Fu Shanhe

Chapter 576 Outrageous Rumors
Left Censorate.

"Master, something terrible has happened!"

"Someone leaked the news in advance and arranged for people inside the city to take action. Their whereabouts were exposed as soon as they took action, and they were suppressed by patrolling officers and soldiers."

Due to delays along the way, our personnel failed to arrive at the battlefield in time. The operation to capture the inner city unfortunately ended in failure.

Fortunately, the royal army acted quickly and seized the outer city, catching the defending troops off guard. The battle is now at a stalemate.

Our men created chaos in several areas of the inner city, drawing the attention of those soldiers; this should have some effect.

The news brought by the old butler sent the Shu family into a panic. The business they were currently involved in could cost them their lives.

If the grassland allied forces fail to capture Nanjing in time, the imperial court will eventually investigate them once the city's order is restored.

Not all the servants who participated in the operation were suicide squad members.

If they are subjected to severe torture and forced confessions, it's only a matter of time before they reveal their true identities.

Even if you're lucky and your own side doesn't leak information, other people involved in the operation might succumb to the pressure and be exposed prematurely.

Once the news leaks out, the entire Shu family, as the ringleader who defected to the Northern barbarians, will be executed.

"waste!"

"They're all trash!"

"I knew it! This brat is not worth discussing things with!"

Shu Jinglun couldn't help but burst into a tirade of curses.

He had always opposed holding the gathering at his own residence, but his nephew had tricked him.

It has become a fait accompli, and there is no way to refuse it.

As expected, with more people involved, leaks became easier.

Although it's unclear which part went wrong, the plan to seize Nanjing in one fell swoop will most likely not be completed tonight.

"Father, you must stay calm and composed at a time like this."

The city needs stability right now, and the cabinet doesn't dare to take any major action.

As the Left Censor-in-Chief of the current dynasty, no one can touch you without concrete evidence.

If you sense something is amiss, immediately mobilize your protégés and former associates to steer the matter toward factional strife.

Framing and slander are commonplace in officialdom. As long as we create a stir, the cabinet will hesitate.

However, these are all temporary solutions and can only buy time for a few days at most.

Once the imperial court has completed its investigation, it will still take action against us.

Now we can only gamble on whether the allied forces outside the city can breach its defenses before things settle down!

The eldest son, Shu Zhiheng, immediately offered his advice.

Under the imperial examination system of Dayu, teachers and students were the most stable political allies in the officialdom.

Once Shu Jinglun is labeled a traitor, all his students will also have their careers ruined.

If you're unlucky, you might end up going to the market with the group.

When it comes to personal interests, the truth becomes less important.

Unless the evidence was irrefutable, his protégés and former associates would all stand up to help him fight for it.

"Heng'er, you've misjudged this time!"

"It is precisely at times like these that we must not act rashly."

Don't be fooled by the seemingly gentle and refined demeanor of those cabinet members; it's all just a facade. They're ruthless and cunning behind the scenes!
Think of those great scholars who, due to being lost at sea, wandered aimlessly to Southeast Asia. Do you think they were truly lost at sea?

"Tomorrow morning, take my visiting card and go to visit the prefect of Nanjing."

He owed me a favor back then, and now it's time to repay it.

Arrange for a bodyguard to be captured alive by the prefectural government, and then have the matter of colluding with the northern barbarians be attributed to the Marquis of Hanshui.

They said that the Marquis of Hanshui wanted to usurp the throne, and the court had become an obstacle on his path to the throne, so they wanted to use someone else to kill him.

The runners under the yamen (government office) also need to be properly bribed to avoid any mishaps at crucial moments.

Shu Jinglun spoke slowly.

Those who surrender to the Northern barbarians are unlikely to be tough guys.

With so many people attending the gathering that day, almost all the Qingliu Party officials in the court were wiped out.

The imperial court could implicate the Shu family by arresting just one of them.

Directly confronting the imperial court head-on would be a dead end.

The only way out is to shift the blame eastward, to bring out an even bigger fish, so that the cabinet will hesitate to act against it.

"Father, I'm afraid that won't work."

If the Marquis of Hanshui were to take action, he could simply order the soldiers guarding the city to let the water flow freely. Why drag us into this?

Such an obvious frame-up would be easily seen through by the imperial court.

Shu Zhiheng asked, looking puzzled.

