The Prodigal Son

Soon, all officials of the third rank and above in the imperial court were summoned to the Imperial Study.

"Outrageous! Utterly outrageous!"

"Outrageous! A prefectural governor died at the hands of a salt merchant?"

"This is a blatant slap in the face to the imperial court!"

"I said at yesterday's court assembly that Qin Yu's reckless behavior was bound to lead to something terrible! And sure enough, it has come true today!"

"No matter what crime Sun Min has committed, Jia De's entire family must be executed! No, their entire clan must be wiped out as a warning to others!"

Upon learning that Jia Dequan and Sun Min had resorted to desperate measures, the group of ministers were in complete uproar.

Although Sun Min was only a fourth-rank official, he was still the governor of a prefecture!

He wields power over a state and protects the peace and tranquility of its people!

In the end, he was killed by a salt merchant?

The last time something like this happened was during the chaos at the end of the previous dynasty!

Today, the territory of Da Ning has reached its peak since the founding of the nation!

Although its national strength is not as great as during the reign of the previous emperor, it has not declined to the point where even salt merchants can plot against the governor of a prefecture!

If the Jia family is not executed, where will the court put its face?

"What's all the noise about?"

Gao Yi sternly rebuked the assembled officials, "You are all high-ranking officials of the court, and this is the time to deal with the Jia family like this?"

"With such a major incident, is it still necessary to reorganize the imperial salt administration?"

"If the crackdown continues, something serious is likely to happen!"

"If we don't continue the rectification efforts, the imperial court will be compromising with the salt merchants and corrupt officials, which is a matter of the court's reputation!"

The longer Gao Yi remained in the position of prime minister, the more imposing he became.

This was his natural charisma; he simply toned it down during the years he was sued and returned to his hometown.

Now, that momentum is gradually returning.

"We can't continue to regulate the salt industry!"

Su Yu was the first to offer his opinion, "Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, the most urgent task is to stabilize public morale and prevent the situation from escalating further! Furthermore, I hereby appoint Qin Yu as Imperial Envoy to thoroughly investigate the case of Sun Min's murder! Whatever the outcome, we must provide an explanation to all the officials in Fangzhou!"

Su Yu's idea coincided with Shangguan Youyi's.

He was originally a staunch supporter of the imperial court's efforts to reform the salt administration.

But now that such a big thing has happened, for the sake of the stability of the court, he can no longer remain steadfast.

"I agree with Elder Su's opinion!"

Cui Xu said, "There are priorities in everything; we can't put any more pressure on the areas where the salt administration is being rectified!"

"really!"

Lü Chunqiu agreed, "In my experience, the matter of Sun Min's murder might not be so simple! If someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes, then the court should find that person before discussing the rectification of the salt administration! If no one was pulling the strings, then the court should use the Fangzhou incident as an example to deter others!"

"Why kill the chicken to scare the monkey?" Gao Yi's face was grim. "If no one pushes things along, and the court stops its efforts to rectify the salt administration, it will only lose face and embolden salt merchants and corrupt officials! Similar things will happen again if the court tries to rectify the salt administration in the future!"

"That's true, but now is not the time to rectify the salt administration!" Lü Chunqiu retorted. "Is saving face more important, or the stability of the court?"

"Both are important!"

Gao Yi said in a deep voice, "Therefore, we need to discuss a concrete plan now! We must strive to both save face for the imperial court and stabilize the local areas!"

Gao Yi was well aware of the stakes involved.

He was the one who strongly advocated for the reform of the salt administration.

But now, even he is hesitant.

It is perfectly acceptable for the salt administration to experience some minor disruptions in the areas that have been rectified, and in fact, it is something he would like to see.

This way, they can further weaken Qin Yu!

But with such chaos, all political struggles and factional infighting have to take a backseat!

Otherwise, if this pot is smashed, no one will have anything to eat!

Upon hearing Gao Yi's words, the assembled officials fell silent.

I want both!

It's not that easy!

"Prime Minister Gao is right!"

Zhao Luan finally spoke, "Currently, the situation in Shuo and Zhen prefectures is still unstable, and the Liangjiang region and Hai and Yuan prefectures must not be allowed to descend into chaos! However, the imperial court must not compromise easily at this time; otherwise, the officials and merchants in the Liangjiang region and Hai and Yuan prefectures will completely unite against the imperial court!"

"Your Majesty, everyone understands the reasoning! But what I fear is that continuing to crack down on the salt administration will cause the situation to spiral completely out of control!"

Su Yu sighed helplessly, "If Your Majesty still decides to continue reforming the salt administration, this old minister suggests that you start by targeting the salt merchants and officials in Fangzhou..."

His thoughts were similar to those of Lü Chunqiu.

Anyway, the biggest salt merchant in Fangzhou is dead, and the governor of Fangzhou is dead too!

The focus of the rectification of the salt administration should be placed on Fangzhou, and other places should not be expanded further for the time being, except for those who have already been investigated.

"right!"

Feng Shinan agreed, saying, "It's not that the imperial court has given up on rectifying the salt administration; it's just that the murder of the Prefect of Fangzhou occurred during the rectification process, and now Qin Yu is needed to thoroughly investigate this matter!"

This is just a way to save face for the imperial court!

Ultimately, it was still about appeasing the salt merchants and local officials.

Qin Yu's domineering attitude had put them on edge!

When it's time to loosen up, you have to loosen up a bit; you can't let the string get too taut.

After pondering for a moment, Gao Yi spoke up again: "Your Majesty, what Lord Su and Lord Feng said makes sense! But in my opinion, this matter can be observed further. Let's first look at the situation in Shuo and Zhen prefectures, and then see the results of the investigation into Sun Min's murder..."

The priority right now is to find out the truth about Sun Min's murder!

If Sun Min's death was indeed a desperate act, and the situation in Shuozhou and Zhenzhou was not optimistic, then there's nothing more to say; the focus must be on preventing the rectification of the salt administration from escalating further.

But if someone is behind this, it would be a blatant provocation against the imperial court's authority!

In this situation, finding this person is the most important thing!

Upon hearing Gao Yi's words, the courtiers unanimously agreed.

This is the best solution at the moment!

No compromise, and no escalation!

What happens next depends on the investigation results of Sun Min's murder!

Zhao Luan pondered quietly for a moment, then her gaze fell on Lü Chunqiu. "Lord Lü, I'm afraid you'll have to go to Fangzhou yourself!"

Lü Chunqiu accepted the order: "Your humble servant will depart for Fangzhou tomorrow!"

"No!"

Zhao Luan raised her hand to stop him, "I'm just telling you to prepare! Whether you need to go or not, we'll have to wait and see!"

"What is Your Majesty waiting for?"

Lü Chunqiu was puzzled.

It is perfectly reasonable for me, the Minister of Justice, to personally handle such a major case!

What are we waiting for?

"Such a major incident has occurred in Fangzhou; Qin Yu should receive the news soon! I want to see what he, as the person directly involved, thinks!"

As Zhao Luan spoke, he sternly ordered, "Issue the Prefect of Fangzhou to temporarily assume the duties of the Prefect..."

"His Majesty!"

Lu Chunqiu suddenly spoke up, tentatively saying, "I recommend Fu Mingzhu, the Prefect of Fangzhou, to temporarily assume the position of Prefect. He previously served in the Ministry of Justice and is skilled in solving various cases..."

"Is that so?"

Zhao Luan gave Lü Chunqiu a meaningful look, then nodded and said, "Then Fu Mingzhu, the Chief Clerk of Fangzhou, will temporarily assume the duties of the Prefect!"