xymnovel Chapter 52: Doesn't it send chills down your spine?
Chapter 52: Doesn't it send chills down your spine?
As night deepened, snow began to fall again, blanketing the streets in a layer of silver.
In front of a rather grand mansion in the eastern part of the city, Zheng Tan, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was alighting from his sedan chair at the main gate.
Almost at the same time he stopped, the gates of the mansion opened, and a group of servants filed out, surrounding a middle-aged man in a brocade robe to greet him.
This man was tall and slender with a handsome face and a thick beard that reached from his chin to his ears. He possessed a refined yet unrestrained temperament.
"Li has met with Zheng Pu She."
The middle-aged man walked up to the sedan chair, bowed to Zheng Qin who had just alighted, and spoke with great joy.
Upon hearing this, Zheng Qin was taken aback at first, but then took his arm and said.
"Long time no see, you've learned to tease me now. I'll make sure you have a good drink today!"
The middle-aged man then stood up, took Zheng Qin's hand in return, and said.
"It's been many years, Brother Zheng, you're still as carefree as ever. The banquet is ready, tonight we'll drink until we drop."
After saying this, the two linked arms and entered the mansion together.
Without a doubt, this middle-aged man was Li Deyu, who had just been summoned back to Beijing. He was also Zheng Qin's longtime friend and the real leader of the Li faction.
More than a year ago, Li Deyu was dismissed due to factional strife and demoted all the way down. Now he is just a minor official in Yuanzhou.
However, this did not diminish his noble demeanor in the slightest.
After all, he came from the Li clan of Zhao County, and his father was the famous prime minister Li Jifu. Even though he was demoted, his family's estate was still intact.
The banquet was held in a spacious hall in the backyard. The two men sat facing each other, with a stove for warmth beside them.
Snowflakes were falling outside the window. Li Deyu raised his cup and smiled.
"Brother Zheng, look at this snowy night, it's the perfect time for us to get drunk, sing, and enjoy the snow and scenery..."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Qin raised his cup in response, saying, "It seems you've been doing quite well at home these past few days. I was worried you were troubled by matters of state, but I was just being overly concerned."
As a longtime friend, Zheng Qin naturally knew that Li Deyu was a man of great ambition. It was precisely because of this that when he was defeated in the struggle and demoted from Beijing, he was quite disheartened and filled with inexplicable melancholy.
Unexpectedly, after more than a year apart, my friend had become much more cheerful.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, he saw a hint of sorrow flash in Li Deyu's eyes, but he quickly concealed it and said.
"The affairs of the court are numerous and difficult, and should be the worries of you high-ranking officials. What does it have to do with me, a mere Prefect of Yuanzhou? Let's drink! It's been so long since we last met. Today, let's talk about romance and nothing else!"
Seeing this, Zheng Qin seemed to understand something.
Gradually regaining his senses from the joy of reuniting with old friends, he slightly suppressed his smile and said.
"Wenrao, I didn't expect that after just over a year, we've become so estranged. Do you still have to force a smile?"
Upon hearing this, Li Deyu stiffened slightly, his smile vanished, replaced by a hint of melancholy: "Brother Zheng... is as astute as ever!"
Zheng Qin frowned, looking at Li Deyu with some confusion in his eyes, and said, "You should have received the letter I wrote to you. Although some things weren't written in the letter, you should be able to guess them. In that case, why be so discouraged?"
Li Deyu remained silent, then picked up his wine cup and took another sip before saying, "The court is in chaos. If the Emperor can banish me once, he can banish me twice. If I can only fawn over the Emperor and flatter his will, I might not be as happy as a Chief Secretary."
The hint of melancholy in his voice made Zheng Qin's brows furrow even more.
"So much time has passed, yet you still hold a grudge about the sage's misunderstanding of you back then?"
This old story is actually related to the Song Shenxi case.
Back then, Song Shenxi was falsely accused of plotting a rebellion with the Prince of Zhang. After the evidence was confirmed, the Niu faction impeached Li Deyu on the grounds that he had associated with the Prince of Zhang, which ultimately led to Li Deyu being demoted and banished from the capital.
At that time, Zheng Qin was also in Beijing, so he knew very well that this incident was a significant blow to Li Deyu.
However, upon hearing this, Li Deyu shook his head and said...
"What do I care about the rise and fall of my own career? What I worry about is the fate of my Great Tang Dynasty..."
