The next day, at dawn, all the officials changed into their court robes and gathered outside the Imperial Palace, heading towards Taiji Palace.
"Let's go!"
Dressed in a red robe, Duan Lun walked out of the mansion. He looked at the sky and got into the carriage, heading toward the Imperial Palace.
Fang Xuanling, Cheng Yaojin, and the Wang family also set off.
However, everyone had their own thoughts.
That was the matter of Zhao Weimin, Wang He, and Liu Xuan.
......
In the main hall!
Li Er, who was wearing a dragon robe, sat down on the dragon throne.
The civil and military officials shouted," Greetings, Your Majesty!”
"Beloved ministers, please rise!"
The officials stood up and then knelt down on both sides.
Li Er had a warm smile on his face as he swept his gaze across the civil and military officials." Dear ministers, what's the matter today?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Duan Lun stood up with a wooden board in his hand. He walked to the middle and bowed."Your Majesty, I have something to report!”
Li Er was slightly surprised to see Duan Lun, but he nodded and said," What's the matter, Minister Duan?"”
" Your Majesty, Wang He from the Ministry of Works, and Zhao Weimin from the Ministry of Works, both of whom were rank-six in rank, went against their superiors in Dragon Gate and detained the people. They were even bold enough to ask for money. They wanted to destroy the dam and said that the dam was not built properly. They were unforgivable. Your Majesty, please judge them.”
Hearing Duan Lun's words, Li Er was a little speechless." Minister Duan, aren't you a third-grade official of the Ministry of Works? Can't you handle the officials under your rule?”
Li Er was just saying that. If it was that simple, Duan Lun wouldn't have brought it up to the court today.
As expected!
Duan Lun had yet to speak.
The Wang Clan couldn't help but step forward. The person who stepped forward was Wang Bingwen, who had dinner with the Wang Clan last night.
"Your Majesty, I have something to say!”
"Speak!"
Seeing that it was Wang Bingwen, Li Er's eyes flashed.
He seemed to have guessed something.
Wang Bingwen didn't know what Li Er was thinking and said directly,""Your Majesty, this humble official has also heard about Zhao Weimin and Wang He. However, Zhao Weimin and Wang He have always been first-class in the Ministry of Personnel's assessment.”
"What did Minister Duan say?" Li Er asked Duan Lun.”
Duan Lun glanced at Wang Bingwen and said,""Three months ago, the Ministry of Works issued a document to the Longmen County Magistrate, requesting that the Fen River flood be resolved as soon as possible. The Longmen County Magistrate built the dam according to the requirements. Before it was completed, I was afraid that the new county magistrate would be young, so I rushed to Longmen the day before the Ministry of Works officials left.”
" Moreover, I wasn't the only one who went. Duke Lu and Duke E were with me. I personally inspected the dam with the two dukes. The construction was perfect and extremely sturdy. However, who knew that the next day, when Zhao Weimin and Wang He went to the dam, they directly threatened to destroy the dam and rebuild it because the county magistrate didn't give them any money. Moreover, the county magistrate of Dragon Gate didn't complete the task of the Ministry of Works on time.”
"This lowly official was present at the time and saw everything. The commoners were furious, but Zhao Weimin and his wife were unreasonable and ordered people to arrest the commoners wantonly and charge them with the crime of rioting. This lowly official and the two dukes captured these two people on the spot!”
Duan Lun's voice echoed in the hall and entered everyone's ears clearly.
At this moment, many people secretly exchanged glances, but no one spoke.
Li Er nodded slightly and looked at Wang Bingwen." Minister Wang, what do you have to say?”
Wang Bingwen didn't give up. He had already taken the big clam pearl from the palace, so he naturally did his best. He raised his head and said," Your Majesty, Lord Duan's story is partly based on speculation, and partly hides a lot of things. For example, this dam is completely different from the ones that the Ministry of Works usually builds. It is said that it is made of some cement. Zhao Weimin and Wang He are Rank-6 officials, so they are naturally worried about the punishment of their superiors, so they directly smashed it. After all, no one knows what this cement is.”
"Second, Lord Duan said that Zhao Weimin and Wang He openly asked for bribes and money. I don't agree. I don't know when Zhao Weimin and Wang He asked for money.”
"Third, they will arrest the poor and charge them as rioters. These people are going to kill the officials with hoes. Aren't they rioters?"
It had to be said that Wang Bingwen's words were also very sharp.
Duan Lun didn't know what to say.
However, just because Duan Lun didn't say it didn't mean that Cheng Yaojin and the others didn't.
Cheng Yaojin immediately stood up and used his sturdy body to push Wang Bingwen away. He then said,"Your Majesty, the Longmen County Magistrate and the people spent three months to build the concrete dam. It's so strong that even if I hit it with a hammer or kicked it with my feet, there wouldn't be any cracks!”
"That Zhao Weimin and Wang He were extremely arrogant. They pointed at me, Old Cheng, and threatened that I would not be able to bear the consequences. They said that they were officials of the Ministry of Works and represented the imperial court.”
Hearing Cheng Yaojin's pestering, Wei Du couldn't sit still anymore. He stood up and hurriedly stood in the middle to explain,""State Duke Lu, don't you know that you are committing the crime of deceiving the sovereign by being so unreasonable and spouting nonsense?”
"The crime of deceiving the emperor is beheading!”
Wei Du thought he could scare Cheng Yaojin.
But who knew that Cheng Yaojin would grab his collar and lift him up. He looked at him with a pair of bell-like eyes and said," Let me ask you, he threatened me to take the consequences. Did he offend Shangguan?" He said that he represented the Ministry of Works. Was the imperial court trying to intimidate him? The cement was solid, yet he wanted to destroy it so casually. Was he being reckless and doing whatever he wanted?”
Wei Du was only a civil official, and he wasn't very tall. He was lifted up by Cheng Yaojin, and when he looked into his eyes, he was so scared that he shivered.
Li Er couldn't sit still anymore. Was he going to fight in court?
"Alright! Cheng Yaojin! Quickly put down Lord Wei!"
Cheng Yaojin was just trying to scare Wei Du, so when he heard Li Er's words, he snorted and let Wei Du go.
Wei Du's legs went limp. After he landed, he almost fell. If Wang Bingwen hadn't held him up, he would have collapsed on the ground.
"Hahaha…"
Yuchi Gong burst into laughter at the right time.
Wu Xun and the others laughed along.
As for the civil officials, although they did not laugh, there were many who secretly covered their mouths and laughed.
However, the leader of the group, a skinny old man, had an angry expression on his face. His face had darkened.
He was Li Er's official, Wei Zheng!
Wei Zheng suddenly stood up, then walked to the middle and said loudly to Li Er,"Your Majesty, Cheng Yaojin is so impudent in the court, threatening his colleagues. I think we should arrest him immediately and punish him severely as a warning to others!”
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