Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 574 General Attack
The statues of Confucius and the Ten Philosophers were carried to the front of the Lizheng Gate, with Confucius in front and the Ten Philosophers behind, lined up in a row.

After that, thousands of students who were not yet officials but had already received salaries from the court and served as reserve forces came to the court to submit petitions.

Behind these thousands of students were tens of thousands of Lin'an residents who cheered and expressed their support.

There was chaos in the court upon hearing the news.

Today is the day when the emperor comes to court.

The emperors of the Song Dynasty did not attend court as frequently as during the Ming and Qing dynasties. After Zhao Yuan ascended the throne, he was more diligent than Zhao Gou, but he only attended court six or seven times a month.

The first day of every month is usually the fixed date for court meetings, but yesterday Emperor Zhao was "unwell", so the court meeting was postponed for one day, which happened to be the day when the students submitted their petitions.

Zhao Yuan ordered the eunuchs to rush out of the Lizheng Gate, ask the students about their reasons, then take their letters and return to the Golden Palace.

As soon as the contents of the students' petition were announced, the court exploded.

Shen Gai angrily said, "Students are not focusing on their studies at school, but they dare to forget to discuss state affairs!"

Yang Cunzhong said: "Why should the Prime Minister be angry? The purpose of the court establishing the Imperial College is to cultivate the talents of governance and virtuous gentlemen needed by the country.

Therefore, since the day the Imperial College was opened, its students were destined to become talents who would govern the country in the future.

They care about current affairs, put their knowledge to good use, and write letters to express their opinions. Why not?"

Zhang Jun said: "In the Song Dynasty, the censors allow officials and civilians to submit petitions to the emperor to voice their opinions. Since the imperial students are not officials, they are civilians, right? It is only natural for them to submit petitions to the emperor to voice their opinions."

Yang Cunzhong was a full-time military general, so it was no problem for him to stand up and challenge Shen Gai, and Zhang Jun was a Jinshi.

However, he had specialized in military affairs very early on, and over the decades, he had become a de facto military general.

His background was no more important than the fact that he held military power, so he completely sided with the military generals.

However, most of the high-ranking officials in the court were literati. Although not all literati agreed to be lenient towards literati who broke the law, they did hold this position in the majority.

Therefore, as soon as the two of them made this statement, they were immediately criticized by many officials.

Outside the Lizheng Gate, countless people were kneeling down to submit petitions, while the court was in chaos.

Yang Yuan knew long ago that there would be great resistance, mainly coming from the upper echelons.

This was also the main reason why he adopted a roundabout strategy for the first time and started from the bottom.

However, he knew that the person sitting in the highest position also tended to agree with the public opinion this time, and this was the source of his confidence.

The heated debate in the court became increasingly chaotic as more and more people from both sides joined the debate.

Originally, there were two distinct camps in the court, mainly conservatives and radicals, but now, they have split again.

Because not all conservative peace advocates are civil servants, and not all radical war advocates are military generals.

Now the students of the Imperial College have written a petition demanding the abolition of the bad policy of "not killing scholar-officials". Some in the two major camps are in favor, some are against, so a split naturally arises.

What is even more subtle is that the cause of today's topic is the conflict between the Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice and the Censorate, vying for the right to speak on whether Zhang Mi should be put to death.

However, when a higher-level issue was presented, splits also arose within the Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Censorate.

Some judicial officials believed that the preferential treatment for scholar-officials should not be abolished, while others believed that it should be abolished.

Among them, some people are purely motivated by public interest, but others believe that abolishing this clause will enhance the status and power of the three judicial departments.

Therefore, don’t simply view it as two opposing camps. People in the same camp have different demands and further differentiation may occur at any time.

"Xiao Yushi!"

Just as Xiao Yiran was about to step forward and join the battle, he was held back by Yang Yuan.

Yang Yuan shook his head and said, "The wind is too strong today. You can't hold it. Let me do it."

Yang Yuan pulled Xiao Yiran away and walked forward. Lu Chengze opened his mouth but said nothing.

Xiao Yiran and Lu Chengze were the main debaters in the previous argument with the Dali Temple. Although the topic was changed by the students at this moment, they felt that there was no reason to back down.

