Chapter 1 The Trouble

Things were troublesome. Even without considering the possibility of veiled criticism, Zhao Jiu knew from the start that things were troublesome.

The reason was simple enough.

First, based on Hu Yin's experience of almost being drowned by his parents at birth and then being adopted by his uncle Hu An’guo, coupled with his notoriously bad temper, nine out of ten of the accusations in this memorial were true... Hu Mingzhong (Hu Yin’s courtesy name) couldn't possibly be properly serving his biological parents as parents.

And considering that this fellow was already thirty-five or six years old, there must have been countless experiences and grounds for accusation between him and his parents that could not be concealed, and these accusations were already widely known in the villages of Fujian.

Secondly, filial piety was extremely strict in this era, especially for officials. In later generations, Hu Yin's situation would be forgiven by public opinion due to his background, but at present, it was unlikely to be recognized by public opinion... or even further, it would be no problem to say that it was directly illegal.

It must be known that even he, Zhao the official, was supporting three empress dowagers as a facade.

Find someone to interview the Retired Emperor, the Daoist Emperor, at the Shaolin Temple, and the Daoist Emperor would definitely say that he only felt gratitude towards the official.

If asked a few more questions, he would shed tears and talk about the tragic events in Wuguo City that he was too embarrassed to mention in his memoirs, and then point out how Zhao the official's act of bringing him back to enjoy the influence of Buddhism was an act of filial piety that moved the heavens.

Frankly speaking, thinking of this, Zhao Jiu roughly felt that this matter was probably not a veiled criticism, but a real impeachment against Hu Yin.

After all, to put it bluntly, who was he afraid of now? Which of the domestic opposition forces could still make a sound in front of him?

Although Zhao Jiu knew that the experience of serving as an official in the court, the organizational form of private schools, and the natural aversion and opposition to the Northern Expedition in Jiangnan as a major tax base meant that an opposition faction did exist in the southeastern region of the lower Yangtze River, he could not dump all the dirty water on their heads.

That group of people had not yet evolved to the point of being an opposition party in later generations.

Otherwise?

Who was the leader of this school of neo-Confucianism, Jiangnan, and retired officials?

Li Gang, or Liu Dazhong? It couldn't be Xu Jingheng, could it? In fact, Xu Jingheng, Lu Haowen's old partner and a great hero in the early years of Jianyan, had much more influence in the southeast than Liu Dazhong.

Would Xu Jingheng pull this stunt on him at this time?

Moreover, who would provide stable funding for this opposition faction?

How to maintain the transportation network?

Had the Southern Newspaper, after all this effort, even come out yet?

What were these people trying to gain by provoking him at this time?

What's more, there was Lu Yihao!

To take ten thousand steps back, even if there was such a person secretly funding and instigating this matter, and it really was a veiled criticism, it was likely to be his personal act... similar to Wang Ciweng's case, a lone wolf committing the crime.

Therefore, the key to this matter actually lay in how to save Hu Yin.

It must be known that Hu Yin, as the Minister of Works, had long been regarded by Zhao Jiu as not really managing the ministry due to the lack of financial resources for large-scale construction in the court, and had actually become the general person in charge and liaison for the preparatory work for the Northern Expedition.

All the surplus money and grain went directly to the Ministry of Works, and the expansion and distribution of military production capacity, the construction and investment in warehouses, the repair and connection of roads, and the arrangement and adjustment of troop and civilian labor mobilization plans were almost all his responsibility to coordinate and arrange.

If this was last year, it would have been fine. At that time, there was no money at all, and Hu Yin had no work to do. If such a thing really happened, it would be fine to replace him... Chen Gui, Liu Ji, and Lin Jingmo could all do it.

But now, with the financial wealth that the court had gained by almost draining the pond to catch all the fish, many tasks had already begun. To let Hu Yin leave at this time, was it just Hu Yin's problem?

