Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 543 - 436: No Room for Mercy_1

Chapter 543: Chapter 436: No Room for Mercy_1

The hour of Chen had just begun when the Emperor stepped into the Taihe Gate and took his seat on the throne. The First Hope Dachao, which had been paused for nearly twenty days due to the new year, officially started.

Huangfu Xuanji stood with a gloomy look among the officials, his heart uneasy.

The first thing to be discussed in today’s court meeting was the flood in Jiangnan.

The first to step out from the crowd was Yu Jie, Minister of the War Department. He held his token, his face cold as he announced, "Your Majesty! The Southern Zhili Navy reported yesterday that starting from the ninth day of the first lunar month, the twelve navy camps in south Zhili, under the command of Li Chengji, tidu of the caojiang navy, fought continuously for several days, killing no less than thirty thousand water demons. Starting from yesterday, the water demons plaguing Han River have all been eradicated.

In addition, the Yuzhang Xunfu and Huguang Xunfu also reported that since the big demons Xiangyue, Chang Ze, and Wu Zhiqi had all been eliminated, the water level in the Yangtze River had dropped by twenty-six feet and the floods in Chuanshu and Xiangfan had basically subsided. I hereby request commendation for the father-son duo of Earl Chengyi and request to bestow the titles of Duke and Marquis on them.

Moreover, there’s a vacancy for the position of Dudu Tongzhi of the Central Army in Nanjing, so I suggest appointing Li Chengji to the post of Zongbing in charge of river transportation, concurrently serving as the Right Dudu of the Central Army in Nanjing; and appointing Duan Dong, currently the Zongbing in charge of river transportation, to the post of tidu of the caojiang navy."

At that, the entire court erupted in uproar.

Meanwhile, Cao Yi, the Marquis of Wuding, who was standing in front of the military ministers, narrowed his eyes slightly, musing that Earl Chengyi indeed had a thorough understanding of military strategy.

Was this a preparatory move to eliminate potential troubles and establish an invincible position before launching an attack?

The power of the Zongbing in charge of river transportation was in no way inferior to that of the tidu of the caojiang navy. Along the Yangtze River and the Grand Canal, Li Chengji still possessed a heavenly level of power. Also, the Duke of Zhendong, Duan Dong, had held the post of Zongbing in charge of river transportation for many years.

The swap between the two could not only dispel the doubts of the Emperor and the other officials but also ensure the stability of the Yangtze River and the grain transportation.

As for the title of Right Dudu of the Central Army in Nanjing, although it was merely an honorary position, it served as a stepping stone.

Li Chengji’s subsequent promotions would only include six positions, namely, the Left Dudu of the Beijing Five Army Dudu Mansion and the Left Dudu of the Central Army in Nanjing.

This would not be a subordinate position like the Dudu Tongzhi, which could be manipulated by others, but rather a military position with actual decision-making power—

As Cao Yi, the Marquis of Wuding, had speculated, the officials in the court began to debate heatedly about Yu Jie’s proposal, yet no one had any doubts about the switch between Li Chengji and Duan Dong.

The Left Army Governor’s Knowledge, Huangfu Xuanji, strongly opposed it, but less than ten people in the court agreed with him, and most of them were civil officials.

Almost none of the military officials responded, and none of the officers in the War Department stepped forward to support him.

The focus of the officials’ debate was still on the promotion of Li Chengji and his son, Li Xuan.

The opposing side argued that the flood in Jiangnan was not a real military achievement, and the reward of the title Duke or Marquis seemed excessive.

The proponents, on the other hand, contended that during the flood of the Yangtze River, there had been more than five hundred thousand water demons wrecking havoc, including the great demons Wu Zhiqi, Xiangyue and Chang Ze, which had virtually swept the entire Han River and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Xiangyue’s power of poisoning even rendered the fertile soils on both sides barren.

The ranks of the proponents of the Earl Chengyi and his son, who had resolved this situation and saved millions of people living on both sides of the river from flood and fire, thereby sparing the Jin Dynasty from disasters and famine for the next several decades, were equally strong. How could this not be a military achievement?

While there were many opponents in the court, there were also many proponents, especially those officials whose hometowns were along the Yangtze River. They appreciated the achievements of Li Chengji and his son and were grateful for their grace.

In the end, the outcome of the officials’ debate was that Li Xuan was conferred the title of Marquis of Jingan and awarded the military honor of ’Hujun of the sub second-rank official’ and the civilian position of ’Biaoqi General’ of the second-rank official, and various treasures were given as rewards from the royal coffer.

Li Chengji remained as the Earl Chengyi as before, was awarded the military honor of the ’Zhuguo General’ of the sub-second-rank official, and the civilian position of the ’Ronglu Daifu’ of the second-rank official. He was appointed as Zongbing in charge of river transportation, concurrently serving as the Right Dudu of the Central Army in Nanjing.

