Emperor Chongzhen's face became serious again. He looked at his ministers and said loudly: "I know that the case of treason is not a trivial matter. If it is not a real treason, I will never unjustly accuse someone of treason!"
He made an opening statement, paused, and then continued: "The Shanxi businessmen's collaboration with the captives is much more serious than what you imagined! Do you think that it was just the two brothers Fan Yongdou who joined the captives? They just went to build the captive army. Just saying something? Is their transfer of captives just a matter of the entry of captives into the pass this time? I can tell you clearly that if these Shanxi merchants are allowed to transfer captives, the country of Ming Dynasty will definitely not be protected. This is not the case. Conspiracy, why conspire?"
As he said these words, his voice became louder, louder, and angrier.
The courtiers below couldn't help but be surprised when they heard this.
To be honest, when they heard the factory guards talk about Shanxi merchants and prisoners before, they actually didn't pay much attention. Even if they are treasonous and defiant, they can just report the news that a virtuous king has been captured. Although the loss of the clan was a big deal, it was still very different from the loss of the country in the Ming Dynasty, right?
But at this time, after listening to the emperor's words, they started to take it seriously. Because of the emperor's wishes, what these Shanxi merchants have done is far more than what they have done so far.
So, they all listened attentively.
Emperor Chongzhen was angry again and said sternly: "A few days ago, the Yongwei camp and the Hussar camp left the capital. Do you know what they were doing?"
The capital was under martial law and no one was allowed to enter or leave the capital. Therefore, these people present had no idea.
Emperor Chongzhen certainly knew this, so without waiting for his ministers to answer, he took out a memorial and said: "They are going to Shanxi. This is the memorial jointly sent by Hong Chengchou and Lu Xiangsheng. You first listen to what it is. content!"
After speaking, he gave the memorial to Cao Huachun.
Immediately, the eunuch's distinctive sharp voice sounded again, loudly.
This memorial is a summary of the seizure of materials at Zhangjiakou Fort. It records in detail the list of supplies that Shanxi merchants will send to Liaodong.
When the civil and military officials heard that the eight major Shanxi merchants had hoarded countless grain and grass supplies, as well as gunpowder, iron materials and other controlled items in Zhangjiakou Fort, they knew that this was a serious matter.
Generally speaking, some officials have actually heard of smuggling at the border. This kind of thing is difficult to prevent, and smuggling is not surprising.
However, when large-scale smuggling like that of Shanxi merchants included various military supplies, no matter who heard about it, they were very shocked.
The northern part of the Ming Dynasty, that is, Shaanxi and Shanxi, began to suffer the most severe disasters during the Tianqi period, and the people could not survive, so they took the risk and rebelled. In such a poor province, these Shanxi merchants hoarded so many supplies and sent them to Liaodong. If all these materials were left in the Ming Dynasty, in Shanxi and Shaanxi. The situation in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty would not have deteriorated to this point. Therefore, the bandits would not be able to poison the Central Plains.
This idea was further verified when I heard from the memorial that the large-scale smuggling of Shanxi merchants had begun in the late Wanli and Tianqi years.
In other words, the bandit rebellion that began in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty is inevitably related to the large-scale transportation of materials by these Shanxi merchants to Liaodong. Just in this aspect, we can say that these Shanxi merchants deserve to die!
The Liaodong Jianlu were enemies of the Ming Dynasty and came as rebels. The act of transporting so much military supplies to the rebels should actually be treated as a ally of the rebels.
The Jianlu in Liaodong received so much military supplies. No wonder they were able to use the barren land of Liaodong to support the war for so many years, and even became stronger as they fought! The fall of Liaodong land, the casualties of countless soldiers, and the consumption of countless money and food were all the "contributions" of those Shanxi merchants.
What's more, every time Shanxi merchants went to Liaodong, they would report the personnel changes in the court, the deployment of troops in various places, and the actual situation in the pass to the Liaodong Jianlu. Because of this, Jianlu was able to know himself and the enemy, and he was victorious in every battle against the Ming Dynasty! Many officials were killed or defeated in battles. Behind these things, Shanxi merchants were indispensable for their "contribution".
Moreover, Shanxi merchants colluded with Chen Xinjia, bribed Yang Sichang, and did things in the court that made relatives happy and enemies happy.
Not to mention other things, if they tried to plot against Lu Xiangsheng and Sun Chuanting this time, if they really did it, Liaodong Jianlu would probably laugh out of his dreams. But the Ming Dynasty will lose two pillars of the country! This time, the rebels were strengthened and the Ming Dynasty was weakened.
If Emperor Chongzhen hadn't suddenly behaved as if he was possessed by Taizu, then Jianlu's entry into the Pass this time would have been the same as the previous ones. The entire Gyeonggi area is like the back garden of Liaodong. Allowing the captives to come and go as they please, they are invincible, except that they barely captured the capital.
