Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 659 (Additional chapter for the leader who speaks frankly)
While pretending to fight a life-and-death battle with the Jin Kingdom, the Northern Jin took advantage of the heavy snow that had not yet blocked the roads to rob cattle, horses, and women on the grassland.

They had to hide it from the State of Song and cry to them about how badly they were beaten.

In the Western Xia Kingdom, the royal family was suppressed by the prime minister and could not raise their heads, but the Western Xia emperor still "exiled" the outstanding royal family member and forced him to go undercover in Sichuan.

Wanyan Liang was in Zhongdu Yanjing, sleeping on straw and eating bitter food with someone else's wife in his arms, planning to accumulate wealth for ten years.

This world is simply a makeshift team.

The Song Dynasty was also very busy. The Battle of Lingbi was over, but many things related to it had just begun.

Rewards, pensions, commendations, replenishment of troops, promotion of generals...

After questioning by a group of old officials in Bian Jing and the Empress Dowager, Yan Shen finally confirmed his identity and found that he was indeed Crown Prince Zhan of Emperor Qinzong.

However, it is an indisputable fact that he participated in the Jin people's conspiracy and intended to assassinate the king and usurp the throne.

Finally, the government showed mercy and did not punish him or reveal his identity. He was raised in the Zongyang Palace and was isolated from the inside and outside from then on.

The conspiracy in which Zhao Chen participated involved the reshuffle of many officials, which also caused lingering aftershocks in the officialdom.

Self-reporting, reporting...

Although it's not so crowded that the province is packed with people, but... there is a constant stream of people, with always one or two people coming in every day.

The imperial court was also extremely busy with the year-end performance evaluation and official adjustments.

Fortunately, the Song Dynasty had too many reserve talents, so it was not like the anti-corruption campaign of Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty, where there was no one available and the government had to let the convicted officials perform official duties in shackles.

After the emperor returned, the court held an enlarged meeting in front of the emperor.

The reason why it is called an expansion is that Yang Yuan, the Left Counselor, was also included.

The emperor's injuries had not yet fully healed and he still coughed up blood occasionally, but it did not affect his ability to sit, lie down or walk.

This internal injury can only be healed slowly, the country cannot stop running for a day, so the official has to preside over the government even though he is sick.

At this imperial meeting, Yang Yuan submitted his second memorial as a counselor.

Ministers such as Shen Gai and Wei Liangchen all thought that Yang Yuan was going to suggest strict laws against corruption, emphasize the assessment of officials, cut redundant officials, and select outstanding officials.

Because there are traces of these things.

Taking advantage of the arrest of Tang Situi, Tan Yingwen and others on charges of corruption, and the fact that many officials surrendered themselves out of fear of crime, the government has issued an edict that after the self-confession period, all officials who are confirmed to have committed corruption after investigation will be dismissed and will not be employed again for life.

For those whose crimes are serious but not punishable by death, in addition to confiscation of all property, they will be tattooed on their faces and exiled to the border like ordinary criminals.

In terms of official assessment, because of these incidents, the Ministry of Personnel has been more strict in its performance assessment this year.

The former Ministry of Personnel was taken down by Yang Yuan single-handedly. Many censors from the former Censorate, such as Xiao Yiran and Lu Chengze, are now working in key departments of the Ministry of Personnel.

It was only natural for Yang Yuan to take advantage of the situation and build momentum for them.

As for cutting down on redundant officials, this is a major project that has just begun and is not yet finished.

With the favorable trend of punishing corruption and examining officials, it will be easier to do.

Therefore, prime ministers such as Shen and Wei wanted to pour a basin of cold water on Yang Yuan.

However, the content of Yang Yuan's letter was completely beyond their expectations.

Yang Yuan submitted a ten-thousand-word petition, which did not contain a single word of literary embellishment. Instead, it used very plain language, detailed and practical data, and a series of analysis and admonitions. In summary, it was:

He attached importance to production, encouraged agriculture and sericulture, developed water conservancy projects, and promoted trade.