Therefore, not only did Xiao Yiran decide to join in the debate, but Lu Chengze also got a little carried away.

However, Yang Yuan, who could have continued to stay behind the scenes, stepped forward and stood in front of them.

Lu Chengze had previously attracted attention when he had a verbal battle with the Dali Temple. As a newcomer to the Censorate and the youngest person with the least experience among the Censors, he had completely established his reputation.

Therefore, he cannot avoid it today. This is the price a person must pay when he gains something.

But he didn't expect that Yang Yuan, who could have stayed behind the scenes and acted freely, would choose to stand up at this time.

Seeing both sides arguing fiercely, Xiao Hongji, the Deputy Chief Censor of the Censorate, could not help but roll his eyes and want to bring the war to Yang Yuan. At this moment, how could he let Yang Yuan, the culprit, stay out of it? He must make him the target of public criticism.

However, Xiao Hongji did not want to reveal his position, otherwise his situation in the Censorate would be precarious in the future.

Xiao Hongji thought about it quickly and came up with a clever lead-in. He stepped forward, raised his hands, and shouted, "Everyone, be quiet! You are all ministers of the court. It is not proper to make a scene in front of the emperor!"

"Everyone, please be quiet. I, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, have something to say!"

As soon as the noise in the court stopped, everyone looked at Xiao Hongji.

Xiao Hongji was about to lay the groundwork when he brought the fight to Yang Yuan. Yang Yuan, on his side, held Xiao Yiran down and stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, I think that the court should thoroughly investigate the officials who oppose the abolition of this bad policy. I, the Censorate, am willing to take responsibility for this matter!"

Yang Yuan's words were shocking, and the waves of noise that had not yet calmed down instantly disappeared.

Xiao Hongji stood aside and suddenly felt as if he had a thorn in his back.

He had just shouted "I have something to say to the Censorate" when Yang Yuan said this. It seemed as if he and Yang Yuan agreed and that Yang Yuan came forward at his instigation, but he was not in a position to explain, which was really depressing.

Yang Yuan stepped forward, glanced at all the ministers, and said in a deep voice: "What kind of people are so afraid of punishing the scholars who perverted the law? Could it be that someone has a guilty conscience and is leaving himself a way out?"

Tang Shitui's face turned cold, and he shouted in a deep voice: "How dare you! Yang Yuan, do you know what you are talking about?"

Yang Yuan turned slowly, facing the number one minister without any fear, and asked, "Isn't my inference unreasonable?"

Tang Situi said: "Everything is inferior, only reading is superior. The scholars and officials advocated their frank opinions in the court, respected each other for their reputation and integrity, and always stood firm in the face of difficulties, supported the upright, and were loyal and righteous. They were naturally different from ordinary people!"

Yang Yuan nodded and said, "I am also a scholar, and I agree with what Tang said. But does the scholar-officials Tang mentioned, who advocated frank opinions in the court, respected their reputations, respected integrity, and always stood firm in the face of difficulties, supported the upright, and were loyal and upright, also include those criminals who were corrupt, perverted the law, disregarded human ethics, and killed people?"

Tang Shitui hesitated and said, "Although they made mistakes, they have read the books of sages after all..."

Yang Yuan didn't understand his train of thought and interrupted, "So what? The Book of Rites says, 'Eighty and ninety are called mao, and seven years are called dao. Even if they are guilty, they will not be punished. What does this mean? Please teach me, Mr. Tang."

Tang Si said calmly, "There is a rule of 'three pardons' in the 'Zhou Li · Qiu Guan · Si Ci'. 'The first pardon is for the young and weak, the second pardon is for the old and frail, and the third pardon is for the stupid and foolish.' That is to say, the young, the old, and the mentally retarded should be pardoned or have their sentences reduced when they are guilty. You are the top scholar, don't you know this?"

Yang Yuan asked in return: "So, if a scholar-official breaks the law, is he old and confused, too young to understand, or demented, so should he be forgiven?"

Tang Si was stunned for a moment.

