Chapter 532: With just a few words taught by Lin Chong, I put on the scarlet robe
"My brother...my brother...how could it be like this...how could it be like this! Ahhhhh!"
A loud cry came from Funing Palace.
Queen Mother Xiang, who was in her fifties, fell on the couch and wailed loudly.
She was originally sitting upright on the couch, looking graceful and dignified, but now she was shocked to hear the bad news. She was so sad that her phoenix crown tilted, her wrinkles were deep, and the white hair on her head could not hide it. She showed her age and lost all her grace.
The maids and chamberlains around me were all anxious: "Saint! A saint must take care of his body!"
They were all old men in the former palace of the Empress Dowager, who had been with her since she was the empress. They were still called saints and were loyal to her. At this time, seeing their master extremely sad, they burst into tears.
Finally, the Queen Mother managed to regain some composure and said in a groaning tone: "Where's Brother Eleven... call him... to arrest the murderer... to arrest the murderer!!"
The chamberlain hurriedly left and went to call the official's house.
The "Eleventh Brother" mentioned by the Queen Mother was none other than Zhao Ji.
Members of the royal family of the Song Dynasty all addressed the princes as "brother." For example, Zhao Gou was Zhao Ji's ninth son, and Zhao Ji called Zhao Gou "Nineth Brother." Zhao Ji was the eleventh son of Song Shenzong, and he addressed the Queen Mother as Zhao Ji.
He is called "Eleventh Brother". Similarly, the brothers of the prince are also called "Brother", regardless of their age, they are distinguished according to their ranking.
But under normal circumstances, after the prince ascends the throne, he should be called "official", but whether to express intimacy or to emphasize something, Empress Dowager Xiang always calls Zhao Ji "Eleventh Brother".
The chamberlain had just left, and before he even arrived for half a quarter of an hour, an announcement came: "The official's family has arrived!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a young man with a handsome and elegant face, a gentle and restrained temperament walked quickly into the palace, and then fell on the ground: "Give my regards to the empress!"
Empress Dowager Xiang looked at the young official who had single-handedly supported the throne, and said sadly: "Brother Eleven...I am...I am...ahhhhhh!"
As she talked, she broke down in tears and couldn't even speak.
Zhao Ji kowtowed repeatedly, and when he raised his head, his forehead was red, his eyes were even redder, and big tears came out: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."
Seeing that she was crying with him without saying any words of condolence, the Empress Dowager felt better.
It was her biological brother who died, and it was not someone else who died. The more she said empty comforting words at this time, the angrier she would feel.
At this time, he took a few deep breaths, looked at the official who was grieving with him, and slowly said to the Queen Mother: "What is going on? Who dares to be so bold as to harm the current first-grade county prince?"
Zhao Ji sobbed and lowered his head again: "My queen, please take care of your body... I am incompetent... I just heard about it... I don't know what happened..."
Seeing that Zhao Ji was so obedient and that there were no ears or eyes in the palace, Xiang Dowager's expression became more and more relaxed and he said in a cold voice: "Summon Zeng Bu into the palace!"
The one who should be recruited most is Prime Minister Zhang Dun, but Queen Mother Xiang is always a little wary of that old and tough guy, and she doesn't want to see that cold old face at this time. And under Zhang Dun, Han Zhongyan,
Her character was too cowardly, and what she wanted from the Queen Mother was to catch the murderer quickly. In her opinion, Zeng Bu was the most suitable person.
Zeng Bu was born in the Zeng family of Nanfeng, and produced nineteen Jinshi scholars in more than seventy years. The most famous one is his elder brother Zeng Gong, one of the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties. But Zeng Bu was actually even more extraordinary politically.
In the early years, like Zhang Dun, he was a young official promoted by Wang Anshi for the purpose of reform. Unfortunately, the differences within the new party became more and more serious. The conflict between him and Zhang Dun was about to break out during the Zhe Zong Dynasty. When the new emperor was elected, he refuted
It was Zeng Bu who said that Zhang Dun said, "The frivolous King Duan cannot rule the world."
