Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was not a person who liked to express regrets. This time at Chen Yingliang's home, he was able to sigh with emotion in front of so many civil and military officials. How could there be a song "Wu Xiang Liao Dong Lang Die" in the world? The key reason is not only that Pei Yun has introduced the importance of cotton as clearly as possible in the memorial, but the more important reason is that Emperor Sui Yang himself was very talented and smart.
As a famous tyrant who liked to cause trouble all day long and launched foreign wars at every turn, Emperor Sui Yang could understand the economic and military value of cotton almost by intuition. With cheap and high-yield cotton to make warm clothes, the Central Plains regime was launching a war against When the northern barbarians fought, they no longer had to be constrained by the climate and temperature. Even in the winter when the dripping water turned into ice, the Central Plains army could take advantage of the abundance of cotton coats to maximize their advantages in manpower and material resources. Insufficient clothing, unable to send too many troops to the cold battlefield in the north. At the same time, a large amount of livestock fur can be saved, which can be used to make military tents and yurts, which are equally important for winter operations, so as to ensure that the army can launch military operations on a larger scale in winter.
More importantly, it was not difficult to defeat the sparsely populated northern nomadic, fishing and hunting people based on the manpower and material resources of the Central Plains people. It was also quite easy to seize the sparsely populated northern land. The only problem was that after capturing the northern land, due to the important reason of climate, It is impossible to occupy and control for a long time, but with the high-yield and cheap cold-proof tool like cotton clothes, a large number of soldiers and civilians can safely stay in the cold places in the north for a long time, take root, and compress the living space of the northern barbarians, so as to realize the control of the northern barbarians. The long-term and powerful control of the land can truly open up the territory and expand the territory! Instead of beating off the invading nomads, it's a waste of hard work!
The more he understood the importance of cotton, the more excited Emperor Sui Yang was. After sighing, Emperor Sui Yang immediately shouted to Pei Yun and asked, "Pei Aiqing, where did the flower of Baidizi come to the Central Plains? What is it?" Where can a large number of japonica seeds be collected?"
"This..." Pei Yun was a little dumbfounded, and could only turn his gaze to Chen Yingliang. Chen Yingliang quickly clung to Pei Yun's ear and murmured in a low voice. Then Pei Yun played to Emperor Sui Yang: "Your Majesty, Bai Die There are two sources of Zihua, one is Gaochang and Dashi in the Western Regions, and the other is Tianzhu in the southwest. According to reliable books, Gaochang is very rich in Baidizi, but the local people do not know how to use Baidiezi. It is processed into cotton-padded clothes to keep out the cold, and I don’t even understand the other added value of basilica, so the local basilica is wild. Your Majesty only needs to allocate a little money to buy a large number of basilica and its seeds from Gaochang. .”
"Is there any other added value of Baidiezi?" Emperor Sui Yang asked curiously, "What value is there? Let's talk about it in detail."
In front of too many people, Pei Yun was a little embarrassed to be the mouthpiece this time, so he simply asked Chen Yingliang to answer, and Chen Yingliang replied truthfully: "My lord, I learned from overseas books that white jasmine flowers can also be spun. into silk thread, and then spun into cloth. The clothes made of this cloth are not only as strong as linen, but also more comfortable to wear. In addition, the seeds of japonica can also be used to extract oil, which can be used instead of vegetable oil or lamp oil. The oil residue and Just like bean dregs, they can be used as feeding supplements for war horses or livestock.”
"Baidiezi can still spin thread?" Emperor Sui Yang was overjoyed again, and when he turned to look at the temporary workshop of Chen Yingliang's house, he asked again: "Then why didn't Baidiezi spin thread here? "
"Your Majesty, forgive me, because I only know that Bai Diezi can spin thread, but not how to weave it into thread, so I haven't prepared it." Chen Yingliang answered truthfully in embarrassment, and then hurriedly said: "But I can be sure that Bai Diezi It can definitely be spun into thread, His Majesty only needs to issue a decree to the Shaofu to let the skilled craftsmen of the Shaofu inspect their brains and study their skills, and I believe that we will soon find a way to weave Bai Dizizi into thread."
