"If you want to incriminate yourself, why bother?"
Facing Gao Zhong's "translation", Zheng Cunzhong roared.
"I dare not admit it, but I have no eggs!"
Zheng Cunzhong was despised by the eunuch for having no eggs, and he was furious.
But Gao Zhong just didn't go out and just kept scolding him here.
Because he is bored.
He remembered that after His Majesty asked the staff to hold a meeting for a long time, all the staff looked exhausted and in a daze.
He still remembered how Huang Jin and Luo commanded them to question Fang Muxian until they felt dizzy that day.
Therefore, Zheng Cunzhong could not rest in peace.
Gao Zhong's trip was considered a day and night journey. Although it was not as fast as traveling during the day when he went to Guangdong, it was better to travel by boat at night.
When entering the boundary of Huguang, there were actually officers and soldiers from Huguang guarding them along the way.
Gao Zhong lost the relief of completing the mission and realized how important it was for this ship to enter Beijing smoothly.
Afterwards, they went down the river, protected by the Yangtze River Navy from Nanjing.
After turning into the canal, there are relays all the way north.
Gao Zhong did not know what arrangements His Majesty had made after he left Beijing, nor did he know what new developments had occurred in the provinces after receiving news of the lawsuit in Daxing, Guangdong.
So he stared closely at the bottom cabin, always holding the small box in his arms.
He understood: Xie Changjie was nothing. What Your Majesty cared about was the things in his arms and the people in front of him.
Overwhelming pressure enveloped him. One day, Zheng Cunzhong suddenly laughed crazily.
"It's like facing a formidable enemy! Hahahahaha..." He seemed to be about to die from his laughter. After coughing for a while, he continued, "The new law...the truth...the power of filth...the sage has died a long time ago! He is the sage." Even if he's not dead, he can't clean up the world! Take me and other talented people as an example? It's ridiculous! Hahahahaha..."
The others were not as crazy as him, and they all glared at him, crying: "Zheng Cunzhong! Why are you so crazy! What are you talking nonsense about?"
Gao Zhong lost interest in saying anything unpleasant to him. He just stared at Zheng Cunzhong.
Two days later, the official ship arrived in Tongzhou.
Zheng Cunzhong, who walked out of the cabin, squinted his eyes for a long time before he got used to the crisp autumn air in Beijing in early September.
On the pier, he saw the Jin Yiwei, the flags of the Ministry of Punishment, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the Dali Temple, and naturally he also saw the prison car.
The legs and feet of the other twelve scholars who had come from Guangdong were weak, but Zheng Cunzhong actually stood up straight with excitement.
What a huge battle!
What a thoughtful scene!
But how many people will listen to this lesson and change themselves?
The only person who could have such childish thoughts was the passionate young emperor.
He walked proudly to the prison car and rushed to the stage.
At this point, he has torn off that layer of politeness and is being his true self.
Will the emperor and the world dare to listen to his words?
…
A long line of prison cars passed through the city and entered the prison of the Ministry of Punishment. This was not even news.
After the news of the hurricane disaster in the south came more than a month ago, the imperial court has issued many decrees.
Duke Dingguo went to Guangdong, scholar Jiang Mian went to Nanzhili, and Zhang Yong returned to the capital from Shaanxi.
The party struggle between the new law and the old system that started more than three months ago became even more intense during the storm in the south this past month.
The Ministry of Personnel selected and transferred many low-ranking officials almost continuously for a day, and the provincial inspectors and various department officials also handed over bullets as if they were crazy.
The Thirteen Imperial Prisoners of Guangdong, who were under the custody of the Sanfa Division, arrived in Beijing. Everyone in the Beijing officials knew that this might be the end.
Although it’s not certain, there will be at least one stage of results, right?
We can no longer continue to frustrate. The past three months have been much more terrifying than last year when His Majesty first ascended the throne.
In the past three months alone, a total of seventeen Beijing officials have been sentenced to death by the almost permanent Trifacial Hall, thirty-two people have been sent into military exile, and more than seventy people have been demoted or even demoted to civilian status.
The reason why I say more than seventy is because I don’t know if there will be one or two more today.
And tomorrow happens to be the seventh day of September, the day of the meeting.
