Li Zengzhi lowered his head and did not refute.
Li Jinglong ordered Li Zengzhi to kneel outside the palace, and he quickly left the palace, arrested the officials involved, and sent them all into the palace. Some of them had broken legs and could not kneel, so they had to lie on the ground to beg for mercy.
Wang Du and Deng Shijun wanted to die. Only then did they realize that the person they had offended was not the prince or the prince, but the Ming Emperor.
Zhu Yunwen left Li Jinglong, Li Zengzhi and others to dry until dusk, then walked out of Wuying Hall, looked at the people kneeling on the ground, and said coldly: "You are right, what are you doing kneeling here?"
"I am guilty!"
Wang Du and others kowtowed.
Zhu Yunwen chuckled, rolled up his sleeves and said: "If you are guilty, you should go to the Ministry of Punishment. What are you doing in my Wuying Palace? Oh, I forgot, the "Da Ming Law" can't control you, right?"
Deng Shijun was trembling all over, he said these words himself.
"Remove Wang Du, Deng Shijun, and He Hui from their official positions, and order the Ministry of Punishment to interrogate the crimes. I would like to see if the Ming Dynasty Law can control you! The governor of the Ming Dynasty, Richard, is removed from his official position and handed over to the Fifth Army Governor's Office for disposal. Let Xu Huizu told me which family the generals of the Ming Dynasty were slaves of, or the generals of the Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Yunwen's voice was cold, and Li Jinglong and Li Zengzhi were horrified.
"Mr. Cao Guo, Li Dun is your relative. If it is not appropriate to leave it to others to handle, I will leave it to you. If there is no result that satisfies me, haha..."
"My lord, I will definitely give the emperor a satisfactory answer!"
Li Jinglong replied anxiously.
Zhu Yunwen said nothing more and turned to leave. Halfway through, he told Shuangxi: "Whoever is guarding the palace today will be arrested by the security bureau and tortured and interrogated. How did they let these people into the palace?"
If you want to enter the palace, you must have the corresponding badge.
These days, not all cats and dogs are eligible to enter the palace, nor does it mean that following the Duke can enter the palace without permission. Today, Li Jinglong can bring a few people into the palace without badges, but wouldn't he be able to bring in a group of soldiers in the future?
When it comes to safety and rules, Zhu Yunwen has to be ruthless.
The next day.
Gu Sanshen told Zhu Yunwen about Xiao Han and Guo Luan, and said: "Your Majesty, what is certain is that Guo Luan is indeed Xiao Han's uncle. Although Guo Luan did not admit it, he still expressed concern after hearing that Guo Xu was missing. This matter Things should have touched him.”
Zhu Yunwen pondered for a moment and then instructed: "Tell him that I allow him to take Xiaohan away to find Guo Xu, but he needs a name. If not, he will stay in the Security Bureau forever."
Gu Sanshen admired Guo Luan as a man. Hearing Zhu Yunwen's arrangement, he couldn't help but be moved and said: "I thank the emperor on Guo Luan's behalf."
"That's all, he's just a pawn. Let's talk about other things."
Zhu Yunwen was no longer persistent.
Gu Sanshen quickly reported the report: "Yesterday evening, Li Dun and his wife both hung themselves from the beam, and Richard bit his tongue and committed suicide in the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion. The Ministry of Punishment convicted Wang Du of rape and beat him to death with a hundred canes. Deng Shijun was Sentence for slandering the imperial court, ignoring laws and favoring criminals, eighty rods, and three thousand miles of exile..."
"How did He Hui, Ying Tianfu's general judge, deal with it?"
Zhu Yunwen asked.
Gu Sanshen replied: "He Hui was a writer slave and was used by Duke Cao's government. He knew that his life was in danger, so he committed suicide."
"It's easier for them!"
Zhu Yunwen said coldly.
The intertwined relationship between officials and officials has become a stubborn problem. The use of thunderous measures at this time is a warning to the officials.
