Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 445 Song Chunniang's Backstab
Pei Yuan had no time to take care of state affairs at this moment.

What about the personnel adjustments of the Seven Ministers, what about the monetary policy for the next hundred years, what about the disputes between the two chambers of the harem, all go to hell with it.

When he returned to the old house in Dengshikou, Pei Yuan was doing stretching exercises, chest expansion exercises, body rotation exercises, rubbing the Sibai acupoints..., while warming up his body and waiting for his friend, when he suddenly heard someone outside reporting that the Left Censor-in-Chief Li Shishi wanted to see him.

Captain Pei said angrily, "No."

After a while, the doorman came back to report that Xiao Yan, the governor of the Left Army Commandery, wanted to see him.

Pei Qianhu cursed loudly, "Let him go!"

The doorman went away and came back. Pei Yuan was about to get angry, but the doorman said, "General Song is here."

Pei Yuan then turned his anger into joy and said, "Please come in quickly."

After a while, Song Chunniang followed the doorman with a puzzled look on her face and walked into Pei Yuan's main hall in the front yard.

When she entered the room and saw Captain Pei, she asked casually, "Did Chen Xinjian say you were looking for me?"

At this moment, I heard the sound of the door behind me, and it was closed by the tactful doorman when he went out.

Song Chunniang looked sideways, then turned to look at Pei Yuan.

Looking at Pei Yuan again this time, it is not difficult to guess.

She asked speechlessly, "During the day?"

Pei Yuan, who had already prepared his emotions in advance, couldn't think of any polite greetings for a moment. He hugged Song Chunniang in his arms without any courtesy and asked, "Is it not possible?"

Song Chunniang laughed.

She could already feel Pei Yuan's procrastination.

Things happened a little suddenly, and she really didn't have much interest. She shook her head perfunctorily a few times and then said, "Tonight, I'll come again in the evening."

But soon, Song Chunniang felt like some small prey being carried to the bed by the bear-like Pei Yuan.

After the prey was knocked down, Song Chunniang shook it curiously and asked in confusion, "What stimulated you today?"

Pei Yuan moved his waist and said truthfully, "I worry about the country and the people."

Song Chunniang rolled her eyes and moved her fingers nimbly, hoping to take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and use her wisdom to avoid the attack.

While moving, he changed the subject to distract Pei Yuan.

"Why didn't you go find your little Yan'er instead of calling me here?"

When asked this question, Song Chunniang still felt a little proud.

Could it be that in that bastard's mind, my charm to him is a few points higher than that of his beautiful concubine of noble birth?

Unexpectedly, Pei Yuan looked up to the sky and sighed, and said something difficult to understand, "The situation is so difficult, and it's not easy for the emperor. You should first strengthen the foundation of the country, and then worry about yourself."

I'm just very angry.

Seeing Pei Yuan sighing towards the sky, not knowing what he was feeling, Song Chunniang rolled her eyes out of habit.

He rolled his eyes halfway when he suddenly had an idea and opened his mouth out of the blue.

Captain Pei never expected to be backstabbed by his own people!
She is the woman beside him!
She actually backstabbed me!

She backstabbed me!
It might be that Pei Yuan had built up his emotions too well beforehand, and Song Chunniang happened to be ruthless in order to make the surprise attack a success, so he was caught off guard and his defense was broken.

Captain Pei was anxious for a moment, pinching Song Chunniang's cheeks and saying incoherently, "You can't swallow it!"

Song Chunniang was already feeling uncomfortable from choking, and Pei Yuan's clumsy movements almost choked her, causing her trachea to take several rapid breaths.

"hiss!"

Pei Yuan's scalp was numb.

Song Chunniang patted Pei Yuan's hand vigorously.

Pei Yuan now has nothing left to hold on to.

He lay there like a zombie, with empty eyes. He was so broken-hearted that a tear rolled down from the corner of his eye.

Song Chunniang pinched Pei Yuan angrily, "You want to die!"

Captain Pei was thinking about the fact that he was already nineteen years old and still had no son.

I also thought of Zhu Houzhao's miserable fate. At such a young age, he endured unnecessary psychological stress.

His mouth opened and he shouted feebly, "My Kunimoto!"

Perhaps Mr. Song was not in a good mood, so he got up and left angrily.

Just as she was leaving the bedroom, she turned around and glanced at Pei Yuan while fastening the only button on her collar that was unbuttoned.

As soon as she left the bedroom, she heard a hopeless voice coming from the room behind her.

"Please ask for me if Xiao Yan has gone far away..."

Not long after, the cursing Governor Xiao was invited back.

Pei Yuan has calmed down by now.

Governor Xiao has been very kind to him, and he cannot let Governor Xiao down. It is time to release some good news.

