The Red Mansion Big Liar.

Chapter 568 Everyone has their own plans
"Li Congwen did not educate his son strictly. He went too far. If he is not severely punished, I am afraid that it will chill the hearts of the soldiers!"

As soon as Gu Dashou finished his visit, Emperor Wanlong spoke briefly.

Even a despotic ruler would not miss the opportunity to command the world, let alone Emperor Wanlong who has the ambition to be a wise ruler?
In particular, Zhang Yun逸’s words that all land ownership would be taken back by the court deeply moved him.

Gu Dashou lowered his eyes, a hint of doubt flashed across his face, and he asked tentatively, "What does the emperor mean?"

"Although there is a memorial from Chang'an Jiedushi Yun Guang, in order to avoid partiality, I intend to let the three courts conduct a joint trial!"

"Your Majesty is wise. I will do it right away!"

"Wait!"

Emperor Wanlong stopped him and said, "This time the three courts will hold a joint trial to uphold the law, but they cannot shake the country. If Li Congwen is found guilty of favoritism and perverting the law, the position of Minister of War must be arranged as soon as possible."

Before this, the emperor indulged Li Congwen not simply out of consideration for their old friendship.

More importantly, considering the position of the Minister of War, it is not advisable to move lightly.

Even if Li Congwen was wrong, he had followed all the way from the palace after all.

Although Emperor Wanlong ascended the throne, he and Duke Qing were the only ones who could control the military.

Most of the nobles were closer to Prince Ning.

Although the Minister of War does not hold actual military power, he has a considerable say in the promotion of generals. He can also provide some checks and balances on logistics supplies and distribution of military equipment.

Once this position becomes vacant and no suitable candidate is appointed, power will fall into the wrong hands, causing endless troubles.

Gu Dashou thought for a moment and said cautiously, "Minister Zhou is a suitable candidate. Your Majesty, what do you think?"

Emperor Wanlong shook his head and said in a deep voice: "The Ministry of Justice is also suspected of negligence this time. I plan to send him to the Ministry of Justice."

"This……"

Originally, as Zhou Xianzu was the emperor's half-brother-in-law and an old acquaintance of the palace, the emperor had always intended to let him gain some experience before promoting him to the position of official in the Ministry of Personnel.

But now, he was arranged to go to the Ministry of Justice in a lukewarm manner, and Gu Dashou was a little confused.

Even with Gu Dashou's shrewdness, he couldn't hide the surprise on his face.

"Minister Zhong is old, and he will retire in a few years. Xianzu has worked in the Ministry of Personnel for so long. If he goes to the Ministry of Justice, won't all his efforts be wasted?"

"Minister Zhong is an old minister of the emperor. In order to prevent the emperor from thinking too much, let him hold on for a few more years!"

Emperor Wanlong evaded the main point and said, "This incident has also reminded me that even a fifth-rank garrison commander has nowhere to turn himself in, so isn't it even worse for ordinary people? After this case, I plan to reform the three judicial departments to prevent similar incidents from happening again. With Xianzu in charge there, I can feel more at ease!"

Although Gu Dashou was an old minister of the Qiandi Palace, he was also the person that Emperor Wanlong relied on the most.

But his ambitions are so great that if he is not careful, the country will be shaken and the world will be in chaos.

Therefore, even Gu Dashou could not fully believe it, let alone explain the cause and effect.

To put it more clearly, Emperor Wanlong is like the Wall-Facing Man in The Three-Body Problem. He keeps his true purpose hidden in his heart and will not explain it to those below him.

Of course, his idea came from a conversation with Zhang Yun逸.

However, as the person who offered the advice, Zhang Yun逸 would be doomed if the news leaked. On this point, the emperor and his ministers could trust each other and would not regard him as a traitor.

Because the Ministry of Justice wanted to expand its authority and assume the responsibilities of the Five Cities Military Command at the local level, Emperor Wanlong was more concerned about this aspect than the Ministry of Personnel.

Upon hearing that the three judicial departments were to be reformed, Gu Dashou suddenly realized what was going on and was also more surprised.

Although the newspaper was led by Zhang Yun逸, he was also involved in it. The details of Li Yanei's case published in it could naturally not be concealed from him.

So, as soon as the February newspaper was published, he paid special attention to the emperor's reaction.

