Although Wei Zhongxian had secretly harbored disloyal intentions.
They wanted to change the emperor again.
However, on the surface, he dared not disregard Zhu Youjian's orders in the slightest.
After receiving the emperor's decree, he led his men to the Jinyiwei prison that very night and took Zhou Yanru away.
At the court meeting the next day, Wei Zhongxian proudly led Zhou Yanru into the hall.
Although only one night had passed, Zhou Yanru's condition had completely collapsed.
Ignoring the angry glares from the court officials, Wei Zhongxian kicked Zhou Yanru in the back.
"Traitor, why don't you kneel down and pay your respects to His Majesty?"
Even during the reign of Emperor Tianqi, when Wei Zhongxian's power was at its peak, this was still considered a significant period.
If Wei Zhongxian dared to treat Zhou Yanru like that, Zhou Yanru would definitely fight him to the bitter end.
But this time, Zhou Yanru knelt down.
Moreover, they almost completely followed Wei Zhongxian's wishes.
"Your Majesty, this humble subject pays his respects."
His obedient manner surprised Zhu Youjian.
What's going on?
But before he could ask any questions, Wei Zhongxian had already produced a memorial.
Instead of handing the memorial to Zhu Youjian, he read it aloud.
“Your Majesty, this is the confession I obtained from Zhou Yanru during my interrogation last night.”
"Listen to this! He's utterly wicked!"
Wei Zhongxian's skill in fabricating charges against people was already unparalleled.
He was particularly adept at dealing with the Donglin Party.
The "Donglin Generals' List" he compiled back then was just like this.
Now they're copying this approach and using it to deal with Zhou Yanru.
"Your Majesty, this Zhou Yanru is utterly depraved. In the few years he has served in the court, he has embezzled over ten million taels of silver and five hundred thousand ingots of gold."
"There are also more than three thousand boxes of jewelry, antiques, and jade!"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Youjian could hardly contain himself.
He was young after all, and although he disliked the Donglin Party, he wanted to find a way in through Zhou Yanru.
But he still felt that this kind of fabrication was a bit too outrageous.
Moreover, Wei Zhongxian, you've made such exaggerated claims. What if the Donglin Party shrugs at you and asks where Zhou Yanru's ill-gotten gains went? How would you explain that?
Zhu Youjian frowned and said, "How could Zhou Yanru, a mere mortgage, embezzle so much?"
Wei Zhongxian sneered inwardly: "This little emperor is so naive."
But on the surface, he bowed respectfully.
"Your Majesty, all of what this old servant has said is supported by witnesses and physical evidence!"
He was about to clap his hands and summon the evidence.
However, the Donglin Party members all scoffed.
"Wei Zhongxian, don't try to play these tricks on us!"
"Who doesn't know that you have many disciples and followers, and that you can easily fabricate false evidence and find false witnesses?"
"We won't ask anything else, we'll only ask you one thing."
"You say Zhou Yanru embezzled, but what about the silver and jewels? Did you eat them all?"
They indeed had the same idea as Zhu Youjian.
Zhu Youjian's heart tightened, and he looked directly at Wei Zhongxian.
But Wei Zhongxian remained calm and unhurried.
"Heh, you're asking me where the money went? You Donglin Party members, you've been with Zhou Yanru all this time, don't you know?"
He said in a stern voice:
"According to my investigation, Zhou Yanru is not only extremely greedy, but he's also incredibly extravagant with money!"
"It is said that every morning he would boil three hundred chickens to make a small bowl of chicken soup to rinse his mouth."
"This alone costs 100,000 taels of silver every year."
"Other expenses are countless!"
"He has already spent most of those ten million taels of silver."
"As for the remaining silver, I have already sent someone to deliver it to the palace."
Upon hearing these words, the Donglin Party members were dumbfounded.
"Wei Zhongxian, don't you even bother to think before you start making up lies?"
When does Zhou Yanru rinse his mouth with chicken soup?
"Besides, the chicken soup from these three hundred chickens must weigh several hundred pounds. Do you know how much effort it would take to simmer it down to just a small bowl?"
However, Wei Zhongxian seized the opportunity to strike.
"You guys really reminded me. It seems Zhou Yanru spends quite a bit on firewood."
The Donglin Party members were so angry they almost twisted their noses when they heard this.
They stared at Zhou Yanru, who was kneeling on the ground.
"Lord Zhou, Wei Zhongxian has slandered you so severely, why don't you refute him at all?"
However, Zhou Yanru nodded and agreed.
"Lord Wei is right. I am indeed such a treacherous minister. I deserve to die."
This was unacceptable not only to the Donglin Party, but also to Zhu Youjian, who frowned deeply.
"What methods did Wei Zhongxian use to make Zhou Yanru so obedient to him?"
But at that moment, Wei Zhongxian did not stop talking; he gave Qian Qianyi a wink.
Qian Qianyi coughed and stepped forward.
Upon seeing this, the Donglin Party members immediately felt relieved.
"Good! Lord Qian has finally stood up for us!"
"With Lord Qian stepping in, I'd like to see if Wei Zhongxian still dares to distort the truth!"
Qian Qianyi walked up to Zhou Yanru.
"Lord Zhou, is what Wei Zhongxian said true or not?"
"This is the imperial court, and His Majesty is watching."
"Don't worry, just tell the truth."
Zhou Yanru shuddered and shook his head repeatedly.
"Lord Wei is right, he's right..."
Seeing Zhou Yanru's appearance, anyone who isn't a fool would know that something was definitely up.
The Donglin officials were overjoyed.
"Haha, Lord Qian will definitely point this out and argue with Wei Zhongxian on the spot!"
"That's right, Lord Zhou does sometimes embezzle a little money, but how could he possibly embezzle tens of millions? This is pure slander!"
"Besides, can we Donglin Party members be called greedy for money? It's because we want to better serve the imperial court."
"After all, how can we offer advice and suggestions to the Ming Dynasty if we are constantly worried about money?"
They all had smiles on their faces.
But the next moment, when Qian Qianyi opened his mouth, they were all stunned.
"Huh? What is Lord Qian talking about?"
It turned out that when Qian Qianyi spoke, he actually echoed Wei Zhongxian.
"Since Lord Zhou himself has said so, it seems that the situation is indeed the case."
"Oh, Lord Zhou, how could I have seen through your true colors before?"
"To serve in the same court as a treacherous official like you is truly a disgrace to me!"
Qian Qianyi beat his chest and stamped his feet in frustration.
"You dare call yourself a member of the Donglin Party?"
"You have utterly disgraced Donglin!"
The Donglin officials exchanged glances, all of them looking bewildered.
"What exactly do you mean by that, Lord Qian?"
"How did he end up siding with Wei Zhongxian?"
But soon, a brilliant idea struck him.
"I understand now, this must have been done on purpose by Lord Qian!"
He lowered his voice and said to the Donglin Party members around him:
"The young emperor is ignorant of right and wrong and has certainly believed Wei Zhongxian's words."
“Going against Wei Zhongxian head-on at this point will not end well.”
"Why not just go along with him for now and let Wei Zhongxian, that eunuch, lower his guard?"
"This way, we'll have a chance to find Wei Zhongxian's weaknesses!"
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