After seeing Xiao Yan, Pei Yuan said without waiting for Governor Xiao to start a fight, "Brother, there is no need to say more. I have already asked people to sort out the evidence of the crime of Governor Zhang Feng of the River Channel. We can take action at any time."

Xiao Yan then turned his anger into joy and said, "It should have been done long ago."

He sighed again, "I don't know what's going on recently. The merit of suppressing the rebellion in Bazhou has been going on for a month or two without any result. As a result, I dare not go out much."

Xiao Yan and his son were originally arranged by Xiao Jing to follow Lu Ting to gain some experience, but they did not expect that they would go south for a while and earn two uncles for the Xiao family in one go.

Although this was a good thing, as the "Great Debate" intensified, Xiao Yan, who was already feeling guilty, was so scared that he didn't even dare to go out.

He was afraid that others would inquire about the origins of his two uncles.

No matter how carefully it was done at the beginning, now that things have turned out like this, who dares to say that those things can be covered up perfectly?
What Xiao Yan was most thankful for now was that all the Xuzhou soldiers who had participated in the war were abducted by Pei Yuan and filled the vacancies in the Jinyiwei.

As long as nothing goes wrong on Pei Yuan's side, there won't be too much trouble.

Xiao Yan couldn't help but complain, "What's going on with Li Shishi and Gu Dayong?"

There is no need to mention Gu Dayong. The three of them had fought together to go north, so they have a pretty good relationship with each other.

Li Shishi appeared at Pei Yuan's concubine banquet last time, so I think he should have some connection with Pei Yuan.

Xiao Yan felt that if he asked Pei Yuan, he might be able to get some inside information.

Pei Yuan spread his hands, "One of them is the Left Censor-in-Chief, and the other is the Governor of the Western Factory. You don't think I ordered them to do that, do you?"

Xiao Yan waved his hands and said in disbelief, "This kind of thing won't bring you any benefit. You never do anything without profit, so why would you get involved in this?"

Fine.

Pei Yuan didn't argue with him about this.

Thinking of Zhang Feng's wealth, Xiao Yan couldn't help but ask Pei Yuan, "So when do you plan to take action, brother?"

After seeing the urgency of the struggle in the harem, Pei Yuan had already planned to use Zhang Feng as a substitute.

Moreover, this also involves the subsequent placement of the scholars who passed the imperial examination. So, he said to Xiao Yan, "There is no rush yet."

"No hurry?" Xiao Yan frowned.

He subconsciously became alert. Could this bastard be trying to trick him again?
Xiao Yan immediately scolded, "Why are you not in a hurry?"

Pei Yuan was not angry at all now, and said calmly, "Brother Xian is confused. Even if Zhang Feng is greedy, this number is not too outrageous."

"But he is the governor of the river, and a greedy Right Censor-in-Chief of the Second Rank. If I am not mistaken, while he is making money by using the river and shipping business, he will also demand bribes from the officials under his jurisdiction."

"If we can slowly track down the evidence, implicate more officials, and turn it into a conspiracy, won't we be able to get more?"

Xiao Yan was happy at first, but soon became worried, "This... don't let it get out of hand. If it really shakes the government and the country, I won't be able to continue my job as the Left Commander."

When it comes to catching corruption, it's okay to make a little money by robbing other gangs, but if the amount is too big, it's hard to deal with it.

Pei Yuan still needs Xiao Yan's support in many aspects, and of course he wants to drag this guy down with him completely.

He thought for a moment, looked at Xiao Yan, and asked, "Can you stay as the Left Commander for long?"

Although this statement was a bit presumptuous, they knew each other very well and had done a lot of bad things together, so they had a higher level of trust in each other.

Xiao Yan told the truth, "It's hard to say."

A big part of the reason why he could become the Left General of the Left Army General's Office was because his uncle was Xiao Jing, and he was an external force extending from the imperial power.

Once the elderly Xiao Jing is gone and the imperial power no longer trusts him, he will naturally have to leave and make way for others.

Pei Yuan asked again, "Then can you pass on the title of Left Commander to Xiao Tong?"

Xiao Yan said dissatisfiedly, "Nonsense, of course not!"

The highest position a military officer could get by inheriting the rank of commander-in-chief is at best. How could a high-ranking position like a governor, which is of the first rank, be hereditary?

Pei Yuan nodded in agreement, then suddenly changed the subject and said, "But money can."

Xiao Yan was stunned by what Pei Yuan said.

Pei Yuan then persuaded her, "You can be the left commander-in-chief of the imperial court, why don't you follow me and make money? What do you think?"

After Xiao Yan reacted, his face became uncertain.

The Left Commander could not be kept in his hands for long, nor could he pass it on to his son Xiao Tong, but money could, but money could...

Pei Yuan's words sounded like the devil's whisper, so tempting.

Pei Yuan then said, "There's no rush to make a decision. Let's try Zhang Feng first. Maybe there will be other ways."

