After she finished speaking, she patted the queen's arm again and asked, "What do you think?"
Ever since He Yixian was brought away, the Queen had been sitting in her seat in a daze. She was suddenly patted by the Queen Mother and lost half her breath. She sat up straight in panic and replied with a vague "Yes."
The Queen Mother looked at her and shook her head, then looked at Bai Yuyang from the side. However, she did not speak immediately. After a long while, she withdrew her gaze and asked, "Minister Bai, are you feeling aggrieved?"
Bai Yuyang was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head and said, "I dare not."
"There's nothing to be afraid of."
The Queen Mother raised her head and looked outside the Queen Mother's Palace. The sky was covered with rolling clouds, and the sun's rays pierced through the gaps in the ever-changing clouds, like dazzling swords, piercing the platform of the Queen Mother's Palace.
The Queen Mother continued, "The Emperor Taizu once established an iron rule that eunuchs were not allowed to participate in government affairs. When I was young, I heard that the Emperor Taizu had the eunuch Zhou Ping of the Imperial Household Department beheaded for thirty taels of silver. Nowadays, it is very difficult to hear such a thing. Do you know why?"
Although this question was asked to all the officials, no one dared to answer it.
The Queen Mother sighed and explained, "You have a large business and many children and grandchildren. Don't you need to work for food and clothing? Even if you are an honest official, you don't need to have some false pomp, but are you willing to suffer with the people inside? You have worked hard as an official for a lifetime, and suddenly a person from outside comes and criticizes your family for being extravagant and asks you to drive away and kill all the servants. Ask yourself, is this okay?"
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
The Queen Mother sighed, "I am old now. If you elders hadn't forced me to speak, I wouldn't want to speak either. But since you want to hear me say a few words in this palace, I will just open my heart to you. You are all loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty. I have seen all the grievances you have suffered for the country. I will apologize to you for what I cannot do now. The emperor is still young and needs to be taught slowly. It will be another day of humiliation."
After hearing this, all the officials bowed and said, "We accept your instruction."
The Queen Mother waved her hand and said, "We will be dismissed today, but you all should go home first. Each of you should go to the front door to receive your meal, drink a few glasses of hot wine, and then call your relatives to help you go home. Although it is not the coming of age this year, the festival is still there. The edict you wrote said... not to ban marriage and entertainment among the people, so don't ban it. Now that New Year's Eve is coming, you should celebrate the festival behind closed doors. Don't force yourself into such poverty. There is no such reason for being an official in my Ming Dynasty. Do you understand?"
"yes."
**
The inner court served the meal, and all the ministers followed the emperor and went into the duty room at the Duanmen Gate.
The charcoal in the room was burning red. Yang Lun took off his outer robe and sat down near the fire. Then Bai Yuyang and Qi Huaiyang came in. Before Yang Lun raised his head and had time to say anything, Bai Yuyang said coldly, "You bastard from the East Factory, how long are you going to protect me?"
Yang Lun stood up and said, "This is about the succession to the throne and the stability of the country. You have also seen that it is not me who is protecting him."
Bai Yuyang also took off his official robe and put it on the armchair, then turned to sit opposite Yang Lun. "Once this case is resolved, the Ministry of Justice will have to acquit him. He is the eunuch in charge of the East Factory, and He Yixian, Hu Xiang and others have been convicted. Who do you think will be the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department?"
The charcoal fire made Yang Lun's cheeks hot and sweat appeared on his forehead.
The other ministers in the room also started discussing at this time.
The Left Inspector General said, "This is a repeat of the same mistake."
After saying this, he sighed, "The late emperor was entrusted to the hands of eunuchs, so he repeatedly raped He Yixian. Although Deng Ying is not like He Yixian, he is very close to Your Majesty after all. Moreover..."
He glanced at Yang Lun, hesitated for a while, and finally said, "Besides, Concubine Ning is ill and has been recuperating in the banana garden for many years. It has always been Yang Wan, the maid of Chengqian Palace, who has been taking care of Your Majesty. She and Deng Ying..."
"shut up!"
The Left Censor-in-Chief's words were interrupted by Yang Lun, who lowered his head and coughed.
Bai Yuyang said: "Minister Yang, you can't just protect her because she is your sister."
"What cover-up?"
Yang Lun walked a few steps to Bai Yuyang and said, "Yang Wan has been in the palace for three years and has always taken good care of Your Majesty. She has never bewitched Your Majesty and done anything wrong."
Bai Yuyang asked, "Why didn't His Majesty want to kill Deng Ying that day, and insisted on conducting a 'serious crime interrogation'? What did your sister say to His Majesty? As her brother, do you know?"
"She didn't say anything!"
"Yang Lun!"
Bai Yuyang also stood up and said, "Let all the ministers see, if Deng Ying is acquitted this time, who among us, including you, can impeach him?"
After he finished speaking, he turned to look at the officials, "Aren't you afraid?"
Several cabinet ministers fell silent. One of them reached out and pulled Yang Lun back, and whispered, "In fact, what Minister Bai said makes sense. Your Majesty is young after all, and the Imperial Household Department holds the imperial seal, so his words are final. This Deng Ying is too close to your sister. We have seen your Majesty's attitude towards him now. Although... I also think that he is different from He Yixian, but..."
