Seeing the two men exchanging polite greetings, Shi Liangzhi immediately struck the gavel, interrupting the conversation between the two extremely distinguished princes, and said, "I have an order to ask Zheng Rong something."
When Youyan King Zheng Rong heard Shi Liangzhi call him by his name without using a title of honor, he immediately became furious and glared at him, saying, "Master Shi, I remember that a few years ago, you lobbied for the crown prince in front of me and questioned Prime Minister Yang Yuanzhi for this. I didn't expect that in just a few years, you have become a loyal and good official by the side of the current emperor. It is said that a man who knows the current affairs is a hero, and Master Shi can really be called a hero of his generation. It is also said that a man who is good at adapting to the situation is a hero, and Master Shi can also be considered a hero of his region."
Zheng Rong said the opposite of what he meant, teasing the dignified Minister of Rites Shi Liangzhi until his face turned red and white. Finally, he could no longer hold back his dignity and slammed the gavel again. His originally scholarly face was twisted into a hideous one, and he squeezed out a few words from between his teeth: "Zheng Rong! Don't act like a vassal king here anymore. In this prison of the Ministry of Justice, apart from the judges and jailers, there are only the imperial prisoners. Come here! According to the rules of our ancestors, you will be beaten with fifty sticks first!"
Although the four jailers standing next to Zheng Rong obeyed the order, they looked at each other and did not dare to act rashly.
Shi Liangzhi became even more angry when he saw this. He picked up the gavel and was about to slam it on the table for the third time. However, Zheng Hua, the Prince of Heluo, who was sitting in the middle of the table, said, "Master Shi, be careful. This thing is made of wood, not cast iron. Be careful not to break it. The emperor asked Master Shi to come here to ask my second brother, not to humiliate him. My second brother has not been convicted yet, and his title has not been taken away. I'm afraid it's not appropriate for Master Shi to impose a light sentence on him, right?"
Shi Liangzhi heard the extremely cold tone of Heluo Prince Zheng Hua, and remembered that the world was still his Zheng family's world after all. If the two princes present turned their hands one day, he would be doomed, and he really couldn't offend them too much. He thought about this clearly, so he cleared his throat and saved himself a way out, saying: "Since Heluo Prince pleads for mercy, I will remember this beating. I am ordered to ask Zheng Rong: There are censors who impeach you for holding troops in Youyan Road. Is this true?"
Zheng Rong had expected this question, and answered without hesitation: "I have been fighting in the battlefield since I was a teenager. During the reign of the late Emperor Shenzong, I led the army to war every time. Although I cannot say that I have won every battle, I have made many military achievements and was praised by the late Emperor and the great emperor. My military power has become increasingly important. Lord Shi said that I have my own army. Does he mean that the late Emperor nurtured a tiger and left a troublesome situation, or that the great emperor did not know how to judge people?" Seeing that Shi Liangzhi was speechless for a moment, he continued, "As for the matter of my guarding Youyan Road, the late Emperor and the great emperor have both issued an imperial decree. If Lord Shi does not trust me, you can go to the palace to retrieve the files. There are now a total of 123,582 soldiers in Youyan Road. This is the number set by the Ministry of War. If Lord Shi has time, you can go to the Ministry of War to investigate, or you can go to Youyan to check the number of personnel one by one. Why do you need to verify it with me here?"
Zheng Rong's words made sense, so Shi Liangzhi had no choice but to continue asking, "In the first half of this year, you were ordered to send troops south to Henan to quell the rebellion. You violated the Ministry of Revenue's decree and arbitrarily relocated more than 200,000 cult rebels to Youyan Road. What was your intention in doing this?"
Zheng Rong had already discussed the countermeasures with Zhongli Kuang on this issue. After a little thought, he said, "I remember that in the fifth year of the late emperor, the Ministry of War once asked whether the military power of Youyan Road should be under the unified command of the Ministry of War or the Youyan Palace. At that time, the late emperor issued a clear edict pointing out that the entire army of Youyan Road was under the command of the Youyan Palace and had no direct subordinate relationship with the Ministry of War. Therefore, according to the will of the late emperor, all actions of our Youyan army, including the handling of prisoners, do not need to follow the opinions of the Ministry of War, let alone the Ministry of Revenue?"
