Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 1150 Man’s calculation is not as good as God’s calculation
"Open the door,"

"Yes, father-in-law."

Inside the Northern Garrison Prison,
Eunuch Chen from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, along with Eunuch Ma and a group of junior eunuchs, stood in front of cell number A of the Imperial Prison. Looking at Xu Changwen sitting inside, still as arrogant as ever, they felt a pang of sympathy. This man was impervious to both soft and hard approaches; how could they possibly get along with him?

"Ma Fei, what do you suggest we do?"

Chen Hui stood there angrily, holding a blank memorial in his hand, demanding a confession from Xu Changwen. Ma Fei was also in a dilemma; what could he do when so many court officials hadn't considered this?
"Eunuch Chen, things can be accomplished by human effort. It's worth a try. His Majesty is still waiting in the palace, and the old ancestor can't suppress it for long."

The Ministry of Justice's memorial on the matter had already been submitted to the Emperor Ancestor, but he didn't dare send it to the Emperor Emeritus, so he could only come up with a compromise.

"Okay, let's ask then."

He walked a few steps forward and arrived at the prison gate. Looking at Xu Changwen's haggard face, he smiled.
"Lord Xu, I've come to see you today. You don't need to kneel to answer me. Why did you, a perfectly good official in the capital, get involved in these things and cause unrest in the court? Although I am a eunuch, I admire your character. So, if Lord Xu writes a confession, I will vouch for it and guarantee that Lord Xu will be safe."

Let's get straight to the point. At this stage, saying anything more would be a loss of face. As the saying goes, one person plays the bad cop and the other the good cop; both are trying to persuade. If it works out, everything will be much easier to resolve.

Thinking of Marquis Luoyun's arrogance, Eunuch Chen felt gloomy. It was mostly those princes who had drawn Marquis Luoyun's attention to him. However, his goal was not military merit in the court, but to seize power from the civil officials in the cabinet!

I wonder if Marquis Luo Yun can understand. Looking at Xu Changwen in front of me, I can't help but feel a headache. How come he is Marquis Luo Yun's disciple?
Xu Changwen raised his head, ignoring his disheveled appearance, and said frankly:
"Eunuch Chen is the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, and he is here to investigate cases by imperial decree. I should naturally respect him. However, as an official of the Ming Dynasty, even though I am imprisoned in the imperial jail, I cannot lose my dignity as an official. Furthermore, my memorial on maintaining order was for the sake of the Ming Dynasty and its people, not for personal gain. You said I did not need to kneel to answer, and I have no crime to kneel for."

"Innocent enough to kneel?"

Chen Hui slammed his hand on the table, completely taken aback that the man was so arrogant and disrespectful when he tried to speak to him politely. He sneered.

"Xu Changwen, putting aside whether you are guilty or not, I ask you, you have spoken ill of the late emperor and slandered the emperor and father, yet you dare to say you are innocent? The ministers of the Six Ministries have already written memorials refuting your crimes, and you still want to argue?"

Xu Changwen turned his head to look at the group of prison guards outside the prison, and finally his gaze landed on Eunuch Chen:

“Eunuch Chen, last night, an official came to persuade me and showed me the rebuttals written by officials from the Six Ministries. Among them, Wei He, the principal of the Ministry of Rites, wrote a sentence saying that the Emperor Emeritus cultivates Taoism to pray for the well-being of the country. But I would like to ask, the Emperor Emeritus did not cultivate Taoism before, but now he is obsessed with cultivation. In just one year, how much of the people's hard-earned money has been wasted? How much silver does the alchemy furnace in the palace burn every day? If that silver were used to relieve disaster victims and strengthen border defenses, how many lives could be saved? As officials of the Ministry of Rites, in charge of etiquette and education, you turn a blind eye to the Emperor Emeritus's mistakes and even defend him. Is this what the officials of the Ministry of Rites call 'education'?”

Chen Hui was speechless and inwardly furious. The rebuttal document was written as utter nonsense. It would have been better to say that the retired emperor was practicing a health regimen. Chen Hui stood there, not knowing how to respond, while Ma Fei behind him spoke up.

"Lord Xu, even if Chief Wei's words were somewhat inappropriate, his loyalty to the court and the emperor is evident in every word. He cannot speak recklessly just to feel good. Furthermore, the memorials written by officials from other departments are all different. And Lord Xu, every reply you give is insightful. Many of your words are spoken by others, but only you, Lord Xu, have not used a single word of exaggeration."

You can't refute every single memorial you submit; that would mean all the officials in the six ministries are utterly incompetent.

