Chapter 237 Arresting the Giant Corruption
Sometimes Zhu Houzhao really wondered if the living official was hiding at the foot of the bed where he and the queen slept, otherwise how could he know so clearly.
However, Zhu Houzhao's shouting made Lin Kui startled again. He thought that the ancients would not deceive me as they accompany the king and the tiger, so he hurriedly asked cautiously: "Your Majesty, where did I remember it wrong?"
"How do you remember it so clearly? Tell me from the truth!" Zhu Houzhao asked.
"The sound of dragons chanting and phoenixes mingling, I can still hear clearly even in the study room on duty."
Lin Kui couldn't help but lowered his head. He was also smart, and he just described the sound made by Emperor Zhu Houzhao and the Queen as the roar of dragons and phoenixes, which made Zhu Houzhao burst into laughter.
Zhu Houzhao couldn't say more after hearing what Lin Kui said, so he just said:
"Yoghurt can improve people's health. I don't want the ministers in the world to learn from me and use it in the house. From now on, I don't have to remember the affairs between me and the queen in such detail. It would be bad for the young people in the world to hear about it in such detail. , is not good for their body and mind. In their daily life, they should remember important matters related to the national economy and people's livelihood. The emperor's private affairs can be saved. No one in the world will be interested in the emperor's private affairs. Do you understand?"
Zhu Houzhao naturally had his own basis for saying this. He believed that people in the world would not care about how the emperor slept every day. After all, just like the readers of the starting point of later generations who read historical emperor articles, they would not be interested in the protagonist's daily affairs with his concubines. For example, there are The author named Yixi Qiuyue was very miserable if he didn't believe in evil.
"I understand, how should I record it? Your Majesty, please tell me," Lin Kui replied.
"If you remember it this way, the relationship between the emperor and the empress will be harmonious, and it is expected that a new emperor will be born. In this way, future generations will naturally understand what it means!"
When Zhu Houzhao said this, Lin Kui quickly said yes.
Immediately, Zhu Houzhao ordered again: "Every time the list of Jinshi is compiled, show it to me first. After I approve it, it will be printed and distributed to the world, so that people all over the world can comment on its merits and demerits! Twenty people in one issue!"
Lin Kui also agreed to the order, thinking that this would cause another uproar and make the corrupt officials in the world panic!
……
"Yu Tai, the 114th one of the top three in the Renxu Imperial Examination in the 15th year of Hongzhi, was born with the Jinshi. He was born in Wuxi, South Zhili. His courtesy name was Guochang and his name was Zhengzhai. He was an official in the household department at the beginning and participated in politics in Shandong. . Dismissed due to major corruption case.
At that time, there was a great famine in Huaiyang, and the emperor was very worried about it. He asked the governor of Cao to allocate 300,000 yuan in salt tax to buy grain in Shandong. This was the beginning of the corruption of Yu Tai and other officials... Later, Yu Tai used the people's fat and anointing to build the south of Yuanshi and support his reputation. A prostitute took away people's property and forced five people to death. The county magistrate Bai Zheng did not dare to complain. However, he was exposed by the Jin Yiwei and was found guilty of corruption. He was executed! The people are happy! Later, he copied out 60,000 yuan of official silver and 10,000 yuan of gold, a huge greedy person! He was good at painting. When he was an official in Shandong, his subordinates bought it for a thousand taels and liked to write poems. There is "Fangzhou Manxing Collection", which was purchased by his disciple Lai Lai, who was the official of Yanzhou, Shandong at the high price of five hundred taels per volume! ”
Lu Zhaoji, the former left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, did not expect that his newly published "List of Scholars of Xiaozong" would record the deeds of his nephew Yu Tai in this way, and he couldn't help but vomited blood in anger:
"What is the imperial court trying to do? Record the scholar-bureaucrats like this! Flaws should not be concealed, and lies should not cover up the truth. In order to ensure the long-term stability of the Ming Dynasty, and to promote the way of civilized governance, it should not be recorded in this way. Doesn't this make future generations think that the Ming Dynasty is greedy for ink? It’s such a nonsense! How can this be done?”
