The Red Mansion Big Liar.

Chapter 417 An unexpected gain
Shuntian Mansion.

Li Mingyuan and other court officials had packed up their things and were preparing to go home.

But then a yamen runner rushed into the inner hall and shouted, "Sir! It's bad!"

"what happened?"

"Your Excellency, many students from Jiangnan have gathered outside the city... They say they want to restore order and advise the Emperor..."

He finished speaking in a halting manner, and everyone's faces changed drastically.

They looked at each other in bewilderment and after a long pause, Li Mingyuan spoke first, "Go! Capture the head of the Xue family first!"

"Sir..." Several officials looked at him in surprise, seeming to be hesitant to speak.

Although there is a huge momentum outside the city, the outcome is still uncertain.

What's more, Zhang Yun逸 still has the kindness to rescue him, so such a decision is obviously inappropriate and hasty.

Li Mingyuan waited until the yamen runners took the order and left, then he raised his hand and explained, "Everyone, please be patient! It's not that I am ungrateful. Yesterday, Lord Zhang came to visit and specifically told me to handle it impartially. He wouldn't make a fuss about such a small matter. Now that I think about it, he probably got wind of it in advance and didn't want to give him a handle at this juncture."

After he said this, the faces of the officials became much more relaxed.

"Your Excellency is wise! Since Lord Zhang has made preparations, we will not be caught off guard. I am relieved."

"But, if Lord Zhang misunderstands, wouldn't it be..."

Li Mingyuan pondered and said, "It doesn't matter. We are just pretending. Let's bring the person back first and treat him well in the government office."

He paused, then continued, "Although the case is clear, there is no need to rush to make a verdict, so as to avoid unnecessary complications. It will not be too late to make a verdict after the storm has passed and the dust has settled. What do you think?"

"I think Lord Zhang should give a heads up in advance to avoid any misunderstandings."

"Of course. I will send someone there later and inform you of what is happening outside the city."

"So good!"

Just like that, before Zhang Yun逸 went to Shuntian Prefecture the next day.

That night, he met the person sent by Li Mingyuan to inform him of the news.

Although Li Mingyuan's arrangement was not without a wait-and-see element, it was still commendable that he was able to send someone to notify at this time.

In addition, his actions were in line with Zhang Yunyi's plan, so he was not dissatisfied.

"Go ahead! Thank your parents for me!"

He always remains calm when faced with major events. Even though the outcome of the matter is about to come to a conclusion, he continues to do as usual.

After visiting his son as usual, Fang took Jinchuan back to the house to rest.

Knowing that the memorial had arrived outside the city, he guessed that the emperor would definitely summon him, so he was not in a hurry to go outside the city.

In addition, Youshi had just finished her confinement and was worried that it would cause panic among the family and cause symptoms such as postpartum depression, so she did not send anyone to bring Qin Keqing and others back.

At around noon, Zhou Xiangui came to summon him.

"That Mei Lian is really abominable. He slandered the king. You must be careful in dealing with him!"

After hearing this, Zhang Yun逸 felt a lot more relieved.

These eunuchs are the best at observing people's words and expressions. Since they are willing to leak the news to me, they must have some guesses.

He nodded and stepped into the car.

After entering the palace, he followed Zhou Xiangui all the way to the imperial study.

As soon as he performed the great salute, Emperor Zhengqing threw a huge pile of memorials in front of him. "Ahem! Take a look!"

Zhang Yunyi picked up the memorials and read them one by one with some surprise.

It would have been fine if others did that, but he was caught off guard by the fact that Jia Zheng also joined in the fun.

It was no coincidence that these memorials were sent together, because Mei Lian wanted to build up his momentum, and those who wanted to follow him naturally gathered together.

After reading it, he pretended to be puzzled and said, "Your Majesty! This is strange!"

"Tell me!"

"Mei Hanlin went to Jiangnan to take up his post after the New Year. Even if he rode as fast as he could, it would be almost spring plowing season by the time he got there... Besides, if the problem really was caused by bird droppings, why did it only happen in Jiangnan? Although I was not in Jiangnan, I have also reviewed the accounts in the south..."

