Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 935: The Second Shangshu
On this day, the cabinet elders, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Clan Affairs, the Censorate and other bigwigs came to the Qianqing Palace. They came because Zhu Shenzhui called them, and their purpose was to discuss how to deal with these princes.

In theory, the rebellion of the princes was a major event, which should be dealt with by the court and convicted by the three judicial departments. But this time was different from the Ning Wang during the Zhengde period. At that time, the Ning Wang was really planning a rebellion and had sent troops to attack the city. If Wang Shouren had not reacted quickly and put down the rebellion in a lightning speed, once the Ning Wang captured Nanjing, the world would have been in chaos.

This time, the rebellion of Prince Fu and others was only in the planning stage, and everyone knew that these princes were actually incapable of achieving anything great. They were all high-minded but incompetent. They were good at talking, but when it came to actual action, they were probably worse than the other. In addition, the rebellion did not cause any substantial harm, and their identities were different, so Zhu Shenzui did not directly report to the court, but used the Jinyiwei and the clan court to capture them directly.

This was also something Zhu Shenzhui had arranged long ago. Zhu Shenzhui's real intention in mobilizing these four vassal kings was not to stir up trouble and deal with the fundamental problem of the Ming royal family, but to use it as an excuse to open a gap from this point.

Therefore, Zhu Shenzhui had no intention of overdoing it from the beginning. He just wanted to kill a chicken to scare the monkey and prepare for the adjustment of the royal family later. In other words, he had the opportunity to prevent this matter in advance, but he did not do so and instead watched these princes slide into the abyss step by step, and finally ended up like this.

It was precisely because of these reasons that Zhu Shenzui did not bring their treatment to the court meeting. There were too many people in the court meeting, and the minds of all parties were too confused. In addition, the affairs of the vassal kings were also related to the dignity of the royal family. Once it was brought to the court meeting, there would be no way to control the follow-up.

Therefore, Zhu Shenzhu planned to deal with it privately, but after all, this matter involved a case of treason, and even if he was the emperor, he could not bypass the court to make a direct decision. So after thinking about it, he summoned these people to the Qianqing Palace to discuss. In this way, all parties could reach a consensus, and private discussions could also avoid the escalation of the incident.

The chief minister of the cabinet, Wen Tihen, was definitely present. In addition to Wen Tihen, there were also the second minister Zhang Zhifa and three other cabinet ministers, Fan Fucui, Kong Zhenyun, and Liu Yuliang. The one who came from the Ministry of Revenue was Yang Sichang, the one from the Ministry of Rites was Qian Qianyi, the one from the Ministry of Justice was Fan Jingwen, in addition there were Xu Xiancheng and Zhang Ruitu from the Censorate, as well as Sun Chengzong and Zhu Youjian representing the Ministry of Clan Affairs.

When the twelve people arrived at the Qianqing Palace, the chief eunuch Lu Jiude had been waiting at the door. Seeing the gentlemen coming, he quickly invited them in. When they arrived at the side hall, Zhu Shenzui was already sitting in the hall waiting, and next to him, Crown Prince Zhu Minlan was also sitting.

"Your Majesty, your Highness the Crown Prince..." Everyone stepped forward and saluted the Emperor and the Crown Prince. Zhu Shenzui nodded slightly. The Crown Prince stood up and returned the salute, and then they were given seats and sat down one by one.

"Today I summoned you all to discuss the affairs of Prince Fu, Prince Lu, Prince Zheng, and Prince Chong. I think you all know about this. What do you think about this?"

Zhu Shenzui did not beat around the bush and spoke directly. Everyone nodded slightly to show that they understood. Then when Zhu Shenzui asked them what they thought about this, everyone expressed their opinions one after another according to their official positions. They all said that they were extremely indignant at the actions of the four princes. As princes of the Ming Dynasty, they actually colluded with foreign enemies to plot rebellion and should be severely punished.

But after talking for a long time, no one mentioned how to punish severely without mercy, and Zhu Shenzhui was also in a dilemma. These guys were all old-timers in the officialdom. Although they said a lot, they didn't say a word of substance. They were just high-profile.