Xiao Yan responded listlessly, and said with a heavy heart, "Okay, I will listen to Brother Pei's good news on this matter."

After seeing Xiao Yan off, Pei Yuan also felt a little bored.

After thinking about what happened today, I was a little hesitant about whether I should contact the Xia family first.

However, Queen Xia seems to be a tough and stubborn person, and may not be so easy to control. It is better to wait and see.

Pei Yuan thought about it and decided to send a message to Li Shishi.

Tell him that the emperor has given his approval and he can go ahead boldly.

So the next day, the Left Censor-in-Chief Li Shishi, who was busy creating public opinion, decisively wrote a letter to the court, hoping that the court could learn the lessons of the Bazhou rebellion and vigorously promote education and preach morality.

For this purpose, a special imperial examination should be held to win the hearts of the people.

A few days ago, Li Shishi took action in advance to seize the fruits of victory, which had already made important officials of the court very dissatisfied. Now Li Shishi actually openly overstepped his authority and discussed the powers of the Ministry of Rites, which violated the rules of the political game.

But they didn't know how far Li Shishi wanted to go, and couldn't figure out the right limit for a fight.

So the important officials turned their attention to the censors of the Censorate.

The censors all bowed their heads and remained silent.

Oh, Li Shishi is your boss, that’s okay.

The important officials all turned their attention to Sun Zhen, the Minister of Rites.

The Six Departments are responsible for supervising the six ministries and are certainly qualified to take action.

Sun Zhen, who received the signal, immediately stepped out and reported to the emperor, saying, "Left Censor-in-Chief Li Shishi has lost both his reputation and conduct, and his moral integrity is low. He is also seeking favors and reputation, disrupting the court's laws."

"Now that the war has just ended, there are many fortifications in the suburbs. Although it is a good time to use people, we should be cautious in the promotion and withdrawal of talents."

"If we try to quell the rebellion and give people a chance to advance, I am afraid that more people with bad intentions will emerge, and the country will suffer more troubles. This is not a way to educate people, but a way to confuse people."

As soon as Sun Zhen said this, it was like the clouds had been cleared and the sun had appeared, and the important officials felt relieved.

He truly deserves to be one of the most combat-capable fighters in the entire court!

In just a few words, he pointed out the mistakes and omissions in Li Shishi's words.

The important ministers, who were all in awe, echoed Sun Zhen and asked Li Shishi to retract his words.

Zhu Houzhao had discussed this matter with Pei Yuan yesterday and knew the pros and cons of this matter. After listening to the officials' discussions for a while, he immediately said to everyone, "Left Censor-in-Chief Li Shishi is a censor and should not discuss the affairs of the Ministry of Rites. He will be fined for half a year to see the effect."

A six-month salary deduction is not much money, but the symbolic significance of this matter is huge.

This shows that the ministers successfully thwarted Li Shishi's political plot and gave a powerful counterattack to this dishonest guy.

When Li Shishi heard that the emperor was pointing the finger at him, he looked a little surprised.

He even wanted to accuse Captain Pei in court. Didn’t Captain Pei have everything arranged?
Why is this emperor acting so recklessly?

Unexpectedly, the emperor continued, "Although Li Shishi has no right to discuss this matter, his suggestion is of great benefit. We should not bury good advice just because of his own reasons. I am the parent of the people and I regard the subjects of the world as my own children. How can the parents doubt the children before they change?"

Zhu Houzhao's well-prepared remarks immediately left the important officials speechless.

Because holding another special examination is what people want, no matter who jumps out to oppose it, they will have to bear tremendous pressure.

Moreover, everything Zhu Houzhao said just now were politically correct remarks.

Zhu Houzhao said that we should treat the people of the world as our own children, care for them, love them, and not randomly suspect or doubt them. Could this be wrong?
Not only is this not wrong, but it is also a model of a wise and benevolent monarch.

Since the emperor should not have unwarranted suspicion and doubt of the people, then wouldn't Sun Zhen's warnings become politically incorrect conspiracy theories?

The court officials were all experts at weighing the pros and cons, and they soon realized that Enke could not be stopped this time.

Then, they all bowed down smoothly and praised the emperor's benevolence and wisdom.

Li Shishi didn't expect this result, but after a little thought, he bowed down in joy.

It was indeed wrong for him to speak beyond his authority, and being fined half a year's salary can offset the fact that he exceeded his authority and wipe out the procedural violation.

Then the emperor himself proposed the special examination, which is not an overstepping of authority, right?

But in the eyes of outsiders, it was still Li Shishi who mentioned the matter to the emperor, and then subsequent events happened.

And he even fined his salary for this, which was just the icing on the cake.

After this court meeting, Li Shishi's goal of reaping the fruits in advance was basically achieved.

(End of this chapter)