Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4769 The Way of Being an Official
"This beast Fang Jun has deceived Your Majesty and brought disaster to the country and the people. All the kind-hearted people in the world should punish him together!"

"Your Majesty has been deceived and persecuted by treacherous officials who have made contributions to the country, and you have arbitrarily confiscated the property of meritorious families. This is disheartening! If you don't punish Fang Jun, you won't be able to pacify the world!"

"This man ordered his troops to carry out brutal massacres against friendly nations in Mobei and overseas. He has lost all humanity and conscience, and has destroyed the reputation of our Tang Dynasty as a country of etiquette. He deserves death!"

After drinking tea with Xuanzang at Da Ci'en Temple, Fang Jun returned to the gate of Jinchangfang. From a distance, he heard someone yelling and cursing at the top of his lungs in a certain room. The yamen runners and soldiers nearby smiled awkwardly when they saw Fang Jun returning. If Fang Jun heard such unpleasant words, he might vent his anger on everyone if he couldn't get out of this situation...

Fang Jun ignored everyone's expressions and curiously asked Cen Changqian: "Who is so bold? Aren't you afraid that I will skin him alive?"

"He is a descendant of the Jingzhao Wei family, the cousin of Concubine Wei, Wei Shuxia."

Fang Jun had heard of this name before: "The guy who claims to be the 'Wei Family Jade'?"

"Exactly."

"This guy must have taken the wrong medicine. I didn't look for him or provoke him, so why is he scolding me so harshly?"

"I don't know either. It's the county magistrate who is trying him."

"Open the door, I'll go in and take a look."

"Here."

Cen Changqian opened the door, Fang Junmai walked in, and the shouting and cursing stopped abruptly.

"Marshal!" Lai Ji quickly stood up and saluted.

Fang Jun nodded slightly, walked with his hands behind his back to the bound Wei Shuxia, and said with a smile: "Why don't you scold me? No one has dared to scold me like this for many years, it's quite fresh. But scolding someone behind their back is not gentlemanly, it's admirable to have the guts to scold them to their face."

Wei Shuxia stammered twice. Although he felt very embarrassed, he did not dare to curse out loud. Young people are full of vigor and arrogance, but that does not mean they are fools. Facing the "notorious" Fang Er, he really did not have the courage to curse him to his face.

After all, there were countless dandies whose hands and feet were broken by Fang Jun over the years, and even many who died suddenly like Qiu Shenji and Zhang Sun Dan...

Fang Jun waited for a while and when he saw that he didn't open his mouth, he pretended to be disappointed: "If you continue to curse, I will respect you as a man, but when you see me, you shut your mouth and only dare to curse behind my back, which is a bit mean."

He turned to Lai Ji and said, "Write down in the interrogation record the comments that defame the emperor and the ministers. Also, add that although this person is of Han descent, he is full of sympathy for the Hu people and is suspected of colluding with foreign countries. The Hundred Cavalry Division should conduct a detailed investigation to prevent future troubles."

"Here."

Wei Shuxia's face turned pale, his lips trembled, his eyes were bloodshot, and he screamed, "Why?! Why do you slander me like this? I am just speaking the truth. How could I sympathize with the Hu people or collude with foreign countries?!"

Once these two sentences were written in the files, not only would his official career be cut short, but he would also be cursed for eternity.

Fang Jun was surprised and said, "When you slandered me, you spoke righteously and generously, as if you were a gentleman. Everyone except you was a traitor. Why can't you bear it when it's my turn to slander you? You are known as the 'beautiful jade of the Wei family' and you have read thousands of books. Don't you know the principle of not doing to others what you don't want others to do to you?"

Wei Shuxia's face turned pale and red, and he was speechless.

Fang Jun was too lazy to pay attention to him. This kind of bookman who always talked about benevolence and righteousness but never morality and only knew how to study hard and was useless was of no benefit to the country and harmful to the people. In the future, at most he would become a so-called "great scholar" by virtue of his family background. One more or one less would not be too many, and there was no need to care whether he lived or died.

"After a thorough investigation and detailed files, the case will be handed over to the Three Judicial Departments for trial. If anyone comes to you to plead for mercy, just push the blame on me. Try not to get involved in this kind of trouble. In addition, no matter what method you use to quickly resolve the "indecent assault" case, these people who claim to be Buddhists keep nagging the Da Ci'en Temple. I'm afraid there is some hidden story or ulterior motives. Regardless of their identities, either settle the matter through negotiation or hand it over to the "Hundred Cavalry Department" to investigate their true intentions."

"Ah... this kind of thing is not under the jurisdiction of the Hundred Cavalry Division. I'm afraid they won't accept it."

"Have Cen Changqian take my name card to the Hundred Cavalry Division and look for Li Junxian and Li Chongzhen. Tell them that these people have bad intentions and are trying to stir up a dispute between Buddhism and Taoism, affecting the prosperity and stability of the empire. We must investigate them thoroughly to see if they are involved in treason to overthrow the empire."

"..."

Lai Ji was speechless. For a case that might not even be considered "indecent assault", the "Hundred Cavalry Division" was mobilized? What kind of crime was this, "affecting the prosperity and stability of the empire"? Unheard of. However, once it was called "subverting the empire", the "victims" who were still crying out for injustice and attacking the Buddhist sect would probably not have much time left, and the disaster might even spread to their relatives.

