Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 71: Seriously?

When Chongzhen found his examination room and walked in, he couldn't help but cover his mouth and nose.

Only then did I realize that it was full of filth and smelled terrible.

Soon, he found out that his situation was not the worst, as there was even defecation and urination in some examination rooms.

On the contrary, Mr. Liu, who had not been searched by the officers before, was now led to another area by the officers. To the naked eye, the conditions seemed much better.

"How can this be possible..." Chongzhen looked around, veins bulging on his forehead.

At this moment, Chongzhen stared at the sharp knife on the officer's waist. His heart was beating like a heavy drum in his chest. He really wanted to pull out the knife and chop these bastards to the ground.

But in the end, reason overcame impulse, and he advised himself in his heart: Calm down, calm down... Don't let the little thing in front of you delay your trip to Beijing.

He took the imperial examination himself. Fame and honor were one thing, but more importantly it was to be able to go to Beijing, to return to the court and witness with his own eyes how Zhu Changgan saved the Ming Dynasty.

"hu~hu~"

Chongzhen finally suppressed his anger and started calling out names. The candidates would then state which student had guaranteed them. After obtaining confirmation from the student, they could take their seats and answer the questions.

Chongzhen took a look at the test paper and his confidence increased.

The first round consists of two essays from the Four Books and a five-character six-rhyme test poem.

It was not difficult for Chongzhen. He ground the ink, dipped it a few times, and then began to write quickly.

……

Beijing,

When many ministers came out of the palace, they looked at the stained blood outside the Meridian Gate and their faces became extremely ugly.

They left one by one without staying for long.

Xue Guoguan, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, first went back to the Ministry of Personnel to report for duty, then changed his sedan chair and went out to a house in the outer city.

He looked around and saw no one there, so he went up and knocked on the door.

When he went in, he found quite a few people inside.

"Why is it like this?" Tian Weijia, the left assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, said bitterly, "Your Majesty was so wise in the past, why has it become like this today?"

Wen Zhenmeng, a core member of the Donglin Party, gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty's heart is as hard as a rock and cannot be shaken!"

At the beginning, they used the name of "Holy Lord" to let Chongzhen purge Wei Zhongxian and other eunuchs, and the power of the civil service group also skyrocketed again.

But the emperor nowadays just doesn't care what his ministers say. He is not afraid of their chanting at all. He is not even impatient when his ministers scold him.

They really have no solution.

"What Lord Wen said is right. It's too late, it's already too late..." Minister of Rites Huang Shijun sighed.

"What's late?"

"We are still too late." Huang Shijun, the Minister of Rites, gritted his teeth, the muscles on his cheeks bulging, "At this point, His Majesty has already changed. He has lost his basic moral integrity and will no longer cooperate with us in playing the game of moral kidnapping."

"But now the six ministries are still in our hands. Your Majesty cannot fail to consider this." Tian Weijia, the Minister of Rites, said with a gloomy face.

Huang Shijun narrowed his eyes and said, "Yes, the six ministries are still in our hands, but now we have removed a group of officials from the six ministries, and His Majesty killed another group of officials in the court today."

"All of these people are successful candidates in the imperial examinations, and they are the strength of our civil service, but now they have fallen one by one."

"As one grows, the other declines. Our power is weakening, while your Majesty's power is still growing."

The last group of traitors who asked for sick leave were not dismissed by the emperor, but many of them were dismissed by the Ministry of Personnel.

In addition to the ministers who died at this court meeting, a large number of seats were vacant at once.

Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, frowned. What Huang Shijun said was exactly what he was worried about. The greater the emperor's power, the less power their ministers would have.

"I thought that pressing on step by step would make His Majesty give up power, but I didn't expect that these steps would make His Majesty more powerful." Xue Guoguan, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, clenched his fingers, his face as gloomy as water.

Tian Weijia, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, frowned, "What should we do now? Once Sun Chengzong takes full control of the Ministry of Personnel, it won't be that easy for us to do anything."

Sun Chengzong is indeed an old and capable minister.

As soon as he took over the Ministry of Personnel, he began to sort out the work of the Ministry and quickly eroded Tian Weijia's power.

As the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, second only to the Minister of Personnel, Tian Weijia had finally taken advantage of the opportunity of Wen Tihen's dismissal and the vacancy of the Minister of Personnel to gain power, but he had lost most of it in just two days.

On the one hand, he was concerned about the interests of the civil service group, and on the other hand, he really didn't want to give up power.

Minister of Personnel,

The head of all officials!

He was just one step away from this position, but suddenly a 75-year-old immortal Sun Chengzong appeared out of nowhere. How could he accept this?

Everyone was silent for a while.

Seeing that no one was talking, Tian Weijia said anxiously: "Minister Huang, Minister Zheng, please say something!"

"Should we just let the situation deteriorate like this?"

Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, glanced at him and said, "Sir Tian, ​​is there any problem with the grain transport?"

