In just a few words, Tang Fan didn't show it on his face, but his heart was like a stormy sea, and he figured out a lot of things in an instant.
Obviously, this is a trap from start to finish.
It can be said that since Peng Hua recommended him to be the lecturer of the East Palace, and he agreed, he has stepped into this trap.
This trap is not only aimed at him, but also at the prince.
Right now, in the eyes of outsiders, there must be someone lying between Tang Fan and Lin Ying.
Lin Ying has served as Zandu since the prince entered the cabinet to study. Over the years, the prince's masters have changed people, but he has always stayed by the prince's side, because his actions are safe and reliable, and he is deeply trusted by the prince.
Although the prince also had a special relationship with Tang Fan, he also believed in Lin Ying.
The viciousness of this trap is that those who set the trap not only want to alienate the relationship between the prince and Tang Fan, making the prince feel that Tang Fan is untrustworthy, but also pull the prince into the water through Tang Fan and be rejected by the emperor.
What was the problem in the period from the seventh year of Wude to the first year of Zhenguan
Why did the emperor specifically tell Lin Ying to skip it
Tang Fan was very familiar with Tongjian, and quickly thought of the key points.
In June of the ninth year of Wude, there was a coup d'état in the Tang Dynasty, which had just been established. It was the change of Xuanwumen that was known to the world later. If the emperor did not want the East Palace lecturer to give the prince a detailed explanation "In the past few years, then it should be to avoid this history.
But for this coup d'état, no matter whether it is a new or an old book of Tang, or whether it is a general reference for governance, historians basically hold an understanding and even positive evaluation of Tang Taizong, and there is no taboo place, why the emperor would not let it speak?
Tang Fan thought about it, and felt that the problem was probably because Tang Taizong killed his brother.
These thoughts are just flashes of light and flint in his mind. If Tang Fan wants to get through the difficulties in front of him, he can't show the slightest panic, which is not only useless, but also easy to misunderstand.
He calmed down and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, I dare to swear to the ancestors of heaven and earth, and I have never heard Lin Zandu say this. Moreover, when the prince was in class, Lin Zandu was at his side. If there is any problem, why did he Shouldn't it be raised on the spot?"
Taking an oath to the ancestors of heaven and earth is extremely prudent these days. The emperor looked at Lin Ying when he heard it.
Lin Ying said calmly: "Your Majesty, I dare to swear to the ancestors of heaven and earth, and I have already told Master Tang. It's just that when I talked about this part of the day, I happened to be sick and took leave, and this matter is also recorded in the Zhan Shifu. ."
This is all right, one said yes, the other said no. The two of them were present at the time, and both of them swore that whoever told the truth and who was lying, really only a genius would know.
However, if Tang Fan is accused of "knowingly committing a crime and not taking the emperor's words seriously", and he is charged with bewitching the prince, then not only will he be unlucky, but also the prince will be affected, giving Wan Dang a chance to take advantage of it. Machine, and those who are close to the prince will also think that Tang Fan has implicated the prince, and they will definitely hate him at that time.
Thinking of this, no matter how calm Tang Fan is, he knows that the current situation is very unfavorable to him.
He raised his head without a trace, his eyes swept across the faces of everyone, from Lin Ying, who had a calm face, to the prince who was in shock and didn't know who to believe, and then to the emperor who showed dissatisfaction. Said: "Your Majesty, the Qing people are self-cleaning, but only the minister and Lin Zan were present at the time. What is right and wrong, but it is useless to entangle more with conscience. It is just that the minister has something puzzled, please ask your majesty to clarify."
Emperor: "Speak."
Tang Fan said: "I don't know if the "Tongjian" is from the seventh year of Wude to the first year of Zhenguan, if there are any taboos, please show your majesty."
The emperor has a preconceived notion, and his tone is naturally bad: "I ask you, 'Emperor Taizong has something about Xuanwumen, but it does not hinder the name of the holy monarch', have you said this to the prince?"
Tang Fan said, "Yes."
Emperor: "Then what are you quibbling about? I want the lecturer to avoid this period of time in the "Tongjian", precisely because there is something about Xuanwumen in it. Although Emperor Taizong had no choice but to be his brother after all, you When you said that to the prince, didn't you deliberately instigate it, implying that the prince would be stronger first, so as not to be burdened by his brothers in the future?"