Seeing that the Great Yu Empire was on the verge of collapse, if he could get in touch with the Marquis of Hanshui, he would have already secretly paid his respects.

The Shu family also sent people to make contact, but they couldn't even get into the Marquis's mansion.

Not only them, but also the Qingliu Party members in the court were basically shut out.

On the surface, it was because the Marquis of Hanshui was a man of noble character and integrity, but in reality, he simply looked down on them.

If they hadn't been certain that Li Mu's ship wouldn't be going, and if the Northern Barbarians hadn't sent people to persuade them, they wouldn't have agreed so readily.

"I know perfectly well that such an obvious frame-up will not work."

But what if what's being said is actually true?

"Compared to previous times, the speed of the army that came to the aid of the emperor this time is much slower."

The Marquis of Hanshui explained to the public that this time the army was large, and it would take longer to prepare strategic materials.

That's both right and wrong.

The preparation time is indeed longer, but that doesn't mean the arrival time of reinforcements will also be delayed.

Since we can advance in four directions, why can't we send one group over first to harass the enemy from the flank?
With so many shrewd people in the court, do you think no one has any doubts?
The fact that no major incident occurred was mainly due to the cabinet's forceful suppression of the situation.

The imperial court wanted to stabilize public sentiment; these things could be considered, but absolutely not spoken aloud.

We're adding fuel to the fire, which means igniting this powder keg ahead of time.

There are no secrets in the imperial court. Once the officials know that the army to come to the aid of the emperor will not be coming, the soldiers and civilians throughout the city will also know.

Secrets revealed from within are far more damaging than those sent by the northern barbarians.

Those guys in the cabinet need to consider the consequences. If they want to take action against me, they will definitely collect evidence and submit it to the Three Judicial Offices for trial.

With my connections in the court, I can at least delay things for a while.

If the city falls quickly enough, they won't have time to act!

Shu Jinglun said with a cold expression.

The ultimate limit of political struggle is a contest of who has the lowest moral standards and who is the most shameless.

The emperor is currently young, and dealing with high-ranking officials requires going through a series of cumbersome procedures.

These procedures were originally intended to limit the power of influential ministers.

The Great Yu Empire has been established for many years and has encountered child emperors before, but there has never been a case of a powerful minister overriding the emperor, which is due to procedural constraints.

Even in the twilight of the empire, after two successive young emperors, the imperial power was still able to be maintained, thanks to this set of rules that checked and balanced the cabinet.

While procedural rules have positive aspects, they also have negative ones.

He's now exploiting loopholes in the rules to try and save his own company.

……

As the first rays of dawn touched the earth, the fierce battle for Nanjing continued.

By this point in the battle, the outer city had almost completely fallen, and several breaches had appeared in the inner city.

Although the soldiers managed to plug the breaches with their desperate efforts, the steppe allied forces continued to attack frequently, and the two sides continued to fight over these breaches.

As the Duke of Chu, who was guarding the city, his eyelids were drooping as he tried to fall asleep, wanting to rest but unable to.

He wasn't the only one staying up all night; all the civil and military officials in Nanjing didn't get a good night's sleep either.

Not only was the outer city lost, but several breaches were also blown open in the inner city walls.

If it weren't for the patrolling soldiers noticing something was wrong and promptly notifying the garrison, Nanjing would have been destroyed last night.

Wenyuan Pavilion.

"Has the traitor been found?"

Wan Huaijin asked with concern.

The strongest fortresses are always breached from within.

In order to defend Nanjing, they prepared supplies in advance that were stockpiled according to a one-year standard.

The war had only been going on for a little over a month, and even though the cost of defending the city was higher than expected, the foundation remained unshaken.

As long as there are no internal problems, holding out for a year or two is not a problem at all.

As long as the Marquis of Hanshui still cares about his image, he cannot remain inactive for long.

Once the loyalist army arrives, the northern barbarians will have to concentrate their forces to meet them, regardless of whether they are willing or not.

We don't expect a complete victory; as long as we can maintain a stalemate, the northern barbarians will have no choice but to withdraw.

In fact, this already overestimates the Northern Barbarians.

Under normal circumstances, their logistics would run into problems if they couldn't hold out until that point.

It's true that the prefectures north of the Yangtze River are wealthy, but they can't withstand the large number of northern barbarian troops!