This was exactly the suggestion that Shen Gai, Wei Liangchen and other veteran ministers were going to put forward at this enlarged meeting in front of the emperor.

This imperial meeting was actually a determination of the key work content of the Song Dynasty government in the next year.

However, they did not expect that Yang Yuan, who had always been radical and liked to make shocking remarks, would actually submit such a memorial.

After the imperial meeting ended, Shen Gai and Wei Liangchen left the Council Hall side by side.

When officials passing by saw the two old prime ministers, they all stood aside on the roadside and bowed to them as a sign of courtesy.

The two old ministers swayed their steps and nodded as a greeting.

Wei Liangchen said, "Yang Ziyue's remonstrance has greatly surprised me. What does Mr. Shen think of this boy?"

Shen Gai said slowly: "At such a young age, he has mastered the art of relaxation and tension. It's incredible."

"Yes!"

Wei Liangchen was delighted: "I have always been optimistic about this boy, but I am only worried that he is young and full of energy, and will be too ambitious.

I didn’t expect that at this critical moment, he would understand the principle of combining leniency with severity and submit such a memorial.”

Wei Liangchen clapped his hands and sighed, "He is young but smart, and mature in planning for the country. When he becomes senior and respected, he will surely become a prime minister. This is a blessing for the country!"

Before Prime Minister Wei could finish his words, he felt a sudden movement beside him, as if a huge fireball rolled past.

When I looked closely, I saw a man in a red robe, walking in a hurry.

Logically speaking, you can't walk fast in those high-soled official boots. You have to walk steadily, with three steps and one shake, to show your dignity and honor.

But this person walked very fast and reached the end of the corridor in a flash.

Wei Liangchen's eyesight was not very good. In modern terms, he had shortsightedness when looking at things close up and myopia when looking at things far away.

At that moment, he narrowed his eyes and said with some displeasure: "Who is this? Why is he so frivolous?"

Isn't that frivolous? He and Shen Gai were walking in front, and even if the people coming behind them didn't see their faces, they could at least see that they were wearing purple robes.

How could a man in red robes like you have the nerve to swoop past two people in purple robes?

You're walking like a man on fire. Is that appropriate?

The corners of Shen Gai's lips twitched slightly, and he coughed lightly, "It seems... it's Yang Ziyue, who is young but smart, and mature and scheming for the country."

...Yang Yuan was a little anxious. He had planned to take a day off today to prepare for his and Yuye's wedding.

Unexpectedly, the emperor suddenly convened an enlarged meeting in front of the emperor and specifically asked him to attend.

The emperor's injury hasn't healed yet, and he has to attend the meeting even when he's coughing up blood. Can he find an excuse not to attend?
Besides, he was the only one who was not qualified to attend the imperial meeting, but the emperor specifically asked him to attend. This was such a great honor, he should not be ungrateful.

Fortunately, Yang Yuan had already written a ten-thousand-word letter, in which he was preparing to suggest that the court should slow down all affairs next year, develop the economy, and restore vitality. Now he could use it to speak at the meeting.

But as soon as the meeting was over and he looked at the time, he became anxious.

I am almost missing the time to go to the "Moshanghua" embroidery workshop.

We were originally scheduled to go in the morning, but it has been postponed to the afternoon. If we delay it any further, it will be in the evening.

Who wouldn’t be angry?

He was originally going to propose marriage, but he was asking the other person's beloved daughter to be his mistress, which made him feel insecure.

If this delays the time again, will you still have the courage to speak?
Therefore, Yang Yuan didn't care about anything else and walked out of the Council Hall at full speed.

Running is not allowed in the imperial palace, but I can at least race walk, right?

If you don't believe me, look carefully and you will see that both feet are definitely not off the ground at the same time.

Yang Yuan walked out of the palace at great speed, and Da Zhuang quickly asked someone to drive the car over.

"It's too late, change horses!"

Yang Yuan hurriedly told the guards to dismount, then he jumped on his horse and shouted, "You guys go back home now."

After saying this, Yang Yuan pulled the reins and galloped away.