There is nothing wrong with the transformation of Xuanwumen itself. This is just an ordinary historical fact. Although there is a slight flaw in the emperor's death, it is nothing because of the decoration of the historians of the past. Neither will deliberately bypass this matter without mentioning it.
But the bad is bad. A few days ago, Concubine Wan suddenly had an interest in reading history, so she asked people to find a history book, and after translating it, she compiled a story and told it to herself, chatting to pass the time.
When Emperor Chenghua went to look for Concubine Wan, he happened to hear the story of Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty, Concubine Wan said to Emperor Chenghua: "Xuanwumen bleeds blood, brothers cannibalize each other, it is not a beautiful thing, the prince is still young, and his temperament is uncertain. If someone uses history as a mirror and deliberately misleads the prince, it will inevitably lead the prince to take a detour, it is better to tell less of this kind of story, and let the preacher tell more allusions of filial piety and obedience!"
To say that in the eyes of Emperor Chenghua, Concubine Wan is not bad, but what Concubine Wan said, even if it doesn't make sense, it makes sense. At that time, he took it seriously and agreed with what Mr. Wan said, which is why he instructed Lin Ying to let the lecturer from the East Palace skip the things that were not covered in several paragraphs in the "Tongjian".
If the emperor didn't explain it, Tang Fan would just say what he said. This means that those who don't know are innocent.
But the emperor clearly ordered, and Tang Fan still "follows the yin and violates the yin" and ignores the imperial order.
All in all, this matter, in the final analysis, if Lao Tzu completely trusts his son, he will not be so troubled. The bad thing is that Lao Tzu's pillow wind is too strong. Compared with the Wan family, the prince is actually just a son.
Worst of all, the emperor still has no shortage of sons.
And really speaking, the emperor's favorite child is not the current prince, but his two older brothers who died young.
One came from the noble concubine Wan, but it was a pity that he died before the age of one year, and he didn't even have time to get his name. The early death of this son was a pain in his heart. The emperor believed that if this child was still alive, he would definitely become a hero. The extraordinary prince is also the most outstanding heir.
The other is Prince Gong Gong. This child has also been placed in high hopes by the emperor. This can be seen from the fact that he was crowned the crown prince when he was two years old, but in the end he also failed to keep it.
Therefore, now this prince is really trembling and uninteresting. He has to face the trap of dug a hole and wait for him to jump down at any time every day, and face the villain's slander.
Right now, it's just a different trick. When others deal with Tang Fan, in fact, the ultimate goal is still the prince.
Tang Fan bowed his hands solemnly and said, "Please, Your Majesty, take back what you have just said, instigating deceitful words, but the minister does not dare to bear it! The minister said about the Xuanwu family just to warn His Royal Highness, love brothers, filial piety to parents, and the relationship between the prince and Tang Taizong. There are no similarities between the two. When Tang Taizong was not on the throne, he was only the second son, and he had a prince on the throne. Naturally, his name was not right, and His Royal Highness is now the eldest son, and even more so, it has been nearly ten years since His Majesty gave him the title of Prince of the East Palace. The name is justified and the world knows it, so how can they imitate the affairs of the Xuanwu family? Unless there are people who are unruly, so they have to put the Xuanwu family affairs on the crown prince's head. , Your Majesty, please enlighten me!"
"Bold!" The emperor was furious. Tang Fan's words were undoubtedly implying that someone was slandering in front of him, but the person who said this was actually the noble concubine Wan, how could he tolerate others saying that Wan was wrong
The prince said anxiously: "Father, let go of his anger! Master Tang is also in a hurry to talk nonsense. Since he became an official, he has solved strange cases many times.
He is not stupid. At this moment, if he still can't see between Lin Ying and Tang Fan, who is telling the truth and who is telling the lie, then his prince will be in vain.
The prince's words had little effect. The emperor really felt the extreme against Tang Fan's words, not only because Tang Fan exposed his thoughts, but also because the other party's words slandered the woman he loved the most.
But Tang Fan was also helpless. If he didn't express his stance in a sonorous manner, it would only lead to greater suspicion. Now, at least he can convince the prince that he is innocent.
