Nie Zishi, Zhu Fu and others also looked at Zhang Xixian angrily.
Some officials like this kind of generous gentry family.
However, there are also officials who hate these gentry from the bottom of their hearts.
This is the case with Nie Zishi, Zhu Fu and others.
They believe that the gentry who use money to pave the way are a group of vulgar people, evil gentry who drag good officials into trouble with crooked ways!
During the period of Emperor Hongwu, any official who embezzled more than sixty taels of silver would have his head cut off and his skin skinned to show the public.
During the Hongwu Dynasty alone, Emperor Hongwu carried out large-scale corruption crackdowns six times and executed more than 150,000 people.
But now, this family still refuses to repent, and dares to secretly stuff 5,000 taels of silver to a group of ministers in the court.
Isn't this harmful?
After hearing Zhu Di's words, Zhang Xixian shuddered and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, if the grassroots all confess, can you leave a bloodline in the grassroots family?"
Zhu Di smiled coldly, "Huang Kao once issued an edict that any corrupt official who embezzles more than sixty taels will have his head exposed to the public and his skin will be peeled off!
Don't you think about yourself? "
Zhang Xixian was startled and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, the common people...the common people are the people, not officials!"
Zhu Di said coldly: "If the people harm the officials, their crimes will be doubled!"
Zhang Xixian's mind was buzzing, and he was extremely frightened.
"Your Majesty, ordinary people do not harm officials!"
Zhu Di said coldly: "You deliberately activated many officials in our Ming Dynasty and asked them to cover up your crimes. Please ask these cabinet ministers, is this considered an official harming the people?"
Zhang Xixian subconsciously raised his head and looked aside.
In particular, he had heard about famous Confucian scholars such as Fang Xiaoru and Xie Jin.
However, there has never been an opportunity for Fang Xiaoru and Xie Jin to communicate with other great Confucian scholars.
But now, these great Confucian scholars whom he admired looked at him with an expression of hatred!
Zhang Xixian's body collapsed, and his whole body instantly aged by dozens of years.
"Your Majesty, all the common people will give an account. All of them will give an account. Your Majesty, please give me a lighter sentence and leave some blood in the families of the common people!"
Zhu Di said quietly: "You old thief, don't worry, we are not as murderous as Huang Kao!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Zhang Xixian was shocked and said quickly: "Your Majesty, the censor Zang Shiwen should only get two thousand taels of silver. His hometown has gained hundreds of acres of fertile land, and the capital has also gained a three-level house and some rare treasures. These additions It's almost six thousand taels of silver.
In addition, Wen Chang, the minister of punishment, Lu Zhen, and others from the household department had less money than Zang Shiwen, the censor, and others. Together, they should have about 5,000 taels of silver. "
Zhu Di asked again: "In addition to Dai Jiu, Wen Chang, Lu Zhen and other thieves, how many other officials do your Zhang family have?"
Zhang Xixian replied honestly: "Reporting to Your Majesty, there are also Shangyuan, Jiangpu, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Sixth Department, the Jinyiwei, and some nobles, at least dozens of them. The common people have some connections!"
"Dozens?"
Zhu Di's face was filled with shock and anger.
"There are actually Jin Yiwei. Our Ming Dynasty has so many corrupt officials?"
Nie Zishi, Zhu Fu and others all had faces full of shock and fear.
The Jiangning Zhang family is just a gentry family, but it can actually have so many officials?
So, how bad are the lives of the people around the capital?
Zhu Di asked: "Who are there among the Jinyi Guards?"
Zhang Xixian replied: "Your Majesty, Tu Shanwen, the governor of Jinyiwei Town, Bai Shangyi and Wu Yongwei from Qianhu, and Yang Shu and Yin Sui from two hundred households...
Your Majesty, these royal guards are the most vulgar, greedy for money, and the most ruthless in their actions! "
"OK!"
Zhu Di ignored Zhang Xixian and looked directly at Erhu.
Erhu hurriedly saluted, "Your Majesty, forgive me for your negligence. I didn't notice these people and dared to accept bribes!"
Zhu Di said: "Bring people immediately and capture them all for us!"
Erhu immediately said: "I obey the order!"
Immediately, Erhu left angrily.
Zhu Di asked Zhang Xixian again: "How many years have your Zhang family used officials like Dai Jiu to harm the people and steal our fertile land in the Ming Dynasty?"
Zhang Xixian replied honestly: "Your Majesty, ordinary people have about 160,000 acres of farmland!"
"Sixteen thousand acres?"
Zhu Di's eyes widened again.
As for Nie Zishi, Fang Xiaoru and other cabinet ministers, they were also dumbfounded and secretly smacked their lips. How many people would be harmed by so many acres of land!
At the same time, they no longer have any hope for those ministers.
They've gone too far!
This time, the capital will surely be a river of blood!
Zhu Di took a deep breath and asked again: "How much money have you made for your family by colluding with those officials over the years?"
Zhang Xixian replied honestly: "Reporting to your majesty, apart from the manipulation of those officials and friends, the common people still have about 150,000 taels of silver."
Zhu Di sneered and said: "One hundred and fifty thousand taels, a good and kind family in Jiangning, can be so black-hearted..."
"wrong!"
Suddenly, Zhu Fu shook his head to one side and said.
"Um?"
Zhu Di narrowed his eyes and looked at Zhu Fu, "Zhu Qing, what's wrong?"
A trace of panic flashed in Zhang Xixian's eyes.
"Your Majesty, although I have not checked all the account books of the Zhang family, but based on the more than ten account books in my hand, I can calculate that the Zhang family now has more than 300,000 taels of silver, or even more..."
Zhu Fu said solemnly.
As for the nature of keeping accounts and calculating money, Zhu Fu had already developed it in Prince Yan's Mansion in Peking.