“Well said. I have met Eunuch Ma. As for the so-called ‘exaggeration,’ let’s say that the Great Wu Dynasty’s treasury still has surplus grain. Then I would like to ask, before the civil unrest in the south of the capital, the people ate grass roots, gnawed on tree bark, and even exchanged their own children to eat. When the two sects raised the banner of righteousness and raised their arms, followers flocked to them. There was also the disaster relief in Jiangnan, where grain funds were withheld and the grain that the people received was mixed with sand. Did Eunuch Ma not know all this? How can those officials in the Ministry of Revenue have the face to refute me?”

Ma Fei was speechless at the question. The chaos in Jingnan was orchestrated by officials at all levels; the civil unrest had escalated to such a large extent, wasn't it also due to the instigation of a cult? But he couldn't answer those questions. Chen Hui, too, was filled with anger.

"As the magistrate of a county, Lord Xu is in charge of government affairs. Liu Tong, the chief clerk of the Ministry of War, said that you do not understand military affairs and are talking nonsense. Is this true?"

Since he couldn't get any information from politics, he knew very little about military matters. Xu Changwen nodded and bowed.
"Eunuch Chen, I am indeed 'illiterate in military affairs,' but I also know that soldiers who risk their lives are also paid by the imperial court. But I would like to ask, why are the border troops in arrears with their pay? Is it because the court is short of money? Or is it because the money has been spent on things that shouldn't be spent? As the head of the Ministry of War, Liu Tong knows these things best. Why is it that every time the cabinet allocates funds, 40% less is paid before the funds leave the capital? Why doesn't he report these matters to the Emperor? Instead, he covers them up for the court. Is this what Lord Liu calls 'understanding military affairs'?"

It practically exposed all the sordid affairs of the Six Ministries of the Imperial Court. Although some of these were hidden rules, if they were brought to the forefront, who would take the blame?
Chen Hui trembled as Xu Changwen questioned him. He wanted to speak, but found that he couldn't even utter a complete sentence. Looking at Xu Changwen in the cell, talking slowly with his head held high, he felt both angry and anxious.

He had hoped that the memorials written by the officials of the Six Ministries would refute Xu Changwen and convict him, but to his surprise, Xu Changwen's few words made the memorials written by the officials of the Six Ministries seem worthless, and Xu Changwen himself seemed to be in the right.

Unable to contain her anger any longer, she suddenly stood up, pointed at Xu Changwen, and cursed:
“Xu Changwen! Stop trying to deny it! You have committed insubordination, slandered the emperor and insulted your father, which are unforgivable crimes! The Six Ministries are magnanimous and have not held it against you, yet you still dare to spout nonsense here! You should think it over. Although you are alone, you still have an elderly mother to support and brothers to consider. Xu Dong insisted on speaking up for you, and I couldn't bear it, so I locked him up as well. If you are willing to confess your crimes, all these people will be fine.”

When these people were mentioned, Eunuch Chen had already made preparations. Since fame, fortune, and power could not sway him, only affection remained. He even softened his tone when talking about the daughter of the Feng family.
"Lord Xu Changwen, you are not young anymore. It is said that there are three unfilial acts, and having no descendants is a great loss. Everyone in the court and the country knows about your marriage to the Feng family. The daughter of the Feng family is also a pitiful person. She had some misunderstandings with the Ningguo Mansion before. The matchmakers in the capital were alright, but those noble families looked down on people. How could they propose to the Feng family again? Fortunately, the Marquis vouched for you and made it happen. It's a pity that you are now in this situation. What should she do?"

Human hearts are made of flesh and blood. No one would watch their loved ones suffer together. Hearing these words, Xu Changwen remained silent, his face heavy. He thought of his friend Xu Donglai's conversation at his home that night, and the beloved daughter of the Feng family, Taiying. These were all blessings he had accumulated over several lifetimes. If it were because of him, he would not regret it even if he died a hundred times.

"In reply to Your Excellency, I am but a minor official. If you must kill me, you must speak frankly. I am alone and have indeed wronged them. But in the end, everyone turns to dust. Since I have become an official of the Great Wu Dynasty, I must act in accordance with my conscience. Perhaps Your Majesty can see my persistence. The Emperor Emeritus was wrong, and that is that."

After murmuring, he slowly closed his eyes, trying to avoid seeing it. As a result, the faces of the people standing outside the prison door all changed, and Ma Fei was even more furious.

“Xu Changwen, it’s fine if you want to die, but how can you bear to involve others? If you want to die, just jump from the city wall into the moat. A rope only costs three coins. Even if you are an honest official, you have that kind of money. But you insist on making the world restless. Master Xu, the idea of ​​dying for your cause is utter nonsense. Only someone who has read books to the point of being a dog would think that way. As the saying goes, it’s better to live a miserable life than to die a good death. Isn’t that right?”

