Hidden in the court

"sign…"

Killing the chicken to scare the monkeys, and with the first person taking the lead, everyone lost the will to resist and soon signed the confession.

"Push them all down!"

"Brother Ji, is this too much?"

That's more than 80 officials. If they were all arrested, only Tian Jiguang's group of 20 or so people would be left in the huge city of Nanjing. And this was just Nanjing. What about other prefectures in the south? Could they also arrest people all over the place like this?

"If you are not ruthless, you can't stand firm! Let's stabilize Jinling City first, send the money, the people and the confession back together, directly to the Ministry of Justice, and send the charges directly to our father. Don't give them a chance to change their confession."

"What about other places, what about the common people and villages? Should we go to them one by one? Since ancient times, the imperial power has never been extended to the countryside. I'm afraid it won't be implemented in the future."

"Let's first deal with the various state governments and wait for our father to send people. Let these people go to the countryside, kill corrupt officials, collect money and grain, and reclaim wasteland. In this way, we can complete the blood transfusion, and when the summer harvest is ready, we can go home."

"Okay, it's up to you."

In the following half month, Ji Mingshang and the other two followed the same method and traveled to some major cities in the south, including Ji Nan, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Yangzhou, Guangzhou...

Despite this, Ji Mingshang did not forget to search some houses. The result was shocking. One hundred and nine million taels of silver were found in the homes of eighty-one officials in Jinling. Ji Mingshang curled his lips.

"That won't work. There are so many people but they can't beat Lord He."

People sent by Nangong Lin arrived in Jinling one after another. "Your Highness, Marquis, there are 310 officials appointed by His Majesty. They are all here now and are ready for your dispatch!"

"Okay, let me make it short. Ladies and gentlemen, this time His Majesty sent us south to preside over the summer harvest. The journey was simply outrageous. In a large prefecture like Nanjing, the total amount of silver embezzled by just a few dozen officials was over 100 million taels of silver, which was more than two years' income of the national treasury!"

Others were also shocked when they heard this, and many young people were filled with indignation.

"The situation in other places is not much better, especially in the countryside. Officials and civilians are colluding to oppress the people. What is it like? Bones are exposed in the wild, corpses are everywhere, and some people even starved to death in front of us! Now is the summer harvest season, and the crops in the fields are plentiful, but people can still starve to death in the fields!"

Ji Mingshang became more and more excited as he spoke, and even scared the mountain next to him.

"I called you here to kill people! Take your people to the countryside and the villages. Kill those landlords and gentry who are corrupt and oppress the people. Bring back the taxes from the court, feed the people, and finally organize land reclamation. Do you understand?"

Everyone understood, and Ji Mingshang nodded, "Each state government has mobilized more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, 100 of them will lead the troops to the countryside, and the remaining 200 will be placed in each state government as officials."

"Yes."

The summer harvest in the south is in full swing.

Nangong Lin, however, took the silver and confession sent by Ji Mingshang and frantically responded to the impeachment memorials from all over the country.

Needless to say, people from all over the country impeached Ji Mingshang and Nangong Xiao on the grounds that Marquis Jiangning and the Crown Prince had behaved inappropriately, were cruel and tyrannical in this incident, and caused unrest in the south. Ji Mingshang was even accused of being bloodthirsty.

In response, Nangong Lin refuted all of them with solid evidence.

Most officials in the capital believed that the evidence was solid and that Marquis Jiangning and the crown prince were not at fault. However, the imperial relatives had finally caught Nangong Xiao's tail. They had been quiet for a while because of the crown prince's appointment, but recently they jumped out again.

In the hall, all the ministers stood in silence, and the atmosphere was solemn. An official stepped out of the queue, holding a memorial in his hand, and said in a firm and sad voice: "Your Majesty, I have something to report, which concerns the foundation of the country and the safety of the country."

Nangong Lin's eyes were as sharp as torches as he scanned the ministers, finally landing on the official holding the memorial.

"Oh, here it comes again..."

The official took a deep breath and continued, "The prince went to Nanjing to preside over the summer harvest in the south. He was taken away by Ji Jun's son. His behavior was perverse, cruel and inhumane, which was outrageous. All officials complained. Although the prince was the top scholar, he ignored the ancestral teachings, abused his power, and persecuted the loyal and good people in the court. Even the innocent families of those officials could not escape his hands."

The ministers all sighed helplessly, some looked unhappy, and some lowered their heads in silence.

"How many times has this come?"

The emperor frowned, obviously annoyed by the daily impeachment.

Seeing that the emperor was unmoved, the official continued, "The prince is still young, and must have been deceived by Ji Mingshang's slander. I suggest that he be recalled to the capital to await his fate. The prince is harsh and ruthless to his officials at this time. If they are not satisfied with their work, he will punish them. Some people have even lost their lives because of this. How can he establish his prestige in the future and make all officials submit to him?"

At this time, another acquaintance also stood up and said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, I have also heard about the prince's atrocities. As the king's uncle, I am really distressed. But considering that he is young and ignorant, and he is the crown prince, and he has been bewitched by traitors, I have never reported it. I didn't expect that today, Lord Zhang also stood up. Now it seems that if the prince is not restrained, it may lead to a disaster!"

After hearing this, the emperor's face became even gloomier, and he was afraid that if he started to criticize directly, he would lose the dignity of the royal family.

"You are wrong, uncle. I have heard that the Crown Prince and Marquis Jiangning acted impartially and for the people, winning the hearts of the people in the South. Moreover, the Jinling Prefecture alone seized hundreds of millions of taels of stolen silver, and they all wrote confessions. According to the laws of our dynasty, these people should be executed, and even their nine clans should not be spared. Moreover, the Crown Prince and Marquis Jiangning did not kill them all, but instead properly settled their families. They have done their utmost, so how can they be called cruel and violent?"

Li Chi, the Minister of Justice, also stepped forward at the right time and said, "I second the motion. The officials arrested in Nanjing are now in the prison of the Ministry of Justice. They have confessed to the fact of corruption. The uncle of the emperor can go and question them in person."

Nangong Lin's eyes lit up, and his gratitude to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Justice was self-evident. This scene fell into the eyes of the Minister of Revenue Jia Qian, who couldn't help but think about it.

"That can't cover up the inappropriateness of this matter. At this time, most of the officials from various states have gone, and there is unrest everywhere, and people are in panic. There is no one to preside over the autumn harvest. Once the season is over, the consequences will be disastrous!"

No one wanted to listen anymore. This uncle of the king was really angry and wanted to throw dirty water. He spoke without thinking.

Just when Nangong Lin was about to open his mouth to stop them, someone else spoke first.

"Your Majesty, I also have something to report!"

"Oh?"

Everyone looked towards the source of the voice, which was the Minister of Revenue Jia Qian.

"I want to report to the emperor's uncle."

As soon as the words fell, everyone was shocked.

"Your Majesty, yesterday the Ministry of Revenue received the expenses for this quarter reported to the National Treasury by the Prince's House. As a result, the part reimbursed by the National Treasury was 30,000 taels more than that of the previous quarter. I wonder what's going on?"