Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 84 Catch them all in one fell swoop

Inside the Wuying Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang stood with the Emperor's Sword at his waist, his face no longer smiling.

Li Shanchang dared to command all officials in the world and threaten me with the overall situation, which showed that he was sure that he had no way to deal with him.

I feel that in the face of this world situation, I can only bow my head and submit.

But...how is this possible!

Any emperor who is a little capable and has a bit of brains would never tolerate such a thing happening!

I broke it in my previous life, let alone this life!
We have endured for so long and let these people party for so long, now it’s time to make them cry!

Do you really think of yourself as the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty?

Now it is the Ming Dynasty, the Yuan Dynasty’s system is no longer effective!

Does he think he is the trend of the world?
Wrong! The world's trend depends on me, the emperor!
……

At the former parade ground of the Duwei Mansion of the Imperial Guards, now the parade ground of the Embroidered Uniform Guards, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guards, Liu Ying, had a solemn expression on his face.

In front of him, the Jinyiwei stood in military formation. In the silence, an invisible murderous aura permeated the air.

The former Duwei Mansion of the Imperial Guards, as the emperor's personal guards, had soldiers carefully selected from various guards, and their combat effectiveness was astonishing.

Not only does it perform many tasks such as guarding the imperial city, but it is also an extremely elite reserve army.

When necessary, Zhu Yuanzhang would send them to the battlefield to fight.

The Jinyiwei was established on the basis of the former Imperial Guard Commandant's Office, and naturally still has many of the functions of the former Imperial Guard Commandant's Office.

The biggest change is the secret addition of functions and corresponding personnel for gathering intelligence and monitoring the world.

Over the past six months, Liu Ying has been working hard to screen reliable personnel to join the Jinyiwei.

In addition to the spies developed in secret, the number of personnel in the Jinyiwei responsible for tasks such as guarding the palace also increased greatly.

Now, the number of Jinyiwei personnel has reached as many as 16,000.

It has far exceeded the scale of a normal garrison.

But considering that this was the emperor's personal army, naturally no one would say much.

Now, the Ming Dynasty had only been established for eight years, and it was not in the middle and late stages that the military power was taken away by the civil officials. If Emperor Zhu Houzhao wanted to take back some military power to fight, he had to use the pseudonym Zhu Shou and find another way to fight for it, and then he was killed by drowning.

"According to the imperial decree, all Jinyiwei are dispatched to arrest the perpetrators tonight!"

Liu Ying held the hilt of the sword at his waist with one hand, looked at the Jinyiwei standing silently and spoke in a deep voice.

"In the process of arresting people, innocent people must not be implicated, and no reckless actions must be taken!
You are not allowed to take the opportunity to plunder or hide any property, and you are not allowed to leak any search information!
Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed! "

A series of "no"s, plus the utterance of the word "behead", suddenly made the already solemn training ground even more solemn.

"During the search, anyone who forcibly resists the Jinyiwei will be killed on the spot!"

After conveying the imperial edict in a deep voice, Liu Ying's expression became even heavier.

"The last time his house was raided, Cao Xiu acted recklessly, being a traitor and pretending to obey orders while secretly disobeying them!

It is a shame for the Royal Guard Commandery!
Cao Xiu had been executed, and the Imperial Guard Commandery was abolished because of this bad apple and reorganized into the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

More than half a year has passed, and we are needed to do things again. This time, we must do it beautifully!

Anyone who is still not sober and has any ulterior motives will have only one outcome, and that is death!

It is not enough for just one person to die, the family will inevitably be implicated. If His Majesty doesn't do this, then I will do it!

Don’t say you didn’t predict what you said! "

As soon as these words were spoken, coupled with the night and this extremely unusual sudden action, the sense of oppression was maximized.

After giving orders to everyone and giving a speech, Liu Ying pointed at the commanders Mao Xiang, Lan Yu, and four assistant commanders, Deng Zhen, Li Jinglong, Tang Ding, and Xu Huizu.

Six people immediately stepped out and came to him.

"This is what we'll search this time."

He took out a document and showed it to several people.

Under the light of the torch, everyone could see the appearance of the paper clearly.

This is a document used for tax reporting, stamped with the seal of the local tax official.

This is not the main point. The main point is that this thing is actually blank!

This was obtained by Jinyiwei spies from officials who came to Beijing to file taxes before this.

Now is the time when many tax officials from local provinces, prefectures and counties gather in the capital.

The summer taxes have all been paid into Beijing.

