A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 25 Tiger Poison
The rain poured down, and thunder flashed.

Inside Chengming Hall, everyone's expressions shifted between light and shadow; it had been a long time since the court had been so lively.

Liu Che's gaze towards Zhang Tang now held no concealed murderous intent, and his voice spurted out from between his teeth, "Who is it this time?"

"Your Majesty is holy."

Seeing Zhang Tang bow once again and respectfully praise the emperor, the officials, nobles, and members of the imperial family from both the central and foreign courts instinctively turned their heads away, afraid that blood might splatter on them.

What kind of treasure is His Majesty? Is Zhang Tang some kind of sorcerer? How come every time someone worships him, they die? It's more poisonous than witchcraft.

"The subject I wish to impeach is the Imperial Censor Li Cai."

As Zhang Tang finished speaking, the world suddenly brightened, followed by boundless thunder. The court officials were completely out of control, so excited that they could hardly contain themselves, and several almost stumbled back to their seats on the spot.

Li Cai was one of the Three Dukes, and Zhang Tang was one of the Nine Ministers. Today, regardless of victory or defeat, a pillar of the state is about to fall. Let's send off the funeral procession!
Li Cai walked into the center of the hall with a smile and asked, "I wonder what the Minister of Justice intends to impeach me for?"

Throughout his decades-long career in officialdom, he adhered to the principle of "doing less and interacting more." Apart from being briefly blinded by the prospect of becoming prime minister and holding a noble title, and interrogating His Highness the Crown Prince, he was generally well-liked by the public.

His prestigious family background gave him the confidence to be incorruptible and honest. In both dynasties, everyone knew that the Imperial Censor was pure-hearted, simple, and lived a frugal life.
"Occupying the mausoleum site for financial gain," Zhang Tang said expressionlessly.

"Hahaha."

Li Cai laughed out loud, and even Liu Che was infected by the laughter and smiled. Li Cai was known for his virtue and generosity. Would such a person humiliate himself for a little bit of land?

Even if we assume that it is indeed a case of buying and selling someone else's burial grounds, according to the laws of the Han Dynasty, unless it involves digging up graves, it would not be punishable by the death of an Imperial Censor.

The somber hall was unusually cheerful.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Li Cai laughed until tears almost streamed down his face, and said "good" three times in a row. "Minister of Justice, tell me, whose tomb land did I encroach on, and how much money did I get?"

"The Mausoleum of Emperor Xiaojing!"

I stopped laughing.

No one dared to laugh anymore.

"Three acres of land, four hundred thousand coins!"

Zhang Tang presented the evidence, which was then distributed again to the dukes, marquises, and members of the imperial clan. The materials contained evidence that Li Cai had enclosed three acres of vacant land in front of Emperor Xiaojing's Yangling Mausoleum, as well as land purchase and sale contracts.

Li Cai's blood ran cold.

Seeing the dates of the land acquisition and sale, he remembered that an elder of his clan had approached him years ago, saying he had taken a liking to a plot of land with excellent feng shui and wanted to be buried there after his death. Li Cai didn't pay much attention and just told the elder to handle it. Who knew that not long after, the elder disappeared without a trace, neither alive nor dead. The elder's children and grandchildren entrusted the clan, and the clan entrusted him to sell the elder's property, including this three-acre burial plot.

How could the feng shui of an imperial tomb be bad?

When it came to his own father's grave...the mausoleum, Liu Che, as a son, could hardly bear it. He looked at Li Cai, who was sweating profusely, and asked, "Really?"

Li Cai's heart was ashen, his throat bobbing as he managed to reply, "Your Majesty, it is true, but it was a mistake on my part." Li Guang, his cousin and also the Commandant of the Guards, had also come to understand the cause and effect of the burial site. He stepped into the center of the hall and said, "Your Majesty, that year, the clan elders were insane, frantically marking out areas for their burial, but unintentionally encroaching on the Yangling Mausoleum. The Imperial Censor, driven by filial piety, failed to notice in time. I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness!"

"The Imperial Censor Xiaocheng failed to investigate properly, and we beg Your Majesty's forgiveness!" Many court officials stepped forward and pleaded for leniency.

