I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 61: The crime is determined before the person arrives! Night trial in the imperial prison
Three days later.

Under the handwritten instructions of the young Emperor Wanli, Zhang Juzheng returned to the cabinet, and Zhang Siwei and Zhang Han also returned to work.

Many officials who are well versed in the ways of officialdom have already predicted the final outcome of Liu Tai's impeachment of the teacher.

……

February 5th, afternoon.

Wearing shackles and with messy hair, the 38-year-old Liu Tai was taken to the Northern Pacification Prison.

The imperial prison cells were dark and smelly.

From time to time, you can see huge mice crawling under the hay, making "squeaking" sounds while biting.

But Liu Tai held his chest straight.

He felt that he had done something unprecedented and shocking, something that would go down in history.

He imagined—

this moment.

The censors in the capital must have been submitting petitions to plead for him, and some even followed him in impeaching the powerful prime minister Zhang Juzheng.

After all, Zhang Juzheng had suppressed the censors for a long time, and his impeachment memorials were so reasonable and well-founded.

this moment.

Some officials who admire him must have prepared wine and food and will come to visit him soon.

After all, Fu Yingzhen's indirect attacks attracted four people to visit him, and his frank and loyal advice should attract more like-minded people.

this moment.

The emperor may have been prepared to try him personally, and he had prepared long and righteous speeches, such as: I would rather have my head cut off to wake the world, I would rather be killed by an axe than stop my voice of remonstration, I would not regret it even if I died nine times, etc.

As a censor, he could speak these words all day long without repeating himself.

There was another extremely important reason why Liu Tai was not afraid at all.

He was certain that Zhang Juzheng would not kill him.

Even if the emperor wanted to beat him to death, Zhang Juzheng would plead for him.

This is not because Zhang Juzheng was kind, but because the censor who was beaten to death will be recorded in history, and his last advice will definitely be regarded as the truth by future generations.

This would make Zhang Juzheng infamous for eternity.

He's gambling.

He bet that after this ordeal, his reputation for honesty would spread throughout the world, and even if he was deposed or exiled, the imperial court would certainly reinstate him.

Unfortunately, he thought too much!
The moment Zhang Juzheng returned to the cabinet, no official would dare to see him anymore.

Liu Tai did two things wrong.

First, he named and impeached the master's mentor.

This is an extremely illegal act, and can even be considered treasonous. After visiting him, how can I face my teachers in the future?

Second, Liu Tai’s character is flawed and far inferior to Fu Yingzhen.

Just last year, a great victory took place in Liaodong. The Governor Zhang Xueyan should have been the one to announce the good news, but Liu Tai, the Liaodong Inspector and Censor of the seventh rank, got there first.

This made Zhang Xueyan very angry, and Zhang Juzheng also severely criticized him.

From this we can see that Liu Tai is not a person who acts completely impartially.

……

Near dusk, Review Hall.

Shen Nian sat at the table, thinking about Liu Tai's impeachment of his teacher.

From the moment Zhang Juzheng returned to the cabinet, he had anticipated the outcome of this matter.

The interrogation in the imperial prison was simply a process.

The final result must be that the young Wanli demanded severe punishment and Zhang Juzheng pleaded for leniency and a reduced sentence.

After a tussle between the two sides, Liu Tai was spared and the matter was over.

in this way.

It not only reflects the young Wanli's importance to Zhang Juzheng, but also demonstrates Zhang Juzheng's kindness.

This drama was performed for all the officials of the Ming Dynasty, especially the censors.

Before the young Wanli took power, Zhang Juzheng's position was absolutely as stable as Mount Tai and could not be shaken.

But Shen Nian didn't want to let the matter pass in such a muddled way.

If this is the case, there will definitely be a group of officials like Fu Yingzhen and Liu Tai who will step forward in the future.

This is extremely harmful to the Ming Dynasty and the new policies.

Throughout the dynasties, censors have been tools for emperors to check and balance their ministers and consolidate imperial power.

But now.

The young Wanli Emperor was powerless, and the censors, seeking to gain a reputation for being upright, sought special promotions and impeached officials without limit, causing the officials to fear the censors more than they feared Heaven. If this unhealthy trend were not eliminated, officials would be unwilling to work.