In early summer, the weather was not overly hot. Zhao Jiu sat in the stone pavilion until dusk before getting up... In fact, he had made up his mind from the beginning that Hu Mingzhong's temporary advance or retreat was irrelevant, and even if he was being subjected to veiled criticism, it didn't matter. Hadn't he endured things for so many years? But the problem was that he would never allow this matter to shake and affect the overall situation of the Northern Expedition, whether it was carefully planned or accidental.

However, Zhao Jiu also knew very well that this matter was really difficult to handle, because Hu Yin would face the pressure of the entire society, and he was afraid that a stubborn character like him might not be able to withstand this bone-melting, gold-dissolving pressure.

"Thank you, Zhengfu, for delivering this to Hu Mingzhong, and then tell him..."

After Zhao Jiu got up, he directly handed the accusing document to Yang Yizhong, who had appeared beside him at some point, but halfway through his words, he felt that he was being redundant, and after a long while, he could only give a self-deprecating smile. "Just give this to Hu Mingzhong, and he will understand."

Yang Yizhong nodded slightly, stepped forward to take the document, and without even looking at it, he folded it up and put it away, then stepped back and strode out – Hu Yin, as the Minister of Works, had long been given a residence in the northern part of Jingyuan, and Hu An’guo, his son, and even Hu An’guo's wives and concubines who came later, all lived there together.

Leaving the palace at this time to go home was conveniently on the way.

Thus, not to mention Zhao Jiu's thoughts, only to say that Yang Yizhong arrived at the Hu residence, Hu Yin had indeed just returned from the southern office not long ago. The two men exchanged greetings, were led to the hall, and without any extra polite words, Yang Yizhong handed over the document:

"The official instructed this humble official to deliver this to Minister Hu."

Hu Yin took it under the lamp and opened it in his hand. After a slight glance, he completely understood, but his expression did not change at all, and he just pondered in silence.

After a while, seeing that the other party had nothing to say, Yang Yizhong also stood up and said, "The official's oral instruction has been carried out, and this humble official will take his leave."

Only at this time did Hu Mingzhong raise his head, but he seriously inquired, "May I ask Commander Yang, does the official have any other words to convey to me?"

"He only said to give this to Minister Hu, and the minister will understand on his own." Yang Yizhong replied with cupped hands.

Hu Yin nodded, and also stood up, but he offered the document with both hands and directly handed it over, "Please relay to the official that this subject already knows about this matter."

Yang Yizhong was stunned for a moment, but he still took the document, acknowledged, and then, with a belly full of doubts, regardless of the late hour, he returned to the palace to return the document.

Regardless of how Yang Zhengfu made the exchange with Zhao, the official, only to say that Hu Mingzhong returned the document, knowing that he might encounter the biggest setback in his life, but he did not reveal any emotions. He first returned to the study, wrote a few simple letters, sent them out, and then calmly had his meal, without mentioning it to his adoptive father or adoptive brother.

After finishing his meal, he went straight back to the study and continued to deal with the official documents he had brought back from the office.

The next day, there was no abnormality, and he calmly went to the office across from Xuande Tower to handle official business.

However, no matter how determined Zhao Jiu was, or how aware Hu Yin was, what was coming was bound to come... Those things could not be concealed, because even if the document was given to Zhao, the official, the several accusing people were all alive and well. Moreover, since this matter had already taken the path of impeachment, the accusing people would also exchange information with their fellow villagers and friends early on, to prepare for public opinion.

Therefore, although Zhao, the official, tried early on this day to directly cut off this matter from the Ministry of Justice, he still could not withstand the gradual spread of related words and impeachment content between the officialdom and the Imperial College.

Three days later, as the relevant details of Hu Yin's impiety gradually received universal proof from the Fujian people in Beijing, even the common people were stirred up... Everyone knew that the official was being deceived, and that Minister Hu Yin of the Ministry of Works was an extremely shameless person. How could he hold this position?

Under the surging momentum, almost everyone wanted to be the Minister of Justice!

