Leaving two close confidants to continue dealing with the aftermath, Zhang Xiu led the rest of his guards back to the Chinese army. At this time, everyone's attention was focused on the performance of Yu Wenhua and his three brothers, so no one even noticed that he had left.
After that, Zhang Xiu took a quick glance and found that most of the imperial camp generals in the Chinese army tent had been kidnapped. Only the youngest of the Yuwen family, Zhiji, refused to be kidnapped according to the order, and was still crying and begging for mercy.
"Second brother, second brother, I beg you. My sister-in-law is the daughter of the Holy Emperor, and you are his son-in-law. You can't watch me be beheaded!" This guy's voice had already been hoarse from crying, but he hugged Yuwen Shiji.
His legs refused to let go. The soldiers from the Xiongwu Camp who came to take the man knew that the man would not live until noon, and could not bear to use force in front of their own general, so they had to wait for Yuwenshi and himself to speak. But Yuwenshi had already spoken to him.
He cried softly and squatted down, holding his brother's neck with his hands and sobbing, "The Holy Father personally gave the order, how could I dare to refute him in public? Your second sister-in-law is far away in Luoyang... wuwu..."
"Second brother, I know I was wrong, and I accept the punishment. You can ask the emperor to punish me, confiscate the army, or distribute me. I am willing to go to Lingnan, I am willing to go. Second brother, don't let me die!"
"If I can save you, I will do my best to save you. But, what you have committed is the crime of genocide, the crime of genocide!" Yu Wenshiji cried and complained. "Those gold and silver, you can't bring them with you in life or death."
No. Our Yuwen family has never lacked your food and clothing, so what do you want gold and silver for..."
"I, I, I don't know either! I was confused for a moment!" Yuwen Zhiji defended himself speechlessly, continuing to howl in a hoarse voice. Snot and tears continued to flow, wiping a large area of Yuwen Zhiji's leg armor.
Zhang Xiu saw that the time was almost up, stepped forward, and whispered: "General Yuwen, please express your condolences first. Your Majesty is still waiting for news from you in the palace. The later you pay the order, the greater the anger in His Majesty's heart."
!”
"Heartless Zhang Xiu! How does my second brother always treat you! Wuwuwu, if it weren't for my Yuwen family, how could you be where you are today!" Yuwen Zhiji immediately raised his head and cursed with tears and runny noses.
.
"Tie him up. If he talks nonsense again, plug his mouth with dried horse dung!" Zhang Xiu was not afraid of this heartless thing. He raised his eyebrows and shouted angrily.
The two guards immediately stepped forward and pulled Yuwen Zhiji away from his brother. "Second brother, second brother, save me!" Knowing that he would definitely die after entering the palace, Yuwen Zhiji struggled and called for help.
"You'd better be tied up. When I see His Majesty later, I will confess my crime honestly. Whatever my second brother can do for you, I have already done it!" In full view of everyone, Yu Wenshiji had to harden his heart and wiped out his heart.
Eyes, he sobbed and warned. In the moment before covering his eyelids with the back of his hand, he quickly communicated with Zhang Xiu once with his eyes. From the latter's calm eyes, he knew that the entire Yuwen family had hope of survival.
Outside the camp, Lai Huer had been waiting impatiently. Seeing Zhang Xiu tie up Yuwen Zhiji and come out, he immediately ordered his people to go to the palace to give orders. At this time, the east began to light up, and the people who had been disturbed by the soldiers all night secretly came out.
He stuck his head out from behind the door and looked around. He saw a long list of officials being led to the palace like sheep, and he immediately put his head back into the door, bolted and locked it.
"I'm afraid he didn't work hard in the war. He deserves to be killed!" Someone secretly muttered in the room.
"It's hard to say, the people arrested are all from the same battalion, maybe it's a mutiny!" Someone who was more knowledgeable analyzed it in a low voice to his relatives.
"That's nonsense, how do you know?"
"Look at the clothes, the clothes of the group who entered the city first are different from the clothes of the group who entered the city last!" the person being rebutted explained rationally.
