Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 375 Your Majesty, I want to report Minister Du!

At this time, outside Chengtian Gate, the ministers were gathered in groups of three or four.

Du Fu stood in a corner on the outside, his sharp eyes piercing through the crowd, looking at Du Zhenglun in the distance.

Du Zhenglun was seen in high spirits, chatting and laughing with Lu Chengqing and Yan Liben, completely unaware of the impending danger.

Du Fu sneered and slowly looked away.

Just then, Gao Youdao walked towards him with a serious face.

"Brother Du, I've heard everything from my wife."

Du Fu's expression changed slightly, he snorted, and said, "I knew she would tell you sooner or later."

Gao Youdao walked up to him and whispered, "She was summoned to the palace by Her Majesty the Queen yesterday. Her Majesty already knows about this. Madam is very scared, so she told me."

Du Fu's face turned pale and he asked, "Her Majesty the Queen also knows?"

Gao Youdao said in a deep voice, "I'm afraid His Majesty has already known about this. You shouldn't have involved the princess and the King of Wu. Now the matter has become a big deal."

Du Fu said coldly: "So what? The worst that can happen is that I will die together with Du Zhenglun!"

Gao Youdao sighed, "Brother Du, listen to my advice. Stop for now and leave the rest to His Majesty."

Du Fu said in a deep voice: "You are wrong. Even if His Majesty wants to punish Du Zhenglun, someone needs to come forward to point out his crimes."

Gao Youdao said anxiously, "Haven't you already reported the White Horse Trading Company to Yongzhou Prefecture? Leave the rest to them."

Du Fu snorted, "I don't trust them."

Gao Youdao was about to say something when a man walked towards them from a distance.

It’s Li Yifu.

"Excuse me, Principal Du and Principal Gaokao." Li Yifu said with a smile and bowed.

Du Fu and Gao Youdao both bowed and said, "Your humble servants pay their respects to Governor Li."

Li Yifu came to Du Fu and whispered, "Du, the proofreader, can you please have a word with me?" He walked towards an empty government office.

Du Fu was shocked. A man like Li Yifu would never come to him for no reason. It must be related to Du Zhenglun's case.

He took a deep breath and was about to follow, but Gao Youdao held him back and said, "Brother Du, don't let anyone take advantage of you!"

Du Fu waved his hand and said, "Brother Gao, I'm in a difficult situation. I can only advance and cannot retreat. Please don't worry about this matter anymore." He shook off his hand.

Du Fu came to the eaves of the office and bowed to Li Yifu, saying, "I wonder what Governor Li wants to see me about?"

Li Yifu narrowed his eyes and said, "Du Xiaoshu, time is running out, so I'll get straight to the point. I already know you want to deal with Du Zhenglun."

Du Fu remained silent.

Li Yifu continued, "Don't worry, I came to you because I want to help you."

Du Fu sneered and said, "Help me?"

Li Yifu said sternly, "That's right. Du Zhenglun, as the Minister of Revenue, abused his position for personal gain, which is extremely harmful to the country. I will not sit idly by."

Du Fu snorted and said, "You want to use the credit of overthrowing him to re-enter the Central Government, right?"

Li Yifu said calmly, "Du Xiaoshu, if you say so, I won't deny it. Who among the officials in the court doesn't have some ambition in their hearts?"

Du Fu was silent for a while, then asked, "How do you want to help me?"

Li Yifu said, "Du Zhenglun has been in the court for decades and is not easy to deal with. You are too young and your position is too low. If you are not careful, not only will you fail to bring him down, but he may even seize upon your weakness and strike back."

Du Fu asked, "What does Governor Li mean?"

Li Yifu said, "I know you have evidence of Baima Trading Company's crimes. Give them to me and I will deal with him later."

Du Fu narrowed his eyes and said, "So after all, you want to take all the credit."

Li Yifu said, "I've dealt with them before. The evidence is in my hands, so it can play a better role. Don't you think so, Du Xiaoshu?"

Du Fu asked, "If you are so powerful, why were you banished from Chang'an?"

Li Yifu raised his eyebrows and said nothing.

Du Fu bowed and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Governor Li. I will lead the charge later and you will help me to scout the enemy lines." He turned and left.

