Liu Jing closed his eyes and tidied up for a while, then stood up and walked out.
Manager Tao looked up and saw him and hurried over: "Master, do you still want to go out? It's going to rain again soon."
"I don't care if it rains anymore." Liu Jing glanced at the sky.
Manager Tao had no choice but to prepare a carriage according to Liu Jing's wishes.
The carriage left the mansion and headed all the way to Guangde Temple.
When we arrived at the gate of the temple, the rain had already fallen and the sky was as gloomy as midnight.
The temple door was closed, Liu Jing stepped forward and knocked.
After waiting for a while, a middle-aged monk opened the side door.
"Donor," he said, "it's getting late. Come back tomorrow."
Liu Jing hurriedly took two steps forward: "My surname is Liu, and I am Liu Jing, the minister of Honglu Temple. My wife and daughter are staying in the temple for a few days."
The monk looked at Liu Jing several times.
Liu Jing smiled bitterly, feeling helpless: "Something happened at home..."
The monk thought for a moment and opened the door for Liu Jing.
He also heard some things about the Liu family, and it was all cause and effect.
But to parents, an unworthy son is also a son.
The monk took Liu Jing to the guest room.
Guangde Temple is famous for its incense, but it is located in the city. Except for the pilgrims who do the temple, there are not many people staying in the temple.
Xu Miao and Liu Ping live in the northernmost room.
Liu Jing knocked on the door: "Madam, Ah Ping, it's me."
Aunt Xia heard the sound and hurriedly opened the door for Liu Jing.
Xu Miao was sitting behind the desk copying scriptures, and Liu Ping was studying the ink for her. When they saw Liu Jing coming, they all put down what they were doing.
"You," Liu Ping looked at his father and said in surprise, "you came here in the rain? You're even wet."
Xu Miao has already taken the handkerchief and wants to wipe it for Liu Jing.
Liu Jing stopped Xu Miao and took the handkerchief over: "It's all rainwater. I just wipe it off myself. Madam, please don't get it wet. Ah Ping, help your mother sit down first."
Liu Ping was very obedient and helped Xu Miao sit down as instructed.
Xu Miao did not argue with Liu Jing over these trivial matters. After sitting down, she looked at her husband quietly by the light of the candle.
The master looks very tired, which is inevitable.
The old man has stubble on his chin. He used to pay great attention to his appearance. No matter how busy or hard he was, he would never do this.
The master's eyes are obviously blue, and his temples are a little shiny.
Xu Miao looked carefully and saw clearly that they were a few white hairs.
I let out a long sigh in my heart.
It is said that children are debts, and parents are willing to shoulder these debts from the bottom of their hearts.
But it seems that they really can't afford this debt from Xun'er.
"How is the investigation in Shuntian Mansion?" Xu Miao handed the tea cup to Liu Jing and asked softly.
Liu Jing also sat down, slumped his shoulders, and shook his head slightly at the two mothers: "This afternoon, A Jian and Commander Wan found two gold bricks in the house, which were related to the late emperor's deposed prince Li Mi.
."
Xu Miao was stunned.
Liu Ping couldn't figure out the situation and quickly asked: "What do you mean? Is it good or bad?"
"I went to Shuntian Mansion, but I didn't see A Jian. I only chatted with Master Shan for a few words." Liu Jing pursed his lips. "Master Shan persuaded me several times. I heard what he meant was to let me
We give up on Xun'er. It involves Li Mi and affects the prince. Xun'er may..."
Although she was mentally prepared, Xu Miao's eyes were still red after hearing these words.
"I know that Xun'er is at fault because we didn't teach him well, but he, he is my son after all," Liu Jing choked, holding Xu Miao's hand and said, "I am just a minister of Honglu Temple.
I want to save him but I can't do anything, even A Jian can't do anything.
It’s state-owned and state-owned, and there’s nothing he can do about it, Ah Jian.