"The Turks haven't retreated yet, how is that possible?"
"The Turks should retreat! Since the afternoon of the day before yesterday, they have not thrown any big stones into the city!"
"Isn't that right? The Turks are probably gone!" Everyone instantly became happy and hid behind the courtyard wall and cheered quietly. Since the Sui army has started killing each other, the Turks must have retreated! Everyone's family property has been saved.
There is no need to worry all day long. As for why the two groups of Sui troops are fighting outside, who loses and who wins, and what is the safety of the emperor in the palace? The distance is too far, everyone can't care about it, and we don't want to have a headache over it.
At the moment, the two most troublesome people in Yanmen City are Pei Ju and Yu Shiji. Ever since the general Yang Wenxuan presented the account book to the Golden Palace, the two important ministers have become angry. But facing the murderous
Yang Guang, none of them had the courage to admit that they had participated in this "big deal". The two of them hoped that the two brothers Yu Wenhuaji and Zhihe would stay together until the end, so they simply led the imperial army to rebel. In that way, through
In the hands of counter-rebels, all evidence of the crime will be wiped out. Afterwards, as long as the two adults involved in the government insist that the old thief Yuwenshu committed corruption indiscriminately, no one can pin the crime on them.
Unexpectedly, the facts were contrary to their wishes, and Yu Wenhuaji and Zhiji were captured without any effort. Laihuer and Fan Zigai, who were ordered to leave the palace, also lived up to Yang Guang's expectations. Under Yuwenshi
With his help, he successfully took over the command of all the armies in the city and quickly eliminated a storm.
"This is terrible!" Seeing the Yuwen brothers kneeling and kowtowing in front of the emperor, Yu Shiji, the internal history minister who took charge of the government, instantly soaked his official robe with cold sweat. The power in his hands completely relied on Yang Guang's trust.
, as long as the Yuwen brothers confess truthfully, the entire Yu family will be in doom.
He secretly glanced at Pei Ju, the Huangmen servant who was known as a wise man and was in charge of the government, and found that his face was as white as grass ashes. "There are all the witnesses and physical evidence!" Pei Ju remembered what he often said when a local official interrogated prisoners.
, the legs slowly began to tremble.
Yuwenshu had already taken off his official hat and knelt in the middle of the hall to plead guilty. When he saw his son being escorted in, he walked a few steps, leaned over and slapped him across the face. "When did our Yuwen family lack such a small amount of money?
?You two are worthless things! Can the military rations be sold if it involves His Majesty’s safety?”
Brother Huaji didn't dare to dodge, and his cheeks were instantly red and swollen, and his nose was bleeding. After Yuwenshu finished beating his son, he raised his arm and hit himself again, "It's me, an old bastard, who doesn't raise children well, and usually indulges you too much. It's me."
If you seek death yourself, don’t blame others!”
He was nearly 70 years old, with a head full of white hair. His face was full of snot and blood, and he looked extremely pitiful. After only a few beatings, Yu Wenshi, the first one, couldn't bear it anymore and knelt down in the center of the golden palace.
, begging to Yang Guang: "Your majesty is wise, I dare not ask your majesty to forgive the Yuwen family's heinous crimes. But please, your majesty, please consider my father's many years of service in front of and behind the horse, and let him live forever. For all sins, I am willing to forgive my father."
Share the burden, take advantage of it, and never dare to complain!"
"You live well. You are loyal to His Majesty. It's me, an old man, and your two lawless brothers who are causing trouble! It's none of your business!" How could Yuwenshu be willing to involve his last son, Conghua and his two brothers?
Then he climbed up to Shiji, pushed him hard, and cried.
"My second brother has fulfilled his filial piety for me. I was confused for a moment and was deceived by others into doing something wrong. I can't atone for my sin by being cut into pieces. But I shouldn't, I shouldn't, I shouldn't implicate my father!" Yu Wenhuaji
He also crawled over on his knees and sobbed in harmony.
