Transmigration: Space-Aided Rise to Power and Prosperity-Chapter 579 - 415 Punishment

"Your Majesty, when I originally did this, it was merely for my own convenience. If there were any errors, wouldn’t it mislead many colleagues?" Gu Chengyu smiled shyly, all the while secretly cursing in his heart.

Handing over the booklet is indeed possible, this could be counted as one of his achievements.

But if those people take the opportunity to trip him up, or if they make mistakes themselves and push the blame onto him, wouldn’t that be big trouble for him?

He certainly needed to clarify in front of the Emperor first so that any future problems wouldn’t be blamed on him.

The Emperor certainly understood the little calculations in Gu Chengyu’s heart. He chuckled silently; Gu Chengyu’s mind was indeed shrewd, afraid of inviting trouble and afraid of others tripping him up.

"Naturally, this is something that can only begin to be compiled after being reviewed by other government offices."

The Emperor glanced at the other two people, and his mood turned unpleasant again.

To speak of the crime of deceiving the sovereign, these two do not quite match. Aren’t there still too few officials who deceive and hide from the court? Though he is the illustrious Emperor, aren’t the officials beneath him still deceiving and hiding from him?

The court has too few officials who can serve as eyes and ears, and the Cabinet’s power is too great, leading to a loss of balance in the court.

It’s also because in earlier years he suppressed those aristocratic families too harshly; now they’re too oppressed to dare to rise up.

If this goes on, he, the Emperor, will soon be rendered powerless. Thinking of this, the Emperor couldn’t help but grow anxious.

"Zhang Hai!" The Emperor suddenly called out, startling Zhang Hai.

He quickly stepped forward and knelt, "Your Majesty, indeed, this matter is a dereliction of duty on my part. I ask for Your Majesty’s pardon!"

Zhang Hai has seen the Emperor’s attitude. At most, he is only guilty of negligence! It’s not a serious crime.

Though everyone knows the extent, it’s ultimately not laid out openly. The Emperor wouldn’t pursue it relentlessly; otherwise, there would be no officials available for use in the court.

The Emperor naturally understood this logic as well, but letting it go without consequence was impossible; a small punishment and a big warning were still necessary.

"Zhang Hai! As a Grand Scholar of the Hanlin Academy, you mustn’t show favoritism to subordinates. You’ve been a veteran minister for years, and do you think a simple claim of dereliction is enough to get by? Moreover, the Hanlin Academy is mostly about historical records and real records. If you are this reckless, then I see your position as Grand Scholar is coming to an end!" The Emperor coldly reproached.

These words terrified Zhang Hai, bringing him to prostrate on the ground, "Your Majesty! Indeed, I was reckless this time. Please show mercy!"

Zhang Hai was truly frightened this time; the Emperor’s cold gaze earlier had sent a shiver down his spine.

There is no shortage of talented individuals in the Hanlin Academy; even without him, Zhang Hai, many others can take his place.

He is not Xia Qing, who has party members spread throughout the court, and thus is unafraid.

As for him, he is merely a minor Grand Scholar, equivalent to a Standard Fifth Rank official.

Now that the Hanlin Academy is brimming with talent, Gu Chengyu is even more outstanding among them and might surpass his rank in a few years.

The Emperor was satisfied to see Zhang Hai’s attitude. Zhang Hai has been working diligently in the Hanlin Academy for many years and is quite capable.

Moreover, he didn’t form factions within the court and didn’t associate closely with the Princes. The Emperor appreciated these points and held some affection for him, so he only intended to give him a slight punishment.

"Considering your diligence in your duties, I’ll only dock one year of your salary this time. If there’s a next time, don’t blame me for not being considerate of past relationships!"

The Emperor’s gaze was sharp, fixed on Zhang Hai, which made Min Feng, standing nearby, sweat even more profusely.

Mr. Zhang was punished with a year’s salary, what about him? How would the Emperor punish him?

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your mercy!" Zhang Hai quickly kowtowed a few times, and let out a sigh of relief, having finally passed this hurdle.

"De’an! Go and invite Chief Minister Xia over!" The Emperor turned and spoke to De’an.

Gu Chengyu couldn’t help but envy; the level of treatment received by the Grand Secretary was truly different!

The one to summon him was the Grand Steward Chen by the Emperor’s side, which showed that the Emperor was indeed wary of Xia Qing.

But what’s the meaning of calling Xia Qing over? Could it be to scold him? Probably not, right?

In this matter concerning Min Feng, there is no obvious evidence, he couldn’t possibly tell the Emperor that Min Feng didn’t discuss the index with him.

If he spoke, Xia Qing would lose face, but the Emperor would be embarrassed too, and he himself might not benefit.

Anyway, everyone knows the score, there’s no need to make it explicit.

Besides, the booklet that comes out later already proves Min Feng’s lies, and if the Emperor orders officials to use this booklet as a reference for compilation, his credit would be unquestionable.

Therefore, there’s no need to bicker with such shameless people, lest others call him petty.

"You, kneel outside!" Gu Chengyu saw the Emperor point at Zhang Hai, knowing that these words were directed at him.

Zhang Hai was already kneeling, and hearing the Emperor’s words, seeing the Emperor’s finger pointing at himself, he obediently complied. He got up, stepped back a few steps, then turned and left the Imperial Study Room.

Then, the Emperor turned his gaze to Min Feng. No matter if Min Feng’s previous words were true or not, the fact that he couldn’t answer the questions was disrespectful to the Emperor.

How could a third-place scholar be so lacking in knowledge?

"You kneel outside too!"

Min Feng immediately knelt to plead guilty, then also left the Imperial Study Room to accompany Zhang Hai.

In truth, Min Feng was full of grievances; how was he not wronged?

Originally, he was a lofty scholar, looking down upon such actions. It was only because he listened to his teacher that he engaged in this matter.

Moreover, regarding the legal matters the Emperor inquired about earlier, even if one were to ask those scholars at the Hanlin Academy now, most wouldn’t know, so it’s not too surprising Min Feng didn’t know — but who could help his bad luck?

Gu Chengyu couldn’t help but gloat in his heart; Xia Qing and Min Feng were wrong in not positioning themselves correctly; both were too impatient. In fact, Gu Chengyu found himself puzzled, was Xia Qing really so short-sighted?

Could it be that Xia Qing really had his eyes on the position of Assistant Reader? These people are indeed daring to think about it; Min Feng, like him, just entered Hanlin Academy, yet dared to covet that position.

Even though Min Feng was backed by a powerful figure, Gu Chengyu didn’t envy him in the slightest.

Xia Qing doesn’t seem to put much stock in Min Feng either; this venture was so risky, yet Xia Qing still let Min Feng proceed.

If it were his teacher, he would never let him take such a big risk. No! His teacher wouldn’t engage in such a despicable act in the first place.

In reality, Gu Chengyu misjudged Xia Qing as well; Xia Qing erred in not anticipating the Emperor’s high regard for Gu Chengyu,

and also in not knowing that Gu Chengyu not only was well-versed in code books but had also compiled a more detailed index.

The Emperor turned and sat back at the Imperial Desk, gazing at the pile of memorials in front of him, feeling a surge of irritation.

Gu Chengyu heard the commotion, glanced at the Emperor, only to find him staring at the memorials before him, frowning deeply.

"Xiao Quanzi! Grant Gu Aiqing a seat!"

After De’an went out earlier, he instructed Xiao Quanzi to come to the Imperial Study Room to attend to the Emperor.

The Emperor cannot be without someone to serve by his side. As De’an needed to invite the Prime Minister, he had to call Xiao Quanzi over.