Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

When Sun Quan said this, Shi Yi, Hu Zong and Xu Xiangjin were all shocked.

Everything in this world is often just a matter of beginning. But once you really start something, there is no turning back.

As for Prime Minister Gu Yong, Sun Quan had interrogated him almost as if he were under house arrest, and his position, salary, and treatment had not been suspended. Given Sun Quan's current state of anger, he might want to kill him!

The emperor had just established the country for less than two years, and he could kill the minister? Even when he was not the emperor, but the king or marquis of Wu, Sun Quan had always been respectful and attentive to advice. How could his good reputation of thirty years be ruined in one day?

Facing the furious Sun Quan, Hu Zong did not dare to persuade him. Instead, he bowed deeply, with his forehead pressed against the brick and stone floor of the hall, not daring to move.

Xu Xiang, who was also kneeling on the ground, raised his head and said, "Your Majesty, Minister Lu is a minister of state. If he is imprisoned without any crime, it will probably frustrate the people of the world."

Seeing Sun Quan's fierce eyes glaring at him again, Xu Xiang hurriedly explained: "I am thinking about your majesty, I have no other intentions!"

"Enforce the law." Sun Quan stopped looking at Xu Xiang and Hu Zong and focused his attention on Shi Yi again: "What crime should Lu Mao be punished for?"

Shi Yi was silent for a long time, and finally said: "Minister Lu Mao deceived the prince and alienated the royal family. He should be arrested for this crime!"

"Do you want me to repeat it to you again?" Sun Quan held the hilt of the sword at his waist, walked in front of Hu Zong and said coldly.

Hu Zong did not dare to delay any longer and kowtowed and replied: "I ask that you arrest Lu Mao now."

"Go." Sun Quan nodded.

Hu Zong stood up, bowed to Sun Quan, and then walked out. Only when Hu Zong walked away did Sun Quan release the anger he had been holding in his heart. He took off the sword from his waist and placed it flat on the table. He also sat down and kept stroking the sword.

For Sun Quan, his anger today was not only caused by the letter from Crown Prince Sun Deng, but also due to the outbreak of long-standing grievances.

Although Sun Quan had ruled Jiangdong for thirty years, the influence of the local gentry had not diminished at all. Even after Lu Xun, a member of the former Lu family, defected to the Wei Kingdom, Sun Quan continued to appoint Lu Xun's younger brother Lu Mao as the most important official in charge of selecting officials in order to save face, showing his continued respect for the gentry.

Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang.

Gu Yong of the Gu family is now the prime minister of Wu. Gu Yong's eldest son Gu Shao once married Sun Ce's daughter and died more than ten years ago. Gu Yong's eldest grandson Gu Tan is now an official under the crown prince Sun Deng. Prime Minister Gu Yong's other sons Gu Mu, Gu Ji, and Gu Yu are all two thousand stone officials.

The Lu family's momentum declined slightly after Lu Xun surrendered to the Wei Kingdom, but Lu Xun's brother Lu Mao still served as the Xuan Cao Shangshu, one of the top two Shangshu, with considerable power and responsibility.

Zhu Huan of the Zhu family had died. In order to show his favor, Sun Quan married his youngest son, Sun Luyu, to Zhu Ju and appointed him as the left general.

Zhang Wen of the Wujun Zhang family had long shown his discord with Sun Quan and now only held a sinecure in the court.

But the key to the problem has never been about the four families of Gu, Lu, Zhu and Zhang. Gu, Lu, Zhu and Zhang are all big families in Wu County, and Wu State is not just Wu County.

Compared to Sun Ce's early years of conquering Jiangdong, when various parts of Jiangdong rose up in resistance, which even led to the tragic ending of Sun Ce himself being assassinated, the so-called Gu Lu Zhu Zhang were actually local gentry carefully selected by Sun Quan himself to help Sun Quan rule and suppress other Jiangdong gentry. They did not truly rise until the end of the Jian'an period.

