The impact of the cancellation of the Yunsi Department has not subsided. A month later, prisoners detained in Yangzhou began to enter Beijing one after another.
There are officials of the fourth and fifth grades here, as well as salt merchants worth millions of taels.
The people in the capital actually watched a good show. Long prison cars entered the city every now and then. Normally at this time, someone would throw stones, rotten cabbage, etc. However, because of the high number of times and the large number of people,
In the end, the price of cabbage in the capital was raised entirely.
Under the deliberate guidance of public opinion from the court, the common people already knew that they were all corrupt officials and profiteers. Naturally, everyone wanted to beat them up, but when it came to the court, there was not unanimous opinion that they should be executed.
Not to mention the feelings of other officials in the Transportation Department and the Salt Class Promotion Department in various places, even officials who were not directly involved were more resistant to the emperor killing people because of this.
Of course, moral factors such as generosity cannot be ignored, but the most important reason is that everyone is unclean.
The emperor managed to deal with it once, but he wanted to deal with it a second time, so that one day he would be dealt with.
Originally in Zhejiang and Jiangxi, and now in Yangzhou, can't you still see the situation clearly?
So what followed the prison car was actually a memorial asking the emperor for leniency.
These memorials are not just for Beijing officials,
Even the local censors, governors and third divisions of some provinces also submitted memorials.
Everyone who saw Zhu Houzhao in the palace laughed in anger.
"When I imprisoned the Marquis of Yongkang and the Duke of Nanning, I didn't see such opposition from the officials across the country. I found so many father-in-laws in the palace, and no one came out to uphold justice! When I started interrogating the Salt Administration officials, I found out that I had raised them. So many teachers!”
"Your Majesty, calm down."
"Why don't you be angry? Tomorrow, go to Fengtian Palace for morning worship. I want to see if the imperial edict is still effective."
If there was no such distinction, Zhu Houzhao would not be like this.
But it's too obvious,
When Marquis Yongkang was arrested before, there was not without opposition, but the amount was small, and as soon as the emperor persisted, many people gave up, so there was no turmoil in the court, let alone a negotiation.
It's better now. We commit the same crime, get the same treatment, and there are problems.
The Jinyiwei Criminal Office arrested all forty-six people from the Yunsi Yamen this time. In addition, there were also local officials such as the Yangzhou prefect, Tongzhi, and county magistrates, totaling more than a dozen people.
In addition, the Beijing officials who were previously implicated in this matter were arrested.
As well as the officials who were gradually exposed as the case deepened,
Including other officials in the Salt Transportation Department and the Salt Class Promotion Department who were constantly impeached, it would be easy for them to add up to more than 200.
In fact, impeachment is okay, because it is common for Ming officials to be impeached.
The main thing is that they really recruited officials who committed their own crimes, and there were quite a few of them involved in illegal salt sales. Such people have no choice but to kill them. What else can be said?
But when the real person was caught in the capital, convicted and executed,
Dozens of officials from the Duchayuan, Dali Temple, Liuke, Liubu Yuanwailang, principals, and officials from Guanglu Temple, Qintianjian, etc. wrote a mountain-like memorial to admonish the emperor.
What he said was nothing more than the reason for killing too much and shocking the officialdom of Yangzhou.
During the Zhao and Song dynasties, they rarely killed scholar-bureaucrats, but by the Ming Dynasty, they would kill civil servants at every turn, which also angered the emperor. At noon in Fengtian Hall, Zhu Houzhao moved all the memorials over.
"Where is Tang Youning, a doctor in the Shaanxi Qing Dynasty Department of Household Affairs?"
Above the main hall, civil and military officials were lined up on the left and right, and those who could not stand had all arrived outside the hall.
The emperor sat high on the dragon chair, and his words had to be conveyed outside by the eunuchs before they could be heard.
When Tang Youning knelt down with the wat board in his hand and his official robe, Zhu Houzhao had been waiting for him for a while.
Then there was a 'pop' sound,
The emperor threw the memorial on the ground,
"Officials involved in smuggling in the Salt Lesson will be punished with death. This is an imperial edict. The chapters you wrote are confusing and your words are absurd. I can't shake the foundation of the imperial court by killing these people. Could it be that the Ming Dynasty is supported by these corrupt officials? Without them My Ming Dynasty died today?! How ridiculous. I didn’t review your memorial, so I took it back and read it again!”
It has been a long time since the emperor was so angry with a minister.
Everyone in the Fengtian Palace, from the great bachelor to the sixth-rank official, became nervous.
"Where is Zhou Yaoren, the eunuch of Qin Tian's prison?"
As before, Zhu Houzhao threw the memorial to the ground and reprimanded: "I killed corrupt officials and protected the people. How could God have a vision because of this? You are also talking nonsense, so take it back and reflect on yourself!"
The emperor called three or four people in succession like this.
Finally, he pushed out all the memorials in front of him and ordered, "Liu Jin, read the names and let these people come and collect them!"
Then the emperor angrily said to his officials: "Emperor Taizu said back then that Yuan Yikuan lost the world. I didn't understand it when I was young, but I understand it now. It's because the imperial court treated these officials who were corrupt and derelict too much. Tolerance allows them to oppress the people at will! I ask you now, if you tolerate these people, who will the harsh side of the court be facing? It is the people!