Although it is difficult to find out what happened in the palace, Zhang Yunyi, as the instigator, will naturally be the first to bear the brunt of the consequences.

Because of this, he got the news as soon as Zhang Yunyi entered the palace. He thought that the emperor would definitely reprimand him, but he didn't expect that what he was waiting for was not only the severe punishment of Li Congwen, but also the reform of the three judicial departments.

He quickly put away his slight contempt for Zhang Yunyi's impatience and said solemnly, "If Minister Zhou is not convenient to go, I have another candidate."

Emperor Wanlong was worried here, and hurriedly urged: "Hurry up and tell me!"

"Although Jia Hua was promoted to the position of Vice Minister of Personnel not long ago, he supervised the case of the Zhen family in Jiangnan last year. With this achievement, and the Ministry of War is not comparable to the Ministry of Personnel, it is still appropriate for him to be promoted to Shangshu."

Emperor Wanlong looked at Gu Dashou expressionlessly, and said casually, "I remember that he is Zhang Aiqing's brother-in-law, right?"

"Your Majesty, it is true!"

At this point, Gu Dashou changed the subject and said, "But as far as I know, Madam Jia Hua is just an adopted daughter of Zhang Yunyi's concubine's family. Although she is a brother-in-law, it is an exaggeration."

He looked into the eyes of Emperor Wanlong and said calmly, "Besides, Your Majesty should remember that when he was sent south, he did not make a decision immediately, but kept his troops in place and wrote a letter to ask for permission..."

After hearing this, Emperor Wanlong took a deep breath and leaned back on the dragon throne.

As an emperor, if there is harmony in the court, he can easily be sidelined by his ministers.

What he didn't want to see even more was Gu Dashou, a leading figure in the literary world, getting too close to Zhang Yun逸, a leader in Taoism.

However, the contacts and business dealings between the two sides had already begun before he ascended the throne.

Although it could be seen from the business of Quyuan Zatan that Gu Dashou obeyed the emperor's will and intended to distance himself from him, the proposal to Jia Yucun inevitably aroused his suspicion.

However, Gu Dashou's next words reminded him.

Loyalty that is not absolute is equal to absolute disloyalty.

At the beginning, it was precisely because Jia Yucun's act of submitting a memorial made him unhappy that he only paid lip service to Jia Yucun's words of encouragement but did not give him any substantial rewards.

This time, however, is another matter.

If Jia Yucun was really as close to Zhang Yun逸 as he appeared to be, with the emperor's order to close the case as soon as possible, and after he had a grasp of the Zhen family's situation, he would naturally convict him as soon as possible instead of sitting still.

But he reported it first, and only cooperated to confirm the case after the emperor sent Lu Bing south.

If the Zhen family was not finally convicted, the emperor might still suspect that Jia Yucun had some connection with the Ning Wang family, but he kept the evidence intact.

The approach involved is worth further study.

Seeing Emperor Wanlong's attitude, Gu Dashou quickly struck while the iron was hot and said, "I have had contact with him. In my opinion, although he is a smooth person, he is a man of the imperial examination system after all. He has read the books of sages for a long time and knows what is important and what is not!"

Although what Gu Dashou said was the truth, he also had his own plans.

He was well aware of the conflicts between Zhang Yun逸 and Li Congwen.

However, no one expected Zhang Yun逸 to act so quickly, ruthlessly and accurately, and no one expected the emperor to go to war after just one meeting.

He knew very well that the emperor intended to promote him to compete with Zhang Yun逸, and there was no way to disobey the emperor's order.

But after all, he is not as young as Zhang Yunyi, and Zhang Yunyi is vindictive.

Just because there were some obstacles in official work, he took such cruel action.

When he was around, the emperor needed to maintain a balance and didn't have to worry about his family. But if the feud became serious and he was no longer around, how would those useless sons at home be able to cope with it?
For this purpose, he strongly recommended Jia Yucun, trying to hint to Zhang Yun逸 through this incident that he had no choice but to do it, so as to avoid making the feud too deep and irreversible.

Emperor Wanlong took a deep breath and said, "Since the Lord has said so, and he is the brother-in-law of Minister Zhang, there should be no problem. However, this matter is serious, and the trial by the three judicial departments will take some time anyway. The Lord should contact him again."

Gu Dashou quickly accepted the order and said, "I obey your order!"

……

(End of this chapter)