He argued for a long time, from the handling of bird droppings to the suspicious accounts, and finally raised his head.

But he was surprised to find that Emperor Zhengqing seemed to have aged ten years.

"Ahem!" Emperor Zhengqing slumped down on the dragon throne. He did not comment on Zhang Yunyi's words, but asked, "Didn't you say that as long as I delve into the ways of the immortals, I will be blessed with merit? Why do I feel worse today?"

Emperor Zhengqing has been taking elixirs for many years. He was very emotional yesterday and felt a little weak in the evening. After reading these memorials today, it added fuel to the fire.

Although Zhang Yunyi didn't know the reason, he had already planned a response. Without thinking, he quickly prostrated himself on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, the way of heaven is to reduce the surplus and make up for the deficiency. Although I have done my best, human power is limited. It is for this reason that I opened the Immortal Academy, hoping to make up for the omissions made by those corrupt officials, lazy officials, and parasites of the country! Your Majesty!"

Seeing that Emperor Zhengqing did not speak, he continued: "Since ancient times, apart from the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, even the Qin Emperor and Han Wudi, there has been no emperor who has been able to add merits and become an immortal. The reason is this. There are too few loyal ministers and too many treacherous ministers. Please understand, Your Majesty!"

"Hoo! Cough, cough, cough..." Emperor Zheng Qing exhaled heavily, and then coughed a few more times before saying, "I know you are loyal and commendable, get up quickly!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Zhang Yunyi finally let go of the stone in his heart, stood up and secretly looked at Emperor Zhengqing, only to see him take a deep breath and said angrily: "I want to see who gave them the courage to slander the emperor and slander the loyal ministers! Send an order, let the Jinyiwei arrest all of them and put them in the imperial prison to await their fate!"

Zhang Yunyi hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your protection, but if you put people in jail just because of these memorials, I am afraid it will be difficult to convince the public. Please send someone to Jiangnan to find out the truth, clear your name, and clear my name!"

If his purpose was only to preserve himself, he would have already achieved it and there would be no need to create unnecessary complications.

But since they want to put the fire on Prince Ning, they must take the opportunity to dig deeper into the inside story.

"These traitors must be killed to serve as a warning to others!"

Seeing that Emperor Zhengqing was determined to kill, Zhang Yunyi was reluctant but had to persuade him: "Killing them is a small matter, but damaging your majesty's health is a big matter. Please take care of your health. Jiangnan has suffered serious damage and disaster relief is urgent. Please understand your majesty!"

After all, the right to speak in this world is in the hands of scholars. If the emperor really lets go on a killing spree, he will become mortal enemies with all the scholars in the world.

"Forget it!" After hearing this, Emperor Zhengqing waved his hand helplessly and said, "Then in your opinion, who should be sent?"

"Your Majesty is wise and should govern according to his position. I know very little about the affairs of the court. It would be better for Your Majesty to discuss this with the other ministers."

Having said that, he has finished his work, and the rest should be left to Gu Dashou and others.

"I was right about you! Go down!"

Emperor Zhengqing waved his hand. Zhang Yunyi was about to leave the imperial study, but was stopped again: "Wait! You just said that the way of heaven is to take away the surplus and give to the deficiency. I deeply agree with you. If I abdicate and become an emperor, will it be..."

Zhang Yunyi was stunned. He did not dare to show any surprise. He put on a panicked look and quickly knelt on the ground: "This is a serious matter! I dare not make any rash comments!"

Emperor Zhengqing did not ask any further questions, but said weakly: "Your loyalty is commendable, and I cannot let you suffer in vain. Take Jia Zheng's memorial back with you. For your sake, I will pretend that I have not read it. You can decide how to act. Go!"

"Yes! Your Majesty! I will take my leave!"

Zhang Yun逸 was inspired when he heard this. He took out Jia Zheng's memorial from the scattered memorials and put it in his arms.

……

(End of this chapter)