Chapter 500: Kick the Grand Master of the Imperial Household Department out of the court!
Shen Lanxi only realized halfway back that she had strayed from the topic today.
"I was planning to see you off today, but I never expected this to happen!"
Wei Dongzhu was somewhat dazed, and it took him a while to come back to his senses and realize that Shen Lanxi was talking to him.
"It's alright, it's already very kind of you to be able to take the time today!" Wei Dongzhu's mind was entirely focused on the Minister of War's nephew's marriage scam.
From today's events, it's clear that she deeply resents having a son born out of wedlock before marriage and concealing the existence of concubines and maids in her household.
A flash of pain crossed Wei Dongzhu's eyes. He didn't mean it, he really didn't mean it.
Seeing that Wei Dongzhu hadn't followed, Shen Lanxi turned around and glanced back.
"Come on, why are you stopping?"
Or is it
"Don't you want to stay at the palace today?" She rarely goes back to the Regent's Palace now; she spends most of her time at the palace.
A look of panic flashed in Wei Dongzhu's eyes, afraid that Shen Lanxi would notice, so he quickly lowered his head and walked forward.
"No, I was thinking about today."
"The ministers haven't reacted yet today, but someone will definitely submit a memorial opposing it tomorrow."
Shen Lanxi chuckled and said confidently, "They'd better raise as many objections as possible. As for me, I'll use the ladder they offer to climb higher!"
Wei Dongzhu recalled the look in the eyes of the Vice Minister of War when he left and said worriedly, "It concerns the Vice Minister of War's sister. His daughter is the Princess Consort of Prince Chen. He has been a powerful figure in the court for many years, with deep roots and complex connections. I'm afraid he might cause trouble behind our backs."
Shen Lanxi's eyes were filled with a sharp light.
"Instead of waiting for the fish to take the bait, it's better to take the initiative!"
Wei Dongzhu said worriedly, "Be careful. I'll be leaving the capital in a few days. I'm worried if things get chaotic in the capital."
Shen Lanxi smiled and said, "Don't worry, I never do anything I'm not sure I can do!"
Seeing Shen Lanxi's confident expression, Wei Dongzhu smiled and followed her.
...
Just as Wei Dongzhu said, memorials criticizing the improper revision of the marriage laws were falling into the court like snowflakes.
Shen Lanxi sat in the high seat and said coldly, "Don't any of you have daughters at home?"
Shen Lanxi raised her hand and pulled a memorial from the table.
"Zhao Sheng, the Grand Master of the Imperial Sacrifices, you have three daughters. Two of them are already engaged, aren't they?"
The minister whose name was called immediately stood up, bowed, and said, "Reporting to the Regent, it is indeed him."
Shen Lanxi: "You wrote in your memorial that I favor women and harm the interests of men. I ask you, has it harmed your interests?"
Zhao Sheng remained silent.
Shen Lanxi: "Besides your three daughters, you also have two sons, both of whom are married and married daughters of officials. Do you dare to ask me to announce the contents of the memorial in court?"
Zhao Sheng's leg trembled, and he was about to collapse to the ground.
"When you say 'harming men's interests,' are you referring to harming your son's interests or your own?"
"Do you dare say that your son can use his daughter-in-law's dowry at will?"
"Do you dare say that your family would take out your daughter-in-law's dowry and confiscate it?"
"Do you dare say that if your daughter-in-law passes away, her entire dowry will belong to your family?"
Do you dare?
Shen Lanxi handed the memorial to Wang Bao: "Read it!"
Zhao Sheng could no longer stand and collapsed to his knees with a thud.
Wang Bao read aloud from the document: "The Regent King's proposal to amend the marriage law is a violation of the very foundation of our Great Zhou Dynasty. In our Great Zhou, men are revered and women are subordinate. The marriage law should prioritize men. Men go out to support their families, which is hard and arduous, while women sit at home doing nothing, enjoying the fruits of men's labor and being supported by them. Therefore, once a woman dies, her dowry should rightfully belong to the man to make up for the loss."