Zhu Yunwen looked at Gu Sanshen and asked a key question: "Is there any movement in Duke Cao's mansion?"
Gu Sanzhen nodded and responded: "As for the security bureau's inquiry, there was no movement after Li Jinglong and Li Zengzhi returned home, and there was no news about Li Zengzhi being punished."
Zhu Yunwen frowned slightly and said: "Keep an eye on Li Zengzhi, as well as Zhu Gaoxu and Xu Zengshou. Anyone who comes into contact with them needs to be included in the surveillance. I have an intuition that these people are not honest."
Gu Sanshen nodded solemnly.
The cabinet ministers Xie Jin and Yu Xin, the Minister of Household Affairs Xia Yuanji and the Minister of Industry Zheng Ci came to visit, and Gu Sanshen saluted and left Wuying Palace.
"Your Majesty, Song Li reports."
Zheng Ci took out the document and presented it.
After Zhu Yunwen read it, he looked at the new map drawn by Song Li and said, "Song Li wants to abandon a section of the old road that leads to the river, and the river will be moved fifty miles east. What do you think?"
Zheng Ci looked serious and said seriously: "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Strategy and Industry of Song Dynasty has done a study and believes that this is the safest strategy."
Zhu Yunwen looked at Yu Xin, who looked sad, and asked, "If Yu Aiqing has anything to say, just say it."
Yu Xin walked out and sighed: "Your Majesty, the Song Li strategy is a feasible strategy, but it has suddenly added a lot of projects, and it will cost the country at least two million yuan. At present, the national treasury is empty and the situation is difficult. It is really inappropriate to continue Implement this strategy..."
Zhu Yunwen did not expect that Song Li would come up with this plan, but based on the principle of seeking truth from facts, the plan proposed by Song Li was feasible and perhaps the only plan at the moment, but the budget was indeed over the limit.
However, considering that the Huitong River is the core section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and is related to the transportation of grain from the south to the north and the strategic arrangement of capital replacement, Zhu Yunwen must promote it no matter how much it costs.
"Xia Yuanji, what do you think?"
Zhu Yunwen asked in a deep voice.
Xia Yuanji came out and replied confidently: "Your Majesty, I don't think the extra cost is a big deal. Dredging the river will not happen overnight. The court has prepared three million in the early stage, which is enough to support the initial cost. The increased cost will not cause the country to die this year, and the court can rest assured that the dredging will open the river."
After Zhu Yunwen heard this, he breathed a sigh of relief and said: "There is nothing wrong with spending some money in advance. Since the Ministry of Revenue has strong support, we will reply to Song Li and conduct a second inspection of the strategy to ensure that everything is foolproof. After review, the construction will officially start."
Zheng Ci and others quickly agreed.
Xie Jin said worriedly: "Your Majesty, the Minister of Song Dynasty has no objection to the water management, but Shandong has been tired for a long time, and the people are vaguely uneasy. Both Jining Prefecture and Yanzhou Prefecture have sent documents. Behind this, there is a hidden story If someone takes advantage of the shadow of the Shenggong Mansion to cause trouble by repairing the river, it may cause unexpected disasters."
Zhu Yunwen frowned and said sternly: "The construction of rivers in the past dynasties has always involved requisitioning people's power without any reward, which is the so-called corvee. Now I am using the tax to pay them wages and use their efforts. I still want to cause chaos. If so, then we have to ask whether it is the common people who want chaos, or people with ulterior motives!"
Xie Jin, Yu Xin and others did not dare to speak.
Zhu Yunwen looked at everyone majestically and said: "The dredging of the river is related to the foundation of the country. It must not be delayed, let alone cause chaos. Since Yanshenggong's mansion may be involved, let Yanshenggong be the supervisor of the recruitment of people's power."
"ah?"
Xie Jin, Yu Xin and others were surprised.
According to local documents in Shandong, the attitude of Duke Yansheng's government was clearly not to support the dredging of the river. It openly set up stumbling blocks and secretly encouraged people's support. The purpose was to allow the people of Shandong to no longer suffer from the conscription and rest for a few years.