However, he also admitted that such an unruly approach was the most effective way to deal with such matters. Whoever dared to make trouble or act recklessly would be knocked down with one blow.

It's just a little too arrogant...

Fang Jun turned around and walked out of the house. Cen Changqian followed closely behind him and reported, "Just now, news came that many members of the royal family and noble families who participated in the attack on the Jingzhao government office will gather at the Xiangyi County Prince's Mansion tonight. Should we send someone to keep an eye on them to avoid chaos?"

It was obvious that Li Shenfu was the one who instigated and ordered the group of people to attack the Jingzhao Prefecture government office. Now that something has happened, many people may even lose their official positions and titles and be severely punished. Li Shenfu has transformed himself into the "special supervisor" of this case and is responsible for trying everyone's guilt, which makes a number of royal family members and nobles feel very uncomfortable.

Now that they have gathered at the Xiangyi County Prince's Mansion, they must be asking Li Shenfu to give everyone an explanation. If they can't reach an agreement, a conflict is very likely to occur...

Fang Jun didn't care: "Why get involved in their chaos? Let them fight if they want to, let them make trouble if they want to. We will only take action if they cause trouble, otherwise just ignore them."

Cen Changqian thought about it and nodded.

This is what makes Fang Jun different from others. Others are ordered by the emperor to maintain law and order in the capital and are afraid that someone will cause trouble and be punished, but Fang Jun is not that concerned and no one will punish him, so he only focuses on the results. He allows royal family members and nobles to do whatever they want, and he will only strike hard when they cause trouble to ensure that things do not get out of hand.

Otherwise, if you join in halfway, you will get into trouble. Not only will you need to spend a lot of energy to prevent it, but you may also get splashed with dirty water...

However, how many civil and military officials in the court dare to do so?
"Leave the matter here to Lai Ji. I think he is smart and capable and well versed in the ways of being an official. He will definitely be able to resolve it satisfactorily. Let's go. I have an appointment with Minister Cui to have a drink. You can come with me."

"Here."

Cen Changqian knew that this was Fang Jun's support for him. Cui Dunli was now the most powerful of the six ministers, and His Majesty had great trust in him. The Minister of War would certainly not be the end of his career. From the Minister of the Six Ministries, he would be promoted to the left and right servants of the Ministry of Shangshu, or the Grand Protector of the Protectorate...

Being able to make friends with Cui Dunli with the help of Fang Junzhi will have an immeasurable impact on Cen Changqian's future.

Plus the political legacy left by my uncle Cen Wenben...

The future is limitless.

……

Lai Ji finally finished interrogating Wei Shuxia and sorted out the files. He would continue to try the "indecent assault case" later. While buried in the case under the candlelight, he casually asked the clerk beside him: "Where are the Duke of Yue and Cen Changshi?"

"The State of Yue invited Minister Cui to drink in Pingkangfang, and ordered Chief Cen to accompany him."

"..."

Lai Ji, who was originally very excited, suddenly felt depressed. He was handling matters here like a cow or a horse, but these two went out to drink?
Especially when Fang Jun dragged Cen Changqian to accompany him, he felt even more sad. Born into a family of officials, how could he not know that this meant focused training? Cen Changqian was Cen Wenben's nephew, and was also trained by Fang Jun. He was so far behind that he didn't know when he would be able to catch up...

However, he was also a man of strong will. Although he envied Cen Changqian's political resources, he also knew that only by doing his job well could he have a foundation for further progress. Otherwise, sudden promotion to a high position might not be a good thing. Castles in the air and castles on the beach might seem magnificent, but a gust of wind or a tide could destroy everything.

Don't be impatient, you must follow the steps and proceed steadily. One day you will stand at the pinnacle of power to realize your political ideals.

Taking a deep breath and clearing his mind of distracting thoughts, Lai Ji continued to bury himself in his work and work diligently.

*****
The Xiangyi Prince's Mansion was brightly lit at night, the streets in front of the gate were jammed with traffic, the main hall was crowded with people and noisy, and it was even more lively than the East and West Markets.

The royal family members and nobles who attacked Jingzhao Prefecture yesterday gathered together and asked Li Shenfu to come up with a set of rules.

Li Daoli was wearing a black shirt and sitting on a chair with a sad face, demanding an explanation.

Li Shenfu said angrily: "What do you want to explain to me? I didn't agree to attack Jingzhao Prefecture at that time, and you didn't listen to me. Now that something has happened, you all come to blame me? There is no such thing in the world!"

"Your Majesty, you can use this to fool around with His Majesty, but you don't have to pretend to be so in front of us, right? You didn't really say what you wanted these fools to do, but who can't understand the hidden meaning of your words?"

"No matter what, we have always followed your lead. You can't just ignore this matter."

"You asked us to attack Jingzhao Prefecture, but you stood on His Majesty's side behind the scenes. Isn't this a bit unreasonable?"

Seeing his father's face flushed with anger and breathing heavily, Li Demao was afraid that his father would be ill, so he quickly explained: "The emperor is dissatisfied with father now, so he gave him a position of 'special supervisor' to participate in the trial of this case. This is clearly to divide us, everyone must not fall into the trap!"

"Who knows if you and your son are playing both sides and doing this on purpose? This 'special supervision' might be a reward for betraying us fools."

Li Shenfu was so angry that he blew his beard and glared. He pulled his son over and whispered, "Go find the Jinwu Guards and ask them to send troops to the mansion as soon as possible. I'm afraid these people will not give up tonight."