Li Yifu looked at his back, shook his head and sighed: "After all, he is still young and inexperienced, and will never achieve anything great."

After a while, the drums sounded, and Wei Siqian stood at the entrance of Chengtian Gate and shouted loudly: "Enter the court."

The ministers entered the court according to their ranks and came to the west corridor of the Liangyi Hall, where they were arranged in shifts. Among the civil and military officials, five shifts each were allowed to enter the hall.

Du Fu's rank was too low, so he could only work on the steps outside the palace, but this did not mean that he was not qualified to enter the palace.

There will be a process later, and officials outside the palace will enter the palace to report. That will be his best opportunity to enter the palace and report Du Zhenglun!
Du Fu had been standing outside the hall for a short while when he heard the etiquette officer at the entrance shout, "The sage has arrived. All the officials are paying their respects."

According to the etiquette of the new moon and fifteenth day of the lunar month, Du Fu and other officials outside the hall knelt down on their knees, prostrated themselves on the ground, and kowtowed towards the main hall at the command of the etiquette officer.

After bowing three times, everyone stood up.
The gate of the Liangyi Hall was open, and the ministers outside could barely see the outline of the emperor on the throne.

All the ministers in the hall have returned to their seats and sat down.

The Minister Xin Mao came out with a long scroll in his hand and began to announce the personnel changes for this year.

People outside could not hear his voice, but fortunately there was a ceremonial officer at the entrance of the hall who repeated General Xin Mao's words so that everyone could hear them clearly.

The first to be commended were all the generals and officers who participated in the Battle of Xiongjin Port.

Led by Liu Rengui, all the generals who made contributions were rewarded.

Among them, Liu Rengui was promoted to Kaifu Yitong Sansi, the highest rank among civil officials, from the first rank.

Among the civil servants in the court today, only Yu Zhining holds this rank.

Du Fu no longer had any hatred towards Liu Rengui and Di Renjie. When he heard that Liu Rengui was constantly being promoted, he felt only envy.

"With his current official position and prestige, he will definitely be appointed as prime minister as long as he returns to Beijing. Alas, I don't know why Your Majesty still doesn't let Liu Rengui come back." Du Fu thought.

Jiang Ke was promoted to General of the Left Guard, and although Liu Renyuan did not return to Yingzhou, he was promoted to General of the Right Tunwei Guard, and Sun Renshi was promoted to General of the Right Wuwei Guard.

There were also outstanding generals such as Pan Long, who were promoted, some by one or two levels, and some directly by three or four levels.

Only military generals can achieve such a promotion.

This time, not only Du Fu was envious, but all the civil servants were envious.

If they want to get promoted, they have to work hard for several years and get top grades in the annual evaluations.

The generals achieved the goal that they had worked hard for ten years with just one battle!

Many people are already thinking about finding an opportunity to switch to a military career in the future, which may be more promising.

Next came the relocation of officials from various states and counties.

This matter was closely related to the officials of various states and counties outside the palace. Many people pricked up their ears and were full of anticipation.

Soon, a group of officials with excellent performance in the assessment were transferred to Chang'an. The most prominent among them was Wei Daijia, who was promoted to General of the Central Army of the Jinwu Guard.

When it was the turn of the officials from the capital, Du Fu pricked up his ears.

As the ceremonial officer repeated General Xin Mao's words word by word.

The faces of the ministers below the stairs changed and they exchanged glances with each other.

They had all heard that Lu Chengqing would be appointed prime minister this year and Du Zhenglun would be promoted to Minister of Revenue.

However, after reading for a long time, the two people were not mentioned at all.

It only mentioned that Zhang Jianzhi and Wei Siqian were conferred the title of Bachelor of Chongwenguan and were responsible for revising the new laws, and Li Ji was promoted to Sima of Yongzhou, and Zhao Chiman was conferred the title of Judicial Officer of Yongzhou.

The faces of the ministers in the hall were also filled with surprise.

Shangguan Yi looked at Xu Xiaode with a questioning look, and Xu Xiaode shook his head, indicating that he didn't know either.

