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

Chapter 63: All the pressure is coming at me

Xue Jiling took the person away in high spirits.

As he was leaving, he gave Li Deyu a smug look, which almost made the latter tremble with anger.

As Xue Jiling's figure disappeared, the atmosphere in the hall became somewhat somber. Li Deyu and the others were clearly unwilling, but because Liu Hongyi was still present, they dared not say anything more.

Li Ang gently stroked the hand warmer in his hand, turned slightly to the side, and asked.

"Liu Hongyi, if this had happened in your Left Army, how would you have handled it?"

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes turned to him, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Liu Hongyi did not hesitate and quickly replied.

"Reply to everyone, murderers must pay with their lives; this is military discipline and national law."

The answer seemed to say something, yet it also seemed to say nothing at all.

Seeing this, Li Ang stroked the hand warmer in his hand, then suddenly looked at Yang Qinyi beside him and asked.

"Minister Yang, you witnessed everything that happened today. Who do you think should preside over this case?"

In fact, Li Ang's meaning was already quite clear at this point.

Yang Qinyi and Liu Hongyi were not from the same faction to begin with, and they quickly spoke up.

"In response to everyone, this case is not simply a military matter. It is one thing for these soldiers to leave the camp at night and violate military discipline, but it is another matter to beat and kill someone in the street."

"The former should be handled by the Shence Army itself, while the latter should be handled by the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Ministry of Justice in accordance with the law."

Upon hearing this, Liu Hongyi was somewhat surprised.

It should be noted that the Yang family has a long history in the palace and has produced officials such as the Shence Lieutenant.

Given Yang Qinyi's current status and position, there is a high probability that he will be the next Shence Lieutenant.

But as a result, he actually advocated stripping the Shence Lieutenant of his authority.

Liu Hongyi was somewhat puzzled, but Yang Qinyi was quite calm.

In a sense, this is the difference in mindset between those who have a long family tradition and those who have fought their way up from the bottom.

People like Xue Jiling, who don't have much of a background, are driven by a deep desire to constantly seize more power and solidify their position.

However, Yang Qinyi came from a family of eunuchs, and in addition to seizing power, he was also more concerned about how to ensure the stable succession of his family.

The Shence Army was the foundation upon which eunuchs established their power.

But that's precisely why we can't let the Shence Army run rampant like this.

In the past, lieutenants often tolerated the mistakes of these soldiers. While this may have won them over, it has now fostered a habit of arrogance.

As a result, discontent would arise in the army if a lieutenant was punished too severely.

So in a sense, the Shence Army is now showing signs of turning around and coercing the lieutenant.

A typical example is that the once-every-ten-day examinations have now become largely a formality.

Soldiers brazenly violated military discipline, treating it as commonplace. This lax discipline and poor training had been a long-standing problem.

If this continues unchecked, in a few decades, it may not be eunuchs in charge of the army, but rather, like some regional military governors, the lieutenant will be completely controlled by his own troops.

Therefore, in Yang Qinyi's view, it was necessary to introduce external forces to a limited extent to suppress the arrogant atmosphere within the Shence Army.

In fact, this consensus was an important reason why Yang Qinyi and Li Deyu, ministers who advocated suppressing eunuchs, were able to form an alliance.

Moreover, having the potential to become the next Shence Lieutenant does not guarantee that one will actually become the next Shence Lieutenant.

Ultimately, eunuchs still depend on imperial power. Before becoming the Shence Army Commander, maintaining the emperor's favor was far more important to Yang Qinyi than protecting the interests of the so-called eunuch group.

After all, the latter is ethereal and intangible; even if he gains benefits from it, he can't enjoy them now.

At this moment, Li Deyu also spoke up: "Your Majesty, the Shence Army was established during the reign of Emperor Dezong. Although it is an imperial guard, its duties include not only guarding the capital region, but also undertaking major military campaigns. From today's events, we can see the poor discipline of the Shence Army. If this continues, how can it shoulder heavy responsibilities? I believe that it is imperative to reorganize the Shence Army."

Zheng Tan then followed suit, saying, "Your Majesty, I second that proposal."

Li Ang remained silent.

As a result, everyone's eyes were drawn to Liu Hongyi.

Liu Hongyi's expression was somewhat contradictory.

He knew very well that Li Deyu's words were an attempt to strengthen the influence of the outer court over the Shence Army.

Of course, this kind of strengthening is different from Li Xun's conspiracy to seize power. It is more about hoping to check and balance them to a certain extent through reorganization.

Even so, as a lieutenant in the Shence Army, he should have refused.

However, faced with the unanimous opinion of so many people present, especially the sage's tacit approval, Liu Hongyi couldn't help but feel a little hesitant.

At this moment, Li Ang suddenly asked again, "How is Ximen Jixuan's injury?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Hongyi's heart stirred, and he cautiously replied, "Reporting to everyone, the injury is quite serious, but he should be able to get out of bed soon."

His tone still carried a hint of evasion.

However, Li Ang had clearly made up his mind: "The Eastern Depot was set up to investigate cases. Now that things are almost settled, let him do his job well."

"Moreover..." Li Ang paused, his gaze falling on Liu Hongyi, and said meaningfully, "This matter is not only related to the Right Army, but also involves the Left Army. If you handle it yourselves, it may cause conflicts."

"Therefore, let the Eastern Depot investigate. Ximen Jixuan will take the lead, along with his two commanders, to investigate this case together."

The supervising eunuch and the commander were jointly in charge?

Liu Hongyi glanced at Yang Qinyi beside him and vaguely understood something.

However, he still hesitated and asked, "But didn't everyone just hand this case over to Lieutenant Xue to handle himself?"

Li Ang didn't speak, he just glanced at him indifferently.

Upon seeing this, Liu Hongyi immediately lowered his head, cupped his hands, and said, "This old servant understands. Please rest assured, everyone. After this old servant returns, I will go to the Eastern Depot to relay the order."

Li Ang nodded and then instructed, "Have Yang Qinyi go with you."

"Yes..." the two answered in unison, their attitude respectful.

"Li Deyu!" After arranging things here, Li Ang turned around and called out.

"Your subject is here." Li Deyu bowed slightly.

Li Ang said, "You saw what just happened. Those civilians who were beaten were homeless and injured, so they will be temporarily housed in your residence. As for the two who were beaten to death, first find their relatives, then arrange for someone to find a place to give them a proper burial. All expenses will be covered by the palace. You can go directly to find them..."

At this point, Li Ang glanced at Yang Qinyi for clarification, and the latter immediately stepped forward to remind him: "Everyone, it's Wang Wengan, the Inner Attendant and Commander of the Eastern Depot."

"Yes, go find Wang Wengan and have him present it to me."

As he spoke, Li Ang stood up.

After working so hard all night, it's almost dawn. If we don't return to the palace soon, we might miss the morning court session.

Seeing Li Ang leave, Zheng Qin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, as soon as he turned his head, Li Deyu immediately grabbed his arm tightly and said.

"Brother Zheng, after court today, you must spread the news of this case as soon as possible. Also, you should visit the ministers in the court who are on good terms with us these days. There are some things that need to be prepared in advance."

Zheng Qin blinked and subconsciously asked, "Wen Rao, what do you mean?"

Li Deyu pondered for a moment, gazing in the direction the sage had left, his tone full of meaning.

"Brother Zheng, you don't think that the Sage deliberately kept these people in my residence just for the sake of convenience, do you?"