Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

As soon as Fang Zheng finished speaking, the expressions of the court officials changed immediately.

This, this is… a blatant sycophant!

Everyone here is a scholar, and they usually care about face. They prefer to criticize the emperor and point out the shortcomings of the times, as that reflects the integrity and ability of a scholar.

Court officials, past and present, all enjoy this! For a newcomer to be so obsequious, is that appropriate?

And saying things like 'Divine and Martial, Accomplished in Literature and Martial Arts, may you live for ten thousand years'... even eunuchs wouldn't say such things!

The faces of Li Yansong and the other Grand Secretaries turned green on the spot.

Not long ago, they were praising Fang Zheng for his virtue and talent, comparing him to an ancient minister. But now, it's clear he's not some ancient minister at all.

He's clearly a petty man who only knows how to flatter and fawn.

Even if he has some talent, it would be a disaster for the country to have such a person teaching the太子!

The more they praised him before, the more their faces burned today…

The Jing Emperor's expression froze instantly, his mind unable to process it for a moment.

Fang Zheng... is talking about me?

When the Jing Emperor came back to his senses and saw all the officials staring at Fang Zheng with gloomy faces, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

Then, he angrily said: "Bold Fang Zheng! Delaying state affairs and daring to use flowery words in the court!"

"Raise your head!"

Fang Zheng was sweating profusely and slowly raised his head: "Your Majesty... uh....?"

"........"

Li Long!? Guo Da!? Li Yuan!?

Fang Zheng stared at the Jing Emperor with wide eyes, his scalp tingling instantly!

The enemy he had been searching for all day was actually the Jing Emperor!?

And the dead eunuch next to him is Guo Da!

And the smiling brat on the side is the 太子!?

The cold sweat on Fang Zheng's forehead gradually formed a small stream, while his mind kept thinking about whether he had said anything offensive.

After thinking about it, it seemed that he had only offended that dead eunuch.

There shouldn't be any problems with the Emperor and the 太子! Hmm!

Seeing Fang Zheng staring at him for a long time without moving, the Jing Emperor couldn't help but find it amusing.

However, he still maintained a serious face and said: "What? Do you have anything else to say?"

Fang Zheng shuddered and stammered: "Your Majesty, upon seeing you, I feel like a spring breeze is blowing on my face, and I feel especially close to you."

The court officials covered their faces, unable to bear to look… Such a shameless person, it is simply shameful to be in the same room with him!

"Silence! Stop talking nonsense! I ask you, why are you dressed so sloppily, and why are you wearing a seventh-rank official uniform to court! Where is the court attire I gave you?!"

Looking at Fang Zheng's disheveled appearance, the Jing Emperor couldn't help but frown.

In Taoyuan County, this person had a somewhat unrestrained air, but at least he was decently dressed. How did he become like this in the court, completely disregarding me!

Fang Zheng gritted his teeth and said: "Your Majesty... I got lost when I first entered the palace. While running in the palace, I was blown by a strong wind, so my robe was blown open by the dragon energy."

"As for the official uniform… I only have this one!"

Fang Zheng kept cursing the dead eunuch who delivered the decree, who ran away after dropping the imperial edict, and even took the official uniform with him!

He didn't even know there was such a thing… Fortunately, he met the Jing Emperor.

He could feel that the Jing Emperor had a good impression of him in Taoyuan County. If it were any other emperor, he would have been dragged out long ago with so many loopholes...

The Jing Emperor said faintly: "Is that so… In that case, it was my oversight. I appointed you as an official but didn't give you an official uniform?"

Fang Zheng gave a dry laugh: "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. Your Majesty is wise, how could such a small matter be overlooked? It must be my problem."

Li Yansong and the other cabinet ministers began to clutch their chests and take deep breaths, fearing that they would faint.

If they had a sword in their hands, they would have rushed over and beheaded this fellow!

In any case, this person… must not enter the Zhan事府!!

The Jing Emperor took in the attitudes of the officials, snorted coldly, and said to the crowd: "Gentlemen, let's all talk about how Fang Zheng should be punished!?"

Zhang Dong, who had the most fiery temper, couldn't bear it any longer and pushed through the crowd to come out.

He said loudly: "Your Majesty! This person's behavior is improper, and I fear that he will be difficult to teach the 太子! I hope that Your Majesty can withdraw the order!"

As soon as these words came out, there was whispering below.

"That's right, that's right, this person is exactly a beast in human form, with only a good-looking appearance. I didn't expect him to have the face of a treacherous official."

"If the 太子 is hooked up with this person, I'm afraid it will damage the dignity of the imperial family."

"Lord Zhang is really brave enough to take the lead. I will also impeach him later…"

The officials whispered, the Jing Emperor was too far away to hear, but Fang Zheng in the center of the hall heard everything clearly!

He was used to being domineering in Taoyuan County, and no one had dared to speak sarcastically in his ear for many years.

Now that these old fogeys were making sarcastic remarks, Fang Zheng's temper also rose.

So he stood up and said to Zhang Dong: "May I ask who this lord is…?"

Zhang Dong flicked his sleeves and said proudly: "I am Zhang Dong! A Grand Secretary of the Dong閣."

"Then may I ask Lord Zhang, have I ever offended Lord Zhang?"

"No!"

"Then why does Lord Zhang want His Majesty to dismiss me from my post? I am clearly meeting the Emperor for the first time, so why should I be dismissed before I even take office?"

"My impropriety before the Emperor does not deserve this, right?"

Zhang Dong said coldly: "It is indeed not deserving of this, but one must have self-awareness. From the moment you entered the hall, you have been using flowery words and flattering. With your character, you dare to dream of teaching the 太子? It's simply absurd!"

Fang Zheng smiled and said: "Lord Zhang, be careful with your words. From the moment I entered the hall, I have been talking to His Majesty!"

"Who have I been using flowery words on, and who have I been flattering!?"

"Could it be that in Lord Zhang's eyes, His Majesty's achievements today are not worthy of praise from his ministers? His Majesty's wisdom is not worthy of praise from his ministers?!"

"I, Fang Zheng, received the Emperor's grace for the Jiang River flood control, but I know in my heart that without His Majesty and the 太子, I would still be a small seventh-rank magistrate in a remote corner!"

"If we talk about the merits of flood control, His Majesty and the 太子 are the truly meritorious people!"

"But His Majesty and the 太子 dare not take credit, but insist on giving this honor to me! Shouldn't I be grateful?!"

"I also think that His Majesty and the 太子 are in a high position in the court but dare not forget the worries of the people, and they took the trouble to go out and find a flood control strategy, but what about the gentlemen in the hall!? Has anyone been willing to take action!?"

"Lord Zhang! If you want to dismiss me, you can! But you must not deny the achievements of His Majesty and the 太子, otherwise, I, Fang Zheng, will be the first to disagree!"

The Jing Emperor's face turned red, and he was even embarrassed to the point of being restless.

He thought, this fellow is really sparing no effort… He can even turn black into white…

The 太子 also blushed, excited. At this moment, his recognition of Fang Zheng had reached its peak.

Not bad! This 太子 is exactly this kind of person. It seems that the courtiers are all昏聩and incompetent people, and only Fang Zheng can see the excellent qualities in this 太子!

.....