In this world, there are many who are afraid of death, but few who are not. Since Xu Changwen is still alive, this is a way of seeking fame. However, Xu Changwen slowly closed his eyes, a mocking smile on his lips, and remained silent. Even Eunuch Chen couldn't help but think, "How could you say such things?"

Chen Rui was furious, his face turning ashen, but he was helpless. He raised his hand to interject.

“Master Xu, don’t listen to this nonsense. Do you know that this time, many people have been implicated because of you? From top to bottom, the inner court, the Zhenfu Division, and the officials who delivered your memorials, all of them have been dismissed from their posts. Xu Dong, who spoke up for you, was imprisoned in the imperial prison and is being tortured every day. Those followers who have always been good to you have also been imprisoned. If you don’t admit your mistakes, you may not even be able to save your lives, do you understand?”

By the end, Eunuch Chen's voice was trembling. Xu Changwen finally changed his expression, opened his eyes, sighed softly, and asked;

"How can I save them? I didn't intend to implicate them. If they really die because of me, I'll die with them. Father-in-law, you can go back now."

After saying this, he closed his eyes. Chen Hui, seeing this, clutched his chest and took two steps back. What a heartless man! It seems that he can only go to the Emperor to plead guilty. He turned his back to Xu Changwen, said nothing, and walked out of the prison without lingering.

Imperial Palace

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, in the Imperial Study

The water clock in the palace had already passed the hour of Shen (3-5 PM). The windows were wide open, and a gentle breeze brought a touch of coolness. Emperor Wu lay on a reclining chair by the window on the west side, still holding several memorials in his hand, glancing at them every now and then. There was also a memorial from Gu Yichen of the Grand Secretariat, which was submitted by the Ministry of Justice to discuss the punishment of Xu Changwen. In the end, Xu Changwen was sentenced to death, and the seal of the Directorate of Ceremonial was affixed to the document.

"Your Majesty, Chen Hui from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs has returned."

With Dai Quan serving by her side, a young eunuch had just entered to announce her arrival when they heard the Empress's calm voice.

"Let him in as soon as he gets back; his timing is perfect."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The young eunuch kowtowed and left. A moment later, Chen Hui led Ma Fei and pushed open the door. He first saw that His Majesty was not behind the imperial desk, and immediately looked around. He heard movement in the room in the west partition. He quickly stepped forward, lifted the curtain, and saw that the Martial Emperor was already lying on a reclining chair. Even his dragon robe had been changed into ordinary clothes, with only a yin-yang jade pendant tied at his waist. Wasn't this the one used for cultivating Taoism in the palace of the retired emperor? Without thinking much, he quickly knelt down; "This servant Chen Hui pays respects to Your Majesty."

One of them knelt on the ground, motionless.

"Yes, you've come at the right time. Get up."

"Thank you, Your Majesty,"

Chen Hui quickly got up, holding the documents of conviction from the Ministry of Justice, the confession and interrogation, and all the case files in his hands. The pine wood floor was cold, and the cold air went straight into his feet and spread up, but he dared not move an inch.

"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Justice has finished its trial of Xu Changwen's case. I have brought you the confessions of Xu Changwen and Xu Dong, as well as the memorial on their crimes."

"interesting,"

Emperor Wu touched a cup of Sanqing tea on the table. The tea steam rose and swirled around his fingertips. He didn't know when it had started, but he had grown to prefer quiet.

"How was the crime determined, and what was the final sentence?"

The emperor's tone was unreadable, and Chen Hui's heart sank. Not knowing what the emperor was thinking, he hurriedly replied.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, Xu Changwen remains stubborn and refuses to confess. I had no choice but to convict him of deceiving the emperor and committing immediate execution in the main hall of the Ministry of Justice, next to the cabinet officials. I told him that if he confessed, his life would be spared, but he was ungrateful and said that everyone eventually turns to dust, and fame and fortune are nothing but fleeting clouds. He was advising the country, but I angrily rebuked him, saying that the emperor and father are one and the same, and that a son insulting his father is a great disrespect and a crime. He is sentenced to be hanged and executed in the autumn."

He had no regrets about dying. Although he was spirited, the imperial decree was to determine the punishment according to the circumstances and to cut the Gordian knot quickly. This was the only way. If it dragged on, he didn't know how it would end. Thinking of Xu Dong and the others, he was in a hurry to report.
"His accomplices, Xu Dong and others, were convicted of forming a faction, given sixty strokes of the cane, and exiled three thousand li away. They will all be sent to their posts in the autumn as a warning to the officials in the court."

"You're quite efficient in your work. You've accomplished what no one in the court dared to do. Don't you think this judgment is very fair?"