The emperor summoned his servants, pointed at Tang Fan and said, "Put this person out of the palace, I don't want to see him again!"
The prince panicked, and quickly took a few steps on his knees: "Father, please listen to my son..."
The emperor looked at him: "What do you think of the prince after hearing about the Xuanwu Sect?"
The prince said without thinking: "No matter how valiant and extraordinary Tang Taizong is, the matter of Xuanwu's family is ultimately about brothers fighting each other, not a beautiful thing. Learning history should use history as a mirror to distinguish right from wrong, rather than learning how to walk in Handan and blindly imitating it. This is what Master Tang taught his son. of!"
Tang Fan continued: "Your Majesty Mingjian, this is what this minister really means. Whether it is old or new Tang books, or the "Tongjian" written by Sima Gong, there are countless disasters caused by brothers who fought against each other, such as the disaster of the second son of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, The turmoil of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty was not avoided by historians. Even if the minister did not tell His Royal Highness the matter of Xuanwu, did others avoid all of them when they talked about it in the future? The minister thought that instead of tabooing diseases and avoiding doctors, it is better to use history as a mirror, since His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is the heir, he should be knowledgeable about the past and the present, act with integrity, and always learn from the past, so that he can become a great tool."
Hearing this, the prince could not help but let out a sigh of relief, slightly raised his head and glanced at the emperor.
Sure enough, although the latter still looked sullen, he finally didn't get as furious as before.
At this time, Lin Ying said something from the side: "Your Majesty, this minister conveyed to Master Tang the matter of His Majesty's order, and I implore Your Majesty to return the innocence to the minister."
Who wouldn't say such a thing, Tang Fan also said: "I also implore Your Majesty to return my innocence!"
Emperor Chenghua looked at the prince: "Who do you believe in?"
The prince said: "Before the truth was known, Master Tang and Lin Zan read each other's opinions. If the son made a rash conclusion, he would inevitably feel arbitrary, so the son did not dare to say it."
Emperor Chenghua frowned, his anger came and went quickly, especially when he encountered this kind of thing where the public said that the public was reasonable and the mother said that the mother was reasonable, and everyone said that he was innocent, he felt The headache is endless: "Forget it, this matter is not clear for a while, it's getting late, I'll talk about it tomorrow, you all retreat first."
The three of them saluted and backed out together.
"Lin Zandu, stop!" As soon as he left the main hall, the crown prince stopped Lin Ying who was about to leave.
"What's your Highness' order?" Lin Ying was as respectful as before, as if nothing had happened.
"Why do you want to frame Master Tang?" the prince asked.
Lin Ying didn't answer and asked, "Dare to ask the prince, how long have you been serving His Highness?"
The prince said: "Since I left the cabinet to study, you have followed me."
Lin Yingdao: "I dared to ask Your Highness again, how long has Master Tang taught for His Highness?"
The prince was speechless.
Tang Fan looked at it coldly, and knew that Lin Ying dared to turn black and white in front of the emperor, how could the young prince be his opponent.
Seeing that the Prince could not answer, Lin Ying said: "The ancients once said that clothes are not as new, and people are not the same as before. Your servant has served His Highness for several years, and everyone knows that he is loyal. Why does His Highness believe in him and not in me?"
Tang Fan said coldly, "Lin Zanyu, you're so funny, don't you hear that poisonous snakes bite people, they've been dormant for a long time, and they'll wait for an opportunity after seeing the target? According to you, all the old people in the world are all over the place. He is a loyal person, so why would Hou Junji betray Tang Taizong? But it's all for the sake of fame, but I don't know what kind of Lin Zandu is for?"
He didn't want to argue with Lin Ying here, but tonight's accident was really a disaster, even a Buddha had fire, and Tang Fan was not a saint, so he couldn't help but retort.
Who knew that Lin Ying was also a character, and after hearing Tang Fan's words, he replied, "What kind of person is Master Tang for, and what kind of person is I for."
Tang Fan said indifferently: "Daos are different and do not conspire, do you hear that a gentleman and a villain conspire together?"
After speaking, he stopped playing tricks with Lin Ying, and turned to the prince and said, "I have something to say to your highness, please move on."