"Very good." Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Yun Dingxing who was standing behind Yu Wenshu, and ordered: "Yun Aiqing, I will leave this matter to you to supervise, and find the white dice for me as soon as possible." The method of spinning thread, after the work is done, I will reward myself."
Yun Dingxing, who was almost dragged into the water by Chen Yingliang, quickly agreed, and accepted the order with a nod and bow, while Emperor Sui Yang turned to Pei Ju again, and ordered: "Pei Aiqing, I will leave it to you to buy Baidiezi from Gaochang. Remember, the more the better, especially the seeds, next year you arrange some land for trial planting, and then report the results to me."
There is a lot of oil and water to be harvested from imported cotton, and the imported seeds can also give priority to cheapness for his own family. Of course, such a good thing is something that Pei Ju can't wait for, and he has to give it up quickly. Then, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty turned his gaze to Pei Yun again, and said with a smile: "Pei Yun, Aiqing, you have discerning eyes, and you were able to discover the important value of Baidizihua to our Sui Dynasty from just a few words, and immediately played it in the Song Dynasty. I, loyal to me, devoted all my energy to the affairs of the Sui Dynasty, my heart is very comforted, my heart is very comforted!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your compliment. This is the duty of a humble official." Pei Yun was hypocritically modest, but he was quietly relieved, knowing that he could finally get out of the shadow of his unfilial son Pei Shuang's rebellion.
"You don't have to be humble, you have to be rewarded for meritorious service, otherwise, how can you inspire future generations to be loyal to me?" Emperor Sui Yang was as generous as ever in treating meritorious officials, and immediately ordered: "Pass the decree, Pei Yun, the censor, is hardworking For state affairs, it is meritorious to present cotton-padded clothes to keep out the cold, and he will be granted the title of doctor Yinqing Guanglu, and he will still be in charge of the affairs of doctor censor, and he will be given three hundred pieces of colored silk and fifteen servants."
Bai chose a third-rank position. Of course Pei Yun, who was only a third-rank before, was overjoyed. He hurriedly bowed his head to thank him, and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, Bai Dizi can be made into my first cotton coat in the Sui Dynasty. It's all made by princes." Chen Yingliang, the deputy on the right, handled it all by himself, although his vision is lacking, he is not without achievements, I dare you to reward him appropriately, Your Majesty."
Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty turned his attention to Chen Yingliang with a smile. Chen Yingliang hurriedly bowed his head and said more respectfully: "Your Majesty, I have little talent and little knowledge. I made cotton clothes but I didn't know that this thing is very important to my Great Sui Dynasty. I was almost reckless. Abandoning jewels in the rubble is really shameless to be rewarded. Besides, if Yun Shaoqing hadn't helped, and personally made a cotton bamboo bow for this minister, I really don't know when I will be able to make cotton clothes. Yun Shaoqing has contributed the most to this matter , so I have the courage to ask Your Majesty to reward Yun Shaoqing instead."
Yun Da Shaoqing's old face instantly turned into a chrysanthemum, and all the resentment towards Chen Yingliang biting him was instantly swept away, and he quickly knelt down with hypocritical modesty, and gave Chen Yingliang the credit. Emperor Sui Yang laughed loudly when he saw it, and said: "I'm used to seeing people fighting for merit. It's really rare for me to see each other give credit to each other. Well, the two lovers don't have to humble each other, they both have merit. Chen Aiqing made meritorious service in making treasures, and Yun Aiqing made meritorious service in assisting in making treasures, each rewarded with a hundred pieces of silk."
