It was the third month of spring, and the scenery was bright. White willow catkins flew all over the sky, as if it was a heavy snow in the middle of winter.
However, under this heavy snow, there was a cold mist and new willow trees on the shore. It was the scene of spring.
The color of the willow was like smoke and snow. It was one of the eight sceneries of Chang 'an, and it was called the "Wind and Snow of the Willow".
The scenery was beautiful, but it was only suitable to be seen from afar. For those who were in it, it was extremely troublesome.
For example, Yang Fan and Xue Huaiyi who were standing by the Baqiao. Ruoxiang was wearing a "dew" on her head and did not feel much about the fluttering willow catkins, but Yang Fan and Xue Huaiyi had to squint and speak carefully to avoid the catkins from entering their mouths.
"I'll ask someone to send Master Xue all the way to Yangzhou, then change to a large ship there. The ship and manpower are very reliable, don't worry, Master Xue. "
Xue Huaiyi smiled and said, "Seventeen, you're really amazing now. I didn't expect you to have such close relations with Nanyang and Dongying. This fleet is yours, right? Although I live in Kyoto now, all the feudal lords in Japan have to give me some face. If your people encounter any trouble in Dongying in the future, tell them to find me at Honbara Temple in Kyoto! "
Xue Huaiyi had experienced many ups and downs, and was no longer as crude as before. However, his personality was still wild, and his words were really heroic. However, his arrogance had always been backed up. In the past, he had Wu Zetian to support him in the Central Plains. Now that he was in Dongying, it was because he had enough power.
"Thank you, Master. Master's wife, I wish you a safe journey! "
Yang Fan turned to Ruoxiang and bowed to her with a smile. Ruoxiang was a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl, much younger than Yang Fan. However, her status was there, so Yang Fan was very polite. Ruoxiang pressed her knees and bowed back to him, a very pretty smile vaguely visible under her slightly exposed face.
"Alright, alright. We're both grown men. Let's not play those childish games. Let's go, let's go. I'll wait for you in Dongying."
When Xue Huaiyi saw that Hong One and Hong Six were about to step forward to bid farewell to Yang Fan, he waved his hand forcefully, turned around, and strode onto the ship. Ruo Xiang immediately followed behind him. Hong One and Hong Six cupped their fists towards Yang Fan and said, "Take care!" Then, they followed Xue Huaiyi onto the ship.
Not far away, the Japanese Tang Imperial Envoy, Ambassador and Deputy Envoy bowed to the ship. There were also a few Japanese monks who put their palms together. Xue Huai Yi stood firm on the bow of the ship, cupped his fists and bowed to them. Yang Fan looked at his movements. No matter how he looked at it, he looked like a street performer.
However, who else in history could have such a legendary experience as Xue Huaiyi, a street performer and peddler of strength pills? Even when Yang Fan thought about it, he could not help but sigh at the wonders of life.
The sails were raised, the mooring ropes were untied, and the big anchor was hooked onto the ship. The big ship belonging to the Shun Sect slowly left the shore. On both sides of the Wei River were lush green fields. In the middle of the green trees was the vast and mighty spring river. The white sail on the river was like a new cloud, slowly sailing towards the distant horizon …
After Xue Huaiyi's ship left the Ba, Yang Fan rode his horse back to Chang 'an. The Japanese Tang Imperial Envoy did not travel with him. They seemed to be very interested in the enchanting scenery of the Ba. After seeing off Master Xiaobao, they stayed on the Ba and enjoyed the scenery.
Yang Fan sent people to accompany them and arranged a time for the banquet. Then, he rode his horse and left. Some of these people were originally Japanese officials, and some would definitely become influential figures after returning. They were all people that Yang Fan could use in the future, so he naturally had to contact them.
In order to avoid conflicts of interest with the Hidden Sect, Yang Fan decided to develop the Obvious Sect's power in the east and south. Yang Fan had a strong foundation of connections in the southern states, so it was easy to ensure that his power could penetrate. The southeast coast had long been densely populated with merchant ships, and Yang Fan's master was also the overlord of the South Sea, so the construction of this route was unusually smooth.
As for the east, Shen Mu had already taken the lead in Xin Luo heading north, so Yang Fan's main target was Fu Sang. However, he started to manage Dong Ying late, so his power there was still very weak. Although he had Xue Huaiyi's help, which was equivalent to having the biggest inside man in Japan, he could maintain close contact with these Tang Imperial Envoys. In the future, his network in Dong Ying would be wider, and it would definitely be beneficial to the development of his power. Naturally, he could not miss this opportunity.
When Yang Fan was about to reach the city gate, there was suddenly a group of people riding horses in the distance. They galloped very quickly, and the road was covered in dust. Many commoners who were entering the city moved to the sides of the road.
At the front of the group of people, there were a few servants leading the way. When they arrived at the city gate, they said a few words to the gatekeeper, and the gatekeeper hurriedly had people open the city gate, remove the obstacles, and let those people enter the city. When the city gate opened, the group of people had just reached the city gate, and they did not stop at all. They marched straight in.
Yang Fan saw a few familiar faces in the group, but he could not remember most of their names. He only vaguely remembered that they were people from Guanzhong's aristocratic families. Among them, there was only one that Yang Fan remembered very clearly, because that person was Du Wentian's father, Du Jingting, the head of the Du Clan in Fanchuan.
Seeing that these people had suddenly gathered together and were in a hurry, Yang Fan could not help but wonder, "Did something happen?"
