Chapter 207: The Saint is Disappointed with Li Linfu, Li Linfu's Crisis
In prison, Li Xuan only said two sentences to Wang Zhongsi.

Just revealing one piece of information is enough!
It’s inconvenient to say more, and it’s meaningless!

Li Xuan knew that Wang Zhongsi could not join the army again, and he just wanted to save Wang Zhongsi's life.

Before leaving, Li Xuan asked Yang Shenjin to treat him to delicious food and drinks.

Don’t worry so much these days!

The next day, the court was held early in the Xingqing Palace.

After the morning ceremony, the court meeting officially begins!
"Your Majesty, after I became the Imperial Censor, I have been working non-stop to handle the Wang Zhongsi case. I hope to return to the frontier as soon as possible and make contributions to the country."

"However, I discovered yesterday that, apart from the suspected connection with the Crown Prince, all other charges against Wang Zhongsi were fabricated by Li Yan, the Imperial Censor of the Imperial Court. He looked through all the unresolved cases in Chang'an and the surrounding areas, coerced and bribed witnesses related to the cases, and obtained evidence from thirteen people, each of whom was paid ten strings of cash to come out and give false testimony to accuse Wang Zhongsi!"

"As for Wang Zhongsi's crimes of nepotism and allowing his soldiers to plunder, they never went to Taiyuan or Lingwu to investigate. These are pure conjectures. The military supervisor has been in Taiyuan and has never reported anything like this. They actually know more than the military supervisor."

"I think Wang Zhongsi is suspicious. Although he has been demoted to a commoner, he is still your Majesty's adopted son. Li Yi used a fabricated story to frame Wang Zhongsi, which is a crime of great disrespect! I hope that Li Yi can be severely punished to serve as a warning to others."

After the prime minister finished presiding over daily affairs, Li Xuan stepped out of the room, bowed to Li Longji, and reported in an orderly manner.

He was impeaching Li Yan, the Imperial Censor of the Taiyuan.

As soon as these words were spoken, the court was in an uproar!

They guessed that Li Xuan would make some noise after taking on the role of Chief Censor, but they didn't expect it to happen so soon.

Li Rong was a close confidant promoted by Li Linfu.

Due to the responsibilities and power of the Assistant Censor of the Censorate, the Assistant Censor of the Palace, and the Supervisory Censor, Li Linfu was very keen on arranging his confidants to these three positions after he "established his staff and horse".

This was the case with Luo Xishi and Wang Yu who were killed and demoted; the same was true for Ji Wen and Lu Hyun.

In other words, the descendants of ministers of the current dynasty could not serve as censors or censors, otherwise Li Linfu would have certainly sent his own son and son-in-law to the Censorate.

The ministers looked at Li Linfu, wanting to see how he would respond.

Li Linfu's scalp was tingling at this moment.

He realized that he had overlooked an important issue.

It was the same when he had people fabricate charges in the past, and he was rewarded for “solving” a number of unsolved cases!

But at that time, Li Linfu was at the peak of his career, and he had the overall situation in the government and the country under his control. No one could stop him!
This time it was different. He faced an unprecedented enemy, Li Xuan.

An opponent more powerful than Zhang Jiuling.

At the beginning, Li Linfu, Zhang Jiuling and Pei Yaoqing were the prime ministers. Among them, Zhang Jiuling was the chief prime minister, and Li Linfu was only the Minister of Rites and "Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi", and was the third prime minister.

At the ceremony of conferring the title of Prime Minister, Zhang Jiuling and Pei Yaoqing both bowed and walked forward, showing great humility. Li Linfu stood between the two, with an extremely arrogant attitude and a smug look between his eyebrows. People at that time exclaimed, "This is an eagle holding two rabbits."

It implies that Li Linfu is powerful and is holding Zhang Jiuling and Pei Yaoqing hostage as the third prime minister.

Now Li Linfu also tasted this feeling. Li Xuan was not even the prime minister, but he could keep attacking Li Linfu and looking for trouble for Li Linfu everywhere.