The prince glanced at Lin Ying, but Lin Ying didn't insist on listening, and even surrendered.
"His Royal Highness, tonight's matter, the other party is intertwined, step by step, I'm afraid that the minister will start planning when he serves as the lecturer of the East Palace." Now no matter how many complaints, it is useless. From the time of confrontation with the emperor, Tang Fan has Already starting to think of ways to deal with it. "The Qing people are self-cleaning, and the minister does not want to argue for himself any more, but Lin Ying, His Highness must be on guard."
He looked at the prince: "I said this sentence, not for myself, Your Highness should know."
It's really that Lin Ying is too calm, and he has no reason to frame Tang Fan either in terms of identity or motivation.
So even though the prince knew rationally that Tang Fan was probably wronged, he couldn't help but shake emotionally, and when he heard Tang Fan's words, he couldn't help but feel a little ashamed: "I'm useless, I didn't wash it for Master Tang. clean."
Tang Fan smiled: "It's not important, the ministers are light-hearted, and their target will naturally not be the minister. After this matter, the minister guesses that someone will take this opportunity to speak to His Majesty, saying that there are dragons and snakes around His Highness, which will delay His Highness's homework. If you mislead His Highness to study, the other party will definitely ask His Majesty to re-screen His Highness's masters, in order to eliminate those who are truly loyal to His Highness, so as to completely cut off His Highness's voice in the court."
The prince was horrified and moved: "Then what should I do?"
Tang Fan shook his head: "You don't have to do anything, the more you do, the more mistakes you make, the less mistakes you make. Those who are truly loyal to His Highness will think of His Highness no matter what, whether it's the minister being held accountable or the moonlight. Other masters have been dismissed from their teaching positions, and it is best not to appear in your Highness."
The prince hesitated: "Is it really so serious?"
Tang Fan smiled and said, "I also hope that I won't. If not, then it's naturally the best. It's a pity that after this incident, I'm afraid I won't be able to continue teaching for His Highness. Please forgive me."
After saying that, he cupped his hands and bowed deeply to the prince.
With tears in his eyes, the prince held his hand tightly: "I'm sorry, Master Tang, I believe in you. I shouldn't have followed others to doubt you. Please Master Tang be kind to yourself. One day, I..."
Tang Fan grabbed his arm and tightened his strength to stop the prince from continuing: "I'll talk about it later. Real gold is not afraid of fire. Since the minister is innocent, he can ignore any doubts. Hesitating, it just means that Your Highness is nostalgic, what's wrong? Your Highness take care, this minister will retire."
What he should say has been said, this place is not a place to stay for a long time, he will not say more, and then leave.
The night was vast, and Tang Fan's figure quickly disappeared.
After nightfall, the Forbidden City looks extraordinarily open and boundless, and the lights are scattered in the distance, but they can't illuminate this huge place.
The prince stood there blankly, feeling extremely lonely.
But he said that Tang Fan left the palace under the leadership of his inner servant, and immediately saw Wang Zhi who had been waiting impatiently at the palace gate.
Without waiting for Tang Fan to come forward, the other party hurried over a few steps: "I heard that you annoyed Your Majesty?"
There is no secret in the palace. As early as when the emperor was furious, the news had already reached Wang Zhi's ears.
Tang Fan didn't hide it, so he briefly explained the situation at that time.
Wang Zhi listened, his face was very ugly, but he couldn't blame Tang Fan for his fierce words.
Because in that case, Tang Fan's calm reaction was suspicious, and he was the one who suggested Tang Fan to take the job. Now that something goes wrong, we can only say that those who want them to be unlucky are too cunning. , Wang Zhi never imagined that the other party was trying to pry the prince by grabbing Tang Fan's handle.
Wang Zhi said: "I have inquired clearly, this matter is related to the imperial concubine."
Tang Fan was puzzled: "What's going on?"
Wang Zhidao: "One day the imperial concubine recruited someone to talk about history, and when she heard a passage from Xuanwu Gate, she felt that it was too bloody. I was afraid that the prince was young and would be influenced by it, so she suggested that His Majesty let people skip this passage, but you were caught by Lin Ying. Got a hole."
