Chapter 69: Intelligent Battle Against Quanhou

  Qian Ning saw the people patrolling under the building, his eyes turned and he said to the brocade-clad guards: "All of you go downstairs and guard the door, don't let anyone come up to disturb." As soon as his men left the room, Qian Ning immediately knelt down on the ground and respectfully said: "Minister Qian Ning pays respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

  Zhu Houzhao let out a sound, looked up at Yang Ling, and Yang Ling slightly shook his head. Qian Ning saw the situation and respectfully said: "Your humble servant has served as the commander of the palace guards, and had the good fortune to see the Crown Prince. Today, the Crown Prince is in disguise on a private visit, and I did not dare to reveal the Crown Prince's identity. However, with the whole city searching and thoroughly investigating the capital, I have no choice but to rely on my status as a member of the Imperial Guard to personally escort the Crown Prince back to the palace. Therefore, I venture to recognize you, please forgive me."

  Zhu Houzhao finally came to his senses and laughed: "Get up, forget those stinky rules. I didn't expect that by hitting a rascal, I would bring out all the rascals in the city. You're too cunning, if not for this, you'd still be pretending not to know me?"

  Yang Ling also sighed, gazing down at the floor, knowing that today was not the day to go to the Ministry of War to retrieve the Zheng He sea chart. Liu Jin whispered in his ear: "Don't worry, Yang Shidu, the chart has been left in the Ministry of War for so many years, if it's lost, it would have been lost long ago, and if it's not lost, it won't make a difference at this moment, we can look for another opportunity to retrieve it later."

  Yang Ling looked at him in surprise. Liu Jin smiled and said, "That map is a treasure left behind by Zheng Gonggong after exhausting his heart and soul. This great achievement that has been passed down through the ages is the credit of our palace masters, so we can't bear to destroy it either."

  Yang Ling was greatly surprised, looking at the eunuch comrade's comforting smile, his eyes became moist...

  You have money, Ning brought more than a dozen Jin Yiwei 'escorts' to escort them. Along the way, they encountered various small ghosts and ox-headed horse-faced men who did not dare to ask questions. Zhu Houzhao returned smoothly from the back gate of the Forbidden City to the Donggong Palace.

  He had just returned to Chunfang, and with a loud slap on the table, he said to Yang Ling: "Today's matter is all messed up, but I promised the girl that I would not break my word. I have made a promise, within three days, I want to return the deed of buying a concubine to her, how do you think we can get the deed back?"

  Yang Ling furrowed his brow, he had said a few words at the time to deceive Zhu Houzhao into leaving. Now it seems that Yan Kuan was actually a person of Shou Ning Hou, and Zhang He Leng could even take over the construction of the Eight Great Wall for him, the relationship between the two is not ordinary, they are simply government-business family.

  It's not that he can't afford to pay, but rather that he wouldn't be willing to pay a price that would move him. Moreover, such a humiliating thing is definitely not something the Crown Prince would do. As for using official power to coerce him, with the current emperor favoring the Empress, and seeing the grandeur of the various forces searching the capital today, is this Imperial Uncle someone who can be easily provoked? Unless the Hongzhi Emperor himself intervenes, no one can control him.

  Yang Ling furrowed his brow and thought for a while, but really couldn't think of any ideas. He looked up at the eight so-called geniuses who could come up with ideas to harm people even in their dreams, only to see that all eight pairs of eyes were staring blankly at him. Yang Ling let out a bitter laugh, and could only say: "Yan Kuan is just a low-ranking servant, not worth worrying about. The problem is that Shou Ning Hou is backing him up... If we want to make a move on him, Shou Ning Hou must be made to back down first."

  Zhu Houzhao said, "Don't worry, Zhang Heling is the emperor's uncle, but his arrogance is really overbearing. If you can curb his momentum a bit, it wouldn't be bad either. What do you think?"

  Yang Ling murmured, "If we want to make Shou Ning Hou restrained, it can only be done by Your Majesty. However, if you want to punish him, there must be sufficient evidence to provoke your wrath..."

  "Easy one, just look at him occupying the people's foundation, expanding the streets and privately granting projects, it's enough to impeach him, not to mention Shouning Hou... Heh heh!"

  Liu Jin furrowed his brow and said, "Having evidence is not enough, we need someone reliable to present it to the Emperor. If we take the lead, the Emperor will definitely be suspicious, this matter..."

  Zhu Houzhao said impatiently, "Why is this so troublesome! If it's really not possible, I'll take advantage of the upcoming imperial examination in the capital to sneak out of the palace again and go directly to Guo Shu to get it. I don't believe he would dare offend me for the sake of a mere servant."

