Feng Zhifu regretted it! He regretted that when he received the memorial from County Magistrate Ma, he should have gone to deal with the matter in Anqiu County. Otherwise, the situation would not have developed like this.
Think about how your family will be implicated due to your negligence if you know the truth but don’t report it, or even worse, your family will be exiled.
In order to obtain a lighter punishment, Prefect Feng immediately submitted a memorial to the imperial court, reporting the disaster situation in Qingzhou Prefecture in detail. He also said that Anqiu County was the worst hit and the people had begun to flee the famine, but Magistrate Gao of Anqiu County had not yet reported the disaster.
After Prefect Feng reported to the court, he immediately sent his confidants to Anqiu County and asked them to take control of Anqiu County, resettle the affected people, investigate the evidence, and wait for the court to send people down.
What he didn't know was that Prince Jin had already dealt with the matter in Anqiu County, otherwise he would not have dared to delay reporting the disaster in Qingzhou Prefecture.
The emperor received a memorial from Feng Zhifu of Qingzhou Prefecture, which described the disaster situation in Qingzhou Prefecture, especially in Anqiu County, where the people had fled to Qingshan County. However, Gao Xianzhi of Anqiu County had not yet reported the disaster situation.
After the emperor read it out at the morning court, he was furious and threw the memorial on the ground in the hall. The ministers were so scared that they dared not say a word, thinking that the prime minister was in trouble.
The Prime Minister's party was also very scared. County Magistrate Gao was the Prime Minister's man, and every minister in the court knew it. It was the Prime Minister who strongly recommended County Magistrate Gao.
"Eunuch Shen, please show them the memorial." Eunuch Shen went to pick up the memorial and was about to put it back on the dragon table when he was stopped by the emperor, who asked him to show it to the ministers below.
"I obey your order." After saying this, he took the memorial and handed it to the prime minister in the front row to read.
The prime minister received a memorial and read the contents. It was the same as what the emperor said, and he felt regretful!
Magistrate Gao of Anqiu County was his man, the younger brother of his most beloved concubine. It was she who had been whispering in his ear, praising her brother for being so good. He was exercising at the time, and she had been flirting with him, and he had agreed to it. Later, he wanted to regret it but was afraid of losing face, so he had to help her.
When selecting the magistrate of Anqiu County, he recommended Gao Zhenhai to the emperor in front of the public at court. What did he say? Gao Zhenhai, with his high moral character, selfless dedication, and selfless dedication to public service, would be a good magistrate who would be diligent in his work and care for the people, ensuring they lived a good life.
Looking at the memorial again, the Prime Minister wished he could kill that idiot on the spot.
The Prime Minister endured it and passed the memorial to his colleague next to him without saying a word. When the memorial was passed around once, Eunuch Shen placed it on the dragon table.
All the ministers in the court looked at the prime minister. He was the one who swore that County Magistrate Gao was a good official. Look at him now, it must be a painful slap in the face, right?
The ministers looked at the prime minister with amusement.
"Who was it that said Gao Zhenhai was the most suitable person to be the county magistrate, and that he was upright and selfless, and was a good county magistrate? Look, what has he done? Prime Minister, what else do you have to say?" The emperor was furious. What Gao Zhenhai did was a challenge to him. How could he not be angry?
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I didn't know about this matter. It was my fault for not seeing people clearly and blinding my eyes that caused the people of Anqiu County to suffer from famine. It was my fault. Please take care of your health and punish me." The prime minister knelt down and apologized. Usually, the emperor would let him off lightly, and he believed that this time would be the same, so he admitted his mistake.
The prime minister's idea is very good, but the reality is very disappointing.
"Since the Prime Minister has admitted that he did not know people well, causing the people to be displaced, I cannot give a light sentence because of the relationship with Concubine Shu. This will be bad for Concubine Shu's reputation. Therefore, I will punish you by paying your salary for one year, and punish the Prime Minister's Office to pay 10,000 taels to resettle the people of Anqiu County. Since the people fled to Qingshan County, this money will be given to the magistrate of Qingshan County, Ma, to resettle the refugees in Anqiu County, and then confine him at home for one year." When the Prime Minister was feeling proud, the emperor slapped him in the face and punished him.
Prime Minister…………
Ministers…………
You agreed to let it go lightly, why are you not playing by the rules this time?
The Prime Minister couldn't believe that the Emperor would actually say this. No one knew what would happen if he was put in solitary confinement for a year. No, he couldn't do what the Emperor wanted. If he was put in solitary confinement, he wouldn't be able to do anything, and it would affect his plans.
The prime minister glanced at his own people, hoping that they would plead for mercy and ask the emperor to revoke his order. In fact, this matter had nothing to do with him. He just didn't know people well and would admit his mistakes, but he did it just to show other ministers.
He wanted to use this incident to let the people know that he cared about them and hated evil, but he didn't expect the emperor to make a big deal out of it and take the opportunity to reduce his power.
The Imperial Censor of the Metropolitan Censorate stepped forward to plead, "Your Majesty, although the Prime Minister is guilty of misjudging people, this punishment does not warrant. I beg Your Majesty to revoke your order and grant a lighter punishment."
"Yes, we beg the emperor to revoke his order and not let the prime minister and the ministers feel disappointed." When the ministers of the prime minister's party saw someone speaking up, they also knelt down before the emperor and pleaded for the prime minister.
When the prime minister saw his people pleading for him, he was delighted. He believed that the emperor would not dare to offend so many ministers and would definitely compromise and revoke his order.
Your Majesty, are you still young and not qualified enough to fight him?
Who is the emperor? How could he be threatened by his ministers? You must be kidding. He's been fighting with his brothers since he was a teenager. He's experienced all kinds of hardships and storms. You expect him to compromise like this? Are you crazy?
"I work for the emperor and am loyal to him. This is the current concern. My dear ministers, do you think that the Prime Minister is just a misjudge and is not guilty of a serious crime? But have you ever considered that it was precisely because of his misjudgement that he sent someone like Gao Zhenhai to be the magistrate of Anqiu County, causing the people there to live in dire straits and now have to endure the hardship of fleeing famine? Have you ever considered how dangerous the journey will be and how many people will die?
You eat my salary and the people's food, but you don't worry about me or work for the people's welfare. You only do disloyal and unjust things. Do you know that what seems to be a simple thing in your eyes is a matter of family ruin and death for the people?
Do you think human lives are worthless and as cheap as ants?
In my eyes, it is just the opposite. Without the people, where would the food come from? Without the people, how could you have a comfortable life?
I am worried about the disaster, but not only do you not help me relieve my worries and do nothing, but you plead for such people and think that my punishment is too severe.
"You are so ignorant of the sufferings of the world, how can you help me govern my kingdom? I will punish you by making you experience the pain of fleeing famine, so that you can properly assist me." You thought I would just brush it off, but you wished. Look, I will slap you hard in the face.
"Your Majesty, please calm down! We were wrong. Please revoke your order!" When the Prime Minister's party heard that they had to flee from the famine, they all pleaded with the emperor.
Would pleading be of any use? Definitely not. The emperor is trying to make an example of someone.
Thinking about what he had to do, he decided to let these annoying people leave for a while, and then summon them back when the time was right. As for how many ministers could come back, it would all depend on God's will.
Finally, the emperor punished the prime minister's party by forcing them to flee from famine for a year. During the period, they were not allowed to ride in a car, bring servants with them, or bring silver or silver bills. They had to bring their families with them. If they violated the rules, their entire family would be confiscated and exiled.
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