When Lu Zhaoji was so angry, his friend Qin Si came to visit in a hurry and said: "Lu Gong, you are almost infamous now. Please think of a way! Why didn't you do this better in the first place?" ! ”
Lu Zhaoji didn't understand what his friend Qin Si was talking about, but when he saw it, he saw that it was in the "Da Ming Monthly" reviewing the top ten luxury works of art, and his picture of Lu Zhaoji only had two characters. However, the calligraphy works of "Shou Zheng" ranked first.
Because this calligraphy was sold for a high price of one hundred thousand taels!
One hundred thousand taels can be said to be an astronomical figure in the Ming Dynasty. Of course, it also aroused great discussion among the people.
Tang Bohu fired the cannon first and commented on the front page of the Huangming Newspaper:
"I recently heard that "Da Ming Monthly" commented on the top ten luxury works of art in recent years. Lu Gong, the former Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, was selected as the number one scholar, with a price of 50,000 taels! He was purchased by Lou Ancai, a wealthy businessman in Taiyuan, and later his brother Lou Anguo moved to the left because of this. Lianghuai transfer envoy, Tang I believe that we have reason to suspect that this is a typical case of collusion between officials and businessmen! It is not only a case of collusion between officials and businessmen, but also the suspicion of selling an official position, because at that time Lu Zhaoji was the doctor of the Literary Selection Department of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and was in charge of Quanxu! "
Lu Zhaoji couldn't help being shocked after reading it. He also saw a message from a reader in the newspaper saying: "Lu Zhaoji is a huge corrupt person! ... Lu Zhaoji said he was selling his character, but in fact he was selling his official position. He failed the court. Could it be that he really thought his character was a traitor? Is he as valuable as Yan Zhenqing or Liu Gongquan? ...No doubt he is extremely corrupt!"
Lu Zhaoji didn't expect that he would be scolded so badly, and couldn't help but get furious: "Presumptuous! They are slandering court officials! They are slandering me! We can't let these unruly people be so presumptuous! I want to face the saint and let Dong Factory Jinyi Guard takes care of them!”
Lu Zhaoji was really angry and asked to see Ma Yongcheng, the admiral of Dongchang, overnight.
However, Ma Yongcheng did not dare to interfere with this matter, because he knew that Tang Bohu and others were backed by His Majesty. Therefore, even though Lu Zhaoji offered bribes with thousands of dollars, Ma Yongcheng did not agree. He only said: "Our Dongchang cannot handle this matter. The factory cannot control the people. This is a rule. Our family dare not violate the holy will!”
"There is nothing you can't control in the East Factory. If you go ahead and take care of it, who will dare to say anything about you? Eunuch Ma, you can't let those unscrupulous people manipulate public opinion and slander court officials!"
When Lu Zhaoji said this, Ma Yongcheng just smiled faintly. If Lu Zhaoji hadn't had enough money, he wouldn't have bothered to talk to him, but now he could only patiently reply to Lu Zhaoji:
"Isn't this thanks to you civil servants? Impeaching our Dongchang every day is in vain and disregards the king's laws! It makes His Majesty also set rules for us!"
When Lu Zhaoji heard what Ma Yongcheng said, he didn't know how to answer for a moment. He never thought that when his civil servant group tried every means to get His Majesty to restrain Dongchang, one day these civil servants would not be able to use Dongchang's help to suppress the people.
But Ma Yongcheng was not one who refused to help even after receiving money. Seeing that Lu Zhaoji had nothing to say, he added:
"Lu Gong, it's because you resigned from office that our family dared to speak to you. Otherwise, our family would not have dared to risk Ling Chi to see you. You'd better come back. We can't help you with this matter. You If you really want to punish them, you have to go to the Criminal Department to report the crime!" Lu Zhaoji had no choice but to say goodbye after hearing what Ma Yongcheng said.
As soon as Lu Zhaoji left, Ma Yongcheng sneered: "I want to use our Dongchang's hand to rectify the people, but you civil servants will make the decision for the people when the time comes, and you will pour dirty water on our Dongchang. What a good plan! But I, Ma Yongcheng, will not be fooled by you. I really think that I, Ma Yongcheng, can’t do anything without this money. In terms of wealth, there is no one in this world who can compare with Your Majesty!”
Lu Zhaoji did have the idea of borrowing Dongchang's hand to stand up for him, but he did not expect that he still underestimated Ma Yongcheng, thinking that Ma Yongcheng, the admiral of Dongchang, was not a person who was blind to money after all.
