Ming Jiajing: Starting from Immortality

Chapter 247 Non-stick pan, suicide behind the scenes!

Jinling.

Governor's Palace.

Hai Rui and Zhao Zhenji, the two successive governors-general of Southern Zhili, completed the handover of government affairs.

In the midst of the mountain of government affairs, Zhao Zhenji pretended to look around, looked at Hai Rui who was sitting there with his eyes closed and sleeping, and asked, "Why can't I find the case files about the Kaihua Coal Mine explosion and the Dexing Copper Mine collapse?"

Wang Yongji and Xu Wei were standing on the left and right sides of Hai Rui's seat. Wang Yongji was the official in charge of the mining disasters and civil unrest in the two counties. He immediately replied, "Governor, the incidents in Kaihua and Dexing happened last year. The matter was taken over by the ministers and has not yet been filed."

The answer is simple.

The mining disaster and civil unrest both occurred last year when Hai Rui was in office, so they should have been handled by Hai Rui.

Zhao Zhenji is an official this year, and when he handed over government affairs, he was unable to hand over last year's affairs.

Zhao Zhenji stared at Hai Rui and said, "But the court wants..."

Hai Rui stood up at this time and continued, "The court's intention is that they can control me, Hai Rui, but they can't control the emperor's sword."

Xu Wei took a step forward, holding the Emperor's Sword in his arms.

The emperor's intention.

It is always above the court's will.

Zhao Zhenji's eyes turned to the sword involuntarily, and he felt inexplicably blinded by it.

This sword became the nightmare of all Ming Dynasty officials in Jiangnan during the 40th year of Jiajing's reign, making them feel suffocated.

Zhao Zhenji didn't want to see it for a moment, so he said to Wang Yongji and Xu Wei, "Governor Wang, Mr. Xu, if you have nothing else to do, you may as well leave here first. I have something important to discuss with the Minister."

The two looked at Hai Rui, but Hai Rui waved his hand and said, "Go ahead."

He brought out the Emperor's Sword only to find a reasonable excuse for handling the case. At other times, Hai Rui was better at convincing people with reason.

Wang Yongji and Xu Wei obeyed the order and left.

The Emperor's Sword is not here.

Zhao Zhenji suddenly felt that even his breathing became smoother, and said, "Mr. Minister, Yang Bo, the Minister of Personnel of the imperial court, asked me to send his regards to you."

Before this, Zhao Zhenji had several contacts with Hai Rui, but facing Hai Rui, he always felt deeply powerless.

Everything was done according to the emperor's will and the law, so there was nothing to find fault with. Moreover, Hai Rui was a higher-ranking official than him, so if he wanted to use his power to suppress others, he could only bring in someone more senior.

The Minister of Personnel of the imperial court, Lord Tianguan, Yang Bo.

The eunuchs in the court have been up and down for decades, and their students and former officials are all over the world.

Hear the words.

Hai Rui looked at him indifferently.

Yang Bo is one of the Nine Ministers. Doesn’t that mean Hai Rui is not one of the Nine Ministers?
Although the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites have different powers, there is no hierarchy between them.

No matter whether it is the heavenly official of the Ministry of Personnel or the earthly official of the Ministry of Revenue, as long as they have no desires or demands, they will stand shoulder to shoulder.

Using Yang Bo's power to try to suppress him, Zhao Zhenji must have been confused after traveling all night, right?
Seeing Hai Rui was indifferent, Zhao Zhenji's face suddenly turned red and he felt a little hot. The things he revered from the bottom of his heart were not worth mentioning in the eyes of others.

After all, he was Xu Jie's disciple. He didn't have to learn anything, but he had to learn to be thick-skinned. Zhao Zhenji quickly adjusted his mindset and attitude and said, "Sir, can you let me see the confessions of the magistrates of Kaihua and Dexing counties that you interrogated?"

The matter was of great importance, and after Sun Yat-sen signed the confession, Hai Rui put it into his sleeve. Zhao Zhenji wanted to know what was inside and then solve the problem.

Hai Rui did not refuse. He took out the confession and placed it on the table. Zhao Zhenji stood in the middle, opened his eyes wide, and read it word by word.

Hai Rui sat quietly in the chair waiting for him to finish reading the confession.

After reading the confession, Zhao Zhenji raised his head, his eyes were heavy, and after a long while, he slowly said: "I think this confession cannot be submitted to the court."

look?

What do you think is the use?

As the Governor-General of Southern Zhili, does it matter what you see or say in front of me, the incoming Minister of Rites?
Hai Rui closed his eyes and rested, not even thinking of speaking.

This was not contempt, but disregard, which made Zhao Zhenji anxious. He said, "Minister, what would happen if such a confession was handed over to the imperial cabinet? What would happen if the Imperial Household Department read it? How would it be reported to the emperor?"

"Report the truth and let it be what it is." Hai Rui said coldly.

"You are too extreme!"

Zhao Zhenji seemed very excited, and his tone became fierce. He said to Hai Rui: "I know that you are a man of integrity, who cares about the country and the people! But you are not the only one in the Ming Dynasty who cares about the country and the people!
The officials in the ministry must have known about the "Four Remonstrants of Yue" and the "Three Sons of Wuwu". They were all upright ministers who dared to submit impeachment memorials to the emperor when Yan Song and his son were at the peak of their power.

