"Zhang Zimao, you are brave!!!"
King Zhu Chun of Shu looked at Chen Baochuan, who was covered in blood and bruised by whips. He, who had always been gentle, couldn't help but get angry.
"Zhixian Chen is a county official. Even if you make mistakes, you should first file a memorial to impeach him, ask your Majesty to remove him, and then hand him over to the Three Laws Judiciary for trial."
"What qualifications do you have, and why should you torture the head of a county to extract a confession?"
"This is simply unreasonable!"
Although the magistrate is the immediate superior of the county magistrate, everyone is an official in the government together.
As a superior, the magistrate has absolutely no right to decide whether others will be promoted, whether they will be promoted or whether they will live or die at will. He needs to submit a report first and let His Majesty and the officials decide.
Even Hu Weiyong, who was as domineering as he was back then, only forced the county magistrate to death, and did not drag the person into prison, torture and beat him until he was covered with bruises.
"His Royal Highness the King of Shu... I... I..."
Zhang Zimao was probably a little frightened, and his explanation was a little incoherent.
"I was in a moment of impatience, and I know I was wrong, but this magistrate of Chen County is impeaching me indiscriminately. In fact, he is preying on the people of his own county."
"I still want to bite you back, but I was anxious and confused for a while."
"I know I was wrong, and I hope His Highness the King of Shu and the Censor will forgive me."
It's over, I will definitely die, but I don't know if my family can be saved.
Qiu Ye was watching the doctor give medicine to Chen Bao's boat, and he couldn't help but said coldly when he heard this.
"Whether it's a counter-attack or not, the Three Law Departments have their own say. It's not up to you. You have no idea what it means to torture an official of the imperial court to extract a confession."
"Because of your persecution of imperial officials, you must immediately take off your official hat, put on shackles, sit in a prison car, and be escorted back to Beijing."
Chen Baochuan also served as a censor, and he was also a colleague of them.
Seeing his former colleagues being treated so cruelly, Qiu Ye was so angry, as if he was the one being beaten, and felt extremely distressed.
"I...sigh..."
Zhang Zimao knew that he was finished, so he simply sighed and stopped struggling.
Now that we have reached this point, there is no point in struggling anymore.
However, when he looked at his wife and children who were being controlled, a tear of regret still fell from the corner of his eyes, and his voice was full of sadness.
"I'm sorry, I'm the one dragging you down!"
As the head of a feudal family, he can almost predict the outcome of his family.
Seeing that he had nothing to say, Zhu Chun immediately waved his hand and ordered Zhang Zimao to be taken away, and then all his family members were taken to the cell and locked up.
Then put a seal on Zhang's house and wait for Beizhen Fusi to come and inspect it.
During the Song-Yuan war, Chengdu was the first target captured by the Yuan army. Chengdu was abandoned by the Southern Song Dynasty, but peace did not usher in.
The lack of justice in the Yuan Dynasty led to frequent uprisings. Amid various uprisings, the Chengdu Prefecture had no time to repair the city, so the city was dilapidated and military affairs were in disrepair.
The land acquired by Lao Zhu Hongwu four years ago naturally needs to be managed well, but the officials are greedy and lazy, and have not seen any results for more than ten years.
Zhu Chun looked at his domain and understood the painstaking efforts of his father and eldest brother.
"Dad and brother, don't worry. I, the King of Shu, will definitely manage this place well."
Zhang Zimao was the magistrate of Chengdu appointed by Lao Zhu. As a superior with an annual tax of 200,000 dan, his rank was a high-ranking official of the third rank.
Lao Zhu met him in Fengtian Hall, looked at the unshaven man below and sighed.
"Do you still remember what you told us when we asked you to go to Chengdu?"
Everyone said they were so good when they left, how come they all changed in the end.
Corrupt officials have existed in every dynasty, so why were there so many types of corrupt officials in the Ming Dynasty?
"I remember that I told Your Majesty that I will think about the people, do what the people do, and love the people as my children."
Zhang Zimao kept his head lowered, never daring to raise his head to look at the emperor.
