After Qi Ning left the Autumn Trial Office of the Criminal Ministry, Cao Sen and several officials left the crickets behind and looked out the window. They saw Qi Ning's figure disappearing. Cao Sen straightened his clothes and looked back. He glanced at the officials behind him, coughed twice, and then the officials came to their senses.
"Sir, if we are so disrespectful, will Jin Yihou feel unhappy?" An official on the side came closer and said in a low voice: "The emperor has issued a decree. Jin Yihou has been appointed as the Minister of Punishment, and that is our Shangguan. this… !"
Cao Sen glanced sideways at the man and sneered: "I'm not even afraid, what the hell are you afraid of? The emperor has an order, so of course we will obey it. No one is stopping him from becoming the Minister of the Ministry of Justice." He smiled and said: "But is this Minister of the Ministry of Punishment just willing to take the job? People from the Jinyi Qi family may have some weight in the army, but now they come to do the job of punishment. Do you think this young prince can really control the Seventh Division?"
Another official poured a cup of tea and presented it to Cao Sen. He said worriedly: "Sir, behind the Jin Yihou is the emperor. Since the emperor ordered him to come to the Ministry of Punishment, he will naturally support him. If we really If I offend him, will I get into trouble?"
"Yes, Mr. Judge, the young Marquis did something to the Vice Minister in full view of the public two days ago." Another official said with lingering fear: "If we guys really make him unhappy, will he?" …?"
Cao Sen rolled his eyes and said, "Why, is he still planning to fight in the yamen of the Criminal Department? There are hundreds of people in the Criminal Department, and I would like to see if the young marquis will fight them one by one from top to bottom. Clean. If he really bullies others in the Ministry of Punishment without any hesitation, we should immediately intervene with him. I don't believe that hundreds of officials from the seven departments of the Ministry of Punishment can let him do whatever he wants."
All the officials nodded slightly. Cao Sen saw that everyone's faces were a little worried, so he lowered his voice and said: "Everyone, you must calm down. Although Qian Butang was dismissed from office, you feel that this is the end of the matter. ?" Holding the tea cup, he picked up the tea lid, gently stroked the tea foam, and said meaningfully: "Some things are not as simple as they seem on the surface."
"Sir, you have promoted us all." An official said flatteringly: "We will do whatever you ask us to do. Just listen to the meaning of your words, does Qian Butang still have a chance to make a comeback? ?”
Cao Sen took a sip of tea and said: "Nonsense. Qian Butang has been in charge of the Ministry of Justice for more than ten years. Do you think you are really going to return home and live in seclusion?" He said in a low voice: "Master Da Xi and Master Chu are both from Qian Butang. If the imperial court really wants Qian Butang to go into seclusion, how can it leave the two ministers safe and sound?"
An official next to him stroked his beard and whispered: "Don't forget, everyone, why was Qian Butang dismissed from office this time?"
Cao Sen nodded slightly and said with a smile: "Lao Lu understands." He glanced at a few people and said leisurely: "Why was Qian Butang dismissed from office? It was just to help Duke Zhen Guo explain the truth. Over there at the imperial mausoleum, Jin Yi Hou Fei wanted to overthrow Qian Butang and put a big hat on Qian Butang. The scene at that time naturally had to stabilize the situation. Although the emperor was young, he was wise and powerful, so he temporarily dismissed Qian Butang's official position. , can the situation be stabilized... Hehe, at that time, the Black Scale Battalion and the Black Blade Battalion under Jin Yihou were facing each other tit for tat. Could it be that the Zhenguo Guild and Jin Yihou were really going to fight?"
Everyone nodded slightly, and the official surnamed Lu said: "The Duke of Zhen Guo was old enough to hold the country, and he gave Jin Yihou face, so that the stalemate was resolved. It's just that Qian Butang was dismissed from office like this. Of course, Duke Zhen Guo didn't Let’s forget about it. Think about it, Qian Butang is working for Duke Zhen Guo. After the incident, if Duke Zhen Guo leaves him alone, from now on...!"
Several officials suddenly looked enlightened, and some nodded repeatedly: "That's right, the Duke of Zhen Guo will never ignore this matter."
Everyone knows in their hearts that Qian Raoshun defected to the Sima family during the Imperial Mausoleum Incident, which can be said to have played a vital role in overthrowing the King of Huainan. Qian Raoshun was dismissed from office because of this incident, but he established the foundation for the Sima family. If the Sima family let him do such a great job, who would work wholeheartedly for the Sima family in the future
"Qian Butang is a little aggrieved for the time being, just to stabilize Jin Yihou's group." Cao Sen said in a low voice: "Think about it for yourself, Zhen Guo Gong is a veteran minister of three dynasties, and now he is also an important minister of the country. He is responsible for all matters of the court. , it is all handled by the Duke of Zhenguo, how can Jinyihou be compared with it?"
The official surnamed Lu glanced out the window, then chuckled and said: "Since Qi Jing's death, the Jinyi Qi family has been unable to control the Qinhuai Army. This young prince is young and has no qualifications. He can take action. , and there is only the Black Scale Camp rebuilt by the emperor's decree. Apart from that, what else can he have? A young marquis, who can be compared with the veterans of the three dynasties? "
After such a comparison, everyone felt that the strengths and weaknesses were clearly distinguished, and they couldn't help but nod.