At this time, Zhao Jiu also received a formal report from the Ministry of Justice that these people who had submitted the memorial were indeed the same group of people who had previously accused the foreign temples, all of whom were scholars in Beijing who had connections with Fujian.

The source of the specific materials they used to file the accusations was also very clear, and it was a Jianzhou person named Liu Mianzhi... This person was a true hometown friend and acquaintance of Hu Yin and his father Hu An’guo, and also a famous young neo-Confucian scholar in Fujian. At the same time, he also had a good relationship with Liu Ziyu's second younger brother, Liu Ziyi. It was this well-known figure who had personally witnessed Hu Yin's failure to pay respects to his biological father and mother in his hometown in his early years. At that time, he had publicly criticized Hu Yin's faults in his hometown, almost causing a break with the Hu family... But Hu Yin later went to the Imperial College and became a high official, and Hu An’guo also came to Tokyo. Liu Mianzhi happened to be a true neo-Confucian scholar who hated the imperial examination and devoted himself to studying, so the matter was dropped.

Then, about a few days ago, someone attended a routine gathering among Fujian villagers, during which someone mentioned the outstanding figures among the Jianzhou villagers, first mentioning Hu An’guo and his son Hu Yin, and then naturally someone mentioned Liu Mianzhi.

Unexpectedly, someone then said that Liu Mianzhi could have entered the capital and become an official, and that Lu Benzhong, the red person beside the official, had recommended him. The reason why he had been delayed until now and was still a commoner was simply because of Hu Yin... Then others remembered the past entanglements, and they took the opportunity to open up this topic, which then triggered serious dissatisfaction from one of the people who had participated in the Imperial College's petition, leading to on-the-spot discussions and ultimately directly leading to the Kaiyuan Gate petition incident.

In other words, Ma Shen's meaning was very clear that this matter was a spontaneous and sudden uproar in Tokyo. It was an accident that had nothing to do with Jiangnan, neo-Confucianism, those retired officials, the Retired Emperor, or any veiled criticism... Please, the official, do not speculate or implicate others.

In response, Zhao Jiu did not have too much speculation or implication. He had similar guesses before, but at that time, he guessed from the perspective of the court situation and the size and organizational strictness of the opposition forces, while the information submitted by Ma Shen verified his ideas from another perspective - judging from the dates and the circle of friends of these people, it was indeed a group of Fujian people inside Tokyo City who had made a fuss, and there was no connection with the opposition forces in the southeast in terms of time and interpersonal relationships.

Moreover, Zhao Jiu also vaguely remembered that Lu Benzhong had indeed publicly recommended this person, thinking that this person was truly engaged in scholarship and could be transformed into the original school, but Liu Mianzhi did not know whether it was because of the school or he really did not want to become an official, but he refused directly anyway.

Of course, even if everything matched, Zhao Jiu still ordered Yang Yizhong to follow up and verify again, and then he patiently waited for the event to develop and change on its own.

Speaking of which, the Ministry of Justice issued a formal document to the accusing people to clear their names, allowing those people to move freely... There was no way to do this, and there was no reason to implicate the innocent, even if Zhao Jiu hated these people so much that his teeth itched, he had to admit that they were innocent... But in this way, the truth of Hu Yin's impiety was verified from the official perspective.

The remarks relayed in the accusing documents, that is, the remarks of the great Confucian Liu Mianzhi criticizing Hu Yin's impiety, could withstand the test of the court's judicial organs.

Then, in a slightly dull atmosphere, after a day, Li Guang, the Censor-in-Chief, took the lead, and almost all the censors of the Censorate formally submitted memorials, formally impeaching Hu Yin, the Minister of Works, for being involved in a case and accused of being unfilial, and demanding that Hu Yin make an explanation.

This was also a matter of course. Li Guang and his subordinates were fulfilling their duties.

