The revitalization of the Tang Dynasty began with the Ganlu Incident.

Chapter 51: Downfall

Li Ang spoke gently, but his attitude was very firm.

As an emperor, it is necessary and essential to have a reliable force that operates outside the existing system.

Although his main problem right now is still the eunuchs, he also needs to consider the control over the outer court.

Going back further, the Han Dynasty had so-called Embroidered-Robe Envoys, and during the reign of Emperor Suzong of Tang, there was a brief period of the Chashi Hall. Even in the Song Dynasty, an era of so-called "rule by doing nothing," there was a place called the Imperial City Guard.

It is evident that such an institution, which could both expand the emperor's sources of information and allow for expedient action in special circumstances, was a necessary supplement to the court's operational system.

Regardless of the role of the Eastern Depot in dividing the power of the original four nobles, its function of investigating major cases and gathering intelligence was very important to Li Ang.

After all, only by having enough information can one make the right judgment. If they want to protect themselves, they certainly cannot give up the Eastern Depot.

Wang Ya clearly understood Li Ang's meaning. He sighed silently, hesitated for a long time, but ultimately said nothing more. He simply cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

Seeing this, Li Ang nodded, but his heart was filled with inexplicable complex emotions.

Wang Ya was a rare figure in the court who did not belong to any faction. He was neither close to the Niu faction nor belonged to the Li faction, maintaining a neutral stance.

But precisely because of this, he tends to be conservative and timid in his actions.

In a sense, this is also the secret to his ability to remain detached from the struggle between the two parties.

Indeed, he was public-spirited, but he was not a true upright official.

He would try to fight for something like the Eastern Depot, but he would never dare to speak frankly and directly to the emperor.

Such a person cannot be said to be bad; in fact, one could say that in the current court, he is already considered to have emerged from the mud unsullied.

Ultimately, with only such people, it was still too difficult for the Tang Dynasty to return to an upward trend...

After a moment of reflection, Li Ang quickly regained his composure and focused his attention on the present moment.

This atmosphere of self-interest in the court is not a good thing for the country, but from the emperor's perspective, it may not be something that cannot be utilized.

For example, right now, if these people didn't all have their own ulterior motives, the affairs of the Eastern Depot wouldn't be so smoothly brought to the forefront.

"This is Zheng Zhu's confession. I had already sent a copy to the Council of State Affairs, but at that time it only contained information related to the Song Shenxi case. These days, the Eastern Depot arrested Wang Fan and, after repeated interrogations, has uncovered some new information. Gentlemen, please take a look..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Ang had the eunuchs give each person present a copy of the confession that had been copied beforehand.

Unsurprisingly, the moment they saw the confession, everyone almost immediately forgot about the Eastern Depot.

It's just a mere eunuch institution; what is it compared to factional strife?

"Zheng's note: Li Xun dared to betray the emperor's favor so arbitrarily, placing his cronies in positions of power and selling official posts; he is truly despicable."

A moment later, everyone finished reading the testimony.

Linghu Chu was the first to step forward, looking indignant.

Indeed, this confession contains not only information about Song Shenxi's case, but also a great deal of information about Li Xun.

After all, Liu Hongyi has been quite busy lately.

The necessary tests have been conducted, the evidence against Li Xun is in hand, and his henchmen have been largely identified. Therefore, there is no need to wait any longer.

With the appearance of this testimony, everyone present realized that this confrontation was likely the moment that would decide Li Xun's fate.

No wonder all the important officials in the court were present, but he was the only one missing.

Zheng Qin quickly followed up, saying, "Your Majesty, Li Xun came from humble origins and was appointed prime minister thanks to Your Majesty's great favor. However, this man does not think of repaying the Emperor's favor. He is only concerned with deceiving the Emperor at home and is all-powerful in suppressing dissent."

"Such treacherous officials, if kept in the court, would be a scourge to the nation. I request Your Majesty to dismiss them from their posts and exile them to Lingnan as a warning to others."

The ministers of the Niu and Li factions reached an agreement quickly, a rare occurrence. However, the prime ministers of the State Council looked troubled and hesitated.

Li Ang then turned to the three men and asked, "You gentlemen have all read this confession. Do you find the evidence sufficient? If not, I can order the Eastern Depot to continue arresting those involved and to bring the truth to light."

Upon hearing this, the three men's faces twitched. Jia Su and Shu Yuanyu almost immediately cast pleading glances at Wang Ya.

Under everyone's gaze, the prime minister seemed to bend over even more, let out a barely perceptible sigh, and stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, Zheng Zhu and Li Xun have always been close friends. Li Xun was initially favored because of Zheng Zhu's recommendation. Now that Zheng Zhu's confession is available, and there are correspondence between them as evidence, I believe that there is no need to investigate the details further."

"However, while Li Xun's faction has corrupted the officialdom, most of them were loyal to the Emperor in the previous execution of Qiu Shiliang and have made some contributions. Therefore, I request Your Majesty to be lenient and not punish them severely."

In a sense, this was also an unfortunate situation in the late Tang Dynasty.

When the entire court is a cesspool, it becomes impossible to purify the atmosphere.

Zheng Zhu's confession implicated many people, including not only Guo Xingyu, Wang Fan and other core henchmen, but also many people he had promoted.

If each case were investigated one by one, at least a third of the people in the current court would be convicted.

This is clearly not acceptable.

In particular, Li Xun had a very bad reputation, and there were countless officials in and out of the court who were dissatisfied with him.

Among the Niu and Li factions, from the high-ranking officials to the middle and lower-ranking officials who had lost their patrons, everyone hated Li Xun to the core.

Now that they've seized this opportunity, how could they not take advantage of the situation?

Anyone who speaks out at this time to demand leniency is standing against these people and will be resented.

If he had a choice, Wang Ya really wouldn't want to take the lead.

But there was no other way.

He was the Prime Minister of the State Affairs Council, and among all the members of the Council, only he and Li Xun had no connection whatsoever.

If he were to take the lead, the courtiers would only feel dissatisfied.

But if it were Shu Yuanyu or Jia Su, the court officials would only think that Li Xun's faction had made a comeback and was trying to rescue Li Xun.

At that point, the uproar in the court might not be able to be stopped.

Therefore, only he can do it.

Looking at Wang Ya, whose figure seemed to have aged suddenly, Li Ang couldn't help but sigh.

But since things have come to this, we have no choice but to continue.

With his usual calm expression restored, Li Ang said, "In that case, let's proceed according to the testimony. Li Xun and Zheng Zhu are the principal offenders. Considering their merits, they are demoted to Sima and exiled to the frontier. The other officials involved will be sentenced by the Council of State Affairs, and then the case will be submitted to the court."

With just a few simple words, the tone of the whole affair was set, and the once all-powerful Li Xun faction was officially brought to an end.

"That's enough for today. I've rested for so many days and am much better now. In three days, I will resume the morning court session and announce the imperial edict regarding this matter to my ministers..."

The implication is that a plan for dealing with Li Xunyi's faction needs to be decided within three days.

Upon hearing this, the ministers each had their own thoughts and spoke in turn.

"We take our leave."