King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

Zhu Tan set out early the next morning and went to the Pacification Office to do some post-processing work.

Guo Ning spent a whole night and finally found his own people in important positions in the Zhenfu Division. It cannot be said that they are all their people, but strictly speaking, they have already controlled more than 20% of the power.

Early in the morning, the newly appointed East Factory Supervisor Luo Yin and Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander Zhu Guang came together and told them about the Yang Peng case.

The guilty ones, the guilty ones, no one is spared.

Luo Yin and Zhu Guang were quite polite to Zhu Tan and others. They obviously knew that the matter was over. Naturally, they would not join in the fun, otherwise it would be a slap in the face of Zhu Tan and others!

With the experience of guarding Sizhao Prison, these people walked out of the prison, which caused a great shock to Zhu Tan. That is, there was no need for Zhu Tan to wash himself. His whole body was smoked like this, so was it necessary to take a shower?

Zhu Tan, in particular, witnessed the entire process of those people being tortured in order to obtain testimony faster.

Word spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred. Almost everyone regarded Tang Zheng as a monster. This was simply a shame. Even if he was despised by others, he was still despised by others!
This is also why Uncle Zhang Erguo is becoming more and more famous. In some families, this uncle can make children cry.

Such a result ruined Chu Deng's reputation. Shao Xi's descendants must have hated him to the core, and the rest of the princesses, princes-in-law, etc., regarded him as a serious threat.

Even Zhu Tan's elder brother Xu Guangzuo, who had always been busy by his side, was imprisoned again in the Duke Dingguo's Mansion.

As for the Duke of England, his attitude towards Zhu Tan seemed much colder because of the Yang Wei incident.

Zhu Tan even heard that Zhang Yuanying was making a big fuss at home and wanted to teach him a lesson!
However, Zhu Tan ignored all this. All his energy and mind were attracted by the scientific examination.

He wanted to see how Peng Shao would deal with this case and whether he could pull Tang Bohu away from the case and change the trajectory of his life.

"My Lord, I am Xu Gui, the Chief Justice, Kong Qi. Ding Zhe asked me to assist you in entering and leaving the prison."

A strong man in his thirties asked Zhu Tan respectfully.

Xu Gui's position is also the voice of the vast majority of officials in the Ministry of Justice. Since Ding Zhe and others were rescued by Zhu Tan and they are all backbone figures in the Ministry of Justice, he regards Zhu Tan as half a family member.

Zhu Tan nodded to Xu Gui and walked along the corridor of the Ministry of Justice.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Peng. How is your investigation going? Hua Chang and Shao Xi are both dead. Isn't this matter very difficult to investigate?"

"Logically, this should be the case, but Mr. Peng came up with another way and started with Cheng Minzheng's servant. I heard that Cheng Minzheng's servant confessed everything, but I didn't participate in person, so I don't know the details."

Zhu Tan always felt that it would be difficult to uncover this matter relying on just one servant.

Shao Xi was just a supporting role and it was very likely that he was being used as a gun. Now that Hua Chang is dead, the people behind this autumn examination will naturally not be afraid.

There is no need to add any more trouble, it is enough to give the Ministry of Justice a headache!
There is a clear division in the Ministry of Justice. The left and right ministers each have four departments under them. According to Xu Gui, Peng Shao sent all the officials of the department to investigate the imperial examination case, and even Shuntian Pass dispatched a large number of manpower.

However, these detained prisoners and other irrelevant personnel, such as the urban management officers who sold the test papers, were also "invited" to cooperate with their work.

Zhu Tan also noticed that the Ministry of Justice was in chaos at this time, almost comparable to the former Pacification Division, with some large and some small.

Xu Gui took him to a side hall. Ding Zhe, the doctor of the Ministry of Justice, was a member of the Sikou Department, whose status was second only to the two Shangshu and two Shilang. At this time, he was in charge of Kong Qi's casework together with Wang Jue of the Ministry of Agriculture, and was reviewing a large number of account books.

Zhu Tan was a little puzzled. This was the Ministry of Justice, so why was it related to the Ministry of Revenue?
When Zhu Tan asked around, he found out that the account books in Cheng Minzheng's home, as well as the account books of Changhua Earl Shao Xi, Hua Chang and others were all being checked.

This level of meticulousness is comparable to that of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

"Mr. Ding, what do you mean? There are so many account books. Do you want to find someone from the Ministry of Revenue?"

Ding Zhe calculated it over and over again and felt a little headache.

