404, House Raid
404, House Raid
"Bang——"
The plaque of the prime minister's residence was taken down, and the heavy plaque fell to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
"Carry him away." someone shouted.
Four strong men came forward and carried away the removed plaque.
Many ordinary people were standing around watching the excitement, whispering to each other.
Many officials entered the house, including those from the Ministry of Justice, Fengtian Prefecture, and the Ministry of Revenue. The officials outside surrounded the house, while those inside were searching for stolen money and counting valuables.
The young woman in the backyard saw someone touching her treasures and started to argue with the officials, saying, "This is mine! You are not allowed to touch my things!"
"What do you mean this is yours? These are all stolen money!"
The officer snatched the box from the woman's hand, threw it to his brothers to count, and told the woman: "I advise you to cooperate and take out the hidden things, otherwise when we find them later, we will charge you with hiding stolen money!"
"Everything in this house, big and small, belongs to the imperial court!"
"You are acting like bandits. Everything in this room is mine!" The woman could not accept that all her things were taken away by the officers. They were clearly hers.
The officer who was being scolded raised his hand and was about to slap the woman in the face.
However, just as he was about to swing his hand, a hand reached out from behind and grabbed it.
"Who...?" The officer opened his mouth to curse, but when he turned around and saw the man holding his wrist, he quickly swallowed the curse words and shouted with trembling lips, "Master."
"I asked you to count the stolen money, not to beat anyone." Lu Mingfei threw the other person's hand away and warned.
"Yes, yes, I was just dizzy..." The officer hurriedly bowed his head and admitted his mistake.
Lu Mingfei glanced at the officer who had admitted his mistake, then glanced at all the officers present and said, "When you put on this uniform, your words and actions represent the court. I hope you will remember this in the future."
"Yes, yes, sir, we have all remembered it." Upon hearing this, the officers present hurriedly responded.
Lu Mingfei also knew that these officials, relying on their uniforms and the small amounts of power and profit they held, were accustomed to being overbearing and domineering. These customs could not be changed in a short period of time.
It seems that we have to issue a notice to regulate the words and deeds of the court officials and clerks, so as to prevent these people from bullying others.
After reminding these people, he lowered his head to look at the woman kneeling on the ground crying.
There were two maids standing in the room. He didn't know the identity of this woman, but he knew they were definitely Wan's concubines.
"Get up, pack some clothes and leave. This house has been taken back by the court. If you don't leave now, the outer gate will be closed." After taking a look at the woman on the ground, he turned and left.
Although Lu Mingfei knew in his heart that not all of the women in the backyard came into the backyards of these high-ranking officials voluntarily.
However, it is also a fact that these women who came here lived a life of luxury with the stolen money embezzled by Wan Jinnian and other members of the Wan family.
This house is very big. Standing on the high pavilion and looking down, you can see half of the backyard.
Looking at this garden with pavilions and towers, which reveals the craftsman's ingenuity and care everywhere, Lu Mingfei knows that it would cost a lot of money in a year just to maintain such a large house.
Not to mention the food, clothing, and other expenses of the ladies, young masters, and young ladies in this house, as well as the countless servants. Which one doesn't cost money?
Judging from the accounts confessed by Wan Jinnian, the silver he had embezzled during his decades as an official exceeded the highest amount of silver recorded in the Ministry of Revenue's account books, which was half of the national treasury.
No wonder when he took over the Ministry of Revenue, the treasury was so empty that horses could run through it. Could it be that all the money went into the pockets of these corrupt officials?
Thinking of how audacious these officials were, Lu Mingfei didn't know what to say. It seemed that from ancient times to the present, the word "corruption" had been passed down through history without interruption.
What can be done to prevent officials from being corrupt? How many people have been harmed by the word "corruption"?
Thinking of this, Lu Mingfei couldn't help but shook his head.
Now that Wan Jinnian had passed away, all the other members of the Wan family submitted their resignations and left the court. Even some officials who had close ties to the Wan family through marriage, fearing the emperor would come back to exact revenge on them, hurriedly submitted their resignations.
The Ministry of Personnel delivered these resignation letters to the emperor.
It happened that Lu Mingfei was in the palace that day, and he looked at the list and knew that those officials were going to resign.
However, Zhao Lang did not approve all of the submitted memorials, and some of them were retained.
Lu Mingfei also saw which names were crossed out on the list.
As the emperor, Zhao Lang also kept his promise to Wan Jinnian. After Wan Jinnian's death, he let the Wan family leave and did not implicate countless people because of Wan Jinnian alone.
However, this house was bestowed upon Wan Jinnian by the late emperor, and it was a house only a first-rank minister could live in. Now that Wan Jinnian was no longer the prime minister, the court had to take the house back.
As for the people in this house, they all have to leave.