Five moments after the ugly hour, the court officials were fully dressed and ready to go out.
"Don't act rashly, just stay at home. If anything happens to your husband, you must raise your children. I have brought back some money, and they are under the bed..."
"Husband..." The woman burst into tears.
Although it is a bit ridiculous, this scene is actually played out in the homes of some court officials.
Before Yan Song went out, he calmly looked at the sky for a while, his eyes extremely bright.
Today, he will be one of the protagonists.
The people in this play include not only the officials and gentry of the world, but also the emperor.
The real drama is that after you become a character, you will have the emotions, anger, sorrow and joy caused by the drama. Sometimes you will think: the script may not be like this, and there are some places that need to be changed.
Yan Song believed that the emperor had seen through this, and Yan Song had to prove once again that he had no scruples.
In Yang Tinghe's mansion, his second son Yang Dun looked at his father worriedly.
"No need to worry, just study with peace of mind. Your eldest brother will be fine, and your father will be fine too."
Yang Dun didn't know that everything was a game that was about to span many years. In his eyes, his father began to bear the name of a powerful traitor. He became the target of secret curses by the gentry all over the world. He also became a person that the old party wanted to completely crucify. of enemies.
He couldn't figure it out: It wasn't like this before!
In the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Houcong had already put on his clothes, and he was looking at the files that arrived yesterday again.
One old case after another fell into his eyes, but his eyes became calmer and calmer.
Compared with the accountant who lived a stable life back then, after ascending to the throne, Zhu Houcong had the highest authority to see all the secrets he could see.
Death becomes a number, and the actions of various people reveal to him the rules of the empire's operation. The direction of various complicated national affairs awaits his decision.
It's really the easiest way to treat it vertically.
As long as he closes his eyes and doesn't care about these numbers and surrenders to the strong inevitability and inertia revealed by those rules, it doesn't matter what will happen to this country and the people in this land in the future.
He already has his own child in this time and space, and the three hundred beauties are still waiting for him to select the fifty beauties.
"Let's go."
He closed a file and placed it on the plate held by the eunuch next to him.
"Get started!"
Huang Jin announced loudly.
Zhu Houcong walked out of the palace gate, walking quietly and unhurriedly.
Shen Ce is determined to perfect his set of intellectual ideas, and they are very motivated in this matter.
What about the new law?
In this scene directed by Fei Hong, why didn't Yang Tinghe cooperate with the performance in a smooth manner?
Acting as a man of the world, he also acted as an emperor: let him face it with dignity and dignity.
When it came time to finally decide whether to face all the problems, the test was not actually whether the new laws in the future would work, but the emperor's own humanity.
Frankly speaking, all the problems have arisen. The emperor will have to face everything in the future. He will be so hard, so tired, so angry and unable to face many things.
Emperor, are you really willing to live like that?
Today there is resistance from the gentry all over the world, tomorrow there is a sudden hurricane, and the day after tomorrow there is an uprising by the mining slaves. There are also the Yellow River, the Yangtze River, the Earth Dragon, the northern barbarians, the pirates, the southwestern barbarians...
The emperor really has another way of living, which can make Ming Dynasty much better than it is now.
Zhu Houcong walked to the Huagai Hall and sat down quietly to wait.
Zhang Jin, Huang Jin, Luo An, and Lu Song were all standing not far from him.
Zhu Houcong looked at the outline of the palace gate dimly illuminated in the night by the surrounding palace lanterns, and the brightly lit Fengtian Palace inside, creating a splendid scene.
Like a heart that is cold on the outside but hot and beating on the inside.
Although today is not a major court meeting, it is held in Fengtian Hall.
Zhu Houcong was thinking about the reaction of Yang Ting and them when he really showed his firm determination to implement the new law.
His "Draft of the Ming Dynasty's Fiscal and Taxation System" and some related ideas are, after all, just a piece of cake.
No matter how the law on the treatment of officials is enacted, in their view it is impossible to compare with the benefits that officials and gentry can enjoy at the moment.
In the face of interests, what does it mean to become a sage and a great scholar in the new era? Don’t the teachings of Sage Confucius and the Four Books and Five Classics, which are regarded as the guide, also say one thing and do another?
What you may gain in the future, what you will lose and face now.
