Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 134 Nine Lotus Bodhisattva (please order first when it’s available)

"What happened to Marquis Wu Qing?"

"His wife came to the palace and cried about this matter. What do you two think?"

Not forgetting the reason for reorganizing the palace, Zhu Youjian asked Wang Wenzheng and Liu Ruoyu.

Wang Wenzheng didn't know what the emperor meant, so he said quite honestly:

"Wu Qinghou is the maternal wife of Empress Dowager Xiaoding Li, and she has been given preferential treatment since Wanli."

"His wife went to the palace and cried, saying that she was not rebellious and should be exempted from punishment."

Liu Ruoyu also shared some news:
"Mrs. Baoding Marquis and Boping Marquis also went to the palace to cry with Mrs. Wu Qinghou."

"Empress Dowager Li Xiaoding is a good Buddha, and her honorary title is 'Nine Lotus Bodhisattva'. Your Majesty should be cautious about Wu Qinghou's affairs."

Nine Lotus Bodhisattva?

Except for Zhu Youjian, he couldn't remember it. When he heard the name, he vaguely remembered one thing:

Historically, the death of a son of Chongzhen was related to the Nine Lotus Bodhisattva.

This made him even more disgusted with Wu Qinghou, and at the same time a little afraid:

If he wants to attack the Li family of Wu Qinghou, will he be killed?

This made Zhu Youjian even more determined to drive away Wu Qinghou, but he remained calm on his face and asked:

"Liang Shixun, Marquis of Baoding, has been following Wei Zhongxian. It is understandable that his wife followed Wei Zhongxian into the palace and cried."

"What happened to Madam Bopinghou? Did Marquis Boping also commit a crime?"

Liu Ruoyu didn't know whether the emperor really didn't know, so he replied:

"Bopinghou led the Jinyiwei and other yamen of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, and the prince's son-in-law and other officials went to Shu to build a temple for the unfaithful."

"Lingbi Marquis Tang Guozuo and Xiangcheng Bo Li Shouqi, please donate money to attach to the shrine and congratulate us together."

All right! This time, the involvement was even wider, and the entire Fifth Army Commander's Office and the Prince's Prince Consort were all implicated.

No wonder Marquis Wu Qing dared to ask for exemption from punishment because too many relatives were involved in building the temple.

These people were sure that the emperor would not be able to punish them all, and now they were confident.

Zhu Youjian was so angry that he couldn't speak. He wished that all these idle relatives would have their property confiscated.

But he knew that this was impossible. There were too many noble relatives involved, and it was impossible to place them all in the fifth class. Most of them had to be let go——

No matter how unbearable the nobles are, they are still the emperor's support. Without their checks and balances, civil servants would be more unscrupulous.

Moreover, the role of nobles and nobles in the emperor's succession cannot be replaced by civil servants.

In the end, Zhu Youjian decided to severely punish the main culprit and give minor punishments to other honorees:

The six rising nobles, namely the Marquis of Wuqing, the Marquis of Boping, the Marquis of Baoding, the Marquis of Fengcheng, the Marquis of Lingbi and the Duke of Xiangcheng, will all have their titles removed.

The titles of meritorious officials are inherited by their descendants, and only the property is confiscated.

The two relatives, Marquis of Wuqing and Marquis of Boping, were not allowed to inherit their titles and were driven out of the capital.

Other relatives who signed the name must pay a fine.

After making this decision, Zhu Youjian did not say it directly. Civil servants are the best at dealing with nobles, just let them charge into battle.

The civil servants who built the temple were all placed in the fifth class and their property was confiscated. How could the honorable nobles escape?

The Ministry of Household Affairs, which had already been punished as Minister of Secretariat due to non-payment of Jiubian, and was about to be driven crazy by Zhu Youjian, would never mind confiscating their property to pay for Jiubian's army.

So after weighing it up, Zhu Youjian didn't talk about his relatives anymore, turned the topic to the inner palace, and said sternly:
"Who revealed what happened at the Chang Shen meeting to the outside world?" "Ask the daily record officer to hand over the names in the records, and the Jin Yiwei will ask them one by one."

"Inside Wuying Hall, and even the chamberlains who pass through Wuying Hall are all inspected one by one by the inspectors."

"I want to know how the news was leaked and who was taking advantage of it!"

