Chapter 815 Chaos in the Ministry of Justice
Is it really possible to avoid causing too much trouble?
That's impossible.
Ever since the Queen ordered an investigation into the Ministry of Justice, the situation there has never been good. Initially, it was only to investigate those officials who were responsible for exiling prisoners. One by one, those who had the same crime on their heads as the deceased official who had done the same thing were imprisoned or executed.
The Queen's methods were drastic, and the people below were trembling with fear. The people in the Ministry of Justice looked at the Black Armor Guards and the Privy Council who were like tigers among the flock of sheep, and only hoped that they could find out the truth about the exile as soon as possible, and end the matter after killing enough people.
But gradually, people from the Ministry of Justice discovered that something was wrong.
At first, it was only a minor official in the prison office who was in charge of fugitives who was implicated. For many years, he had withheld prisoner clothing, food, and medicine from the exiled prisoners. He also accepted bribes and colluded with the escorting officers to release the fugitives on the way. Then, it was revealed that the officials of the Supervision and Arrest Office had accepted bribes and concealed the whereabouts of the fugitives in the name of the accidental death of prisoners during escort.
Then problems also arose with the stolen money and fines warehouse and the Autumn Trial Office. One person hid stolen money and goods, and the other gave vague verdicts on the cases that had been tried.
He watched helplessly as the Black Armor Guards broke into the residence of a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Justice and seized hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. The Autumn Trial Office was even more outrageous, commuting the sentence of a death row prisoner to three years of hard labor, yet that man married and had children during those three years and lived a comfortable life.
Not only was the Queen furious, but everyone in the Ministry of Justice was also paralyzed.
He Cheng, along with two assistant ministers from the Ministry of Justice, took the things handed over by the Queen with trembling hands. When they saw what was written on it, the three of them almost simultaneously felt their legs go weak and they fell to their knees on the ground.
There was no trace of anger on Tang Ning's face, but anyone could see that beneath the calm was the sudden and violent storm.
"Minister He, and the two assistant ministers, can someone explain to me how a lower-rank sixth-rank official, with no permanent property and an annual salary of only 200 dan, managed to amass such a fortune in just six years after taking office?"
He Cheng was sweating profusely, and the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice was cursing in his heart with a pale face.
He also wanted to know how that bastard could have so much silver. He knew that even if he sold his own house and land, he still couldn't come up with so much silver.
He was just a low-rank official, a nobody who usually only nodded and groveled when they saw him, not even saying a word. They never even took him seriously, but even in his house, they found hundreds of thousands of cash!
The Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice next to him just hung his head and said nothing.
Tang Ning glanced at the three men and continued, "And this one? He allowed his servants to commit murder, resulting in the deaths of five people and serious injuries to eleven others. Since when has such a serious crime only resulted in a sentence of three years of hard labor? And during these three years, he can be released on bail for only 50,000 taels of silver, and live a carefree life with a wife and concubines?"
He Cheng's face turned pale and blue, and the two ministers' heads almost drooped into the ground.
After a long pause, He Cheng whispered, "It is because we, the ministers, failed to exercise effective control and to thoroughly investigate the people below us. This has led to the rampant corruption in the Ministry of Justice and their disregard for the royal law. I beg the Empress to punish us."
"I am guilty."
The two assistant ministers also bowed their heads and apologized.
Tang Ning looked at them and said, "You are guilty. The Ministry of Justice is responsible for the punishment of the people and supports the justice of the people. But look at what the Ministry of Justice has become now. When I first investigated, I thought that the people below were just pretending to obey, but now it seems that the upper echelons are following suit."
He Cheng's face turned pale, and he knelt on the ground and kowtowed fiercely: "I dare not."
Tang Ning snorted coldly: "From now on, all officials in the Ministry of Justice will be thoroughly investigated. Those who violate the order will be severely punished!"
"Minister He, and the two assistant ministers, I hope you are clean, otherwise..."
The three of them knelt on the ground, feeling their vision go dark.
…
The matter of the Ministry of Justice finally became a big deal. When one pulls out a radish, it brings out the dirt. Initially, it was just a few officers escorting people into exile, but later when the investigation went all the way up, it was found that there were more than 30 people imprisoned. There were more than a dozen doctors and officials in charge of various departments of the Ministry of Justice, and there were countless more people who were convicted below.
He Cheng was reprimanded, and the two assistant ministers were even more worried. The Black Armor Guards showed no intention of stopping, and even the entire He family was investigated.
"Has the Queen gone crazy? The Ministry of Justice is almost like a hornet's nest. How many people have they arrested? The Ministry is almost shut down, and she still won't give up. Is she planning to arrest Guo Changming and the others as well?!"
Guo Changming is one of the two assistant ministers of the Ministry of Justice. Although he is not from a noble family, he is the son-in-law of the Shi family, one of the eight great families.
When the aristocratic families were being investigated, Guo Changming stayed because of her status, but now the queen actually wants to take action against her.
The head of the Shi family was furious: "Lord Liang, what does the Queen want to do? Others are fine, but He Cheng is His Majesty's confidant. The He family is even more closely related to the Wenxin Marquis Mansion. If she touches the He family, isn't she worried that the Wenxin Marquis will turn against the royal family?"
Liang Guangyi was almost unable to understand the Queen. Although he had argued with the Queen that day, he only thought that the Queen was angry for a moment, and he always felt that the Queen did so for other purposes, so even though he was angry that the Queen disregarded the overall situation, he never really broke up with her.
But now he was uncertain. The Ministry of Justice was in such a mess, and the Queen had no intention of giving up.
Her target may not be He Cheng. After all, He Cheng has been cautious in his actions over the years. Even if he has some selfish motives, he has never gone too far. However, there must be something wrong with Guo Changming.
Didn’t you notice that Guo Changming’s face was extremely pale and he looked panicked, which showed that something was wrong.
Liang Guangyi asked in a deep voice: "How much do you know about the following things?"
Guo Changming shuddered: "I, I don't know..."
He wanted to say he didn't know, but when he met Liang Guangyi's stern gaze, he finally said the truth with a pale face: "I know a little. When I was the doctor of the Ministry of Justice, I also accepted some benefits, but I never took the initiative to ask them to pay tribute, and I just turned a blind eye and pretended not to know about their affairs..."
"Are you really not involved at all?" Liang Guangyi interrupted him and asked in a deep voice.
Guo Changming opened his mouth.
Liang Guangyi looked him straight in the eye. "If you weren't involved at all, and just accepted some benefits and turned a blind eye, then you don't have to worry. Even if the Queen wants to punish you severely, it will only be a crime of leniency. I have my own way to ensure your safety."
Upon hearing this, Guo Changming's complexion not only did not improve, but became even paler.
His lips trembled, and he couldn't help but lower his head when looking at Liang Guangyi, his voice as soft as a mosquito.
"Well, it's not that I haven't been involved at all..."
His voice was so low that if the hall hadn't been so quiet, it would have been difficult to hear clearly.
"There are a huge number of prisoners exiled from the court every year, and countless of them are sentenced to forced labor for serious crimes. These days, they're just working in the fields. Then someone finds someone below them, buys them off with money, and takes them away, saying to the public that they died during exile or in an accident during labor."
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