Haisheng Mingdi

Chapter 808 The Black Prince

"San Jun is a dignified and clear man, and stands upright to the court. Now at the age of 76, the court will convict and execute him for his words?"

Huang Daozhou, governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, went to Beijing Chaoji. Hearing that Zheng Sanjun had been convicted of death, he knocked on the palace door anxiously, begging to see the prince.

The crown prince also respected Mr. Huang very much. He greeted him personally and made tea for him.

"Sir, drink tea first."

Huang Daozhou is not only the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, but also the prince's East Palace Zhan Shifu Shao Zhan Shi, and the prince Shao Fu.Governor Huang Daozhou was away, but he did not forget his part-time job. He often communicated with the prince by letter. The prince also respected this celebrity in the court, and the relationship between the two was still good.

Speaking of it, although Huang Daozhou is only 11 years younger than Zheng Sanjun, he can be regarded as Zheng Sanjun's student.Zheng Sanjun was a Jinshi in the 26th year of Wanli, and Huang Daozhou was a Jinshi in the second year of Tianqi. In the 42nd year of Wanli, Zheng Sanjun was a student envoy in Fujian.

At that time, Huang Daozhou was 30 years old. He originally proposed to be the first in the article, but finally ranked fifth in violation of the formula. Zheng Sanjun felt very sorry. Birthday of Zodiac Zhou's mother.

For a newcomer to the imperial examination, this is a great honor.

According to the customs of imperial examinations in the late Ming Dynasty, Juren Huang Daozhou could be called Tixue Zheng Sanjun as his teacher.

Compared with Huang Daozhou's bumpy official career, Zheng Sanjun's official career is much smoother. He was a 24-year-old Jinshi. He started as a county magistrate. He was deprived of his post and lived idle, but he was soon reappointed in the first year of Chongzhen, serving as Minister of the Ministry of Households in Nanjing and in charge of the Ministry of Officials, and then transferred to Beijing as Minister of the Ministry of Punishment and then Minister of the Ministry of Officials.

Since Huang Daozhou was appreciated by Zheng Sanjun, the boss of Donglin, he was a Jinshi in the second year of Tianqi, and he was appointed as the editor of the Imperial Academy for the first time. However, due to several conflicts with Chongzhen, his official career was not smooth. Please resign.Chongzhen was reinstated ten years later, he was promoted to Zuo Yude and then promoted to Shao Zhan Shi, but in the second year he was demoted to Jiangxi by Chongzhen because he opposed Yang Sichang's seizure of love. Distributed to Guangxi, Chongzhen recalled him in 14 years, but he refused to be an official, and returned to his hometown to write books and give lectures.

Huang Daozhou's official career was actually very similar to that of Liu Zongzhou, both of whom were famous Confucian masters in the late Ming Dynasty.

The Zheng family of Nanyuan in Chizhou was also a well-known gentry in the Ming Dynasty.

Zheng Sanjun and Zheng Shi fell to such a fate, how could Huang Daozhou refuse to save him.

He was so anxious that he counted to the young crown prince Zheng Sanjun's various achievements and official voices after he became an official, how he opposed the eunuch party, how he recommended virtuous people, etc. Now he is almost 80 years old, and he is also the master of Donggong. Now he is convicted for his words, and he has to be executed and implicate his family. How could this kind of thing happen in the Shaotian Dynasty?
When Wei Yan was in power during the Tianqi period, such things would never have happened.

Prince Hongjia sat there very calmly. In fact, when he decided to execute Fan Xun and Ding Qixiang, he knew that a storm was coming.

And he chose to meet it head-on.

His decision was reported to the emperor, and the emperor not only agreed, but also increased it.Not only the uncles and nephews of the Ding family were punished, but also Zheng Sanjun, Hou Xun, Hou Fangyu, etc. were implicated. A total of thirteen officials above the third rank were executed.

This matter is even bigger than the prince expected.

The emperor is far away in the northwest, but since he has a decree, the prince should obey it. However, the emperor did not issue the decree, but replied in a letter to the prince. The court officially came forward.

Zhu Hongjia issued an order to supervise the country to deal with all the officials and students involved in the case.

In the end, Zheng Sanjun, Hou Xun, Ding Qirui, Ding Kuichu and other thirteen senior officials were executed in this case. More than 300 high-ranking officials were dismissed for questioning.

With the order of the supervisory state, the government and the public were shaken.

Numerous letters of petition were submitted, and even students from many schools such as the Imperial College also wrote petitions.

Coincidentally, this year is the year of the provincial examination, and next February will be the general examination. Countless candidates gathered in the capital. This incident was triggered by the incident of canceling the examination in Henan, which touched the hearts of countless scholars and participated in it one after another.