Yang Yuan raised his voice and said, "Knowing the law and breaking it is a heavier crime. Do you need to read books to understand such a simple truth? Scholars and officials should learn from the books of sages and be more aware of education.

What did some people do? Their behavior was worse than that of animals. Doesn't this just show that these people have been taught by saints, but still cannot be taught, and are just beasts in vain wearing human skins? "

"This... you..."

Tang Situi was suddenly speechless. Even though he was good at arguing, the actions of this kind of person were really unreasonable and he had no way to defend himself.

Yang Yuan turned to the throne and said, "Your Majesty, the students of the Imperial Academy have written to you to express their opinions without considering their own interests. This is a righteous act of loyalty to you and to the Song Dynasty.

Now they are prostrating themselves outside the palace gate, and as soon as they heard the memorial in the court, they started arguing among themselves. Shouldn't we hear what these students think and what they think?
Why don't you select a few of the students from the Imperial Academy and invite them to the palace so that the civil and military officials can understand their thoughts. In this way, the next decision will convince the people of the world."

Jin Wang Zhao Yu immediately said: "I second the proposal. Yang Qianxian's words make sense. The emperor should listen to the voices of the students."

"Hmm..." Zhao Yuan glanced at the civil and military officials and said, "Come here, tell the students to nominate a few people to come to the palace to speak."

Immediately, the eunuchs rushed to the Lizheng Gate, and then several prestigious and eloquent students were elected by the students and entered the palace.

This was their first time in a place like the imperial palace, and they were filled with curiosity, excitement and fear.

However, because they wrote letters to express their opinions, they were able to enter the palace and speak freely about politics in front of the emperor and the court officials. This made them feel that their mission was more sacred and their blood boiled.

Four representatives nominated by the Imperial College, the Military Academy and the Imperial Academy entered the hall, paid their respects to the emperor and explained their purpose.

Minister of Personnel Tan Yingwen immediately refuted, "It's ridiculous. The ancestral system of our Song Dynasty favors scholars and officials who write letters to express their opinions. Otherwise, you would have been expelled from the Imperial College for being a student who doesn't want to study and talks about state affairs. But now you are talking nonsense here and demanding the abolition of the ancestral system."

Ye Quan, a student from the Imperial Academy, immediately became furious when he heard this and protested, "Ancestor's rules? Which of the ancestral rules of the Song Dynasty does not severely punish scholars who break the law? Are tolerating scholars and tolerating those who break the law the same thing?"

Minister Tan was scolded by a student and was immediately embarrassed.

He said with a gloomy face, "You are so young, what do you know? The ancestral system of our Song Dynasty is well known to everyone. If you don't know it, it means you are not good at studying. Go back to the Imperial College and ask your teacher for advice. I have no obligation to teach you."

Ye Quan was a top student. At this moment, he was so excited that he didn't care that the other party was a senior official of the court. He immediately said, "Is the ancestral system known to everyone? I know a thing or two about the ancestral system.

Our great Song Taizu hated corrupt officials, and most of the officials inside and outside the court who committed corruption were executed by being thrown into the market. In the second year of Jianlong, Li Yao, the magistrate of Shanghe County, was beaten to death for corruption; in Gengyin, the official Li Jizhao was executed for stealing and selling official ships. In the third year of Jianlong, Wang Xun and four other officials of Caihe were crucified in the market for mixing chaff and soil with military rations.

……

In the fourth year of Qiande, Guo Qi, the Junior Minister of Imperial Households, was executed for corruption. In the fifth year of Qiande, Chen Yan, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Cang, was executed for corruption. In the fifth year of Kaibao, Zhang Xun, the Right Picker of Relics, was executed for corruption; Zhang Mu, the Imperial Censor of the Palace, was executed for corruption. In the seventh year of Kaibao, Hu Dechong, the Prince's Secretary, was executed for hiding official money; Li Renyou, the Prince's Secretary, was executed for illegality...

Every word of "public execution" was extremely irritating to the ministers.

Even if Minister Tan knew these historical facts, he would have forgotten them long ago after serving as an official for so many years. He was stunned when he heard them and had no way to refute them.

