bookrandom Chapter 1068 Wu Dayanei
Chapter 1068 Wu Dayanei
Chapter 1068 Wu Dayanei
Two or three days later.
Cai Que went to the palace to meet the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, Deng Runfu and Shangguan both deliberately defended Chen Anmin. This is untrue. They are afraid that I will find the real evidence, so they spread rumors in the capital to slander him."
"This time, the two of them interrogated the prisoner and induced him to change his confession, but the prisoner did not dispute his statement. Everyone present can testify for me."
The emperor had received a reply from his subordinates, saying, "It seems that Wu Chong agreed to Chen Anmin's request, and Wu Anshi has undoubtedly received three thousand strings of cash."
"A family of ten needs one thousand a day, with a little meat for breakfast and vegetable soup for dinner! Wu Anshi, as the son of a prime minister, actually received three thousand strings of cash, which is enough for a family of ten to use for ten years."
"Taizu repeatedly warned officials not to form cliques and not to tolerate bribery,"
"As for Deng Runfu, his superiors were incapable of seeing things clearly, and his reports were false. As an imperial censor, he was unfair and biased, and he also slandered you."
"I now understand everything. I will demote the two of them and let them leave the capital. You will be the Chief Censor! And you will be appointed the Right Counselor!"
Cai Que was delighted when he heard this, and then said, "I thank your majesty for your kindness, but the case in Xiangzhou is extremely complicated, and many ministers of the court are implicated. Among them, Wu Anshi, Wu Anchi, and Wen Jifu have not yet been questioned. I don't know whether I should continue the investigation or stop here."
Prime Minister Wang Gui said, "Your Majesty, this case cannot be tolerated!"
The emperor said solemnly: "Since I took control of the divine weapon, ministers have been forming cliques and engaging in private interests. Our ancestors have been generous in supporting scholars and officials and not killing anyone, which has led to the current chaos in the court. I must take tough measures and investigate this matter thoroughly!"
Wang Gui and Cai Que both agreed, but were secretly shocked. This time the emperor was really angry. Was he going to abolish the rule of not killing scholars and officials?
Any emperor hates factionalism the most, especially the grouping of the old party and the prime minister, and this was before he attacked Xia, so he had to clean up the court atmosphere.
The official paused and said, "But the big competition will start in the spring, so don't make a big fuss!"
Cai Que continued to arrest people and obtain confessions through the list of names provided by the confession.
Among them, it was found that Wu Chong, Sima Guang and Wen Yanbo had many letters to each other at that time, and they inevitably talked about the affairs of the court. There were also many criticisms of the new law. Among them were Chen Xiang, Sun Jue, Su Zhe, etc., including letters written by Su Shi to several prime ministers.
As a result, more and more people were implicated.
Cai Que has launched a city-wide arrest warrant for Wu Anshi and Wen Jifu.
Huangfu Zun, a doctor of the Imperial Censorate, arrived at the gate of Zhang's mansion with more than ten white-robed officials of the Censorate and asked, "I have been ordered to arrest the imperial criminals Wu Anshi and Wen Jifu. Report back to the mansion and inform them of their whereabouts!"
The doorman went in to report, and then Peng Jingyi and Huang Haoyi left the house.
Peng Jingyi asked, "Do you know where this place is?"
Huangfu Zun said: "I only see the criminals."
Peng Jingyi said: "Even if your Chief Censor came here to look for someone, he would have to report it properly. How dare a lowly official like you do this?"
Huangfu Zun said: "So the criminal is indeed in the mansion?"
Peng Jingyi said, "The mansion is so big, who knows if they are there. If I say I don't know, what do you think?"
Huangfu Zun said: "Then please let me meet Mr. Zhang and report to him in person."
Peng Jingyi said, "Prime Minister Zhang is ill, how could you have known that?"
Huangfu Zun said: "In this case, I will come again tomorrow to ask for your advice!"
After saying this, Huangfu Zun left with his men.
