I studied in modern times

Chapter 1025 Learning from King Gao

"Your Majesty, we humbly request that Your Majesty issue an edict to strip Wen Zhong of his honors, restore his special privileges, and return him to his official records..."

He sat upright on the throne, listening to the ministers and chief ministers in the hall bowing and pleading in unison.

Zhao Xu listened, and was greatly pleased.

Of course, the requests of the chancellors could not be granted.

He granted their request as soon as they asked.

If this gets out, who knows what people will say about him behind his back?

After a brief moment of contemplation, Zhao Xu said, "Kong Wenzhong is a descendant of Confucius, a sage, and moreover, he is already dead. I really cannot bear to punish him severely!"

The chancellors all lowered their heads as they listened.

Countless famous scenes recorded in historical books swirled in their minds.

Lu Gongzhu sighed inwardly, realizing that the Kong brothers were likely doomed this time.

The current emperor is hailed by the people as a sage ruler with the style of a wise monarch from the Han and Tang dynasties.

Think about the Liu family, look at the Li family...

Lu Gongzhu had no choice but to bite the bullet and bow, saying, "Your Majesty! In my humble opinion, the guilty subject Wen Zhong has forgotten the teachings of the sages and lacked the proper relationship between ruler and subject. Yet, merely taking away his favors, revoking his honors, and returning his records is already an act of imperial grace and Your Majesty's holy virtue!"

"His Majesty, with your sagacious virtue and extraordinary grace, cannot bear to punish the guilty subject Wen Zhong!"

“This certainly demonstrates Your Majesty’s supreme virtue, but this old minister fears that from now on, laws and regulations will be neglected and the social order will be lost…”

As he said this, Lü Gongzhu bowed deeply and said, "I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

Behind Lü Gongzhu, Su Song, who rarely spoke in the hall, also bowed and said, "This old minister seconds the motion!"

Immediately, Fu Yaoyu, Fan Chunren, and Deng Runfu followed suit, saying, "We second that proposal!"

Finally, it was Right Chancellor Pu Zongmeng who said, "I second that proposal!"

Sitting upright on the throne, Zhao Xu surveyed the ministers in the hall.

He knew very well that these people were just shouting threats and cries for violence.

But in reality, everyone was trying to save Kong Wenzhong, or more accurately, to save Kong Wenzhong's brothers, clansmen, wives, concubines, and children!

The willingness to save lives is arranged in the order in which they were spoken.

The logic is simple—rescuing someone from the emperor is like snatching food from a tiger's mouth.

One wrong move and not only will you fail to rescue the person, you could also end up killing them.

at the same time……

The requests from the prime ministers were, in fact, a kind of safety net.

Even if we are ultimately powerless, at least we can draw a line—taking away grace, pursuing honors, and returning the books. Sounds intimidating, right?
But it was only directed at Kong Wenzhong.

Kong Wenzhong was already dead.

How can you use these methods on a living person to punish a dead person?
Revive him, then punish him?
Ha ha!

Zhao Xu chuckled, shook his head, and said, "I have already said that Kong Wenzhong is a descendant of a sage, and I really cannot bear to punish him!"

"You need not try to persuade me any further!" He waved his hand and said, "My mind is made up!"

The chancellors listened and fell silent.

They all understood Zhao Xu's unspoken message—Kong Wenzhong's punishment wasn't enough! It needed to be increased!

However, the ministers were unable to reach a consensus in a short period of time.

Therefore, they could only lower their heads and express their submission: "Yes!"

In the instant they lowered their heads, Lü Gongzhu and Su Song exchanged a glance, both understanding each other's meaning from their eyes.

That's all we can do for now. We'll find another opportunity to offer our advice privately later.

With a thought flashing through his mind, Lü Gongzhu stepped forward with his ceremonial staff, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, this old minister has another matter to ask of you!"

"Ok?"

"I heard that yesterday, the Kaifeng Prefecture seemed to have arrested quite a few troublemaking scholars..."