Yun Da Shaoqing and Chen Yingliang were overjoyed together, and hurriedly thanked them, but the matter was not over yet, Pei Yun took the opportunity to bow his hands to Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty and said: "Your Majesty, please don't ask Mr. Su Shizhang to impeach Chen Yingliang for bribing court officials. The truth has now been found out. Next, should we investigate why Su Shichang insisted that Chen Yingliang was exonerated for the criminal Gao Shilian? Is it a deliberate false accusation and revenge? Or was he instigated by others, with other motives? I ask your majesty to investigate to the end, thinking that later Those who quit."
Pei Yun said this not only to seek justice for his distant nephew, Pei Yun had already noticed before that Su Shichang impeached Chen Yingliang on the surface, but the real target was pointed at himself. Chen Yingliang, who was running around, probably dragged himself into the water. Under the dark anger of the innocent lying on the gun, Pei Yun certainly would not miss the great opportunity to beat the dog in the water and take revenge.
Emperor Sui Yang's eyes turned back to Su Shichang, and there was no longer a smile in his eyes, only cold and sharp. Being stared at by such eyes, even in the cold weather, the sweat on Su Shichang's forehead was still rolling. He wanted to sneak a look at Li Yuan and Feng Deyi several times, but forcibly held back—Su Shichang knew very well that if he didn't If Li Yuan and Feng Deyi are bitten out, there may be hope of survival, but if Li Yuan and Feng Deyi are bitten out, he will definitely die beyond death.
With no other choice, Su Shichang had no choice but to honestly avoid the most important and ignore the less important, Jishou replied: "I have heard rumors about the matter, and there is a mistake in impeachment, please forgive me, Your Majesty."
"Master Su is really good at avoiding the most important and taking the lightest of the light, and he is also very good at taking advantage of the loopholes in the national law. He knows that even if the impeachment is wrong, it is not guilty." Pei Yun immediately took over the conversation and said with a smile: "Unfortunately, if you just impeached Chen Yingliang for bribery, Mr. Su Court officials, then it can be regarded as rumors, but you also pointed out the content of Chen Yingliang's bribery. Where did Chen Yingliang come from for the crime of exonerating the criminal officer Gao Shilian?"
Yu Wenshu also likes to beat dogs in the water. His two sons were demoted to slaves because of the impeachment of Su Shichang. Then he said to Su Shichang: "Master Su, you said that the impeachment of Deputy Chen is just a rumor, but how do I remember that when you answered the question in the Golden Luan Hall, you said that Chen Yingliang had been found to have bribed court officials? What's the matter, Mr. Su? Do you still want to swallow what you said?"
Su Shichang was completely speechless, he just hated that the backer's intelligence was not accurate and arranged for him to shoot black guns, so that now all the black gun bullets hit him. Yu Wenshu was not polite, and immediately turned to Emperor Sui Yang to salute and said: "Your Majesty, Sili Su Shizhang framed his colleagues and slandered them. The crime is obvious. If you don't punish him severely, I'm afraid that false accusations will become common in the court, and people's hearts will collapse. Boldly, please Your Majesty must punish Su Shizhang severely, so as to make an example to others."
Of course Emperor Sui Yang knew that Yu Wenshu was avenging his personal revenge, but it didn't matter. One side was a beloved minister who took advantage of the reason, and the other side was an ordinary official who had almost no impression and was caught. Of course, Sui Yang Emperor knew how to choose, even his eyebrows Without even moving, he opened his mouth and ordered: "Come here, take down Su Shichang who falsely accused his colleagues, remove him from all positions, and take him to the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice. He will be interrogated by Yushitai and sentenced to a heavier sentence."
The left and right guards agreed in unison, and immediately stepped forward to strip Su Shizhang off his official uniform and tied him up on the spot. Su Shizhang was silent, but secretly prayed to the backer behind him to rescue him as soon as possible. Li Yuan and Feng Deyi were expressionless, while Pei Yun, Yu Wenshu and others were Secretly laughing, and the stubborn old Wei Xuanwei who has a very bad temper, couldn't help showing some ferocious smiles—afterwards, of course, he deliberately confessed to Su Shichang, who almost dragged himself into the water, that the prison of the Ministry of Punishment treated him well.
