My aunt is Queen Ma

Chapter 118 Zhu Yuanzhang Wants to Be a Master of Balance

Without the slightest hesitation, Huang Gang jumped out and cried out his innocence as soon as he was certain that the imperial envoy had arrived.

He was also the first to cry foul.

Upon receiving the news, Liu Bowen personally went to the scene and questioned all the craftsmen in front of them.

The purpose of doing this was, of course, to set an example for the craftsmen.

Address their concerns and encourage them to provide evidence.

Upon learning that Pan Zaozi might have been murdered, he was furious and ordered several overseers from the vicinity to be arrested and interrogated.

When the craftsmen heard about this, they all gathered around to watch.

In no time, a crowd of over a thousand people had gathered.

The imperial guards commander responsible for protecting the imperial envoy was on tenterhooks and quickly ordered his men to set up a cordon to separate the crowd.

Soon, the three supervisors in charge of overseeing Huang Gang and his group were brought over.

At first they denied it, but after a beating, they confessed to everything.

After all, their status was too low, and they wouldn't get a share of the embezzled money; they could only bully the craftsmen on a daily basis.

The crime isn't particularly serious, and even if the matter is exposed, the punishment won't be too severe.

But if you grit your teeth and refuse to confess, it's a different story; you'll be considered an accomplice, and your family will be raided and you'll be beheaded.

They naturally wouldn't cover up for the officials above them.

Through their testimonies, everyone finally learned what had happened.

That day, Pan Zaozi said he was going to file a complaint, which was overheard by a passing craftsman.

In exchange for some food, he told a foreman named Zhang Kun about it.

Zhang Kun reported this to the officials above him, and then Pan Zaozi was taken away.

Because of this achievement, he was given an important position.

As for the craftsman who betrayed Pan's chisel, he was also taken away.

The reason is not hard to guess: to silence them.

Upon hearing that it was one of their own who had betrayed them, the surrounding craftsmen were filled with righteous indignation and began to condemn the craftsman.

Liu Bowen's expression worsened. If it was murder to silence witnesses, then that would mean two lives lost.

Just then, one of the supervisors seemed to realize something and quickly added:
"Master Liu, I heard that Pan Zaozi and his companion are still alive and are being held in the cellar of Steward Chu's house."

Liu Bowen looked at him with suspicion: "How do you know so much?"

The foreman quickly explained, "I know Zhang Kun well. I overheard him mentioning it casually when we were drinking together the day before yesterday."

Upon hearing the foreman's words, Liu Bowen's heart sank.

That Steward Chu was just a minor official of the ninth rank, and was not qualified to attend the welcoming banquet, which meant that he was not under control.

So, after he gets the news, will he kill the person to silence them?

Liu Bowen dared not delay any longer and immediately sent people to the house of Steward Chu to rescue the people, while also sending people to arrest Zhang Kun.

Arresting someone is not something that can be done in a short time. Then Liu Bowen began to ask Huang Gang what other grievances he had.

At this point, Huang Gang spoke frankly and recounted everything that had happened over the past six months.

Seeing that Liu Bowen was indeed willing to stand up for them, the other craftsmen dispelled their doubts and stepped forward to recount their grievances.

Liu Bowen was overjoyed and summoned a group of scribes to record the testimonies for everyone.

The main point of everyone's confession was that they were withholding food rations.

Except for the first two months when the food rations were distributed normally, the amount decreased over time.

The craftsmen were forced to pay for their own food.

But most of them are poor, so where would they get so much money? Many of them have to work on an empty stomach.

On the surface, this appears to be a case of embezzlement of rations and pay.

However, Liu Bowen noticed something unusual from the testimonies of some of the craftsmen.

Their testimonies stated that the supervisors would occasionally reassign some of the craftsmen to do unplanned work.

These jobs provide a good living, so everyone is eager to do them.

Unplanned workload, and they still give us enough to eat?
This was something even the Embroidered Uniform Guard hadn't been able to find. Liu Bowen keenly sensed that there was something significant going on here.

These craftsmen were immediately called out separately for questioning.

According to them, they mainly process building materials, and occasionally do some carving work.

Liu Bowen pressed further, "Do you know where those things were used?"

The craftsmen all shook their heads, indicating they didn't know.

The imperial city was too large, and their personal freedom was restricted, so they couldn't run around freely and didn't know where the money was used.