Looking at Xu Xiancheng, Zhu Shenzhu gave up the idea of ​​letting him speak first. Although Xu Xiancheng held a high position, his identity was awkward. As a relative, it was not easy for Xu Xiancheng to express his opinion first when discussing the royal family, especially when discussing how to deal with the vassal kings.

Although Prince An Zhu Youjian was suitable, as a representative of the Imperial Clan Court, he expressed his attitude too early and would not be able to maneuver later. So after much deliberation, Zhu Shenzhui finally set his sights on Fan Jingwen. Fan Jingwen was the Minister of Justice, so it would be most appropriate for him to express his attitude first.

"Mr. Fan, you are the Minister of Justice. Please tell us about this matter first." Zhu Shenzhui asked directly by name.

Fan Jingwen stood up and bowed, then said, "According to the Great Ming Law, those who plot rebellion shall be executed, and their entire family shall be exterminated. The women and men under the age of sixteen in their family shall be sent to the Jiaofang Bureau or become slaves, and all their property shall be confiscated..."

Before he could finish, Qian Qianyi frowned and reminded him, "Master Fan, what you are talking about is only the punishment for treason in the Great Ming Law. But there is another rule in the Great Ming Law, which is to refer to the Imperial Ming Ancestor's Instructions. Anyone who commits a crime against a royal family will be demoted to a commoner if the crime is minor, or demoted to a commoner if the crime is serious. You can't generalize."

Fan Jingwen seemed to have known that someone would bring this up, and he smiled faintly, "Mr. Qian is right. There is indeed such a clause in the Imperial Precepts formulated by Taizu, and it is used in conjunction with the Great Ming Law. But when Taizu made this clause, he did not say that the crime of treason could be pardoned, and there is no such description in the Imperial Precepts." "As the Minister of Justice, I should follow the law. Your Majesty asked me, and I will naturally answer according to the actual situation. When Prince Ning rebelled, although he was a member of the royal family and a vassal king, he was still allowed to commit suicide according to the law, and the implicated royal family members were demoted. All of these require Your Majesty to show mercy outside the law and pardon them. If you only follow the law, what's wrong with what I said just now?"

"This old fox!" Qian Qianyi cursed inwardly. Fan Jingwen had told him all the good and bad things in his words. Although he kept talking about laws, he was actually very ruthless.

But it is true, isn't Fan Jingwen such a person? Fan Jingwen was very famous in the literary world at that time. In the Tianqi period, he served as a Langzhong of the Ministry of Personnel's Wenxuan Division, and later promoted to Shaoqing of the Ministry of Rites' Taichang Temple, and Superintendent of the Four Barbarians Hall. After that, he returned to his hometown for mourning. In the second year of Chongzhen, he was reinstated and served as Shaoqing of the Taichang Temple. He was transferred to the Right Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate and the Governor of Henan. During the Jiyi Rebellion, the capital was under martial law, and he led his troops to defend the king. He was promoted to Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War and trained troops in Tongzhou.

After that, he served as the Right Censor of Nanjing Metropolitan Procuratorate, and was appointed Minister of War and Counselor of State Affairs. Because of his different views on state affairs from Emperor Chongzhen, he was disliked by Emperor Chongzhen and dismissed from office. However, Emperor Chongzhen soon re-employed him and transferred him to Minister of Works. However, before he took office, Zhu Shenzhui entered Beijing.

After Zhu Shenzhui became the regent, he made slight adjustments to the officials of the six ministries of the court. Knowing that Fan Jingwen was very capable, he transferred him from the Ministry of Works to the Ministry of Justice and served as the Minister of Justice until today.