Although Lu Zhaoji hit a wall in Dongchang, he still couldn't ignore the fact that he was a huge corrupt person among the people, so he went to the Yamen of the Ministry of Justice.
However, at this time, the Punishment Department Yamen had already been surrounded by agitated people. There were students from the Capital University, supervisors from the Imperial College, students from the Shuntian Prefecture Higher School, and some literate people at the bottom, all of whom were shouting.
"Please ask Da Sikong to make the decision for us and punish Lu Zhaoji, a huge corrupt man!"
"Lu Zhaoji sold his official position and gained a title, which ruined the administration of officials in the Ming Dynasty. If it is not eliminated, it will not be able to uphold the law of the country! Please ask Da Sikong to come forward and uphold justice!"
"Two paintings of calligraphy sold for one hundred thousand taels, and the brother of the person who bought the painting instantly moved to the Huaihe River as a transfer envoy. If the court officials do not uphold justice for such scandals, it will only prove that the court officials are in cahoots with Lu Zhaoji!"
……
Lu Zhaoji saw so many people surrounding the Punishment Department Yamen and was trembling with anger: "This is unreasonable! This is simply unreasonable! Someone must be manipulating public opinion and dare to surround the Punishment Department. They are rebelling! They are rebelling!"
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After Lu Zhaoji spoke angrily, he didn't know what to do. He now regretted his resignation, otherwise he wouldn't have been helpless against these people at this time.
……
At this time, Zhu Houzhao also learned about Lu Zhaoji.
Zhu Houzhao was extremely angry and angrily reprimanded Hang Huailai, the censor of Zuodu: "Are you all the censors of the Procuratorate blind? Such a huge corruption who sells his official position and title has never been noticed. He wants to wait for him to destroy the foundation of our Ming Dynasty. Is it completely corroded? Check it out! All the officials recommended by Lu Zhaoji will be investigated carefully! Otherwise, I will fire you!"
"I have unclear supervision. Please punish me!"
Hang Huai, the censor of Zuodu, quickly apologized and was frightened to death, but he still couldn't help but ask: "Your Majesty, is there something wrong in allowing the people to manipulate public opinion and report officials? After all, this is also the fault of the following! ”
Hanghuai, the censor of Zuodu, is now indeed aware of the constraints imposed on court officials such as himself after the people participate in political public opinion, so he can't help but ask about Zhu Houzhao.
"The people have the right to redress their grievances, and naturally we can't stop it. The power to deal with these corrupt officials and cruel officials is still in our hands. These people are not considered criminals, and we want to create a system for the people. In a peaceful and prosperous age, after all, the people are more important than the king, and the country is the second most important thing. But in general, I don’t want to rely on the people to purge officials. In that case, why do I need you to inspect the court? "
When Zhu Houzhao said this, Hanghuai, the censor of Zuodu, did not dare to say anything more.
At this time, Xu Hao, the Minister of Punishment, had to carefully consult Zhu Houzhao and asked: "Your Majesty, what do you think should be done now? Is this a good sign really going to be caught?"
"Obey the will of the people, don't violate the will of the people!"
After Zhu Houzhao said that, Xu Hao followed the order and left.
Hang Huai, the censor of Zuodu, also hurriedly resigned. He knew that the focus of his work as a censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate would have to change in the future. He could no longer focus on whether the emperor would make mistakes, but should focus on whether court officials had committed crimes!
Here, Xu Hao, the Minister of Punishment, received Zhu Houzhao's instructions and immediately ordered the arrest of Lu Zhaoji.
Therefore, when Lu Zhaoji just returned home, the officer from the Ministry of Punishment came up:
"Lu Zhaoji, right? Now you have been arrested by the Ministry of Punishment because you were suspected of accepting bribes and selling your official position during your tenure as the Minister of Literature and Selection of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Civil Affairs!"
"Nonsense! You are talking nonsense! You! You! I understand, I understand, it is you, you little people in the court who are deliberately trying to trouble me. I want to see your majesty, I want to see your majesty!"
Lu Zhaoji struggled, but to no avail.
I don’t know why, but this chapter is written with little passion. Maybe he was tired of fighting with the civil servants. Next, change the plot. I haven't even explained Xia Yan's trip to Europe yet, as well as Shouning Hou's global voyage.
(End of chapter)