Chapter 22 windy grass

When the massacre and persecution of Empress Wu were vigorous and vigorous, among the courtiers of the Tang Dynasty, there were still some loyal people who were willing to die for justice, or did their best to fight to the death with the adulterers, and the integrity was preserved. Endless in the world, the future of mankind depends on preserving a glimmer of hope.The murder of Liu Yizhi, the servant of Zhongshu, is an example.Someone once heard that Liu Yizhi said that Empress Wu should return the power to the crown prince in order to secure the world, so he was convicted.Empress Wu sent Wang Benli, the governor of Suzhou, to rule. Wang Benli showed the edict of Empress Wu to Liu Yizhi. People at that time had long forgotten about this legal procedure.At trial, despite stern warnings from his friends, he did not revoke his previous

Word.He did say that empress Wu should return to the emperor.What he said was not disloyal and did not violate the laws of the country, and this claim should be upheld.Lai Junchen forced him to implicate others, but he sternly refused.He said: "The emperor is above, Liu Yizhi will never be an informer!" Empress Wu ordered him to hang himself to death.He made a statement in prison, with awe-inspiring righteousness.He ate the last meal with his family, said goodbye to his family, dressed in court clothes, and calmly hanged himself.This situation is exactly the same as when Wei Fangzhi, Wei Xuantong, and Ouyang Tong died (see Nos. 17, 12, and 30 of "Murder List III of Empress Wu").

In order to maintain the dignity of the national law, there are also some royal officials who refuse to join forces and kill Zhongliang.Li Rizhi once refused to convict an innocent person.The case was repeatedly debated among the censors many times.A censor said: "I affirm as a servant of the censor that I will never allow this person to live." At that time, Li Rizhi was also a censor and participated in the governance of Yuzhi. .” There are also two famous censors who try their best to defend the innocent, one is Xu Yugong and the other is Du Jingjian. These two will become more and more important in the later part of this book.Xu Yugong refused to use torture to extract a confession, and his subordinates were greatly moved, and they vowed not to beat the prisoner again.The defendant often said: "We don't know who will judge. If it comes to Junchen and Suo Yuanli, we deserve to die. If it comes to Xu and Du, we can live." Insufficient, not with conviction.The case finally came before Empress Wu. Xu Yugong argued fiercely with Empress Wu. He said that Yin Wangdan’s mother-in-law had prayed for her daughter after her daughter died mysteriously in the palace (see Chapter 38). As a censor, he should uphold the laws of the country.

Empress Wu asked: "According to what I heard, you acquitted many people. Why?" Xu Yugong replied concisely and powerfully: "I have failed to convict some people and release them. This may be true. For my minister, it is a great mistake to release a guilty person; but to protect the innocent from being framed It is the supreme virtue of a wise lord." Xu Yugong was relegated.But Empress Wu still remembered him, and a few years later recalled him to the imperial court and granted him an official position.It can be seen that Empress Wu always knew clearly what she did to herself, and recalled such an upright and virtuous minister as Xu Yugong to the court after Empress Wu's status had been consolidated and terror was no longer necessary.Empress Wu knew that people were good and responsible, whether he used a villain or a loyal one, it all depends on the situation.

There is also the poet Chen Ziang. In March of the second year of Chuigong, Empress Wu, when arrests and frame-ups were being carried out vigorously, he felt that he should write a letter to admonish him.At that time, he was a small official in Shangshu Province, specializing in correcting and correcting official documents.From his memorials, we can see the real situation at that time. Chen Supplements on Empress Wu's List Today, the deacon, Xu Jingye, is the first to advocate disaster and chaos. He will rest in Ningyuan and impoverish his party members, so His Majesty will open the prison and set up severe punishments.There are people who are suspected of being involved in the track, and they are arrested and cited, and they are all arrested and investigated.There are even treacherous people who take advantage of danger to slander each other, sue suspects, and hope to reward them, which is not the intention of punishing and punishing crimes.

The minister peeks at the world today, and the people have been thinking about peace for a long time.Your Majesty does not use mystery to save us, but instead uses threats to disappoint the people.The minister is stupid and ignorant, and there is great confusion. There are hundreds of thousands of prisoners who have been accused by various parties, and they have been investigated thoroughly, but there is no truth.Your Majesty is merciful and forgiving, but also bends the law to tolerate it, so that the treacherous party will hate each other as much as they want.The suspicion of Yazi is called secret.One person was sued, and a hundred people were jailed.The envoy pushed and arrested, and the crown covered the city.Or it is said that His Majesty loves one person and harms hundreds of others.The world is humming, what Mo Zhining...

After Zi Ang Shu played Dawu, naturally there was no further text, but he did not speak out and was convicted.At the end of the memorial, Zi Ang quoted the historical facts of the previous dynasties and stated his own opinions, showing his loyalty between the lines.He said that such persecution of innocent people will become more and more violent once the people of the Li people turn against their morals and rebel.In fact, what Zi Ang saw was not entirely correct.Because once the atmosphere of terror permeates everywhere, mass arrests become a daily routine, executioners crowd the streets, and the country is so big that everyone denounces and accuses each other, group resistance will be impossible to achieve.Empress Wu did nothing wrong, she knew that what she did was right.From March to October of the first year of Empress Wu's Yongchang, and when the massacre was in full swing, Zi'ang struggled unremittingly and wrote letters many times, asking Empress Wu to stop torture and practice benevolent governance.Therefore, Chen Ziang can be called the first person to fight for the protection of human dignity and national laws.Compared with the two poets Shen Quanqi and Song Zhiwen who both wrote poems to Empress Wu and their songs to praise virtues, Chen Ziang is indeed the mouthpiece of the people.