Therefore, it is now clear to both the government and the public that Zeng Bu is not only a close confidant of the Queen Mother and the officials, but as long as Zhang Dun is dismissed as prime minister, he will definitely be the new father-in-law and will have great power.
The reserve prime minister walked into the palace, but he was a thin old man. His appearance was just correct, but he had a shrewd and capable look, giving people the aura of being able to trust him with everything.
At this time, Queen Mother Xiang straightened up her manners and sat on the couch again. Zhao Ji stood beside him, seeming to be immersed in grief.
After the salute, Zeng Bu took the initiative and said: "Please rest assured, Queen Mother, I will arrest the murderer quickly and bring him to justice!"
If it were for other things, Zeng Bu would be relieved to make this promise to the Queen Mother, but it was about her own brother who died miserably. Seeing that Zeng Bu was very calm, not at all like Zhao Ji, whose nose turned red from crying, she
Anger arose in his heart, his eyes were red and he said sternly: "Tell me, how are you going to catch the murderer?"
Zeng Bu hesitated. This incident indeed happened too suddenly. The first thing he considered along the way was whether Zhang Dun would use it to make a fuss about it. The second thing he thought about was whether the old and new parties would develop again.
What kind of confrontation is ultimately the case itself.
The key is that if he didn't think about the first two points, he didn't think about the last one.
It's just that this person was also an official in high and low positions, with rich experience. He immediately led the conversation and said: "Reporting to the Queen Mother, now the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple and Kaifeng Mansion have all arrived at the prince's residence. Among them is Gongsun Zhao, the judge of Kaifeng Mansion, who has decided the case as follows.
God, if you catch the bad guys again and again, you will definitely be able to bring the thieves to justice and serve as a warning to others!"
When Empress Dowager Xiang heard this, all members of the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple and Kaifeng Mansion were dispatched, and the most prominent one was Gongsun Zhao. She thought about it carefully, but she had no impression of this person, so she couldn't help but ask:
"Can this Kaifeng judge really solve the case quickly and catch the culprit?"
Just as Zeng Bucang was about to continue his promise, Zhao Ji suddenly heard a sad voice in front of him: "Why don't you call Judge Gongsun to come and see you? It will also reassure the queen!"
Empress Dowager Xiang nodded immediately: "Yes, yes, call that judge into the palace. I want to ask carefully who is the thief who is so bold...and so cruel that he harmed my innocent brother!"
Zeng Bu did not want the Queen Mother and the officials to go beyond him and directly inquire about the case, but he could not stop it and could only stand aside and wait silently.
After waiting, I heard crying again, and saw that it was not Empress Dowager Xiang, but Zhao Ji.
Big drops of tears rolled down from the eyes of the young official. He wiped his tears while crying: "Seeing that the empress is sad, I can't help it anymore..."
The Empress Dowager Xiang's original sadness had subsided a lot, but when she saw Zhao Ji crying like this, she suddenly felt sad again: "My brother...my brother...cough cough cough!"
While crying, she started coughing violently again. Zhao Ji hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, you must take care of your body!"
The mother and son almost cried holding each other's hands. When Gongsun Zhao was brought into the palace, what they saw was this touching scene of mother's kindness and son's filial piety, and their hearts were moved.
The key is that the mother is not kind. Empress Dowager Xiang was not her biological mother in the first place, and now she is even more unwilling to keep her promise and return to power. Now that her own brother has died, the official family can still be so sad. This is really pure filial piety!
Gongsun Zhao looked at the expected Holy Lord and bowed respectfully. He wished he could put the official family in front, but he still had to say: "My lord, Sun Zhao, pays homage to the Queen Mother! Pays homage to the official family!"
Xiang Queen Mother suppressed her crying and raised her hand: "No courtesy! Raise your head and let me see!"
