104 Chapter 104

The culprit

Silver Field Bureau.

Gao Quan picked out representatives of the laborers and some mine managers who were coerced by the laborers, and after questioning them, he found out the whole story.

Lu Song and others were not wronged.

According to the confessions of the laborers, these silver mines, which were strictly prohibited by the imperial court, had actually become the back garden of the chieftain Yang.

In order to avoid being exposed, Yang also colluded with the Tian family of Sizhou and bribed department-level officials, treating the Guizhou silver mine as his own private property.

Most of these laborers were lured from other places, and some were local orphans.

With no one to turn to for help, they could only work hard in the mine day and night.

After asking, the sky in the east was already turning pale.

There was no one around, so he stretched. Fortunately, he never forgot to exercise his body, otherwise he would have died after these days of hard work.

Hiss, thinking about it this way, the princess is really in good health.

A figure suddenly appeared in front of him. He had a handsome face and a tall figure, as if he had just returned from outside, with morning dew still on his clothes.

"Your humble servant greets the princess."

"Hmm." Xie Mingzhuo smiled. "Governor Gao, what do you think of Shu?"

Gao Quan pondered the princess's words and replied carefully, "The mountains and rivers of Bashu, the fertile plains and plains, are naturally a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery."

"If I transfer you to Sichuan to oversee the salt industry, eradicate opium, and even risk the wrath of the nation by changing the land tax, would you be willing?"

Gao Quan did not hesitate: "I will do my best and will not refuse even if it means death."

"If all officials in the world were like Lord Gao, why would we worry about the prosperity of our country?"

This hat is worn very high.

Gao Quan was sweating profusely and said hurriedly, "Princess, your praise is too great. I cannot accept it."

"If you can complete these three tasks as planned, then no one in the court can be worthy of your position," Xie Mingzhuo said earnestly. "Governor Gao, I hope you will not just live up to expectations, but also achieve the most outstanding results. Only then can you rise to the top of the government and win the respect of the people."

Gao Quan's heart skipped a beat. Which official doesn't want to be in the cabinet?

Unexpectedly, the princess had such high expectations of him.

His eyes were slightly moist as he replied solemnly, "I will definitely live up to your trust."

Next, he carried out the princess's orders even more diligently, and the leaders of the Yang family, the Tian family, Lu Song, Qin Dutai and others were kept in solitary confinement after being rescued.

The princess instructed that they must pry open their mouths and thoroughly investigate the root cause of the chieftain's rebellion ten years ago.

A new batch of temporary officials have been replaced, making the case difficult to investigate, but the local officials are hereditary from the family.

Ten years ago, the leader of the Yang family had no choice but to lead his troops to attack the Guiyang Prefecture in order to "resist" Lin Yingjie's tyrannical behavior.

At that time, the government had just implemented the policy of "transforming the chieftain system into a commoner" and the imperial court's policy was mainly to appease him. Seeing that he was so wronged, the court was worried that a heavy punishment would again arouse dissatisfaction among the chieftains in Guizhou. If they all rose up in protest, the imperial court would not be able to bear it.

Therefore, after Dinglin Yingjie was implicated as the culprit, the leader of the Yang family was only dismissed from his position as chieftain and local official, but was not held accountable. He is now living out his life in the tribe.

The local official at that time, Chief Yang, was his nephew.

The murderers go unpunished, but the victims are cursed after their deaths.

It's simply ridiculous.

After enduring mental abuse in the bandit den, these people could not withstand Gao Quan's high-pressure interrogation and revealed everything.

The confession was handed to Xie Mingzhuo. She flipped through a few pages and suddenly sneered.

In addition to illegally mining silver and killing court officials after being discovered, the Yang chieftains colluded with the Tian family, Lu Song and others, and the evil deeds they did were simply too numerous to list.

She immediately drafted a memorial and sent it to the capital city urgently.

If she cannot bring the main culprit to justice, she will not return to the capital.

No one dared to stop the princess's memorial, and it was presented to the emperor immediately.

