Top Scholar

Chapter 645 Go Turn Yourself In
After returning home, Wang Ao was filled with resentment and did not eat dinner. He locked himself in his study and relieved his heart by writing large characters.

Just as Zhu Zhishan and Wen Zhengming were at their wits' end, Su Lu arrived with Huang E.

In the past, Su Lu usually came alone, but since he had promised to spend more time with Huang E, he had to make the necessary changes, so he brought his wife along to pay his respects to his teacher.

Upon hearing that Su Lu and his wife had come to visit, Wang Ao forgot his anger and hurriedly left his study to meet them in the main hall.

After the couple bowed and greeted their teacher, Su Lu presented the food box they had brought. "Teacher, tomorrow is the Cold Food Festival. My aunt steamed some local delicacies and asked me to bring them over for you to try."

"How could I accept that? Please thank your aunt for me." Wang Ao smiled as he accepted the food box. Upon opening it, he saw that the rice cakes inside were a beautiful mix of green and white, and looked exquisite and adorable. He couldn't resist picking one up and tasting it, and immediately praised it highly.

"This green one is soft sparrow cake, also called Qingming vegetable cake. The white one is our Luzhou white cake. One is sweet and the other is savory, suitable for all ages." Huang E introduced to him, "My sisters-in-law also tried to make it, but we are far from being as good as my aunt's skills."

"Haha, take your time." Wang Ao finally relaxed and said cheerfully, "You guys are so busy that you don't have time to rest, so you don't need to worry about this old bone of mine."

"After leaving the office, I'm not busy anymore." Su Lu took the teacup brought by the steward, bowed and offered it to his teacher before sitting down. "Besides, it's only right to be filial to one's teacher."

"Alas, I, your mentor, have been quite useless. Not only have I been unable to help you, but I've also had to rely on my students to protect me. I'm truly ashamed." Wang Ao's smile froze somewhat.

"Is something troubling you, teacher?" Su Lu asked, noticing the situation.

Wang Ao hesitated for a moment, then looked up at him: "Have you heard of the 'Examples of Conduct'?"

“I’ve heard a little about it.” Su Lu nodded. “At the beginning of the year, Qu Quan, the Supervising Secretary, and Wang Yunfeng, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, submitted memorials one after another, requesting that the various articles of Eunuch Liu’s reforms be compiled into laws and regulations and promulgated both inside and outside the country to establish the laws of the realm…”

"Yes, Jiao Fang has already compiled this 'Example of Practices' today, categorized according to the six sections, totaling eighty-five articles!" Wang Ao sighed heavily. "He is simply using the emperor's name to turn all the decrees issued by Liu Jin through forgery into the laws of the court, and proclaiming them to the world!"

"How can this be allowed!" Su Lu frowned. "Who doesn't know that these edicts came from Liu Jin? Where does this place the Emperor?"

"That's exactly right!" Wang Ao could no longer contain his anger and said bitterly, "Once this 'Case Study' is promulgated, all officials in the country will have to treat Liu Jin's words as imperial edicts, and then he will truly become the emperor's supporter! Does this Ming Dynasty belong to the Zhu family or the Liu family?!"

"Teacher, please calm down." Su Lu hurriedly comforted him: "The reason why the eunuch faction came up with this regulation is that they have made the court beset by internal and external troubles and resentment over the past two years. Jiao Fang and his gang are afraid of being made scapegoats, so they are desperately trying to elevate and consolidate Liu Jin's position in order to protect themselves."

“You’re absolutely right, that’s exactly what happened!” Wang Ao nodded emphatically and said in a deep voice, “But they dared to undermine the Emperor’s authority without any scruples. Do they even have the demeanor of subjects? They’re utterly depraved!”

As he spoke, he looked at Su Lu and asked softly, "Could you find an opportunity to remind the Emperor that we cannot let them succeed?"

Su Lu didn't need to act arrogantly in front of his teacher, so he said hesitantly, "I'm afraid it's difficult for me to bring this up..."

Just like the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and the Imperial Family Committee, in other people's eyes, it was all Su Lu who was stirring things up under the emperor's name. But in the emperor's eyes, it was Su Lu who was busy with his own career.

The same logic applies to Liu Jin's relationship with the emperor. Others felt he was forging imperial edicts in the emperor's name, essentially installing an emperor. But in Zhu Houzhao's eyes, Liu Jin was merely a household servant helping him manage the empire.

Therefore, in Zhu Houzhao's eyes, the "Examples of Conduct" were his own edicts, and he would not have considered them to be Liu Jin's.

There's no such thing as a "truth" in this kind of thing; it's just a matter of different perspectives. But differences in perspectives lead to differences in understanding.

The most difficult thing is changing a person's perception, especially since Zhu Houzhao was a very opinionated emperor...

Even someone as favored by the emperor as he was would have to go to great lengths to persuade the emperor to change his mind.

Moreover, he had just gone to great lengths to persuade the emperor yesterday, and his skills hadn't even cooled down yet.

Furthermore, if he could truly convince the emperor that everyone in the land believed the "Examples of Conduct" were Liu Jin's work, then Eunuch Liu would truly have no other option but to die...

This is seriously inconsistent with Su Lu's established policy!

Therefore, he could only say that he couldn't help...

“That’s true, you have to consider the Emperor’s thoughts.” Wang Ao thought for a moment and understood Su Lu’s concerns. He apologized, “I was angry and didn’t think things through.”

He then firmly stated, "Then you don't need to worry about this matter; I'll figure something out. We absolutely cannot let this damned 'Regulations' be smoothly promulgated throughout the land!"