Not only that, Ma Shen, after sorting out the case files, also reported the matter in the name of the Ministry of Justice. It is worth mentioning that this was also Ma Shen fulfilling his duties.

For a time, impeachment memorials were presented one after another, reaching the imperial presence.

Next, according to political rules, Hu Yin should submit a memorial to defend himself and resign to prove his innocence.

This was the situation that Zhao Jiu was most worried about from the beginning... No one had done anything wrong, and there was no major political conspiracy. On the contrary, it seemed that almost everyone in this matter was fulfilling their duties under political rules and moral rules, and even those who had filed the accusation seemed to be blameless, but the equally innocent Hu Yin had to pay a political price for it, even if this might affect the court's preparations for the Northern Expedition.

This had nothing to do with political opposition. This was the opposition between ethical laws and human feelings in the feudal era.

However, Hu Yin did not resign, nor did he defend himself, but just buried himself in his work.

But this further aroused the anger of the court, the scholars, the public opinion, and even the common people, because clinging to one's position was the most taboo thing for scholar-officials in this era, and it was itself a moral dilemma second only to impiety.

For a time, even the Imperial College students who had only discussed it in private before began to accuse the court bulletin of shielding high officials and not publicly publishing relevant memorials, and even began to post notices in the Imperial College, directly questioning Professor Hu An’guo... But at the same time, Zhao, the official, still maintained an extremely strange silence.

This seemed to explain why Hu Yin was able to be so fearless.

And in the next few days, in the court, perhaps because they sensed the attitude of Zhao, the official, and because the decapitated head was still being passed around for public display between the gates, there were some scruples above and below.

The impeachment memorials also gradually became sparse.

It seemed that the matter would end there.

"This matter should have ended long ago!"

In mid-May, south of Xuande Tower, because the official had moved the Department of State Affairs and the Privy Council into the palace, the original Eastern and Western Offices had in fact become divided into the public pavilion and the six ministries. On this day, at noon, the weather was extremely hot, and Goulong Ruyuan, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, was still sweating profusely after drinking a bowl of takeaway ice porridge. However, he suddenly slammed the table in public, his expression agitated and indignant. "Ethics are nothing more than human feelings. These people don't know the beginning and end of Minister Hu's matter... If they were almost drowned that day, it wouldn't be them, but they are just saying empty words there! It's like sitting in the shade and presumptuously disliking the delivery man who delivers the takeaway under the sun for spilling the soup!"

This was the Ministry of Works, and as soon as this was said, there was naturally a constant stream of agreement.

However, while everyone agreed, they couldn't help but despise him in their hearts... This Vice Minister Goulong's level was unquestionable, and he was the fastest to learn and promote the new numbers and large forms that the official had given, but this person's character was also famous.

Not to mention the two times he had flattered the official before, but now he was actually going to flatter the head of the Ministry of Works?

So what if he flattered? Everyone was flattering, but the problem was that, looking at his appearance, it seemed that he really regarded Minister Hu's matter as his own... To put it bluntly, you could only go up if Minister Hu left, right?

What were you pretending for?

You were pretending to be real.

On the other side, Goulong Ruyuan, seeing the officials around him being so perfunctory, how could he not understand what they were thinking in their hearts? But his mind was full of thoughts that he could not possibly tell them, and he shook his head again and again, and then stomped his feet and prepared to go back to work.

However, at the moment when Goulong Ruyuan turned around and entered the office, there was a burst of clamor on the street in front of him, startling this Vice Minister Goulong, who shuddered and quickly looked back:

"What happened?!"

The servants on the left and right had already rushed out to see, and after a moment, one person ran back first, covered in sweat, and then rushed into the courtyard of the Ministry of Works and hurriedly said, "Something big has happened! A group of Fujian Imperial College students have gone to Xuande Tower to petition, demanding that the Department of State Affairs severely punish our Minister Hu!"

Goulong Ruyuan's face turned pale, and he was stunned on the spot, and then he staggered, almost falling in the corridor of the office... This also left the officials of the Ministry of Works speechless for a while.