He shook his head and sighed, "He embezzled the school land in the south. In the past few years, the East Factory has built a factory prison. There is no criminal case that has not been embezzled. You should see for yourself. All the people in the factory prison have been exploited to the point of having nothing left. Even Lord Bai was persecuted by him and was seriously injured. He is still not well. Minister Yang, he really doesn't deserve to be the seal holder."
Having said this, the rest followed.
Yang Lun was dragged back a step, looking at Bai Yuyang without any words to say, and could not eat anymore. He shook off the cabinet minister's hand, put on his robe and walked out in the wind.
He had something on his mind and didn't want to go back. He went to Huiji Gate one day and under the shade of the gate, he saw Yang Wan waiting for him in front of the imperial pharmacy with a bag of herbs.
Yang Lun slowed down and Yang Wan also came up to him.
"What are you doing with your head down?"
"Who is crestfallen."
Yang Wan raised her head and said, "Every game we can win is a game we can win. It's not easy for us."
After he finished speaking, Yang Lun's stomach growled.
Yang Wan looked down at Yang Lun's stomach and said, "You haven't eaten anything. Why don't you go to Deng Ying's roommate and I'll cook you a bowl of noodles."
Yang Lun asked, "Isn't his residence sealed?"
"It's closed, but Li Yu's house next door is open. It's not occupied, so you can still sit there for a while."
Yang Lun followed Yang Wan towards the moat. Yang Wan was coughing all the way.
Yang Lun couldn't help but ask, "Are you going to the Imperial Pharmacy to get medicine for yourself?"
Yang Wan smiled and shook her head.
"No, my illness is being treated by the imperial physician."
"Imperial Physician?"
Yang Lun thought of what the minister had said before, and suddenly became annoyed. He chased after her and scolded her, "How can the illness of the palace be treated by the imperial physician? Don't think that just because His Majesty has ascended the throne and you have raised him for a few years, you can transcend."
Yang Wan quietly accepted his words without making any excuses.
He stopped, looked at him and asked, "You are scared too, right?"
Yang Lun was startled, "I..."
Yang Wan sighed, "I hope that Your Majesty will become a benevolent monarch, but I can no longer bear his benevolence and justice towards me. If he continues to be so mean, even if I do nothing, the inner court will not tolerate me."
After she finished speaking, she looked up at Yang Lun and said, "Brother, you have changed a lot in these few years. I saw you worrying about Deng Ying and mediating for him, and I was very moved. But..."
She clutched the medicine bag tightly in her arms.
"I also gradually realized that personal changes are not enough to counter a change of heart. Heart..."
She pursed her lips, her hair was blown up by the cold wind, and the pearls by her ears swayed, making a loud sound.
She squinted her eyes as she spoke, as if she was enduring some hidden pain in her body. "People's hearts are really complicated yet unified. Whether it's court officials or the people, they all have their own worries and joys in their hearts. But they all know who they should hate at this moment. If you want to be nice to the person you hate, it will make him more sinful and die faster."
"Death is faster."
Yang Lun repeated, "Is that what you say about him?"
Yang Wan asked, "Isn't it?"
"yes."
Yang Lun sighed, "You got it all right."
He stared into Yang Wan's eyes and said, "What you said is really discouraging."
"It's you."
Yang Wan retorted.
Yang Lun tilted his head and groaned, then nodded and said, "Yes, I am discouraged. You are just like Deng Ying. Even if there is a execution platform in front of you, you dare to move forward without looking back."
Yang Wan was about to respond, but she couldn't help coughing.
Yang Lun quickly stretched out his arms to block the wind for her, "Can't the imperial physician heal her?"
Yang Wan shook her head and said, "I didn't take any of the medicines prescribed by the imperial physician."
"Why."
"I can't leave any evidence for myself. I want to leave the palace alive."
As she spoke, she took out the medicine from her bosom, "The Queen Mother has already approved that I will take my sister to the banana garden. These damp-cold medicines are prepared for my sister. I have already informed the Queen Mother that after taking my sister to the banana garden, I will leave the palace, and then..."
She paused, "What I'm about to do may bring shame to you. I hope... you won't care about me, don't stand on my side, and don't save me."
"you… "
"elder brother."
Yang Wan interrupted him, "I'm really happy that you no longer rebuke me or blame Deng Ying. This big step you've taken towards us is already a favor to us. This step is enough. Now... please step back, back to where the cabinet should be, and leave the rest of the way to me."
"What are you thinking? You are just a girl. Do you still want to chase him to the execution ground and die with him?"
"I won't do useless things, but I have to lead him in his future."
As she spoke, she held her hair that had been messed up by the wind. "He is my father, and he only listens to me and believes in my principles. Although I don't have much reason, I can only force him to take medicine and eat fruits and keep healthy. But he has decided to follow me, and he can only live like this. Brother, the Ming Dynasty law is just a facade to him, but my father is real. I will take care of him for the rest of his life."