According to normal procedures, the county level should calculate the tax accounts and hand them over to the government.

The government would calculate these and then hand them over to the province, and then each province and the Ministry of Revenue would calculate them.

By this time, the accounts in various places should have been settled.

As a result, now, a blank document with the official seal of the local tax official has appeared!

There is too much information revealed here.

Anyone who is not stupid can see that there is something wrong with this matter.

This is the preparation for cooking the books!

Among the few people, Li Jinglong can basically be said to be at the bottom when it comes to marching and fighting.

But when it comes to his understanding of other things and his quick thinking, he ranks among the top.

The scene before him, combined with what he knew about Li Shanchang, the Duke of Korea, who had gathered officials from all over the country to fight against the emperor for nearly half a year, made him want to gasp!
I knew it, how could a person like my uncle be controlled by Li Shanchang?

Having Li Shanchang come to the capital to preside over the wedding of my fourth cousin did not mean that I was really submitting to Li Shanchang.

It's just a delaying tactic.

The purpose was to collect Xia taxes first and paralyze Li Shanchang and others.

When they thought they had won, my uncle took decisive action, catching them off guard and catching them off guard!

This kind of forbearance and decisiveness really makes him worthy of being my uncle!

Li Shanchang is finished, and those who came to Beijing to file taxes are basically finished too!

He left such a big loophole, but he still dared to go against his uncle so arrogantly. I really don’t know how he died!

While being excited, Li Jinglong couldn't help but feel secretly shocked.

This is a simultaneous attack on officials from all over the country, and the number of people involved is definitely over a thousand.

My own uncle is so tough!
Others like Lan Yu, Tang Ding and others, even though they did not react as quickly as Li Jinglong and knew as much about this matter, all realized to varying degrees that the matter was not simple.

"These are the names of the officials who came to Beijing to file their taxes, and their respective residences."

After Liu Ying confirmed that everyone had seen the blank seal clearly, he put it away, took out six booklets and distributed them to Mao Xiang, Lan Yu, Li Jinglong and others.

"Each of you take your men and the booklet with you to arrest the perpetrators. The key is this blank document with the seal on it; you absolutely cannot miss it!

You are all smart people. You should all know how important this matter is without me having to say much.

This is the first major thing our Jinyiwei has done since its establishment.

This is also something that His Majesty is extremely concerned about. Anyone who messes up will have to bear the consequences themselves!"

The six people immediately accepted the order with solemn expressions.

"Go! Each of you do your part!"

At Liu Ying's command, the six men returned to their teams, and then took quick action with the troops they were responsible for.

Liu Ying, the commander of the Jinyiwei, was not idle either. He also personally led some members of the Jinyiwei to go out.

However, they did not arrest the local officials, but went directly to the Ministry of Revenue...

……

The gate of the imperial city, which was rarely opened at night once it was closed, was opened tonight.

More than 10,000 fully armed Jinyiwei came out one after another.

They split into several groups and quickly headed towards various places in Yingtian City.

The light of lanterns and torches, the sound of footsteps, and the clash of weapons and armor broke the silence of the night...

……

With the establishment of the Ming Dynasty and its capital in Yingtian, the ten-mile Qinhuai River, which had been destroyed beyond recognition during the chaos at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, also regained its prosperity.

It is especially lively during festivals and when tax officials from all over the country gather in the capital.

As a result, the prices of various things have risen a lot.

However, the officials from many places did not care about this.

After all, taxes are collected locally, and as a member of the tax system, they naturally do not lack this expense.

Of course, this action also caused many local Wuling youths to curse inwardly.

I think these country folk are old-fashioned, stupid, rich, and drive up prices.

However, the prosperity of Qinhuai River was disturbed tonight.

A large number of fully armed Jinyiwei came and dispersed the chirping sounds of the beautiful women.

"Sir, this..."

There was a old man with a smile on his face, but he also asked cautiously with some trepidation, trying to find out what was going on and establish some connections.

"The Imperial Guards are investigating the case under orders. All outsiders are to stay away!"

The leading centurion's words made the turtle man shrink his head and dare not say another word.

What a big deal!

These were the words that echoed throughout his mind.

Those who hang out in such occasions for a long time are all knowledgeable people.

It was a very serious matter that the troops of the Grand Marshal's Office were mobilized overnight.

It turns out that those dispatched now are actually the emperor’s personal guards!
How big is this matter? It makes people dare not think too much about it!

Under Lan Yu's gaze, the captain ordered his men to quickly enter this Qinlou and Chuguan.

