As one of the six ministers who had been promoted for less than six months, Xue Zhen thought he knew the emperor's mind very well and had often received praise from the emperor. However, he was still worried that the emperor would be dissatisfied with the execution after the first autumn.
There were indeed quite a few officials who had their property confiscated and their heads executed, even more than last year. This was mainly because the factory guards focused their attention on this, and the excessive collection of taxes also shocked and angered Zhu Youxiao.
Kill corrupt officials; kill corrupt officials; kill, kill, kill...
The emperor seemed to have become numb, or was dominated by anger. He just glanced at the case and with a stroke of his red brush, a head would be chopped off and the whole family would be driven away thousands of miles away.
At the end of the Ming Dynasty, wars broke out, the Jiannu invaded and seized power, and millions of people were killed and injured, and their families were destroyed. All of this was due to the corrupt officials. Killing them is not a pity at all.
Zhu Youxiao, who knew the direction of history, seemed to see thousands of miles of barren land, widespread grief, famine, and starvation everywhere. He seemed to see swords flashing and blood flowing like rivers...
Kill, kill, kill...
Killing a national pest will increase the country's vitality, the people will feel more relaxed, and the Ming Dynasty's reform path will have fewer obstacles and be smoother.
The emperor finally finished making the list, stared at the blood-red color on the paper, narrowed his eyes, and let out a breath.
"Mr. Xue—" Zhu Youxiao signaled the palace attendant to pass the list to Xue Zhen, and asked in a deep voice, "Do you have any objections to the treatment of these corrupt officials? Is the Dali Temple still cooperating?"
Xue Zhen quickly bowed and replied, "The practice of imposing severe punishments on corrupt officials began with Emperor Taizu. Although the Great Ming Code does not contain specific provisions, Emperor Taizu's creation of the Great Edict is legitimate."
"Compared to Taizu, my emperor's punishments are quite lenient. During the Hongwu era, the magistrate of Jianchang County accepted 400 strings of cash and was executed by slow slicing. The county magistrate of De'an County accepted 10 pieces of silk, silk, and cloth and 80 strings of cash and was executed by slow slicing. The county magistrate of Laiyang County accepted 100 strings of stolen goods and was executed by slow slicing..."
Listening to Xue Zhen, who was historically identified as a eunuch party, listing historical facts, Zhu Youxiao's expression gradually relaxed. It turned out that he was so merciful that he only beheaded the person but not tortured him to death. However, the amount of corruption he had done was far more than that during the Hongwu period.
It is said that Zhu Yuanzhang often used extrajudicial punishments to deal with corrupt officials, a typical example of which was skinning and stuffing straw. However, it seems that no corrupt officials were actually subjected to this punishment, and this is completely slanderous.
After listening to Xue Zhen's defense, Zhu Youxiao nodded slightly and said, "Mr. Xue is very knowledgeable about legal cases. I have appointed you as the Minister of Justice, which shows that I have a keen eye for talent."
Xue Zhen was overjoyed and quickly bowed to express his gratitude.
Zhu Youxiao encouraged Xue Zhen a few more times before letting him leave.
Although he did not let go of Uncle Wei's leash, Zhu Youxiao still made use of many of the so-called eunuch party who were attached to Uncle Wei in history.
There's no way around it. They're knowledgeable and sensible. They'll rush wherever the emperor points, and they'll go all out to attack whoever the emperor wants to attack. Who wouldn't like such subordinates?
If Chongzhen had the wisdom of Zhu Youxiao, it would not matter if he killed Old Wei or a group of corrupt officials in the "eunuch party", but he should not overturn the whole boat and replace them with a group of civil servants who claim to be righteous and whose words harm the country!
Zhu Youxiao sighed for a moment, then picked up the list of confiscated property and read it again. While it wasn't as lucrative as taking down corrupt officials like Li Sancai, it was still beneficial. At least, there was money for rewards, and he could even provide some small benefits for the officials.
Longevity Festival - Let’s keep it simple!
Zhu Youxiao also thought about holding a grand ceremony and accepting gifts, but a grand ceremony would not be as simple as setting up a few tables for drinks. The capital would be decorated, and the imperial city would be decorated with lights and lanterns. It seemed like it would lose money.
Forget it, let's talk about it after we pacify Liao! By then, I will have money, plenty of it.
"Your Majesty, the new Shaanxi Governor Li Jingbai has come to pay his respects to Your Majesty." Wang Tigan went inside to report.
Another "eunuch party"! Zhu Youxiao lowered his eyes, put down the list of confiscated property, and said, "Announce!"
In the late Ming Dynasty, if you wanted to attack someone, you could always do it by simply putting a label on them at the right time.
When Uncle Wei was in power, he labeled him a member of the "Donglin Party". Not only would he be thrown into prison, but his career would definitely be hopeless.
When the Donglin Party was in power, as long as they were labeled as "eunuch party", they would have no place in the court.
The party struggles have reached an inexplicable level. Anyone who has said anything politically incorrect will be overthrown and criticized.
The Donglin Party members went to such lengths to pursue all remaining evil, but they had no plan to save the country. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were criminals who misled the country.
Li Jingbai is an example. In history, he was impeached by the Donglin Party because he built a shrine for Wei Zhongxian and burned incense and said "The heaven of Yao is majestic and the emperor's virtue is hard to name". He was sentenced to three years in prison and had to pay ransom to become a commoner.
In fact, Li Jingbai was a Jinshi in the Wanli period. He started as the magistrate of Xiajin County and served as the governor of Shandong, the right assistant censor of the Censorate, and the prince's tutor. He had quite a few political achievements.
What's more, when Uncle Wei was in power, countless people built ancestral temples for him. Could it be that they were all people who were sycophantic and had low moral character?
Grandpa Qi also gave gifts and bribes to Zhang Juzheng and others, but he just wanted to keep his official position and military power so that he could do more practical things and make more contributions to the country and the court.
Due to the general environment, one can either keep oneself clean and become an idler or an ordinary citizen, regardless of the country's decline and the suffering of the people; or one can go with the flow without getting involved, do one's best, and do some good deeds.
Grandpa Qi was the latter. He knew his future depended on the whim of those in power. Without supporters at court, he couldn't lead his troops to war with peace of mind, and might even lose his right to lead. How could he possibly serve his country?
In this distorted political environment, it's inevitable that something like this will happen. No matter how heroic or capable you are, you often have to do things against your will to achieve your ambitions.
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