They really did not know whether this Left Vice Minister was really worried about Minister Hu, or whether his acting skills were so superb?

And Goulong Ruyuan came back to his senses, stood firm, but sighed, and then shook his head repeatedly, and then he did not say a word, and really hurriedly turned into his office and closed the door to work.

At the same time, in the courtyard of the Ministry of Works, the central office, although the doors had been wide open all the time, there was no movement throughout.

The other officials of the Ministry of Works, including the newly appointed Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, He Zhu, looked at the door of the central office where Minister Hu was, and then looked at the closed door of the Left Vice Minister Goulong, and also felt bored, so they could only look at each other, and then quickly finished their extra meal, and then went back to work with their own thoughts.

Speaking of which, the original Zhao, the official, was almost going to use the prestige of the seven years of being the Son of Heaven to deal with the matter by cooling it down, but the group of Imperial College students was really full of vitality, and once they became dissatisfied, they would directly petition, which made it impossible to avoid this matter... Even Zhao, the official, after experiencing the Chen Dong unjust case, had to take this matter seriously with twelve points of seriousness.

The effect of the Imperial College students and the petition was indeed immediate. The next day, Hu Yin formally issued a self-defense statement, one copy for each of the Department of State Affairs and the Privy Council. The former was for his superiors and for the officialdom to see, and the latter was a routine matter, which required the Privy Council to forward it to the official for review.

At the same time, Hu An’guo also posted his signed reply behind the shadow wall of the Imperial College, explaining the matter from his own perspective.

However, even the replies of this father and son seemed very intense, and there was no intention of compromise at all.

According to Hu Yin, his hometown friend, the great Confucian Liu Mianzhi, criticized him for not being able to have a 'harmonious and comfortable (形容母子和睦)' relationship with his 'stepmother' at home, which was the truth. But the problem was that 'harmonious and comfortable' was something that should only exist between a mother and son. He had been abandoned since he was a child, and he had his own parents and younger brothers (referring to the Hu An’guo family). How could he be harmonious and comfortable with his 'stepmother', that is, his father Hu An’guo's third sister-in-law?

He said a lot, certainly more than this, but the most important thing was this - Hu Yin fundamentally denied that he was the son of his biological father and mother.

At the same time, although Hu An’guo's reply to the Imperial College students was much more euphemistic, he also pointed out that he was only twenty-five years old when he adopted Hu Yin with the permission of Hu Yin's grandmother, and he had wives and concubines, so it was impossible for him to adopt him for the purpose of continuing the family line... Rather, it was an adoption of an abandoned infant after Hu Yin's biological father and mother abandoned him.

In other words, Hu An’guo also supported Hu Yin's remarks. He also believed that Hu Yin was an abandoned child of his biological parents, and the two sides had no direct relationship from the beginning. The new relationship was the relationship of 'stepfather, stepmother' and 'nephew' established from him.

However, this explanation only sorted out and explained what everyone knew, and then put it out in the open, and it could not convince everyone... Because what everyone essentially cared about was Hu Mingzhong's behavior of knowing that that was his biological mother but not treating her as his biological mother, rather than abandonment or adoption.

Did they really think that Liu Mianzhi was so close to the Hu family that he did not know the inside story?

Moreover, Hu Yin still did not mention any words of resignation, not even a nominal resignation to avoid suspicion.

Therefore, the explanation was handed over to the Department of State Affairs, and the Department of State Affairs was in a dilemma. When the public document was transmitted to the officials and the Imperial College students, the heat of public opinion did not diminish. Even some officials were angered by Hu Yin's attitude. On the other side, after the Privy Council handed the memorial over to Zhao, the official, they were prepared for Zhao, the official, to secretly summon the chancellors for discussion, but Zhao, the official, had as bad a temper as Hu Mingzhong. He did not even meet the chancellors, but only said that he would formally discuss the matter at the Grand Assembly in a few days.