Yang Yuan was still wearing court robes at this time. Dressed like this, he rode a horse, crossed the Jinshui Bridge, passed through Liubu Street, and rushed onto Imperial Street.

Fortunately, the brim of his hat was made of fine iron material, and it fluttered up and down without breaking.

In front of the Moshang Hua Embroidery Workshop, Matchmaker Liu was getting anxiously waited. The time had almost arrived and Mr. Yang had not come yet. She hoped that Mr. Yang would not cause any more trouble.

Granny Liu thought about it carefully and realized that anything that frightened her and made her unable to agree to a matchmaking agreement was mostly related to this Mr. Yang.

In the flower hall at the back of the "Moshanghua" embroidery workshop, Li Shishi was sitting with Madam Tan.

Fat Yuye stood next to her mother, dressed in gorgeous clothes, looking graceful and charming, like a lady from a noble family.

As the time was approaching, Li Shishi couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

She couldn't guarantee that even with Fei Tianlu's approval, Mrs. Tan would be willing to marry her daughter to someone else as a concubine.

Although the Yang family promised his daughter all kinds of qualifications that were no less than those of a wife, but to outsiders, wasn't she still a concubine?
As a result, Erlang is actually late again. Mrs. Tan will probably be even more unhappy, right?

When they secretly took a look at Madam Tan's appearance, Li Shishi and Fei Yuye felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.

Although Mrs. Tan tried her best to appear calm, she could no longer conceal her ugly expression.

Mrs. Tan is very nervous now.

Although it's not the time yet, but...how could a man come to propose marriage and really stick to the time and not be willing to come a little earlier?

Could it be... Could it be that the man doesn't want to come to my house?
Madam Li said that the man was a founding county duke, Zuo Jianyi Grand Secretary, and was less than 30 years old. He had a handsome face and was a man of talent.

This...why would a man with such conditions want to marry a spinster?

Could it be that other people have heard about my daughter's weird hobbies and are disgusted with her?

Alas, I felt it was not possible when I heard it. If it was an ordinary man, our family could at most give him more property as a dowry and take the initiative to help him take a few concubines, so it wouldn't be a loss to him.

But...but to deceive such a talented young man into marriage, even though her father is also a high-ranking official in the court, there will be endless troubles after all.

Fei Yuye was also secretly anxious. She had said she would come in the morning, but suddenly she had to attend a meeting in front of the emperor, so the plan was postponed to the afternoon. In the end, she didn't come in the afternoon again.

I guess something important happened at the imperial meeting? But... can my mother understand?

After a while, my mother thought I was lying to her again and got angry. What should I do?

Mrs. Tan's fingernails dug into her palms as she tucked her hands into her sleeves.

I'm afraid they really won't come to propose marriage. This... I can't blame them. It's just for my daughter's face...

Forget it, forget it. I won’t urge her anymore in the future. I’ll just pretend I don’t know.

Otherwise, if I push her too hard, it would be good for her to become a nun out of anger. But what if she dies in front of me out of shame? What should I do then?

Li Shishi was afraid, Mrs. Tan was afraid, and Fei Yuye was also afraid. The three women sat there, chatting and laughing on the surface, but they were worried about their own things in their hearts...

Suddenly, the housekeeper came running in and said happily, "Madam, young lady, Madam Liu has brought a senior official here."

"Please come in, no no, I will go to greet you myself."

Mrs. Tan stood up suddenly.

She was only in her early forties, and could not be called old before she was fifty. She also did not need to address her servants as "concubine", so she referred to herself as "I" or "I".

Li Shishi and Fei Yuye looked at each other and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as Yuye was about to follow, Madam Tan said angrily, "How dare you show up in public? You have no manners! Get out of the way now."

Turning to face Li Shishi, Mrs. Tan smiled again: "Madam Li, please."

Fei Yuye smiled bitterly and had to turn away.

Mrs. Tan grabbed Li Shishi's wrist and hurried out to meet her.

PS: There is still a chapter to be written where I speak frankly and a chapter to be written by JJM.

(End of this chapter)