Da Ming: I told you to die for your cause, why are you actually going to die?

Chapter 99 I don't believe the Emperor can kill us all! [Bonus Chapter 6 for Monthly Tickets]

Zhang Biao's act of suspending the audit by tearing up the imperial edict took Jiang Huan, Yun Ming, and everyone else by surprise, and it's likely to have surprised Zhu Yuanzhang as well.

But that doesn't mean the matter is over.

On the contrary, the real show has only just begun.

Although the auditing work was suspended, those government officials and nobles who had been audited found themselves in a state of fear and insecurity.

Even though Lao Zhu conveyed the news through Liu Sanwu and Mei Yin that he had been "enraged" by Zhang Biao again, the gloom in everyone's hearts still hadn't dissipated.

Therefore, they had to consider their next steps and countermeasures.

Meanwhile, at Fu Youwen's residence.

The Vice Minister of Revenue who was driven to the brink of collapse by Zhang Biao's accounting reports has disappeared.

Instead, a ruthless and cunning political figure who had been navigating the court for decades took his place.

But then he asked in a deep voice, "Tell me, did His Majesty really faint this time, or was he faking it? And what about Zhang Biao? Has the audit really been suspended?"

Upon hearing this, several trusted officials and a clerk on the opposite side exchanged glances, and then the clerk spoke first: "Your Excellency, in my opinion, His Majesty is most likely faking his fainting."

"Oh?" Fu Youwen raised an eyebrow, then raised his hand and said, "Tell me about it."

The advisor stroked his beard and pondered, "I think the Emperor should have woken up when the Jingyang Bell rang, but then, for some reason, he 'fainted' again."

"But it seems that Zhang Biao is involved."

"In addition, I also heard that Zhan Hui was imprisoned by the Emperor. The Emperor also issued an edict to reward Zhang Biao and others for their auditing work."

"All indications suggest that the Emperor wants to use Zhang Biao to get rid of those people he wants to deal with but cannot do so for the time being due to personal relationships and the current situation."

"This situation is just like the three major cases back then. When they do act, it's all good; when they do act, it's swift and devastating."

Upon hearing this, everyone felt a chill and fell silent instantly.

The three major cases of the Hongwu era were something they could not ignore.

Anyone who has experienced these three major cases cannot help but feel terrified upon closer examination.

After a short while, another trusted subordinate chimed in:

"Master Li's analysis is very reasonable. Zhang Biao is an arrogant and unruly man, and his words are insane, but his search and seizure operations are well-organized, the amounts are clear, the lists are accurate, and it seems to have a methodical approach."

Having said that, he looked around at everyone and said, "If this villain is not eliminated, he will surely become a major threat to us!"

"good."

"Humph!"

Fu Youwen snorted coldly, interrupting his other confidants who wanted to speak, and said, "Methods? What kind of rules does he have! He's just dancing on the edge of a knife, setting off firecrackers in a cesspool! He's using himself as bait, throwing himself into the muddy waters of our Great Ming Dynasty!"

As he spoke, he slammed the teacup on the table to the ground with a loud 'crack': "Audit? Inspect the accounts? Is he inspecting the accounts? He's inspecting the face of our Great Ming Dynasty! The face of the Emperor!"

"This"

The trusted subordinates and clerks looked at each other in bewilderment.

After a moment, a subordinate official said through gritted teeth, "Minister, Zhang Biao is so arrogant, are we really just going to let him get away with this?"

"Let him be?"

Fu Youwen sneered and narrowed his eyes, saying, "He won't be able to keep jumping around for long! The Emperor's attitude is ambiguous now; he may not really want to protect him, but perhaps he's just using him as a tool to kill people! Once the people who need to be killed are all killed, this knife will shatter!"

The advisor stroked his beard, his eyes gleaming: "What you say is absolutely right, sir. The key to our current strategy lies in going with the flow and diverting the trouble eastward."

"Oh? What's your plan?" Fu Youwen leaned forward.

"One!"

The advisor said in a low voice, "Didn't Zhang Biao find a lot of problems with us during the audit? We admit it! But there's a trick to admitting it."

“We can take the initiative to submit a memorial of apology, weep bitterly, admit to inadequate supervision and the deception of our subordinates, and shift most of the responsibility to Zhao Qian, who is already dead and cannot testify, as well as some insignificant clerks!”

"He then voluntarily offered to sell his assets to cover part of the deficit, as a sign of remorse!"

"His Majesty is currently furious. Seeing our sincere attitude, he might be lenient with us. This is a case of sacrificing a pawn to save the king, cutting off the tail to survive!"

"Second!"

As he spoke, he glanced around at everyone and then said in a sinister tone, "The problems Zhang Biao uncovered aren't limited to our Ministry of Revenue! Which of the other five ministries, or even the Five Military Commissions, has a clean record?"

"We need to secretly leak, or subtly pass on, even more explosive clues about other people's accounts to Zhang Biao's gang!"

"We're leading that mad dog to bite even more powerful figures, like those nobles who hold military power! This is a classic case of diverting disaster eastward, using one tiger to devour another!"

“But didn’t Zhang Biao suspend the audit? Will he still bite like before?” an official asked, frowning.

The advisor chuckled: "Some things are easy to start, but not so easy to stop. Zhang Biao's audit is like stirring up a hornet's nest. If we're having a hard time, are we going to let others have it easy too?"

"That's right! We'll die together!"

A glint of ruthlessness and agreement flashed in Fu Youwen's eyes: "Do it that way! Also, send someone to Jiangnan to find my father-in-law and have him use his connections in the Qingliu faction to impeach Zhang Biao!"