In addition to Gu, Lu, Zhu and Zhang, there were many other aristocratic families in the State of Wu.

Zhang, Zhuge, Bu from Xuzhou; Zhang, Lu, Fan, Dai from Guangling; Zhu from Danyang; He, Yu from Kuaiji...

But the key among the keys is that the so-called Gu, Lu, Zhu and Zhang are all aristocratic families cultivated by Sun Quan himself!

Not only did the scholars he had trained begin to encroach on his power, but even Sun Deng, whom he had placed high hopes on and had made the crown prince and heir, was influenced by them and began to speak for them!

This was what really touched Sun Quan's sore spot and was the fundamental reason why he arrested Lu Mao in a rage, rather than just the correspondence between Lu Mao and the prince.

It would have been fine if Zhang Zhao, Yu Fan and others had been at odds with Sun Quan before, but now Gu Yong, Lu Mao and others have made the same mistake! In the past forty days, Gu Yong has not even sent a letter of apology to the palace! Are scholars born to be on the opposite side of him?

Hu Zong was a man of both civil and military talents. He was able to lead troops and was also good at writing. In addition, he was Sun Quan's confidant and had always acted honestly. Therefore, Hu Zong had a very good reputation in the State of Wu.

When Hu Zong led fifty soldiers to the Shangshutai, he led them straight to Lu Mao's duty room. Before Lu Mao could react, he was still in a daze when the soldiers tied his hands behind his back and carried him out.

After Hu Zong said that this was in compliance with the emperor's order, Lu Mao knew what he had done, so he said nothing and obediently followed the soldiers out without pleading with Hu Zong at all.

But since Lu Mao acted like this, others couldn't just stand by and watch!

But this noise and momentum were enough to alarm everyone in the Shangshu Terrace.

"Minister Hu!" Xue Zong, the thin minister, was furious. He opened his arms and blocked Hu Zong and the soldiers who were accompanying him. He shouted loudly: "The Secretariat is an important place in the Great Wu. Why did Minister Hu suddenly lead his troops to break in and take away Minister Lu? Where is the dignity of the court? Where is the dignity of the Secretariat? Why is it so! Lu Zizhang is the minister of the Great Wu. How can he bear such humiliation!"

Hu Zong was also unwilling to do such a thing, but there was no other way.

Just now, Yi, Hu Zong and Xu Xiang almost told Sun Quan clearly in the palace. There was no precedent in Wu Kingdom to directly arrest the Shangshu and put him in prison. Sun Quan easily shut the three people up by accusing them of inciting the prince and alienating the royal family.

If they continue to shirk responsibility, the three of them will be in trouble. In this world, standing on the right side is more important than decency and reason. You can do many things wrong, but you must stand on the right side. This is the basic requirement for survival in the court.

Can't be wrong at all.

Have to do it.

Hu Zong sighed in his heart: "Minister Xue, I came here to arrest someone in accordance with the order of His Majesty. I hope that Minister Xue will not stop me, so as to avoid self-realization."

"Come to the Shangshutai to arrest someone?" Xue Zong's eyes widened: "Do you have an imperial edict? Do you have a crime? Do you have evidence? How can you arrest someone so easily? Is this still the Great Wu court?"

Hu Zong's face turned cold: "Bewitching the prince and alienating the royal family, this is Lu Zizhang's crime. As for the imperial edict, I have already said that it was ordered by your majesty. It is not the turn of Minister Xue to ask for evidence! Please do your duty, Minister Xue!"

While the two were talking, four ministers, Kan Ze, Ji Liang, Qu Huang and Puyang Yi, also gathered around and stood in pairs on Xue Zong's left and right.

"Please give me an explanation, Minister Hu!"

"Why is this so!"

"What exactly is it about? When has Da Wu ever been accused of such a crime?"

Facing the questions from several Shangshu, a feeling of powerlessness surged into Hu Zong's heart. Hu Zong's face was uncertain, and after hesitating for a few moments, he still bowed to them:
"I am following orders, and I hope you will not make mistakes!"

