Chapter 267 It’s a chicken and a egg
Chapter 267 It’s a chicken and a egg
In Chang'an, Emperor Yang Jian received a briefing sent by Xiao Xia. He was deeply pleased but also very annoyed. It turned out that the general manager Huang Yaokuan was the backer behind the Maitreya Sect. No wonder the Maitreya Sect had been in such a mess in Luoyang in recent years.
Xiao Xia also seized 300,000 strings of wealth from the Maitreya Sect and found 50,000 taels of silver in Huang Yaokuan's official residence. This was good news for the court's finances.
Yang Jian immediately summoned important officials to discuss arrangements in Luoyang.
"Huang Yaokuan is not the only one in Luoyang who supports Maitreya. Zhao Bolun, the magistrate of Luoyang, is also a supporter of Maitreya. Zhang Yi, the chief clerk of Luoyang General Administration Office, is also among them. They have all been suspended by General Xiao using the Imperial Censor's Order. What makes me most sad is that Huang Yaokuan, the general clerk, is said to be the real leader of Maitreya. King of Han, it was you who recommended Huang Yaokuan to me."
Han Wang Yang Liang felt uneasy and bowed, "Father, I have spent the past year reflecting on myself in the palace and I know nothing about the situation in Luoyang. Huang Yaokuan is weak-willed and corrupted by money. He has become an accomplice of Maitreya. He deserves death. I suggest that we immediately raid his house in Chang'an. He must have transported a large amount of the people's wealth back to Chang'an. His family must also be convicted and exiled!"
Yang Jian glanced at him and said calmly, "Your Highness is right. The perpetrators must be severely punished, and the same applies to the accomplices. I will leave the matter of raiding Huang Yaokuan's mansion to you. You go and handle it. I will let the Dali Temple help you."
"My son obeys the order!"
Yang Jian then asked his second son Yang Guang: "What does the Prince of Jin think?"
Yang Guang stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that the officialdom in Luoyang must be thoroughly rectified. All officials who have accepted bribes from Maitreya must be dismissed and investigated. The court should use its attitude to warn all officials in the world what will happen if they dare to support Maitreya and harm the people. I recommend Zhang Heng, the Minister of the Dali Temple, to go to Luoyang to rectify the officialdom."
Yang Jian nodded, "I approve. Also, does Your Majesty have any recommendations for the post of Governor of Henan County and the Governor of Luoyang?"
Yang Guang was overjoyed that his father actually gave Luoyang to him.
He said quickly, "I recommend Li Yuan as the governor of Henan County. He is young and strong, and sticks to his principles. He is the most suitable candidate. I also recommend Yang Da to stay in Luoyang. Yang Da is steady, has rich experience, and is a member of the royal family. He happens to be in Luoyang and can take charge of the Luoyang army!"
"Okay, I approve it. In addition, Xiao Xia recommends Pei Wen'an as the magistrate of Luoyang and Yang Jishan as the magistrate of Yique County. I also approve them."
Yang Guang was in a good mood. This Maitreya incident not only uprooted the power of the fifth brother in Luoyang, but also made Luoyang his own territory. This was obviously a reward from his father.
Of course, the credit went to the third son. Yang Guang's resentment towards his third son Xiao Xia gradually faded. Although the third son was independent and out of his control, he was fighting for him after all. Father and son were needed in battle. He shouldn't have been so harsh on him last time, as the prince had soured the relationship between father and son.
At this time, Yang Zhao came in and asked, "Father, are you looking for me?"
Yang Guang nodded and instructed: "You should go to Tongguan to see your third brother immediately. I want to know the situation of the King of Han. Ask him if he has found anything. Also, tell him that I shouldn't have been so harsh on him last time. He fell into the Crown Prince's trap and suffered."
Yang Zhao was overjoyed and said quickly: "I will leave for Tongguan now!"
In Anshanfang, Huang Yaokuan's home was thoroughly searched by Han Wang Yang Liang and his men. Boxes and crates were carried out one after another and piled up like a mountain. Soon, Huang Yaokuan's wife and several sons were taken out.
Huang Yaokuan's wife saw Han Wang Yang Liang and quickly ran forward to kneel before him and begged for mercy, "Your Highness, my husband has always been loyal to you. You told him to go east, but he didn't dare to go west. You told him to stand, but he didn't dare to sit down. He worked diligently for you. Now he is dead. Can't you forgive his family for the sake of the past?"