But everyone said that after they were processed, they never saw those things again.

Liu Bowen asked them to describe the carvings again, and found that none of them conformed to royal regulations; they seemed more like items used by wealthy families.

He immediately determined that someone was colluding with wealthy families, using royal craftsmen to process building materials for them.

The question now is whether these materials were provided by wealthy individuals or stolen from the imperial city.

But regardless of which one it is, the nature of this matter has changed.

While Liu Bowen was busy recording confessions, he also sent someone to report the discovery to Zhu Yuanzhang.

However, he was in no hurry to uncover this clue.

Instead, they pretended to know nothing and continued investigating the case of embezzling food rations.

Just then, the men who went to arrest Steward Chu and Zhang Kun returned.

Also rescued were Pan Zaozi and another craftsman who had betrayed him.

Pan Zaozi was on his deathbed, clearly having been tortured severely.

Fortunately, he was still alive, and Liu Bowen quickly sent someone to treat him.

Next came the interrogation of Manager Chu and Zhang Kun.

Zhang Kun knew his crimes were serious and tried to resist, but with irrefutable evidence and a barrage of torture, he confessed everything.

On the contrary, Steward Chu should have been mentally prepared long ago.

Before Liu Bowen could even use torture, he confessed to everything.

But in the end, he said that he was ordered to arrest Pan Zaozi by his superiors and had no choice.

"Lord Liu, you are wise. I am just a lowly official of the ninth rank. How could I dare not do what I am told to do?"

"I was completely coerced by them."

He was also ordered to kill someone to cover his tracks, so he hid Pan Zaozi and two other craftsmen and even bought them medicine to treat their wounds.

Otherwise, there would have been no need to silence him; Pan Zaozi would have died from his injuries.

This is also a case of him making amends for his crimes.

Liu Bowen snorted coldly and said, "If you've been greedy, you've been greedy. Don't make excuses for yourself."

"However, considering your merit in saving lives, your punishment can be reduced by one degree."

Steward Chu immediately kowtowed, "Thank you, sir. I will tell you everything I know."

Once we found a breakthrough, the rest was easy.

Having obtained sufficient testimony, Liu Bowen ordered the overseers to be arrested and interrogated.

As I said before, the supervisors, being the lowest-level workers who do the dirty work, don't get a share of the embezzled money.

Naturally, they wouldn't cover for those in power.

They confessed very quickly.

After obtaining the foreman's statement, they began to investigate, level by level.

Faced with irrefutable evidence, most people only need to hold out for a little while before confessing everything.

Of course, the reason they confessed so quickly was largely because the person in charge, Zhao Yanjun, was arrested.

Without a leader, they were defeated one by one.

But some would rather die than confess.

For example, Zhao Yanjun was subjected to all sorts of torture.

Even the Imperial Guards intervened, but he insisted that he knew nothing.

“The distribution of rations is not my responsibility; I was deceived by them.”

Upon learning of this, Liu Bowen personally went to the prison to find him:

"In fact, the Embroidered Uniform Guard only knows about the embezzlement of craftsmen's rations. I am here today only to investigate this matter."

"Even if it is proven that you embezzled food rations, according to the law you will be executed and your family exiled."

"But at least your family members are still alive, and your relatives won't be implicated."

"But since you have never confessed, I have no choice but to collect evidence of your crimes from other places."

"Then guess what I found out?"

Zhao Yanjun's entire body was covered in unblemished skin, and he lay there with his head down, barely clinging to life.

Upon hearing Liu Bowen's words, he suddenly raised his head and asked:
"What did you find out?"

Liu Bowen sneered, "Not pretending anymore? You can figure out what you've found out yourself; it should be enough to exterminate your entire family."

“If you confess honestly, I will close the case on charges of embezzlement.”

"They might already be taking you back to the capital."

"However, I must thank you properly for giving me such a great merit for nothing."

After saying that, he ignored Zhao Yanjun's shouts and turned to leave.

However, he did not leave immediately, but stood outside the door eavesdropping.

Zhao Yanjun's mentality completely collapsed, and he roared with all his might.

Liu Bowen sneered and said, "Continue the interrogation, but don't kill him. He still needs to be escorted back to the capital for His Majesty's personal trial."