The Emperor smiled, his words clearly carrying a hidden meaning, but the sound of his fingertips lightly tapping the teacup was exceptionally clear in the hall.

"Uh, Master, if you think the judgment is wrong, I will call them back and re-determine the sentence."

Suddenly, Chen Hui didn't understand the Emperor's inner meaning. Was his judgment good or bad? Could it be that the punishment was too lenient?

The Empress raised her hand to brush away the foam on the surface of the teacup, took a sip, and savored the flavor.

"Hehe, you mean we need a retrial, and you want them to sentence us more severely? Or less severely?"

Chen Hui trembled with fear and knelt down on the ground.
"Thunder and rain, are they not divine grace? Let them judge according to the master's decision."

"Good, well said. I know you've all been trying to guess what I'm thinking. Why don't you try to guess?"

The Empress's tone was unreadable, revealing neither joy nor anger, yet the more unresponsive she was, the more oppressive the atmosphere in the hall became.

"My lord, how could this servant dare to guess what you are thinking?"

"you guess!"

"Master, this servant...this servant can't guess!"

Chen Hui immediately kowtowed, leaving red marks on his forehead.

"You lackey, you lackey!"

"Judging from your expressions, all of this was orchestrated by me. You've done all the good work, while I'm taking the blame for the bad. I'm just waiting to see how you decide things. Chang Le Palace is waiting too. I heard they have a four-character poem in the title: 'A bright moon rises over the sea, a gentle breeze blows.' You certainly know how to fill in the blanks."

Thinking of the secret report from the Imperial City Guard, the Empress couldn't help but chuckle; the entire court was preoccupied with guessing the characters.

Chen Rui's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly said:

"Your Majesty, the chief judges from the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review originally drafted this proposal, but none of us had the intention to do so."

His words were not unfounded—just now in the Ministry of Justice, many of the six minor officials were filled with righteous indignation.

The Empress raised her eyes to look at Chen Rui, her gaze seemingly able to pierce through one's heart:
"Haha, yes, that's all their doing. They've been thinking about everything under the sun, even the sea. And they still say they have no such intentions? I ask you, what does 'the moon rises over the sea,' 'the moon waxes and wanes,' and 'a gentle breeze blows' mean? Why didn't you come this morning?"
"One lackey left, and another came. The first one didn't hide anything from me, but now the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs is also trying to hide things from me. You think you can learn to accept a small beating and then a big one? You're still far from it."

“In the palace, all those servants call Dai Quan ‘Grand Ancestor.’ I know that you want to do it too, but in my eyes, Grand Ancestor is also a servant.”

"What are you thinking? You're trying to be a good wife, keeping things from both sides. You can guess what the Emperor Emeritus is thinking. I don't blame you, but have you considered whether you can really keep this a secret? Look at your face, so thin it's like a peeled eggshell—are you even qualified?"

The Empress, her face cold and her expression grim, stared intently at the kneeling Chen Hui. Terrified, Chen Hui lay prostrate, repeatedly slapping his face until it became red and swollen.

"Hmph, bring me the vermilion brush."

With a soft snort, Dai Quan, already terrified, knelt on the ground. Just as he was about to move, Chen Hui straightened up, rushed to the imperial desk, grabbed the vermilion brush, and quickly crawled to the Empress, holding the brush...
"Where's the folded document?"

"This, Master, here,"

In a flustered state, he handed over the memorial of conviction, but his wrist trembled and he couldn't open it no matter how hard he tried. Seeing this, Dai Quan coughed twice, took the memorial, and carefully opened it. The Empress Wu had actually made a mark on it and then threw the pen away.

This action left Chen Hui and Dai Quan baffled. On a memorial, a checkmark meant agreement, and a cross meant disagreement. This time, there was only one cross. What did this mean?

Dai Quan couldn't figure it out, so he handed the memorial to Chen Hui, bowed his head and prostrated himself on the ground, seemingly indifferent to the matter. Only Chen Hui took the memorial, still unable to understand, and asked in a trembling voice;

"I humbly request Your Majesty's clarification, so that this servant may convey the imperial decree to the Cabinet and the Ministry of Justice,"

"Hehe, you all like to guess, let them guess. And you, think carefully and guess who I will send over to watch over the prison, and to watch over Xu Changwen and Xu Dong."

A cold laugh rang out. The Emperor Wu seemed lost in thought. If this memorial were sent to Chang Le Palace, he wondered what the Retired Emperor would do. Perhaps he would use it as an excuse to interfere in court affairs, or perhaps he would want to back down and relinquish control completely. He thought of his elder brothers, who had likely already left for their fiefdoms.
(End of this chapter)