The ones with the ugliest expressions were Lu Chengqing and Du Zhenglun. They both frowned and looked at each other with confused expressions.

Du Zhenglun glanced at the emperor secretly, and seeing that the emperor looked calm, he suddenly felt a little uneasy.

General Xin Mao's voice continued to echo in the hall, and after a long time, he finally finished reading it all.

According to the procedure, the ministers began to discuss politics.

A lot of court affairs piled up during the day. Officials from the six ministries and nine temples came forward one after another to present their government affairs, and then officials from other relevant departments joined in the discussion.

Lu Chengqing and Du Zhenglun were obviously a little uneasy. They spoke less today than usual, and their minds were not as sharp as usual.

This discussion lasted for more than two hours, and it was finally time to eat in the corridor.

As soon as Lu Chengqing and Du Zhenglun left the court, they went to find Xu Xiaode to ask about their promotion.

Xu Xiaode could only smile bitterly and said, "I don't know either. When I left the Ministry of Personnel yesterday, your names were still on the transfer list!"

Only the prime minister of the Secretariat and the emperor were qualified to take the edict and revise it.

The two immediately contacted Yan Liben and Shangguan Yi, and both said that no changes had been made.

Lu Chengqing sighed and said, "So it seems that Your Majesty has revised the imperial edict."

Du Zhenglun had a bad feeling in his heart, but he didn't say anything.

Lu Chengqing went to see Xin Maojiang again and asked him about the situation.

According to the procedure, the imperial edict revised by the emperor needs to be sent to the Menxia Province first, and only after it is approved by the Menxia Province can it be sent to the Ministry of Personnel.

Xin Maojiang confirmed their speculation.

Last night, a clerk came to report that the Eunuch Supervisor had delivered an imperial edict overnight, which was the edict for the transfer of officials.

General Xin Mao said that he entered the palace at night and passed them directly without looking carefully, and did not know that the two names were crossed out.

This was obviously a perfunctory statement.

He entered the palace overnight, so it was impossible for him not to carefully check whether the edict had been tampered with.

Of course, since it was the Emperor who made the change, it was unrealistic to expect General Xin Mao to reject it. The two were just a little dissatisfied. Since General Xin Mao knew about this, why didn't he send someone to inform them?
The biggest question now is, why did the emperor suddenly cross out their names?
The time spent eating in the corridor was obviously not enough for them to find out the truth, so the ministers soon returned to the main hall and the court meeting continued.

Next came the time for ministers to report outside the palace. After discussing more than a dozen local government matters, Du Fu loudly called out outside the palace: "Your humble servant Du Fu has something to report."

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "Announce!"

Du Fu quickly entered the hall, kowtowed, then stood up and spoke solemnly.

"Your Majesty, I would like to sue the Minister of Revenue, Du Zhenglun, for abusing his power for personal gain, misusing public property, shielding and condoning relatives, bullying and dominating the market, illegally engaging in business, and bribing officials. This has led to the formation of a massive commercial interest group, collusion between officials and businessmen, and heinous crimes. I hope Your Majesty will investigate this matter."

As soon as this statement came out, the officials were in an uproar.

Wei Siqian was the first to step out and said in a deep voice, "Du Xiaoshu, you are not an official of the Censorate and do not have the power to impeach officials."

Du Fu said: "I understand, so I am reporting, not impeaching."

The Tang Dynasty law stipulates that if an official commits a crime, both the people and the officials can report it.

The people can get rewards and the officials can get credit. The more serious the report, the greater the credit.

Wei Siqian added, "Then Schoolmaster Du should also know what the consequences will be if he reports fraud!"

Du Fu said, "I know it, and I don't need Wei Zhongcheng to remind me."

Reporting is different from impeachment. If there is no clear evidence of guilt in impeachment, the person will generally be reprimanded or demoted at most.

If no evidence can be found in the report, or the evidence provided is insufficient, it will be considered a false accusation, a more serious crime, and your life will be in danger!

Li Zhi glanced at Du Zhenglun and saw that he was silent and composed. He asked, "Mr. Du, Schoolmaster Du wants to report you. Do you have anything to say?"

