Inside the Dali Temple, a group of officials listened to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's proposal on the future adjustments to the Dali Temple's structure.

What Zhu Ying is best at is to paint a rosy picture for people.

That tone full of incitement made all the officials of the Dali Temple become excited, as if from now on, the power of the Dali Temple would be close to that of the Ministry of Justice, and even to a large extent, would far exceed that of the Ministry of Justice.

All prefectures and county towns must have courts affiliated to the Dali Temple, forming a complete independent system that is only responsible to the emperor.

"Among all these, the most important thing is the legal provisions, which must be detailed and specific. Only in this way can we handle the case according to the law when a case occurs or relevant personnel violate the laws of the Ming Dynasty."

"The current Ming Dynasty laws mainly use severe punishment as the main method of handling cases. Now, we need to change direction. As the saying goes, a prodigal son who returns is worth more than gold. In the future, the means of punishment, especially in the criminal law, will mainly be forced labor."

"The number of exiles and death sentences should be reduced. Depending on the severity of the crime, three to thirty years of hard labor should be imposed. We need to study the extent of this."

Zhu Ying said slowly.

He had his considerations for choosing the Dali Temple instead of the Ministry of Justice.

The current Dali Temple is undoubtedly in decline and has lost the glory it had during the Sui and Tang dynasties.

At first, various criminal cases were handed over to the Dali Temple for trial, and then reviewed by the Ministry of Justice, so the Minister of Justice was of a higher rank.

When it came to Zhu Yuanzhang, because of the six-department system, the trial was first conducted by the Ministry of Justice and then reviewed by the Dali Temple.

From a procedural point of view, there is no difference, but it involves the rule of man.

The Minister of Justice is of the second rank, and the Minister of Dali Temple is of the third rank. This difference in rank is like a world of difference. In a sense, under the same authority, the Dali Temple has become a subordinate agency similar to the Ministry of Justice.

When the results of the case in the Ministry of Justice came out, you dared to object? Isn't this disrespectful to your superiors? Do you want the Minister of Justice to teach you a lesson?

As the saying goes, a higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking official. To a large extent, the Dali Temple has now become a leisurely government office.

The Left and Right Censors-in-Chief of the Censorate were both of the second rank.

By this calculation, the three judicial departments can no longer form a three-power system, leaving only the Ministry of Justice and the Censorate to fight each other.

After knowing all this, Zhu Ying turned his attention to the Dali Temple.

Because in a leisurely government office like this, usually only people who are frustrated will come here to work. Their life experience is relatively clean, and their clan background will not be too complicated.

When it is easier to control, you can also quickly develop your own trusted forces to enter.

The laws that Zhu Ying is explaining now are, in fact, to a large extent, close to the foundation of the laws of the previous life. The biggest benefit of making the officials of the Dali Temple, or the courts in the future, independent from the existing bureaucratic system is that it curbs the source of mutual protection among officials.

This included the selection of scholars, which was also done through the new imperial examination system rather than through recommendations.

This means that under Zhu Ying's arrangement, all officials entering the Dali Temple in the future can only do so by passing the imperial examination law assessment.

This can largely prevent the Dali Temple from being invaded.

The essence of mutual protection among officials still comes from blood ties and the protective relationship between clans.

And recommendation is the biggest drawback among them.

For example, the son of the Minister of Justice can enter the court through recommendation, even if his knowledge is not very good.

An invisible generational inheritance will be formed among officials.

This is a very bad thing, because the officials who are recommended will consciously form a group and naturally reject and suppress the officials who are appointed through the imperial examination.

It is said that even though you have studied hard for ten years, how can you compare with the efforts of several generations of mine.

If officials who take the imperial examination want to do well, they can only integrate into the same situation and become a part of it.

Thinking about it this way, the court in the future will be so terrifying.

In fact, in the late Ming Dynasty, the so-called Donglin Party and various so-called cliques meant exactly this.

The imperial examination system became a joke and a tool for these cliques to recruit members.

What Zhu Ying needs to do is to eliminate this possibility at the source.

Normal relationships are inevitable, but if they form large groups, it will endanger the foundation of the entire Ming Dynasty.

Currently, most of the officials in the Dali Temple are frustrated, or have simple and straightforward personalities. They are being excluded but have no ability to resist.

However, they had high levels of education, and most of them entered the officialdom through the imperial examination.

Under such circumstances, the appearance of Zhu Ying was undoubtedly a great blessing for all the officials of the Dali Temple.

"We will follow your instructions and do our best to complete your orders."

