Hongwu Gate, the south gate of the Forbidden City in Nanjing.
On both sides are the offices of the five ministries and six government agencies.
The main south gate of the imperial city was named after Taizu's reign, and its purpose is obvious.
At this moment, more than a hundred officials in front of the Hongwu Gate stood quietly under the noon sun. If you were close, you could see that most of these people were trembling.
"The Emperor has arrived!"
"I will see you, Your Majesty!"
Following the loud shouts of the Fang family, the officials all saluted towards the Hongwu Gate Tower.
Looking at a famous minister, Chongzhen looked cold and waved towards Li Ruolian. A famous Jin Yiwei entered the ranks of the ministers with stacks of papers and accurately delivered the papers to the ministers.
The ministers looked at the paper in their hands, their expressions instantly darkened, their foreheads were covered with cold sweat, and what was worse, some of them collapsed directly on the ground.
The paper contains evidence of bribery and power transactions by wealthy businessmen and state and county officials from all over the Yangtze River. It is accurate to the date, date, amount, items, bribers, etc.
"Everyone, do you all admit this evidence?"
"If you admit it, just sign and pledge it, don't let me waste any more time!"
It was so simple and crude that not only the ministers were stunned, but also the common people who gathered a hundred meters away were stunned.
"Your Majesty, this slave is unjustly accused. All slaves are forced!"
"Your Majesty, I know I made a mistake, please forgive me!"
"Your Majesty, please wait..."
"Shut up!"
Hearing the cries of injustice from the ministers, Chongzhen suddenly became angry. He stood up from his seat and stood on the crenellation of the city gate tower, staring coldly at the ministers.
"Han agrees. As the Nanjing garrison eunuch and the highest official in Nanjing Zhili, if you don't want to be corrupt, who can check and balance you?"
"Liang Yu, as the Minister of the Nanjing Ministry of War, you are the commander of the 49th Guards of Nanzhili. Wang Haoxian, the leader of the Wenxiang Sect, was hiding in Yangzhou and was captured after two years.
Then his son hid in Suzhou, secretly formed a clique for personal gain, and even colluded with the Yao people in Guangxi to provide money and materials to the Yao people.
Later, the Suzhou Guards rebelled, and the 49th Guards in South Zhili were empty and severely underpaid... Do you still think you were wronged for so many crimes?
Last year, hundreds of Japanese pirates captured Shangyu County, thousands of households in Sanjiang were destroyed, and Ming Dynasty was completely embarrassed. "
"Hu Yingtai, as the Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs in Nanjing, how many officials in the Eighteen Prefectures of South Zhili are not corrupt? How many are not derelict in their duties? Don't you know how many of them are not derelict in their duties?
What are you doing during the annual inspections? Whoever gives more money will give better evaluation?
They engage in fraud, deceive superiors and subordinates, and officials work against each other. If you are wronged, who else is innocent? "
"Yu Shaocheng, you are the governor of water transportation, in charge of thousands of miles of canals in the Ming Dynasty. See for yourself what the canals have become.
Gangs are running rampant, exploiting passing merchant ships and passengers, and even dare to block passing water ships. Who gave you the courage to do this? What do imperial laws mean to you? "
…
"Nothing happened. You are all loyal ministers and honest officials. You are dedicated to the Ming Dynasty. Once you find out the problem, you will say that you were wronged, that you were forced, and that you knew your mistake.
If you make a mistake and admitting it will solve the problem, then what is the need to clarify the law?
Can the people and officials killed by your joint efforts come back to life?
Open your mouth to be benevolent and righteous, but shut up your mouth to be moral and righteous. In fact, you are full of male thieves and female prostitutes. After half a lifetime of reading the teachings of saints, you have read them into the dog's belly! "
"As a minister of the Ming Dynasty, I don't want to share the worries of the court. Instead, I want to make money, indulge in extravagance, form cliques for personal gain, and fight for power and profit. What use do you want?"
Chongzhen no longer had the bearing of an emperor at this moment, and he pointed at the officials and started scolding them.
Every time an official was called, the official would be scolded bloody.
The angry curses echoed on the Thousand-Step Corridor of Hongwu Gate, and the people gathered in the distance felt relieved.
"Your Majesty, kill them!"
"Behead these shameless villains!"
"Your Majesty, you have delayed them!"
…
After feeling refreshed, the common people roared angrily, and a chorus of angry voices exploded in the minds of the officials.
Plop... Plop...
An official who was still standing could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, his eyes full of despair and panic.
Chongzhen looked at the people waving their hands, jumping and roaring, and stretched out his hand to press in the air. The roar slowly became smaller until it became quiet.
"Have you heard the roar of the people? This is the will of the people.
If I don't kill you, it won't be enough for the people to be angry.
Not killing you is not enough to comfort the souls of the dead!
Not killing you would be irresponsible to the people. "
"If you still have some guts, then sign and pledge it!"
"Of course, if you think there is something wrong with the evidence, you can raise it and I will give you a chance to reconsider it. But if it is confirmed again, the members of the three tribes will be executed immediately!"
…
Killing you three times in a row will completely destroy the remaining luck and hope in the hearts of the officials.
The final execution by Ling Chi left them heartbroken, but still no one confessed.
Looking at this scene, Chongzhen sneered and felt even more angry.
Do you think that if you refuse to plead guilty or put a bond on it, you can't be convicted? Do you think of him as too kind?
"Li Ruolian, you personally lead people to search the house and suppress all their family members! At the same time, bring all the witnesses to me. I'll give you one hour!"
"I accept the decree!"
After Li Ruolian responded loudly, he left with the Jin Yiwei, along with more than a thousand sergeants from Tengxiang's left guard.
After the sergeant left, Chongzhen looked at the ministers coldly: "Jin Yiwei will check those valuables according to the evidence list. If one is confirmed, I will punish your clan, until I punish all ten of your clans!"
"I plead guilty!"
"I plead guilty!"
…
As soon as these words came out, someone finally couldn't bear the pressure and confessed directly. This confession triggered a chain reaction, and one minister after another fell to the ground.
At the same time, Jin Yiwei, who was waiting on the side, also came over with pens, inks, paper and inkstones one after another. The minister who confessed tremblingly picked up the pen to sign on the evidence and put his fingerprints on it.
Then they burst into tears and howled. Although their voices were sad, the onlookers had no sympathy. They all looked at the emperor on the city gate tower, waiting for their treatment.
"If someone comes and embezzles a hundred thousand yuan or two, he will be executed in Ling Chi and the three clans will be punished!"
"Embezzled 50,000 yuan, divided the body into pieces, sent the male family members into exile for three thousand miles, and sent the female family members into the Jiaofang Department!"
"If you embezzle 10,000 yuan, you will be cut in half, and your family will have to work hard for three years!"
"If you embezzle a thousand taels, you will serve for three years and your family will have to work hard for three months!"
"Anyone who embezzles less than one hundred taels will be punished with thirty rods, temporarily retained in the official position, and will be punished for meritorious service. He will not be allowed to leave office under any excuse. He will not be promoted after three Beijing inspections!"
…
"All of the above will have their property confiscated. Members of the three tribes will not be allowed to participate in any type of selection examination organized by the imperial court for fifty years."
Simple and crude, it shocked everyone.
I knew that the emperor wanted to kill someone, but I didn't expect that it would be done in such a way.
It really makes them... happy.