Eighteen people participated in the strategy, how many people had no scruples?
In the name of the new law, we can use more materials to make the paper more beautiful, and gain a reputation for both governance and learning. That would be the best outcome.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The dull sound of drums came faintly from the distance, and Zhu Houcong stood up.
Go ahead.
After all, you have to live up to your destiny.
After the calm etiquette process, Zhu Houcong said: "Bring it with you."
"Take Guangdong imperial prisoner Zheng Cunzhong and other thirteen people to the palace!"
"Push..."
…
The sound was transmitted to Fengtianmen in the distance, and Zheng Cunzhong took a deep breath with an unusually rosy face.
As Zhang Fujing said, he is wearing shackles and has shackles at his feet.
I could hear the sobbing of some people behind me, the sound of shackles dragging gold and stone on the floor tiles of the Forbidden City, and even the crow of cocks and birds coming from nowhere.
In sight, is the magnificent Fengtian Palace.
The Imperial Guards gathered together to form a passage, some back figures could be seen on the cloud platform in front, and the Fengtian Hall was brightly lit.
From here, Zheng Cunzhong could faintly see the throne and the figure on it.
He quickened his pace, not even feeling any increase in pain.
The distance got closer and closer, and he began to walk up the steps.
When he arrived in front of the palace, he could finally see the emperor's face a little clearly.
So he didn't care that the court officials next to him were staring at him with various eyes, and that the important officials in red clothes in the palace were all turning back to stare at him, Zheng Cunzhong approached the palace door.
"Zhang Fujing said that Zheng Cunzhong's sharp tongue alone is enough. Let him come in, while the others kneel outside the palace."
The emperor's clear voice reached Zheng Cunzhong's ears. A slight smile appeared on the corner of his mouth and he said loudly: "The common people thank your majesty for your kindness!"
Then he wore shackles and bowed five times and kowtowed three times. This is evident from Zheng Cunzhong's knowledge of etiquette.
He also seems to be a really obedient person.
After entering the palace, he kept looking at the emperor without squinting. After walking into the palace, he knelt down and said with a grin: "Zheng Cunzhong, a common man, is here to hear the trial."
Zhu Houcong looked at this Guangdong Juren.
Hair, clothes, and face are all taken care of. Although he is a prisoner, he still wants to see Jia Jia in order not to shock Jia Jia.
So now Zheng Cunzhong's appearance is pretty good, he looks elegant and elegant, his eyes are bright and energetic, and there is not a trace of fear in them.
He said he was here for a hearing.
Zhu Houcong looked at the others, and then said indifferently: "Because I want to try out some new laws in Guangdong, I just cleared the land and changed the rules of the Shipping Department. It seems like the Ming Dynasty is about to turn upside down."
"...Your Majesty, calm down!"
Hundreds of court counselors knelt down together, and the voices that sounded one after another sounded frightened.
Zhu Houcong did not let them get up, and continued: "Unexpectedly, hurricanes at sea this year have hit one after another, and the people along the coast have been severely affected and miserable. Guangdong is not the worst hit, but the disaster has not ended yet, and there are officials with the disaster information The former chief envoy Si Xingwen issued an order to warn the people not to miss this year's land tax."
"They are all good officials who are loyal to the emperor." Zhu Houcong paused, "Compared with the life and death of the people under his rule, the court's regulations and the requirements of the superior officials are more important. Natural disasters will naturally kill people, and the reported numbers will be more or less. It doesn’t show their hard work in providing disaster relief and reassuring the people. On the contrary, it can be seen at a glance that the quota of land tax cannot be paid in full. Whether there is a trial of new laws, most places will do this when they encounter disasters. I already know."
Zheng Cunzhong was surprised to hear the emperor say these things.
The words are not literal, the tone is neither sad nor happy, and the content... is very realistic.
Zhu Houcong then looked at Zheng Cunzhong: "So it's the same if any Guangdong gentry did anything in it. If the matter was simple and the people's complaints were successfully suppressed, it would be nothing more than adding some numbers to the reports of natural disasters, bandits, etc. I don’t necessarily know what’s going on locally. Zheng Cunzhong, tell me, is it possible that the new law will be the same?”