Seeing the brothers, father and son crying together, all the officials suddenly felt pity, and people kept crying with them. Yu Shiji was such a smart man. Seeing that what he was most worried about did not happen, he immediately guessed that the Yuwen family was planning to commit the crime.
He carried it on his own. He had received such a great favor and had no choice but to repay him. He strode out of the army and announced in front of Yang Guang: "Your Majesty, Old General Yuwen served as a soldier in the Sui Dynasty for half his life. Even if he failed to teach his son well, it would be a crime."
It will not lead to death. Please keep your majesty in mind of the love between the king and his ministers for many years and open his eyes to him!"
"The Turks have just withdrawn their troops. If this case involves too many people, it will inevitably be misunderstood!" Pei Ju, who has always been well-rounded, followed closely behind Yu Shiji and began to play.
There are two people who are involved in the government and take the lead. Which other civil servants dare not to follow? Besides, Yu Wenshu's party members in the court had already planned to come forward to save the world. One after another, more than twenty senior officials of fourth rank or above stood in the court, and everyone was unanimous.
Di begged for mercy on behalf of Yu Wenshu.
Yang Guang originally had a close personal relationship with Yuwenshu, but his heart softened long ago when he was cried by the old guy. Seeing so many people pleading for Yuwenshu's behalf gave him even more excuses to bend the law for personal gain. He sighed and replied: "Everyone, I love you.
Your Majesty, please return to work. As the ancients said, the crime is not as bad as that of a wife and slave. Not to mention that Yu Wenhua and Zhiji are adults, what do they do to their parents?!"
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!" A group of flattering ministers sang in unison, which made Lai Hu'er and others in the queue of military commanders so angry that their eyes turned blue. "Why didn't I see Your Majesty be so tolerant when I killed He Ruobi?" Everyone secretly complained in their hearts.
, but he could only follow the trend and praise Yang Guang for his decisiveness and sage.
"Yu Wenji, Yu Wenzhiji, can your two brothers know their sins?" Yang Guang had satisfied the addiction of the sage emperor and finally focused on business.
"I am greedy for life and afraid of death. I am afraid that if the city is destroyed, we will all be destroyed. Therefore, I exchanged military rations and arrows for a few peace orders. Zhiji is just an accomplice, and he follows me, my elder brother, to share the spoils in a daze. Please have mercy on your majesty and give all
Let Huaji bear the responsibility, and spare Zhiji's death. Don't implicate my brothers in the camp, they don't know anything about it, and they have no right to interfere with my actions as the commander!" Yu Wenhuaji kowtowed and answered loudly.
"The guilty minister is greedy for money. I heard that selling some military rations would not hinder the overall situation of the war, so I agreed in a moment of confusion. The guilty minister deserves to die, please long live the punishment!" After the torment just now, Yuwen Zhiji, this ignorant scoundrel, had already understood.
The only way to get the family out of trouble was to take full responsibility for the crime, so as not to make others worse off. So he changed his cowardly attitude and knelt beside Yu Wenhua and confessed.
"You two idiots who cheat on others!" Yang Guang was angry and pitiful at the same time, scolding him. He was angry that Yu Wenhua and his two brothers were so bold, but in his heart he pitied each other for their deep brotherly love. Unlike his own family, all the brothers turned against each other in the end.
"The guilty minister is stupid and has failed His Majesty. I am willing to receive the punishment of a thousand knives. Please use your Majesty's wisdom and find a way to survive!" Yu Wenhuaji knew that the better his confession attitude, the greater his hope of survival, so he kowtowed and begged.
"The guilty minister is willing to live and die with my brother. Please, Your Majesty, only deal with my two brothers and don't implicate innocent people!" Yuwen Zhiji also suddenly became a bachelor and shouted loudly that he was willing to live and die with his brother.
"Brothers in the imperial camp all have the merit of guarding the territory. Since Yu Wenhua and his brothers have pleaded guilty, I ask your majesty to find out the mastermind of this matter and release other generals to return to the camp to appease the morale of the army!" Lai Hu'er didn't want to be fooled by the Yuwen family like this, so he went to the camp.
Prelude.