  Yang Ling's eyes lit up when he heard the two words "Taifu", and he hastily asked: "Your Highness, haven't the university scholars been coming to give you lessons these past few days?"

  Zhu Houzhao looked at Gu Dajiu and said: "From tomorrow, the three Grand Scholars will take turns to inspect the examination hall on a daily basis, while the other two will handle government affairs in the palace. Originally, three Grand Scholars took turns to give lectures every day, but now it has been changed to one Grand Scholar giving lectures every day, and the time is reduced to one hour."

  Yang Ling slapped his thigh and said, "Good, I've got a plan. Which university scholar is on duty to give lectures tomorrow?" This Gu Dazhong was indeed a reliable listener, and he had memorized the course schedule and lecturers arranged by Zhan Shi's mansion for the crown prince. Without hesitation, he replied, "Tomorrow it should be Li Dongyang, Li University Scholar, who will give the lecture."

  Yang Ling smiled and whispered something in Zhu Houzhao's ear, who listened with a mixture of doubt and curiosity, saying: "This...this method really works?"

  Yang Ling smiled and said: "If this plan is successful, the cleverness of it will be that the Marquis of Shouning will only lose his army and his commander. At that time, first, Your Highness will not lose credibility with others; second, Yan Kuan's disrespect to the Crown Prince can be rectified, making him unable to turn over a new leaf; third, it can also win the praise of several imperial tutors for Your Highness."

  "Ah?" Zhu Houzhao's spirit was lifted upon hearing this, and he said: "Take advantage of the fact that there is still time, you quickly go and handle it, and be sure to have everything ready for me before Li Taifu arrives tomorrow."

  "Yes, your humble servant obeys!" Yang Ling smiled and bowed slightly, nodded briefly at the Eight Tigers, and retreated swiftly.

  The next morning, before dawn, a carriage drove to the outer corner of the Meridian Gate. Yang Ling flashed onto the carriage and Qian Ning handed him a thick package wrapped in oil paper from inside the carriage, saying: "Yesterday, I received an order from Master Yang, so I ordered my men to work all night, and finally we have achieved something, fortunately not disappointing your orders, haha, this is what you need, take a look and see if it's usable?"

  Yang Ling politely said a couple of words, sat shoulder to shoulder with him in the carriage, opened the oil paper package and took out a thick stack of papers. He lifted the curtain and glanced at it hastily under the sunlight, and couldn't help but exclaim: "Qian brother, I only asked you to gather some evidence of Shou Ning Hou's corruption, private contracting, and exploitation of the people. If there really wasn't enough, just fabricate some minor mistakes to add weight to it. But what you've fabricated includes murder cases! If His Majesty really investigates this, won't we be lifting a rock only to drop it on our own feet?"

  Qian Ning smiled and said: "I'd like to fabricate some rumors, but unfortunately I was busy all night, and there are many real cases that need attention. I don't have time to frame Zhang Houye. These case files have witnesses, physical evidence, and some are even registered at the yamen by the victims themselves. It's just that no one dares to handle them. Take a look and see which ones can be used. Don't worry, these materials were all copied by me personally, they're not official documents from the Brocade Guard, so we won't get in trouble."

  Yang Ling exclaimed in shock: "Are these all true?"

  Qian Ning nodded and said, "It's all true!" He smiled faintly and proudly said, "No matter who it is, as long as the Jin Yiwei wants to deal with him, there are no secrets that can be hidden from us. However... Shou Ning Hou has a big tree in the palace that provides shade, these things may not be enough to bring him down, sir, please be careful and don't get yourself involved."

  Yang Ling nodded and said, "Don't worry, Brother Qian, there are others who will take the lead in this matter. Hehe, I have to hurry into the palace now. This time, I'll trouble you with the labor, but next time, I'll let the Emperor know your good intentions."

  Qian Ning's face lit up with joy, and he hastily cupped his hands together to say: "There's no need for my own brother to be so polite. This afternoon there are many officials at the gate, I'd better not show my face. Here I'll bid farewell to Lord Yang, wishing you a victorious start and success upon arrival!"

  "The Master said: 'The ruler should rule, the minister should minister, the father should father, and the son should son.' That is to say, those who are rulers must conform to the way of the ruler, those who are ministers must conform to the way of the minister, those who are fathers must conform to the way of the father, and those who are sons must conform to the way of the son." Li Dongyang said with a sigh of relief as he glanced at the crown prince. Today, the crown prince was very well-behaved, sitting upright and listening attentively behind his desk, which made Li Dongyang feel greatly comforted.

  He smiled and said, "Ordinary rulers reward those they love and punish those they hate; wise rulers are not like that. Rewards must be given to those who have merit, and punishments meted out to those who have committed crimes. Those who are good at governing a country make their authority firm at home and respected abroad. In this way, when they go on campaigns against enemies or attack other countries, none dare refuse to listen."

