The emperor would rather have a

Chapter 193 Harmless
"Two children under the green locust tree, the pearl of the Guo family and the son of the Li family. The barbarian horses trampled the walls of Beizhou, a sea of ​​blood and fire broke people's hearts! The wet nurse cleverly took the children and fled, crawling out of a dog hole to save three lives."

I temporarily stayed at my maternal uncle's house in Xiajin, where the budding romance of childhood memories was still fresh. My beloved, full of ambition, went to war, but years have passed without any news of him. Like a pearl left to fall, my elder brother accompanied me into the bridal chamber.

But fate was unkind; her husband passed away on his sickbed. Fortunately, her uncle was in Tokyo, helping her make a living. Through hardship, feelings of affection rekindled, and old memories were cherished in her heart.

As a folk song spread, anecdotes about Li Yi, the commander of the Imperial Guards, gradually became a hot topic of conversation in the streets and alleys of Tokyo.

Throughout history, people have been fascinated by such "rumors." They enjoy discussing these secrets that are intertwined with ethics and desire.

Moreover, the protagonist of the rumors was the emperor's brother-in-law, a newly promoted general with outstanding military achievements, which added to the story's popularity.

And all of this was naturally the work of Li Yi.

Some things cannot be discussed openly, so unconventional methods must be used. Rather than waiting until the Guo family is taken in and the world speculates wildly, it is better to reveal the matter secretly first and give it a plausible reason.

Zhang Hu, that scoundrel, may not have any other skills, but dealing with all sorts of people is his forte.

Li Yi asked him to handle this matter precisely because of this.

As the rumors spread privately, the details of the story became increasingly rich, and even various versions were fabricated.

Even the incident last year in which Li Yi accidentally killed someone with a single punch while trying to save his sister-in-law, Guo, has been brought up again, adding to the credibility of the rumors.

People's focus, however, has shifted away from the so-called relationship between uncle and sister-in-law.

This is understandable, because before the rise of Neo-Confucianism in the Song and Ming dynasties, the social atmosphere since the Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang dynasties was far less oppressive than it is now.

During the prosperous Tang Dynasty, this open and inclusive atmosphere reached its peak, to the point that later generations criticized it as the "dirty Tang."

Whether it's Yuan Zhen's "The Story of Meeting the Immortal" from the Tang Dynasty, or Li Bai's "A Gift to a Beauty on the Road"... and other famous works.

All of these works showcase the free interaction between men and women, unbound by traditional social norms. Love can blossom at any time, emotions need not be hidden, and even extramarital romance is tolerated by society.

After the chaos of the late Tang and Five Dynasties period, the Confucian system of "Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues" nearly collapsed, further lowering the bottom line of ethics and morality.

This is why Confucianism rebounded after the establishment of the Song Dynasty.

The new intellectual trend represented by Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism sparked a Confucian revival movement. Northern Song scholar-officials held the power to interpret Confucianism and began to reconstruct a social atmosphere that valued loyalty, filial piety, integrity, and moral character.

It also emphasizes the opposition between "natural law" and "human desires," advocating the use of inner cultivation to "suppress desires" and taking reverence for "natural law" as the guiding principle.

To put it bluntly, it's like the policy of "using civil means to control military affairs," which has gone from one extreme to another.

Of course, Li Yi doesn't care about these things at the moment.

He had Zhang Hu spread rumors in private, not only to resolve Guo's status issue, but also for a deeper reason... So even the fact that he took two concubines at once spread along with the rumors.

As the saying goes, no one is perfect, and there will always be criticisms.

As a young, highly decorated, and powerful general of the Imperial Guard.

In this chaotic world, after rising from the bottom to wealth and status in a short period of time, he showed no sign of indulging in pleasure.

So what are you trying to achieve by climbing up so desperately?
Li Yi felt that he had indeed been too restrained, which was not in line with his background as a low-level martial artist and the behavior that should be expected of someone in his prime.