Shi Liangzhi was also a meticulous person. He caught a flaw in Zheng Rong's words and said, "We are not talking about military affairs now, but about immigration and border affairs. Don't confuse people."
Zheng Rong listened, and laughed contemptuously, "I am also talking about military affairs. Since I received the imperial edict, I have been urging the army to fight a quick battle to prevent the cult rebellion from spreading across the country. After more than 30 battles, the cult rebellion was finally extinguished in Henan Province. However, haste makes waste. There are still many cult backbones hidden among the captured rioters. They need to be identified and punished as a warning to others. However, after the cult rebellion in Henan Province, The place is in chaos and in ruins. There is not a grain of food in the whole Dao that can feed these rioters. This king considered that it would be a waste of manpower to transport food and grass from Youyan Dao across the Yellow River for thousands of miles, so he brought these rioters back to Youyan. In order to prevent the cult believers mixed in with them from causing chaos, he specially arranged them in the bitter cold land of the far north. This screening work is still in progress. If Lord Shi is interested, he can go to Youyan to investigate in person, and then he will know that what the king said is true. "
Qiu Yizhi knew the details of this matter. It was clearly a matter of disobeying the imperial will, but his adoptive father had found fault with it from the perspective of the relationship of authority and explained the matter perfectly. After hearing the end, Qiu Yizhi could not help but admire him very much, and a smile rose on the corner of his mouth. Suddenly, he thought of his adoptive father who was still in prison, so he quickly put away his smile and continued to listen carefully.
Then Shi Liangzhi changed the question and continued, "Then did you allow your sons to bully court officials at will by relying on the power of the Prince of Youyan's Palace? Did you do that?"
This was one of the charges that the court officials had used to impeach him, and some people even listed dozens of examples. This kind of thing was originally a trivial matter in the Zheng royal family. If it were in normal times, even if someone accused Zheng Rong's sons of treason, it would not be a big deal. But now was the time when the enemy was fabricating charges against him, so it could not be taken lightly.
Zheng Rong calmed down and explained slowly, "I remember last month, I submitted a petition to the late emperor and the Ministry of Rites, requesting that my three sons be promoted to marquis. The imperial edict and the reply from the Ministry of Rites came down very quickly, and there were many flattering words about my three sons, and no mention of bullying officials. It just so happens that Lord Shi is the head of the Ministry of Rites, so I want to ask, was it the late emperor who was wrong? Or was it the Ministry of Rites? Or were those petty officials who heard rumors and made comments wrong?"
Zheng Rong asked several "wrong" questions in a row, which made Shi Liangzhi sweat on his forehead. He then asked: "Did you adopt a son? I heard that he is not a peaceful person either."
After hearing this, Zheng Rong secretly glanced at Qiu Yi who was standing behind Zheng Hua. He already had an idea in his mind and said, "Why? Did the court issue a clear order that vassal kings cannot recognize adopted sons? The eight princes of our Emperor Taizu of the Han Dynasty are all capable warriors, known as the 'Eight Vajras', who have made great contributions to the establishment of the Han Dynasty. Among them, three are not Taizu's biological sons but his descendants, and they were all rewarded after their achievements. Could it be that Lord Shi is also critical of our Emperor Taizu?"
“This… this…” Shi Liangzhi panicked when Zheng Rong mentioned Emperor Taizu, and hesitated and couldn’t say a complete sentence.
Zheng Rong continued, "As for the biological father of my adopted son, he saved my life. I saw that he was alone and helpless, so I took him in and taught him day and night, hoping that he would bring glory to the family and become a pillar of the country. This child has been among the people for a long time, and may be a little stubborn and difficult to tame, but his loyalty and honesty are far beyond the reach of ordinary people. If this child does anything against the law, Lord Shi can bring him here for me to confront him. If it is true, I will kill this thief with my own hands, without the need for the ruthless laws of the country."