Madam, I am really conflicted.
I couldn't bear to let go of Xun'er, and I understand that Xun'er was terribly wrong. I, I..."
Xu Miao's tears streamed down.
Every word Liu Jing spoke spoke to her heart.
No matter how much a bastard a son is born after ten months of pregnancy, he will still feel sorry for him and blame himself for not educating him well.
Liu Ping also turned her head and sniffed.
She wanted to say, "My brother deserves it."
Her brother even gave her bad ideas.
But after all, they are brothers and sisters. Watching Liu Xun die in front of her eyes, it is impossible for her heart not to be shaken at all.
Liu Jing raised his hand, wiped his eyes with the heel of his palm, stained with tears, and then held Xu Miao's hand.
Wet tears fell on Xu Miao's hands, burning hot.
"Thinking about my whole life, I devoted myself to studying when I was young, and worked hard as an official after high school. I thought I had made a difference step by step, but I didn't expect that Xun'er..." Liu Jing shed tears.
Sadness comes from it.
This grief is true and heartfelt.
"Suddenly, madam, I suddenly don't know what I have been doing in the past few decades."
Xu Miao wanted to explain something to him, but when the words came to her lips, she didn't know what to say.
She has heard a lot of comfort in the past two days.
Ah Jian, Ah Ping, the Princess, and Aunt Xia took turns to untie her.
She has listened to it all, but how can she tell the master what she said?
She had to hold back for A-Jian's sake and not cause trouble for A-Jian with Xun'er's affairs, but could the master listen?
The master must understand all these great principles.
But in the human heart, in addition to principles, there are also emotions.
There is no doubt that my father-son affection for Xun'er is far greater than that for A-Jian.
Thinking like this, Xu Miao didn't say anything, she just shed tears together.
"I went back home just now. Xun'er's wife packed some things and was clamoring to go back to her parents' house, so I let her go."
"Their couple has only been married for a short time, and their relationship is just like that. Something happened to Xun'er, and it is only natural for her to want to distance herself."
"Maybe we can't tell it apart. I don't know. In the end, it depends on what the Holy One thinks."
"Your Majesty will not spare Xun'er lightly. Your Majesty treats the prince really..."
"I don't know what will happen to me. If the Holy Spirit is merciful, I will be demoted to a shabby nest. Otherwise, I will be deprived of my fame. If not, I will be exiled or even lose my head..."
Xu Miao felt her heart pounding loudly: "Master, don't say that, don't say that."
"Ajian went to see the saint in the afternoon. I wanted to ask him if he had any other news," Liu Jing said, "but he probably can't tell me casually. Madam, I don't want to embarrass Ajian. It's just a matter of fact.
To this day, I really don’t know what to do.”
Xu Miao cried and said: "Ajian has a hard mouth but a soft heart. If he can plead for mercy in front of the Holy Master, he will definitely do so. If he can't get it..."
Liu Jing didn't say anything for a while.
Based on his understanding of Xu Miao, Madam's reaction was still a bit dull.
Madam has a good temper and a good temperament, but she gets anxious when things happen, and when she gets anxious, she doesn't think so carefully.
Now, Madam has endured her patience, her eagerness, and her impatience.
She loves Xun'er so much, loves him, loves this family, she shouldn't be like this...
After quietly observing for a while, Liu Jing said: "I came here just to talk to you two. It's getting late. I'm going back first. I have to go to court tomorrow."
Xu Miao wanted to send him away.
Liu Jing advised: "It's dark and raining again. Madam, it's better not to see her off."
Saying goodbye to mother and daughter, Liu Jing walked back to the temple.
It was still the monk who opened the side door for him.
"I have caused trouble to the masters these days," Liu Jing thanked him and asked, "My wife seems to be doing well. I wonder if anyone else has come to help me."
The monk said: "There was a visitor yesterday, the princess came to visit."
Liu Jing thanked him again.