“When a man betroths a woman to his wife, the dowry is a way of severing ties with her family. After that, whatever the woman does in her husband's family, her family cannot interfere, and it has nothing to do with her family!”
"The seven grounds for divorce from a woman should not be changed. It is a woman's natural duty to serve her mother-in-law and raise her children after marriage. If a woman cannot bear children or cannot give birth to a son to continue the family line, she has committed one of the seven grounds for divorce and can be disposed of by her husband's family at will!"
"Marrying a wife and taking a concubine are natural ethical practices. When a man takes a concubine, his wife must not interfere. She must fulfill her responsibility to continue the family line and actively help her husband's family take concubines..."
Some people quit.
"Pah! Zhao Sheng, you're shameless!"
"Zhao Sheng, you are shameless and despicable! How dare you belittle women like this? Don't you have a mother or a daughter?"
"If I don't beat you to death today, I'll be letting down the women in my family!"
Ji Xiuran raised his scepter and slapped it on Zhao Sheng's head.
"Hey, stop him, stop him..."
The ministers quickly pulled Ji Xiuran back from fighting Zhao Sheng to the death.
Ji Xiuran is now the headmistress of a women's academy. He has only three daughters and his doting on his wife and daughters is well-known in the capital.
Zhao Sheng has met his match.
The scepter didn't hit him on the head because they reacted quickly enough!
Wang Bao stopped speaking, closed the memorial, and covered his mouth to chuckle.
After watching the commotion for a while, Shen Lanxi spoke up to stop it.
Why did Lord Zhao sit down on the ground?
"Quickly, get up! It's such a mess, don't step on Lord Zhao."
"Is Lord Zhao tired, unwell, or perhaps feeling guilty?"
Zhao Sheng's face had long since lost all color. So many people were impeaching Shen Lanxi, why was his memorial the only one chosen to be read?
Heaven is going to destroy him!
"Your Highness, spare me! I only... I only..."
Shen Lanxi chuckled: "You're just speaking your mind."
"No, that's not what I meant. I just saw... I saw others submitting memorials, and if I didn't comply, I was afraid of being ostracized." Zhao Sheng's voice grew softer and softer as he spoke, and he became more and more uneasy.
Shen Lanxi scoffed dismissively: "What the court needs are capable ministers who can offer insightful opinions, not empty yes-men who are merely filling positions."
"Zhao Sheng, you are unable to distinguish right from wrong and have disrupted the order of the court. You are to go home and reflect on your actions for one year, and be demoted two ranks. If you still cannot distinguish right from wrong after one year, you will no longer be required to attend court."
Zhao Sheng regrets it! He shouldn't have listened to what others said.
A year... If he returns a year later, will he still have a place in the court?
Zhao Sheng was thrown out of the court by the Imperial Guards like a dead dog.
In less than an hour, in the teahouses and storytellers of the capital, Zhao Sheng had been utterly denigrated.
"Pah! He dares to look down on women?"
"Getting carried away, have you forgotten who's sitting up there?"
"Did he spring from a crack in a rock?"
"Being their daughter-in-law is the worst luck imaginable..."
That wasn't all. Zhao Sheng's two daughters-in-law started arguing for divorce that very day, and the groom's family even sent back the betrothal gifts that had already been arranged for his daughter.
The once-prominent Grand Master of the Imperial Sacrifices, in less than a day, became a crumbling wall that everyone was pushing down.
...
"Not only marriage laws, but also the laws of our Great Zhou have many imperfections. In the future, we will have to rely on all the court officials to discuss and agree on them. As the old saying goes, it is a great virtue to know one's mistakes and correct them. The laws of the past may no longer be applicable now. Even the ancient sages knew to make changes, so we should not be bound by them. Do you all agree?"
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