After these seven people angered Yan Song and his son, who saved them? It was Minister Yang who risked his life to save them.

Yang Junmin deserved to be put to death, but his father Yang Shangshu should not have been implicated.

Corruption, abuse of power, drunkenness and sex were the habits of Yang Junmin. What does this have to do with Shangshu Yang?
Secondly, the cases in Kaihua and Dexing must not involve the palace or the emperor. Once the emperor is involved, he will be furious and a new earthquake in the officialdom of Jiangnan will come.

"Mr. Minister, you can follow the rules or take a lighter approach. Don't you understand this principle?"

"I am not one of the 'Four Advisers of Yuezhong', nor am I one of the 'Three Sons of Wuwu'. My surname is Hai, my given name is Rui, my courtesy name is Ruzhen, and my pseudonym is Gangfeng."

At this point, Hai Rui stood up and said, "I am only a scholar, born in a barbarian island. Without the support of the emperor, I would not even be able to become a seventh-rank county magistrate. At most, I would serve as a teacher in Nanping for a short period of time and then go home to take care of my mother.

I have only been to the capital city once, when I was preparing for an imperial examination. Even though it was only that one time, I knew it was a place full of treacherous terrain.

Even the emperor once said that there are no treacherous ministers in the court, only loyal ministers. However, everyone also knows that many court officials are treacherous but appear loyal.

Yan Song and his son were treacherous, but were the officials who participated in the impeachment really so clean? Were the officials who risked their lives to save them really so selfless and fearless?

I don't know anyone in the Golden Palace, and I don't recognize anyone. I don't know who is loyal and who is treacherous. All I can do is to do my job conscientiously."

Hai Rui's voice also became more excited, and his tone rose a little, "Yang Junmin came to Zhejiang in July and became the prefect of Quzhou Prefecture. It has been less than half a year now, but what he did can only be described in four words: shocking!
There are twelve mines in one prefecture, and each mine has a shareholder. The value of the mines, including embezzlement and bribery, is millions!
There are also land taxes, salt and iron taxes, and canal dam projects. If they are investigated, there will be no telling how much corruption has been embezzled!
Perhaps, Yang Bo was unaware of Yang Junmin's greed and extravagance, but as a great scholar, don't you know that 'raising a child but not educating him is the fault of the father'?
If Yang Bo was in the court and was truly not corrupt, did not abuse power, did not indulge in wine and women, and was a loyal minister dedicated to saving the country, I believe that the emperor, with his great grace, would certainly show leniency to him, and the cause of enlightenment and prosperity would stop with Yang Junmin.

But if it weren't for what I said, Yang Bo, you deserve to die!"

Say it.

Hai Rui put away the confession and turned away. This confession, along with the secret report impeaching the eunuch of the Zhejiang Mining Bureau, would be delivered to the capital by the Jinyiwei.

Zhao Zhenji stood there in a daze.

He was always eloquent, but in front of the upright and selfless Hai Rui, he was speechless. Today, he finally understood what it meant to be upright.

Since the task entrusted by the Minister of Personnel was not completed, Zhao Zhenji had no choice but to write a letter to apologize and have it delivered to the capital.

……

a few days later.

The letter was first delivered to Yang Junshi, and then delivered to Yang Bo by Yang Junshi.

"Beast!" Yang Bo cursed after reading the important parts of Sun Yat-sen's confession written by Zhao Zhenji in the letter.

Power, money, and sex, there is no rebellious son who is not greedy for them. Once the facts are verified, the death of the eldest son is not a big deal, but he will also be implicated, and the whole family will be buried with him. Why did they give birth to such a beast in the first place?

The corners of Yang Junshi's mouth twitched slightly. Although he couldn't speak, he had to say that his old father scolding his elder brother like this was not good for him or the family.

Zhang Siwei, the Minister of Public Administration, was standing nearby. Seeing that the party leader was unsteady on his feet, he quickly stepped forward to support him and stroked his back: "Mr. Yang, Mr. Yang, don't worry, don't worry, things are not yet irreversible..."

The Minister of Public Administration was also one of the Nine Ministers of the imperial court, and they were of the same rank. Out of respect, Zhang Siwei called Yang Bo "Old Yang" in private.

Yang Bo slowly stopped shaking, but his eyes were still fixed on the letter on the desk in front of him, muttering to himself, "A lifetime of fame! A lifetime of fame! It's ruined just like that!"

When the killing was most intense.

All officials appointed by the court thought about their own death, and Yang Bo was no exception. However, Yang Bo had thought of countless ways to die, but he had never thought that he would be implicated and killed by his eldest son when the court was gradually calming down.

Such a death is too miserable.

Zhang Siwei continued to stroke Yang Bo's back while gently reminding him, "Hai Rui used the Emperor's Sword to investigate the mining disaster and civil unrest in the two counties all night long. Although this step was hard to imagine, didn't you, Mr. Yang, also expect Hai Rui to intervene in this matter and have people prepare for it?"