Li Tingwei, the Minister of Dali Temple, knelt down and bowed his head in tears of gratitude.

The officials behind him were also extremely excited, and many even shed tears of joy in their eyes.

With just a simple move, which took less than half an hour and without any sweet talk, Zhu Ying had taken control of the entire Dali Temple.

Zhu Yunwen was watching the whole thing from the side and was stunned.

"So this is how you slowly built up your power, big brother? This is simply terrifying."

Zhu Yunwen certainly couldn't understand the rules and regulations of the Three Judicial Departments. If he could understand them, he wouldn't have lost his throne and ended up with an unknown fate in history.

From Zhu Yunwen's perspective, he just felt that his elder brother was simply amazing, as if he had an air of dominance. He said a few simple words and these officials of the Dali Temple burst into tears, feeling that they had met a wise leader.

It seems a little fake, but also a little real.

In Zhu Yunwen's view, the Dali Temple was still very powerful. After all, for the Ming Dynasty, the Dali Temple was also a very important department.

Judging from the current situation, all the current Dali Temple officials are completely loyal to the eldest brother.

"I once wanted to fight with my elder brother, but it seems that I was being reckless. Mother was right. Compared with my elder brother, my ability is just like a firefly compared to the bright moon."

"Grandpa Emperor once taught us that only by knowing ourselves and the enemy can we win every battle. If I had known that Big Brother would be like this, I should have supported him right away. I'm sure Big Brother would have a good impression of me."

"My mother's words are still reliable. If you can't beat them, then join them. This is the true way of doing things."

Zhu Yunwen's mind was distracted, and he recalled all the resentment he had felt in the past, which had now turned into a breeze and dissipated.

Instead, there was a growing admiration for the eldest brother.

After all, Zhu Yunwen is still a 15-year-old boy. The idea that an elder brother is like a father is deeply rooted in Confucian education. Now the eldest brother's performance is enough to make people amazed.

The changes in Zhu Yunwen's heart were actually very normal.

"I am very busy with my affairs, and I cannot stay here all the time to deal with the new laws. From now on, I will let Yun Wen be in charge of the laws. Please treat them well and do not slack off."

"The revision of the law is the first step, and it is also the most important step in embodying the rule of law in the Ming Dynasty. I think everyone present here should know that only by completing this step well can we forge a true rule of law."

After that, Zhu Ying advised Zhu Yunwen: "Yunwen, you have worked hard during this period. Familiarize yourself with the laws, especially the civil law I told you about before. This is the most important thing. It concerns the livelihoods of 60 million people in my Ming Dynasty. It is not a trivial matter."

"Don't take it lightly. I'm placing the burden of these 60 million people on your shoulders."

Zhu Yunwen was shocked when he heard this.

It turns out that my elder brother cares about and values ​​me so much.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yunwen's voice was choked with sobs, but he bowed firmly and said, "Don't worry, elder brother. I will certainly live up to your trust."

Zhu Ying held Zhu Yunwen's hands and said in a deep voice: "Brother, I believe in you."

…

In the Prince of Yan's Palace, Zhu Di had just returned.

For the princes, after the morning court session, there was basically nothing to do that day.

However, Zhu Di was naturally very unhappy now, especially after hearing what Prince of Jin Zhu Gang said to him after the court session.

It was obvious that although this was secretly proposed by his eldest nephew, Zhu Gang did not really want to let him go.

"It seems that my nephew will not let me go so easily. I will probably have to stay in the capital for a long time."

Thinking of this, Zhu Di couldn't help but feel a little anxious. Now that Daoyan was gone, he was like a person without ears and eyes in the capital, and it was difficult for him to get a lot of information.

Daoyan had his own connections in the capital before, so it was very convenient for him to get information. Although Zhu Di knew some of the arrangements, Daoyan had now joined his eldest nephew, so he naturally did not dare to use those people.

"What happened in the capital is not a big deal. The key lies in the palace. I have to write a letter and ask Yihua to come and help me."

After much thought, Zhu Di thought of his wife Xu Yihua.

Xu Yihua was gifted and chaste since childhood. She loved reading and was a female Confucian scholar, known as a "female scholar".

Moreover, when she was very young, Xu Yihua entered the palace to serve Empress Ma, and she had a very good relationship with Zhu Yuanzhang and many concubines in the harem.

She was deeply loved by Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma.

Now all Zhu Di could think of was that only if she came over could she be of greater help to him.

Thinking of this, Zhu Di did not hesitate and called Ma He, saying: "You are the person I trust the most. Now you should go to Beiping quickly and tell him to ask his wife to come to the capital."