Of course, not meeting was also an attitude. Just like not expressing his attitude before, everyone had long seen that Zhao, the official, was going to protect Hu Yin at all costs. This move was probably also meant to put pressure on the chancellors.

Speaking of which, since this matter first came out, Zhao, the official's, attitude had shrouded everyone in the court like a shadow... And to be honest, Hu Yin's life experience was indeed excusable... Therefore, not to mention Zhao Ding, Liu Ji, and others, even Ma Shen, Li Guang, and others had only done their duty to this point and did not want to bite him to death.

As for Zhang Jun's group, there was no need to say more... It was just Liu Ziyu, whose two younger brothers, one was a close friend of Liu Mianzhi, and the other was a close friend of Hu Yin, who was a little careful at this time.

But the problem was that the root of this matter was not in the court, but in public opinion, and Zhao, the official, could not block the mouths of the people. Otherwise, where did the Imperial College students' petition come from?

In fact, compared to the silence and tension in the court, the Imperial College was exceptionally lively for several days. Many Imperial College students who had drunk too much plum wine wrote articles criticizing Hu An’guo, supporting the Fujian scholars' actions to rectify the situation.

This was also understandable, because not everyone could encounter Hu Yin's experience and still survive, and they could not empathize with Hu Yin.

Moreover, the younger they were, the more vigorous their energy was, and the more they enjoyed the pleasure of challenging authority!

To take down a great Confucian like Hu An’guo, an important minister like Hu Yin, and even remotely take down the officials and the official, while the officials and the official, and even the two parties involved, could not easily respond, what a pleasant feeling this was?

Thus, for several days, public opinion was clamorous, but Zhao, the official, only kept his mouth shut, and Hu Yin and his son only issued an article each and did not discuss it further... But there would always be a day to give an explanation. On May 21, in the hot summer, the court held a Grand Assembly in Wende Hall, and all the officials below the chancellors were present.

Of course, the court had many things to do. Even if Hu Yin held the position of Minister and even if this matter was raging, it would not be appropriate to hold a Grand Assembly every ten days specifically for him.

Sure enough, after the Grand Assembly began, the first thing discussed was the issue of expanding the army. Since the court's finances were slightly better, it was natural to continue expanding the army according to the original plan, and it would be best to directly maintain the scale of 300,000 Imperial Guards... Even if it could not be done immediately, it should be done in that direction.

However, this matter still caused some disputes, and the key was still the issue of east or west... The last time the army was expanded, the main quotas were given to Guanzhong and the cavalry, and this time, many people wanted to add them to the Central Army and the Jingdong direction out of a natural instinct for balance.

As for Zhao Jiu, although he had roughly made up his mind in his heart that, if possible, he would further tilt the quotas to the Guanzhong direction to ensure that he could quickly concentrate superior forces to open up the situation after the Northern Expedition, he was also a little worried whether he was leaving too few troops for Yue Fei's side... Therefore, this was destined to be a major event that would have to be pulled many times.

And in the end, the discussion lasted for a long time, and most people did not conceal their concerns about the overemphasis on the Guanzhong direction. This result also forced Zhao Jiu to further deliberate.

This matter could not be done for a while, but the next thing was simple, which was to say that the many hostages sent last year, after mastering a certain language and becoming familiar with the military discipline and customs, should be sent to the military academy and incorporated into the army. Regarding this matter, no one was willing to send these nobles from Dangxiang, Tubo, Mongolia, and even Japan to any general. Everyone insisted that it was most appropriate for them to stay in the Imperial Guards beside the official.

Zhao Jiu had nothing to say.

Next was the issue of Goryeo - the scale of the entrepot trade there was getting bigger and bigger, and things were gradually being concealed from the people.

Neither side could be concealed, neither the Song Dynasty nor the Jin Dynasty.

The upper echelons of the Jin Dynasty were not fools. Of course, they knew that engaging in this kind of transaction in the south, where gold and silver were extremely scarce, was providing funds to the enemy.

