Xue Bai continued: "Miao Gong wants to frame the evidence of rebellion on Wang Fei. Instead of letting me do it, it is better to ask Linghu Tao. His confession is crucial."

"Oral confession?" Miao Jinqing said: "The dignified Shaoyin of Henan Prefecture is not a prisoner, how can he get an oral confession?"

Xue Bai did not answer immediately, as if he was thinking.

Miao Jinqing gradually became impatient and said: "To ask Linghu Tao to come forward to testify against Wang Fei is equivalent to asking him to plead guilty. How is it possible?"

Xue Bai said: "Yanshi County Magistrate Lu Linghao resold the charity warehouse grain. Linghu Tao obviously knew about this. In fact, Linghu Tao even resold the charity warehouse in Luoyang Mansion."

"What do you mean?"

"If Mr. Miao wants to force Linghu Tao, he can investigate the Henan government officials' resale of grain from the charity warehouse..."

In Yanshi County, and even in Henan Prefecture as a whole, things gradually became strange.

Miao Jinqing obviously came because of the power struggle, but for some unknown reason, he came forward to help Xue Bai investigate the rebellion.

~~

By June, Xue Bai was still in Yanshi County, managing it patiently.

Summer has arrived, and the weather is gradually getting hotter. There is still little rain in Henan Prefecture this year. Although it is not a severe drought, it will obviously have a big impact on the harvest.

By building canals and digging wells, Xue Bai tried his best to organize the entire county so that the people could keep more of their harvest.

In addition, he also relied on Miao Jinqing's prestige to investigate the resale of grain stored in the warehouse, so as to prepare for enough grain to help the people in the event of a disaster.

In Chang'an, the party struggle is still intensifying...

~~

Before the fourth watch, Yuan Zai opened his eyes and woke up.

He didn't sleep for two hours in total, but he didn't feel sleepy at all, so he stood up quietly, trying not to disturb Wang Yunxiu, who was still sleeping soundly.

Walking all the way to the study, there are several rosters on the desk in the study.

The roster was given to Yuan Zai by Wang Zhi, and it contained a list of the confidants of the Right Prime Minister, including their family backgrounds, official positions, and more information.

This list is of course very important. It can be used not only to disrupt the power of the right prime minister, but also to attract talents.

Yuan Zai could already think that if Li Linfu was overthrown, he would assist Yang Hao as prime minister, and at the same time take this opportunity to accumulate qualifications. Sooner or later, he would also be in charge of the Tang Dynasty.

With this idea, his mind was inexplicably excited, and he was studying these things in his sleep.

While he was busy, the door of the room was pushed open, and Wang Yunxiu came in with his clothes on, saying: "You haven't slept well for several nights, why are you working so hard?"

"I have great ambitions, but I can't sleep."

Yuan Zai is full of ambition, although his tone is sighing, but in fact he is full of enthusiasm and forge ahead.

Wang Yunxiu did not understand her husband's ambition, and said: "Now we have a luxurious house. At your age, you have a sixth-rank official position, hold many positions, and hold great power. What else can you be dissatisfied about? You would rather stay up at night. I’m not afraid of hurting myself either.”

"Sail against the current, and if you don't advance, you will retreat." Yuan Zai said, "The dispute between Li Linfu and the king is unavoidable, so it is better to take this opportunity to gain great wealth."

Wang Yunxiu wanted to persuade him, but he added another sentence.

"What you don't understand is how far I can go."

The candlelight was brightly lit in the study room. Wang Yunxiu looked at Yuan Zai and saw that his eyes were covered with red bloodshot eyes due to exhaustion, and his eyes were full of excitement.

He has come from a humble background to what he is today. All his experiences have made him feel that life will get better and better, so this is his chance to change into a red robe.

…

At dawn, Yuan Zai tidied up his appearance and rushed to Yang Wei's mansion early.

At this time, the morning drums in Chang'an City were just ringing, and the gate of Yang Mansion was already filled with officials waiting to meet. I don't know how they got here. Maybe they waited here all night during the curfew?

Yuan Zai did not have to wait and was taken directly to the meeting hall.

"Uncle Guo, I read the list overnight and think that as long as I win over a few more important ministers, I can bring down Li Linfu."

But Yang Wei waved his hand and said: "Abai's latest letter has arrived, saying that he shouldn't rush to get involved."

"The situation is no longer up to us." Yuan Zai responded.

He believes that whether it is a matter of blending or not, the considerations are reasonable and are just based on different choices. But one should not be indecisive. Once a choice is made, it should be implemented to the end.

"Xue Lang's recommendation of Yan Chunqing was used by Wang He and was implicated in the Zhao Fengzhang case. Many people have concluded that we are allied with Wang He to deal with Li Linfu. If we back down at this time, where will the prestige of the country be? Who else will be willing to serve the country in the future? Uncle serves?"

"Xue Lang is not in Chang'an, so his grasp of the situation will inevitably be biased. But things have priorities, and the affairs of Yanshi County should not be compared with the major events of my uncle..."

Yuan Zai talked eloquently, and finally convinced Yang Hao to let him win over the officials on the list.

In this way, he visited the DPRK and Chinese officials in the name of Yang Dang, promised his future, and gave generous gifts. Within a few days, his reputation soared.

He was finally able to represent the attitude of part of the Yang Party.

~~

On June 18, Wang Yunxiu entertained her close friends at home.

"When I talk about this, I get angry. I've obviously never been to Luoyang, but because of this, many people are saying that I went to have a tryst with him, and my reputation has been ruined. How can I get married in the future?"

"Don't worry, with the Zhang family's family status, the person who wants to marry you can be arranged to go to Luoyang in the long run."

"Look, even you said that they asked to marry me because of the Zhang family's family background."

Scholar Wang Yun realized that he had said the wrong thing.

She grew up in the frontier, and her temperament is like that of a man. She is really not good at all the little things that women need to deal with.

"open……"

Just as Wang Yunxiu was about to speak, suddenly there was a commotion in the courtyard.

She was a little unhappy, so she stood up and looked outside, and was surprised to see a group of officers striding in.

"I was ordered to search Yuan Zai's mansion!"

Wang Yunxiu frowned at the sudden change, but remained calm. He walked forward and shouted: "This is the judge who transports salt and iron..."

"The one being searched is Yuan Zai, take her back for questioning!"

"Who dares to touch me?!"

Although Wang Yunxiu was a woman, she was quite fierce. She showed the demeanor of Wang Zhongsi's daughter and drank to the point where the officials did not dare to come forward.

However, after she found out what happened, she realized that the court had really not wronged Yuan Zai when they came to investigate him.

It is only said that the house they live in now was indeed a gift from Yang Zheng; and in recent days, Yuan Zai has been making friends with officials in the DPRK and giving generous gifts, which has been reported by some of them.

The evidence is conclusive. If an official from a poor background behaves like this, if he says he did not get ill-gotten gains, who can believe it?

But in fact, Wang Yunxiu had already had a premonition of this outcome. Yuan Zai was so smart that he thought everything was in his own hands.

The more this happens, the easier it is to fall into trouble...

~~

It was already July when the news reached Yanshi. Xue Bai was worried about farmers' harvests, so he often took Yan Chunqing to the fields with him.

He was very tanned.

Since we are not in a time like Chang'an where we always have to cling to nepotism, it doesn't matter if we are darker.

"Young Master, news from Chang'an has arrived."

"explain."

"Yuan Zai was demoted to central Guizhou."

Xue Bai had no sympathy for this and said: "He should learn a lesson."

In fact, as a result, Yang Dang's reputation, which had been rising continuously, was set back, but Xue Bai thought it didn't matter. When the fight between Li Linfu and Wang Zhen became more intense, more good conditions would naturally be given.

"Young Master, Mrs. Guo Guo and my uncle still hope that you can return to Chang'an as soon as possible. The position of Wannian County Lieutenant is still retained. Now my uncle has no adviser who can make decisions for him..."

Xue Bai looked at Tianye again.

Compared to before, if he left now, he would be much more relieved. But autumn has not yet arrived, and what he is most worried about is the tax. If he does not make a rule, he will feel uneasy...

~~

Yang Hao has been feeling even more uneasy lately.

Yuan Zai's demotion made him feel Li Linfu's strength.

It has to be said that Wang Fei is still no match for Li Linfu. At least in the initial confrontation, Li Linfu hit back hard with all his methods.

After this incident, Yang Hao finally understood Xue Bai's plan and decided to hide his capabilities and bide his time for a while, waiting for the opportunity.

He was too excited because of Yuan Zai's instigation a while ago. Once he relaxed now, he suddenly felt tired.

I had no plans to meet any officials that day, but Yang Guozhong came, still with a questioning tone.

In other words, he suppressed Yang Wei's momentum from the moment he came.

"Brother, can you tell me why Yuan Zai acted like this?!"

"What else is there to say about this matter?" Yang Hao said: "Everyone has been demoted."

"Yuan Zai was greedy and fell into Wang Fei's trick." Yang Guozhong said: "But brother, why didn't you tell me earlier?"
To be continued...