Moreover, when Li Linfu ordered Li Xuan to fabricate charges, he never thought that Li Xuan would be transferred to the position of Imperial Censor and personally handle the case.

Now, Li Linfu could only pretend to remain silent.

I hope the saint will not remember that it was he who recommended Li Yi.

If he was threatened, he would have to feel sorry for Li Rong.

Although he had lost the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple one after another, all the people in the Censorate were his.

"Li Yan is just a small Imperial Censor. How can he fabricate charges? Does he want to do what Zhou Xing and Lai Junchen did?"

When Li Longji heard Li Xuan's words, he glanced at the court officials, and finally his eyes fell on Li Linfu's matter, with a frown on his face.

He remembered that Li Yan was recommended by Li Linfu.

As a minor official of the seventh rank, would Li Rong fabricate charges against Wang Zhongsi?
Although Li Longji hated Wang Zhongsi, Li Xuan was right. After all, Wang Zhongsi was raised in the palace by him and was his godson.

He couldn't tolerate such deception!

Could it be that Li Linfu was being too clever and put Wang Zhongsi to death?

Although it was in line with his wishes, he did not want to punish the prince.

This time he just wanted to teach Li Heng a lesson and make him honestly explain his duties as a servant!
"I suspect that someone must have instructed Li Yan to do this, otherwise he and Wang Zhongsi would not have done this!"

Li Xuan reminded Li Longji.

"Chief Censor, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, and Minister of the Supreme Court. Why didn't you report to me how Li Rong dared to be so presumptuous?"

Li Longji questioned Yang Shenjin, Zhang Jun and Li Daosui.

"We are negligent!"

The three of them bowed quickly.

First, they are not as strong as Li Xuan. Second, they have to figure out the emperor's intentions. The emperor obviously wants to severely punish Wang Zhongsi. How can they go against the emperor?

Therefore, even though he knew that Li Linfu was fabricating charges against him, he did not report it to the emperor.

They didn't expect Li Xuan to be so brave.

Moreover, the sage was not angry, as if he did not want to kill Wang Zhongsi again.

"You are so careless! I will reduce your salary by one month!"

Li Longji punished Li Daosui, Zhang Jun, Yang Shenjin and others.

He is handling it with care.

As long as they have power, one month's salary is insignificant to ministers.

"Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Majesty!"

Yang Shenjin, Li Daosui and Zhang Jun hurriedly expressed their gratitude.

"General Li, I order you to interrogate Li Yi strictly and find out who is behind this."

Even though he suspected that it was Li Linfu, Li Longji still asked Li Xuan to investigate thoroughly.

"According to the order!"

Li Xuan bowed and returned to his seat.

"Your Majesty, I have something else to report!"

Li Daosui and Zhang Jun had already gone down, but Yang Shenjin was still at the table. He bowed to Li Longji.

"speak!"

Li Longji opened his mouth and gestured.

"I impeach the Imperial Censor Lu Xuan, who often uses torture to coerce people into confessing, and forces them to sign when they are unconscious, thus creating an unjust case! The day before yesterday, he even asked me to use the inhumane torture of pulling out a stake with a donkey on Wang Zhongsi, but I refused."

"Lu Xuan colluded with the Imperial Censor Chen Lun, Imperial Censor Zhang Zhiliang, Imperial Censor Zheng Heshang, Imperial Censor Lu Hucheng, and Imperial Censor Dugu Yuan, and they have been covering up for each other, deceiving the ministers, and bluffing the court."

"Among them, when Chen Lun searched the Wannian Wei's house, he deliberately placed the gold prepared in advance in the Wannian Wei's house to frame him; the Imperial Censor Zhang Zhiliang and the Chang'an wealthy merchant Wei Kuang were brothers, and he received bribes without measure; Zheng Heshang once concealed a murder case for his brother-in-law; when Lu Hucheng was appointed as the magistrate of Fenxi, he robbed decent women even though he already had nine wives and concubines; Dugu Yuan married Liu when he was poor, and Liu mourned for her parents-in-law for three years, and when Dugu Yuan became rich, he divorced his original wife..."

"This is a detailed memorial, please read it carefully, Your Majesty!"