"Teacher, please don't be so forceful!" Su Lu quickly advised, "Try to slow things down first, and when the time is right, the students will come up with a solution."

"How can I always rely on my students? Wouldn't I, as a teacher, become a laughing stock?" Wang Ao laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "Wouldn't I, as a Grand Scholar, also become a laughing stock?"

"Our teacher is selfless and impartial, and harmonizes yin and yang; he is a model for all officials," Su Lu hurriedly said earnestly.

"You flatter me. What 'harmonizing Yin and Yang'? It's nothing more than being forced into a position, not wanting to be a mere figurehead." Wang Ao waved his hand and said seriously:
"Now that you have established yourself in the court and enjoy the Emperor's trust, this old man of mine no longer needs to force himself to stand on his own two feet." "Teacher!" Su Lu hurriedly stood up, cupped his hands, and said anxiously, "This student is still far from qualified! In the court and within the cabinet, we absolutely cannot do without your protection!"

Wang Ao looked at him and suddenly burst into laughter, "Haha, Hongzhi, it's really not certain who's protecting whom between us, teacher and student."

He paused, his tone growing increasingly firm: "Don't worry, even if I retire to the countryside, I still have some influence among scholars. No scholar in the world dares to disrespect me, Wang Ao. When it really comes down to it, this old man can still cheer you on."

"Sigh..." Su Lu sighed and didn't try to persuade him any further.

~~
On the carriage back to the mansion, Su Lu could not hide his depressed mood.

Huang E, who was standing to the side, held his hand and gently comforted him:
"Everyone has their own ambitions, and you can't force someone to do something they don't want to do, especially since the other person is your mentor."

“Yes.” Su Lu nodded. Wang Ao valued his reputation above all else. After his falling out with Jiao Fang last year, he had the idea of ​​resigning and returning to his hometown. However, he had been putting on a brave face for the sake of the bigger picture.

Su Lu couldn't help but have some doubts. "Teacher had always said that he would hold out until Liu Jin fell from power. Why did he suddenly change his mind and decide to resign from his post early to resist and get involved in the situation?"

Huang E replied softly, "Perhaps the situation has changed drastically, and in order to stop that 'Example of Practices,' the teacher decided to go all out?"

"Perhaps." Su Lu frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "But I always feel that there are some things that the teacher didn't tell me outright."

Huang E smiled upon hearing this: "That's natural. No matter how close a master and disciple or father and son are, they would never reveal all their thoughts."

Upon hearing this, Su Lu slowly nodded: "That's true."

He then grasped his wife's hand and asked with a smile, "And what about husband and wife?"

"What do you think?" Huang E chuckled.

~~
Meanwhile, an uninvited guest arrived at the residence of Yang Gelao on Guanghua Temple Street.

Yang Tinghe watched as the newcomer removed the bamboo hat covering his face, revealing a deeply lined, sallow, beardless face resembling that of a eunuch.

"Brother Shi Cong?" Yang Tinghe was taken aback and blurted out, "How dare you come to the capital?"

"The most dangerous place is the safest place." Yang Yiqing laughed loudly, but his tone concealed a hint of lingering fear. "Besides, isn't there Brother Shizhai back in the capital? I'm begging you to lend me a hand!"

Previously, Liu Jin had sent people to investigate the grain reserves in border granaries in Ningxia and Guyuan, and the deficits found were exactly the same as those in Liaodong and Xuanda. Based on this, the censors submitted a memorial impeaching the previous governors and censors, with Yang Yiqing, who had served as the commander-in-chief of the three border regions, being the first to be implicated, along with 188 other officials in charge of grain.

Afterwards, Liu Jin fabricated two more charges, namely the price of horses and tax silver, and impeached a number of officials again. Yang Yiqing, who had once been in charge of horse administration, was also implicated...

Liu Jin then forged an imperial edict, ordering the Embroidered Uniform Guard to arrest and interrogate the person.

Yang Yiqing was the leader of the Qingliu faction, known as the "wise strategist," and had been secretly plotting to overthrow Liu Jin for years. His numerous underhanded actions had long made him a thorn in Liu Jin's side, making him a top priority in this arrest operation.

When the Nanjing Imperial Guards arrived at his residence to arrest him, they found nothing... The servants said that he had recently gone out to visit friends with his wife. When asked where they had gone, the servants only knew that they had gone north, but no one could say for sure whether it was Shandong, Henan, Shanxi, or Hebei.

Clearly, the old fox who had been castrated had received word of this beforehand and had slipped away in advance.

At this time, rebellions were rampant in various northern provinces, and even the Embroidered Uniform Guard was unable to search for and arrest a person who intended to hide in several provinces. They could only issue notices for assistance to each province and see if they could wait for the person to come to them.

Unexpectedly, a few months later, he ventured alone into Beijing, right under Liu Jin's nose!

"Since you've escaped, you should just hide properly." Yang Tinghe invited him to sit down and asked calmly, "Why did you come back?"

"If I go into hiding and don't return, won't I become a fugitive?" Yang Yiqing said with a bitter smile, "Even if Liu Jin falls from power in the future, I won't be able to clear my name of this crime."

"Then why did you run away in the first place?" Yang Tinghe asked again.

“If Liu Jin catches me down here, I’ll lose my life. I figure he’ll be more cautious in the capital. I’ve been hiding all this way, and I finally managed to escape to the capital. That’s why I came to you for help right away,” Yang Yiqing said, looking at Yang Tinghe expectantly.

“That makes sense.” Yang Tinghe nodded and said in a deep voice, “Then I won’t report you. You should turn yourself in right away.”

"Ah, this..." Yang Yiqing was speechless.

(End of this chapter)