Han Wang Yang Liang kicked Huang Yaokuan's wife to the ground and said angrily: "What does your husband have to do with me? What qualifications do you have for me to forgive you? Go and ask your dead husband! He has violated the laws of the Sui Dynasty. He and his family must be severely punished. No one can escape!" Huang Yaokuan's eldest son Huang Aiqu hurriedly helped his mother up. He could no longer bear it and pointed at Han Wang Yang Liang and cursed: "Everything my father did was done in accordance with your will. Which one was not ordered by you? He was investigated by the court and his family suffered. Not only did you not help, but you also added insult to injury. Who would have a good ending if they worked for you? Who wouldn't be disappointed!"
Huang Aiqu's words touched the sore spot of Han Wang Yang Liang, who was so angry that he flew into a rage and shouted, "Drag him away and beat him! Beat him to death!"
Several big men rushed over, carried Huang Aiqu down, pinned him down and beat him with sticks. Huang Yaokuan's wife struggled desperately to save her son, but was held down by the soldiers. Huang Yaokuan's wife burst into tears and kowtowed desperately, begging: "Your Highness! Your Highness! Please spare my son! He can't speak, please spare him!"
Huang's wife's forehead was bleeding, but Yang Liang, the King of Han, remained unmoved and continued to beat her with more than fifty sticks. One of his men stepped forward and whispered, "He is dying. He will die on the way to exile. It is better to let him die on the way."
Yang Liang nodded, snorted, turned and left.
The soldiers stopped beating with clubs, and Huang's wife hurried forward. Seeing her son covered in blood and dying, she lay on top of her son and burst into tears.
When Yang Liang arrived at Huang's house, officials from the Dali Temple also arrived and searched for evidence. Wang Qiu, the Dali Temple official, found an opportunity and whispered to Yang Liang, "Chang'an has basically been stripped clean, there is no problem. I am a little worried about whether Huang Yaokuan in Luoyang will keep anything. Once Xiao Xia gets it, it will be troublesome."
Although Wang Qiu was a disciple of Yang Su and was promoted by Yang Su, he had flaws in character. He had previously risen to power by betraying the former Dali Temple Minister Zhang Guo. Although he became the Dali Temple Minister, he felt that the Prince of Jin did not trust him, and promoted his wife's brother Xiao Yu to be the Dali Temple Junior Minister, which to some extent sidelined him.
This made Wang Qiu somewhat dissatisfied, so Yang Liang, the Prince of Han, took advantage of the situation and bribed Wang Qiu with 10,000 taels of silver. Wang Qiu immediately joined the service of Yang Liang, the Prince of Han.
The last time, Prince of Jin Yang Guang sent Zhang Wenxian, a judge of the Dali Temple, to lead twenty imperial guards to Luoyang secretly to investigate the situation of Maitreya Sect. However, they were betrayed by Wang Qiu, and Zhang Wenxian and the twenty imperial guards were almost all killed, with only two escaping.
Now Xiao Xia went to Luoyang to wipe out the Maitreya Sect, Huang Yaokuan committed suicide, and Wang Qi became a little scared.
Yang Liang narrowed his eyes and said, "The emperor didn't cause me any trouble today, which means Xiao Xia didn't find any evidence. I repeatedly told Huang Yaokuan to burn the letter. He will listen to me and burn it. Don't worry!"
At this time, someone in the courtyard reported: "Your Excellency Wang, some family letters from Huang Yaokuan were found in the study."
Wang Qiu was startled and walked out quickly, "Take me to see it!"
"Go ahead! Take a closer look to see if there are any sensitive letters!"
"I humbly obey my orders!"
Wang Qiu left in a hurry, and Yang Liang sat down and began to sulk. He hated Huang Yaokuan for not keeping the 300,000 copper coins for him, and he was even more angry at Hou Junji for not leading his troops well, which led to the loss of all his 2,000 private troops. All the financial and material resources he had invested before had gone down the drain, and seeing that the entire Luoyang officialdom was completely wiped out, he could say that he had lost everything this time and suffered a great loss.
(End of this chapter)