"I second the general's advice!"
"The general seconded the proposal!"
In an instant, more than a dozen civil and military officials who had always been at odds with the Yuwen family came out, openly interceding for the imperial camp generals, and secretly asking Yang Guang to investigate the matter to the end.
Yang Guang, who was sitting behind the imperial desk, rubbed his temples vigorously. He was already very tired from toiling from midnight to dawn. But Lai Huer's reminder was indeed reasonable. The hidden truth behind it was by no means as simple as Yu Wenhuaji admitted.
. Tens of thousands of stones of military rations is not a small amount. It was transported out of the city without anyone noticing, and it was continuously traded more than a dozen times in more than a month. There was no careful planning beforehand, and no one cooperated carefully during the execution. Absolutely
It's impossible to do it.
"How did you get in touch with Duoji? Could it be that he has an old friend with you?" After waving his hand and ordering the guardians and others to return to work, Yang Guangqiang braced himself and continued to ask questions.
"The guilty minister did not dare to deceive the Holy Majesty. It was the minister's confidant Yu Wenmao who directly intervened in the matter, so he was able to hide it from other people in the camp. As for the person who contacted Shibi Khan, it was a man named Zheng Xin in the guilty minister's camp.
Brigade leader. He was the spy planted by the Turks. As soon as the army entered the city, he approached Yu Wenmao. Originally, they wanted the guilty minister to open the city gate and let Shibi Khan in. The minister discovered it because of his conscience, so,
So I insisted and didn't dare to agree!" Yu Wenhuaji kowtowed again and answered without missing a beat.
"You still have a conscience!" Yang Guang sneered and cursed.
"My family has been favored by the emperor, so I dare not let him down!" Yu Wenhuaji was extremely shameless and responded without hesitation.
"Then why are you stealing and selling military supplies? General, go to the imperial camp quickly to capture Yu Wenmao and Zheng Xin and bring them to justice." Yang Guang slammed the table hard and ordered. He believed that the case was already clear. It was the Turkic informants who colluded first.
He killed Yu Wenhuaji's confidants, and then Yu Wenhuaji and Zhi and his brothers embezzled the stolen goods. As for the ministers around him, they were all loyal to the Sui Dynasty, and no one participated.
Is this the truth? The moment he came to protect his son and turned around to leave the palace, Yang Guang thought tiredly. Maybe all of this is a lie, but what's the point of pursuing it? Which of these courtiers can live together with him?
Dead? If the Turks were replaced as emperors, wouldn't they still be running around for fame and fortune?
The "fact" was as he expected. After a while, Lai Hu'er brought back the death certificates of Yu Wenmao and Zheng Xin. From the insider's mouth, Lai Hu'er learned that these two people were competing for something with the people from Xiongwu Camp.
He was killed at that time. There were also several corpses of brothers from the Xiongwu Camp as evidence. How could the old general believe such a result that he knew there was something hidden at a glance? He implored Yang Guang to order the arrest of other generals related to the case. He must
This case will be investigated thoroughly.
"This is an obvious attempt to kill someone and silence them. Please make your decision, Your Majesty!" Lai Hu'er started playing loudly, his face as green as the bottom of a pot.
"I heard that after the battle in Guandu, Wei Wu seized a basket of letters. Does your Majesty know why Wei Wu burned them that day?" Pei Yun, a censor doctor who was involved in government affairs, quickly stepped forward and quoted scriptures.
His words made Yang Guang feel more and more tired. "How can we continue to investigate and let me kill all possible participants?" His Majesty the Sui Emperor shook his head and came to the answer that seemed to be the most correct at present. "Put it on."
Yuwen Wenhua and Yuwen Zhiji should be pushed down and beheaded. I will not pursue the others, whether they are involved or not!"
"Your Majesty!" Lai Huer took a few steps forward and knelt down.
"Your Majesty, spare your life!" Yuwen Zhiji begged while struggling.
"Thank you, Your Majesty——!" Yu Wenshu cried and thanked him, and then fell down in front of the imperial case. (To be continued)