Ma He, also known as Zheng He in later generations, had always been loyal to Zhu Di. Hearing this, he did not hesitate at all: "Please rest assured, Your Highness. I will go there immediately."

After Ma He left, Zhu Di was still a little worried about the dinner.

At present, there is no news from his eldest nephew, which makes Zhu Di very passive. He can only vaguely guess that it is related to the treatment of the vassal kings.

After a while, even after changing several cups of tea, he suddenly thought of his eldest son.

He summoned the housekeeper of Prince Yan's mansion and asked, "Where has the eldest prince gone? Why has he disappeared without a trace?"

The butler quickly replied, "Your Highness, the eldest prince went to the Gunpowder Department early in the morning these two days."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Di shouted angrily: "This idiot, don't you see what kind of moral character he has? How can he control firearms?"

Zhu Di felt more and more worried about his eldest son Zhu Gaochi. He originally said that apart from his obesity, he was smart and honest in other aspects. He had made it very clear last time and asked him to contact Zhu Ying to get some information.

As a result, this guy went to the Gunpowder Department instead.

Thinking of this, Zhu Di suppressed his anger and ordered: "Send a message immediately, and ask this rebellious son to return to the palace immediately."

Faced with the angry Prince of Yan, the butler did not dare to delay and hurried down to pass on the order.

"This bastard is so stupid."

Zhu Di said with some annoyance.

At this moment, Zhu Gang had also arrived at the Prince of Qin's Mansion.

In fact, it was not just Zhu Di, Zhu Gang, the King of Qin, Zhu Gang, the King of Jin, but also Zhu Su, the King of Zhou, Zhu Zhen, the King of Chu, Zhu Gui, the King of Qi, Zhu Chun, the King of Shu, and Zhu Bai, the King of Xiang, who were all feeling somewhat anxious.

The current batch is the first batch of vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty.

Among them, Zhu Su, the King of Zhou, may not have too many ideas, and Zhu Bo, the King of Xiang, probably doesn't care either.

Others have a lot more thoughts in their minds.

The same was true of Zhu Chong, the Prince of Qin, and Zhu Gang, the Prince of Jin.

Although they felt that their relationship with their eldest nephew was okay, when it came to matters like monarch, subject, and vassal king, some relationships could be completely ignored.

After the court meeting, Zhu Gang followed his second brother directly to the Prince of Qin's Palace.

"Second brother, you said that the eldest nephew suddenly proposed that we, the princes who have already been enfeoffed, should have a chat together. What exactly does this mean?"

Zhu Gang took a sip of tea and asked impatiently.

The King of Qin, who was sitting opposite him, also had a thoughtful look on his face.

However, judging from his appearance alone, the current King of Qin Zhu Chong can be said to have been reborn.

Since the execution of his second concubine, Deng, the King of Qin gradually came out of his grief. Without the evil woman around him, Zhu Chong naturally had his own ideas in many aspects.

Deep down, Zhu Chong was actually still reluctant to let go of his second concubine, and even couldn't stop thinking about her, but since she was dead, there was nothing he could do.

But now Zhu Chong's interest has gradually shifted away from women.

Especially before, with the help of Zhu Ying, he was arranged to go to Sichuan to lead the army to suppress the rebellion of Yuru Timur.

Zhu Chong had a strong military talent. As the second son of Zhu Yuanzhang, he also had a unique advantage in education. In addition, he was entangled in the execution of his second concubine, so all his resentment was directly directed at Yuru Timur.

In less than half a month, Yulectemur was captured alive.

Zhu Chong was a vassal king and the leader of all the kings. However, he ignored Yuru Temur's request for mercy and executed him directly.

Then, he took advantage of the rebellion to vent his anger on these natives.

Finally, it was Prince of Shu Zhu Chun who came and the situation stopped. Then, he and his eleventh brother, Prince of Shu Zhu Chun, returned to the capital to attend the enthronement ceremony of their eldest nephew.

After experiencing these things, Zhu Chong, whose eyes now reveal a gleam of light, finally has the temperament of a leader among the kings.

After hearing what his third brother, Prince of Jin Zhu Gang, said, Zhu Gang thought for a moment and said, "The issue of the vassal kings is something that my father and my eldest nephew have always been concerned about. In history, vassal kings who held great power have never had a good ending."

"I think my nephew's intention this time is probably to have a good talk with us on this issue and handle the vassal king issue in a friendly way."

After hearing this, Zhu Gang said anxiously, "Could it be that my nephew wants to take back our military power?"