Yang Shenjin impeached six imperial censors in one breath, took out a memorial, and bent down to hold it.

Gao Lishi stepped down, took the memorial and presented it to Li Longji.

At this time, the court was silent. Just by looking at Li Longji's expression, the ministers knew that Li Longji was angry but did not express his anger.

Once the memorial is read, it might explode like a storm.

The key point is that, judging from the content of Yang Shenjin's impeachment, it is impossible that he was shooting without a target.

For example, Zhang Zhiliang and the powerful Wei Kuang are easy to find.

The Tang Dynasty had strict regulations that officials could not interact with merchants.

Officials and businessmen must be distinguished. If officials or their descendants engage in business, it is a serious crime.

Especially when generals are engaged in business, they will be accused of "intending to rebel" and have no place to seek justice.

For example, Dugu Yuan's divorce seemed to be a trivial matter, but it was brought to the table by Yang Shenjin.

Actually it is not.

The Tang Code stipulates: If you take something and have no place to return it, you cannot leave; if you mourn for three years after giving it to someone else, you cannot leave; if you were poor before and became rich after, you cannot leave.

This means that if the wife is homeless, has observed three years of mourning for her parents, or the husband was poor when he married her but later became rich, and has not lost any virtue, the husband cannot divorce her as long as she satisfies one condition.

The Tang Law Commentary further added that if a wife is unable to bear children, the husband must wait until she reaches the age of fifty before divorcing her.

Gudu Yuan's original wife, Liu, waited for him before he became rich and powerful, and mourned for his parents for three years. Even if she could not have children in her lifetime, she could not be divorced.

Dugu Yuan must have despised his wife, so after he became rich, he married a woman from a wealthy family to make himself more prestigious.

This is a big mistake in the selection of officials for the imperial court. It is like not going to mourn for one's parents after their death. If one's moral character is not good enough, he will not be used for life.

Yang Shenjin's impeachment of these Imperial Censors hit the nail on the head, and every move was fatal!

This was the token of allegiance that Yang Shenjin submitted to Li Xuan in order to protect himself.

Before Yang Shenjin defected to Li Linfu, he was good at observing the situation, choosing the side that benefited him, and taking action only after careful planning.

This also gave Yang Shenjin the opportunity to find the flaws of the Imperial Censor.

Of course, one thing Yang Shenjin said was nonsense.

That is, Lu Xuan suggested using a donkey to pull out the peg to deal with Wang Zhongsi.

According to cause and effect, Lu Xuan used the donkey-colt-pulling-peg criminal law invented by Wu Zetian many times, so even if he denied it, it would still be blamed on him.

Li Longji hated Wu Zetian very much.

Because when Li Longji was eight years old, his mother, Concubine Dou De, was summoned away by Wu Zetian and never returned. Li Longji had been waiting at the palace gate, but never saw his mother again. Even after searching the palace, he could not find Concubine Dou De's body, which caused a huge psychological trauma to Li Longji.

When Princess Taiping was alive, she was extremely powerful. When Li Longji, who was still the crown prince at that time, commented on Wu Zetian, he had to say that she was a wise ruler, but at the end he added, "Grandma is too cruel to our Li family," which made Princess Taiping very unhappy. Li Longji had already banned the use of donkey pegs, but Lu Xuan brought them out and used them again.

This criminal law is indeed scary. Li Xuan just wanted to scare some false accusers, and they told the whole story.

But Roh Hyun will definitely suffer badly for this!
It was not until Li Longji read the impeachment memorial that the ministers reacted.

Lu Xuan, Li Rong, Chen Lun, Zhang Zhiliang, Dugu Yuan and other seven people seemed to be all Li Linfu's old subordinates.

They relied on Li Linfu and had no worries.

When they walked on the street, one could see from their steps the three big words "Right Prime Minister's Party" stuck on their foreheads.

and many more……

Isn’t Yang Shenjin very close to Li Linfu recently?

Why did they suddenly start impeaching Li Linfu's cronies in the Censorate?

