When the emperor was angry, he laid down millions of corpses.
Emperor Wanli's wrath, although not that extreme, was terrifying enough.
Especially when Concubine Zheng slammed into a pillar in order to prove her innocence, it also pushed the emperor's anger to the peak.
While he appeased Concubine Zheng and allowed her to go home to visit relatives, he also started a large-scale search, vowing to find and punish the person who wrote the "Wei Wei Hong Yi" to calm the turmoil.
During this period of time, people from Jin Yiwei and Dongchang could often be seen on the roads of the capital, and many unknown "common people" appeared inexplicably among the crowd, scanning everyone with their suspicious eyes.
Anyone who had anything to do with this article would be arrested, and then imprisoned and tortured. For a while, everyone in the capital was in danger, but they succeeded in controlling public opinion within the capital.
However, the real source has never been found. There are already many "creators" in the prison. However, once they were handed over to the Ministry of Punishment for review, they all refused to admit it, leaving the Jinyiwei commander in a state of embarrassment. .
And as time went by and fermented, things did not calm down, but intensified.
Although Jinyiwei and Dongchang are powerful, they are just like that after leaving the capital. How can they stop the world's long mouth? What's more, the security officials in various places also have certain thoughts and let it go and let the public opinion spread.
In this way, things became more and more out of control. Except for the Gyeonggi area, which was shocked by Emperor Long Wei, a vigorous wave was set off in other places. They only criticized the emperor at the beginning, but now they have responded in groups, and they are trying to unite and rely on their strength to influence the appointment of the crown prince.
Especially those scholars.
In an inn in the capital, many nobles gathered.
A young man named Gu Boyang was standing on a table, waving a piece of paper in his hand. Looking carefully, he saw that it was a copy of "The Worry and Crisis Hong Yi" that had been banned in the capital.
"Dear classmates!" He said loudly, his face flushed, and he waved his hands vigorously:
"The current situation in the court is at a critical moment! Your Majesty is bewitched by the demon concubine, intending to abolish the elders and establish young ones, and carry out the old affairs of the Sui Dynasty. The traitors in the court are rampant, and they only want to flatter others, causing the government to be corrupted and the etiquette and law to be lost!"
"The world is in chaos, right before our eyes!"
"We are the people from all over the Ming Dynasty. Faced with this situation, how can we remain indifferent?"
As his voice fell, warm applause and echoes suddenly sounded from around him.
The crowd was excited.
Many of these scholars are devoted to reading the books of sages, have not yet set foot in officialdom, and have not experienced the hardships of the world. They still have passion and absolute respect for etiquette, and dream of showing off their talents in the court. Just like what is written in the book, establish a destiny for the sake of life and create peace for all generations.
The emperor intends to abolish the elders and establish the younger ones, which is disrespectful to etiquette and law. Then these officials, the future of the imperial court, should stand up and fight and speak for justice!
With so many people standing behind them, these scholars were emboldened. For a moment, they felt that "all the affairs of the world are under my control", and their sense of mission was overwhelming.
The emperor's suppression made them full of indignation. At this time, they felt that they were just like the loyal and lonely ministers in history, and they were about to speak out their upright voices against the dim emperor!
Even if you are reprimanded, so what? Leave your name in history!
It was with this mentality and the deliberate instigation of thoughtful people that these candidates who came to the capital to take the exam gathered together and held such a rally on the eve of the exam!
Seeing this situation, Gu Boyang couldn't help but smile, but he soon came back to his senses, looked serious, and said loudly:
"I have already written a memorial, asking Your Majesty to establish the crown prince as soon as possible to show my determination to support orthodoxy. Is there any classmate who is willing to co-sign the memorial with me?"
"I come!"
Immediately, someone responded. His name was Zhang Yicheng. His ancestors also had great Confucian scholars. He was also a well-known Confucian scholar, and he was very important among these people.
Gu Boyang's instigation had already made all the rebels ready to take action. Now that Zhang Yicheng has taken the lead, how can these hard-blooded people hold back? A swarm of bees rushed forward and signed their names in a hurry!
Under such circumstances, even if there are some experienced people, it is impossible not to get involved in such a thing! The current situation is that anyone who refuses to sign will be an enemy who supports the traitor and will be attacked in groups!
In this case, Gu Boyang actually collected almost all the signatures from candidates from all over the country!
His eyes were shining with excitement, he made a fist with his right hand, waved it vigorously into the air, and shouted:
"I am waiting for you, and now I have the courage to ask for your life for the world!"
One call and a hundred responses.
…
The news of the move quickly spread throughout the capital. After all, hundreds of people knelt down in front of the imperial city and left from early morning until noon. Such a big movement could not be hidden from anyone.
Suddenly, the public opinion was boiling, and now even Jin Yiwei couldn't suppress it!
Even those "masters" in the hearts of the people expressed their objections to the emperor, so they were still afraid of a ball!
The ministers were even more excited and wanted to see the emperor's excitement. Many people speculated that this might be the last straw that broke his back.
Emperor Wanli, on the other hand, was trembling with anger in the deep palace.
He once thought that he had controlled the situation in the capital and completely suppressed public opinion and rumors. Unexpectedly, such a situation has occurred now!
This was undoubtedly an extremely serious political incident. These men were almost the next generation of officials of the Ming Dynasty, which aroused their collective opposition. For those who didn’t know, they thought he was some extremely vicious and foolish emperor!
In Wanli's palace, the sound of "crackling" continued, and many valuable items were smashed to the ground by the emperor. The eunuchs and maidens knelt aside and trembled. There were already several young eunuchs just now, because the emperor's anger was affected, and they directly hit them with sticks. They didn't even dare to let out any air at this time.
Wanli walked angrily in the palace and kept saying:
"These gangs of traitors and traitors, traitors and traitors!"
"I have made my own decision on the matter of establishing a prince...what does it have to do with them! I have established the emperor's eldest son as the honored king, what else should I do?"
Thinking of what was irritating him, he flicked his sleeves and shouted loudly:
"Come here and draw up the decree!"
"All the joint examinations and palace examinations in the twenty-ninth year of Wanli are cancelled!"
"Hmph, you want to teach me how to do things? I want you to study hard for ten years and it will turn into nothing!"
Wanli's eyes flashed with anger. He had never been a person willing to be restrained, and he was determined to avenge himself.
The decree came from the palace, and now it was the turn of the officials who were watching the excitement to be dumbfounded.
No one will be given the identity of Gong Sheng? This had never happened before in the Ming Dynasty!
It's chaos, it's all chaos.
(End of chapter)