At this moment, Wu Anshi and his wife Lu, Wu Anchi, Wen Jifu, and Shiwu Niang were in Zhang's mansion.
Now Cai Que was using the name of the imperial prison with great force and arrogance. Wu Anshi did not dare to hide in the Wu family for fear of being found out. So after Chen Anmin was arrested and imprisoned, he immediately took his family and hid in Zhang Yue's mansion.
Wu Anchi also came, but he did not bring his wife Wang. After all, no matter how bold Cai Que was, he would not dare to implicate Wang Anshi's daughter.
Wen Jifu, like Wu Anshi, also took Shiwu Niang to hide in Zhang's mansion.
Wu Anshi couldn't help but feel anxious and sighed all day long.
When he saw Shiqi Niang, he said, "Sister, my father was originally the prime minister and he went out of town so that my brother-in-law would continue to take care of our Wu family after he returned to the court to serve as a councilor."
"How could I have known that my brother-in-law would actually claim illness and not ask about it? Isn't this causing me so much trouble? If my brother-in-law was still in the government hall, Cai Que wouldn't dare to touch me even if he had a hundred guts."
Shiqi Niang said to Wu Anshi, "Brother, Dad left because of a disagreement with Duke Shu. How could he let Sanlang take the position? Besides, it's true that you received 3,000 strings of cash!"
"Now that Sanlang has allowed you to take shelter at home, he has already taken the blame for harboring you, yet you are still not satisfied."
"I think you should go to the Ministry of Justice and confess your crime."
Wu Anshi said, "For a mere three thousand strings of cash! Sister wants to hand me over? I am the son of the prime minister. Let alone three thousand strings of cash, what about thirty thousand strings of cash?"
Shiqi Niang said, "Since you did something wrong, you can't blame others. Why didn't Cai Que catch you when there were so many officials in Beijing? You usually use your father's name to collude with He Qi over the years, taking on official tasks outside and trying to get benefits from both sides."
"After the victim eats the murderer, the murderer eats the victim. How much dirty money did you take? How many concubines did you keep? How many women did you abandon? Who in the capital doesn't know your reputation as a playboy? You are not surprised at all that you are where you are today."
Wu Anshi was left speechless. He had indeed been too arrogant over the years.
With his father Wu Chong on one side and his brother-in-law Zhang Yue on the other, no one in the entire capital dared to offend him.
Wu Anshi's biggest problem was lust. No matter if the woman was prostitute or a good woman from a decent family, as long as he liked her, he would find a way to get her. Fortunately, he knew his limits and didn't dare to use force, so his bad reputation was not well known.
After Wu Anchi finished speaking, Fifteenth Niang came in and saw Seventeenth Niang and Wu Anshi arguing. The four siblings looked at each other in surprise.
……
Zhang Yue knew about the argument between Shiqi Niang and her four siblings.
The three siblings of the Wu family did not come to discuss this with Seventeenth Mother, but spoke those words deliberately for her to see.
Zhang Yue didn't mind Wu Anshi at all. He had long been annoyed with the fact that this person had been acting under the banner of himself and the Wu family over the years.
Out of consideration for Shiqi Niang, Zhang Yue has always treated Wu Anshi well.
But for Wu Anshi, even though he was promoted to the position of prime minister, he still believed that he got promoted by relying on his wife's favor.
After he became prime minister, a man from the Ministry of Justice came to ask for advice, saying that Wu Anshi had brought his letter to ask for help with a case. Zhang Yue asked and learned that Wu Anshi had interfered with the judiciary many times in his name.
This forced Zhang Yue to clarify that Wu Anshi was Wu Anshi and he, Zhang Yue, was Zhang Yue.
"If I hadn't come to our house to borrow books three times, would he be as successful as he is today?"
After this incident, Wu Anshi told others about it more than once when he was drunk, and then he heard it.