To expect a few prefectures to support an army of hundreds of thousands in a long-term battle is pure fantasy.

While the northern barbarians in Jiangnan appeared to be advancing rapidly, their operational space was actually confined to Zhenjiang Prefecture and Yingtian Prefecture. The reinforcements from Fujian and Zhejiang provinces were stationed in Ningguo Prefecture.

Yun Xiangwen's troops withdrew to Songjiang Prefecture, but the defense line was deployed in Suzhou Prefecture.

In open field battles, these troops were no match for the northern barbarians, but they were capable of holding the city.

The extensive network of waterways in Jiangnan, coupled with the sweltering summer, gave the Yu army, fighting on their home turf, a significant advantage in terms of timing, location, and popular support.

The northern barbarians sent out to plunder, but the defending troops seized the opportunity and launched several brilliant counterattacks.

"Although the governor's office has captured a few people alive, these guys are all incredibly stubborn, and the interrogation will take some time."

The disturbance last night was reportedly first discovered by the Five Cities Garrison Command; perhaps they already have a result on their end.

Zhuang Yuanjia replied with a frown.

Interrogating prisoners also takes time.

People tend to take chances, but when it comes to something that could cost them their lives, no one will readily confess.

It has been less than an hour since the rebellion in the city was quelled, and the interrogation has only just begun.

"You must hurry up and interrogate them, and find out who the rebels are as soon as possible. We can't rely on others to do everything!"

Wan Huaijin then reprimanded him.

Although the Five Cities Garrison was also a government force, its control was in the hands of nobles.

They tried to reach out several times, but were stopped each time.

The nobility refused to relinquish control, and the cabinet was powerless to do anything about it.

Sending him to seek intelligence from the uncontrolled troops is just asking for trouble!
If they don't accept it, it will be embarrassing for him, the prime minister.

"Your Excellency, one of the murderers arrested by the prefectural government has provided some information."

"It involves quite a lot, though, and I'm not sure if I should say it."

Lu Haizhi, who was standing to the side, stepped forward slightly and said.

From the tense look on his face, it was clear that he was under tremendous pressure to speak at this moment.

"If it's not something you should say, then don't say it!"

"As an official appointed by the imperial court, have you forgotten your duties?"

Wan Huaijin scolded him in an annoyed tone.

Such an obvious attempt to shift blame upwards, trying to trick him into taking the blame through reverse psychology, is pure fantasy.

If he were so easily fooled, he wouldn't be able to hold the position of Grand Secretary.

The ball was kicked back again, instantly putting Lu Haizhi in a desperate situation.

If he speaks out, he will have to bear all the political consequences himself.

He wanted to keep it to himself, but he couldn't answer Wan Huaijin's questions.

In an instant, Lu Haizhi regretted it. If he had known things would be this complicated, he shouldn't have gotten involved.

"Prime Minister, according to the confession of the murderer we arrested, the chaos last night was orchestrated by the Marquis of Hanshui."

Lu Haizhi said with a nervous expression.

The testimonies were all true, but not a single piece of concrete evidence could be found.

As is customary, such nonsensical statements cannot be brought to the table.

Unfortunately, he owed the Shu family a favor, and they also seized a fatal weakness against him, forcing him to act as their pawn.

"Lord Lu, you say that the Marquis of Hanshui orchestrated this whole thing, but do you have any concrete evidence?"

An Jingzhi, who also served as Minister of Justice, questioned him sternly.

Deep down, he had already cursed Lu Hai's ancestors for eighteen generations.

Anyone with a modicum of political acumen knows that what Nanjing needs most right now is stability.

What bolstered everyone's confidence was mainly the reinforcements from the Marquis of Hanshui.

If news suddenly spreads that the Marquis of Hanshui has betrayed the court, the morale of the defending troops will be severely damaged, even if they do not collapse.

"This humble official...this humble official has no evidence!"

"However, according to the murderer, the army that came to the aid of the emperor set off in four routes, which was the reason why the Marquis of Hanshui wanted to use someone else to do the dirty work."

Lu Haizhi explained tremblingly.

After he finished speaking, he turned his pleading gaze to Shu Jinglun.

He had completed the task of igniting the fire; now it was the head censor's turn.

"Nonsense!"