Yang Tinghe, Fei Hong and others looked solemnly.
Zheng Cunzhong stared at the emperor for a moment, and then replied: "Your Majesty, from the eyes of the people, they are indeed the same."
Fei Hong immediately said: "Your Majesty! Given the vast territory of the Ming Dynasty and the difficulty of transportation, these shortcomings are naturally inevitable. However, the use of etiquette to educate the world, to control communication from top to bottom, and to restrain officials and people with laws have actually been used for thousands of years to warn future generations. This is the foundation of a unified dynasty! The situation in Guangdong is said to have originated from the new law, but in fact it is a frontier province far away from the center. Some officials and gentry are relying on the local bias, being arrogant and perverting the law! In frontier areas, the old system is not easy to deal with. Please think carefully about it."
After that, he pointed to Yang Tinghe: "The chief minister knows this, so why must he try out the new law in Guangdong? Can't it be done in Huguang, Shandong, and Sichuan?"
Yang Tinghe said with a cold face: "If the trial in Guangdong is effective, the implementation of the new law in all provinces will naturally be more promising. Everything is difficult at the beginning, and it is even more difficult to trial the new law in Guangdong, but it will least cause turmoil in the hinterland! "
Zheng Cunzhong watched the quarrels among the bachelors at close range strangely.
Although Yang Tinghe's words are reasonable, he does not deny that the new law may destabilize the world.
Knowing that everything is difficult at the beginning, and knowing that it is even more difficult to try it out in Guangdong, when did you, Yang Tinghe, become so extreme?
So he looked at the young emperor and couldn't help but feel funny.
After all, is it really the intrigues between the emperor and his ministers in the court that are pouring out to Guangdong?
After Yang Tinghe and Fei Hong said something about you and me, they stopped talking and looked at the emperor.
"My lords, please get up first." Zhu Houcong said calmly, "Huang Jin, please ask the bachelors to read aloud the Guangdong files submitted by Zhang Fu."
Zheng Cunzhong curled his lips slightly in disdain.
What's the use? Even if your ancestors peeled off the skin and pulled away the grass, they could not wipe out the selfishness of the world.
Only allow the Zhu family to sit back and enjoy the world, expect all the officials in the world to work hard and be poor, love the people like sons, but ignore their own children?
In his sight, the emperor closed his eyes.
Then, starting from Yang Tinghe, everyone took a few dossiers in their hands and started to read them with frowns, while Yang Tinghe started to read the first one.
Nothing new, nothing new.
Zheng Cunzhong originally thought that this would be an interrogation, either as an example of the need to implement new laws, or as a basis for the crime to be too common and could only be pursued slowly.
Now it seems that after all, it is nothing more than a power struggle in the court that has played out countless times in history.
If Fei Hong was really an old party member, all the Yang family's 18-year-old secret affairs would have been dug up!
If Yang Tinghe is really a new party, why does Guangdong Juren need to go to Beijing? Let Zhang Fujing carve out a few Beijing temples in Guangdong!
The young emperor is probably the only one who wants to implement the new law.
...It seems there is also Zhang Fujing.
One file after another was read aloud, and all the court officials seemed to have solemn expressions on their faces.
Time passed little by little, and the sky gradually became brighter, until the rays of the morning sun swept across the palace, poured in obliquely from the entrance of the palace, and shone behind Zheng Cunzhong and the officials on his left.
The emperor suddenly opened his eyes and said: "Just stop reading it here, and the rest will be the same. Then the Six Section Gallery will copy it and send it to each government office for a look."
Yang Tinghe put the file back into the plate that the eunuch was holding in front of him, then saluted and said: "Your Majesty! The people of Guangdong want to do whatever they want, and they have forgotten the teachings of the saints for a long time. I am shocked to read this! Hundreds of thousands of people in Guangdong live on less than 30% of their land. , and taking on the servitude of the whole province, it is really like being in purgatory! Looking at the provinces of the Ming Dynasty from Guangdong, I am afraid it is nothing like this! If things go on like this, the people will have no place to stand, and the Ming Dynasty will be in danger of overthrowing! I think that the court cannot Let’s keep fighting!”
Just as Fei Hong was about to speak, Zhu Houcong stood up.