It wasn't until he sat in the carriage that his expression darkened.
Yesterday, Xu Miao went to see Xu Jian, and he knew about this.
The two could not reach an agreement, and it was not surprising that Xu Jian was worried about Xu Miao and asked the princess to come forward to persuade her.
Just...
What did the princess say to Xu Miao?
Liu Jing pressed his eyebrows.
Xun'er was ruined in the academy, and Zheng Liu was trapped in Zhangpingyuan with his body intact. Geng Baoyuan disappeared, and Xun'er and the others went to the temple to find the princess there.
Princess, Princess Ning'an is really...
Returning to the mansion, Liu Jing entered the study.
He sat quietly for most of the night and wrote an article before dawn, polished it and copied it on a notebook.
With this piece of information in hand, he entered the palace and went to court.
The atmosphere in the court room was even more tense than yesterday.
Maybe everyone has heard about the Bricks. Originally, I encouraged you to irritate him and try to make a deposed prince stand out. Today, everyone has become much more honest and gathered together to discuss Li Mi. p>
From time to time, I look around, trying to get some information from Shan Shen and others.
But Shan Shen folded his arms and looked drowsy, Duke Fu stood outside and did not talk to anyone, and Commander Wan did not show up.
Several censors who have always been upright are closing their eyes to rest.
They need to adjust themselves and continue to scold them when they enter the main hall.
When you scold Li Mi, you also scold the prince.
After all the scheming, none of them is good.
When everyone moved to the Jinluan Hall, the Holy Guard of Honor came in, and he walked straight to the dragon chair and sat down.
He quickly glanced at everyone, but did not see Wantang.
Shan Shen came out and reported the investigation status.
"Master Shan, are you really Li Mi's gold brick?" someone asked.
"In the sixth year of the reign of Wang Wang, he was shouting for gold bricks, and there was Li Mi's mark on the gold bricks," Shan Shen replied, "Judging from the situation, the gold bricks had been hidden there for several years..."
The Holy Emperor's eyes fell on Xu Jian.
Xu Jian is indeed reliable.
When Xu Jian came to the Imperial Study Room yesterday to discuss the situation, the Holy Father once asked him, could he really hide the handling of the gold bricks from Shan Shen and Wantang?
Xu Jian is quite sure.
Because of the rain, the high location, and the back and forth checking, many traces were destroyed.
Now it seems that it is indeed as Xu Jian said.
The officials below were holding two gold bricks, and they were going back and forth. They were about to argue for another two quarters of an hour, but Liu Jing stood up.
His official uniform is neat and his appearance is good, but his voice is hoarse.
Holding the book in both hands, he knelt down in the hall.
The young chamberlain went to get it and handed it to Eunuch Cao, who then forwarded it to the Holy One.
The Holy Spirit opened it and saw that it was a letter of self-condemnation.
He glanced briefly and asked Eunuch Cao to read it.
Eunuch Cao read every word, and apart from his voice, there was no more noise in the hall, and everyone was quiet.
Xu Jian was also listening, and even wanted to give Liu Jing a round of applause after listening.
Liu Jing is extremely good at writing articles, which is his advantage.
The first half of this self-incrimination letter is very neat, paying attention to the layout and confrontation of the article, but it becomes chaotic from the middle part, and the second part is even more disorganized, without skills, only full of emotions.
Is it because Liu Jing can’t write such a seamless article?
No.
What Liu Jing needs is such a messy article.
This is how a father should feel after his son makes an unforgivable mistake.
He was talking about his dereliction of duty as a father, full of regret and pain.
"It's my fault that I didn't teach him well," Liu Jing buried his head on the ground, his shoulders trembling, "It's my fault."
On the edge, far and near, there are a few sighs.
Raising a son is a difficult problem, sometimes even a matter of luck.
If you can teach well by paying attention...
Some brave ones even looked up to see the holy dragon face.
