Magistrate Wang Deshou escorted a group of criminals into the prison. Magistrate Wen Ao heard the news and quickly came forward. The so-called magistrate was the head of the prison officials. Wen Ao humbly smiled at Wang Deshou and said, "Magistrate Wang, what kind of criminals are these? Why did you have to personally escort them here?"
Wang Deshou pulled him aside and whispered, "These people are all treacherous criminals! Watch them carefully and don't let anything go wrong! "
"Treachery?"
Wen Ao smiled and still did not care. All these years, which of the criminals who were locked up in the prison was not guilty of treachery? There were real treachery and fake treachery. In the end, they all signed their names, admitted their crimes, and were beheaded. Whether they were guilty or not, it did not matter anymore!
Wang Deshou saw his expression and reminded him, "Did you see that? Those three old men are Di Renjie, Pei Xingben, and Ren Zhigu, the three Prime Ministers. This treachery and the people involved are different from the past. You must be extra careful!"
Wen Ao glanced at the six criminals and smiled. He still did not care. What kind of nobleman was there? They were just dogs at his mercy. Prime Minister? Even a Prime Minister was just a prisoner here.
In the past, the founding hero of the Great Han Dynasty, Great General Zhou Bo, was locked up in the prison. Luckily, he did not die and was pardoned. After he was released from the prison, the first thing Zhou Bo said to his relatives and subordinates was, "I have commanded millions of soldiers, but how can I know the importance of the prison officials?"
Even with Zhou Bo's power and status, he was ordered around by the prison officials and tortured like a stray dog. Even though Supervisor Wen was only a minor official of the ninth rank, he had seen his fair share of kings, marquises, generals, and ministers in the prison system for so many years, so he didn't really care about these Prime Ministers.
Wang Deshou saw that Wen Ao still did not care and said seriously, "Don't be careless. Be careful that they will falsify your testimony and overturn this case. The Middle Minister takes these people very seriously and specially ordered that Di Renjie, Pei Xingben, and Ren Zhigu, the three Prime Ministers, be locked up separately. Each of them will be in a cell and be strictly guarded. Other than when the Middle Minister is interrogating them, no one other than myself is allowed to touch them. Understand? "
Seeing his stern expression, Wen Ao became a little more dignified and hurriedly said: "Magistrate Wang, rest assured, this lowly official will arrange everything carefully. Uh … there are still a lot of empty cells in the prison. Do you want to place all of them separately to prevent them from colluding?"
Wang Deshou said coldly, "There's no need for that. Just arrange for the three Prime Ministers! I'm afraid this prison cell … won't be enough very soon! "
Wen Ao was overjoyed when he heard this. It seemed that many ministers were going to be unlucky. The more people that were locked up, the more benefits he would be able to obtain. Wen Ao glanced at the ministers again. It was as if he had seen a money tree. It was shining with golden light and was covered with pure gold coins. Wen Ao smiled again, very happily.
On the other side, while they were talking, Wei Yuanzhong, the Right Deputy Imperial Censor, angrily said to Di Renjie, "Master Di, Wei Yuanzhong is loyal to the imperial court and has never had the intention to rebel. Based on Duke Di, Duke Ren, and Duke Pei's character, Wei Yuanzhong doesn't believe that you would rebel. Why did you confess to your crimes just now? "
Di Renjie said, "Since we have fallen into Lai Junchen's hands, we have no choice but to confess. Rebellion is a great taboo for the Son of Heaven. Even if Lai Junchen hardens his heart and tortures us to the point of taking our lives, even if the Son of Heaven doesn't like it, he won't punish him. Since that's the case, why should we force him into a corner? "
Wei Yuanzhong said, "Don't listen to his nonsense. What does he mean by confessing to his crimes and being spared from death? All along, there hasn't been a single rebel who was pardoned from death. If we confess to our crimes, we can't avoid death! "
Ren Zhigu sighed and said, "Deputy Imperial Censor Wei, we are old. Even if Lai Junchen doesn't want to torture us to death, I'm afraid that our bodies can't withstand normal punishments. Master Di is right. Even if we don't confess to our crimes, we will still die. The only way is to confess to our crimes and preserve our lives temporarily. Then, we might have a chance to live! "
Pei Xingben said dispiritedly, "I also understand what Master Di means. If we want to escape, we will have to go to heaven and complain to His Majesty about our grievances. However, now that we are in prison, how can we have a chance to go to heaven and complain to His Majesty? "
Di Renjie glanced at Wang Deshou. Wang Deshou gave Wen Ao some instructions and turned around. Di Renjie immediately lowered his voice and said hurriedly, "There's only a slim chance of survival. We can only act according to circumstances!"
Acting Administrator Wen received Magistrate Wang's orders and made a register for them. He recorded their names, positions, time in prison, and other information. Then, he assigned them to their respective cells. The three Prime Ministers each had their own cell, far away from each other. Wei Yuanzhong, Lu Xian, and the others were locked in the same cell.
In order to prevent prisoners from escaping, committing murder, or committing suicide, the prisoners had to be punished with torture tools. There were four main types of prison tools in the Tang Dynasty: the cangue, the wrench, the pincer, and the cangue. Each type had different lengths and weights to deal with prisoners of different statuses, ages, constitutions, and crimes.