On the fifth day of April, Wu Shanqing read out two memorials at the court meeting, one about the corruption in Shu and the other about the brutality and evil in Guizhou.

The court was buzzing.

Xie Changfeng followed his daughter's instructions and slammed the table.

"Officials in Shu collude with each other, seizing salt profits for themselves, seeking power and accepting bribes, and even colluding with evil cults. They even use poisons like opium to deceive court officials. The fields of Taoist temples have also become the soil for the poison to take root. How ironic!

"The chieftains in Guizhou are running rampant, stealing silver mines to enrich themselves, and even deceiving me, causing the unjust and tragic deaths of loyal and honest people. Where is justice?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down." All the ministers knelt down.

Xie Changfeng was filled with grief and indignation: "Why are the officials of our Daqi so eager to pursue their own interests? They are so greedy and insatiable that they have completely forgotten the interests of the country?!"

The emperor was very angry when he used three derogatory words in a row.

Everyone was silent.

"Fang Ji, Liu Zhaoyu and others confessed that you collected huge amounts of salt profits, protected the interests of the government, operated behind closed doors, and manipulated the official selection process. Is this true?"

Fang Ji prostrated himself on the ground and said, "I don't know why they are attacking me. Your Majesty, please enlighten me."

He didn't cry out for justice, but his tone was vaguely aggrieved.

With only confessions and no clear evidence, it is naturally impossible to convict.

Xie Changfeng softened his tone, "Mr. Fang has always been loyal and dedicated to his duties. I naturally trust you, but stealing the country's benefits cannot be tolerated. Since you are involved, you will be suspended from your duties and stay at home pending investigation."

"Your humble servant obeys the order and thanks the Emperor for his great grace."

"Ten years ago, the Bozhou rebellion and the massacre of officials were re-investigated and evidence collected. If there are any mistakes this time, you will be punished with the same crime as the chieftain of the Yang family."

When officials are involved, the case is generally investigated jointly by the Ministry of Justice, the Dali Temple and the Censorate.

For a moment, officials from the three departments were all sweating.

"Who were the people who handled this case ten years ago?" Xie Changfeng asked in a deep voice.

Who can remember this?

But if I don't answer immediately, the emperor will probably get even angrier.

Suddenly a man came out. It was Wei Zhen, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

At the end of last year, he was tasked with formulating new mining tax regulations, which were promulgated and implemented at the beginning of the year. Three months later, they have achieved considerable results.

"Your Majesty, those who concluded this case ten years ago were the former Minister of Justice Kou Zheng, the former Supreme Court Minister Lou Guan, and the former Left Censor-in-Chief of the Metropolitan Censorate Fu Hui. All three have retired and returned to their hometowns to enjoy their retirement."

The officials were shocked. How could you remember something that happened ten years ago so clearly?!

As the superior, the Minister of Revenue Yuan Guande still has some understanding of his subordinates.

Minister Wei was not a very smooth person, but he was always serious and rigorous in his work. If I remember correctly, he and Lin Yingjie were both admitted as Jinshi in the same year.

Perhaps the two of them had a deep friendship, so much so that after Lin Yingjie's unjust death, Minister Wei always felt resentful.

"I have ordered these three to return to the capital for questioning. Also, Shi Zan, the governor of Jiangxi and a former councilor of Guizhou, who has accused Lin Yingjie of atrocities, has been summoned back to the capital."

"Your Majesty is wise."

Xie Changfeng curled his lips. He was not wise. His precious daughter Shaoshao was the wise one.

Today is the fifth day of April, and in ten days it will be Shaoshao's birthday. I don't know if Shaoshao can return to Beijing in time.

Oh, there is one more thing I almost forgot.

"This evil cult uses Taoist temples to deceive the people and exploit loopholes in the law. They take advantage of the fact that the temples' fields are exempt from taxation and turn the grain into poison. This is a major flaw in the land tax law. The original intention of Taoist immortals is to protect all living beings. I have treated those who believe in the Tao well, but I have been betrayed. I am ashamed and ashamed, and I feel like being beaten in the market."