He ordered the pimp, the madam and others to immediately take the Jinyiwei soldiers to the designated room to take the person away.

These people are familiar with the internal environment.

Some rooms still had lights on, but in others, there was no light at all...

"Open the door! Open the door!"

A burly Jinyiwei came forward, banged on the door and shouted loudly.

"Fuck you, auntie! Are you looking for death? I'm going to break your legs!"

Inside the room where some unusual music was playing, a man's furious roar could be heard.

With a "bang" sound, the Jinyiwei who was knocking on the door changed to kicking, kicking the door open. Amid the man's angry curses and the woman's panicked screams, they held the man down and pulled him out.

"The Jinyiwei has been ordered to investigate the case!"

The man who was cursing suddenly calmed down a lot...

In a short while, thirteen local officials were arrested in this place alone.

"Call your superiors to me!
Do you know who I am? Who gave you the courage? How dare a bunch of soldiers act so presumptuously?

Perhaps he was used to being a bully in his local area and had never suffered such injustice.

A middle-aged man who was almost naked, with one hand on his waist, pointed at the Jinyiwei soldiers in front of him and shouted at them, showing his great authority.

But this person was not wearing an official robe at this time, and he was not even wearing ordinary clothes, which made him look extremely funny.

"Yes, why are you arresting us? What have we done wrong?"

"Release me immediately!"

Someone took the lead and started to speak, and the rest followed suit and started to scold.

"The Jinyiwei are following orders, and you are all the ones being searched.

Anyone who violently resists or obstructs the search during the search process will be killed on the spot!

The centurion responded coldly with an icy gaze and ordered someone to immediately search the room where they lived.

The officials were stunned for a moment, and some were shocked.

But there are still some people who don't believe in evil.

The middle-aged official who spoke first was stunned for a moment, then his expression changed as if he suddenly realized something.

“No search!
We are court officials working for His Majesty. What right do you have to search us?
I am a close confidant of the Korean public, so stop immediately!"

He shouted harshly and brought out his biggest backer, Li Shanchang, the Duke of Korea.

But how could the Jinyiwei people listen to him?

They were still divided into more than a dozen teams, each heading to their residence to search. Seeing this, the man became even more anxious. After a moment, he gritted his teeth and rushed towards his room.

He planned to destroy the blank printing paper before the Jinyiwei found it.

He was a quick-witted man, and in a moment of desperation, he thought of this huge flaw that had been overlooked in the past.

There were many reasons why he dared to act like this after being warned by the Jinyiwei.

First, we realized the seriousness of the problem and felt that blank printing paper should not fall into the hands of these people.

Secondly, he was used to being domineering in the local area and had an overestimation of his own status and position.

Third, they overestimated the deterrent power of Duke Hanguo, the people's great backer, on the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Fourthly, since its establishment, the Jinyiwei has not done anything major and is not well-known, which seriously underestimates the power of the Jinyiwei.

All of this combined led him to a wrong judgment.

I feel that these soldiers are just talking big but don't dare to kill people.

Based on this wrong judgment, a wrong choice was made.

The next moment, with a "pu" sound, a spear pierced his chest from behind.

The man's body shook violently, revealing an extremely incredible expression.

He wanted to say something, but no words came out. His neck tilted and he died.

When he was dying, his mind was still filled with disbelief. How dare these soldiers do this!

Lan Yu, who was standing on the street outside, came over from nowhere and pulled out the spear with one hand.

The official's body lost its support and fell to the ground like a rag bag.

"Are any of you ready to try again?"

He looked at the remaining twelve local officials and asked gently.

The remaining twelve local officials were originally ready to take action because of that man's sudden action.

But now, seeing this high-ranking official from Songjiang Prefecture, who was of higher rank than them, being stabbed to death with just one shot, they were all stunned on the spot for a moment, as if they were under a spell of immobilization.

It turns out that these soldiers were not lying, they really dared to kill the officials on the spot!
Faced with Lan Yu's very considerate and gentle question, some of these people shook their heads repeatedly, some lowered their heads, and dared not look at any member of the Jinyiwei again.

One of them was the worst, he was so scared that he peed his pants.

Lan Yu withdrew his gaze, and with some contempt, he held the blood-stained spear and stood back on the street outside.

He wholeheartedly agreed with the order issued by His Majesty that if the person being arrested refused to cooperate and resisted violently despite warnings during the arrest and search, he could be killed on the spot.

Some people become more unreasonable the more you reason with them, and they think no one can do anything to them.