Cao Sen took another sip of tea, then put the tea cup aside and said: "The King of Huainan is dead, and now the government must completely rely on the Duke of Zhen. In order to stabilize the overall situation, the Duke of Zhen will temporarily tolerate some things." "Fan, when the situation stabilizes, do you still think you can let a noble officer jump up and down in the court? Is it difficult for a person like the Duke of Zhen to find an excuse to reinstate the official of the Qian Department to his post in the future?"
"So, Qian Butang will soon be reinstated and make a comeback?" An official's eyes lit up.
Cao Sen smiled and said: "Needless to say more? Do you know that the former emperor made a decree and deprived the title of Tadayoshi? Since the founding of the country, there have always been four hereditary princes. Suddenly, there is one less hereditary prince. And it’s the Sima family, don’t you think this is strange?”
"Of course it's strange." The official next to him whispered: "That night, the Marquis of Jinyi and the Marquis of Zhongyi made a bet. Although the Marquis of Zhongyi did lose, I really didn't expect that the Marquis of Zhongyi would really go out of his way to ask for a reduction in rank."
"It's not a big deal to get a discount." The official surnamed Lu said: "Zhongyihou made a bet in front of so many officials and lost in the end. If he didn't get a discount, he would have broken his promise. The strange thing is that the emperor actually approved this trick. With the Queen Mother in the palace and the Duke of Zhenguo in the court, it is not difficult for them to keep the title of Marquis of Zhongyi."
Cao Sen chuckled and said: "I won't hide it from you. According to the rumors I got, although Marquis Zhongyi was deprived of his title, the emperor issued an order to make him a former general, and he will rush to the front line to take up his post soon! "
Everyone was surprised.
"Sir, are you going to the Qinhuai Army?"
"If it's not the Qinhuai Army, then where is it?" Cao Sen picked up the tea cup again: "The former Qinhuai Army was closely related to the Qi family, but now the Sima family has gone to the Qinhuai Army, hehe...! "Looking around at everyone, he whispered: "You still don't understand what's going on?"
The official surnamed Lu smiled and said: "In this way, given time, the Zhenguo Duke will definitely reinstate the official Qian Bu Tang to his post." He frowned slightly: "What will our little marquis do then?"
Cao Sen said calmly: "This is not something you and I can control. You all know who pulled Qian Budang off his horse? And the minister, who was beaten in public? If you go to Qi at this time Don't you mean to go against Qian Butang and the Minister of Servants? Wait until they come back...!" He smiled, meaningfully.
Everyone was suddenly enlightened. The official surnamed Lu said: "Everyone has not thanked Mr. Judi. If you had not reminded us, our future might have been ruined."
All the officials thanked Cao Sen for a while, and Cao Sen waved his hand and said: "We have been together for so many years, sharing blessings and adversities, so there is nothing to say. The situation in the government has changed, so everyone should be more open-minded. Don't be confused for a moment, it won't hurt your future. It doesn't matter, but don't bring your head with it."
"Sir, Jin Yihou is now in charge of the Criminal Department. We will always have to deal with him before Qian Butang comes back." An official said worriedly: "Then how should we deal with it?"
"Cope with it?" Cao Sen sneered: "Just do what you have to do. The Ministry of Punishment is governed by the rules of the Ministry of Punishment. If he abides by these rules, we will all perform our duties and no one will ruin anyone else's business. Otherwise, we will be in the Ministry of Punishment." After staying for so many years, is there still no way to deal with a young prince? He knows nothing about criminal names. Even if he is familiar with the Seventh Division of the Criminal Department, it will still take three to five months. I'm afraid Qian Butang will have returned by then. "
"What you say makes sense, what you say makes sense." The official surnamed Lu nodded frequently: "Everyone just needs to know what's going on. Anyway, when we run errands, we are subject to the laws and regulations of the Ministry of Punishment. As long as we run errands according to the rules, the young Marquis can't do anything to us. If the young Marquis is causing trouble in the Ministry of Punishment, then we will join him in the fight. As long as we work together, he will not be able to overthrow the sky." He smiled and said: "Today we also made the young Marquis understand that the Ministry of Punishment is not what it is. Good place.”
While the officials of the Autumn Trial Division of the Ministry of Punishment were discussing in low voices, Qi Ning had already arrived at the Law and Regulations Hall of the Ministry of Punishment under the leadership of Shen Lian.
The Law and Regulations Hall is located to the west of the Ministry of Punishment. In addition to storing various laws and regulations of Chu State, the important cases tried by the Ministry of Punishment are also filed here.
When Qi Ning entered a room in the Law Hall, there were more than a dozen officials busy in the room. Seeing Qi Ning coming in, no one looked over. Shen Lian coughed twice, and everyone rested their hands for a moment. On official business, Shen Lian looked this way and said loudly: "The Marquis is here, why don't you see me?"
All the officials bowed to Qining without saying a word.
Qi Ning looked calm and said with a smile: "They are all busy with their own business." He looked around and saw a room on the left and right, and heard a voice coming from the room on the left saying: "Is the Marquis here? I missed the welcome. The crime deserves death." As he spoke, a man came out of the house. He was over fifty years old, wearing an official robe. He looked like a scholar. With a smile on his face, he cupped his hands from a distance and said: "I'm on the right side of the Ministry of Punishment. The minister, Chu Mingwei, has met the Marquis!"