"Impeach him for what?"

Several trusted subordinates spoke in unison.

But then Fu Youwen said, "Impeach him for trampling on the laws of the court, disgracing the dignity of scholars, competing with the people for profit, and tarnishing civilization! We must muddy the waters and make him a sinner who has destroyed the moral order of the court for all eternity!"

"Brilliant!" The clerk's eyes lit up, and he stroked his beard in praise: "Sir, this plan is truly ingenious! By avoiding the main issue and focusing on the minor one, instead of impeaching or auditing, it's a soft knife!"

"Hahaha!"

Fu Youwen burst into laughter.

Several trusted subordinates also laughed.

On the other side, at the residence of Ru Chang, Minister of War.

The same situation occurred not only in Fu Youwen's residence but also in Ru Chang's residence.

But his strategy differed from Fu Youwen's.

He was obese, but at that moment he resembled a brown bear suppressing its rage.

"Playing the victim? Apologizing?"

Ru Chang scoffed at her advisor's suggestion: "That's for civil officials! I'm the Minister of War! I'm in charge of all the troops in the country! Why would I play that game with him?"

As he spoke, a ruthless glint flashed in his eyes: "Isn't Zhang Biao good at investigating? Isn't he good at copying? Fine! I'll let him investigate to his heart's content!"

"Go! Pick out the most shocking and far-reaching cases from our military's long-standing scandals—the cases of embezzling salaries, reselling weapons, and even killing innocent people to claim credit—make sure the evidence is solid, and then proactively send them to Zhang Biao!"

"Minister!"

The aide was horrified, his voice trembling as he exclaimed, "This is self-destruction!"

"Bullshit! Destroying our own Great Wall!"

Ru Chang sneered, then said in a deep voice, "Which garrison hasn't done these kinds of rotten things? The law doesn't punish everyone! I'll expose this festering sore to him! Let's see if he dares to touch it! Let's see if, after he does, the soldiers of all the garrisons in the land will hate him or hate me?!"

"The Emperor still wants to feign unconsciousness? Let him continue his erratic behavior, fine! Let him make a scene! Let's see if this can be brought to an end!"

"This is called fighting poison with poison!"

With that, he stood up from his seat, looking down at everyone with an air of arrogance, and said, "Do you really think I've been holding this position of Minister of War for nothing?"

"Over the years, let alone Zhang Biao, which of those regional kings didn't know about my messy affairs? But did they dare to touch me? Did they dare to impeach me?"

"That Prince Yan of Beiping, if I were to hinder him, he wouldn't dare utter a single word!"

"Before, everyone was on good terms with each other, and everyone knew what was going on. But this kid named Zhang Biao doesn't give us any dignity at all!"

"Alright! Let's use the military's mess to kidnap him!"

"If he dares to investigate, he will be making an enemy of all the military households in the land! Even the Emperor should think twice!"

"If he doesn't dare to investigate, then his previous audit was a joke! I can even turn the tables and accuse him of making false accusations!"

"in addition."

At this point, Ru Chang turned to her advisors and lowered her voice, saying:

"Give a message to those old bastards in the Five Armies Commandery, and tell them to have their arrogant and fierce soldiers voluntarily patrol near Zhang Biao's brothers' dormitory! No need to lift a finger, just keep an eye on them! Give those poor bastards a good talking to!"

"promise!"

The aide acknowledged and took his leave, taking the opportunity to flatter Ru Chang: "Your Excellency is wise."

"Humph!"

Ru Chang snorted coldly, then walked to the window on her own, looked towards the palace, and said with a dazed look in her eyes, "Your Majesty! If you really kill us all for that madman, how long can your Ming Dynasty survive?"

"Or"

He paused, then said in a deep voice, "Have you, Zhu Chongba, forgotten how you came to rule this world?"

Meanwhile, at the residence of the Duke of Cao.

As a representative of the nobility, Li Jinglong felt he was the most wronged.

Not only was their home ransacked, but they were also forced to have a meal, and their illustrated edition of "Jin Ping Mei" was confiscated—it was an utter disgrace.

But unlike his fathers, he did not resort to violence and bloodshed; instead, he displayed a different kind of wisdom.

I accept my fate.

That's right, he just gave up.

They neither provoked Zhang Biao and his group, nor contacted other nobles to jointly retaliate against Zhang Biao and his group.

Shortly after Zhang Biao and his men left, he asked his advisor to write a memorial to Zhu Yuanzhang. It was full of nonsense, but the core message was that he had failed Zhu Yuanzhang's trust and wanted to resign and retire.

Then he spent the night taking inventory of all the valuables in his house, made a detailed list, and submitted it to the palace along with a memorial to the emperor.

After finishing all this, he finally let out a long sigh of relief, slumped back in the huanghuali armchair, and murmured:

"Zhang Biao is a madman. I wonder if he'll survive. If he does, I'd really like to be his friend!"

After saying this, he remembered his father's dying wish: not to get involved in the power struggles for the throne and to follow the general trend.

Now, Zhang Biao's actions gave him a glimpse of a major trend, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself again:
"Hopefully, this audit won't involve the issue of choosing an heir. Otherwise, many people will die!"

Thinking back to that day at Fengtian Hall Square, Old Zhu's madness.
Li Jinglong shivered involuntarily and hurriedly instructed the steward outside the door, "Tomorrow, tomorrow we'll move to the villa outside the city!"

(End of this chapter)