After a lot of tossing, Emperor Sui Yang finally ordered to drive back to the palace, bringing all the cotton-making tools, craftsmen and finished raw materials with him, accompanied by hundreds of officials. During this period, Pei Ju seized the opportunity and told Chen Yingliang: "Nephew, a I will go directly to your Uncle Pei Yun's house, and call your uncle Li Guogong, and I have something to ask you." Chen Yingliang didn't dare to neglect, and quickly nodded in agreement.
…
With Su Shichang being detained and imprisoned, Chen Yingliang finally survived the first crisis after entering the official career, but the matter is far from over. After driving back to the palace to continue working, Chen Yingliang did not even return home. , went directly to Pei Hongce's other house to meet Pei Hongce, reported the incident to Pei Hongce, relayed Pei Ju's request, and asked Pei Hongce to go with him to Pei Yun's house to meet Pei Ju. As a result, Pei Hongce's face turned pale on the spot—Pei Hongce knew that Chen Yingliang was indeed involved in Gao Shilian's case. In a rage, Pei Hongce raised his hand and slapped Chen Yingliang, and then ordered his servants to tie Chen Yingliang up and stab him in the back. With a thorn, Chen Yingliang was stuffed into the carriage, and Chen Yingliang was led to Pei Yun's house in a hurry to plead guilty.
When I arrived at Pei Yun's home, the busy Pei Yun hadn't come back from the imperial city yet, but Pei Ju, who was usually much busier than Pei Yun, was already sitting in the warm room, enjoying life with the fine wine from Pei Yun's family. When he came in, Pei Ju laughed out loud on the spot, and smiled at Pei Hongce: "My dear brother, what are you doing? What did Nephew Ying Liang do wrong? How did you make him look like this?"
"Brother Hong, I asked this kid to plead guilty to you and Juzhi Xing." Pei Hongce kicked his distant nephew to his knees, and said to Pei Juji, "Don't dare to lie to elder brother, in fact, Chen Yingliang is planning to rescue Gao Shilian. Little brother knew about it a long time ago, although little brother stopped him, but little brother really didn't expect that this little bastard wouldn't give up, and even acted privately behind my back, almost implicating the two elder brothers in embarrassment in front of the emperor."
"This little bastard was introduced to Wenxi Pei's family by my younger brother. I am duty-bound to do stupid things. Now I have tied him up. If you don't have the heart to beat my brother, you can beat this little bastard at will. You don't have to give me any face. Hit him, give him a sigh of relief, it's your brother's reward for him!"
Pei Ju laughed out loud, and said with a very gentle smile: "My dear brother, you care too much. We are all one family. Why are you talking about being involved or not? Besides, my nephew didn't implicate us this time, and let your reunion Elder brother Zhi chose a genuine third-rank for nothing, and it’s too late for us to praise him, how could he be willing to punish him? Brother, please get up, come and untie Yingliang’s nephew.”
He called Pei Hongce who was kneeling on one knee, and Pei Ju had someone untie Chen Yingliang. During this period, Chen Yingliang wanted to take the opportunity to get up, but was stared at by Pei Hongce, and continued to kneel on the ground honestly. Pei Ju ignored Pei Hongce's words A small gesture, just called Pei Hongce to sit down beside the charcoal basin, filled a glass of wine for Pei Hongce himself, and then told Chen Yingliang: "Nephew, tell the truth about the matter, the more detailed the better, there must be no concealment and conflicts." Negligence. There may be someone behind your incident, we can’t almost suffer a big loss, and we don’t even know who stabbed the knife in the back.”