"
He shouted the last two words extremely hard.
So much so that the echoes echoed back and forth in the temple.
After a short pause, Zhu Houzhao stood up and said in a slightly lower tone, "Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it. This sentence was taught to me by a great scholar. Even if you are not a great scholar, who can't?" Do you know this sentence? But at this time, why have you forgotten the sentence 'You can also overturn the boat'?"
"I often reflect on myself and wonder if I shouldn't have killed so many people. However, a salt administration office in the imperial court has almost become a den for private salt dealers. They deceive the imperial court and bully the people. How dare you still kill these people? If you can find a reason not to kill, do you still want me to show mercy to the world?!"
The emperor's words hit many people's hearts like a heavy hammer.
Many people lamented and sighed.
"...and his descendants fell into desolation, and lost the way of kings and ministers... There was a vicious cruelty, so people's hearts rebelled, and the world's armies rose, so that our Chinese people, the dead were bruised, and the living were unable to protect their flesh and blood..."
Zhu Houzhao read this paragraph from Zhu Yuanzhang's "Fengtian's Prosecution on the Northern Expedition of Yuan Dynasty".
"When I first supervised the country, I thought that the weakness of the imperial court lay in the treasury, which was empty, so I did not provide relief for the famine. Later, I tried every means to find money and provided relief to the victims; from time to time, there were Tatar invaders in the border areas of Gansu and Datong. , I organized my troops and prepared their pay, and defeated the Tatars in the battle of Huamachi. At the same time, some local officials were neglecting their duties, so I replaced a group of young and powerful people.
It is becoming more and more clear to me now that the Ming Dynasty's troubles are not with Tatars or lack of financial resources, but with...the imperial court, which is in this Fengtian Palace! Among my ministers who sit down and talk in secret every day! If you are a little loose here, it will be a little loose in the Ming Dynasty. If you are completely loose here! The people of the Ming Dynasty sold their sons and daughters and had no way to survive. When the time comes, they will rise up and let us die without a burial place! "
"His Majesty!"
"His Majesty!"
…
One after another, there are voices of ministers calling him.
The emperor was so excited that it didn't seem right for the ministers not to express their opinions. Many people didn't know whether they were really moved or fake. Anyway, a big man burst into tears.
"The Ministers of the Ministry of Husbandry, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Justice plus the British Duke,"
All four old men came out and said, "We are here."
Zhu Houzhao sniffed, looking like he was holding back tears. He leaned sideways and pointed at them, "I will hand over all the people brought back by Jin Yiwei to your hands. This case needs to be carefully investigated and scrutinized." . Selling private salt is digging into the walls of the imperial court. This is what I said. I will also say now that I will chop off the head of anyone who eats the imperial court's food and smashes the imperial court's pots. Liu Jin , Mao Yuwen, you two will serve as supervisors!"
Liu Jin didn't expect that he would still have this job. Now it's better. The civil servants offended him before, so he had to find his way back to the situation.
"My slave obeys the order!"
Zhu Houzhao turned around, his brows furrowed and his eyes firm, "I am the Son of Heaven, and I govern the people according to God's will. Today I am issuing an edict here to kill these officials who do not know their father and have no shame. If this is not right, the world will be destroyed." Anyone can come and attack me!"
Where is the reason why everyone in the capital was released or dealt with lightly even though someone was caught?
Unless he, Zhu Houzhao, is no longer the emperor!
Every time he moved the civil servants, it was difficult, which made the emperor always feel a little aggrieved.
We are already considering comprehensively whether Yun Si should withdraw or not, but it turns out that whether these people should be killed or not is still at the discussion level. What a joke, Yun Si is gone, what are they left for, as offerings?
As for Li Dongyang and other important ministers in the court,
It was not unexpected that so many memorials like this would make the emperor angry.
The key is to let Liu Jin and Mao Yuwen supervise the review. This is really unexpected!
Han Wen is the Minister of Household Affairs, and the first person called by the emperor was Tang Youning, a doctor in Shaanxi Qing Dynasty. He was so angry that he first called this person over and cursed him.
"Your Majesty, the emperor of heaven, holds as much authority as the Hongwu and Yongle emperors. If you want to submit a petition, you must at least have sufficient reasons and logical logic. And you must think clearly about the consequences! Nowadays, the Li Supervisor and the Jinyi Guard Supervisor Judgment, isn’t this even more fatal?!”
There was no such thing originally. After all, Han Guandao was a virtuous minister who had declared himself outside, so he definitely didn't want the situation to escalate, so maybe it wouldn't be that bad, at least it wouldn't be like the Director of Ceremonies, where even a little bit of it would cost him his head.
But now dozens of officials, large and small, suddenly made His Majesty feel that the matter was getting serious. That's different.
Mao Yuwen became a supervisor and was a little confused. But his smart wife, Xu Xueyun, knew that "dozens of officials will make you think that someone is giving instructions behind your back. Even if not, you can still read the words 'officials protect each other'. In short, your majesty will I started to wonder if there is something hidden here, which is why you and Eunuch Liu became the supervisor..."
"So I would say that this time they really shot themselves in the foot." Mao Yuwen smiled softly, with some irony in his words.