"What the Marquis said is correct. We are investigating and the case is almost over. Mr. Peng said that Hua Chang and Cheng Minzheng accepted bribes and sold test questions. The amount of silver involved is more than 300,000 taels. This is not a small amount. The income of each family must correspond to the expenditure. Let's sort out these things and see if there are any problems."

Zhu Tan was then convinced that Peng Shao was indeed taking another approach to the case and had also used financial techniques, perhaps setting a precedent in the Ming Dynasty. He wondered if there would be any unexpected discoveries.

Kong Qi was not good at arithmetic and math, so he asked Zhu Tan to tell him about the progress of the recent science tests.

After all, he is the head of the Association, so he naturally knows much more about this matter than Xu Gui.

"This time, our officials not only checked the accounts, but also invited more than 30 scholars, including Du Mu, who dined with Hua Chang and Ma Di. Du Mu has confessed that Tang Yin bribed Hua Chang with the test papers. He also said that this was just his own guess and that he framed us out of jealousy."

"In order to intimidate those students, you made it clear that even if they passed the imperial examination, you would ask the emperor to strip them of their official positions and make them do menial work. Now, they are all blaming each other for spreading rumors."

"The most crucial link is the doctor of the Ministry of Rites, Fu Han, whom the Marquis mentioned. Now we have completely grasped the case. I think whether this case can be solved depends on what Fu Han says."

Zhu Tan kept nodding his head. "When Hua Chang was still alive, he admitted that it was Fu Han who asked him to report Cheng Minzheng. I also had someone pass his confession to the Ministry of Justice. This is the best proof."

"Your Majesty is right. I believe that the biggest obstacle to this case does not lie with the Ministry of Justice, but with the outside world. Since yesterday, many ministers have submitted memorials. It will take some time to change the direction of this case."

"It's clear that this is a kidnapping of the public."

As a man from the future who came from the information explosion, Zhu Tan is very familiar with this trick. It seems that although Fu Han is the mastermind behind the scenes, he is not fighting alone.

Cheng Minzheng and Tang Bohu were at a disadvantage, and the relationship between them was not good.

Kong Qi thought for a moment and replied softly, "The Shangshu doesn't care about anything now and is focusing on the case. I think we can get to the bottom of it in three to five days at most.

Zhu Tan also noticed something. Peng Shao had a high reputation and great influence in the Ministry of Justice. The left and right ministers and the fourth minister all followed Peng Shao and had a firm control over the entire Ministry of Justice.

It was not known whether they were speaking for Peng Shao or whether Peng Shao was really capable of bringing up a seemingly simple imperial examination case that had nothing to do with the case.

Zhu Tan couldn't find Peng Shao, so he took the opportunity to find Tang Bohu and the others.

The Ministry of Justice Prison was much better than the Pacification Prison, and with the help of Ding Zhe and others, Tang Bohu and Xu Jing did not receive too much punishment.

They all had a good attitude and were very grateful for Zhu Tan's appearance.

Ding Zhe took this opportunity to do a good deed and spoke for Zhu Tan in front of the two of them.

"My Lord, Lord Ding just sent me news that Yang Peng's nephew was killed. My Lord personally came forward and suppressed the guards in the factory with an iron face and impartiality. It's really gratifying." Zhu Tan heard Tang Bohu's words and shook his head slightly, thinking: "So that's how it is. Everyone says I'm a bad person."

As expected, it is easier said than done and human relationships are more important than laws. This was not wrong in ancient times.

"What did you two do in the Ministry of Justice? Did Mr. Peng find out anything about the imperial examination?" Zhu Tan didn't know how to answer. He also learned about his own crimes from Ding Zhe.

"Although Mr. Peng did not come to us in person, he has told us that he will handle this case according to his own wishes and will not be influenced by outside forces."

"Mr. Peng also said that this case will be resolved soon and will not be delayed until the day of the announcement of the results. It is just to give us a sense of security and let us know that this examination will most likely end in failure."

Zhu Tan's goal at this time was not to help Tang Bohu pass the imperial examination and become the top scholar. He only wanted to find a suitable candidate.

This did bring some turning points to Tang Bohu, at least he did not fall into the state of destitution, divorce, and poverty.

Hmm? Maybe there is another way to save it.

Zhu Tan asked, "Don't be discouraged, I can ask His Majesty the Emperor to add an additional special examination, but I don't know if it can be added this year."

Tang Bohu and Xu Jing smiled at each other, excitement showing on their faces.