Fan Jingwen was a famous, capable, and self-disciplined person. The Donglin Party tried hard to win over Fan Jingwen, but Fan Jingwen simply looked down upon the Donglin Party's efforts. Every time the Donglin Party wanted him to join Donglin, Fan Jingwen either pretended to be stupid or found excuses to shirk his responsibilities. Although Fan Jingwen was known as "Fan Qingtian" among the people, he was also known as "Buer Shangshu" (not accepting instructions or gifts) for his integrity. But it would be a big mistake to think that he was a foolish official. This guy was not only capable but also very slippery, and his political vision was even more poisonous, otherwise he would have been pulled over by the Donglin Party long ago.

Zhu Shenzhu was very satisfied with Fan Jingwen's words. Although Fan Jingwen was cunning, he also left room for this matter, that is, he put the initiative in the hands of the emperor, meaning that these four princes could be killed according to the example of Prince Ning, but the princes of each prince could also be pardoned and not be implicated. As for the procedure for handling, it was all up to the emperor.

"Mr. Qian, what do you think of what Fan Qing said?" Since Qian Qianyi had just spoken, Zhu Shenzui naturally wanted to strike while the iron was hot and asked him directly.

Qian Qianyi had already surrendered to the emperor, and his reputation within the Donglin Party had become very bad, especially after the Jiangnan case. You should know that he was the main person involved in the Jiangnan case, and it was because he was in Nanjing that most of the Donglin Party members implicated in the case were arrested at once, and the case also caused the Donglin Party to suffer a serious blow and never recover.

At present, the Donglin Party has lost its former power and has split internally. Some were arrested, some were angry at Qian Qianyi and others, and the other part, led by Qian Qianyi and others, surrendered to the emperor. From then on, the Donglin Party existed in name only and was no longer the same as before.

Since he had voted for the emperor, he had to vote firmly, otherwise wouldn't all his previous work be in vain? Moreover, he was now the Minister of Rites, the head of the six ministries, and only half a step away from entering the cabinet. Being a cabinet elder or even the chief minister had been Qian Qianyi's dream for many years. How could he change his mind under such circumstances? Moreover, what he said to Fan Jingwen just now was also to find excuses for the emperor. He thought he had figured out the emperor's thoughts and would not miss this opportunity.

"Your Majesty, I think what Lord Fan said is absolutely right. This case can be handled according to the previous example of Prince Ning. The main culprit should be investigated and sentenced to death considering his status. As for the subsequent treatment of the four vassals, Your Majesty can consider their status as royal family members to reduce their guilt and select other suitable people to succeed them to show the emperor's great grace."

Zhu Shenzhui nodded slightly. Qian Qianyi's attitude was similar to Fan Jingwen's, but he just said it more clearly. But Zhu Shenzhui was still not satisfied. To be honest, it didn't matter whether Prince Fu and his men died or not. They could be put to death or not. They were just a few princes in his hands and couldn't cause any trouble.

Zhu Shenzhui wanted to weaken the power of the vassal kings, that is, to reduce the real fiefdom of the vassal kings and change it to a virtual fiefdom, and then restrain the vassal kings under the nose of the capital, so that they would no longer have fiefdoms to return to. Just like the current Prince An is an example. Although Prince An is a prince, he no longer has the fiefdom of the prince of the Ming Dynasty. He receives a salary in the capital, which can completely solve the fundamental problem of the vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty.

"Mr. Yang, what do you think?" Zhu Shenzhu turned to ask Yang Sichang. Yang Sichang had been trying to figure out Zhu Shenzhu's thoughts, and when he saw him asking, he immediately expressed his attitude. His attitude was roughly the same as Fan Jingwen and Qian Qianyi, but he felt that these four princes were different from Prince Ning. Although they also rebelled, they did not take action and did not cause any consequences, so it was better not to execute them. If they were spared, it would be considered Zhu Shenzhu's extrajudicial grace, and this would also appease the royal family.

Zhu Shencui did not comment and continued to let others express their attitudes. Then everyone expressed their own opinions, which were basically similar, focusing mainly on the key point of whether to execute or demote to a commoner. However, these were far from enough for Zhu Shencui, because he did not hear what he really wanted. He could not help but look at Prince An again, wondering whether he should let Prince An say what he wanted to say.

(End of this chapter)