Chapter 330 Zhao Xing’s cruelty
Although there are regulations on the number of students admitted each time for the imperial examination, they may not be fully admitted.
Zhao Xing did this to tell the scholars that no matter whether their grades were good or bad, two hundred people would be admitted this time.
He didn't believe that if he did this, no one would be willing to take part in the imperial examination.
Seeing Zhao Xing's persistence, Yan Kuan and Zhang Qingzhi stopped trying to persuade him.
Zhang Qingzhi's usual style is like this: he advises, but he won't insist on it, and he won't persuade him all the time.
Yan Kuan was worried that Zhao Xing would really compromise and throw him out as an abandoned son.
…………
Imperial City, outside Xuande Gate.
Hundreds of scholars sat quietly, and many people gathered in the distance, watching the excitement.
"Squeak~"
At this moment, the side doors on both sides of Xuande Gate suddenly opened, and a group of soldiers rushed out from the side doors on both sides, surrounding hundreds of soldiers who were sitting in silence.
Most of the hundreds of scholars were a little flustered.
A scholar directly in front shouted: "Don't be afraid, everyone. We study to be able to report to the country and bring peace to the people. Now the treacherous officials are in power and deceive Your Majesty. If our blood can awaken His Majesty, we will die." Its place! ”
"Shut up!"
Zhang Feng shouted: "You are blocking the palace gate with evil intentions. His Majesty has decreed that you and others will be removed from their positions of honor and put into the prison of the Ministry of Punishment for strict interrogation! Come and take them down!"
"Yes!"
The soldiers responded and rushed forward to arrest the people.
"Let me go! We are sitting here quietly to wake up your majesty and revive the imperial court! If your majesty still doesn't wake up, the Song Dynasty will be in danger and the world will be in danger!"
The leading soldier struggled and shouted.
"Shut him up!" Zhang Feng shouted.
The soldier who was holding the man heard this and punched him hard in the abdomen. The soldier's face instantly turned pale and he could not speak.
Soon, hundreds of soldiers were arrested.
Zhang Feng led people to disperse the people and personally escorted these days to the Ministry of Punishment.
For a time, the prison of the Ministry of Punishments was overcrowded.
…………
What happened at the gate of the palace attracted the attention of officials and scholars throughout Bianjing.
When they learned that Zhao Xing had issued an order to forcibly arrest people, some of the officials sighed, while others gloated about his misfortune.
No matter what they thought, after learning the news, they rushed to the palace as soon as possible.
The other scholars in Bianjing who came to take the exam were furious.
Many of them don't even know the full story.
However, this does not affect their ability to distinguish right from wrong. In their opinion, the officials must have been wrong. Otherwise, why would so many people sit in front of the palace to petition.
In fact, this phenomenon is also a common occurrence for disputes between emperors and ministers.
Most people don't know what to do. In their eyes, since there are so many people who oppose it, they are naturally the right party.
This is also the reason why most emperors in history chose to retreat when major conflicts broke out between emperors and their ministers.
In the eyes of many people, the emperor is supreme and controls the power of life and death for everyone in the world. As long as he is tough and uncompromising, the ministers have no choice.
In fact, that is not the case at all. The world belongs to the emperor, not the ministers. The emperor needed to consider the stability of the world, the stability of the imperial power, and his own reputation after his death, so he naturally became the one to back down and compromise.
As powerful as Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, wasn't he forced to issue an imperial edict to admit that he should not have resorted to military violence and left the national treasury empty?
In the inns where many scholars lived in Bianjing, some people began to encourage the scholars to petition outside the imperial city.
At this moment, several strong men suddenly rushed out and arrested the instigators of the scholars.
This scene was staged everywhere in Bianjing.
…………
Outside Longtuge, hundreds of officials were kneeling on the ground.
Sanshui came out and said to Han Zhang in the front: "Your Majesty summons the Grand Prime Minister to see you!"
Han Zhang stood up after hearing this and followed Sanshui into the hall.
"I pay homage to your Majesty!" Han Zhang saluted.
"Does the Grand Prime Minister still have an official like me in his eyes?" Zhao Xing said sarcastically: "The civil and military officials are kneeling outside Longtu Pavilion. What do you want to do? Force the palace? If I don't do what you want, you will kneel and die. Outside the palace?”
"I don't dare!" Han Zhang bowed and said: "It's just that the matter is too big now and is not good for the country. It should be settled as soon as possible."
"Calm down?" Zhao Xing looked at Han Zhang and said, "Then the Grand Prime Minister teaches me how to calm down?"
"Restore the honors of those scholars and release them!" Han Zhang said.
"Is this useful?" Zhao Xing said sarcastically: "Master, can you guarantee that after I release the people, they will not continue to come to the palace gate to sit in meditation?"
Han Zhang was silent after hearing this. How could he guarantee this?
"Do you think I want to have such a tough attitude?" Zhao Xing sneered: "As long as I make a decree and never kill civil servants in the future, I can calm down this matter immediately, but can I make this decree?"
"Emperor Taizu only said not to kill officials who speak out, but it was misinterpreted as not to kill scholar-bureaucrats. If I really make such a decree, all civil servants will have a gold medal to avoid death. From now on, will the world belong to the Zhao family or the civil servants?"
The root cause of everything, in the final analysis, was caused by the killing of civil servants.
The matter has reached this point, and he has already killed people. Unless he promises not to kill civil servants in the future, the matter will not be settled at all.
Zhao Xing took a deep breath and said: "I asked the Grand Prime Minister to come here just to tell the people outside that I do not intend to pursue this matter further. I will also order those scholars to let them go, but it is impossible to gain fame. Restored.”
"If they are still unwilling to give up, then don't blame me for being cruel. Don't think that I can't find out who was bewitching those scholars. Ask those people kneeling outside how many of them have butts? Clean.”
"If they still want to make trouble, I will show no mercy even if the Song Dynasty is in chaos for a while. Anyway, Liao and Xia are at war now, I am not afraid!"
"That's all I have to say. The Grand Master only needs to tell the truth. I just want to see how strong their heads are!"
Han Zhang sighed in his heart when he heard this. He didn't expect Zhao Xing's attitude to be so determined.
I want to persuade, but I don’t know how to persuade.
It's not that there's nothing he can do, it's that Zhao Xing's heart is as strong as iron and he can't persuade him at all.
After a long silence, Han Zhang bowed and said: "I obey your order!"
Looking at Han Zhang walking out of the hall, Zhao Xing showed a sneer on his lips.
Killing several civil servants this time was not only a deterrent, but also a test of their attitudes.
The reaction of these civil servants did not disappoint him.
If you want to solve the shortcomings of the Song Dynasty, you can only kill, and reasoning is completely useless.
"Sanshui, select some young and beautiful ones from those who were appointed to the Jiaofangsi, and reward them to the chief officials of the various ministries in the court. I heard that Peng Qingzhong's wife was only thirty years old, so I rewarded her to the Minister of Libu. Hu Zhongyan. Send all the rest to Guangyuntai. Tell the people in Guangyuntai that these people must tell the guests their identities before accepting them." Zhao Xing said coldly.
Don't these civil servants like to cause trouble? Zhao Xing just wanted to show them what would happen to the families of officials who were executed.
(End of chapter)