  He picked up the cup of tea, moistened his throat, and was about to explain in detail, but heard the prince say: "Taifu, for a wise ruler, rewards and punishments must be clear-cut. However, if the guilty person is a close minister or even a relative of the emperor, can we make an exception?"

  Li Dongyang said sternly, "It is not permissible. The prince who breaks the law should be punished equally with commoners. Why? Because as a ruler you are not just the master of one family, but the master of an entire country. All people from top to bottom are your subjects. What distinction can there be between near and far? When the ruler is wise and the ministers are virtuous, it is a blessing for all under heaven; when the ruler is enlightened and the ministers are loyal, it is a blessing for the state. If you indulge in favoritism towards close ministers who do evil, that is not a blessing for the country."

  Yang Ling coughed, and Zhu Houzhao took out a package from under the table, sighing: "The Taifu's teachings are that today Yang Shidu entered the palace and found a package outside the palace gate. The contents were evidence of Guo Zhang He's indulgence in his family members and harming his neighbors. One by one, it was shocking. Alas! After reading it, I thought of Zhang He as my maternal uncle and wanted to suppress the matter, but after listening to Taifu's teachings, I felt deeply ashamed. If I had hidden it without reporting it, I would have truly betrayed the words of the sage."

  Li Dongyang listened and said with a start: "What is the evidence of the crime? Can the Crown Prince let me take a look?"

  Zhu Houzhao handed over the package, shaking his head and saying: "On one hand is my maternal uncle, on the other hand are the bullied and oppressed common people who have nowhere to appeal. I couldn't bear to tell the Emperor, hurting our family's harmony, but after hearing Taifu's teachings, I really can't ignore it."

  Li Dongyang hastily flipped through the stack of memorials accusing Zhang He of his crimes, and after glancing at them for a few moments, he was already enraged to the point of being unable to contain himself. With an angry expression all over his face, he said: "The princes and nobles, taking advantage of the people's interests, are so unscrupulous and brazen! Your Highness doesn't need to feel ashamed, you've done a good job. The ruler is like a boat; the common people are like water. Heaven gives birth to the people, not for the sake of the ruler; Heaven establishes the ruler for the sake of the people. Your Highness being able to care for the common people is a blessing for the country."

  He looked at Yang Ling again, and said meaningfully: "The behavior of Shou Ning Hou has caused the people to complain endlessly and have nowhere to appeal, which is why someone has taken this desperate measure. Your Highness, please ask Yang Shiren to accompany you to review your lessons first, I need to leave for a while to investigate, if the situation is true, I will definitely report it to the Emperor."

  Yang Ling's eyebrows jumped upon hearing this, and it was clear that the old man didn't quite believe his own excuse for entering the palace. However, this person hated evil like an enemy, and even though he knew he was being used, he still wouldn't sit idly by. Since Qian Ning had brought back real cases, Yang Ling wasn't afraid of him investigating further.

  Li Dongyang bid farewell and left, on this day, Zhu Houzhao was much more obedient than usual, just staying in the Chunfang with Yang Ling to discuss the weather, not daring to make any more trouble. Li Dongyang hurried back to the Jing Shen Hall, immediately ordering the officials to investigate and report, many of these cases had been pending in the government office, only being delayed and pushed around without being processed, naturally one investigation was enough, just a few hours later, seven or eight out of ten were verified, Li Dongyang heard those heinous crimes and couldn't help but rage with anger, immediately picking up his brush to write a lengthy statement, then strode straight to the imperial court.

  In the Eastern Palace, Zhu Houzhao listened to Yang Ling's account of various national customs and was greatly enlightened. Just as he was listening with great interest, Gu Dazhong suddenly shouted from outside, "Ah, Your Highnesses, the two princesses, how did you come to the Eastern Palace?"

  "All I heard was a soft and gentle girl's voice saying: 'Where is the prince? Take me to see him quickly'."

  "Your Highness, the Crown Prince is having his lessons warmed up, you see..."

  Another silly and innocent girl's voice said, "Hmph, are you guys using those tricks to deceive the prince again? Sister, let's go in ourselves."

  Zhu Houzhao exclaimed: "Yongfu and Yongchun have arrived, you go behind the screen to avoid them, there are many stinky rules in the palace, you can't see them casually."

  Yang Ling hastily got up and dodged behind the screen of the red wooden antique shelf, only to hear Zhu Houzhao loudly say: "Please, invite the two princesses in."

  Then a girl's voice giggled and said, "How strange! How strange! Today, the emperor is actually sitting here properly, without playing with some cats or dogs. Has he changed his nature?"