Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 693 It Still Has to Be You
What Zhu Houzhao was unaware of was that Pei Yuan had met with Empress Dowager Zhang when he framed Empress Xia.

Because Empress Dowager Zhang had been paying close attention to Empress Xia's affairs, she also remembered the name Pei Yuan.

In that case, wouldn't all that I just said have been exposed by Zhu Houzhao?
Empress Dowager Zhang continued with a cold laugh, "I knew he wouldn't trust his mother and wouldn't care about this matter. Maybe he's hoping for some unexpected gain."

Upon hearing Empress Dowager Zhang's words, Pei Yuan remained silent and dared not utter a sound.

This is a dangerous place to wade through.

Pei Yuan didn't want to go, but someone insisted that he go.

After a moment of sadness and disappointment, Empress Dowager Zhang turned her gaze to Pei Yuan.

She thought for a moment and then instructed everyone, "You all step back to a distance. I still have some details of this case to ask Commander Pei."

When the palace maids and eunuchs heard about the conflict between the emperor and the empress dowager, they wished they could cover their ears immediately.

Upon hearing this, they felt as if they had been granted a pardon and hurriedly retreated.

However, these people did not dare to go far. They all descended the steps and stood at a distance from the two of them.

Empress Dowager Zhang said to the several trusted aides who were standing motionless beside her, "You may all leave now."

“This…” The palace maids and eunuchs glanced at Pei Yuan, dared not say anything more, and retreated to the side.

Empress Dowager Zhang was clearly very discreet in her actions. Even when she had confidential matters to ask Pei Yuan, she would do so in public, one alone on the imperial steps and the other alone below.

After everyone had dispersed slightly, Empress Dowager Zhang asked Pei Yuan, "What is your opinion on this matter?"

Pei Yuan was a little confused, "Me?"

Just as I was about to ask what I could think, I suddenly realized why Empress Zhang would ask me.

It must be because my answer just now pleased Empress Zhang that she brought up this matter that I couldn't communicate with others to ask me.

After all, this involves the mother-son relationship between the current emperor and the empress dowager. If Pei Yuan hadn't been a party involved and hadn't been able to express her thoughts so well, Empress Dowager Zhang would have preferred to ponder this matter on her own.

Pei Yuan hesitated for a moment, wondering what to do.
His gaze unconsciously drifted towards the palace maids and eunuchs who had been there before.

These people were all present when Empress Dowager Zhang exposed Zhu Houzhao's lie on the spot.

There might be the emperor's spies among them.

If he adopts a conservative strategy in his subsequent lobbying efforts, but Empress Dowager Zhang already harbors resentment, her relationship with the emperor will inevitably deteriorate further.

When the emperor investigates the cause, he will inevitably find his own involvement.

Instead of doing that, we should take the initiative and make good use of this opportunity.

After thinking it over, Pei Yuan calmly replied, "I think this is a good thing."

"Good news?!" Empress Dowager Zhang frowned, her face darkened, and her voice involuntarily rose.

Empress Dowager Zhang had considered that Pei Yuan might not dare to agree with her, and even thought that Pei Yuan would be like the others she had asked before, hesitant and afraid to speak. But she never expected that Pei Yuan would say it was a good thing.

This matter not only concerned her own interests, but also dragged her two most cherished younger brothers into it.

Hearing the cold words spoken by the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Empress Dowager Zhang felt a faint anger of betrayal.

Pei Yuan continued in a deep voice, "Yes, I think this is a good thing. For the Empress Dowager, it may be an even greater good thing."

Empress Dowager Zhang was already displeased when Pei Yuan repeated himself.

However, after hearing Pei Yuan add the phrase "for the Empress Dowager...", she was willing to believe that Pei Yuan was on her side.

Empress Dowager Zhang said coldly, "Then tell me, why is this a good thing? And what kind of good thing is it exactly?"

Pei Yuan showed no fear whatsoever, but spoke frankly.

“I grew up in the capital since I was a child, and I first heard about Zheng Wang’s seditious words ten years ago.”

Empress Dowager Zhang stared at Pei Yuan, wanting to hear what he had to say next.

“I grew up among the common people, and over the years I have heard many times about Zheng Wang’s seditious rumors. Even after the Ministry of Justice executed Zheng Wang in the second year of Zhengde’s reign, the rumors continued.”

"This time, it even involved the heir of the De family. Before the heir of the De family asked local officials to suppress the matter, the whole thing was already common knowledge in Shandong."

Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Zhang's expression grew even colder, and her eyes narrowed.

Pei Yuan's voice softened again, and he asked seriously, "How could such a colossal lie, which is not even worth refuting, have been able to stir up trouble for ten years? Has the Empress Dowager ever considered why?"