Zheng Sanjun not only had a prominent family background, but also the Nanyuan Zheng family was a well-known family, passed down from generation to generation, especially the big brother of Donglin, whose status among the gentry such as Donglin and Fushe far surpassed that of Hou Fangyu and other four princes.

Even in the hearts of scholars all over the world, this is definitely a very prestigious old man.

No one would have thought that because the emperor wanted to move the gentry to fill the Gyeonggi, the event of cancellation of the examination in Henan would eventually be caused, and Zheng Sanjun, Hou Xun and others would support the scholars in Henan, and it would end up like this in the end.

It can be said that every step is unexpected.

But when the order to supervise the country came out, some people who wanted to watch the excitement were stunned.

Many people even couldn't believe it, thinking it was a rumor.

But when official newspapers such as Di Bao and Jing Bao began to officially publish the detailed story of the case, and even accused Zheng Sanjun and others of committing high-level crimes of forming a party for personal gain and deceiving the emperor, some people panicked.

Forming a party for selfish purposes to deceive the king, the most terrible crime is forming a party, which is reminiscent of party struggle and party imprisonment.

What they are more afraid of is that they will be implicated and set themselves on fire.

Huang Daozhou asked to meet the prince, and directly pleaded for Zheng Sanjun. He was not afraid of being implicated, but felt that this was wrong.

Didn't the imperial court punish Zheng Sanjun because of his words?

Huang Daozhou said that Zheng Sanjun enjoys the reputation of being the best in the world, but Zhu Hongjia just asked, "The imperial examination is a grand ceremony for the national talent. How important is it? Local officials, local officials refused. They not only stopped the exam themselves, but also prevented other candidates from entering the exam, and even rushed into the exam room, tearing up the test papers of the candidates.

Mr. Gu Wen, I am afraid that this matter cannot be tolerated by any king or court in any dynasty, right?
Historically, fraud in the examination hall has been found to be severely punished by death, or never hired or even exiled. The behavior of these people is countless times worse than cheating.

Since Zheng Sanjun is a veteran of several dynasties, does he not understand these things? He still wants to speak out for these people, and even takes the opportunity to criticize the saint's decision-making. I'm afraid it can't be explained simply by relying on the old and selling the old?

What's more, the interrogation by various divisions has obtained a lot of evidence. Zheng Sanjun's correspondence with Ding Kui Chu Ding Qirui's uncle and nephew, Hou Xunhou Fangyu's father and son, etc., attacked the government and resented the saints. incident, and some of the chief secretary who was accused of participating in politics, the deputy envoy of the procuratorate, the counselor of education, and the magistrate were his students, and some were his relatives..."

"When Zheng Sanjun was Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, Hou Xun, Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, was imprisoned for collecting beans. Because Zheng Sanjun was an accomplice of Donglin, he was accused of misdemeanor three times. Lin and Zheng Sanjun also proposed misdemeanors."

The prince took out these past events of Zheng Sanjun, and told Huang Daozhou clearly that Zheng Sanjun was not wronged this time. He could only say that the imperial court did not give this Donglin boss face, and did not give him the last face when he was over 70 years old.

But this can't be blamed on the court, let alone the emperor and him, because Zheng Sanjun hit the gun this time, and the government and the opposition have had bad winds in the past two years, and this evil wind has become more and more fierce.

In essence, at the beginning of Zhu Yihai's rise of troops, the Daming Building was about to collapse, and the gentry and landlords who were once high above could not protect themselves, so some surrendered, some surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and some reluctantly surrendered to Zhu Yihai. Facing Zhu Yihai's various new policies, under the emperor's control Under the pressure of camp swords and guns, Tartars, and thieves, they could only temporarily compromise.

From Lijin to Qingtian, from dismissing the guards to cleaning up the military settlements, from the abolition of military households and artisan households, to the integration of gentry and gentry, the compromises at each step are not really voluntary, but are just forced by the situation.

Now that the world is restored, they think they can do it again, and want to get rid of the 'wartime' set, restore the old system, and restore their original interests.

But how can the emperor agree?

The emperor not only refused, but even started to clean up those who had been on the wrong team before, and moved those gentry families with officials below the fifth rank to settle in Gyeonggi, and even used Hong Chengchou and them to take over all the officials who had been accepted during the war over and over again. , Step by step, they screened out a large number of capable people and mediocre ones.

The emperor's policies of restricting land and slaves also further hit those gentry and landlords who had been on the wrong side.

Now the civil service examination is being conducted, and the officials of the local government will also take the examination in the future. Even the imperial court has built a number of junior colleges in recent years, such as schools of politics and law, schools of finance and taxation, teachers' colleges, etc., and built elementary schools in local areas. Wait, recruit those high school graduates or scholars to enter the school, and after graduation, they will be directly assigned to the government office as officials, or they will be recruited through the unified civil service examination.