In addition, Li Chengji’s wife, Mrs. Liu, was also awarded the title of ’Madam Guo’ of the first-rank official; and Li Yan was promoted to be Canjiang of the Yangzhou Navy camp, the military honor of the ’Biaoqi General’ of the third-rank official, and the civilian position of ’Zhaoyong General’ of the third-rank official, while his wife, Su Zhaojun, was also awarded the title of the third-rank official.

The Canjiang of the Yangzhou Naval Camp was the commander of the three naval camps in Yangzhou.

Because of this, there was a lot of debate around this issue, but Yu Jie, Minister of the War Department, insisted firmly. This Shaobao Yu believed that Li Yan had outstanding abilities, and the Earl Chengyi’s family had a high reputation in the Yangtze Navy. The court should take advantage of their power to rectify the Yangzhou Navy.

By the time this matter was settled, the atmosphere in the court returned to a cold and solemn state.

Huangfu Xuanji’s face turned pale, and a strong sense of panic and unease filled his heart.

From the situation when he previously objected to Li Chengji’s appointment as Zongbing in charge of river transportation, Huangfu Xuanji already knew that his situation was grim.

When did the Fuguogong’s mansion, which once held all the power in the court, fall to such lows?

Throughout the court, it turned out that fewer than ten people responded to his speech, and they were all low-ranking officials in green robes.

Huangfu Xuanji couldn’t help but exchange a glance with his brother, Huangfu Yuanji, the Dudu Qianshi of the Third Army. However, his brother was not of much help at this time and was paler than him, showing signs of panic.

Huangfu Xuanji then looked at Gao Gu, the Deputy Auxiliary of the Cabinet and a Shaobao, and his uncle Sun Jizong, seeking help with his eyes. However, Gao Gu ignored his gaze, and even wore a cold expression, deliberately avoiding it, while his uncle, Sun Jizong, returned a look of helplessness.

Cao Yi, the Marquis of Wuding, who was standing next to Huangfu Yuanji, couldn’t help but shake his head slightly after witnessing this.

He knew that although Gao Gu was an old official of the Zhengtong Emperor and often defended the Zhengtong Emperor and former Crown Prince Yu Jianshen, after all, he was originally a Confucian scholar of Zhengtong and his hometown was also in Southern Zhili, near the Yangtze River.

Huangfu Xuanji’s move to lift Wu Zhiqi’s seal had crossed this Shaobao Gao’s bottom line.

Cao Yi didn’t know why Huangfu Xuanji chose to make such a insane move as to release Wu Zhiqi, a huge demon. But this guy was so careless in his actions. Even though he knew that this was a heinous and extremely dangerous act, he still let Earl Chengyi get hold of his weakness.

Now that Yanzi, Si Zhengliang, the Imperial Censor in charge of Huguang’s Inspectorate, had feigned his death and escaped, and his whereabouts were unknown. Neither the Xiuyiwei nor the Inspectorate had solid evidence to accuse Huangfu Xuanji.

Does this fellow believe that he can hoodwink and manipulate the emperor and the entire court as if they are fools?

As for the Emperor’s brother-in-law, Sun Jizong, he is likely willing to help.

But at this very moment, with Crown Prince Yu Jianji unconscious, and Jingtai Emperor’s suspicion at its peak, would the Empress’s faction dare to expose themselves, provoking the Emperor’s paranoia?

The next moment, Wei Zhen, who had just been promoted from the position of the Central Government’s official to the Deputy Imperial Historian of the Inspectorate, suddenly stepped forward from the group of officials.

"Your Majesty, I impeach Huangfu Xuanji for his arrogant and immoral behavior during his expedition to Lu River in the second year of Zhengtong. He forced dozens of Miao women to entertain him and his soldiers in his tent and falsely claimed credit for the good deeds of others. He allowed his soldiers to rob, and was responsible for the killing of thousands of people. Moreover, during his service as the Official of the Central Government in the twenty-seventh year of Zhengtong, he took bribes worth thirty thousand taels and conspired with the former Vice Minister of War, Yin Chun, which resulted in the purchase of fifty thousand defective weapons, and seven thousand firearms for the Jingying camp."

"Does such a thing really exist?"

The Jingtai Emperor, sitting on the throne, his pupils narrowed, "Is this true? Wei Qing, do you have solid evidence? Bring me the impeachment document immediately so I can see it."

While a court eunuch rushed off to fetch the document, another figure from the group of officials, a fifth-ranked military officer, stepped forward, "Your Majesty, I can bear witness. I too took part in the campaign of Wu Dinghou Cao Yi against Lu River at that time.

Huangfu Xuanji indeed called a meeting of the generals in the Army, shamelessly indulging during daylight hours. On that day, among the several Miao women forced to serve him, three were disabled, and nearly half of them committed suicide from shame afterward."