As a result, Yanjing immediately issued a ban, but the problem was, how could this kind of thing be banned? And was it the border trade between Liaodong, the area outside the Great Wall with the weakest control in Yanjing, and Goryeo?

Moreover, to put it bluntly, as the two largest and possibly the wealthiest countries in the world, the trade potential between the two countries should have been an astronomical figure, and there was indeed a huge demand for trade... In history, the two countries fought and made peace, and the Huai River basin was also devastated by Du Chong's decision to breach the Yellow River, but this did not delay Xiacai and Shouchun from directly developing into a city model similar to Budapest due to trade... This shows the great potential for trade between the two countries.

For this level of trade, not to mention that the Song Dynasty court was reluctant to give up, the Jin Dynasty's dignitaries were also reluctant to give up, and the Goryeo people had only eaten a few months of profits, and they were probably even more reluctant to give up!

Therefore, after Yanjing's ban was issued, Goryeo nominally no longer exported silk and porcelain to Liaodong, but it could not withstand the continuous flow of silk and porcelain still leaving the port from Jingdong, and then mysteriously appearing from the Yalu River and being sent all the way to Hebei.

It could not be stopped.

As a result, Yanjing quickly changed its strategy and directly put pressure on Goryeo. Now, after being threatened, Goryeo immediately came to Tokyo to ask how to respond.

The result of the discussion was also very direct. The Goryeo people were afraid of the Jin Dynasty, but they were not afraid of the Song Dynasty? Moreover, didn't the Goryeo people, regardless of whether they were from the Kaesong or Pyongyang factions, eat their own share in this trade?

Therefore, after a brief discussion, the result was that they should maintain a high-pressure posture and demand that the Goryeo people continue to maintain trade unconditionally!

However, in addition to this, some people suggested that they could consider smuggling directly from Jingdong, Shaanxi, and even by sea from Liaodong.

This was of course feasible.

But it was a strategy that could not be adopted unless it was absolutely necessary, because once this was done, they could only use the army to do it, and in this way, it would be equivalent to actively opening up a source of income for the army, which would cause severe wear and tear on the army's combat effectiveness.

The matter of Goryeo was decided so fiercely and quickly.

And after this matter, there was also a discussion about continuing the rotation of troops in the second half of the year... It was also mixed.

But no matter what, after several matters were discussed one by one, and there was finally nothing to say, it was finally time for the matter that was not big in itself, but that everyone wanted to avoid, but no one could easily avoid.

At this point, the originally blazing Wende Hall gradually became quiet... The chancellors and the people of the Censorate were actually a little nervous. They knew very well that they could not fight against Zhao, the official, in this hall, and no one was thinking of fighting against Zhao, the official, to the death.

Therefore, as long as Zhao, the official, showed his attitude, Hu Yin was actually being protected today.

But the problem was, even if he was protected, could it affect public opinion?

If it could not affect public opinion, would Hu Mingzhong have to continue working with a reputation of being unfilial?

Would this not affect the increasingly busy daily operations of the Ministry of Works?

Moreover, if the protection was too ugly, what would the other officials think?

Was Hu Mingzhong worth that much?

Sometimes, making appropriate trade-offs seemed to be beneficial to the overall situation.

However, those who were familiar with this official knew that he was usually euphemistic and tolerant, but when it came to the time when he needed to be fiercely persistent, no one could control him.

"Regarding the matter of the Imperial College students petitioning to impeach Minister Hu Yin of the Ministry of Works, what do you have to say?" Seeing that no one was speaking, Zhao Jiu, sitting on the throne, slightly tilted his body and took the initiative to inquire, while also driving the hard wings on both sides of his futou to vibrate in the air.

"This subject has already submitted a self-defense statement to the Department of State Affairs." Hu Yin stepped forward, his words were decisive and his attitude was firm.