Although this kind is only aimed at officials, for many local gentry and landlords, they can have a strong influence in the local area, and even guarantee the interests of their own side. The control of official positions and even the maintenance of monopoly.

When the imperial court has to implement the avoidance system for officials, the recruitment of civil servants through examinations, and the directional training and assignment of junior colleges, these are undoubtedly a reshuffle of the gentry in these places.

No one is willing to give up their own interests easily.

The gentry and landlords always want to restore the old situation, but the emperor is leading the court to continue to deepen reforms, and this game will not stop.

Through certain events, conflicts break out.

But the emperor would not compromise or give in. When the conflict broke out, the emperor chose to be tough to the end, and even killed chickens to scare monkeys.

Zheng Sanjun's qualifications, prestige, and even his reputation and his age are really unaffected. Such a person has a false title like Prince Taifu, and it is good to be a mascot of the court, but now the emperor directly wants to do it kill him.

It can be seen to what extent this game is now.

Ordinary kittens and puppies can no longer suppress the demonic wind, and there must be a heavyweight figure to sacrifice the flag.

Some of these things the Prince himself could understand, while others were told to him by his old father-in-law, the governor of Guangdong, Zhang Huangyan. When he said this, Du Yinxi, a senior scholar, was also there.

The prince originally wanted to kill Ding Kuichu to frighten him, but the emperor directly brought out Zheng Sanjun, Hou Xun and Hou Fangyu to kill them, and the intention was obvious.

The former Emperor Shaotian, Zhu Yihai, was extremely kind and generous. Ding Kuichu embezzled 80 taels of silver as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi for more than a year.In the early days, Fang Fengnian, Chen Meng and other cabinet veterans formed cliques and infighting, and he did not punish them severely.

Not to mention that those military leaders and warriors can still be high-ranking officials.

But that was not the emperor's original intention, and the emperor was just one moment and another. At the beginning of his rebellion, Ding Kuichu, as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, was able to read the imperial edict, and it was a great achievement to lead the two provinces to support him. Liangguang only brought him back to Beijing in a semi-kidnapping style.

But now it's different.

In different periods, the goals and directions of the struggle are different.

In the past, it was first to unite the inside to deal with the foreign captives, but now that the external threat is not great, cleaning the inside has become the priority.

It was precisely because the crown prince understood this, no matter how much Huang Daozhou pleaded for Zheng Sanjun today, he did not change his mind in the slightest.

"In the new Shaotian law code revised by the imperial court, the first sentence of the opening sentence is that everyone is equal before the law, and the prince who breaks the law is the same as the common people.

The sentencing of Zheng Sanjun by the imperial court has already been reduced after the Eighth Discussion, and because of his old age, today a special decree was issued to give Zheng Sanjun the honor of committing suicide.

Mr. Zheng Sanjun has a teacher-student relationship with Zheng Sanjun, so you can go to announce the decree and send Zheng Sanjun back from prison to his residence for his last journey. "

Huang Daozhou lost his temper and knelt down on the ground, refusing to obey the order.

But the prince did not compromise.

"Your Majesty, please resign!"

Huang Daozhou resigned face to face.

"Sir, you are the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, and a great official in the frontier. This is not only the talent of the gentleman, but also obtained from the merits of the dragon, and it is also the special trust of your majesty. Now because of this matter, you have to resign directly. It is worthy of being a saint. Is it right for the people of Limin in Zhejiang and Fujian?"

Huang Daozhou said painfully, "His Royal Highness, please take back the order to supervise the state. Zheng Sanjun, a state scholar, should not have ended up like this."

"He is a loyal official of the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Hongjia said bluntly, "Zheng Sanjun is old and confused. He should be enjoying the hard-won Ming Dynasty Zhongxing at a young age, but he is involved in this kind of thing. If he forgives him with just a word, it is unfair to others."

Zodiac Zhou refused to get up.

"If Mister is really determined to resign because of this, then go back and write the official resignation letter, which will be forwarded to the saint alone. As for whether the saint agrees or not, you have to wait for the imperial decree.

But even though Gu is young, he still has to persuade Mr. that the world has just been restored, and it was brought down by saints, Mr. and countless loyal ministers and good generals in bloody battles. , Mr. want to stop halfway, do you want to turn around and become a deserter? "

Huang Daozhou hesitated to speak.

"The sage is on a tour to the west, not in the capital, thousands of miles away, and doesn't know enough about the case. Please postpone the execution. Maybe His Majesty can change his mind after learning more about the facts." He thought for a while.

The prince was a little excited, "Sir, you are wrong. When the sage started his army, the world was riddled with holes. In order to restore the world's prosperity, we can only continue to compromise, but it is impossible to compromise forever."

Zodiac Zhou let out a long sigh.

(End of this chapter)