When Hongyi saw that the Imperial Academy students were all outstanding, he stepped forward and said loudly:
"In the third year of Taipingxingguo during the reign of Emperor Taizong, Xu Bi, the recorder of Sizhou, was sentenced to death by public execution for accepting bribes and issuing false certificates; Zhao Chengsi, the imperial censor, was sentenced to death by public execution for collecting and concealing official money; Li Zhigu, the secretary of the Central Secretariat, was sentenced to death by caning for accepting bribes and arbitrarily changing the laws set by the Ministry of Justice; Xu Xuan, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, was sentenced to death by caning for corruption.

In the sixth year of Taipingxingguo, Zhang Bai, the censor, was convicted of using government money to buy and sell grain when he was the governor of Caizhou, and was executed. In the second year of Yongxi, Wang Zhuo, the imperial edict, was convicted of corruption and bribery while supervising the soldiers of Zizhou, and was executed. In the second year of Chunhua, Zu Ji, the censor, was convicted of corruption and bribery when he was the governor of Jinzhou, and was executed..."

Xin Yunfei, the martial arts candidate, was selected because he has outstanding literary talent. Otherwise, fighting is not allowed in the Golden Palace, so why would the martial arts candidates select him?

Although he was not as familiar with the classics as the other two, he could still remember a few things. He immediately stepped forward and said, "During the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, in the fifth year of Xianping, the governor of Rongzhou, Chu Dezhen, was executed for stealing government silver..."

Wei Liangchen was furious and said, "Shut up, shut up. Don't I know what you are saying? You must know that in the early days of the country, severe punishments should be used. In times of peace and prosperity..."

Yang Yuan suddenly asked, "Prime Minister Wei, you said...peaceful and prosperous times? Is the world peaceful? Is it already prosperous? You and I are standing in Lin'an now, and the capital of our Song Dynasty is still in the hands of the Jin people. Compared with the time of Taizu and Taizong, are we already in a peaceful and prosperous time?"

Wei Liangchen was suddenly speechless. This was another fact that he could not refute no matter how eloquent he was.

Yang Yuan turned to face the emperor and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, the ministers keep saying that the ancestral rules cannot be violated. But what are the ancestral rules?
? The Great Song Dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu, and the ancestral system of the Great Song Dynasty was, of course, the rules set by Taizu.

So, shouldn't we, the emperor and his subjects, abide by the "Imperial Song Criminal Code" promulgated by Emperor Taizu?"

Several students did not know who this young official in scarlet robe was, but when they saw him standing on their side, they immediately felt like they had met a close friend.

Xin Yunfei, a martial arts candidate, immediately said loudly: "Speaking of ancestral rules, the ancestral rules of our Song Dynasty are the rules set by Emperor Taizu!"

Hongyi was also excited, and said in a loud voice: "Since the death of Taizu, the throne of the emperor has been transferred to Taizong's lineage.

The current emperor is a descendant of Taizu, and now the throne has been restored to Taizu's descendants, so Taizu's system should also be restored."

Ye Quan immediately said: "Please restore the ancestral system, and everyone in the court should obey the "Imperial Song Criminal Code"!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Cunzhong, Zhang Jun and others immediately said, "I second the motion!"

Tang Situi said angrily, "Does Taizu's oath monument no longer need to be observed?"

Yang Yuan immediately shouted, "A fictitious oath monument? Minister Tang, where is it?"

Yang Yuan did not back down. He took a step forward and said sternly, "It is not recorded in history books, officials have never seen it, and the previous emperor has never mentioned it. Cao Xun, who escaped from the Jin Kingdom, said it casually, and it became the ancestral rule. Is there any evidence to support it?"

"This... maybe the Jin people destroyed or carried it away when they occupied the Imperial Ancestral Temple..."

"Or was it destroyed or transported away? There is no evidence for such a serious matter, and we just rely on Tang Shangzheng's words of "maybe"?
The Jin people did little damage to items in the Taimiao. Apart from jewels, sacrificial vessels and other valuables, all other items were still there and were later transported across the river by the imperial court.

That huge stone tablet weighing thousands of pounds was worthless to the Jin people. Who would smash it into powder with a hammer? Or why would they transport it all the way to Shangjing?"