Empress Dowager Zhang had clearly considered these issues long ago.

She blurted out, "Someone wants to deal with me, and also with the Emperor."

Pei Yuan immediately agreed, saying, "That's right, the Empress Dowager's words have hit the nail on the head."

"If it were true that some people wanted to curry favor with Zheng Wang and seek wealth and power, then this matter should have been quieted down after Zheng Wang's death in the second year of Zhengde's reign. However, the rumors related to it have continued to emerge and intensify, which shows that these people have ulterior motives and their minds are all on the Empress Dowager and His Majesty."

"With Your Majesty's intelligence and wisdom, how could you not see through the clues?"

"Therefore, when faced with this matter, the Empress Dowager and His Majesty are actually on the same page, and the Empress Dowager has no need to doubt His Majesty's intentions."

Empress Dowager Zhang scoffed, "Only he knows what he's thinking."

Pei Yuan pretended not to hear and continued speaking.

"Now it will soon be the eighth year of Zhengde's reign. His Majesty is in the prime of his youth, and the Empress Dowager will surely enjoy eternal bliss and longevity. Must His Majesty and the Empress Dowager continue to be troubled by these filthy and degrading matters that tarnish the imperial family's reputation in the long days to come?"

Pei Yuanke was all too aware of the impact of Zheng Wang's seditious remarks case.

Later, when Prince Ning rebelled, one of the important reasons in the proclamation against him was that "the Emperor destroyed Zheng because of Ju, and Emperor Taizu did not offer sacrifices to the emperor."

When Zhu Chenhao was persuading Jiangxi officials to join him in rebellion, he bluntly stated, "Our ancestors have not offered sacrifices to us for fourteen years now."

This means that Zhu Houzhao was not a descendant of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang at all, but a complete imposter.

This is also why Empress Dowager Zhang and Zhu Houzhao were so wary of Zheng Wang's seditious remarks.

—If the emperor's mother is proven to be a fake, then who can be sure whether the emperor's father is real?

In fact, Empress Dowager Zhang had been troubled by this matter for a long time.

When Zheng Wang first started spreading rumors and misleading the public, it didn't have a significant impact, and many people could simply ignore it. However, in the seventeenth year of the Hongzhi reign, Zheng Wang found Princess Renhe, the eldest daughter of Emperor Xianzong, and visited her with items that had leaked from the palace, which immediately escalated the situation.

Although the imperial court thoroughly investigated the matter, Emperor Hongzhi stubbornly refused to execute Zheng Wang.

To keep Princess Renhe from getting involved in this mess, the Emperor and Empress swallowed their anger and gave her 294 hectares of land in Lishangtun, Wuqing County that year as a token of their goodwill.

Empress Dowager Zhang had always considered this matter a source of worry.

Zheng Wang lived peacefully until the death of Emperor Hongzhi.

After Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, Empress Dowager Zhang immediately had the idea of ​​getting rid of Zheng Wang.

However, Min Gui, the Minister of Justice, seized upon the precedent of granting a general amnesty upon Zhu Houzhao's ascension to the throne and released Zheng Wang from the Ministry of Justice's prison.

Someone reminded Min Gui of the prisoner's special status, suggesting that he consult the current emperor and empress dowager.

Min Gui, however, acted arbitrarily, using the excuse that anyone not on the unpardonable list could be released, and directly released Zheng Wang.

Min Gui's judgment was simple.

Given the masculine nature of Emperor Hongzhi, anyone who offended Empress Zhang, even a court official, could be beaten half to death.

The fact that Emperor Hongzhi was able to protect this person despite the shrewish outburst of Empress Dowager Zhang suggests there must be something more to it.

To say that Zheng Wang was just an ordinary citizen of the Ming Dynasty... well, at least Min Gui, the Minister of Justice, wouldn't believe it.

As a veteran minister of the Hongzhi Emperor, Min Gui could not bear to see such a tragic human tragedy as the emperor murdering his maternal grandfather.

With his political acumen, he also understood that as long as Zheng Wang remained alive, he would inevitably face death sooner or later.

Therefore, Min Gui took it upon himself to release Zheng Wang.

So when Zheng Wang resurfaced in the second year of Zhengde's reign, Empress Dowager Zhang and the Emperor first managed to replace Min Gui before finally succeeding in killing Zheng Wang.

She originally thought that with the death of this culprit, everything would return to peace, but she did not expect that this Shandong case was not only deeply involved with Zheng Wang's seditious words, but the Jinyiwei in front of her even mentioned that these bewitching words had been circulating in the streets for many years.

In her anger, Empress Dowager Zhang pondered the meaning behind Pei Yuan's words and couldn't help but retort, "Do you perhaps have some good idea?"