Du Zhenglun said in a deep voice, "If an official violates the law, his colleagues can report him. This is the imperial court's regulation. I have no objection and am willing to accept any questioning."

This statement sounds fine on the surface, but it has a hidden meaning.

If an official commits a crime, his colleagues are generally the only ones who have the best chance of knowing about it.

How could Du Fu, a mere proofreader, know about Du Zhenglun's illegal activities?
Lu Dunxin, a doctor from the Ministry of Revenue, immediately stepped forward and asked, "Du, you are the proofreader of the Hongwen Academy, responsible for proofreading the classics and correcting errors. If Minister Du had truly committed a crime, how would you have known?"

Du Fu said, "The owner of the White Horse Trading Company is called Du Long, the nephew of Minister Du. I followed his lead and uncovered Minister Du's crimes."

Lu Dunxin said, "Du Xiaoshu is neither a thief-catcher nor an inspector, so why is he investigating the White Horse Trading Company?"

Du Fu said: "I also accidentally discovered that they were secretly bribing officials, so I investigated."

Lu Dunxin said, "Since you discovered that there was something wrong with the White Horse Trading Company, why didn't you report it to the Yongzhou government, but instead conducted a private investigation?"

Du Fu was sweating profusely and suddenly found it difficult to answer.

Only then did he finally understand what Li Yifu meant.

In the court, you can't speak just by having evidence.

Du Zhenglun didn't even have to show up. One of his officials stumped him with just a few words.

"Why aren't you talking? Are you feeling guilty?" Lu Dunxin pressed on.

Li Yifu suddenly stepped out and said, "Mr. Lu, the person that Du Xiaoshu reported is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. As a Mr. Lu, shouldn't you keep silent?"

Lu Dunxin was slightly stunned, then he retreated and remained silent.

Du Fu was just about to breathe a sigh of relief when Cui Yi, the Deputy Minister of Works, stepped out and said, "I believe that Doctor Lu's question is reasonable. I would like to invite Du, the Schoolmaster, to respond."

He was an official from the Ministry of Works, so Li Yifu couldn't say anything more.

Li Jingxuan stepped out and said, "Collector Du came to report Minister Du, but his colleagues are harping on trivial matters and refusing to let him speak. What's their intention?"

He was trying to show goodwill to Li Yifu before offering help.

Lu Chengqing stepped out and said, "Since School Secretary Du is in the court, reporting Minister Du, then others can ask questions if they have any. Is the question just now so difficult to answer?"

Du Fu became very anxious when he saw that more and more people were involved.

He knew that these people wanted him to confess his past with Du Zhenglun, and then they would say that he was accusing Du Zhenglun falsely because of an old grudge.

But even though he knew this, he couldn't think of a way to deal with it, because his purpose of investigating Baima Trading Company was to take revenge on Du Zhenglun.

At this time, Changsun Quan stepped out and said, "In fact, Du Xiaoshu has already reported this to the Yongzhou government."

Cui Yi glanced at Changsun Quan and said, "Oh, if that's the case, then Du Xueshu should just wait for the results. Why is he reporting to the court?"

Seeing so many people helping him, Du Fu felt relieved and said, "Because the Yongzhou Prefecture's investigation was too slow, and I accidentally discovered that this matter was related to Minister Du, this matter is of great importance, so I am reporting it to the court!"

Lu Chengqing was about to retort when he heard Li Zhi say, "Du Fu, you want to report Du Zhenglun, do you have any evidence?"

Du Fu hurriedly said, "Here is my letter of accusation, please read it, Your Majesty."

Wang Fusheng presented it quickly.

After reading it, Li Zhi stared at Du Fu and said, "Most of this is just conjecture. Are you going to report a high-ranking official in the court based on this alone?"

Du Fu's face changed drastically, and he said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, just..."

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "No need to say more. Come, take Du Fu away and detain him in the Dali Temple. Di Qing, I hand him over to you and punish him for false accusation!"

Di Renjie bowed and said, "I obey your command."

The halberd-wielding Jinwu Guards in the hall stepped forward and dragged Du Fu away.

None of the ministers expected the emperor to react in this way, and they exchanged glances with each other.

Yu Zhining hurriedly asked, "Your Majesty, could you please show me the letter of accusation?"