"Yes," replied Ping Changyuan, a centurion of the Fengyang Imperial Guard, bowing respectfully.

Only after Liu Bowen had walked away did he raise his head and wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Who said that Prime Minister Liu was fair, upright, and benevolent?

This guy's got a knack for killing someone by attacking their spirit, even better than I do.
-
When Zhu Yuanzhang learned that the construction of the Fengyang Imperial City was suspected of using royal craftsmen to do private work for wealthy families for profit.

The fact that they even suspected the resale of materials used to build the imperial city sparked outrage.

As Liu Bowen said, the nature of this matter has changed.

It went from simple corruption to blasphemy against imperial power.

If the matter is not dealt with severely, where is the imperial dignity?

Therefore, he immediately wrote a handwritten order to Liu Bowen to thoroughly investigate the matter.

Anyone involved will be severely punished without exception.

After sending out the edict, he had not forgotten another person.

"Li Shanchang, do you live up to our trust?"

Zhu Biao, standing to the side, feigned to persuade him, "Father, please calm down. I don't think Prime Minister Li would go to such lengths."

Zhu Yuanzhang angrily said, "Don't try to persuade me. Even if he didn't know, he still condoned this."

"If it weren't for his protection, would those people dare to act so lawlessly?"

"They dare to do this after only three years of the Ming Dynasty's establishment. We dare not even think about what will happen in the future."

"It seems that what Ma Yu said is true. The world is rotten to the core and we must use severe measures to reshape the rules and refresh the atmosphere."

Zhu Biao was secretly pleased, but outwardly he still advised:

"Prime Minister Li may know something about corruption, but he most likely doesn't know about the selling of craftsmen and construction materials for the imperial city."

“It’s not that I’m speaking up for him, but if he knew, he would never be so indifferent as he is now.”

This was actually taught to him by Ma Yu: there are some things you can do against Zhu Yuanzhang, but there are some things you absolutely cannot do.

For example, how he treated imperial relatives, and how he treated Li Shanchang, Xu Da, and others.

No matter what mistakes they made, no matter how angry your father is, you have to speak up for them.

This is your father's bottom line.

As long as these bottom lines aren't crossed, no matter how different their political views are, he won't really get angry. Sure enough, upon hearing him speak up for Li Shanchang, Zhu Yuanzhang said with satisfaction:

"That's right. What we're most afraid of is that you trust Ma Yu too much and get too influenced by him."

"It seems you are still quite clear-headed and did not blindly follow his advice."

"We're not saying Ma Yu is necessarily wrong, but as a monarch, you can't trust anyone too much."

"Remember this well: listen to both sides and you will be enlightened; listen to only one side and you will be misled."

Zhu Biao thought to himself, "My cousin guessed right again," and said sincerely on his face:

"Thank you for your teachings, Father. I understand."

Zhu Yuanzhang continued, "The materials used to build the imperial city are very precious, and few people in the north can afford them."

"Only wealthy and powerful families in the southeast have the financial resources to do this. They are most likely the ones who did it."

"It's a good opportunity to have Liu Bowen investigate them."

"If he can investigate and punish this impartially and without prejudice, then we can confidently give him important responsibilities."

Zhu Biao nodded and said, "Should we have him investigate the tax and finance cases as well?"

Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said:

"No, this time we're going to reshape the fiscal and tax system. Liu Bowen is too particular about rules; he can't bring himself to do something so drastic."

The so-called restructuring naturally means completely overthrowing the existing system.

To put it bluntly, it's about to unleash a massacre.

Although Liu Bowen hated evil, he was a man of principle and would not go against his inner morals and the laws of the court to help him kill so many people.

This matter requires a ruthless official.

In fact, the candidate had already been decided long ago, and it was Yang Xian.

However, Yang Xian's current rank is still a bit low, so he needs to be promoted.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang said:
"Liu Bowen has been promoted to Imperial Censor, so the position of Vice Imperial Censor will be vacant. Let Yang Xian take up this position."

The Grand Censor was only the nominal head of the Censorate; his actual position was that of prime minister, and he was to accompany the emperor to handle state affairs.

The person who actually oversees the daily affairs of the Censorate is the Vice Censor-in-Chief.

In terms of both rank and power, he is second to none.

It would be perfect to have him lead the investigation of tax and financial cases in the future.