Pei Yuan smiled upon hearing this and said, "Your Majesty, this is why I said that the De Fan case is related to Zheng Wang's seditious words, which is a good thing."

Empress Dowager Zhang's heart stirred, and she said, "Then tell me about it."

Pei Yuan immediately explained, "The reason is simple: when the same thing is said by people of different statuses, the impression it gives is different, and the level of trust people have in it is also completely different."

Before Pei Yuan could continue, Empress Dowager Zhang impatiently pressed, "What do you mean by that?"

Pei Yuan patiently explained, "If it was that thief Zheng Wang who was telling the whole story from beginning to end, then the people would inevitably become curious and talk about it with great interest. In fact, because of some of the unspeakable doubts, the more the court tries to clarify, the more suspicious the people become. And they will keep bringing it up and using it as a topic of conversation."

"If this continues year after year, maybe even the fake will be taken for the real."

Before Empress Dowager Zhang could get angry, Pei Yuan changed the subject.

“However, it would be very different if these things were said by Crown Prince Deok. Because Crown Prince Deok has a strong vested interest in these rumors.”

"Your Majesty, consider this: if such a shocking story were spread by the Crown Prince of De, the Prince of De, or someone from the De family, what would the people think?"

Empress Dowager Zhang's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Pei Yuan gave the answer directly: "The people will think that De Fan is plotting something sinister, or even has rebellious intentions. That's why these rebels deliberately slandered the emperor's origins to achieve their ulterior motives."

"Can anything said by these traitors be true?"

Pei Yuan boldly raised his head, meeting Empress Dowager Zhang's incredulous gaze, "May I ask Your Majesty, is what I said reasonable?"

It took Empress Dowager Zhang a while to come to her senses, and she murmured subconsciously, "It makes sense, it makes perfect sense!"

Pei Yuan immediately pressed his advantage, saying, "This is the good thing I was talking about."

"I never expected that a small case in Shandong could uncover the mastermind behind the rumors that insulted the Emperor and Empress Dowager years ago."

"When the mastermind is brought to justice and confesses without reservation, the people of the world will surely realize that what they did yesterday was right and what they did not do yesterday."

Empress Dowager Zhang stared intently at Pei Yuan.

Pei Yuan met Empress Dowager Zhang's gaze and said in a resolute tone, "Therefore, I believe that the key to the Shandong case actually lies with De Fan. Moreover, I have a feeling that Zheng Wang's seditious words also originated from De Fan."

Empress Dowager Zhang came to her senses and nodded in agreement with a serious expression, "I also believe that it must have been the work of the evil faction of the De Fan."

Seeing that he had persuaded Empress Dowager Zhang, Pei Yuan immediately smiled and said, "So, wasn't I right? This is a good thing."

Empress Dowager Zhang's serious expression gradually softened, and her curved eyebrows and eyes made no attempt to hide the look of surprise and delight.

"As expected, it was only you who were able to investigate the Shandong case thoroughly!"

"Go to Shandong now and settle the case as soon as possible."

Seeing that Empress Dowager Zhang was in a good mood, Pei Yuan quickly tried to make amends for what had happened earlier, saying, "Your Majesty, I am naturally willing to serve you with utmost loyalty. However, I have a past incident to report, and I hope Your Majesty can understand."

Seeing that there was finally hope of getting rid of this huge trouble, Empress Dowager Zhang was overjoyed and said directly, "Tell me about it."

Pei Yuan then said, "I believe there must be some misunderstanding between Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager."

“I am not an unknown person. I have offered advice to Your Majesty on many occasions, and the strategies I have presented have been quite incisive and effective. Therefore, Your Majesty greatly appreciates my abilities.”

"Therefore, Your Majesty subconsciously assumed that this matter was safe after hearing that I had gone to Shandong."

"Your Majesty should not know that I was there for trial; otherwise, why would Your Majesty tell the Empress Dowager so frankly?"

Empress Dowager Zhang had calmed down from her earlier rage, and thanks to Pei Yuan's few words that had resolved a potential problem, she gradually came to her senses after hearing what he said.

However, as the Empress Dowager, she couldn't directly change her mind and say anything else.

She then changed the subject, saying, "It seems I have some discernment in people. I thought you were quite good to begin with, but I never expected you to have the ability to share the burdens of the emperor."

Then, she finally said, "If it were before today, I might not have believed it. But after witnessing your wisdom today, what doubts do I have? No wonder my son thinks this way. If it were me, I would certainly feel at ease if I heard that you were in Shandong."

Then, in a nonchalant tone, she said, "It was I who misunderstood him."

(End of this chapter)