And none of the Imperial Censors from the Taiyuan and Dianyuan were left out!
Some ministers thought that Li Xuan was appointed as the Grand Censor, and the Chief Censor Yang Shenjin was the Grand Censor's deputy. So Yang Shenjin was going to surrender to Li Xuan!

Although many ministers were dissatisfied with Li Linfu's autocracy, Yang Shenjin was too shameless.

An official who betrays his country is as despised as a woman who loses her chastity.

In the open atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty, an official's betrayal was more serious than a woman's infidelity.

A real man should not lose his chastity to others lightly. If you serve someone and then abandon him, you are disloyal; if you share his misfortunes with him, you are unwise!

This ancient saying is an interpretation of Yang Shenjin.

As a result, loyalty and wisdom were suspected by all the civil and military officials in the court.

At this time, Yang Shenjin gave a bitter smile. He could feel a lot of eyes falling on his back, but he had no choice!

Li Xuan sat in his seat calmly.

The other protagonist, Li Linfu, was so angry that he was fuming. His eyebrows were not eyebrows, his nose was not a nose, and it was the first time he lost his composure like this in the court.

Yang Shenjin, you scumbag, you are a remnant of the previous dynasty. I should have killed you earlier.

Some unpleasant memories immediately came to Li Linfu's mind.

Let’s not talk about Wei Jian, that ungrateful guy.

He still remembered clearly how that bastard Yang Yan betrayed him, causing him to lose his position as the Minister of Personnel and his direct control over the Dali Temple.

He never expected that Yang Shenjin would betray him and impeach so many of his confidants in one go.

Yang Shenjin had a grudge against Li Xuan and Pei Kuan, but there was no sign of cause and effect, and it was resolved in just one day?

The most important thing is that the saint knew that these censors were recommended by him.

He is in trouble today!
Yang Shenjin, you who eats dog shit, wait for me. Li Linfu kept cursing in his heart.

He believed that there was no other reason but that Yang Shenjin was rebellious and, seeing that he had lost power, turned to the rising political star Li Xuan.

"Oh!"

"This Lu Xuan is so audacious! Who is responsible for these people entering the Censorate?"

After reading the memorial, Li Longji was furious. He slammed the jade table, pointed at Li Linfu and asked: "These censors seem to be from the right prime minister's family. I thought they could be loyal to the country and fulfill their duties to the people. Which of the following are they good at?"

The Assistant Censor and the Palace Censor were only seventh-rank officials and were not qualified to attend daily court sessions.

Only censors such as the Left and Right Shiyi and the Left and Right Buque were allowed to attend court meetings if they were below the fifth rank.

So Li Longji could only vent his anger on Li Linfu.

"I deserve to die. I will investigate this matter thoroughly!"

Li Linfu came out of the class, knelt in front of the desk, and tried to make some excuses.

Although he employed unclear people many times.

Previously, Li Longji used the story of Di Renjie recommending Dou Huaizheng to take the initiative to excuse Li Linfu.

But in recent years, time and time again, ordinary people have their limits of tolerance, let alone the emperor.

"You are not the one who should conduct a thorough investigation! Do some of the cases here need to be thoroughly investigated? Isn't there irrefutable evidence for what Lu Xuan did? Why did he dare to use a donkey to pull out a peg against Wang Zhongsi?"

The more Li Longji thought about it, the angrier he became.

If it weren't for Li Linfu's ability and loyalty, he would have dismissed him directly.

what is the problem?

From the 25th year of Kaiyuan to the 2nd year of Tianbao, the court was presided over by Li Linfu. There were no annoying things, so he could indulge in fun.

He no longer had to go to Luoyang to "move the capital for food" and travel hard.

In spring, he could enjoy the unique spring scenery in Xingqing Palace and go to Qujiang for a stroll through the alley; in summer, he could go to Daming Palace to escape the heat; in autumn, he could go hunting in Longshouyuan; and in winter, he could go to Huaqing Pool to enjoy the hot spring.

God also gave her a treasure like Lady Yuhuan, so that he could be gentle in the years to come.

The expansion of the border has been successful time and again.