For these people, when it's time to use force, you have to use force. One blow of the knife will make them behave...

This is just a microcosm of the sudden arrests that took place tonight.

Similar scenes were played out in many inns, restaurants, and even pleasure boats in Yingtian City, as well as in many places such as the Jingshi Huitongguan, an official institution that provided food and lodging for officials from other places coming to Beijing.

Faced with this sudden and absolutely unexpected scene, many local officials were shocked and angry, as well as extremely confused and bewildered.

After all, just before this happened, they all thought the situation was very good.

I feel that this tax return will be as smooth as before, and everything will be done in a good atmosphere with everyone being happy.

And yesterday, Duke Han Guo also met in person with officials at the provincial and prefectural levels, and as usual, divided the tax shares of each place with them.

At that time, there was nothing unusual about the Korean prince.

Who would have thought that things would suddenly turn out like this!
The so-called division of shares means that Li Shanchang will hold a meeting with these people before formally checking with the Ministry of Revenue.

The amount of tax to be paid by each place, how much tax from each place would go to the national treasury, and how much would be privately owned by court officials were all divided in advance to avoid any disputes.

It's not a pretty sight.

Of course, while doing these things, we will also communicate with the Ministry of Households.

Only after these things have been discussed in advance will the formal accounting begin.

At this time, the role of the blank documents stamped with the seal of the local chief official carried by these people was revealed.

The specific number can be filled in on the spot based on the results of the discussion.

The Ministry of Revenue will then check and reconcile the local account books that were discussed.

After confirmation, it will be stamped with the seal of the Ministry of Households, and the entire process will be completed.

In other words, the Ministry of Revenue, which was supposed to play a supervisory role, and the local tax officials responsible for reconciling accounts colluded with each other to falsify accounts.

The account book made in this way is naturally flawless. If you check the account book, you will definitely not find any problems.

However, a large amount of taxes that should have belonged to the state were privately divided among these people.

In this confused panic, these people were caught in one fell swoop...

……

"Uncle...Uncle, the Jinyiwei have been dispatched in large numbers!

Heading towards Hui... Huitong Hall and various inns, they're targeting the officials from various places who are coming to the capital to file taxes... going there!"

In Hu Weiyong's old and dilapidated house, which was completely inconsistent with his status as prime minister, his nephew Hu Shan hurried back in the night.

He reported to Hu Weiyong while panting.

Hu Weiyong was a man who was extremely flexible when necessary, but could also be ruthless when necessary.

Just look at the fate of Yang Xian, Wang Guangyang, and Liu Bowen in history.

Moreover, his cruelty is not only shown towards others, but he can also be cruel to himself.

For example, he actually really liked beautiful mansions, gorgeous clothes, luxurious food, and luxurious carriages.

But because the current emperor was born into a beggar family, he had lived a very hard life since childhood.

Frugality in life is ingrained in our bones.

It was also because of this that Hu Weiyong was able to suppress the desires in his heart.

He lived in a dilapidated house that was totally inconsistent with his status as prime minister.

He never wore fancy clothes, and the clothes under his official robes were all patched.

They don't enjoy delicious food. They only kill a chicken or cut some meat to improve their lives during festivals.

The means of transportation for daily travel is even simpler, just a simple donkey cart.

When Hu Weiyong heard the report from his nephew Hu Shan, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Then a smile appeared on his face.

When Li Shanchang began to command local officials and oppose Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, he knew that the emperor would not let Li Shanchang go easily.

When the emperor invited Li Shanchang to the capital to preside over the wedding of Prince Yan, everyone thought that the emperor was giving in to Li Shanchang.

But Hu Weiyong didn't think so.

He felt that the emperor deliberately lured Li Shanchang to the capital and made Li Shanchang complacent.

The Prince of Yan’s wedding was just a cover, an excuse.

Especially when he linked Li Shanchang's arrival in Beijing with the summer taxes from various places and officials' arrival in Beijing to file taxes, Hu Weiyong felt that the matter was more and more complicated.

I think the emperor is very likely to take action against Li Shanchang in this matter and give him a severe punishment.

Therefore, he arranged personnel several days in advance to keep a close eye on the movements in the palace, and report any special situations to him immediately.

Now it seems that I guessed right, and there was nothing wrong with what I thought!

This made him breathe a sigh of relief, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

Li Shanchang is finished!
After this incident, it will completely collapse!

This guy should forget about controlling the Secretariat and making me his dog as he did before!