However, his words only made Zheng Qin more puzzled.
"What do you mean by that? You must have heard about some things since you returned to the capital. His Majesty has first executed powerful eunuchs like Qiu Shiliang, and now he plans to thoroughly investigate Li Xun's faction. The situation in the court and the palace is gradually improving. Why do you make such a remark?"
"Is things getting better?"
Perhaps those four words touched something, for Li Deyu sneered and said.
"Brother Zheng, are you referring to the fact that the Emperor not only failed to suppress the power of the eunuchs, but also allowed the so-called Eastern Depot to barge into the Hall of State Affairs and brazenly take away the dignified military governor?"
Upon hearing this, Zheng Qin sighed and said, "Wen Rao, things aren't as you think. This matter..."
As he spoke, he recounted in detail what had happened inside and outside the palace during this period, especially focusing on the matter of the Eastern Depot's unauthorized intrusion into the Hall of State Affairs, which was of most concern to Li Deyu.
"...Just today, before I came here, His Majesty severely reprimanded the eunuch in charge of the Eastern Depot in front of all of us ministers, and also restrained the actions of the Eastern Depot. He explained that from now on, the Eastern Depot must obtain the permission of the Secretariat and report to the Ministry of Justice before it can carry out any actions. Judging from this, what Ximen Jixuan did that day was probably intentionally done by His Majesty."
Li Deyu, a man with extensive political experience, narrowed his eyes upon hearing Zheng Qin's words and said...
"You mean, the Sage intends to use this opportunity to lure Li Xun into action, so that he can uncover his cronies and eliminate them all at once?"
Zheng Qin nodded: "If that's not the case, it's hard to explain why the testimony the Sage presented happened to be from the group of people that Li Xun led to submit the memorial."
This time, Li Deyu remained silent for a long time, seemingly having thought about many things.
But in the end, he couldn't help but sigh and say, "It seems that the sage is indeed very different from what he was back then, but unfortunately... he is not on the right path."
"Wh...what?"
Li Deyu spoke the last few words in a very low voice, so much so that Zheng Qin didn't quite hear them.
After a moment of silence, Li Deyu's expression was somewhat complicated. He suddenly stood up, looked at the white snow outside the window, and shook his head.
"I say, the way the sage acts is quite different from what it was back then, but ultimately, it lacks a certain grandeur!"
This time, he didn't lower his voice, nor did he hesitate in his tone, but it startled Zheng Qin so much that he almost dropped his wine glass.
"Wenrao, watch your words!"
As he spoke, he stood up, glanced around subconsciously, then walked to Li Deyu's side and whispered a reprimand.
"Is it acceptable to speak so recklessly about the emperor?"
However, Li Deyu did not react much, and remained standing with his hands behind his back, saying.
"Am I wrong? Li Xun and Zheng Zhu rose to power by attaching themselves to eunuchs, and then flattered the emperor with slanderous words; they are nothing but fickle and treacherous men!"
"At that time, I advised the sage not to let him be on his side, but the sage did not listen and insisted on entrusting him with important responsibilities."
"Although Qiu, Yu, and the others wield great power, they are ultimately nothing more than servants of the royal family. If His Majesty is determined to eliminate them, he should issue an imperial edict to the Divine Strategy Army, openly and clearly stating their crimes, and promising them official positions, titles, and wealth. How could the generals possibly disobey?"
"Why order Li Xun and his men to resort to underhanded tactics, summoning border guards and skilled fighters to risk their lives for assassination and ambush?"
"As for now, it is indeed a good thing that the sage can see the evil of Li Xun and others. However, in order to punish them, why does he not consult with the Grand Chancellor, but instead conspire with the eunuchs in the palace? What is the reason for this?"
"It should be known that Li Xun and Zheng Zhu are nothing but petty men who have risen to power. For many years, countless officials have submitted memorials impeaching them, but they have only been able to act so arrogantly because of the Emperor's protection. Now that the Emperor's will has changed, he only needs to order the court officials to report their crimes, dismiss them, and exile them. It is a matter that can be decided with a single word. Why would he resort to such a treacherous scheme? It is truly..."
"What is it?"
Just as Li Deyu was getting more and more excited, a clear and gentle voice suddenly rang out from behind him.
The two were startled and turned around at the same time, only to see a young man wearing a jade-white cloak smiling at them from under the eaves.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty?!"