I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 261: Village Elders Ask for Order

Mr. Guan slowly put on his clothes, fixed his hair and beard, and then solemnly picked up the bundle containing the Wanmin Book.
He finished his breakfast seriously. By the time he finished his breakfast, more than 200 village elders had gathered.
The sun has risen, and the people of Beijing who have come out to make a living have already noticed this group of strange old men, but they don't know what they do.
Grandpa Guan was excited when he saw this scene. He slowly took out a piece of white cloth from his arms, on which were written four big words: "The people plead for our lives!"

He wrote this overnight. He held the white cloth high up so that the people in the capital could see it clearly.
With Grandpa Guan taking the lead, other village elders also took out the same white cloth, and they walked towards Chongwenmen together.
Cao Tingyun was also walking in the team
"Hey, isn't this Cao Tingyun who slept with his master's wife? How dare he return to the capital?" said a citizen of the capital.

"Yes! Aren't you afraid that your master will peel off your skin?"

Many people in the capital knew Cao Tingyun.

Cao Tingyun ignored all this and kept explaining the purpose of the village elders' visit.
The village elders followed suit and explained their purpose and demands to the people of Beijing.
The people of the capital city quickly put aside the gossip about Cao Tingyun. Even though they were well-informed in the capital, it was the first time they saw so many village elders writing a petition.

There is never a shortage of people watching the fun in the capital, not to mention that the salt affairs these village elders are talking about are matters of great concern to every citizen.

So more and more people followed the team of village elders.
When they reached Chongwen Gate, the soldiers guarding the city did not stop them and let them into the inner city. They walked along Chongwen Gate Street and arrived at Youchang'an Street, and there was no obstruction along the way.
More and more people followed them, and there were already more than a thousand people. With so many people following them, the morale of the villagers was getting higher and higher, and they walked more and more vigorously.
Before the founding of New China, Chang'an Avenue was divided into two sections, the left and the right, because there were two gates in front of Chengtianmen (today's Anmen) that cut off Chang'an Avenue, namely the Left Chang'an Gate and the Right Chang'an Gate. These two gates are also the origin of the name of Chang'an Avenue. After the founding of New China, these two gates were demolished and Chang'an Avenue was opened.
The destination of the village elders was Dengwen Drum Courtyard on the north side of Chang'an Street outside the Right Chang'an Gate. The Dengwen Drum system of the Ming Dynasty was established by Zhu Yuanzhang in the first year of Hongwu. It expressed the willingness to listen to the opinions of his subjects and the people, and also made it convenient for the people to beat drums to complain.

Dengwen Drum Courtyard was just a small courtyard, with only a few soldiers guarding it. Facing the sudden arrival of the village elders, they were also confused and did not try to stop them. They also knew that they could not stop them at all.
The village elders looked at the Dengwen drum that had been covered in dust for many years with excitement in their eyes. Grandpa Guan walked up to it, picked up the drumstick, and started beating it vigorously.
"Dong! Dong! Dong!" The Dengwen drum was struck. This place was already in the south of the imperial city. In this quiet morning, the sound of the Dengwen drum could be heard from far away.
It also shocked countless people
The officials from the six ministries who had just come out of the morning court listened to the drum sounds in surprise, wondering what had happened.
Dengwen Drum Courtyard is strategically located, with the six ministries’ offices to the southwest, where officials from the six ministries work. Wenyuan Pavilion, across the palace wall to the north, is the office of the cabinet.

Therefore, the drum sound was heard by the entire core of the Ming Dynasty...

"What's that sound?" Yang Tinghe, who had just returned to Wenyuan Pavilion, asked in surprise.

"It sounds like the Dengwen Drum from the direction?" Liang Chu said uncertainly.

"Dengwen Drum? How many years has it been since the Dengwen Drum was struck?" Yang Tinghe said after thinking for a while.

"Yes!" Yang Yiqing also said.

"Send someone to check it out quickly!" Yang Tinghe said.

Zhu Yuanzhang stipulated that once the drum for reporting was sounded, the person who beat the drum must be dealt with. So all government offices sent officials to the Right Chang'an Gate...

When the village elders saw the Right Chang'an Gate opened, they all knelt on the cold ground and unfolded the Book of All People in their bundles. The densely packed names and red handprints on it shocked the onlookers...

Equally shocked were the officials sent by various government offices to investigate the situation, including the Censor Shen Hao.

Shen Hao was one of the main forces attacking the Royal Group. He had already felt that things were not going well when the new army was dispatched a while ago. He had no idea what was going on in the past two days, and he felt inexplicably uneasy...

After he understood the purpose of these village elders, he subconsciously wanted to stop them, but he couldn't think of a good way...

Looking at the gray hair, he was really at a loss. China has always had a tradition of respecting the elderly. He couldn't beat or scold her, and even kind words wouldn't do anything to persuade her to leave.
Just as he was planning how to steal these books of all nations, a sharp voice rang out...

"What happened? Why was the drum struck? Even His Majesty heard it." Zhang Yong also came to the front of the Right Chang'an Gate.
His voice was so loud that everyone present could hear it clearly...

Grandpa Guan was filled with joy. He knelt forward a few steps, held up a thick book of all people and shouted loudly: "Guan Yue from Neiqiu County, Shunde Prefecture, presents to Your Majesty the book of all people from 80,000 people in Neiqiu County, thanking Your Majesty for stabilizing the price of salt so that ordinary people like us can afford salt. Please help pass it to Your Majesty."

Other village elders followed suit and reported their native places.
More and more officials were present. They were also worldly people. They also wanted to see the excitement. They listened to a familiar prefecture and county, including their hometown. They all fell into silence. They felt a great power from the words of the village elders.
"Please stand up, elders. It's cold, so don't kneel on the ground. I will report to His Majesty right away." Zhang Yong said hurriedly and left in a hurry.
The village elders knelt on the ground stubbornly and continued to take turns to report their hometowns.
The cabinet elders also understood what was happening outside.
"This must be the work of King Jing. Only he can do such a thing," said Yang Yiqing.

"What on earth does the King of Jing want to do by doing this?" Liang Chu said with a frown.

"He wants to win for the third time." Yang Tinghe said suddenly.

"Your Majesty has spoken, remembering that you have come from afar to Beijing to plead for the people, and has specially summoned you to the palace to meet him." Zhang Yong was very fast and rushed back in less than a quarter of an hour.
The village elders were all stunned. They had originally thought that they could just hand in the Book of All People, but they did not expect to be summoned by the emperor. This was completely beyond their expectations and something they had never dared to even think about!

After recovering from the shock, the village elders fell into ecstasy again.
For them, this is a matter of bringing honor to the family!
(End of this chapter)