"No problem!" Tian Weijia said solemnly: "That man was once a servant of my family. Later, I stuffed him into the Cao army. It was not easy for him to rise step by step over the years. Now he has retired. I gave him 5000 acres of land."

"That's good. We can't let His Majesty catch us again." Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, was really frightened by the emperor's series of actions.

"We have done almost everything we can." Huang Shijun, the Minister of Rites, looked around with a sharp gaze, "As civil servants, we don't have many options to take."

"Since your majesty doesn't even want to act, then this is probably the only resort we have left."

What the civil servants were best at taking advantage of was non-cooperation, and using public opinion to force the emperor to submit from the moral high ground.

Coercion with the teachings of saints and ancestors is no longer effective, so the only thing left is... to refuse to cooperate!

They had used it before, but they only allowed the middle and lower level officials in the six ministries to ask for leave, which ended up costing both the wife and the army.

At present, some middle and lower-level officials have been dismissed from their posts, some have been killed by the emperor, and the number of vacancies for officials in the six ministries has reached three or four out of ten. The operation of the court will inevitably be affected if the heads of the six ministries give up their posts at this time.

The government will inevitably slide into the abyss of stagnation and even collapse.

"It's good not to do it. In the end, all you can do is be dismissed and retire."

The eyes of everyone present flickered, and finally someone nodded. Once one person agreed, there would be a second one.

"What Minister Huang said is absolutely right. We are incorruptible. What can Your Majesty do to us?"

"."

Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, looked at everyone with a sharp gaze, "I hope that His Majesty will not catch me in any trouble again. You must know that only by not accepting bribes, not making friends with eunuchs, and not forming cliques for personal gain can you stand firm in this court."

Of course, they didn't really quit their jobs, but they are still in their positions but not doing any real work.

Sum it up in four words.

That means I still hold the position, but... I will not be summoned!
Pretend to obey but secretly disobey!

……

At about noon, outside the Shuntian prefecture, a woman with disheveled hair was beating a drum to protest her grievances.

Upon hearing this, Shuntian Prefecture Governor Dong Shilai came out of the back court with a frown on his face, and cursed as he put on his clothes while walking, "Who is it? Who is coming to complain so early in the morning?" "Didn't I tell you that we won't hear cases in the morning?"

The Prime Minister of Shuntian Prefecture was speechless. His boss would always take a nap until noon after coming back from court.

Whenever someone woke him up, he would get very angry and would either beat or scold him.

Shuntianfu Cheng said helplessly: "Sir, we tried to stop them, but we couldn't. The other party is..."

"Can't stop it? Do you have any excuses? Are you being fed and fed every day?"

When Dong Shilai came to the gate of the yamen, cursing, he looked at the ground, his eyes suddenly glared, and he cursed: "Why are you here again? Su Yuehong, I told you clearly a long time ago that this case has been closed and reported to the Ministry of Justice."

Dong Shilai had just said half of his words when his eyes suddenly narrowed because he saw a few people following Su Yuehong.

The leader is wearing a flying fish costume. Jinyiwei?
Why are they here?

It was the Embroidered Uniform Guard who came. Li Ruolian led his troops to Shanxi and before leaving he handed the matter over to one of his deputy commanders.

Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, looked at him at this moment, "Master Dong, I heard that the gate of Shuntian Mansion would not be opened this morning even if the king of heaven came?"

"Nothing." Dong Shilai turned his head and gave Shuntian Prefecture Minister a fierce look.

Damn it, why didn’t you say it was someone from the Jinyiwei?
The Prime Minister of Shuntian Prefecture also looked aggrieved. He wanted to talk to you several times, but you kept cursing and couldn't stop, so they couldn't get a word in at all.

Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, said calmly to the woman on the ground, "Su Yuehong, tell me the truth about how Fan Yongdou used force on you and forced your husband's family to death, as well as the collusion between officials and businessmen behind it."

Ma Shiwei, deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, looked at Su Yuehong, meaning, "Just tell me, I'll make the decision for you."

"Yes, sir!" Su Yuehong was about to speak but was interrupted by Dong Shilai.

"Master Ma, this case has been concluded and the patient's condition has been reported to the Ministry of Justice. Why did you bring it up again?"

"The Imperial Guards monitor all officials. Don't they have the power to monitor unjust, false and wrong cases?"

"This..." Shuntian Prefecture Governor Dong Shilai's face turned pale.

He walked a few steps quickly, came to Su Yuehong, pointed at her nose and angrily cursed: "Su Yuehong, you shameless bitch, it is obviously you who flirted with Fan Yongdou and tried to get his money.

Now that Fan Yongdou has fallen, he is trying to escape responsibility. How shameless! "

"I will have the head of your village throw you into a pig cage. You will be cursed by everyone. Not only you, but also your family will not be able to escape."

As soon as these words came out, Su Yuehong's face changed immediately.