Tang Bohu explained: "The Enbang started in the Song Dynasty. Unlike the imperial examination of the Ministry of Rites, there is no special registration for candidates, so it is called Enke. It can also be used to take some special exams, such as some special days, such as Enke and so on."

After Zhu Tan knew about Enke, his eyes lit up.

"It makes sense. I heard that the emperor revised the Great Ming Code into the Ming Code, removed many unreasonable parts of the Great Ming Code, and finally completed the compilation of the Ming Code. Is this a great thing? This matter concerns many families. I think we can use this as an opportunity to hold a special examination!"

Tang Bohu and Xu Jing both nodded, thinking that they had no chance of passing the imperial examination this time. If they could pass the special examination, it would bring honor to their family. Although it would not be as good as the regular examination, at least they would be scholars.

He suddenly gained some confidence about this matter and explained it to Zhu Tan in detail.

Zhu Tan had this idea, but he felt that he might not be able to do it alone.

The person who is most qualified to bring this matter to the forefront is naturally Li Dongyang.

However, Zhu Tan had no good feelings towards Li Dongyang. After thinking it over again and again, he turned around and entered the prison where Cheng Minzheng was imprisoned.

During this period, Cheng Minzheng's mood can be described as complicated.

He was very happy because the Ministry of Justice was in charge of this matter, which would avoid a lot of unnecessary trouble. Moreover, he was very familiar with Peng Shao and believed that he would not deliberately make things difficult for him.

The worry is that as a scholar, he is preoccupied with how to govern the country and make it a better place.

But this time, the imperial examination ruined his life. Even if he could get out, his life would be dark and there was a great possibility that he would be dismissed from his post.

When Zhu Tan walked in, he saw Cheng Minzheng staring at the vent of the cell in a daze, so he had to use a dry cough to attract his attention.

Although Cheng Minzheng was imprisoned, his intelligence was still very sharp, and he knew how Zhu Tan controlled the factory.

Yang Peng and his nephew were chopped in half by Zhu Tan, and officials who colluded with Yang Peng were also sentenced.

Therefore, even though he did not like Zhu Tan, Zhu Tan's behavior made him couldn't help but admire him in his heart.

"Are you making fun of me, Lord? Are you mocking me?"

No wonder Cheng Minzheng has a bad reputation in the circle. He offends many people as soon as he opens his mouth.

Zhu Tan did not argue with Cheng Minzheng. The old man had already acted like this, and it would be a bit too much for him to hit him with a stick.

He came this time to seek help from the church and asked Cheng Minzheng for help.

Cheng Minzheng was somewhat tempted. He knew that he was being investigated, but as long as he could handle this matter well, the impact of this matter could be minimized.

He immediately became excited and told Zhu Tan what had happened in detail.

However, there is a prerequisite, that is, Cheng Minzheng must be released from prison, otherwise the charges will not be established.

"Mr. Cheng, do you think that the compilation of the Ming Dynasty Code is a good excuse?"

"Of course. Where did Li Dongyang come from as the Minister of Rites? Where did he come from as the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion? Didn't he serve as the chief examiner with other great scholars during the compilation of the Great Ming Code? Although it's not completely perfect yet, it's almost there.

It was only then that Zhu Tan learned that the Ming alliance had not yet been completed, and people like Tang Bohu did not know as much as Cheng Minzheng.

This gave him a better understanding of the matter, so he began to discuss with Cheng Minzheng how to move this matter forward.

Cheng Minzheng also knew that Zhu Tan, the emperor's uncle, was favored and naturally had the talent to facilitate the establishment of the special examination. However, it was far from enough for the two of them alone.

"To achieve this, we need to win over more people, such as Liang Chu, the six ministries, and the three ministers."

Tang Zheng was helpless with this problem. The only person who could contact him was Ma Wensheng, who didn't have very good connections.

After all, Mr. Ma is a military general, so his prestige and status in the army are naturally not low.

A day passed and Zhu Tan did not waste time in the Ministry of Justice. He left and did not go back.

Speaking of which, he hasn't been home for several days because he was too busy with the case of Yang Peng and his nephew.

He went directly to Ma Wensheng's residence to discuss with him how to deal with the matter.

As the Minister of War, Ma Wensheng has a lot of things to do every day. The cleanup of the Beijing camp is just the beginning. Others have their own responsibilities, which are troops and food.

If we really want to clean it up, it will take at least a year or two. It is simply impossible. (End of this chapter)