The hall was silent, and only some heavy breathing could be heard faintly... Under the helplessness, Zhao Ding, the Prime Minister of the Department of State Affairs, first sighed slightly in his heart, and then gritted his teeth and stepped forward, preparing to respond.

However, before Prime Minister Zhao could open his mouth, Zhao, the official, sitting above, suddenly took out a silk handkerchief from his arms, and then opened it in public, causing everyone to be puzzled.

"Prime Minister Zhao, wait a moment." Zhao Jiu spread out the silk handkerchief, revealing the dense writing on it, but he was not flustered and spoke first. "Speaking of which, just yesterday, this humble servant received a document from the Shaolin Temple, written by the Retired Emperor, the Daoist Emperor. It was sent from Mount Shaoshi a few days ago when the criticism of Hu Qing's unfilial conduct was most intense in the Imperial College... The Retired Emperor, the Daoist Emperor, said that he was doing well in Mount Shaoshi, but it was a bit deserted, and he was somewhat blaming this humble servant for not visiting him for a long time, and that this humble servant had not fulfilled his filial piety... What do you Qing think?"

In an instant, the hall became so quiet that a pin could be heard dropping, and there was no sound of breathing - I don't know how many people were dumbfounded, and I don't know how many people suddenly realized.

Even Hu Yin, who had always been as firm as a stinky stone, raised his head in a daze and stared at Zhao, the official, on the throne.

Staring at Zhao, the official, was not just one Hu Yin. Below Zhao Ding, I don't know how many people were staring at this official in a daze.

Let's say that this matter does not require Minister Lin to think carefully, but even the other imperial elites in the hall instantly realized:

It must be known that other things are not clear, but only one thing is known to everyone, that is, the Retired Emperor, the Daoist Emperor, of Mount Shaoshi, is absolutely impossible to have the courage to write this kind of document, and send it directly to Zhao, the official!

Then, why would such a document appear?

Of course, it was someone else who forced him to write it.

Who has the ability to force him to write such a thing without worrying about being given a pound of arsenic one day?

Of course, it was Zhao, the official, who was expressionless on the throne at this time.

Then may I ask if Zhao, the official, is crazy, putting the reputation of being unfilial on himself for no reason?

Of course, he was not crazy either, because only Zhao, the official, could personally take the stage to perform a ruse, so that his confidant Minister Hu could escape.

To put it bluntly, he was relying on his own face to mock, and to take the matter on himself... Aren't you saying that so-and-so is unfilial? It doesn't matter, this humble servant is also unfilial! Are you going to point fingers? Is there any conspiracy? Is it a veiled criticism?

Then, with this crazy energy, relying on the absolute authority of this official at the moment, I am afraid that whether it is the Imperial College students or the scholar-officials, they will immediately shut up, and the common people who do not understand the inside story will be happy to continue to ridicule Zhao, the official, secretly.

But in any case, Hu Mingzhong would be protected.

Doing so, compared to directly forcing the ministers to come forward and protect Hu Yin with the power of the monarch, the advantage was that the public opinion against Hu Mingzhong would disappear and shift, and the ministers would not be scapegoated.

The disadvantage was that Zhao, the official's, reputation would probably be damaged a bit more.

But it was obvious that Zhao, the official, did not care.

Moreover, if it was Hu Yin and the several ministers, they would probably be grateful to the official in their hearts.

Thus, the hall was silent for a long time, and everyone's thoughts turned quickly, those as fast as Lin Jingmo and Qu Duan, those as slow as Zhang Jun and Liu Ziyu, and in the end, even Wang De tasted something.

But still no one dared to speak easily.

Finally, it was Ma Shen, the Minister of Justice, who knew that this matter had nothing to do with the Retired Emperor, the Daoist Emperor, who stepped forward and angrily broke the silence: "Why did the official have to do this?!"

"Yes, why did this humble servant have to do this?" Zhao Jiu fiddled with the silk handkerchief in his hand and replied with a sigh.