After a while, he already had a rough idea of the Zhang family's wealth.
Zhu Di looked at Zhang Xixian coldly, "We have promised you to leave a bloodline for your Zhang family, but you still dare to deceive us?"
Zhang Xixian said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, the common people remembered it wrong... the common people remembered it wrong..."
"Hmph, it's obvious that your Zhang family is somewhere else, and there must be a hidden outer room!
Do you think that if you hide all this money, you can still leave it to those outside the house to spend money? What a wishful thinking! "
Zhu Di snorted coldly, "Liang Hu, interrogate the youngest thief of the Zhang family for us. No matter life or death, we want to know all the outer rooms of the Zhang family!"
"Wei Chen obeys the order!"
Liang Hu responded and walked out quickly.
Zhang Xixian's vision went dark. He imagined his young grandson being tortured by a group of extremely cruel men, and he felt extremely distressed. He quickly said: "Your Majesty, spare your life, Your Majesty...the young grandsons of the grassroots are different from ordinary people!"
Your Majesty, they do not deserve any suffering..."
Zhu Di said disdainfully: "Tell me, what's the difference?"
Zhang Xixian said hurriedly, "Your Majesty, the young grandchildren of the grassroots have been well-dressed and well-fed since they were young, and have been taught by many great Confucians the knowledge of sages...
They are dedicated to good deeds and know the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Period. When they grow up, they will definitely become great Confucians and wise ministers of the Ming Dynasty..."
"A wise minister?"
Zhu Di found it extremely ridiculous, "Have you, an old thief, never read the books of saints? You have not been well-dressed and well-fed since you were a child, and you don't understand the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Period?
Even you, an old thief, dare to be named Xixian. Do you have any talents?
You colluded with officials, dragged my officials into corruption, and committed evil deeds. I don’t know how many people have been harmed. There is no innocent person in your Zhang family!
From our point of view, your young grandson's fine clothes and fine food are just eating the flesh of tens of thousands of people and drinking the blood of tens of thousands of people..."
Zhang Xixian said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, it's different, it's different... Your Majesty, the young grandchildren of grassroots people can freely read the books of saints and sages. How can they be compared to those untouchables who can only hide in the fields?"
"Your Majesty, the young grandson of the common people is innocent..."
"You old thief wants to learn from Dai Jiu and the Jin Yiwei who tortured you in every possible way, even to the point of death.
Even if he was tortured in front of him, and his legitimate son was beaten to death, he still wouldn't do it.
In the end, he still found out his wife’s secrets..."
Zhu Di had lost his patience and threatened with a cold face.
"I promise that if you have a bloodline in the Zhang family, I will keep one, but I will definitely exile it to Japan or Goryeo.
The rest of the people will never survive.
If you are still like this, hiding things from me, then don’t blame me for being cruel.
You, the Zhang family, have been well-fed and well-fed since childhood, and none of you have suffered any suffering.
Die happily, or be tortured to death by those royal guards, and then tortured to death, you old thief, think carefully about it..."
After speaking, Zhu Di gave instructions to Zhu Fu, Nie Zishi and other cabinet ministers.
"Tonight, I would also like to ask all the cabinet ministers to check these account books for me. It doesn't matter anything else. I want to know how many thieves are hidden in the court!"
"Wei Chen obeys the order!"
Nie Zishi, Zhu Fu and others responded quickly.
I was very happy in my heart. Fortunately, I only asked them to search for corrupt officials, not to check the accounts.
On the other side, Zhang Xixian became more and more desperate the more he thought about it.
He knew Na Dai Jiu and was very cautious about a household official, otherwise he would not have cooperated with him for so long.
Unexpectedly, even Dai Jiu's outer room was not hidden for three days.
Then his Zhang family...
Thinking about it, Zhang Xixian hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, forgive me, the common people say, the common people say anything!"
"snort!"
Zhu Di snorted coldly and ordered towards Yishiha: "Come and interrogate me!"
"My slave obeys the order!"
Yi Shiha responded quickly and asked Zhang Xixian, "How many outer rooms does your Zhang family have?"
Zhang Xixian quickly replied: "Two bedrooms, only two outer rooms!"
Yi Shiha asked: "Where?"
"One is in Beiping Mansion and the other is in Suzhou Mansion!"
"How much money does your Zhang family have hidden outside?"
"About five hundred thousand taels!"
"Where?"
"Inside Ningxian Temple!"
"..."
This time, Zhang Xixian did not dare to hide anything.
Perhaps, this is also the reason for complete despair.
Shortly after.
Liang Hu and Er Hu all returned to their lives.
Zhang Xixian did not lie, and none of the Jinyi guards he colluded with escaped, they were all captured.
Thousands of taels of dirty silver were also found in those homes.
However, in the middle of the night, the actions of Erhu and others also caused some restlessness in the capital.
…
"Master, it seems that the Jin Yiwei came out to catch someone!"
"Alas, since Emperor Gaozu locked up those vicious dogs, I didn't expect that His Majesty would let these vicious dogs out again for the sake of a mere Marquis of Dinghai, and arrest people so wildly. I don't know how many virtuous people will suffer. , how many unjust cases will appear!”
"Master, there is no need to be so worried. My reputation is widely known and I have many friends in the court. No matter how arrogant those royal guards are, they will not dare to offend me!"
"Shut up, we read the books of sages and serve the court, how can we tolerate the wanton behavior of these evil dogs and nobles?
The Ming Dynasty finally settled down. The people need to recuperate and there must not be any more turmoil! "
"master……"
"You go out, we have to write a memorial, and we will risk our lives tomorrow to remonstrate. We cannot allow these evil dogs to disturb the peace of the court and shake the foundation of the country!"
"Yes, sir..."
…
(End of chapter)