When passing by Lu Song, the emperor took out the "new" knife in his hand and slowly walked towards Zheng Cunzhong amidst everyone's astonishment.
When the tip of the knife passed by a ray of sunlight that shone into the hall from a low angle, Zheng Cunzhong's eyes were slightly narrowed by the flash.
Then the emperor came to him.
"His Majesty……"
"His Majesty……"
The officials on the left and right couldn't help but turn pale with fright, and took two steps forward in unison.
As a result, the guards immediately moved forward. Luo An and Lu Song pressed Zheng Cunzhong's shoulders on the left and right.
Zheng Cunzhong, whose pupils were tightened, watched as the emperor placed the blade on his yoke and aimed it at his throat.
"Zhang Fujing said that apart from evading taxes and servitude, nothing else you did could be considered a serious violation of national law."
Zheng Cunzhong looked up at him with his head held high, and after twitching his throat, he said: "The common people are indeed guilty of evading taxes and servitude. Your Majesty wants to kill or behead them, and the common people are left to their own devices."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must not..." Yang Tinghe said in a solemn voice, but only received a calm glance from the emperor.
Yang Tinghe choked on the second half of his sentence.
Zhu Houcong continued: "Zhang Fujing said that he used the chess game as a metaphor for state affairs, the white stones as a metaphor for the officials and gentry who have the teachings of the saints in their hearts, and the black stones as a metaphor for the officials and gentry who only have a small family in their hearts but no Ming Dynasty. You said, the chess pieces are just chess pieces after all, if they were changed In a game of chess, the chess pieces remain chess pieces.”
"...The grassroots did say it." Zheng Cunzhong calmed down and looked at the emperor.
There was silence in Fengtian Palace, Yang Ting, Fei Hong and others all looked in horror.
Zhu Houcong smiled at Zheng Cunzhong: "Well said."
Then the blade moved forward, and a line of blood spilled from the darkness into the small square of light that the morning sun opened in the hall.
Zheng Cunzhong was speechless and tried hard not to lose sight of his eyes.
Why don't you listen to me more?
Since you are determined to kill, why don't you listen to how cruel the reality is?
What the hell is going on in this court of yours?
The remaining twelve "imperial prisoners" of Guangdong outside the palace were suddenly frightened and started crying: "Your Majesty, please spare your life, Your Majesty..."
The faces of the officials in Fengtian Palace turned pale and they looked at the emperor in disbelief.
Zhu Houcong let go of the handle of the knife, clapped his hands, and exhaled the breath in his chest as smoothly as possible.
He knew that he had grown a lot, but as an emperor, he lacked this lesson.
Only myself who comes from five hundred years later must make up for this lesson.
To do ruthless things, he cannot be an emperor without murderous intent.
And this is a "good" gentry who only bears one sin that ninety-nine percent of the officials and gentry in the world have.
Zhu Houcong used this knife to tell his ministers some determination.
He glanced at Yang Ting and them lightly, then turned to look at Zhang Bi and Gu Dingchen.
"record."
"Drag it out."
"Wash the floor."
"Get some water."
After the emperor arrived at the throne and washed the blood from his face, there was silence in Fengtian Hall.
Zhang Bi trembled and recorded on his daily note.
[In the ninth month of the first year of Jiajing, Renzi went to the Chang Dynasty in Fengtian Palace and killed the Guangdong rebel Zheng Cunzhong. 】
I recommend a friend's new book "The Solitary Rule of the Ming Dynasty": Zhu Youtang has just traveled through time and has not had time to adapt to the identity of the prince. He has to take over the burden of China in a hurry. Facing the covetous forces from all sides, it is like Schrödinger's scene. Cat games. Merciful? It is not a good idea to violate the ancestral rules and be greedy for eight hundred words and go to hell! Appoint an honest and clean minister? Minister Qingliu may not necessarily be able to do things and may not be honest. Well, this is actually an excuse. It's just that you civil servants have the final say on things. So what do you want me, the emperor, to do? Ruling the world with scholar-bureaucrats? My words mean that the world's laws are not favourable? Let's take a look at the story of how a modern man's soul penetrated the virtuous emperor Zhu Youtang and transformed into a tyrant, and how he led China to the top of the world.