"Brother Jingwen, everyone." Lu Mao's face was pale, but he still tried to speak: "I hope you won't stop me, and let me go with Hu Weize. The Shangshutai cannot be in chaos, everyone should disperse."

"Hey! I'm going to write a letter!" Xue Zong stamped his feet, looked at Lu Mao's face carefully a few times, and finally turned his face away, stepped back a few steps sideways, covered his face and stood still.

Seeing Xue Zong's behavior, the other ministers also made way for him. Hu Zong remained expressionless, nodded slightly to everyone, then waved his hand forward, led the soldiers and Lu Mao, whose hands were tied, out.

Jianye City was the capital for a short time, and the city construction was not very complete, so there was no prison directly under the imperial court or the court, so Lu Mao had to be imprisoned in the prison of the provincial government.

The walls of the small cell were covered with moss, and there was a heavy rain today, so there was even a thin layer of water in the low-lying corners of the wall. The straw that was originally spread in a corner of the cell was also stained with a little moisture.

"Minister Lu, please come in." The jailer opened the cell door and Hu Zong pointed inside.

Lu Mao lowered his head and sighed, then raised his leg to walk in. Just as he stepped in, Lu Mao stopped and turned to look at Hu Zong:
"Minister Hu, am I really guilty? As a minister, am I really guilty of admonishing His Majesty, rescuing my superior, and reporting to the crown prince? The Great Wuxu does not have such laws!"

Hu Zong finally couldn't bear it, so he waved his hand and let the soldiers go first. He looked at Lu Mao sternly, "Lu Shangshu, I just don't understand. Your Lu family's reputation has been greatly damaged because of Lu Boyan. Why do you still want to get involved in the affairs between His Majesty and the Prime Minister? Why do you have to contact the Crown Prince and drag him into this matter when he has nothing to do with it?"

Hu Zong carefully observed Lu Mao's face. If Lu Mao softened and cried in regret at this moment, he could still be impartial and persuade Sun Quan again.

Although Lu Mao's face was pale, he did not give in at all. He lowered his voice and said, "Minister Hu, we are scholars. We should consider whether we should do something or not!"

Hu Zong was startled, then shook his head and sighed: "It shouldn't be like this..."

"Wei Ze doesn't need to waste any more words!"

Before Hu Zong could finish his words, steady footsteps were heard at the corner of the corridor behind him. Hu Zong turned around and saw that the person coming was Sun Quan himself!

"Your Majesty!" Hu Zong bowed in greeting.

"Your Majesty, I, Lu Mao, pay my respects to you!" Lu Mao also bowed.

Sun Quan did not say a word. He walked straight to Lu Mao and grabbed Lu Mao's collar with his right hand. Lu Mao felt a great force and was lifted up by Sun Quan without any resistance and pressed against the damp wall of the cell.

He didn't have time to cry out in pain as Sun Quan's mouth pressed against his throat and fear instantly took over Lu Mao's whole body.

Sun Quan is already fifty years old, why is he still so strong? After all, he is the son of Sun Wentai and the younger brother of Sun Bofu, and he is as fierce as a tiger. Lu Mao didn't know why, but such an idea came to his mind.

Sun Quan was furious, and he was very close to Lu Mao, saying without stopping:

"You and Xue Jingwen had previously gone to the princess to exonerate Zhu Ju. I dismissed Zhu Ju from his post and sent him and the princess back to Wu County. How could I ever blame you?"

"Instead of devoting yourself to the king's affairs, you dragged the crown prince who was far away in Wuchang into this matter that had nothing to do with him. Lu Mao, what are your intentions? Even though Lu Boyan had defected, I still used you. Have I ever treated your Lu family unfairly?"

Lu Mao's face gradually turned red, and only hesitating sounds came out of his mouth, and he couldn't even utter a complete syllable.

Hu Zong hurried forward and advised: "Your Majesty, Lu Zizhang is weak. If you press him like this, he will die!" (End of this chapter)