If things are allowed to continue like this, there will be chaos within the Ming Dynasty and the Liaodong rebels will wreak havoc outside. There is no need to add natural disasters. The country of the Ming Dynasty will be at its most dangerous time.
The Shanxi merchants' behavior of collaborating with the captives has reached a very serious level. It is not an exaggeration for the emperor to accuse them of treason.
Just imagine, the Jianlu, the Shanxi merchants, the feudal officials, and the cabinet ministers, the combined harm would endanger the Ming Dynasty!
Convicting Yang Sichang of treason does not necessarily mean that he wants to be emperor! But as far as these forces are concerned, those who want to be the emperor and those who want to seize the country of the Ming Dynasty should undoubtedly join the army. The other parties, whether active or passive, are all comrades, and can also be classified as treason!
Emperor Chongzhen also made public the letters intercepted by Han Leyu, as well as the oral confessions of Shanxi merchants and their confidants. Even Emperor Chongzhen said that the military supplies and grain and grass that had been intercepted and inspected this time had been transported back to the capital.
Even the most reluctant people would never think that the emperor had stuffed them with so much military supplies, food, etc. in order to label them as rebels.
Furthermore, this is not just a single piece of evidence, but all aspects. A lot of personal and material evidence can prove that Shanxi merchants began to engage in large-scale captives in the early years, and the severity has reached To an appalling level.
All the officials below had nothing to say about the treason case. If this kind of thing is not classified as treason, then we have to wait until the Ming Dynasty is gone before it can be classified as treason?
Listening to the pieces of evidence being laid out, and thinking about the harm that the Shanxi merchants' behavior of colluding with the captives had brought to the Ming Dynasty, especially the harm to themselves, these civil servants and generals became angry.
The officials of the capital are those who have some property in the capital. But every time Jianlu entered the pass, he suffered heavy losses. Others, whose properties are not located in the capital, are still threatened by bandits. The emergence and proliferation of bandits are related to Shanxi merchants sending a large amount of northern materials to Liaodong. Shanxi merchants will have to share this account no matter what.
After all these things are added up, there are still people out there who will sympathize with these Shanxi merchants and their comrades who are rebels.
After the evidence was announced, Emperor Chongzhen shouted angrily: "I'm going too far in declaring these Shanxi merchants and their accomplices to be treason? Do I think that other corrupt people are treason? I'll tell you. , I am reasonable and persuade others with my virtue. Now, who has any objection?"
Hearing this, the civil servants and military generals were even more relieved. The emperor was indeed sensible and had only labeled these Shanxi merchants and their associates as treasonous. Therefore, they echoed almost in unison: "Your Majesty, the Holy Spirit!"
Seeing this, Emperor Chongzhen relaxed his mood a little, and then announced the appointment of the commander-in-chief of King Qin's army and made it official.
That is to say, Sun Chuanting was promoted to governor of Jiliao; Hong Chengchou joined Prince Shaobao and was transferred to the post of governor of Xuanda. As the commander-in-chief of King Qin's army, Lu Xiangsheng defeated the Jianlu captives, but the Jianlu captives also plundered more than 200,000 people and lost the clan. Shanxi merchants and their colleagues were mainly responsible for these mistakes, but Lu Xiangsheng also had to bear some responsibility. The merits and demerits were equal to each other, so he was transferred to the governor of Baoding.
In addition, on the recommendation of Hong Chengchou, the governor of Xuanda, Chen Qiyu was pardoned and returned to serve as the governor of the three sides, responsible for the defense of the Mongolians in Hetao and the suppression of bandits.
Also, Chen Hongxu, the magistrate of Jinzhou, had meritorious service in defending Jinzhou and spread the experience of defending the city. He was granted a Jinshi background and was promoted to governor of Denglai. Zuo Yingxuan, the former magistrate of Changli County, was slandered and punished. Now he has returned to Beijing according to the order. He was also given the same Jinshi background and was appointed governor of Shuntian.
There was also Yang Tinglin, a doctor in the Ministry of War, who was named the censor of Youqiandu and made it clear that his responsibility was to strictly select ordinary censors according to the law.
The official position of Yushi of Youqiandu, if he goes out to the local area, he is qualified to governor the local area. This is also a reward for Yang Tinglin who traveled back and forth among the Qin kings and was in charge of money and food without any fault.
In addition, the Ming Dynasty actually had strict regulations on the selection of censors. That is to say, it is stipulated that the censor must be selected from among the Jinshi and supervisors who are knowledgeable and knowledgeable in governing the body, and the official background is not allowed to be a Taoist official.
After Yongle, the requirements for censors and candidates became more and more strict. Generally speaking, the age should be between thirty and fifty years old. If you are too young, you will lack experience, while if you are too old, you will have no vitality.
