu Bian put his hands in his pockets, and every time he stepped into the deep snow, he felt inexplicably comfortable in his heart. He became calmer and his thinking was relatively quick.
Looking at the heavy snow in front of him, Liu Bian asked, "Huangfu Qing's family?"
Huangfu Song paused and said, "I think that there is a breach of discipline."
Liu Bian nodded thoughtfully and said, "Sima Qing's home."
Sima Jun was nearly eighty years old, and although he was in good health, it was still difficult for him to walk in the snow.
Two guards held him up, and he raised his hands and said, "I agree with the words of the Prime Minister and the Grand Marshal."
"Tingwei." Liu Bian said loudly without turning his head.