"Yes, that's right!" Zhao Xu nodded. "The relevant reports from Kaifeng Prefecture, the Censorate, and the Imperial Academy should be delivered to the palace today!"

"Your Majesty, I beg you to extend your grace and pardon these ignorant scholars..." Lu Gongzhu bowed his head and sighed inwardly, "If Your Majesty had granted the punishment for Kong Wenzhong just now... it would have been much easier for me to plead for the scholars!"

"pity!"

Since the Emperor has just granted his and his ministers' request, then according to the rules of the game, he should show leniency—although everyone knows that the so-called "punishment" is actually an act of kindness.

Just like the emperor kept saying, "Kong Wenzhong is a descendant of a sage, I cannot bear to punish him."

In reality, they had already put a knife to the necks of Kong Wenzhong's clan.

One strike and the entire clan is implicated.

It should be noted that last night, news spread in the palace that "the Emperor was furious and issued an edict to the Kong family: 'If you do not wish to be my subject, you may come and go as you please; I will not force you.'"

Legend has it that Kong Wenzhong's family in the capital wept bitterly upon receiving the imperial decree.

Even the Duke of Yansheng went to the Grand Tutor's mansion for help immediately after hearing about it.

no way!
terrible!

This is an absolute punishment!

A severe punishment personally inflicted by the Emperor—You are no longer my subject!

Under the ideology of loyalty and filial piety being inseparable, without loyalty, there is naturally no filial piety.

He is not a loyal minister, and certainly not a filial son.

A person who lacks both loyalty and filial piety is nothing but a beast.

In other words, this means expelling the entire Kong family from the register of humankind.

This is the nightmare of all scholar-officials!
This is because it would negate everything about the family and restrict/prohibit its members from participating in the imperial examinations, becoming officials, or even buying and selling government property.

While pondering these matters, the young emperor on the throne said, "Regarding this matter, I still need to wait for reports from the Kaifeng Prefecture, the Censorate, and the Imperial Academy..."

"However, if the scholars are indeed ignorant or innocently involved, my intention is to have them reprimanded by the Imperial Academy for plagiarizing the sages' teachings, and then they can all be released!"

"Your Majesty is wise!" Lu Gongzhu breathed a sigh of relief and quickly offered his flattery. Getting this emperor to agree was no easy feat!
……

After seeing off the ministers, Zhao Xu encountered Liang Congzheng on his way back to Funing Palace, and learned from Liang Congzheng about the Empress Dowager's information channels.

Not surprising!

She was Lady Zhang, the head of the Imperial Household Department, who served the Empress Dowager!

This person had served the Empress Dowager since the time of Prince Pu's residence.

Her husband and descendants all obtained their official positions thanks to the grace of the Empress Dowager.

Liang Congzheng also told Zhao Xu that Zhang Shi had been leaving the palace to go home every three to five days for the past six months.

Her husband and the ladies of her family also frequently visited her in the palace.

This matter was reported to the palace by Zhang's sister-in-law.

After listening to Liang Congzheng's introduction, Zhao Xu casually took out a jade pendant from his person and gave it to him, then encouraged him, "I will always remember your loyalty, Guard!"

"I will certainly not fail my duty in the future!"

This is the truth!

Because Liang Congzheng's loyalty had been proven in his previous life—during those nightmarish days of the Yuan You era, it was thanks to Liang Congzheng, the Empress Dowager's trusted servant, who would secretly send things to Zhao Xu every now and then.

Zhao Xu might not be able to hold on!

It should be noted that at that time, even when Zhao Xu was eating a snack, he needed Zhao Ji to cover for him so that he could secretly eat it behind a curtain.

Malnutrition during his childhood was one of the reasons why Zhao Xu died suddenly later.

The foundation is too weak!
Therefore, it was only natural that Zhao Xu would give Liang Congzheng an important position after assuming power.

Just ...