Chen Yingliang honestly agreed, and then explained the incident in detail. Chai Qian ran to him and asked for the return of the engagement token. She searched for the jade pendant and found Gao Shilian's family. Even though the case was caused by Pei Yun alone, he still bit the bullet and accepted the pleadings of the eldest grandson and his sister, and promised to try to rescue Gao Shilian, and then he worked on the official documents of Gao Shilian's family, begged Pei Hongce to be rejected, and bribed Yun Dingxing, etc. During the period, I also introduced as much detail as possible according to Pei Ju's request, and did not dare to hide anything.
Pei Ju had been sipping wine and listening to Chen Yingliang's introduction, but he remained silent until Chen Yingliang had finished speaking carefully, and Pei Ju thought about it for a while before suddenly asking: "Nephew, on that day did you agree to rescue Gao Shilian? On the day of prison?"
"Reporting to Uncle, it wasn't the same day, but the next day." Chen Yingliang replied truthfully: "On the day Gao Shilian was imprisoned, when my nephew went to the Ministry of Criminal Justice to inquire about the news, Wei Liushou had already told my nephew in secret that Gao Shilian's imprisonment was a Because of Uncle Pei Yun's impeachment, he asked the nephew to stay out of his own business. The nephew didn't dare to embarrass his uncle, so he didn't dare to promise the Gao family to save Gao Shilian that day. Until the next day, Gao Shilian's nephew and niece came to the nephew's house Begging, my nephew couldn't bear it, so he reluctantly agreed to them."
"When is the next day?" Pei Ju asked.
"It should be after the application time in the afternoon." Chen Yingliang recalled and replied: "My nephew was on a business trip when he applied for it. After the business trip, he went home directly, and then met the eldest grandson and sister, and agreed to them."
Pei Ju smiled, and said with a very gentle smile: "Mr. Tang, you are cruel enough to hide a knife in a smile with one hand, and get up the ladder with the other. If it weren't for Ying Liangxian's nephew's luck, we Wenxi Pei and Ying Liangxian Nephew, I'm about to be bullied by you."
"Tang Guogong? Li Yuan?" Chen Yingliang looked up in shock.
"What do you mean, brother?" Pei Hongce was also taken aback.
"It's also a coincidence that when Yang Xuangan was executed yesterday, I happened to know something from Brother Juzhi." Pei Ju smiled and said: "My brother and nephew, you probably wouldn't have dreamed of it, but when my nephew Yingliang agreed to rescue him In the morning of Gao Shilian's day, when the court was over half past half hour, Tang Guogong Li Yuan had already mentioned this matter in front of Pei Yunxian, and told Pei Yunxian himself, saying that Yingliang's nephew had promised Gao Shilian's family that he would definitely Cleared Gao Shilian from the charges and rescued him from prison. Brother Pei Yunxian was still very angry at that time, thinking that nephew Ying Liangxian was too ostentatious to entrust important matters to him."
Glancing at the dumbfounded Chen Yingliang, Pei Ju added with a smile: "Nephew, you should understand now? Why did Duke Tang give out gifts so generously that you could act in front of your Uncle Pei Yun? Appeared in the memorial to impeach you? You magnanimously forgave Tang Guogong’s son-in-law, Mr. Chai’s father-in-law, but it seems that he is not willing to forgive you for making him lose face.”
Chen Yingliang became even more tongue-tied, but Pei Hongce jumped up like a thorn growing on his buttocks, rushed to Chen Yingliang, punched and kicked, and cursed at the same time, "Little beast! Have you seen it? What is appeasement and adultery? What is Dongguo saving the wolf?" What is a woman's benevolence? You little bastard is a woman's benevolence! It is Dongguo saving the wolf! You saved his son-in-law and his family, and he treats you like a green onion? This is the reward from the Chai family and the Li family , This is your kindness will be rewarded with kindness! Lao Tzu tells you to be a good person and show kindness!"
The fists and kicks hit Chen Yingliang's body, but they hurt in Chen Yingliang's heart. The events of the past few days passed through Chen Yingliang's mind like lightning and flint. When he suddenly realized, Chen Yingliang couldn't help but say a word slowly, " Li Yuan! Wait!"