The emperor leaned on his seat, supporting his chin with one hand as Fang explained the whole story. Fang Jie tried not to mention his worries about the emperor's health, because he knew that even if he didn't mention the emperor at all, he would understand what he was thinking. And when it comes to why this decision was made, it goes back to the secret letter that Luo Weiran and Wu Yitong sent all the way to him. Fang Jie was unwilling to tell these things, so to Luo Weiran and Wu Yitong It's not a good thing, and it's not a good thing for him either. Forming a party for personal gain This is what the emperor is most taboo about.
When he heard Fang explain about the guard Liu Han he met when he visited Fengcheng, the emperor seemed to be very interested.
¡°It¡¯s a pity for such an official.¡±
The emperor's tone was gentle and helpless as he said: "According to the national law, succumbing to rebellion for any reason is an unforgivable death penalty. But I also know that there are certainly many officials like Liu Han in the northwest. Although they are thieves, they are loyal. Da Sui, you know, I have no reason to forgive their sins. Some mistakes cannot be forgiven."
Fang Jie knew that the emperor was right. Officials like Liu Han must be everywhere in the northwest, but this was not the reason why they would be pardoned. All Fang Jie could do was to let the emperor know that there was such a group of officials in the northwest who had to become Li Yuanshan's subordinates for one reason or another.
The best result is that the family members of these people are exempted from criminal liability.
"You handled the matter of Mou Liangbi well."
The emperor was silent for a while and then said: "The reason why I kept him in prison for more than ten years and never used him is because I knew his character well. If I hadn't wanted to use people in the court at that time, I wouldn't have released him from prison. It¡¯s just that there is no other choice.¡±
This sentence can only be understood.
From the very beginning of the Western Expedition, the emperor actually did not want to use anyone from the court, and did not use any of the court officials who were in power at the time. Xujun Wang Yang Kai, Mou Liangbi, and Zong Lianghu, these people can actually be classified as people outside the imperial court. They have no relationship with any interest faction in the imperial court.
Thinking of this, Fang Jie suddenly felt a little ridiculous.
There are so many civil and military officials and there are so many high officials in the imperial court, but none of them is trusted by the emperor. The Western Expedition was handed over to Yang Kai, Prince of Xu Commandery, but unfortunately it fell short because of Li Yuanshan's rebellion. To counter the rebellion, the emperor personally marched, and most of them brought bravery who did not belong to any interest faction. These recruits were only loyal to the emperor.
Even so, the emperor had no intention of letting go of those officials who had been pillars of the Sui Dynasty. The killing scene in Haoran Palace made anyone who knew about it feel chilly.
Fang Jie lowered his head and said, "I should not kill Mou Liangbi."
The emperor glanced at him: "You shouldn't kill Liangbi, but you did. You shouldn't kill Li Yuanshan, but you still killed him. You know what is right and what is wrong, but you always do it. A choice that makes people feel uncomfortable. Fang Jie Your biggest advantage is that you are decisive enough. Your biggest disadvantage is that you dare to do things that others dare not say. Who will do it? Are you so brave?"
"you"
Fang Jie answered.
The emperor was slightly startled, then couldn't help but shake his head and smile: "You mean, you have the biggest backer in the world and you will have nothing to worry about?"
"What I mean is that I have the biggest backer in the world, so as long as I do things that are beneficial to the court and beneficial to Your Majesty, I have no worries."
"Sophistry."
The emperor glared at him: "I allow you to be presumptuous because I know you have no objections. But if you don't behave yourself in the future, I will not be able to rely on you as a backer."
"I don't dare, but I do think that if there were more officials like me in the world, with Your Majesty as my backing officials, great governance would not be far away."
"You praise yourself like this for not blushing?"
The emperor asked.
Fang Jiesan smiled: "To be honest, I don't want to blush"
The emperor laughed, and his mood seemed to really lighten up. Su Buwei looked at the young man sitting bent down on the chair with a smile on his face. It had been too long since anyone had made the emperor laugh so heartily. Although he knew that the emperor did not completely trust this young man, he could also see that the emperor really liked this guy. Even Su Buwei now feels that this guy is really cute.
"Since you only tell the truth in front of me, then I ask you"
The emperor looked at Fang Jie: "What do you think about Kuoketai Menglie suddenly launching troops against Luo Yao? I know that many people are talking in private, saying that I should not join forces with the Meng Yuan barbarians. Doing so is betrayal." Got itThe violation of ancestral rules has also brought shame on the Sui Dynasty Fang Jie, what do you think? "
As soon as he asked this question, Fang Jie felt a layer of cold sweat break out on his back.
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Fang Jie was silent for a long time without answering the emperor's words, but the emperor didn't seem to be impatient at all and just looked at him quietly, waiting for his answer. It might have only been a few minutes, but it felt like centuries in Fangjie. There was no way to answer the question the emperor threw to him, because it was not a question with a correct answer in the first place.
"I don't know."
The emperor shook his head: "I have been holding it in for a long time and only came out three words. You really let me down."
Fang Jie raised his head and said seriously: "When I say I don't know, it doesn't mean that I don't know how people below are talking about this matter, nor does it mean that I don't know the impact of this matter. I don't know, but I don't know why Your Majesty made such an arrangement. The reason why I don't know is that Because I am stupid. But I know one thing very well No one in the world loves the Sui Dynasty more than your Majesty. No one in the world cares about the people more than your Majesty. So I also know very well that no matter what the people below say. , Your Majesty is right about everything.¡±
The emperor was slightly startled and couldn't help but laugh: "This is the most thoughtful flattery I have heard in recent days."