In addition to being excited, he was also quickly thinking about what he should do next in this turbulent and murderous situation so as to take advantage of the situation, gain the greatest benefit, and successfully replace Li Shanchang.

He took all the power left by Li Shanchang into his own...

Seeing his uncle lost in thought, Hu Shan tactfully shut up and stood quietly by his uncle, even trying to suppress his heavy breathing.

He looked towards his uncle with increasing admiration.

My uncle said some time ago that Li Shanchang was doomed, but I didn't believe it. I just thought that my uncle was angry because he hated Li Shanchang.

But who would have thought that the emperor would suddenly take action!
After sitting here in deep thought for two quarters of an hour, Hu Weiyong suddenly stood up.

"Come out with me."

"Where?"

Hu Shan, startled by his uncle's sudden action, quickly responded.

"Go see Li Shanchang! Tell him the news and ask him to respond quickly."

"what?"

Hu Shan was stunned.

No...how come this is nothing like what I imagined?
The emperor's sudden action was obviously aimed at Li Shanchang, as his uncle hated Li Shanchang so much.

Shouldn't the best choice at this time be to sit back and watch Li Shanchang get into trouble?
Why are you rushing to see Li Shanchang and tell him all this now?
Also, if you really want to remind Li Shanchang sincerely, then the best choice should be to go there as soon as you get the news?
Only in this way can Li Shanchang respond as much as possible and reduce losses.

If I go to see Li Shanchang now, wouldn’t it be too late for many things?
Did my uncle just think of going to see Li Shanchang to tell him all this, or did he deliberately wait a little longer before doing so?

I'm afraid it was done carelessly on purpose.

Uncle is worthy of being my uncle, he is so insidious.

Hu Shan gave his uncle the most sincere praise in his heart, and at the same time took note of it carefully, feeling that he had learned a new trick.

He didn't ask any more questions and quickly led the donkey out and harnessed it that night. After Hu Weiyong got on the cart, he immediately urged the donkey to run faster.

I almost used up all my donkey cart drifting skills.

On the streets, the Jinyiwei have set up multiple checkpoints and implemented an emergency curfew.

However, Prime Minister Hu Weiyong's status was very useful, and wherever he went, he was quickly allowed to pass...

……

"Come on, keep drinking! It's rare for us to get together, so let's drink to our heart's content tonight!"

At the Duke of Wei's mansion, General Xu Da held a banquet and invited many princes and dukes in the capital.

The reason for getting together was, of course, that they hadn't seen each other for a long time, and it was also a way of thanking everyone for their help in his daughter's wedding.

Given Xu Da's prestige in the army and the reasonable reason for inviting people to dinner, how could those invited not come to the banquet?
With Xu Da's personal greeting, the atmosphere was particularly warm.

Things should have started already, right?
While inviting everyone to drink, Xu Da would occasionally glance outside without leaving any trace...

……

"Dad, I feel anxious for no reason today.

Is this... is there going to be something bad happening?"

Li Qi came to the study and after hesitating for a moment, he finally looked at his father and said these words.

Upon hearing this, Li Shanchang didn't know what to say for a moment.

His son was generally okay, but he was too timid, especially when facing the emperor, he was more likely to be suspicious.

I have told him this many times, but now he is worried again.

He wanted to say something harsh, but his son also cared about him, and this eldest son was already the smartest among his sons.

So he forced himself to suppress this thought.

"Just put your mind at ease. Now that the dust has settled, the reconstruction of Zhongdu is a sure thing.

You're just tired and worried too much recently.

Go back and get some sleep, and you'll be fine. If my predictions are correct, good news will arrive soon."

Li Shanchang tried to soften his tone so as not to hurt his son's self-esteem.

Li Qi wanted to say something, but seeing that his father had said this, he could only suppress it, said goodbye to his father, and said he was going to sleep.

Li Shanchang sighed secretly, his son was far inferior to him as a father!
If I had half of my talent and character, I wouldn't be so worried about the future of my family...

It was at this moment that the side door of Li Shanchang's mansion was banged on.

Soon, the housekeeper of the mansion brought his men and rushed all the way to Li Shanchang's study.

He almost bumped into Li Qi who had just walked out of the study.

But he didn't even bother to apologize and rushed straight into Li Shanchang's study.

The wind blew away the candle, leaving only a flame as small as a bean.

"Master, this is bad! The Imperial Guards have been dispatched in large numbers, going to various restaurants overnight to arrest the numerous local officials who have come to Yingtian to file taxes!"

Li Shanchang:? ? ? ! ! !
(End of this chapter)