If you don't do anything, the chances of being scolded will decrease, and after you have worked for a certain number of years, you will naturally be promoted.

If all officials behaved like this, the Ming Dynasty would soon be destroyed.

Even a powerful figure like Zhang Juzheng was tortured to tears, let alone other officials.

If we investigate the personal morality, embezzlement, and favoritism of officials today, it would be good if there are one or two without any evidence among a thousand.

The world is bad!

Honest and upright officials could not save the Ming Dynasty, only capable ministers and counselors could.

Lu Diaoyang resigned many times because he was influenced by this trend.

In recent years, few prime ministers have been able to maintain their integrity in their later years. Besides, he really cannot handle the current mess of the Ming Dynasty.

After Shen Nian thought about it carefully, he came up with an idea and decided to talk to Feng Bao.

Censors still need to be governed by the emperor.

Before leaving, he planned to find Ma Ziqiang and talk about his ideas.

It was most appropriate for this superior to support him, and it was also in line with official rules for him to report to his superior in advance.

……

Late at night, in the Northern Pacification Prison.

Liu Tai was hungry and cold, curled up in a pile of hay in the corner, half asleep and half awake.

He thought that someone would come to try him immediately after he was imprisoned, and he was prepared. He used his eloquent tongue to scold the presiding judge, turning this incident into a good story.

Unexpectedly, after the Jinyiwei threw him into the prison, no one cared about him, and there was not even anyone to bring him food or water.

Not long after.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, the cell door suddenly opened.

Two Jinyiwei dragged him into the interrogation room.

Liu Tai raised his eyes and found that the person standing in front of him was Zhou Hai, a captain of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and Feng Bao's godson. He couldn't help but curl his lips slightly.

"How can a captain like you be qualified to judge me? Quickly call the pacification envoy Cao Wei over here!"

The imperial censor of the Ming Dynasty.

He has always held a seventh-rank official position and had the airs of a third-rank official.

Liu Tai, who felt that he was the most loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty at the time, did not take Zhou Hai, a fifth-rank military general, seriously at all.

Zhou Hai smiled slightly and waved to a Jinyiwei beside him.

Suddenly.

A Jinyiwei with a tiger back, bee waist and mantis legs walked up to Liu Tai.

His palms were large and thick, and the inner palms were covered with calluses.

He held Liu Tai's chin with one hand, causing his nostrils to turn upwards, and then slapped him with the other hand.

Snapped!Snapped!
After two slaps, Liu Tai's cheeks swelled up and blood came out of the corners of his mouth.

This Jinyiwei has been a professional slapper for nearly ten years. He can ensure that while it is extremely painful, the person will not faint.

Liu Tai immediately became obedient.

Zhou Hai asked, "You are falsely accusing Prime Minister Zhang. Is it because you were reprimanded by the Prime Minister for taking credit for last year's Liaodong victory, and you also want to gain a reputation, so you speak so perversely?"

Liu Tai slowed down.

"A loyal minister is not selfish, and a selfish minister is not loyal. In my eyes, there is only the emperor and father. A powerful minister is ruining the country. Others dare not speak out, but I..."

Snapped!Snapped!
Just as Liu Tai was trying to muster up strength, he was slapped twice more, causing his cheeks to hurt and his mouth to be filled with blood foam.

"You are such a beast, you are framing my master in order to gain reputation. Bah!" Zhou Hai walked up to Liu Tai and spat on his face.

Liu Tai wanted to refute.

But looking at the slap raised to the side, he had to swallow all the words in his stomach.

"Brothers, you can take a break now. I will submit my confession tomorrow and request that the case be closed!" Zhou Hai turned around and left.

He was just going through the motions.

Before Liu Tai arrived in Beijing, Feng Bao had already arranged charges for him and had the imperial prison report him as "beating in court and exiled."

Slandering the Prime Minister is a crime.

The "imperial edict" in the imperial prison represents the emperor's order. Zhang Juzheng cannot represent the emperor's order, but Feng Bao can, and the Jinyiwei of the imperial prison can.

Liu Tai, with a confused look on his face, was thrown into jail again.

He knew that the imperial prison had never followed the rules when handling cases, but he didn't expect that even after he exposed the truth, the Jinyiwei still didn't take him seriously and didn't even listen to him.

(End of this chapter)