Zhu Biao naturally understood this principle and had no objection to the appointment.

He was more concerned with another issue:
"Prime Minister Li has resigned. Have you decided who will succeed him?"

Zhu Yuanzhang countered, "Who do you think is suitable?"

Zhu Biao replied, "Minister Tao is capable and virtuous enough to be appointed, but he only started his official career in the first year of Hongwu, and was promoted to Minister of Rites this year."

"This speed of promotion is no longer in accordance with the rules of officialdom. If he is made prime minister again, his subordinates will probably not be convinced."

"Master Song has enough prestige, but he is too upright and lacks ability."

"Liu Bowen is capable, but he has just been promoted to Imperial Censor, so it's not appropriate to promote him again."

“Wang Guangyang is a good person and has the right qualifications, but he lacks the ability.”

"Hu Weiyong has the ability and qualifications, but his character is despicable..."

Zhu Biao went through the list of people who were qualified to compete for the position one by one, but found that each of them had shortcomings.

Finally, somewhat disappointed, he said, "I don't know which person is suitable."

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and said, "You still haven't learned to look at problems from the perspective of someone in a superior position."

Zhu Biao respectfully said, "Please enlighten me, Father."

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Liu Bowen, Wang Guangyang, Song Lian, Tao Kai and others are principled and follow the rules."

"When they encounter things that don't align with their own ideas, they will argue their case based on reason."

“If we are not prepared to carry out sweeping reforms, we are all quite suitable to serve as prime ministers.”

"But now that we are about to carry out major changes, their principles may actually become an obstacle to these changes."

Zhu Biao suddenly realized and said, "Just like Sima Guang and others in the Song Dynasty, their character was not problematic, and they were wholeheartedly devoted to serving the country."

"But they were also the most opposed to Wang Anshi's reforms."

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Yes, that's exactly it."

"Change means breaking with convention; those who are too bound by rules cannot accomplish this."

"At this time, a capable but cunning person is actually the most suitable."

Zhu Biao questioned, "What if unscrupulous people take advantage of this to profit and harm the people with good laws?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Therefore, we must let virtuous people supervise wicked people."

"That's why I appointed Liu Bowen as Imperial Censor."

Zhu Biao pondered for a long time before nodding to indicate that he understood, and then sighed:
"Is there no gentleman who is both capable of breaking with convention and has talent?"

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed loudly: "Haha, that's a sage. There have only been a few like him in the thousands of years of Chinese history."

Zhu Biao hesitated for a moment, then said, "My cousin seems to fit this standard quite well."

Zhu Yuanzhang paused for a moment, then said in an annoyed tone:
"How old is he? Who would accept him as prime minister?"

"Besides, given his physical condition, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to shoulder such a heavy responsibility."

Zhu Biao pressed further, "You mean that if he is old enough and in good health, he is capable of serving as prime minister?"

Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him and said angrily, "We're not dead yet, what do you want to do?"

Zhu Biao quickly waved his hand and said, "No, no, no, we were just chatting, why are you in such a hurry?"

Zhu Yuanzhang retorted angrily, "We know you have your own ideas. Once you ascend the throne and become emperor, you can do whatever you want."

"But now that we're the emperor, you have to listen to us obediently."

Zhu Biao quickly said, "Father, please don't say that. I had no such intention."

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly and said, "Whether you mean it or not is none of my business. This is what I mean, and I'm making it clear to you today."

Zhu Biao said dejectedly, "Yes, I know I was wrong, please forgive me."

Seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang didn't dwell on the matter any further and continued the conversation about the prime minister:
"We initially preferred Wang Guangyang to serve as the Left Prime Minister, but now that I think about it, let Hu Weiyong take the position instead."

“Wang Guangyang is definitely not satisfied and will keep a close eye on Hu Weiyong to make him dare not make a mistake.”

Zhu Biao frowned slightly and asked, "What if Wang Guangyang and Liu Bowen obstruct the new law?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Nothing in this world is perfect. It all depends on the monarch's ability to harmonize yin and yang."

"Moreover, we also believe in the integrity of Wang Guangyang, Liu Bowen, and others."

"Even if they disagree with the new law, they will certainly produce solid evidence to prove its flaws."

"This will help us improve the new law."

If the unruly and treacherous Hu Weiyong is made prime minister, he will certainly fully support the reforms in order to please the emperor and consolidate his own position.