Tang Fan smiled bitterly: "Is there such a thing? No wonder His Majesty made such a big fire, and I am not wronged to die."
Wang Zhi was silent.
With the emperor's obedience to the Wan family, even the prince's death can be ignored, not to mention that the imperial concubine is only asking about the prince's homework. Although the imperial concubine does not have the name of the queen, she has the reality of the queen. In the emperor's view, it is natural There is nothing wrong.
Seriously speaking, maybe starting from Concubine Wan's suggestion, this game has already been laid, so Tang Fan is doomed to be unlucky.
Wang Zhi's feelings for Concubine Wan are very complicated.
No matter what people outside think about Wan, without her, Wang Zhi would not be where he is today.
Everyone can be ungrateful, but Wang Zhi cannot.
So even if he has a falling out with Wan Dang now, he is only targeting Wan Dang, not the imperial concubine.
In his heart, the Wan family is special after all.
Tang Fan didn't mean to embarrass him: "It's not your fault, no one expected it, you don't have to blame yourself too much."
Wang Zhi glanced at him: "How can you be so self-motivated, when did I blame myself?"
Tang Fan: "..."
That's right, in Eunuch Wang's life motto, it is estimated that there is self-confidence, arrogance, and self-inflation, but there will be no self-blame.
He was speechless for a moment, and then continued: "Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has rarely killed ministers, and I will definitely not lose my head because of this. Go back. The top priority is to trouble you to inform Wynn about this. There is a Lin Ying beside the prince. I don't know if there will be a second Lin Ying. Wynn cares about His Royal Highness and will definitely know what to do. ."
Wang Zhi snorted: "I know, you go back first, I will try my best to turn this matter around for you."
Tang Fan just cupped his hands, everyone is so familiar, there is no need to say any extra words, everything is kept silent.
After this incident, although the emperor did not immediately order Tang Fan to be dealt with, it was impossible for Tang Fan to enter the palace with shame. Instead of the fierceness of that night, the words in the troupe were rather tactful, going back to the past, starting from Jinshi, and being dismissed and revived in the middle. , ulterior motives
Tang Fan did not follow the normal procedure to advance the Minister of General Affairs and then transfer to the cabinet, and finally submitted to the cabinet, but directly asked Suizhou to bring it into the palace to show the emperor. Naturally, if the emperor knew that the words in the memorial were crying blood, he would like to self-harm. Master Tang, who had confessed his innocence, was happily nibbling on sauce bones at home, and he didn't know how he would feel.
As Tang Fan expected, after this incident, Wan Dang really used the reason that "the East Palace is mixed with dragons and snakes, the good and the bad are mixed, your Majesty should deal with it early, so as not to delay the prince's homework", and petitioned the emperor to replace the people around the prince. He didn't know who Tang Fan and Lin Ying were lying. In his opinion, the people around the prince really had different opinions, so he agreed.
Since then, in addition to the original cabinet scholars who were still named, not only the lecturers of the East Palace, but also the staff of the Zhan Shifu, etc., have been purged. Xie Qian and Tang Fan were friends, and they could not escape. Later, Wynn spoke in front of the emperor, so that he could continue to serve as a lecturer beside the prince.
Rao is so. After this battle, the power of the pro-Prince Prince was greatly damaged. I am afraid that in the short term, it will not be able to compete with Wan Dang. Although Wan Dang failed to take the Prince off his horse, it can be considered to have cut off the Prince's wings. Purpose.
I don't know if Tang Fan was lucky or unfortunate, but before the emperor dealt with him, a big case happened in Suzhou.
The author has something to say:
small theater:
Wang Zhi: Well, this matter (referring to Tang Fan's promise to be a lecturer in the East Palace) is indeed my miscalculation. I didn't expect the other party to be so treacherous. It's not that our army is too incompetent, but the enemy's army is too cunning!
Tang Fan: Forget it, I didn't think of it myself, who can really predict the future
Wang Zhi: In short, this time I owe you a favor.
Tang Fan: Are you serious
Wang Zhi (displeased): When did this master ever regret his words
Tang Fan: Then I want free lifetime members of Xianke Building and Xianyun Pavilion!
Wang Zhi: ... go away, okay
[Volume IX: Suzhou Case]