Chapter 333 A Permanent Ban on Men Entering Officialdom
Over the years, men have gradually come to accept the situation where women step forward and work alongside them.
After all, for ordinary people, having enough to eat and living a peaceful life is more important than any vague or ethereal "social order".
Having experienced the turmoil and famine of the past, no one wants to go back to those days of uncertainty and hardship.
Over time, most men still privately complain that "the world is going to the dogs, women are dominating, and women are taking away what's theirs"...
But in the end, it didn't cause any major trouble, and people gradually accepted the status quo.
Perhaps, whether a woman sits on the dragon throne, a female official holds power in the court, or a woman runs a shop in the market, as long as they can make their lives better, it seems to have little impact on them.
But now, with this sudden upheaval, they have been unexpectedly pushed to the opposite side.
Some people are at a loss and don't know what to do.
Some people were indignant and wanted an explanation.
Some people even secretly wanted to take advantage of the chaos to rebel.
Just then, a momentous event occurred in the imperial court.
Fang Jing, the Minister of Personnel, was a veteran official of two dynasties and was highly respected.
She followed Your Majesty when Your Majesty was still the eldest princess.
Over the years, he has been loyal and devoted. Although he has no outstanding achievements, he has been a cornerstone figure in stabilizing the court. He has certainly worked hard even if he has not made any great contributions.
Unfortunately, the traitor Xu Jingze did indeed serve in the Ministry of Personnel in his early years, making him a nominal former subordinate of Fang Jing.
Now that Xu Jingze has rebelled, how can he not be implicated?
Tu Qing somehow found evidence of Fang Jing's correspondence with Xu Jingze and imprisoned Fang Jing on charges of "colluding with and protecting traitors."
Fang Jing was already old and frail, how could he withstand the cold and harsh conditions of the prison and the torture of interrogation?
Moreover, his lifelong reputation was ruined in an instant, leaving him filled with grief and indignation.
Not long after, he committed suicide in prison.
This incident finally caused the men, who had been suppressing their anger, to completely erupt.
The rabbit dies and the fox grieves; creatures grieve for their own kind.
Fang Jing's fate starkly reveals a cruel truth: in this escalating trend, seniority, merit, and even past loyalty are no match for the original sin of being "male" and the fabricated, baseless accusations.
With Fang Jing's death, Huang Wei was the only male minister in the court.
The Second Prince and Prime Minister Tu's relentless pressure was no longer seen as "purging the remaining rebels," but as a naked attempt to "exterminate them all," clearly leaving no way out for these men in the court!
At the court assembly, led by Huang Wei, the male officials knelt on the ground and loudly pleaded their case.
"Your Majesty! Fang Jing was loyal and devoted, yet he died unjustly! Now, he has been brutally murdered in the imperial prison on trumped-up charges. When we hear of this, our hearts are burning with grief! We implore Your Majesty to clear Minister Fang's name, severely punish those who framed him, and restore justice to us!"
"This is not just Fang Jing's injustice; it is the injustice done to all the men in the world who are loyal to His Majesty, who are all wronged and placed at the mercy of execution! Prime Minister Tu and the Second Prince are using the pretext of suppressing the rebellion to frame us male officials. If this continues, there will be no place for men in the court!"
"We, your humble servants, have studied diligently day and night, dedicating ourselves to serving the country and advocating for the people. Yet now, simply because we are men, we are easily punished, our lives as worthless as grass! If this continues, who will dare to serve Your Majesty? Who will dare to stand in this court?"
Officials who supported Tu Qing and the Second Prince were shocked and furious, and they refuted the accusations, accusing Huang Wei and others of "roaring in the court," "coercing the emperor by inciting the masses," and "advocating for the rebels."
Li Ganxu angrily rebuked in court, "Your Majesty, these male officials dare to defy and rebuke you in public today, which shows that they still harbor resentment and have many grievances. This is a hidden danger to the rule of women in our Great Qi! Your Majesty, I implore you to issue an edict to completely expel all male officials, permanently ban men from holding office, and order all regions to strictly investigate 'restless' men in the countryside, so as to prevent the disaster of overthrowing the dynasty!"
Many people in the hall stepped forward and shouted in unison, "Your Majesty, please issue an edict! Expel the male officials and prevent future troubles!"
The two sides exchanged heated words and refused to back down.
Although Li Yuanzhao issued an imperial edict to exonerate Fang Jing, gave him a grand funeral, appeased his family, and even reprimanded Tu Qing, ordering him to reflect on his mistakes behind closed doors, it still did not quell the resentment of the people.
Outside the imperial court, it also caused considerable unrest.
Nowadays, however, the armies, money, and food supplies in various regions are mostly controlled by women.
These minor disturbances are usually resolved within half a month.
Seeing the heads hanging on the city walls, no one dared to make any rash moves.
The bloody crackdown temporarily quelled a larger-scale rebellion, but the hatred that permeated the crowd did not dissipate; instead, it intensified.
Until news of victory came from the southwestern battlefield.
His Highness the Crown Prince not only led his army to a great victory over the main force of the rebels, but also beheaded the rebel leader Xu Jingze amidst the chaos.
The remnants of the Tibetan forces that had been entrenched for many years were also uprooted, and their leaders were all executed.
The rebellion, which arose from a natural disaster, was thus quelled.
What's even more touching is that when the prince was cleaning up the battlefield, he was caught off guard and stabbed in the shoulder with a dagger by a little boy who looked like a Tibetan orphan.
But no one expected that His Highness the Crown Prince would say, "What crime has a child committed against a traitor? He was born and raised here, and perhaps he only knows revenge and not right and wrong. Killing him would only add another wronged soul to the list."
He was forgiven immediately.
Whether soldiers or ordinary people, everyone who heard of it was moved and filled with respect.
Even the Tibetan remnants who were forced into the rebellion and harbored resentment towards the court felt grateful upon hearing this and privately praised the prince's kindness.
More importantly, in a sensitive atmosphere of gender antagonism and widespread fear among men, the fact that "the crown prince spared a little boy who had seriously injured him" sent an extremely clear signal to the world.
Even when her own young son was seriously injured, Her Highness the Crown Prince still had a sense of compassion and upheld justice. So how could she, like the Second Prince, indiscriminately exterminate ordinary men who lived peacefully under the rule of the Great Qi?
Therefore, countless people placed their hopes on His Highness the Crown Prince, believing that as long as His Highness the Crown Prince was there, he could turn the tide and prevent them from falling into such a predicament.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com