He only said this once or twice, but he did it many times. It was as if Zhang Yue approached the Wu family under the pretext of borrowing books, and tried every means to win the heart of Shiqi Niang, so that the Wu family would marry their daughter to him.
Zhang Yue still cannot explain the problem.
Now that Wu Anshi was in trouble, his first reaction was to run to his house for shelter.
Didn't he know that the three thousand guan was the key to the chain of evidence in the Xiangzhou case? Did Wu Anshi want to run away after taking the money?
More than thirty officials have already been punished. Will you, Wu Anshi, be okay?
This face is as thick as a wall.
Besides, the Wu family has done me a favor, but when I want to repay them in the future, it will only be to Wu Anzhi and Shiqi Niang's sisters. As for Wu Dayanei, your kindness has long been exhausted by that stinky mouth.
Thinking of this, Zhang Yue wrote a letter and asked someone to deliver it to Wang Gui immediately.
Afterwards, Zhang Yue came into the room, and Wu Anshi and Shiwu Niang stood up together when they saw Zhang Yue.
Wu Anshi's face was full of joy. She grabbed Zhang Yue's sleeve and said, "Brother-in-law, my situation has turned around, right?"
Zhang Yue nodded to Wu Anshi and said, "It's a bit tricky, but how can I just sit back and do nothing about my uncle's affairs?"
Shiqi Niang, who was sitting next to the chair, frowned when she heard this, and then she understood something.
Then Zhang Yue said to Wu Anzhi and Shiwu Niang, "I have already told the Prime Minister that you should go to the Ministry of Justice in three days to ask a question. You should go and come back the same day. It will take less than two hours."
"The censor on duty today is Chen Mu, he will help you look after it!"
It is well known that Chen Mu is Zhang Yue's confidant.
Wu Anzhi and Shiwu Niang said gratefully, "Sanlang, thank you for your help this time."
Zhang Yue said: "Hey, we are one family and we should not have different opinions."
After the two finished speaking, Wu Anshi hesitated and said, "Can my brother-in-law really make money on the same day? I will confiscate the three thousand strings of cash!"
Zhang Yue sneered in his heart: "Uncle doesn't have to go!"
Wu Anshi's face froze and she said, "How can you say that? My father is far away in another state, and the capital can only rely on you. And you are in power now, whether it is the Dali Temple, the Censorate, or the Ministry of Justice, which one would not give you face?"
Zhang Yue said, "Uncle, you are too serious. No matter how high an official is, he is not above the law. But this time your case is a little serious, so I may say a few more words. Don't worry, since you said you didn't take the three thousand strings of cash, then it will be easy to deal with. Someone will remind you of the right measure when the time comes."
Wu Anshi was overjoyed when she heard this and said, "Brother-in-law, I had many complaints against you in the past. It's great that you have forgiven me today."
Zhang Yue smiled and said, "Brother, don't say that. I can save you this time, but I can't save you next time. Don't be like this in the future."
Wu Anshi sneered in her heart, if you can defeat Cai Que, do you still need to ask for help this time? In the end, you are still a coward.
Zhang Yue looked at Wu Anshi's expression and knew that his words of advice had once again fallen on deaf ears. Fortunately, he did not intend to indulge him this time.
Three days later, Wu Anshi and his companions took horse-drawn carriages to the Ministry of Justice.
The Ministry of Justice seemed to have received the news long ago. A large group of officials were waiting at the door to welcome them into the Ministry one by one.
The others were interrogated by Cai Que himself in the bright hall of the Ministry of Justice, while Chen Mu sat to the side of the hall.
Only Wu Anshi was brought into a dark room with all the windows locked and sealed. There was only a case, a lamp and an official.
The other party looked at Wu Anshi fiercely and said, "I am Huangfu Zun, please sit down first!"
Then the door behind him closed, and Wu Anshi had a bad feeling.
On that day, Wu Anchi and Wen Jifu were released after they gave their confessions, except Wu Anshi who remained in the Ministry of Justice.
(End of this chapter)