"Without any evidence, relying solely on the accusations of a murderer, you dare to frame a high-ranking official? I think you don't want to be the prefect anymore!"

As soon as Shu Jinglun spoke, Lu Hai's heart sank.

It was pre-arranged that everyone would launch an offensive together, using public opinion pressure to force the Marquis of Hanshui to send troops as soon as possible.

No sooner had he lit the fire than his teammate poured a bucket of cold water on him.

He was filled with frustration and knew he would never receive an answer.

In politics, there are no permanent friends; when disaster strikes, everyone scatters.

Since he was involved in the case of colluding with the northern barbarians, Shu Jinglun had to stir up trouble in the court before the case came to light.

As for Lu Haizhi, who helped start the fire, he was naturally a pawn he had thrown out.

"This official...this official did not mean that!"

"Lord Shu...you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lu Haizhi, who was so frightened, fainted in front of everyone.

The comical scene left the officials present with a real headache.

The fire is out, but what about the cleanup?
Although this is not a grand court assembly, there are still quite a few officials attending, and it won't be easy to keep so many people quiet.

Fortunately, the bigwigs of the noble faction were busy defending the city, otherwise the scene would have been even more lively.

"Let the three judicial departments investigate. If there are no other problems, then exile Lu Haizhi to Lingnan!"

Wan Huaijin said expressionlessly.

This approach was simply to give the Marquis of Hanshui an explanation.

But Lu Haizhi's words had already been implanted in everyone's minds.

Why is the army that came to the rescue so late? Is it because of logistical constraints?
Or is it limited by transportation capacity?
Or perhaps they simply didn't want to come?
No one can give accurate answers to these questions.

Once suspicion arises, it can never be taken back.

Shu Jinglun, the instigator, secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

With Lu Haizhi, this unlucky fellow, the officials handling the case will inevitably become more cautious.

Even if someone confesses, we must first send someone to verify the truth before we have solid evidence.

I'm not afraid of their in-depth investigation; I'm afraid some hothead will get a confession and then bring the matter to the forefront.

As long as the investigation is conducted according to the rules, he can use those rules to buy himself enough time.

……

The mini-meeting has ended, but its impact is only just beginning to unfold.

With the combined efforts of officials colluding with the northern barbarians, the rumors spread in the shortest possible time.

In order to curb the spread of rumors, the imperial court immediately issued a strict order to prohibit them.

Unfortunately, the more something is banned, the more outrageous the rumors become.

From the initial plot of the Marquis of Hanshui using someone else to kill, to his collusion with the northern barbarians to cause trouble, by the time everyone knew about it, it had become the Marquis of Hanshui ascending the throne and declaring himself emperor in Guangdong and Guangxi.

The plot unfolded so magically that even Shu Jinglun, the mastermind behind it all, was left speechless with astonishment.

If he had known things would turn out this way, he wouldn't have bothered with all that drama; he could have just sent people to spread rumors.

"Brother, rumors are circulating in the army that the Marquis of Hanshui has declared himself emperor in Guangdong and Guangxi, and there will be no reinforcements for Nanjing."

With the northern barbarians launching such a fierce offensive, we fear that our strength alone will be insufficient to hold Nanjing for an extended period.

Rather than sitting here waiting to die, we might as well abandon Nanjing and go seek refuge with the Marquis of Hanshui!

Upon hearing his own younger brother's words, the Duke of Chu was furious.

He worked tirelessly to dispel the rumors within the military, only to find that even his own men believed them.

"Nonsense!"

"Who told you that the Marquis of Hanshui declared himself emperor in Guangdong and Guangxi?"

"rumor!"

"They're all rumors!"

The Duke of Chu couldn't help but roar in anger.

Deep down, he hated the bastard who spread the rumors.

It was already excessive to slander the Marquis of Hanshui for colluding with the northern barbarians, but now they're saying he's proclaimed himself emperor.

What's even more outrageous is that everyone actually believed such a flawed rumor.

"Brother, please stop hiding it."

We're all on the same side, there's no need to hide anything from each other.

The imperial court is on the verge of collapse. Even if you don't think of yourself, you must think of your clan!
As former nobles of the previous dynasty, if they don't act more proactively, they will inevitably be purged in the future.

Fortunately, the Marquis of Hanshui was also from the noble faction; otherwise, we wouldn't even have this path!

……

(End of this chapter)