Qiu Yizhi broke out in a cold sweat when he heard this, but after thinking about it, he realized that he had not been recognized by Shi Liangzhi, so there was no possibility of exposing his whereabouts, so how could he confront her face to face? Therefore, although this was a risky move, he had already been invincible.
After hearing Zheng Rong's explanation, Shi Liangzhi knew that this was a matter without any evidence, so he changed the question and asked, "Many officials impeached you for deliberately delaying the advance when you went south to encircle and suppress the Tianzun Sect, and suspected that you were nurturing the enemy for your own benefit. Is that true?"
"It was those officials who impeached me? Lord Shi, you might as well call them all out!" Zheng Rong said angrily, "Since my Youyan army entered Henan Road, it has only been a month since we defeated the main force of the cult, and used clever tricks to seize the main altar of Yuhuangding. I have been leading the army in battle for more than 20 years. From a different perspective, this battle can be said to be a complete victory except that the cult leader was not captured! However, before my army went south, the cult's chaotic army had already swept across Henan, and there was a tendency to spread. Then I have to ask Lord Shi, is it that I have nurtured the enemy for my own benefit, or are the civil and military officials of Henan Road neglecting their duties and letting the wolf in?"
Shi Liangzhi knew that most of the topics in these impeachment memorials were fabricated, and only one out of ten might have real evidence, and they were often exaggerated. Therefore, he certainly did not expect all the impeachment items to be fulfilled, but only hoped that the Prince of Youyan, who was famous for his loyalty to the country, integrity and selflessness, and his literary and military talents in the Han Dynasty and even in the foreign vassal states, would admit to one or two of them, so that he could report to his superiors. However, he did not expect Zheng Rong to admit to any of the charges, but instead made his words tricky and harsh, but impeccable.
This made Shi Liangzhi so angry that he threw away his remaining courtesy, slammed the gavel, stood up and cursed: "Zheng Rong! You are so eloquent! I advise you to tell the truth, otherwise it will be too late to regret it under the Three Punishments and Five Codes!"
When Prince Youyan heard Shi Liangzhi calling him by his name again, he became even more angry. He also stood up and pointed at the Minister of Rites, cursing, "Minister Shi, Lord Shi! Among the three people who were questioned by the emperor, my third brother, Prince Heluo, has the highest rank, and Lord Yuwen, the Minister of Justice, is the most familiar with the criminal law code. You originally had no place to speak! But just now, the two gentlemen were silent, and you are the one chattering here, stealing the show. What exactly do you want to do?"
Zheng Rong did not wait for Shi Liangzhi to refute, and continued to scold: "This king knows that the new emperor is here, and Lord Shi is eager to show his loyalty, but you don't care about the elegance and respect of a scholar? Don't you care about the integrity and integrity that the saints talked about? This king didn't even know who your imperial examination teacher was, and he actually chose a ruthless person like you, and here he is making a war horse cry!"
Shi Liangzhi was born as a top scholar. He was most proud of winning the first place in the imperial examination. However, he was treated as worthless by Youyan King Zheng Rong. He was so angry that he lost his mind and slammed the gavel, saying, "Quick, quick, quick! Give me a hundred big sticks!"
Seeing that the runners on both sides did not react, Shi Liangzhi actually walked out of the desk himself, snatched the water and fire stick from the runner's hand, and was about to hit Zheng Rong on the head.
However, the Minister of Rites Shi Liangzhi was just a weak scholar, while the Prince of Youyan Zheng Rong was a military lord who was proficient in both literature and martial arts. Although they might have their own strengths and weaknesses in terms of literary talent, they were worlds apart in terms of martial arts. Zheng Rong was not in a hurry, he dodged Shi Liangzhi's weak stick with his head, and reached out to push him in the chest, knocking him to the ground.
The air in the cell seemed to freeze in awkwardness after the two of them made such a commotion... (To be continued)