As soon as the news of Governor Zhu Wan of Fujian and Zhejiang being seriously ill came out, it caused an uproar.

Zhejiang officials were all waiting for an opportunity to act, and some even took the opportunity to impeach Zhu Wan.

The reasons for the impeachment were also exaggerated. It said that Zhu Wan had angered God by killing innocent people, so God was angry with Zhu Wan and caused him to contract a serious disease.

This statement naturally does not stand up to scrutiny, but sometimes there is no need for a reason to criticize someone.

Don't worry about what you think, worry about what I think.

Some people even cursed and slandered Zhu Wan, saying that he was an evil ghost reincarnated into the world and a disaster star.

All the words came together to say that Zhejiang would not be better unless Zhu Wan left.

This was an extremely terrible slander to a provincial governor who had just led the government troops to destroy Shuangyu Port.

So far, the Governor's Office has not made any response.

This further proves that Zhu Wan is already terminally ill.

Otherwise, how could he watch helplessly as his once obedient subordinates jumped out one by one, pointing at his nose and cursing at him?

Zhu Wan is about to fall!

In this kind of public opinion environment, everyone took pride in criticizing Zhu Wan for a while.

One after another, the waves behind push the waves in front.

At the same time, the scene in the back hall of the Governor's Office was completely different.

Zhu Wan, who was rumored to be seriously ill, was in good spirits and was chatting and laughing with Xu Yan, Shen Mingchen and others.

"Master, now all the fox's tails have been exposed."

Xu Yan paused for a moment, then said, "Just remember these clamorous villains. We'll settle the score with them later."

Shen Mingchen agreed, "That's right. It used to be difficult to figure out who in Zhejiang's officialdom was colluding with smuggling merchants, but now it's a piece of cake."

It has to be said that people die for money and birds die for food.

These seemingly cautious officials ultimately fell into trouble. The only thing to say is that the profits from smuggling and maritime trade were too great, and since they were all vested interests, they naturally had to stand up for the merchants.

But they didn't know that Zhu Wan was pretending to be sick in order to lure the snake out of its hole.

"Don't worry, wait a little longer. This time, thanks to you, I wouldn't have known how dangerous the Zhejiang officialdom is."

Zhu Wan stroked his beard and smiled slightly.

"I want to see how the court reacts to this."

The current public opinion environment is very friendly to Zhu Wan.

In this situation, there were actually some blind people who impeached loyal officials and used such outrageous reasons. Emperor Jiajing was not stupid, so he would naturally make a reasonable decision.

...

...

The capital, Xiyuan.

In the Wanshou Palace, Emperor Jiajing sat on the throne with a serious expression.

Yan Song sat at the bottom, his eyes narrowed into slits.

Serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. Serving the emperor is difficult, and serving the current emperor is even more difficult.

The current emperor is suspicious by nature and is very good at hiding his true thoughts. Ordinary people simply cannot guess what he is thinking.

But Yan Song was different. It wasn't because he himself was so powerful, but because he had a powerful son.

His son Yan Shifan had a special ability, which was to guess people's hearts.

Even if the king's heart is as deep as the sea, he can always see the clues.

It was precisely because of Yan Shifan that Yan Song was able to win the favor of Emperor Jiajing everywhere and defeat Xia Yan.

"Lord Yan, what do you think about this matter in Zhejiang?"

Emperor Jiajing suddenly asked a question, and Yan Song's squinting eyes suddenly opened.

"This old minister dare not speak rashly."

"But it's okay."

Emperor Jiajing was determined to listen to Yan Song's opinions, so how could he allow him to play tricks?

"I'm afraid the Zhejiang incident is not as simple as it appears."

Yan Song thought for a moment and said, "It seems that the Zhejiang officials have a conflict with Zhu Wan."

He said this very cleverly, neither favoring Zhu Wan nor the local officials of Zhejiang.

There is a contradiction between the two, and it is unclear who is right and who is wrong.

"I am heartbroken."

Emperor Jiajing's only four words were enough to make Yan Song break out in a cold sweat.

"This old minister is terrified."

Emperor Jiajing glanced at Yan Song and said, "I didn't say anything about you, what are you afraid of?"

"The Zhejiang officialdom is a quagmire, and countless people have been tainted for no reason. Now, finally, a loyal and honest person has emerged, one who has emerged from the mud without being stained, and who has washed himself clean without being corrupted, yet they won't let him go."

It can be said that Emperor Jiajing’s mind is now as clear as a mirror.

This is of course due to the "Records of the Anti-Japanese War".

This novel not only describes all kinds of human life, but also reveals the dirty deeds of Zhejiang officials and businessmen colluding to engage in smuggling and maritime trade.

"Look at what they wrote in their memorials. Is this even human speech? They are worse than animals!"

Emperor Jiajing suddenly became furious and threw a memorial away.

"Your Majesty, calm down."

Yan Song quickly advised: "Don't hurt the holy body."

"I don't ask them to be like me, but at least they can't be so selfish, right?"

The Jiajing Emperor sneered and said, "In just a few days, there have been dozens of memorials impeaching Zhu Wan. Will there be hundreds in a little while? They really are united!"

Yan Song knew that no matter what he said now, he would be disliked, so he simply remained silent.

"It seems that I am too lenient with them."

A cold light flashed in Emperor Jiajing's eyes.

"Pass the court stick!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Huang Jin, who was serving beside him, came over and said in a gentle voice, "Who does the emperor want to punish with a caning in court?"

"Everyone who submitted a memorial impeaching Zhu Wan will be spared! Those in Zhejiang are ordered to immediately dispatch the Imperial Guards to arrest them. No leniency will be shown!"

Yan Song felt a chill down his spine when he heard this. He seemed to see again the young emperor who had just come to the throne and was refusing to give in to his ministers over the Great Ceremony Debate.

The result of the Great Ceremony Debate was naturally a great victory for Emperor Jiajing.

More than one hundred officials were beaten with sticks in court, which caused a major sensation during the Jiajing reign.

Now the emperor has issued another imperial decree to punish the offender with a caning.

Although the number of people involved was not as large as in the Grand Ceremony, it was still a major event.

For a moment, Yan Song wanted to persuade the emperor, but he swallowed the words back when they came to his lips.

Yan Song was well aware that no one who went against the current emperor would have a good ending.

In this case, it would be better to be a loyal minister and do everything according to the emperor's wishes.

Your Majesty is truly arbitrary!

I don’t know whether this is a good thing for the Ming Dynasty, Yan Song thought secretly in his heart.

...

...

Outside Zuoshun Gate, hundreds of Jinyiwei generals were stationed on both sides, and dozens of court officials who had angered the emperor were pinned to the ground with their hands and feet tied, ready to receive a beating in court.

The court caning was a unique invention of the Ming Dynasty. It originated in the Hongwu Dynasty, gradually became a custom in the Chenghua Dynasty, and reached its peak in the Zhengde and Jiajing Dynasties.

In short, the caning in court is spanking.

Before the Zhengde Dynasty, the prisoners would still maintain some dignity and be wrapped in felt blankets during the punishment.

But since Liu Jin, the leader of the Eight Tigers, started the "Guoyi Tingzhang" punishment, the prisoners were not only no longer wrapped in blankets, but even had to be stripped of their pants and punished naked.

The extremely arrogant scholar-officials had to be tortured in the robes in public, which was not only physical pain but also mental torture.

...

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