"What I said is the truth."
Fang Jie answered.
The emperor nodded: "No one in the world loves the Sui Dynasty more than me, and no one in the world cares more about the people than me. This sentence is well said and true, so I am particularly pleased to hear it."
He stood up and waved his hand to indicate that Su Buwei did not need to support him.
"Everything I do is for the Sui Dynasty. Every decision I make is for the country. The people below are talking nonsense because they don't understand me. So they are not as good as you, even though you don't understand me either. , but you know that a minister should trust the emperor¡¯s decision.¡±
Fang Jie didn¡¯t speak, he just lowered his head and listened quietly.
"Li Yuanshan put Mengyuan Barbarian into my home three years ago. He thought he had borrowed the most powerful knife. Three years later, I used this knife to kill the ambitions of more than one person. Why do I need to explain? Those bastards at the Yushitai really thought that just because I had told them that I was innocent, they could act without any scruples. Yesterday, a Yushi named Xu Qian knelt outside and kowtowed, and his face was covered with blood. You guessed it. What do you want me to do?¡±
Fang Jie shook his head.
"He asked me to abdicate, saying that I had failed my ancestors. If I didn't abdicate, he would die outside."
The emperor didn't seem to be angry, but just smiled: "So I followed his wish and let him die outside. Some people dare to speak because they also love Sui Dynasty and don't want me to make mistakes. Some people dare to speak, It is for the sake of fame and reputation that I act independently to show off my ridiculous and shameful so-called courage. I am not so sick that I can¡¯t see what someone¡¯s intentions are. I will be able to judge my actions today.¡±
There is indeed a group of people in this world who do some so-called courageous things to gain fame and fortune.
There are such people in every era.
Fang Jie lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty wanted to kill him. He must have said that he was not afraid, and then he said bitterly that he was a loyal minister but could no longer be loyal to the country, but he died a worthy death. If he was more stupid, he would still do it. I¡¯m pointing at you and yelling at you, right? I don¡¯t think this kind of person can be killed casually"
The emperor frowned: "You said he shouldn't be killed?"
Fang Jie said: "What I mean is that you shouldn't kill casually. If you tell him to kill him, he will feel that he is great. Even if you tell him to implicate the nine tribes, he doesn't care, because he only cares about whether it will attract He won't take his own life or the lives of his relatives seriously, but he will definitely take his reputation seriously, so you can tell him before killing him. , he will be accused of being a Meng Yuan spy after his death. He does not care about his own life and that of his family members, thinking that even if they all die, it is a worthy death. The life and death of his wife, children, and children are just tools to fulfill his reputation, but if he is said to be a spy, He must have cried bitterly and begged Your Majesty to forgive him, saying that he knew he was wrong."
The emperor hummed: "That's what I did, and that's how he reacted."
"pretty¡¡"
Fang Jie said two words in a low voice.
"You just called him a fool?"
The emperor asked.
Fang Jie smiled coquettishly, but did not dare to answer.
"This is a good word. Although it is the first time I heard it, I understood it as soon as I heard it."
Fang Jie: ""
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? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Standing at the door of the imperial chariot, he looked at the clear sky outside: "Sooner or later, you will understand my painstaking efforts regarding Meng Yuan Manzi. Brother Kuoktai Meng is a smart man, smarter than I imagined. He is ambitious. A wise person will never remain silent forever. I really want to talk to this person again in my lifetime.¡±
This sentence seems to be understood but not understood.
"You killed Li Yuanshan, and some people are very angry."
The emperor changed the topic, as if he didn¡¯t want to say anything more about the Meng Yuan people.
Fang Jie nodded: "I guessed it."
"Well they have worked hard for more than a year, and they walked out of the mountains of corpses and blood. In the end, you took away the credit. It is inevitable that they will be resentful. I have to take care of their emotions no matter what. After all, they are all I owe a lot to those who have made great contributions to the Sui Dynasty, and I will still give them the rewards they deserve if they did not die on the battlefield."
"I understand"
"Go back and bring your black flag to kill the wolf army."
The emperor waved his hand and said: "I don't have time to pay attention to any quarrels. I will live a good life in the next few days. If anything ruins my good mood, I will avoid it if I can."
"There is only one way for the Mongolian people to return to the prairie."
The emperor said.
When he said this, he glanced at Fang Jie.
Fang Jie shook his head: "No more."
The emperor seemed satisfied to hear what he wanted to hear: "I won't let you hunt down Li Xiaoche's remaining soldiers. I know you want to take this job. Jin Shixiong also told me that you are the most suitable candidate, but I I think you have an errand that would be more suitable. Since you already understand, I won't say anything more. You can borrow the knife to kill people, but you don't have to return it after you borrow it. Although I am the emperor, I can still say something. It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±
¡°You must have never heard this sentence before.¡±
The emperor smiled.
Fang Jie nodded: "I really didn't hear that."
"Go ahead"
The emperor took a deep breath: "If I still have time after defeating Jinyang, I will go to the Green Gorge of Langru Mountain to have a look."
Fang Jie saluted: "I'm waiting there for His Majesty to arrive."