The cangue was the type of wooden shackles used to bind the neck and hands. Wearing this type of torture tool, the prisoner could not lie down or rest. After sitting for a long time, the head, neck, and hands would suffer unbearable pain. The wrench was the type of prison tool used to bind the hands. The pincer was a type of iron hoop used to bind the neck. The other end of the iron hoop was tied to the cell bed. When the prisoner was tied to the iron hoop, it was like a watchdog tied to the door. The cangue was the leg shackle. It was mainly used to tie the ankle to restrict the prisoner's freedom.
Only prisoners below the age of ten or above the age of eighty could be released without torture tools. Currently, the six people locked in prison were all below the age of eighty. However, when officials committed a capital offense, they were treated differently. Officials above the ninth rank and below the seventh rank wore shackles, while officials above the seventh rank only wore shackles. Even the lowest ranking official among these six was at least the sixth rank, so they were all shackled and locked up in their cells with jingling sounds.
This was what it meant to be thrown into prison.
…
Wu Zetian did not sleep at all last night after she hurriedly escaped to Wufeng Restaurant. It was impossible for her not to be nervous about such a major case of rebellion. Wu Zetian felt uneasy and did not sleep the whole night. When the sun rose, she hurriedly arranged the arrest and adjustment, and carried out a series of follow-up matters. This was really not what a sixty-six-year-old woman could bear.
When Wu Zetian returned to Wucheng Hall, she was already exhausted.
All the civil and military officials were scared out of their wits by the scene in the morning. Finally, the dust settled, but the Emperor still did not summon them. All the civil and military officials did not know what to do. They gathered in front of the Meridian Gate and discussed hurriedly. It was decided that the six ministries and nine ministers would stay to see the Emperor and ask what happened.
After they knocked on the Emperor's door and sent the news to Wucheng Hall, Wu Zetian ordered that she would not see any of them. She only summoned Wu Youyi to understand the latest situation. She made some adjustments to the security of the palace, the imperial city, the capital, and the important positions in the imperial army. After that, she went to the back palace to rest with the help of Tuan 'er.
Although she still had a lot of things she wanted to do, time and tide wait for no one. She really could not hold on any longer, so she could only seize the most important things to arrange.
The Emperor did not go to the court, nor did he care about politics. All the civil and military officials in the court were not to be seen. Naturally, Shanghai Wan 'er had nothing to do. After sending Wu Zetian to the bedroom to rest, Shanghai Wan 'er also returned to her residence.
Wan 'er was very clean. She had to bathe at least twice a day, especially before going to bed. Otherwise, she would not be able to sleep well. After returning to her residence, Wan 'er first took a bath with fragrant water, changed into a light dress, and went to rest on the bed.
The depths of the palace were cool, and there was a bamboo bamboo mat under her body. It was very warm and comfortable. After a while, Wan 'er fell asleep.
The two brothers, Wu Youyi and Wu Youji, followed Wu Zetian's arrangements and sent trusted troops to take over the important departments, strengthen the defense of the capital, and adjust the positions and responsibilities of some imperial army generals. By noon, things gradually stabilized. Yang Fan also let out a sigh of relief. After patrolling the two city gates he was responsible for, he walked to the Library of History.
The summer was hot, and the sound of cicadas made people sleepy.
Because of last night's torment, almost no one in the palace could sleep in peace. At this time, it was finally settled. Other than those who had duties, most people rested for the afternoon. Yang Fan arrived at Wan 'er's residence. He did not see the female officials and servants who usually came and went.
If it was someone else who wanted to see Shanghai Wan 'er, they would have to find a female official to go in and report to Shanghai Wan' er to get permission. Yang Fan and Wan 'er's relationship was different, so he did not have that many misgivings. Along the way, seeing that no one was moving, Yang Fan quietly went directly to Wan 'er's residence.
Yang Fan gently knocked on the door and pushed. The door opened. There was no one in the study. Yang Fan gently closed the door and slowly walked in.
The room had a quiet and elegant feeling. There were a few official letters scattered on the bookcase with curled ears and two ancient style inkstones. Hanging from the brush rack were a dozen or so purple brushes, from thick to thin. Next to the table was a large green lotus urn, with a dozen or so scrolls in it.
On the shelf next to the window, there were three lilies of different heights in a slender vase. On the snow-white wall hung a "Spring Mountain Misty Rain Painting" painted by Wan 'er. There were also a few banners and vertical stickers written by Wan' er herself. It gave off a scholarly atmosphere.
Yang Fan stood for a while and then turned into Wan 'er's bedroom behind the screen. On the dressing table was a bronze mirror with water caltrop patterns. A large red lacquer jewelry box with plum flowers was open. Inside were a few hair ornaments and pearl earrings. Next to it was Wan' er's bed. On the sandalwood bed hung a light green gauze canopy.
Yang Fan walked over and gently lifted the gauze canopy. He saw Wan 'er lying on her side on the bed. Her slender body was lying on her side like a bow. There was a sapphire blue silk quilt around her waist. Her slender waist, her fragrant buttocks, and her slender legs. Her curves were like a fascinating ink landscape.
Yang Fan carefully moved Wan 'er's embroidered satin shoes away and sat down next to her. He gently put his hand on her graceful waist and walked into the beautiful landscape.
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