Thinking about it carefully, self-defilement isn't such a bad option.

Of course, the premise is that the stains cannot be too big, and it is best to be minor flaws that do not cause any harm; otherwise, it will backfire.

...The morning mist had not yet completely dissipated, and the outline of the Xuanhui Academy's gate appeared in the morning light.

Li Yi, dressed in a purple robe and with a fish-shaped pouch hanging from his waist, had just stepped onto the steps in front of the government office when his steady footsteps were interrupted by a shout.

"Brother, please wait."

Following the sound, it was Xiang Xun.

With his usual friendly smile, he swiftly approached and pulled Li Yi into the shadow of the pillars without a word.

Xiang Xun couldn't hide his curiosity and lowered his voice, saying, "Recently, rumors about my brother have been circulating all over the city of Tokyo. Everyone is talking about it on the streets."

He paused slightly, "If I may be so bold as to ask, how much of those things... are true?"

Li Yi's eyes flickered slightly.

He didn't expect the rumors to reach Xiang Xun's ears so quickly. Sure enough, people are very interested in these kinds of "gossip," and they spread very fast.

However, the fact that Xiang Xun asked the question so directly shows that he didn't really consider himself an outsider.

Li Yi quickly composed himself, a perfectly timed look of surprise appearing on his face, before he put on a worried expression.

He sighed deeply and said, "Alas! To be honest, Brother Xiang... those rumors in the marketplace were indeed baseless. But back then, I was young and impetuous, eager to make a name for myself, so I resolutely left home to join the army, abandoning all personal feelings... I never imagined that after so many years, someone would dredge up this old story and make it known to everyone..."

His voice was full of regret and helplessness, as if the past was too painful to recall.

Upon hearing this, Xiang Xun raised his eyebrows high and then laughed loudly, "So it really is true... But it's nothing, love between men and women is only human nature."

As he spoke, his smile faded slightly, and he patted Li Yi on the shoulder, "Your sister-in-law has been a widow for several years and has no children. She is already a free woman. In an ordinary family, even if she remarried to her husband's uncle, no one would say anything."

"But we are both in high positions, and many people inside and outside the court are watching our words and deeds, ready to seize any mistakes to attack us."

At this point, Xiang Xun's voice suddenly lowered, "I have learned that the Imperial Censor Zuo Chengsi wrote a memorial last night and sent it to the imperial court in Huainan."

"In the memorial, not only were rumors about you mentioned, but also, by taking advantage of your brother's taking a concubine, you were accused of 'forcibly seizing mountain women' when you led troops to conquer Qin and Feng. In addition, your brother's intention to have the people and merchants contribute funds to rebuild the market at Longjin Bridge was also attacked by Zuo Chengsi, who said that it went against the original intention of benefiting the people."

Li Yi's eyes flickered slightly after hearing this.

Speaking of which, this Imperial Censor Zuo Chengsi was practically an acquaintance of his.

When Li Yi first proposed the idea of ​​"suppressing Buddhism," Zuo Chengsi immediately jumped out to oppose it and was even harshly rebuked by Li Yi.

But when Li Yi began to reorganize the Imperial Guards and wanted to make an example of Meng Hanqing, the Left General of the Imperial Guards, Zuo Chengsi spoke out in support of the matter.

As for impeaching himself now... Censors have the power to report rumors and go directly to the emperor's ears. It is their duty to investigate and impeach the mistakes of officials. There is nothing to say about it.

It must have been quite a feat for Zuo Chengsi, who managed to piece together a few "crimes" for himself.

In a flash, Li Yi cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for your warning, Brother Xiang!"

"Between you and me, there's no need for formalities."

Xiang Xun waved his hand slightly and said, "But my brother, there is no need to worry. The things Zuo Chengsi impeached you for are all baseless speculations. When the time comes, my brother can just write a letter to the emperor explaining the inside story."

(End of this chapter)