As the Right Chancellor, Wang Guangyang could better supervise him.

Yang Xian was responsible for doing the dirty work.

Liu Bowen cleaned up their messes, carried out reconstruction work, and was also in charge of some major projects.

For example, the stabilization and repair of the Yellow River channel, and the plan to relocate people to the Central Plains, etc.

This is the court layout envisioned by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Biao had to admit that he did have some really good ideas.

However, he also had concerns, mainly because this method would put the monarch to a very difficult position.

If the balance of power is disrupted, it could very well lead to a situation similar to the disastrous political strife during the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty.

However, his father, as an emperor who conquered the country on horseback, should be quite good at balancing things.

Okay, I'll give it a try.

At this point, Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Destruction is easy, but construction is difficult, and we don't know much about finance and taxation either."

"You should go and discuss the specifics of how to construct it with Ma Yu, and come up with a plan as soon as possible."

Zhu Biao exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? Me?"

Zhu Yuanzhang asked, "What, are you scared?"

Zhu Biao quickly shook his head and said, "No, it's just... you really trust me to entrust this matter to you."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "You're only a few years old, so naturally we don't trust you with everything."

"I'm just asking you to come up with a plan, and then we'll find someone to discuss how to implement it."

Zhu Biao was relieved and said, "Alright, I'll go find my cousin tomorrow."
-
That day, Zhu Yuanzhang summoned Li Shanchang to the palace, and the two closed the door and talked about something behind closed doors.

Anyway, when Li Shanchang came out, he was pale and staggering.

Upon arriving home, he immediately submitted a petition, citing illness as the reason for resigning.

Zhu Yuanzhang did not delay as before, but encouraged him and rewarded him with a lot of money and precious medicines before approving his resignation.

With the Left Prime Minister resigning, everyone with a chance to compete for the position is now drooling with envy.

But Zhu Yuanzhang didn't give them any chance to make any underhanded moves. The next morning at court, he announced that Hu Weiyong would serve as the Left Chancellor.

Wang Guangyang continued to serve as Right Chancellor, and Yang Xian was also promoted to Vice Censor-in-Chief.

This appointment was both unexpected and reasonable, and did not cause much of a stir.

For Hu Weiyong, this was like a windfall, and he was overjoyed.

Wang Guangyang looked on in disbelief.

He just couldn't understand it, because he was far superior to Hu Weiyong in terms of both seniority and his relationship with the emperor.

How could I lose to him?

But the order had already been given, and he didn't dare say anything more; he could only grit his teeth and accept it.

But deep down, he already hated Hu Weiyong.

Don't get too cocky, Mr. Hu. We'll see.

No one found Yang Xian's appointment even more surprising.

Before the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, he was responsible for supervising the generals who led troops in the field.

The most glorious moment was when he supervised Zhu Wenzheng.

It almost drove Zhu Wenzheng to a mental breakdown.

Now that he's in charge of the Censorate, it's like he's back to his old profession.

For Yang Xian himself, this was also a big surprise.

The Vice Censor-in-Chief presided over the work of the Censorate and was responsible for supervising all officials.

This is a good opportunity to keep an eye on Li Shanchang.

You, Li Shanchang, have resigned from your post, but your cronies remain. Watch how I eliminate them one by one.

After the court session ended and Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao disappeared from sight, a large group of officials swarmed around Hu Weiyong, showering him with compliments.

Hu Weiyong was also riding high.

However, he remained rational at this moment and did not show any pride. Instead, he appeared humble.

He won the favor of many people.

Wang Guangyang felt even more annoyed, snorted coldly, and left with his trusted confidants.

Yang Xian was surrounded by a number of people, but most of them were his old acquaintances and subordinates of the Censorate.

However, he was far less shrewd than Hu Weiyong, and his smile was incredibly smug, his voice quite arrogant.

This made many people frown.

However, it's normal for him to be a little proud now that he's been promoted, so no one dares to say anything.

The events that occurred in the outer court quickly reached Zhu Yuanzhang's ears.

He didn't say anything, but sneered inwardly.

This is exactly the situation he wanted.

Seeing that there was nothing else to do, Zhu Biao said goodbye to Zhu Yuanzhang and went out of the palace to find Ma Yu.

(End of this chapter)