After Yang Fan returned to the city, he sent people to inquire about those people, and he himself returned to Long Qing Square. He walked along Vermillion Bird Avenue, and was about to turn to Long Qing Square when dozens of horses suddenly came out of a workshop on the side of the road. Most of the riders on the horses wore soft-legged headdresses, robes, and black leather boots.
Since they were dressed like this, they were either officials wearing swallow-style robes, or scholars with scholarly honors. Seeing that they had solemn expressions and were in a hurry, no one was talking or laughing, and did not look like they were gathering for a trip, this attracted Yang Fan's attention. Yang Fan looked around and found a few familiar faces in the crowd. The person who was surrounded by the crowd was the Minister of Strict Governance, the Minister of Imperial Censor, Song Jing.
Song Jing's expression was cold, and his eyes were filled with anger. When Yang Fan saw this, he thought, "Something must have happened!"
Not long after, the people he sent to inquire about the news returned with detailed information. Something had indeed happened.
…
The second Zhang was not a person who was good at forbearance, even Zhang Yizhi was only slightly calmer than Zhang Changzong. As soon as the two brothers decided to launch a counterattack against Wei Yuanzhong, they immediately began to carry it out.
They used every opportunity to slander Wu Zetian. They said that Wei Yuanzhong had publicly threatened that once the Crown Prince succeeded the throne, he would kill the second Zhang first! They said that Wei Yuanzhong had formed a private clique and bewitched them, saying that the Emperor was old, and that it was better to rely on the Crown Prince early in order to protect his wealth and glory …
Wei Yuanzhong was indeed loyal to the Crown Prince. This point could be felt by Wu Zetian from his words and actions in the court. Wei Yuanzhong was indeed forming cliques. In fact, which official did not form cliques, and the more important the official, the more so.
Since ancient times, no matter if it was someone who truly wanted a career or just wanted to solidify their position, as long as they struggled in the official path, no matter how high or low their position was, they all had their own small circle. Even the self-proclaimed solitary official, Lai Junchen, had a group of henchmen.
The only person who had truly reached the realm of solitary official, where one's grandmother was not close to, one's uncles did not love, one's loyal and treacherous people kept a respectful distance, was probably the Great Ming Dynasty's strange Lord Hai Rui.
However, later generations were used to calling the cliques of the ancient people that they admired as loyal and righteous, and the cliques of the people that they hated as villains colluding with each other. For the Emperor, as long as there was a clique, it was something he hated and was wary of. No matter what goal it was for, it did not affect the nature of the matter.
Wei Yuanzhong had indeed said a few things to attack Er Zhang and even dissatisfied with Wu Zetian. Although he would not say it as blatantly as what Er Zhang said to Wu Zetian, Er Zhang was only exaggerating, or directly pointing out the hidden meaning that Wei Yuanzhong had not said. It was not like he was making groundless accusations or making baseless accusations.
Because of these reasons, coupled with Wu Zetian's excessive reliance and trust towards her two lovers in her later years, she completely believed Er Zhang's words. As a result, Wu Zetian became extremely angry. She felt that this was disrespect towards her and a challenge to her authority. And Wu Zetian's attitude towards all enemies that tried to challenge her authority was to strike down harshly. She would rather kill the wrong person than let them off!
The result of her self-reflection was that the reason why the officials were so unrestrained was because she had been too lenient over the past few years. The officials had already lost their respect for her. As a result, she decided to severely punish Wei Yuanzhong and make an example out of him. But she also knew that with just these words, the most she could do was convict Wei Yuanzhong of speaking without restraint. It would not be able to severely punish a prime minister. As a result, she instructed Er Zhang to find a more serious crime.
Since she had decided to establish her authority, Wu Zetian decided to stop at nothing. Er Zhang understood tacitly and immediately concocted a weapon that Wu Zetian had always used to attack her political enemies. "Rebellion! Wei Yuanzhong attempted to rebel. "
Wei Yuanzhong was backed by the current Crown Prince. Wu Zetian did not believe that without the Crown Prince's instructions, Wei Yuanzhong would be so unrestrained. As a result, she wanted to severely punish Wei Yuanzhong and at the same time give the Crown Prince a warning so that he would behave himself. As soon as Er Zhang concocted the evidence of Wei Yuanzhong's rebellion, Wu Zetian issued an edict to arrest Wei Yuanzhong.
In the last few years, with the establishment of the Crown Prince, the return of power to Li was an inevitable fact. The Son of Heaven was old and his desire to kill was far less than it had been in the past. This had truly caused the ministers of the court to regain some of their strength and courage. In the past, when the Prime Ministers were arrested, the ministers would do their utmost to rescue them, but the method they used was mostly to send a memorial to the Crown Prince.
The Son of Heaven remained silent, and the ministers did not dare to speak out more. But this time, Wu Zetian seemed to have poked a hornet's nest, and the backlash from the ministers was even more severe than before. In the Imperial Court, in memorials, the civil and military officials used every method to denounce the Emperor. Every day, a large number of people sought an audience with the Emperor.
Wu Zetian was truly old. She no longer had the energy to contend with the ministers and engage in tit-for-tat struggles. All of this made Wu Zetian exhausted. Every day, only when she returned to the inner palace would she be able to find a brief moment of peace.
The ministers' counterattack was so fierce that it naturally could not rely on their own strength. The reason the backlash this time was so strong was because someone was supporting them from behind. But this person was neither the Crown Prince nor the Prince of Xiang. By the time Yang Fan learned of the entire matter, this person had already rushed to the Yang Estate to wait for him.
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