The voice became more and more severe, and in the end it was furious, and the anger that could not be directed at the relatives was unleashed on the inner servant.

Let Wang Wenzheng and Liu Ruoyu review and strictly investigate those who leaked information.

If they cannot be found out, all the chamberlains serving in Wuying Hall today will be driven out of the palace.

Seeing that the emperor was so angry, Wang Wenzheng and Liu Ruoyu both sweated. They were glad that they had been following the emperor and were not suspected.

But if they don't do this well, they will suffer. This made them determined to find out the person who leaked the news.

At the same time, they also complained a little about sending people into the palace of Marquis Wu Qing so quickly:
Just prepare well when you get the news. Why do you react so quickly?

It's okay now. If something like this happens, who dares to pass on the news to you? Aren't you afraid of being found out?
What Zhu Youjian wanted was this effect. He first wanted to cut off Wu Qinghou's eyes in the palace. We want to make all the servants in the palace complain about Wu Qinghou, lest those who believe in the Nine Lotus Bodhisattva will follow Wu Qinghou's instructions and murder themselves——

Zhu Youjian was extremely afraid of people who believed in religion. Because he had no idea what those believers would do under the instructions of their superiors.

Zhu Youjian also plans to standardize the so-called Nine Lotus Bodhisattva beliefs. To avoid being controlled by the Li family of Wu Qinghou and manipulating those believers.

In this matter, Zhu Youjian still planned to let civilian officials come. Cao Sicheng, who was previously appointed by him as the Shaoqing of Taichang Temple and in charge of the General Administration of Sacrifice, now has to do something.

Zhu Youjian made these plans without telling anyone. I plan to wait for the matter to ferment and let the civil servants deal with the nobles.

Wang Wenzheng asked Wang Wenzheng to record the beliefs of the palace personnel during the review, and Zhu Youjian also asked people to release the news that Wei Zhongxian had committed suicide——

Let people outside know that Wei Zhongxian is dead and will never come back to life.

This news really shocked the government and the public.

Not to mention those who opposed Wei Zhongxian, everyone cheered.

Although the ministers who attached to the eunuch party had already expected it, it could be said that they were like mourning their heirs. They knew that Wei Zhongxian would not be able to be resurrected after his death, and the eunuch party with him as the core would not be able to regain power.

This makes many eunuchs instinctively cling to others. They all need to find a way to get through.

Huang Liji, the chief minister of the cabinet and a person who was successively appointed as an auxiliary minister and Shangzhu State by the emperor, was naturally favored by many eunuch officials. Many people came to rely on him and asked him to help them pass.

Huang Liji smiled bitterly, knowing that the emperor was moving his army again. If you don't figure out the grinding method, there will be more troubles to come:
“It’s impossible not to do it!”

"It's not easy to retreat!"

With emotion in his heart, Huang Liji asked the officials who asked to see him to come to support Mokanfa.

At the same time, he quietly sent someone to send a message to Fang Guiwei, asking him to take action——

The two seem to have no connection, but in fact they are both from Beizhili.

Most of the eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty were from Northern Zhili, and many officials who attached to the eunuch party were also from Northern Zhili. Huang Liji, Li Guopu, Cui Chengxiu, Yan Mingtai, Cao Sicheng and other eunuch ministers were all from Beizhili.

Now that the Eunuch Party has fallen, the Donglin Party in the south is about to return to the court. They must take action to make the emperor feel useful.

Even if Fang Zhuangwei is not an eunuch, as a minister from Northern Zhili, he still has to take action. Otherwise, when the Donglin Party returns to the DPRK, they won’t be able to reap any of his good fruits.

In this way, Huang Liji, under the pressure of Zhu Youjian, began to mobilize all his connections and push forward the investigation in the court.

The number of officials supporting the grinding survey law suddenly increased.

　"History of Ming Dynasty":
　　The mourning king Cihuan was the fifth son of Emperor Zhuang Lie. When he was five years old and fell ill, the emperor looked at him and suddenly said:
　　"Nine Lotus Bodhisattva said that if the emperor treats his relatives poorly, he will destroy all his sons." Then he passed away.

　　The Nine Lotus Bodhisattva is the mother of Shen Zong and the filial piety of Empress Dowager Li. The Queen Mother loves the Buddha, and the statue in the palace is a nine-lotus seat, so it is said.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)