Gongsun Zhao looked up and saw that the judge was in his thirties, still young, with a frown and a cold face, and a faint feeling of sadness, and he suddenly became satisfied.
No one would dare to be beaming when encountering this kind of thing, but what Empress Dowager Xiang hates most now is that she is very calm and has nothing to do with herself. When she is sad, others will naturally be sad too. How can this judge have such emotions?
, it’s very good.
After calming down, he wiped his cheeks to the Queen Mother, calmed down his sad emotions again, and said calmly: "I am so sad that I have lost my dearest relative, and I have lost my composure so much that I made Judge Gongsun laugh!"
Gongsun Zhao thought he deserved it. In the past, he would have been silent in response, but now he said: "As the judge of Kaifeng Prefecture, I should find out the truth, apprehend the murderer, and punish the evil thief severely!"
When the Empress Dowager heard this, she felt it was a reassurance that she felt the same way. She nodded slightly and asked in a trembling voice: "When my brother... was hurt by a thief... was it painful?"
In Gongsun Zhao's mind, Xiang Zonghui merged with the rockery, with a ferocious expression that refused to rest in peace. He swallowed his death miserably, and then replied: "The murderer is cruel and has no conscience!"
Empress Dowager Xiang was emotionally touched, with a clear look of hatred in her eyes, and she gritted her teeth and said, "Have Judge Gongsun ever traced anything, and when will he be able to capture the murderer?"
Gongsun Zhaodao: "Before I entered the palace, I had already investigated the scene with the Ministry of Punishment and Dali Temple. All parties have opinions. The Kaifeng Mansion Office should work with the Ministry of Punishment and Dali Temple to do their best to capture the murderer and avenge the dead!"
When Empress Dowager Xiang heard this, she immediately thought of the infighting and internal strife in the court, restraining each other, and hurriedly said: "What Judge Gongsun said is absolutely true. You must work together to catch the murderer as soon as possible!"
…
Seeing the questions and answers, Zeng Bu next to him couldn't help but feel surprised.
He was a little worried before that Gongsun Zhao, who was always thorny, would behave inappropriately, contradict the Queen Mother, and be punished.
It's not that he valued Gongsun Zhao. Zeng Bu knew all the officials in Bianjing, big and small. He classified this so-called cold-faced judge as a capable official. He could do things, but he couldn't do anything if he didn't abide by the rules of officialdom
If you are called an official, you can only be regarded as a small official doing things.
In normal times, it would be no problem without Gongsun Zhao. The Song Dynasty was full of talents and it would still function without anyone. But now when faced with such an important case and various ministries passing the buck, it is very important to have the courage to rush to the front line. Zeng Bu must
Protect Ichigo.
Unexpectedly, the other party became enlightened and responded fluently to the Queen Mother, which saved him some energy.
At the same time, Zhao Ji looked at Gongsun Zhao carefully, and a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes, but it was fleeting.
At this time, no one paid attention to this official with a low sense of presence. They were all looking at the Queen Mother Xiang carefully.
Empress Dowager Xiang's mood had completely stabilized, and she looked at Gongsun Zhao with admiration: "Judge Gongsun is really a capable minister!"
Looking at his green robe again, I felt it was dazzling, so I simply used it to win people's hearts: "With Judge Gongsun's achievements, he should have been subdued long ago. What do Zeng Jixian think?"
Zeng Bu wanted to reward him, but he should wait until the case was solved before deciding. But since the Queen Mother said it, he could only say: "What the Queen Mother said is true. Judge Gongsun should obey Fei, why don't you thank him?"
Gongsun Zhao looked dazed for a while.
During his eight years in Kaifeng, how many cases he had investigated and how many murderers he had arrested, the Empress Dowager Xiang probably knew nothing about him.
At this time, he put on the scarlet robe with just a few words taught by Lin Chong. Although he knew that eight years of hard work was the foundation, he still felt a strong sense of absurdity in his heart.
Happy? Sad?
In the end, he could only prostrate himself to the ground: