Chapter 88 Section Eighty-eighth Forty-eight Hanlin impeachment of Chen Fuen

Zeng Guofan was dragged to court for the second time after being woken up by cold water. Chen Fuen was very unhappy, and asked with a sneer, "Zeng Hanlin, don't you still kneel down?" Zeng Guofan lay on the ground, closed his eyes tightly, and kept silent, pretending not to hear. Chen Fuen said with a hey hey: "Zeng Guofan, you stinky scholars, I have seen a lot in this department! The Qing Dynasty expects you to do things? Huh! Come on, drag the criminals back to the prison and keep them under strict supervision! There must be nothing wrong!" Zeng Guofan was dragged back to prison in a daze.

Among the officers escorting Zeng Guofan, there was a man named Li San, who was from Hefei, and had a close relationship with Li Wen'an. When he was not on duty, he often went to Li's mansion to drink with Li Wen'an, and Li Wen'an took good care of him. The night when Chen Fuen tried Zeng Guofan, Li San happened to be on duty.Li San knew that Li Wen'an had always had a close relationship with Zeng Guofan.When the shift was changed, Li San's family didn't return, so they went straight to Li's mansion and told Li Wen'an about Chen Fuen beating Zeng Guofan at night without being asked, and Li Hongzhang happened to be present.

Li Wen'an knew about Chen Fu'en's details, and after hearing Li San's narration, although he was a little angry at what had happened to Zeng Guofan, he didn't dare to make a sound, and went on duty at the Ministry of Punishment, pretending nothing had happened.However, the proud Li Hongzhang contacted forty-eight Hanlin members, old and young, on the same day, and jointly gave Emperor Xianfeng an excerpt of "Chen Fuen, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, and Chen Fuen, who is a member of the Coordinating University, is good at interrogating imperial criminals" to Emperor Xianfeng.I implore the emperor to strictly punish Chen Fuen, an official who violated the system, according to the laws and regulations of the Qing Dynasty.

According to the laws of the Qing Dynasty, any court offenders shall not be tried by ministers who are not specially ordered by the emperor.Since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, no one dared to violate the system. This trick of Chen Fuen was caught by Li Hongzhang and others. At this time, Pan Shien, a scholar of the Wuyingdian University, also handed over the excerpts of "The Old and Frail and Too Many Dramas Request to Be an Official" to Emperor Xianfeng. What made Emperor Xianfeng feel flustered and short of breath was that Baochang, Minister of the Ministry of War, was due to illness at this time. Cannot be director.

Emperor Xianfeng looked at the one-foot-tall bookcase and the urgent documents sent from Guangxi, walked up and down in the study, and thought hard about the countermeasures.The throne that Emperor Daoguang passed on to him was obviously the throne that everyone was vying for, but he felt more and more like a hedgehog. He asked the on-duty eunuch to pass over officials above ministers of various ministries, bachelors above Beijing co-organizers, and Du Shoutian to discuss matters, but Pan Shi'en and Chen Fu'en were exempted. The bachelors were called to file in, and Du Shoutian, the bachelor of the lecturer, also entered among them with arrogance.After the ceremony, Emperor Xianfeng spoke first: "Ah Mu Zhang, you are the first and auxiliary military plane of the late emperor. Pan Shi'en begged to resign, and it has been three days since the paperwork. There are more and more bandits in Guangxi, but Baochang, Minister of the Ministry of War, became ill again. It looks like. Forty-eight sinologists participated in the impeachment of Chen Fuen, who was good at interrogating ministers, and Chen Fuen was recommended by you. Tell me, what should I do? Our Qing Dynasty is like a shop on the street, and we have to open the door to welcome customers every day!" Emperor Xianfeng wished he could finish speaking in one go.

Mu Zhang thought for a while, then took a step forward and said, "I want to report to the emperor, the slaves thought that Pan Shi'en, at the age of eighty, was still a bachelor on duty. Needless to say, he was suffering from going up and down every day. The slave thinks that although Pan Shien has been in office for four dynasties, he has no outstanding political achievements, and he should have given up his position as a Grand Master of the Hall of Martial Arts. Your Majesty, please look into this." Before Emperor Xianfeng could speak, Du Shoutian took a step forward and said, "Your Majesty, I think Mu Zhongtang's words are unfair. Pan Zhongtang, as the chief master of Shangshufang and a bachelor of Wuyingdian, has knowledge of ancient and modern times and excellent morals. Although he is old How can such a meritorious and veteran official say that he should have given up his position as a bachelor long ago?"

Wen Qing also said at this time: "My lord, I think that Pan Zhongtang is not only the master of the emperor, but also the master of the previous emperor. There is no second such veteran in the court. What's more, Pan Zhongtang has a long history of military affairs and never fights for power. Winning the throne, fame and fortune are all determined by the superiors. The emperor should persuade Pan Zhongtang to stay. Please be aware of it." Emperor Xianfeng bowed his head and thought for a while, then asked: "Ah, Mu Zhang, how should we deal with this matter of Chen Fuen?" Mu Zhang'a calmly replied: "As the emperor said, it is wrong for Chen Fuen to be good at interrogating criminals, but the slaves think that Chen Fuen is also He has his own difficulties. The emperor thinks, since the criminal Zeng Guofan has been taken off his head and sent to the prison of the Criminal Ministry, then Zeng Guofan is no longer a minister. Although Zeng Guofan is a disciple of the slave, the slave does not dare to take sides. Chen Fuen As Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, it is his duty to interrogate the prisoners in custody. There is nothing wrong with this. The slave thinks that Chen Fuen's actions are just his loyalty to the country, and he has meritorious service despite his innocence. Please look into it clearly."

Emperor Xianfeng fell silent. Wen Qingdao: "My Majesty, I have a few words to say about Chen Fuen's trial of the minister." Emperor Xianfeng said: "Wenqing, just talk about it." Wen Qing said: "Thank you, Your Majesty. The slaves thought that although Zeng Guofan, the servant of the Ministry of Rites, was removed from his position by the Emperor, the Emperor did not expressly dismiss him. In other words, the Emperor was only angry for a while, and punishing Zeng Guofan was not to punish him. It's really a question of dismissal. Besides, Zeng Guofan only said a few words that should not be said, and the crime is not enough to dismiss him. This point, the emperor knows better than the slaves. According to my official system, the crimes committed by senior officials of the third rank and above must be ordered by the emperor. The decree appoints a special person to try it. The slave thinks that before the emperor made the decree, Chen Fuen has no right to try it. Chen Fuen is not a loyal country at all, but despises the laws of the country and the emperor. The crime is heinous and unforgivable! Please be aware of the emperor."

Prince Gong Yixin said at this time: "Your Majesty, what Wen Qing said is very true. Chen Fu'en is indeed guilty, and the forty-eight Hanlin attendees are justified. I think that the most urgent thing is to release Zeng Guofan from the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice. The Ministry of Punishment didn't care about it, not only violated the system, but also didn't conform to the style, Chen Fu'en should be questioned. Please look into it clearly, Your Majesty." Emperor Xianfeng suddenly asked Du Shoutian: "Master Du, what do you think?" Emperor Xianfeng deliberately did not refer to Du Shoutian's official title, but called him master, which obviously brought him a step closer.Du Shoutian stepped forward in trepidation and said: "My Majesty, I think whether Zeng Guofan should be questioned or not, let's not talk about it for now, but Chen Fuen really did something wrong! I don't know whose influence Chen Fuen relied on to dare to act so boldly! The old minister has been angry for a whole day, and today he can vomit quickly!" The finger pointed at Mu Zhang'a.

Mu Zhang couldn't bear it anymore, and said angrily: "Du Shoutian, you have only been in the military for a few days, and you are only a fourth-rank bachelor's servant, yet you dare to criticize the court ministers! You still call yourself a veteran! Don't just rely on being a master in the study for a few days , It’s so crazy! You have to know, since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, there have been more than ten million masters in the study, so what are you!” Du Shoutian's face turned pale and red, and he was silent for a long time. Emperor Xianfeng couldn't see it, and said, "Mu Zhang, you must not scold the minister in front of me!"

Mu Zhang'a knelt down and said, "I was angry for a while, please forgive me, Your Majesty." Emperor Xianfeng saw that they insisted on their own opinions and could not come to any conclusion, so he had to say: "Let's all go down, let me think about it."