Looking at Liang Congzheng, Zhao Xu couldn't help but recall the fate of the man in the sable coat he had seen in modern times—because he and Zhang Dun opposed the establishment of Zhao Ji as emperor, he was purged and demoted to death after Zhao Ji ascended the throne.

Thinking of this, Zhao Xu couldn't help but shake his head inwardly.

A prime minister who controlled the court, a high-ranking official in charge of the capital, and perhaps even Zhao Xu's own empress Liu—Liu had a very close relationship with Liang Congzheng, and it was through Liang Congzheng that Liu was able to defeat Meng Qingqing.

Therefore, since Liang Congzheng has joined forces with Zhang Dun, theoretically the Liu family should also be involved.
The combination of the late emperor's empress, prime minister, and sable-clad general is like a dragon riding in his face!

But they still lost.

Moreover, they lost miserably!
They were almost powerless to resist and were suppressed by Empress Dowager Xiang and Zeng Bu.

This made Zhao Xu, even in modern times, always want to facepalm whenever he thought about it—you guys were actually trying to depose the emperor.

How come there was no preparation at all?

At least give the Three Offices a heads-up!

"Serving the people is my duty!" Liang Congzheng was overjoyed, his face beaming with excitement.

"Oh, right..." Zhao Xu suddenly remembered his dream from last night, and instructed Liang Congzheng, "The palace guard, find someone for me..."

"Please give your orders..."

"This person should currently be a palace maid in the Inner Palace, surnamed Liu, with the childhood name Yingying... Her age is about the same as mine..."

"If the guard finds this woman, please do me a favor..."

Upon hearing the words "this woman," Liang Congzheng's ears immediately perked up like those of a Tibetan fox.

"Liu, whose childhood name is Yingying... is about the same age as everyone else..." Liang Congzheng murmured to himself, then immediately bowed and said, "Your subject will remember!"

"Go and get back to work!" Zhao Xu waved his hand.

"promise!"

Watching Liang Congzheng's departing figure, Zhao Xu sighed.

He didn't know if finding Liu was the right thing to do.
Because Liu was not only beautiful and voluptuous, but also had a deep understanding of Zhao Xu's preferences.

Everything else is a negative score.

This is a typical example of the stereotypes held by the literati regarding wicked concubines.

She possesses all the skills for palace intrigue, is ruthless and vicious, and will stop at nothing to rise to the top.

Unfortunately, she was poorly educated and knew little.

Therefore, she could neither become Wu Zetian nor Zhang Xianmingsu.

He couldn't even beat Zhao Xu's birth mother, Zhu Shi—Zhu Shi was honest, quiet, and harmless.

Therefore, even after Zhao Ji ascended the throne, he treated her with great respect, and after her death, she was buried in Yongyu Mausoleum and posthumously honored as Empress Qincheng.

On the other hand, what about the Liu family?
She couldn't even hold onto the empress position that Zhao Xu had given her!

In the end, he was forced to commit suicide by Emperor Huizong of Song!

But then again...

"Why would a vase need to know so much?" Zhao Xu chuckled.

Thinking of Liu's beauty, recalling her plump and juicy body.

Zhao Xu slowly closed his eyes.

A beautiful woman, all looks and no talent, just keep her around.

It just so happens that in the future, Zhao Xu may have to take the daughters of local chieftains and ethnic minority leaders into the palace for the sake of the country.

When the time comes, he will inevitably have to do what King Gao did: close his eyes and make love with these concubines.

Because he had to do everything he could to ensure that these concubines conceived children.

Then, these children were used as a link between the chieftains and ethnic minority leaders.

The princes would remotely command their respective regions, while the princesses would marry into their respective regions.

This is a political task.

Therefore, even though the person in question was from the Wu Yan clan, Zhao Xu had no choice but to bite the bullet and proceed, just like King Gao.

In that case, it's perfectly reasonable to have a few beautiful women around you who match your aesthetic and preferences to keep things interesting!

(End of this chapter)