When Zhejiang Governor Wang Yongji escorted the magistrates of Kaihua and Dexing counties back to Nanjing, and Hai Rui did not immediately set out for Beijing because his wife had given birth, the news from Jiangnan had already reached the capital.

Yang Bo, who guessed that his eldest son had gotten into great trouble, gave orders to the Jiangnan party members as the party leader, asking them to keep an eye on the case and to silence and destroy the stolen goods as soon as Hai Rui took over the case.

When Zhang Siwei first heard that Yang Bo was going to kill his eldest son, he was a little frightened, thinking that Yang Bo was too heartless and that even a tiger would not eat its own cubs.

Now it seems that the party leader who has been able to stand firm in the court for decades is really a shrewd and calculating person.

If nothing unexpected happens, the Jinyiwei of the Nanjing Pacification Office have already gone to Quzhou Prefecture to arrest Yang Junmin.

Similarly, the Jin Party officials in Jiangnan must have been carrying out the orders of the party leader and "silencing and disposing of the stolen goods" against the party leader's son.

Next, it depends on which is faster, the Jinyiwei or the Jin Party officials.

After being reminded by Zhang Siwei, Yang Bo regained his sanity. Yes, Sun Yat-sen's confession was one-sided. Execution, confiscation of property, and extermination of the entire clan all require both confessions and physical evidence to be carried out.

If the eldest son died and all the physical evidence disappeared, he and the family would not be implicated, so there would be no need to despair so quickly.

However, Zhao Zhenji's letter had already been delivered to the capital, so Sun Yat-sen's confession, which Hai Rui had sent to the capital through the Embroidered Uniform Guard, must have already arrived at the Yuxi Palace and been reviewed by the emperor.

As the "father of the offending official", should he express his knowledge and then take the initiative to meet the emperor and apologize, or should he pretend that he doesn't know and wait for the outcome of the matter to be resolved?
Upon seeing this, Zhang Siwei gestured to Yang Junshi, and the two of them left the study together, leaving Yang Bo in deep thought.

……

Chen Hong, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department and the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Depot, secretly returned to the capital.

In the courtyard of the Silijian duty room.

"Godfather!" Chen Hong called out affectionately while the man was still at the door. He walked into the duty room and ran straight to Lu Fang who was sitting there. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times in a proper manner.

Lu Fang sat quietly, as if he didn't hear anything. After an unknown amount of time, Chen Hong, who was kneeling there, began to tremble slightly.

"How did Liu Wei die?" Lu Fang finally spoke.

These words sounded like thunder to Chen Hong's ears!
Liu Wei.

He is the chief eunuch of Zhejiang Mining Bureau.

He is Chen Hong's adopted son and also the "most capable" son under Chen Hong, and he pays countless tributes every year.

The biggest difference between eunuchs and ordinary people is that eunuchs have little family affection. Unlike Yang Bo, after knowing that Hai Rui's wife was about to give birth and was destined to be unable to leave Jiangnan immediately, in Chen Hong's heart, Liu Wei was already dead.

What happened afterwards also "confirmed" what Chen Hong thought. The document for Liu Wei to report on his work in Beijing arrived in Zhejiang. Liu Wei, who had never been good at riding horses and did not like riding horses, suddenly wanted to ride a horse back to Beijing. He fell off the horse while galloping, broke his neck and died.

After his death, the bandits that Chen Hong had developed in Jiangnan came in handy. They collected Liu Wei's body and then cremated it.

Since Liu Wei died on the road, no outsiders knew about it except the people from the East Depot.

Chen Hong didn't expect that his godfather had guessed that Liu Wei was dead before he could even open his mouth.

Chen Hong kneeled down to get in front of Lu Fang and answered respectfully, "To answer godfather's question, he fell to death."

Lu Fang looked at the childish Chen Hong and had nothing to say.

In the past few months, he sent Chen Hong out of Beijing to follow Chen Yiqin to implement the national policy of "surveying the land and distributing the land equally to the people". One reason was that Chen Hong was not in the inner court and he could have some peace and quiet, and the other was to let Chen Hong follow him to accumulate some merits.

Merit is something that is useless in most cases, but it can save a life in a critical moment.

If Chen Hong could truthfully confess his dealings with his adopted son and godson Liu Wei, reveal the inside story of the mine disaster, and hand over the dirty silver, Lu Fang felt that it would not be difficult to find a way for Chen Hong to survive in front of the emperor.

But some people just want money and not their lives, so there is nothing to say.

Lu Fang sighed softly, "You have hurried back to the capital, and you are exhausted from the journey. You haven't seen His Majesty yet. Go wash your face and change your clothes. I will take you to see His Majesty now."

Chen Hong was so frightened that he trembled: "Now, now I want to see His Majesty..."

"The civil unrest in the two counties was caused by the mining accident. Liu Wei is your adopted son. No matter whether he lives or dies, you are still his godfather and ancestor in the inner court. Since something has happened, you should tell the details to His Majesty the Emperor."

"Godfather...son..." Chen Hong was still hesitating.

Lü Fang interrupted, "Don't say anything, just get ready to see His Majesty."

(End of this chapter)