Being thrown into a pig cage and being cursed by thousands of people was a punishment that was even more painful for a woman in the Ming Dynasty than being killed.

What's more, it would implicate her mother's family. She dug her nails into the flesh, and blood oozed out. At this moment, she hesitated again.

Shuntian Prefecture Governor Dong Shilai snorted and continued to curse: "Didn't you say that Fan Yongdou used force on you? Come on, how did he use force on you? Can you tell me in detail?"

His face turned red from holding it in, he was so ashamed and angry that he wished he could just throw himself into the ground.

Such words cannot be said in public, let alone in private.

Dong Shilai narrowed his eyes and looked at the woman on the ground with pride. He knew exactly what to do when dealing with such a person.

Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, also spoke up at this time: "Su Yuehong, today, if you want to seek justice for your husband's family of 16, then tell the whole truth. Whether you tell it or not, you will not have a good reputation. If you still want to embarrass yourself, you will miss this opportunity."

"When the time comes, you will have no choice but to watch the murderer who killed your husband's family go unpunished."

Su Yuehong bit her lips, her face red as blood.

a long time,

Finally, he bit his lip and said, "Sir, in fact, it's not just Fan Yongdou. Afterwards, this Lord Dong pretended to tell me that he could help overturn the case. He also said that Fan Yongdou had power in the court and asked me not to tell anyone else and to tell him the case alone. When I went over, he hugged me and it was useless for me to shout."

"Su Yuehong, you dare?" Shuntian Prefecture Governor Dong Shilai jumped up in shock, his head buzzing. He ran towards Su Yuehong and wanted to cover his mouth, but was stopped by two Jinyiwei.

"How to prove it?" Ma Shiwei, deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, also stood up at this moment.

"He has a crescent-shaped scar on his left buttock."

After Su Yuehong said this, tears burst out like a flood, and she felt like she was pressed into a mud pit, unable to breathe.

"Hmm?" Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, stood up suddenly and narrowed his eyes. "Come on, take off Mr. Dong's clothes and inspect them."

"What are you doing? I am a third-rank official of the dynasty. You have no right to attack me." Dong Shilai saw the Jinyiwei taking action and shouted towards Shuntian Mansion: "What are you doing? Just watching your chief being bullied?"

But after he had been shouting for a long time, he found that no soldiers had come forward.

Only then did he realize that he had already been pinned to the ground.

Not only that, outside, there was the sound of "swish, swish, swish" from the barracks.

"Anyone who dares to move will be killed without mercy!"

"Kill without mercy!"

"Kill"

The sound rushed into the Shuntian government office like a tsunami, making everyone in Shuntian government office turn pale.

Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, walked up to Dong Shilai, patted his face and said, "Master Dong, you still don't understand the situation?"

"Just because you didn't move yesterday doesn't mean you're safe!"

"You and His Majesty are not of the same mind. How could His Majesty allow you to occupy the position of Shuntian Prefecture and remain indifferent?"

"." Dong Shilai felt as if a cold snake was crawling behind him. His pupils dilated, his limbs became cold, and he collapsed to the ground.

Yes,

Your Majesty is no longer the same Majesty as before, and I shouldn't have any hope at all.

Shuntian Prefecture is such an important position. Your Majesty has the East Factory, Jinyiwei, and Beijing Army in his hands. Is there any reason to let Shuntian Prefecture go?
"Stab~"

Dong Shilai felt a chill, and then a Jinyiwei tore open his pants, and a crescent-shaped scar appeared in front of everyone.

Ma Shiwei, the deputy commander of the Jinyiwei, nodded and said, "Come here, have Su Yuehong sign and seal it, and give it to His Majesty as evidence."

"Imprison Dong Shilai!"

"Yes!"

It didn't take long for the Jinyiwei to interrogate the Shuntian prefect. Zhu Changgan hadn't even finished his lunch when he heard the Jinyiwei's report.

Because Li Ruolian was not there, the report from the Jinyiwei was handed to Wang Chengen.

Not a single Jinyiwei deputy commander went to the palace to meet the emperor and vie for the opportunity to "compete for an official position and advancement". This alone was enough to show how much control Li Ruolian had over the Jinyiwei.

Wang Chengen was about to unfold the Jinyiwei report and place it in front of the emperor when he heard Zhu Changgan say, "Read it!"

"Your Majesty, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture confessed to colluding with Fan Yongdou."

"In addition, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture was also involved in the sinking of the grain transport ship, and according to him, the grain did not sink."

Zhu Changgan's eyes suddenly shone. "What do you mean? Someone stole it?"

"Your Majesty, according to Dong Shilai's confession, it is true, but according to him, the man has already escaped."

"Then follow the clues and investigate thoroughly to find out all the participants." Zhu Changgan said coldly: "I don't believe that we can eat hairy pigs without Zhang the butcher?"

(End of this chapter)