Envoys from various countries, including the Western Rong and the Southern Yue, came to pay homage constantly.

Treasures from all over the country were sent to Chang'an in endless numbers, and wherever the dragon chariot went, the people of Guanzhong all responded!
Li Longji believed that this was the credit of Li Linfu's administration, which allowed him to live a "good time" comfortably.

During those years, he lamented that the gods in heaven were no more than this!
During his wonderful years, he changed the previous custom that the prime minister could only serve for three or four years, and allowed Li Linfu to serve for more than ten years.

He knew that Li Linfu was playing power games and suppressing the prince, but he only wanted Li Linfu's loyalty.

Because Li Linfu adjudicated cases during the day and read documents at night, he often left the Secretariat late at night.

He believed that Li Linfu was capable of helping him manage the country, and at one point he wanted to entrust all political affairs to him.

Li Longji wanted Li Linfu to remain prime minister until he grew old.

But what happened in recent years?
Li Linfu made mistakes again and again, and the trust that Li Longji had accumulated over the past ten years was about to be completely wiped out.

His achievements were clearly growing stronger, and Li Qillang helped him to overtake Emperor Taizong.

Perhaps this year, we can accomplish what even Emperor Taizong could not.

Could it be that Li Linfu is old?

"I am blind and I deserve to die!"

Li Linfu begged for forgiveness as he had done in previous times, thinking that he could be forgiven for his previous merits.

He looked very pitiful as he was crying.

"General Li, you will try these censors, especially Lu Xuan. Once the evidence is conclusive, you can execute him by using a donkey to pull out a stake."

Li Longji gave instructions to Li Xuan in a stern tone.

"According to the order!"

Li Xuan stood up and bowed. Although his expression did not change, he felt that the situation was already decided!

We will just have to wait until the charges against Lu Xuan, Dugu Yuan and others are proven, and then see how Li Longji will deal with Li Linfu.

In this life, Li Xuan instinctively rejected Li Linfu.

Moreover, Li Linfu was as insidious as a poisonous snake and could bite him at any time in the dark.

It would be in his interest if it could be removed sooner.

"Retreat!"

Li Longji ignored Li Linfu who was kneeling on the ground and directly ordered the court to be adjourned.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"

Following the shout of the chief ceremonial officer, all the civil and military officials saluted respectfully and watched Li Longji leave Xingqing Hall under the protection of female officials and eunuchs.

The atmosphere in Xingqing Hall was awkward due to the absence of the saint.

Because Li Linfu was still kneeling on the ground!

Li Linfu felt even more embarrassed and ashamed.

It was clearly his plan to deal with the Crown Prince and Wang Zhongsi, how could it turn out like this?
He recommended all seven imperial censors. They are all breaking the law!
Li Linfu knew what kind of people they were, and only people like them could be loyal to him.

None of the ministers left Xingqing Hall.

Li Linfu's son Li Xiu ran over and knelt beside Li Linfu, comforting him with his actions.

The ministers sighed that Li Xiu was worthy of being Li Linfu's most valued son.

Even the ministers who were close to Li Linfu on weekdays did not dare to get close to him at this time.

It seems that people have left and the tea has become cold!

It was a different scene. Li Xuan was surrounded by many stars. In addition to several brothers who attended the court meeting with him, many civil and military officials came to greet Li Xuan.

They all called Li Xuan "Doctor Li".

"Right Prime Minister, you are the head of all officials, you can't do this!"

After Li Xuan returned the greetings to all the civil and military officials, he came to Li Linfu and tried to pull him up.

In fact, it doesn’t matter if Li Linfu gets up.

"Without your majesty's order, I will never stand up. I am willing to kneel and die to forgive my sins to show my loyalty to your majesty."

Li Linfu actually shook off Li Xuan's hand and was unwilling to be helped up.

Li Xuan couldn't force him to leave.

Never mind, you are awesome!

Li Xuan is looking forward to being Li Linfu's funeral ambassador tomorrow!
Ignoring Li Linfu, Li Xuan walked straight out of Xingqing Hall. He had important things to do!
(End of this chapter)