If being careful is all it takes, isn’t it true that His Majesty, Your Majesty, is not careful enough?
Liu Jing did not raise his head for a long time.
He is betting on the Holy Emperor's will.
If the Holy One wants to be merciful to His Highness the Crown Prince, he must not be too cruel to the Liu family, otherwise he will not be able to convince the public.
Xu Jian looked at Liu Jing for a while and then looked away.
He saw "survival" in Liu Jing.
Liu Jing knew that it would be difficult to keep Liu Xun, so he had to find a way to save himself first.
This self-incriminating letter is a good choice to retreat instead of making progress.
Based on Liu Jing’s hard work and hard work over the years, he wanted to seek a lighter sentence, and he did have a chance.
Of course, this light sentence is limited to this moment.
Liu Jing's subordinate Huang Shaoqing stood up, carefully considered his words, and said a few words for him.
Some people took the vanguard, and later there were also people who were familiar with Liu Jing who helped to support him.
Liu Jing was still kneeling on the ground, not having much confidence in his heart. While he felt hopeful, he also felt that the Sacred Heart was unpredictable.
"Where is Lord Wan?" Suddenly, an official asked, "Why don't you see Commander Wan today?"
As soon as the voice came out, many people noticed that Wantang did not go to court.
This is strange.
The focus these days is on Chenmi Hutong. As an investigating official, Wantang should not be absent.
Shan Shen noticed Wantang's absence, but he didn't know the reason.
While there was a lot of discussion, Wantang held up the hem of his clothes, trotted up the footpath, walked into the main hall, and appeared in front of everyone.
He hurried along in a hurry, panting and sweating a lot on his face.
"Your Majesty, I'm late," he said.
The Holy One asked: "Is this the first time Wan Aiqing is late?"
Wantang smiled dryly.
Not only him, but also among the civil and military ministers present, how many of them have experience of being late for early morning meetings?
"I have something important to report," Wantang said, "I found this thing in that house."
As he spoke, Wantang presented something with both hands.
Everyone's perspective was different. Many people didn't know what Wantang was holding, and those who could see clearly frowned.
Eunuch Cao walked down the steps and waited for the waiter to hand him over.
After taking it and taking a look, his expression also changed, and he bowed his head and handed it to the Holy One respectfully.
The Holy One looked at the thing in his hand.
That's a golden note.
It is two fingers wide and very thin, with mountains on one side and words on the other.
This is something from the Gu Yue Mission.
"Where did you find it?" The Holy Master held the gold paper in his hand and asked coldly.
"I asked people to dismantle the flower hall. I was in a hurry to go to court, but people below said I found something in the gap between the floor mats." Wantang replied, "It should be that the person carrying it fell in accidentally.
Yes, if you don’t dig up all the floor mats, you won’t be able to see it at all on the surface, and you won’t be able to find it even if you try to look for it.”
After hearing this, the Holy Father looked at Xu Jian.
Xu Jian shook his head slightly, indicating that he had no idea.
The Holy One looked at Liu Jing again: "Master Liu, why would someone from Gu Yue go to Chenmi Hutong?"
Liu Jing's whole body tensed up and his breath froze.
He doesn't know the answer. Honglu Temple is responsible for reception, but it's impossible for him to know everyone's whereabouts every day.
All he knew was that his preparations and his confession were about to fall short.
Xu Jian did not look at Liu Jing.
His attention was focused more on King Jin.
When the Holy One named "Envoy of the Ancient Moon", he keenly saw King Jin's face darken.
Although it was only a moment, Xu Jian did not miss it.
From this point of view, the Guyue merchant and the chamberlain that Xuansu met outside the house that day were indeed related to the King of Jin.
Compared with the two gold bricks, Xu Jian was more satisfied with the gains brought by the golden paper.
Speaking of which, I spent a lot of effort yesterday to bury the golden paper.
We must ensure that Wantang can be found, but also make it difficult for him to find him.