Lao Zhu asked: "Then why didn't you do it?"
Zhang Zimao swallowed, feeling that the emperor was asking a nonsense question, but he had to answer the emperor's question, so he could only answer.
"Guo Huan said that children should be filial to their parents, and there is nothing wrong with giving more."
We have said that parents are the officials, so as children, can't you be more filial to your parents?
Lao Zhu: "..."
Biaoer: "..."
They have never heard of this reason.
Gu Chen: "...You are over 50 years old, how can you believe such nonsense? Don't try to blame others. It's obviously your own problem."
"Since the eighth year of Hongwu, when Chen Baochuan took office, you have begun to recruit and train him. You want him to become your tool for plundering the wealth and support of the people like other counties."
"It's just that he doesn't want to be used by you."
Thinking of Chen Baochuan, who was still a little weak at home, Gu Chen's eyes seemed to be spitting fire.
"At that time, Guo Huan was still a junior official in the Ministry of Industry. How could he instigate you?"
That bitch dared to resort to lynching. What kind of honor did he get for his hard work? Was he a prisoner of a prefect?
"I'm not as enlightened as Gu Yushi." Zhang Zimao couldn't help but choked him and said sarcastically: "You are a Beijing official, how can you know the difficulties in the local area?"
"Irrigation projects must be developed, roads must be repaired, the almshouses and charity homes built by Your Majesty must be repaired, and the elderly and orphans there must be fed and clothed."
"I still have to pay taxes to the court. I have no money. What can I do if I don't ask the people for their wants?"
"I collected excessive taxes, but most of them were spent on the people."
"I didn't force them to survive. I thought I was wrong, so I took some. I already knew my mistake."
At this point, Zhang Yimao didn't hide it, poured out all the bitter water he thought he had, and even shed tears.
"It makes me sad to see the people living in misery, and I can't bear it. But what can I do? Without money, how can I run a household in this house?"
What he said was pitiful, and most migrant workers could sympathize with him.
"Humph, that's nonsense." Gu Chen expressed disapproval of his words: "Let's not talk about the exorbitant taxes and fees you charge."
"Let's say that in the ninth year of Hongwu's reign, you asked the Ministry of Household Affairs for 200,000 guan, saying that you wanted to repair official roads and dig a ditch around the palace."
"The Ministry of Revenue gave the money, but where is the official road? Where are the drainage pipes?"
"Your Majesty's budget for building a palace for His Majesty the King of Shu is only 40,000 yuan."
"But you are willing to agree to give you 200,000 yuan to govern Chengdu Mansion. Have you spent half of the money on the people?"
The answer is definitely no. As long as it is half used, it is impossible for the city, official roads and rivers of Chengdu Prefecture to become like that.
Zhu Biao looked at Zhang Zimao and asked seriously: "Of the 200,000 yuan, how much did you spend on the people in total, and how much did you take for yourself?"
"Be honest. If you don't tell me, you will be rewarded when it is found out."
Whenever he talks about Lao Eleven, he remembers that Guo Huan also used the money to build the Shu Palace, resulting in a loss of ten thousand yuan, and Lao Eleven was scolded for extravagance.
It's good if he dares to let his brother get scolded.
"Fifty... fifty thousand guan..." Zhang Zimao lowered his head and muttered: "I... I deserve to die, I know I was wrong."
It’s not that he doesn’t know that he’s going too far, but who wouldn’t be tempted by that kind of money?
Besides, he didn't keep it all in his pocket. After all, he still used some of it on the people. He thought he still had a conscience.
"Okay, don't ask."
Gu Chen wanted to talk more about his illegal activities, but Lao Zhu spoke up at this time.
"Pull it down and leave it to Jiang Wei!"
He already knew these things, and talking too much would be a waste of time.
After Zhang Zimao was pulled away, Lao Zhu looked at Gu Chen who was still a little angry and said.
"It's not good for young people to be angry. As the saying goes, anger is harmful to the body, but you still have to take care of your body. How is Chen Baochuan?"