Huangfu Xuanji couldn’t help but glance at this man. To his surprise, it was an official who worked under him in the Left Army office, a fifth-ranking official. Because of this man’s origin from Western Sichuan and because he was an old subordinate of the Duke of Mu, who had garrisoned Yunnan his entire life, he had always been disliked by Huangfu Xuanji.

But how could this man dare do this?

But he was only the beginning; another person from the military officers stood up: "Your Majesty, regarding the conspiracy between Huangfu Xuanji and the former Ministry of War Vice-Minister Yin Chun, I can testify. In addition, Huangfu Xuanji is suspected of having connections with Wang Zhen, the former eunuch with the seal of the Sili Bureau."

"I have personally witnessed Huangfu Xuanji and Yin Chun enjoying themselves at the Drunken Spring Building, not less than seven times. As is well known to all, Yin Chun was a member of Wang Zhen’s faction, and the Drunken Spring Building is owned by Wang Zhen’s nephew Wang Zhen."

After this man spoke, no fewer than thirty civil and military officials came forward to testify.

Huangfu Xuanji’s face turned white, his eyes filled with rage.

During the campaign of Lu River, he indeed had forced Miao women for his entertainment and had called the generals to drink and dine. He had even allowed his soldiers to rob and exterminate cities. However, the army was at war, stationing in a humid and malarial area, the morale was very low. He, as the deputy commander, had no choice but to rely on these measures to win over the generals and stabilize the army’s morale.

As for the weapon case led by the Vice Minister of War, Yin Chun, during the 27th year of Zhengtong, it had very little to do with him.

At that time, he was only an Official of the Central Government. He didn’t have much power in the Jingying camp and could not make any decisions. Moreover, his elder brother, Huangfu Shenji, was still alive and rather strict with him.

So back then, Huangfu Xuanji simply turned a blind eye and took the usual bribe of three thousand patterned silver as per regulations.

For the necessity of indictment, this really comes up.

What terrified Huangfu Xuanji the most was that these people intended to label him as part of Wang Zhen’s faction!

This was absurd. When Wang Zhen was in power, the Fuguo public was also deeply affected. His brother, Huangfu Shenji, was even deprived of his military power which led to his inability to resist the power of Yexian in the Tumu Fort. He was bombed to death by the military assistant of Mengwu.

This matter is known throughout the world; their Huangfu family could never be part of Wang Zhen’s party.

But by now, the emperor had read the impeachment document from Deputy Imperial Historian Wei Zhen, and his gaze grew even colder.

"Yin Chun? Wang Zhen? Is this true?"

"Your Majesty!" Huangfu Xuanji took off his helmet and bowed down in the hall, "During the campaign against Lu River, I did gather the generals for a banquet, but I never acted licentiously. Many of my generals can testify to this. As for the procurement of military equipment presided over by Vice Minister of War Yin Chun, I never participated in it. These people are framing me, and I ask you to see the truth, Your Majesty!"

But at this moment, Huangfu Xuanji saw another person stepping forward from the crowd of officials.

"Your Majesty, when I was in charge of the Wang Zhen case, indeed many people testified against Huangfu Xuanji. Some people said that Huangfu Xuanji visited Wang Zhen’s private residence three times and conspired with him. When he was with Wang Zhen, he was often obsequious.

I was mindful of the overall situation at that time, and considering the contributions of the late Fuguo General Huangfu Shenji, who had died in battle, I didn’t investigate it."

Huangfu Xuanji looked over and his face turned white.

He recognized him as the Grand Guardian of the Crown Prince, Zhuang Yi, the governor of Shaanxi. In addition to this, he had another identity, the Right Imperial Censor of the Inspectorate during the early years of the Jingtai reign.

It was this man who first proposed to cleanse Wang Zhen’s crimes after the great change at Tumu Fort, and it was him who presided over the Wang Zhen case.

But shouldn’t this man be in Shaanxi? When did he return to the capital? And why is he siding with Li Chengji and opposing him?

The emperor’s face now was as cold as millennia-old ice: "Where is the Han General? Arrest Huangfu Xuanji and send him to Zhao’s prison for interrogation."

Huangfu Xuanji suddenly felt all his strength draining away, and he almost collapsed on the ground.

The Marquis of Wuding, Cao Yi, only managed a bitter smile amidst his helplessness, but a strong sense of apprehension towards Li Chengji arose in his heart.

This Earl Chengyi, once he makes his move, is indeed earth-shattering, leaving no room for maneuver, and he managed to push Huangfu Xuanji into a place of no return!

At this point, there was only one thought in his mind. No matter what, he must not let this Earl Chengyi rise to power in the capital, otherwise his own power and position would be in danger!