During the Xuande period, it was also stipulated that new academicians could not be directly awarded academic qualifications;
At the time of Chenghua, it was added that Jinshi must have served for more than three years before they were qualified to become Yushi Yanguan;
During the Hongzhi period, it was stipulated that instructors with a Juren background must have served for more than six years and were outstanding before they could serve as Kedao officials.
Regarding these regulations, Emperor Chongzhen only made requirements for the first one. That is to say, "Those who are knowledgeable and proficient in governing the body are selected, and those who are officials must not be officials." This is the basic condition for the censor. It is modified to be proficient in the "Ming Dynasty Code" and has no bad deeds; if he is a clerk, , in addition to the above two conditions, you also need to have criminal experience, and you can be the censor of the local procuratorate in another place; if you want to be promoted to the capital procuratorate, you must have more than fifteen years of experience in the local procuratorate, and other Resume is excellent.
The reason for this change was that during the Ming Dynasty, those who actually did specific things were the unknown officials. As for the officials, many of them are passed down from generation to generation. Those who are proficient in the law are often these people. Although there are many criminals, there are always some who know the officialdom very well. They will be very handy in supervising local officials. It has given him a bright road to officialdom, and I believe many people will cherish this opportunity.
The so-called proficiency in "Da Ming Law" naturally requires the same assessment as a Jinshi. Not only do you need to be able to memorize the "Da Ming Law", but you also need to be able to understand it and be able to understand all parts of the country, especially the cases ordered by the emperor. Understand the behind-the-scenes of these cases to explain the more ambiguous provisions in the Ming Law.
From this, Emperor Chongzhen believed that this would further promote the refinement of the "Da Ming Code" and make improvements to some provisions in the "Da Ming Code". This kind of thing is not something that can be decided on the head, but driven by events and perfected based on the actual situation of the Ming Dynasty.
Of course, officials in charge of local areas must also be familiar with the "Ming Law", otherwise they will not be able to judge local cases. Of course, these officials in charge have their own criminal masters who can do the work for them. However, the censor is not good enough. I must be proficient in it.
In addition, the most important people to be punished in this King Qin war are those convicted of treason. In addition, there are still some people who need to be punished. For example, the memorial was handed over before, about Wang Pu, the commander-in-chief of Datong.
In a critical moment, this person abandoned Lu Xiangsheng on the pretext that there was a police incident in Yunjin, and fled without receiving military orders. Not only that, after hiding for a while and knowing that King Qin's army was victorious, he killed the good and took credit, pretending that he had suppressed a group of bandits and wanted to take the opportunity to claim credit. Emperor Chongzhen showed no mercy to such people, arrested them, imprisoned them, and sentenced them to beheadings.
Therefore, Datong General Wang Pu, a famous runaway general in history, in the original history, he escaped this time. He was not beheaded by the court until he tricked Hong Chengchou during the Songjin Battle. He arrived early. Chongzhen twelve years.
In this battle between King Qin, Wang Pu, the commander-in-chief, was also the other commander-in-chief after Zu Kuan, the commander-in-chief, was killed.
In addition, Chengyi Bo Liu Kongzhao's performance in handling the refugee resettlement satisfied Emperor Chongzhen. Therefore, after Sun Chuanting was officially transferred to the governor of Jiliao, he became the official commander-in-chief of the Beijing camp. This was also the only nobleman who was commended for his meritorious service in this King Qin war.
This court meeting dispersed after announcing these decisions.
As the civil and military officials returned to the Yamen, the outsiders who had already paid attention to the news of the court meeting quickly learned about the content of the court meeting.
No one expected that such major news would be revealed in the content of the court meeting. The people in the capital didn't care much about anything else. One by one, they were all discussing the rebellion of Shanxi merchants and collaborators. They didn't expect that behind the rise of Jianlu, these damn Shanxi merchants would make such a big "contribution."
It can be said that as a commoner in the capital, almost every family has suffered from the ravages of the Jianlu invaders. Therefore, of course they hated those Shanxi merchants. Everyone strongly agreed with the emperor's decision to label them and their related accomplices as treason.
Many Shanxi merchants doing business in the capital were affected by this. Many Shanxi merchants even dare not go out, and when they go out, they dare not say that they are Shanxi merchants.
All the people are looking forward to the imperial army escorting those Shanxi merchants to Beijing quickly. They can't wait to eat the flesh of these Shanxi merchants and drink the blood of these Shanxi merchants! To avenge the death of their relatives and friends at the hands of Jianlu.
Before these Shanxi merchants were brought, their comrades who were imprisoned in Jinyiwei Prison and Dongchang Prison became the targets they wanted to vent their anger on. Anyway, the evidence of the crime is conclusive and will be executed after the eight major Shanxi merchants are escorted to Beijing. The people in the capital strongly demanded that those captured Jianlu Tatars be treated as such.
Emperor Chongzhen didn't know about this at first, but he was a little speechless when he heard that such a thing was being done in the prison of the Ministry of Justice where the Jianlu Tatars were imprisoned.