Yang Yuan turned to Zhao Yuan and said, "Your Majesty, if Minister Tang does not believe it, I think you can send him to Xinjin and visit Shangjing City in person.

By the way, the court should also find a stone tablet nine feet high, four feet wide, and one foot thick, and let him escort it to Shangjing. Perhaps Tang Canzheng will figure out why the Jin people were so bored as to smash it into powder, or why they took the trouble to transport it to Shangjing! "

Minister Tan shouted, "Yang Yuan! Don't you know the story of Shang Yang killing himself?"

Yang Yuan looked at Minister Tan, his eyes like swords: "So, Minister Tan, are you worried that you will break the law one day, or do you think the emperor is a tyrant?"

"you you……"

Minister Tan's face turned red with anger, and he kept trembling as he pointed at Yang Yuan.

When the Dali Temple Minister Wu Shu saw this, he hurried out and said, "Your Majesty, the turmoil in the court and the country is all because of Zhang Mi. Zhang Mi's crime has already aroused the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people. I think that your Majesty should issue an order to add more crimes to him and sentence him to death to calm the anger of the world."

Ye Quan, a student of the Imperial College, immediately said, "Zhang Mi certainly deserves death, but why can't the court's laws sentence him to death? The students are writing to the emperor today precisely because Zhang Mi deserves death but hasn't. Why did he deserve death but hasn't died? This is why we are writing to the emperor. We should not put the cart before the horse just because Zhang Mi was sentenced to death!"

Wu Shu's official hat was about to stand up with anger.

Zhang Mi, Zhang Mi, this Zhang Mi, really deserves to die!

Why didn’t our Dali Temple sentence him to death at the beginning?
Now I want to sentence him to death, but these stupid students who have become stupid from studying too much are just refusing to give in. This is really unreasonable.

Shen Gai and others were panicking. They thought the situation was irreversible and they would become the laughing stock of the world because of this incident.

However, when Yang Yuan saw this scene, his brows furrowed slightly, and he felt a little uneasy in his heart.

What's wrong? What's wrong?
Suddenly, Yang Yuan had an idea and he finally understood where the problem lay.

There is a major hidden danger here, which he had not thought of when he was planning this matter.

Now that he was there, he suddenly remembered what had gone wrong.

He comes from a crisis public relations background and is used to putting himself in the shoes of parties with different positions, trying to figure out what they are thinking and thinking about more appropriate solutions.

This has become an instinctive way of thinking for him when dealing with things.

Just now, he felt a little uneasy. After putting himself in Zhao Yuan's shoes and analyzing the situation, he discovered the problem.

Yang Yuan immediately made amends, saying, "The government has listened to public opinion and investigated public sentiment today. All officials and students have explained the pros and cons.

The pros and cons still need to be weighed by the government, and then a careful decision must be made to clarify the legal code!
I think that the court meeting today is enough!"

The Goose King looked at Yang Yuan in surprise. Seeing that the wind had changed, it was time to press on while the victory was won. As long as everyone put in an extra effort, the Emperor could restore the true ancestral system. Why did Erlang suddenly change his mind?

Is he retreating to advance?

Zhao Qu looked at Yang Yuan carefully, and Yang Yuan seemed to have realized something and immediately looked back at him.

Zhao Qu immediately understood that Erlang was serious.

Although he didn't understand why Yang Yuan did this, Zhao Qu believed that Yang Yuan must have his reasons for doing so.

Then Zhao Yu immediately said: "Your Majesty, the civil and military officials and the students who wrote the letter have all expressed their views. But this matter is of great importance.

The government is in charge of the overall affairs of the country and makes its own decisions, so it should be more cautious in making decisions. Therefore, I also think that it would be more appropriate for the government to think twice before taking action! "

Zhao Yuan frowned slightly. This was a matter of strengthening the imperial power, and he was eager to do so. He was eager to make changes immediately.

The situation is good now, why create trouble?
However, he naturally couldn't show his impatience. After thinking for a while, he nodded and said, "Everyone has their own reasons for what you said. I know all of them. I will make a decision after I think about this proposal!"

(End of this chapter)