Li Zhi said calmly, "These are just vague speculations. Don't bother reading them. The court meeting will continue."

Half an hour later, the court meeting ended.

Li Zhi left the main hall through the side door. As soon as he exited Liangyi Hall, he instructed Wang Fusheng, "Summon Di Renjie, Yu Zhining, and Xue Rengui to appear before you."

Li Zhi returned to Ganlu Hall, sat on the dragon throne, and read Du Fu's letter of accusation again.

Soon, Xue Rengui, Di Renjie and Yu Zhining all came into the hall.

Li Zhi handed the letter of accusation to Wang Fusheng without any further ado, saying, "My three beloved ministers, please take a look at this letter of accusation."

Yu Zhining read it first. After reading it, he was surprised and handed it to Xue Rengui. Di Renjie read it last.

There are two aspects in the letter.

The first aspect is related to Yibaohui.

The report recorded three Yibao meetings.

At the Yibao meeting, the steward of the White Horse Chamber of Commerce conducted a transaction with three slaves, whose owners were all officials from the Ministry of Industry.

Every transaction conducted by the White Horse Chamber of Commerce involves a black box.

The letter of accusation also stated that after each transaction, the Ministry of Industry would approve a construction project for the Baima Chamber of Commerce.

After the three transactions, the White Horse Chamber of Commerce obtained the mining rights to a copper mine, the mining rights to an iron mine, and the right to use a grassland.

On the other hand, the letter gave a detailed introduction to the situation of the White Horse Chamber of Commerce.

In just a few years, this chamber of commerce has become the top chamber of commerce in the Tang Dynasty.

Horses, furs, gems, coal, etc.

As long as Mobei can do business, it is involved in all of it, and its business is getting bigger and bigger.

In fact, other regions of the Tang Dynasty had policies to suppress merchants.

Only Mobei was different. In order to develop Mobei, Li Zhi did not impose any restrictions on merchants and even allowed them to develop private armies to deal with local tribes.

It is under such policies, and relying on the fertile land of Mobei, that the Baima Chamber of Commerce has developed into a giant chamber of commerce in the Mobei region.

The merchant militia numbered more than 2,000 people, all of whom were cavalry.

The trading company also employed a large number of Tiele people as long-term workers. All the workers added up to more than 10,000 people.

After the three of them finished reading, Yu Zhining spoke first, "Your Majesty, the contents of this letter of accusation are true and credible. A little investigation will confirm it."

Li Zhi said: "I know."

Yu Zhining asked in confusion, "Then why did you lock Du Fu up?"

Li Zhi said, "Xue Qing, what do you think?"

Xue Rengui said in a deep voice: "They already have the ability to rebel."

When these words were spoken, both Yu Zhining and Di Renjie were surprised.

Li Zhi said slowly, "Yes, they have people, horses, and iron ore. They can definitely make weapons privately and form an army."

Yu Zhining hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, the Du family's roots are in Chang'an. I believe they don't have the guts to rebel."

Li Zhi said slowly, "I don't believe the Huanshui Du clan will rebel, but just in case, this matter must be handled with caution."

After hearing what the emperor said, Yu Zhining nodded and stopped objecting.

The Mobei area is vast, and if such a force causes chaos, it will be very difficult to deal with.

Li Zhi said, "Xue Qing, you must go to the Yanran Protectorate immediately, mobilize the Yanran Army, and take control of the White Horse Trading Company. This is just in case."

Xue Rengui bowed and said, "I accept your order."

Li Zhi continued, "Di Qing is responsible for secretly investigating the White Horse Trading Company and the Huanshui Du Clan. Before Xue Qing has control over the situation in Mobei, this investigation must proceed in secret and not alert the enemy."

Di Renjie said, "I obey your order."

Li Zhi said, "Yu Qing, you must formulate new laws as soon as possible. This White Horse Trading Company case is a typical example. I hope that the case will be judged fairly according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty to avoid causing panic among merchants and affecting the future development of Mobei."

Yu Zhining hurriedly said, "I obey your order."

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "Alright, all of you go get to work."

The three of them responded in unison and left together.

(End of this chapter)