Yuan Guande immediately said, "This is due to the remnants of the evil cult being too rampant. Your Majesty has nothing to do with this. Your Majesty, please do not blame yourself and harm your body."

The other ministers echoed him.

"Wrong is wrong," Xie Changfeng said dejectedly, "I have decided to abolish the system of private land in the palace and temples."

"Your Majesty, please think twice!"

There are so many Taoist temples and Taoist priests in the world. How can those Taoist priests accept the sudden issuance of this decree by the emperor? It will incite the people to protest and cause unrest, which will be more trouble than gain.

The ministers tried their best to dissuade him, saying that even if the system was to be reformed, it should be done gradually and not too hastily.

They couldn't persuade her, so they had to flirt with her and ask Wu Shanqing for help.

Wu Shanqing: “…”

It's so pitiful that he is being played around by the princess and the emperor without even knowing it.

He recited the play he had rehearsed, "Your Majesty, this matter involves a wide range of issues. If the princess investigates it personally, she will know more about the details. Why not wait until the princess returns to the capital before discussing this?"

The officials nodded vigorously, yes, that's it!

Xie Changfeng also listened to the advice and said with a dull look, "Then we'll discuss it again after Rong An comes back."

Shao Shao, please come back soon. Dad can’t take it anymore. He spent most of the night memorizing his lines.

Guiyang Prefecture.

Xie Mingzhuo was sitting in the hall of the provincial government, with two rows of officials below him: the left row was the imperial officials, and the right row was the local officials of Guizhou.

How to punish Lu Song and others will be decided by the court laws, but the local chieftains have their say on how to deal with Chief Yang and Chief Tian.

Although the chieftains had surrendered to the imperial court, due to geographical, historical and other factors, they had great autonomy in their tribes. If the imperial court wanted to deal with the chieftains, it had to consult with the elders of the tribes.

The reform of the native system was an extremely long task. Xie Mingzhuo had witnessed the prosperous scene of close unity among all ethnic groups. Faced with this situation, he not only did not feel a headache, but was even more motivated.

First, the Tian family cried miserably: "Your Highness, Shiqian Prefecture used to be our Tian family's territory. No matter how many silver mines there were, they were all our private property. Now that we have surrendered to the imperial court, according to the law, the mines do belong to the imperial court. But the imperial court can eat meat, so we can't be denied the soup, right?"

"That's right, that's right. Guizhou is a land of mountains and land, and so many people are waiting to eat. Food prices are high outside. If we don't have money to buy food, won't we starve to death?"

Xie Mingzhuo was clear-headed and did not fall into their logical trap.

"According to the elders, as long as a person is about to die of starvation, theft and robbery can be forgiven?"

"That's not true. If we leave this mine unmined, wouldn't that be a waste of natural resources? If the imperial court lifts the ban, we'll pay every penny of the mining tax we're owed."

Xie Mingzhuo snorted and laughed, "The imperial court imposed the ban because mining is difficult. There are too many laborers and too few farmers. If everyone goes into the mountains to mine, who will farm the land? Moreover, these laborers are rebelling because you are short of food and clothing. You pity your own people, but you turn your sword against laborers from other places?"

After all, these laborers are the true people of Daqi.

The Tu ethnic minority who have not yet fully surrendered only know the Tusi leader and do not know His Majesty the Emperor.

The elder still said the same thing: "The court humiliated us just to watch us starve to death?"

"Then I'd like to ask, how much of the profits the chieftains have earned have been distributed to the tribesmen?" Xie Mingzhuo said sternly, "You chieftains can't support your people because you are incompetent and greedy. Don't use the imperial court's mining ban as an excuse."

His might was so overwhelming that no one dared to refute him.

"Prefect Song." Xie Mingzhuo softened his tone and looked at Song Qianmu. "I was looking through some old decrees earlier and found one that urged local chieftains and mountain dwellers to develop agriculture according to local conditions and work together to build bridges and roads. Who proposed this?"

Song Qianmu: "It was proposed by then-provincial governor Lin Yingjie. The Jinyang Valley Road in Shiqian Prefecture was originally full of rocks and potholes. Lord Lin personally led people to survey the terrain, formulate strategies, and built it over a three-year period. Before his untimely death, only half of the road was completed."