But now Zhu Yunwen actually handed over the worsening mess to Yan Shenggong's mansion to clean up, and asked them to be responsible for recruiting people's power and organizing migrant workers to dredge the Huitong River. Wouldn't this cost Yan Shenggong's life?
"Yanshenggong is a saint, so there is nothing wrong with doing something for the people and the country, right? Order the Ministry of Rites to give some rewards to Yanshenggong's mansion so that they can serve the court well."
Zhu Yunwen was not polite.
Since Duke Yan is disobedient and wants to cause trouble, that's fine. Regardless of whether the fire was lit by Duke Yan, the court needs firefighters. You, Duke Yan, are also members of the court. Just be obedient and put out the fire.
If they are disobedient and things get serious, the prestige and value of Duke Yansheng's Mansion will be compromised. When the time comes, whether to prepare a new real estate residence for them or build new furniture, they can take their time.
When the fire gets big, it’s easy to burn down several houses.
Xie Jin and Yu Xin looked at each other. The emperor's move can be said to be "to untie the bell, the person who tied it needs to be tied." When this order was passed down, Duke Yansheng could only slap himself in the face and urged the people to participate in the dredging meeting to open the river.
"Your Majesty, what should we do if Duke Yan Sheng shirks his authority and refuses to accept the order?"
Zheng Ci said worriedly.
Zhu Yunwen sneered and said domineeringly: "In this world, is there anyone who disobeys the emperor's orders?"
Zheng Ci and others looked solemn. The emperor's intention was already obvious. If Duke Yansheng disobeyed, it would probably cause a catastrophe.
Zhu Yunwen was not a good man and a believer, and he did not have much favorable impressions of Yan Shenggong. If he were not concerned about the orthodoxy upheld by scholars all over the world, Yan Shenggong's crime of inciting people's hearts would be enough for him to serve Confucius.
"I ordered Lian Zining, the censor of Youdu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, to supervise the dredging of the Huitong River. I ordered Zhuo Jing, the minister of household affairs, to personally take charge of the audit of the money and grain of the Huitong River. I need to know where every money and grain goes. I ordered Yanzhou, Jining, Fengyang , Kaifeng and other places, prepare to recruit 300,000 craftsmen and people, and order all localities to cooperate and explain the treatment of the imperial court."
"In order to ensure that the local area is safe, Changxing Marquis Geng Bingwen is ordered to train troops in Jinan. At the same time, he has the power to control the guards of Yanzhou, the palace of Lu. Notice to the local prefectures and counties that if there is a civil uprising, the chief officers will be executed and the adjutants will be sent to the army!"
Zhu Yunwen's majestic order was stern and could not be refused. Xie Jin, Yu Xin and others had to bow their heads and obey.
After handling the matter of Huitonghe, Zhu Yunwen looked at Xie Jin again and said, "There are some officials in the imperial court who are attached to the powerful and are willing to be domestic slaves. They do not distinguish between right and wrong, and ignore the laws and regulations of the imperial court. Does the cabinet have any countermeasures?"
Xie Jin knew that the matter was far from over, and the death of several petty officials was not enough to solve the problem, so he stood up and said: "Your Majesty, you cling to powerful people and let them drive you. Holding power for officials is very harmful. Therefore, I Please investigate this matter deeply and never condone it!”
Yu Xin raised his brows slightly and glanced at Jie Jin in surprise. He wanted to kill someone from Cao Guogong's palace. Who in the court didn't know that the people behind them were Li Jinglong and Li Zengzhi. If they continued to investigate, they would have no choice but to operate on them. .
Zhu Yunwen agreed with Xie Jin's view and decided to draw the sword out of its sheath and said: "In that case, let's get to the bottom of it. No matter who it is, no one can manipulate officials for their own personal use! You, Jie Jin, are responsible for this matter. The Ministry of Punishment and Security Co-organized by the bureau!”