"Go, go, go, go!"
"If you don't leave now, you'll go to jail!"
The officers drove a group of people through the corridor below.
Lu Mingfei was standing on a high place and happened to see the whole scene. Naturally, he also noticed that some women and young ladies in the team were covering their faces and crying.
I don’t know whether he is crying for losing his wealthy life or for his miserable life in the future?
However, no matter how miserable these people are, can they be more miserable than the people who starved to death on the roads in those years?
Their treatment of the Wan family was already very merciful. At the very least, they spared their lives. The imperial court confiscated all of the Wan family's wealth in Kyoto and all of the land they had occupied, but they left their home in their hometown to this group.
Moreover, the imperial court did not confiscate the dowries brought in by the ladies who married into the Wan family.
Therefore, as long as the Wan family worked hard, they would not be likely to starve to death. However, it would also be unlikely for them to live the rich and luxurious life they once did.
On this day, all the people in the backyard of the Prime Minister's Mansion were driven out.
***
The government sealed off the house and moved all the property they found back to the Ministry of Revenue, where they were counted and recorded, and then all of it was deposited into the national treasury.
It took three full days just to count the money.
During these three days, Lu Mingfei has been in charge of the Ministry of Revenue. He would go there in person every day to supervise his subordinates to count things.
It’s not that he doesn’t trust his subordinates, but money can move people’s hearts. If there is no supervision, he is afraid that some people will become greedy.
After all the property was deposited into the national treasury, he took the list into the palace and handed it to his superior, His Majesty the Emperor, for review.
Zhao Lang flipped through the thick memorial and said to Lord Lu who came to deliver the memorial, "Thank you for your hard work, Lord Lu."
"I didn't work that hard. It's all the work done by my subordinates. If there were more corrupt officials like Wan Jinnian, our treasury would be full." Lu Mingfei sat down on the chair awarded to him by His Majesty the Emperor, picked up the tea beside him and took a sip.
Zhao Lang chuckled and said, "I'm afraid it's not possible now."
Lu Mingfei naturally knew that it was not possible now. At this critical juncture, they couldn't push these officials too hard.
Even rabbits will jump over the wall when they are forced into a corner, let alone these officials and aristocratic families who dare to commit murder and arson. These people are not rabbits. If they are really pushed into a corner, they will rebel.
If there is chaos in Kyoto Prefecture, it will not be good for them.
They all knew this, and therefore knew that now was not the time to settle accounts. Even if they wanted to arrest corrupt officials, they would have to wait until the situation stabilized before settling accounts with these people.
However, if these people behave well in the future, the old scores can be forgiven.
When water is too clear, there will be no fish. From ancient times to the present, how many officials in the officialdom are truly incorruptible?
It’s not that there are none, but that there are few.
Thinking of this, Lu Mingfei asked the Emperor in front of him, "Tell me, can we find a way to reduce the incidence of corruption and bribery?"
"There must be a way." Zhao Lang said.
In the end, the two people discussed this matter for a long time.
At the morning court the next day, Lu Mingfei stood up and submitted a memorial, proposing that if any officials committed crimes in the future, their descendants for three generations would be prohibited from taking the imperial examinations or serving as officials in the court.
As soon as his proposal was made, it was opposed by many officials.
Looking at the lord who objected the most and jumped the highest, Lu Mingfei sneered and asked, "Why, what bad thing has Master Zhang done? Are you afraid that you'll end up in jail and your descendants won't be able to take the imperial examinations or become officials?"
"You, you are talking nonsense!" The official who jumped high was shocked when he met Lu Mingfei's eyes.
He knew that Lu Mingfei, as a close minister to the emperor, must know the ins and outs of all the officials in the court. If he continued to oppose, he was afraid that Lu Mingfei would use him as an example to scare the monkeys. So, Lord Zhang changed his mind and immediately stopped his fuss, not daring to stir up trouble again.
When the other officials saw that their master did not say a word, they knew that Lu Mingfei's proposal was probably approved by the emperor.
In the end, Lu Mingfei's proposal was approved by the emperor. The notice was posted the next day and distributed to local areas, and it was implemented after August.
However, this proposal was supported by many scholars and common people.
Many scholars also openly discussed this matter in restaurants and teahouses, saying that their new emperor was a wise ruler.
At this time, the scholars in the teahouse did not know that upstairs in the teahouse, the wise emperor they praised was sitting in a private room with Minister Lu drinking tea.
Lu Mingfei even dared to tease His Majesty beside him, "Everyone is praising you, do you hear that?"
"..." Zhao Lang glanced at the young man who was watching him lively, and suddenly he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Author's gossip: Thank you Bole 9492239 (9492239) for your support, mua! To know more exciting content, please leave me a message on Liancheng Reading.
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