After the road was opened, the mountain people could pick mountain goods and transport them out of the mountains, and even mining silver became much smoother.

"Taiwan Governor Lin worked so hard to seek welfare for you, but what have you done? You collaborated with the culprit to trample on his hard work, exploit the blood and sweat of innocent laborers, and make unscrupulous money. And now you have the nerve to ask the court to show leniency to the Yang and Tian families?!"

“…”

Xie Mingzhuo stood up and said, "If anyone tries to plead for the Yang and Tian families again, the court's hundreds of thousands of troops will not tolerate you. You will either obey the court's orders or hide in the mountains and spend your whole life with insects, ants, birds and beasts."

Educating the people has always been the basic duty of officials. However, being incompetent is the true portrayal of most officials.

People like Lin Yingjie are a minority.

Because it is rare, it is more precious.

When she thought about how such a talented person was not only slaughtered by a group of greedy executioners, but also had dirty water thrown on him for ten years, she was filled with regret and sorrow.

It is difficult to eliminate the hatred in my heart unless the main culprit is eliminated.

The elders were like quails, completely losing their confidence. If the princess really got angry and called in a hundred thousand troops to suppress her, even if they could hide in the mountains, they would not be able to take their belongings with them.

Song Qianmu said at the right moment, "Ten years ago, my uncle concealed the truth from my father and secretly submitted a petition to the court to wrongly accuse Lin Fantai. When my father learned of this, he vomited blood and passed away soon after. I was filled with hatred and executed the traitor in front of the entire clan. I cannot agree with the elders' disregard for the court's laws and shielding of the culprit."

All the elders looked ashamed and no longer had the energy to refute.

Xie Mingzhuo issued an ultimatum: "If the ringleader who murdered Lin Yingjie and other officials and their families is not surrendered before sunset the day after tomorrow, the Bozhou Yang family will become history."

The Yang elders looked at each other, smiled bitterly, and finally nodded in agreement. The Tian elders no longer dared to plead for their leader and sighed and left.

On the third day, Yang Dan, the former leader of the Yang clan, was forcibly brought over by a group of young and strong tribesmen and made to kneel in front of Xie Mingzhuo.

"I give you food and drink, and lead you to a good life, and you treat me like this?!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs, sending a wave of bittersweet rage through the hearts of the young tribesmen. Indeed, while Old Yang and the imperial court were criminals, to them he was a good leader who led them to prosperity.

Song Qianmu happened to come here. How could the princess let herself speak to deal with such a person?

"You stole silver to satisfy your own selfish desires. Everyone knows exactly how much went into your own pocket and how much went to the people. If Lord Lin were still alive and his plans hadn't been interrupted, who knows if everyone would be better off than they are now?"

A group of young and strong people had no opinions of their own and would listen to whoever made the right decision. Suddenly, they stopped having any resentment.

Yang Dan: “…”

"Song brat!" He glared at him fiercely. "Don't think you'll be rewarded by the imperial court just because you flatter it. Even if you call yourself a 'humble official,' the old emperor won't truly accept you. Just wait for the day when the imperial court will turn against you!"

Song Qianmu counterattacked swiftly: "If the imperial court can really allow my Song clan to live a stable life, what does it matter if I don't accept this position?"

“…”

Regardless of whether Song Qianmu was sincere or not, these words showed a very high level of awareness.

Xie Mingzhuo didn't want to listen to Yang Dan's barking any longer, so he ordered his attendants, "Put him in a prison cart and escort him to the capital tomorrow."

Passing through Sichuan and Guizhou, there were a considerable number of prisoner cars, all of which were occupied by high-ranking officials at the department and prefecture levels who lived a life of luxury.

If they don't return to Beijing, it's unclear whether these people can survive the trial.

April 15th is coming soon.

On her birthday last year, the dark cloud of national destruction was still hovering over her head, and she felt no joy in her heart.

This year the mood is different.

She was eager to return to Beijing to spend time with her family.