Li Guang and Li Cai, these two cousins, both had a good reputation in the court and among the people, and had many connections with many people. Now they stepped forward one after another.

Liu Che turned to the upright and honest officials in the court, "Ji An!"

"Your subject is here!" Right Inner Historian Ji An stepped forward in response.

"What do you think?"

"Your Majesty, it is not surprising that the Imperial Censor failed to supervise the case due to filial piety. He is an honest man and has not done anything immoral. To sentence him to death for such a trivial matter is beyond my understanding..."

"In the mind of the Right Inner Historian, whether Emperor Xiaojing's Yangling Mausoleum is intact or not is a minor matter. Then, wasn't the death of the Prince of Linjiang of the previous dynasty too unjust?" Zhang Tang interrupted Ji An's words of "striving for non-interference in governance, promoting the essentials without being bound by laws and regulations" and asked in a sinister tone.

The Prince of Linjiang was the eldest son of Emperor Jing of Han, and also the elder brother of Emperor Wu of Han. His mother was Consort Li, a renowned physician of the Han Dynasty.

In the winter of the seventh year of Emperor Jing of Han's reign, as Consort Li lost favor, Liu Rong was deposed and made Prince of Linjiang, while his younger brother, Liu Che, Prince of Jiaodong, became the Crown Prince.

Just two years later, Liu Rong was summoned back to the capital to be punished for encroaching on the open space surrounding the ancestral temple when building the palace.

According to Han law, temples for Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang and Emperor Xiaowen Liu Heng must be built in the capital of the Han Dynasty and the capitals of various prefectures and vassal states. Of course, now there is also a temple for Emperor Xiaojing Liu Qi.

Ultimately, Liu Rong was sentenced to death by the cruel official Zhi Du on charges of "encroaching on the temple walls to build a palace." Unable to bear the humiliation, the Prince of Linjiang committed suicide in prison.

A small open space actually drove a former crown prince to his death. People understood that this was Emperor Xiaojing clearing obstacles for the current emperor; even tigers can devour their own cubs.

In any case, the mere encroachment on the empty space of the imperial temple of a vassal kingdom resulted in the death of a king. Not only was the empty space of Emperor Xiaojing's Yangling Mausoleum encroached upon, but it was also sold. Could it be that the death of one of the Three Dukes could not be achieved?
As this concerned the legitimate legal principles of the succession to the throne, Liu Che's face was ashen. He felt a vague sense of guilt about Liu Rong's death, but it was his father's decision, and it was for his own good. As a son, he could not have any objections.

The emperor remained silent, but Ji An didn't care. "Minister of Justice," he said, "all laws should be revised in due course. Qin law differs greatly from Han law..."

"Does the Right Inner Historian harbor nostalgia for the Qin Dynasty?" Zhang Tang rudely interrupted Ji An again, and then accused him of being nostalgic for the former dynasty.

"Minister of Justice, if you want to kill someone, just do it directly. There's no need to frame me like this!"

Ji An felt a surge of anger and retorted, "Disobedience deserves punishment, but what's wrong with accelerating the implementation of some reform measures?"

“When the emperor enforces the law, he should not discriminate based on kinship or social status. If he arbitrarily changes the system and alters his decrees from morning to evening, it will affect all sides and cause the feudal lords to rise up. At that time, the Right Inner Historian will not be able to maintain impartiality.” Zhang Tang closed his eyes slightly, still expressionless.

The kings of Huainan and Hengshan have just died and their kingdoms have been destroyed. If Your Majesty's rule is not on par with that of Emperor Xiaojing, and if the salt and iron monopolies provide an excuse for the vassal kings, the world will likely descend into chaos again.

The feudal lords are weak, not dead. They've been robbing people of their money, and now that they've exposed their weaknesses, even a rabbit will bite when cornered.

"Alright! Immediately imprison Li Cai in the Court of Justice and thoroughly investigate the sale of the vacant land in Yangling. Anyone involved in this case shall be executed!" Liu Che silently issued the edict.

The most important thing is to secure the throne; everything else is unimportant.

(End of this chapter)