Ming: I am fake, walking on thin ice

Chapter 32 What, am I ungrateful?
In the residence of Minister of Revenue Shen Gu, under the pavilion in the backyard, Shen Gu and Sun Xianzhong sat opposite each other, surrounded by several officials from the Ministry of Revenue.

"Three officials from the Ministry of Revenue have been detained in the imperial prison. Can Lord Sun find a way to rescue them?" Shen Gu asked.

Sun Xianzhong frowned, shook his head, and responded: "Since Shi Biao is interrogating them personally this time, I'm afraid there is no hope for rescue. I guess those three may have confessed."

As soon as these words were spoken, Shen Gu and the officials from the Ministry of Revenue behind him suddenly changed their expressions.

Sun Xianzhong glanced at everyone and said in a deep voice, "Those three people probably don't know much, right? At most, they can implicate a few rice merchants. Lord Shen, at the court tomorrow morning, we should convict those three people and pin all the blame on them."

"Convicted?" Shen Gu's face turned even paler. "Are they going to be... abandoned?"

"It would be best if they could be saved." Sun Xianzhong spread his hands, "But now they are in the imperial prison, the situation is not optimistic."

A hint of coldness flashed across Shen Gu's eyes. After thinking for a moment, he said, "At the court tomorrow morning, we will cooperate with each other to convict those three people. Then we will petition the Queen Mother to transfer them from the Imperial Prison to the Ministry of Justice. With our people in the Ministry of Justice, subsequent matters will be easy to handle."

The officials behind him nodded in agreement. Sun Xianzhong stood up and clasped his fists: "Lord Shen is indeed decisive. I will report this to the Duke. Remember, no matter what, you must not let this matter involve the Duke."

"That will never happen!" Shen Gu said immediately.

Sun Xianzhong smiled and strode away. Shen Gu asked the officials of the Ministry of Revenue to sit down and began to discuss how to deal with the court tomorrow morning.

"The Queen Mother should approve our request." Shen Gu frowned and said, "I'm just worried that His Majesty will suddenly intervene."

"Your Majesty must also listen to the Queen Mother's advice." Liu Ye, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, said with a little disdain, "Your Majesty made a big mistake before, and now in the court, he is just a decoration..."

"Be careful with your words!" Shen Gu interrupted him quickly.

……

The next morning at court, after attending court, all the ministers began to report on their affairs.

Liu Ye, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, was the first to step forward and report, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager, Zhang Jing, Li Dan, and Wang Si, the three officials of the Ministry of Revenue, colluded with the assistant minister of the Granary to steal and sell government grain. Their crimes are heinous. I request that the criminals be handed over to the Ministry of Justice for detention, and that the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Dali Temple jointly try them to convict them and serve as a warning to all officials."

Upon hearing this, Xu Youzhen immediately stood up and refuted: "Your Majesty has handed over the granary case to us. How can we transfer it midway when it is still under investigation?"

"Master Xu, these three people have been captured and have confessed. Your mission with the Jinyiwei is over." Liu Ye snorted coldly, "The trial of the case should be handed over to the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Dali Temple."

"My Jinyiwei also has the power to try cases." Jinyiwei commander Shi Biao stepped forward.

As a result, the two sides started a heated debate in the court.

Zhu Qizhen sat on the throne with a stern look. He had personally gone to the Jinyiwei yesterday and learned that the three people from the Ministry of Revenue had confessed, but what they knew was only the tip of the iceberg of the case.

There must be someone important behind the granary case. The Ministry of Revenue is so eager to close the case, obviously it has something to hide.

A murderous look flashed across Zhu Qizhen's eyes, and he sneered in his heart: The ministers really treat me as a decoration. Do they think I am a fool?
At this time, Shen Gu, the Minister of Revenue, stepped forward and bowed to the Queen Mother behind the curtain, saying, "Your Majesty, I am the Minister of Revenue and I have committed dereliction of duty. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

The Queen Mother's cold voice came from behind the curtain: "You are indeed guilty, so you will be fined for half a year."

Shen Gu kowtowed and thanked: "Thank you, Queen Mother. I am guilty and willing to accept the punishment. However, the crimes of Zhang Jing, Li Dan, and Wang Si from the Ministry of Revenue are unforgivable. I request..."

"They are indeed unforgivable!" Zhu Qizhen suddenly interrupted him, his voice revealing unquestionable majesty.

……

All the ministers' eyes fell on him. Zhu Qizhen stood up, and his eyes swept across the ministers, finally landing on Shen Gu:
"I went to the Jinyiwei yesterday. Zhang Jing, Li Dan, and Wang Si have confessed that they colluded with rice merchants to steal and sell government grain. What they did was outrageous. If their greed is allowed to expand infinitely, the Ming Dynasty will be destroyed in the hands of people like them."

"They are hopeless, yet they are still fearless. If you want to fight such a hungry wolf, either don't fight it, or beat it to death with a stick!"

"Pass on my decree. Zhang Jing, Li Dan, and Wang Si will be beheaded immediately and displayed to the public! All male members of their families will be sent to the army, and all female members will be exiled to the Jiaofangsi."

After he finished speaking, the faces of the ministers suddenly changed and they were terrified.

The entire court fell into silence in an instant. All the ministers were stunned and could not believe that this was the emperor's decree.

"Your Majesty, this..." Shen Gu was speechless for a moment, his heart in chaos.

He convicted the three men with the intention of transferring them from the Imperial Prison to the Ministry of Justice's Jail and then finding a way to rescue them.

Zhu Qizhen's eyes were like knives, and he asked coldly: "Why? Do you think I am ungrateful?"

"Your Majesty..." The Chief Minister of the Cabinet, Wang Zhi, stepped forward.

"I have already made the decision on this matter. There is no need to discuss it further!" Zhu Qizhen shouted coldly.

At this moment, the imperial majesty emanating from him made the ministers' hearts tremble, as if they were in a strict prison cell.

The emperor’s power is like a prison, it makes people tremble with fear!
The Queen Mother behind the curtain was secretly surprised that this boy was already beginning to show the demeanor of a king.

She wanted to stop the emperor's order, but in the case of the granary, the three people were unforgivable. The intention of the Minister of Revenue Shen Gu was obvious to anyone with a discerning eye.

Therefore, Yu Qian, Duke of Yingguo and others remained silent, and they obviously agreed with the emperor's punishment.

"This case will be handled according to your majesty's wishes!" she ordered in a cold voice.

Shen Gu's heart was in a mess, and he turned to look at Sun Xianzhong for help. But Sun Xianzhong did not look at him, but at his brother Sun Jizhong. As the Marquis of Huichang and the brother of the Queen Mother, Sun Jizhong's face was as gloomy as water, and he said nothing.

……

Down towards the back.

Zhu Qizhen returned to the Qianqing Palace. Xu Youzhen, Li Xian and Shi Biao followed him into the hall. Shi Biao could not help but say, "Your Majesty, Shen Gu and his men clearly want to put all the blame on Zhang Jing, Li Dan and Wang Si. Wouldn't it be what they want if we execute them?"

"If he is not executed, he will be handed over to the Ministry of Justice." Xu Youzhen said, "Now at least we can tell those people behind the scenes that if this case is investigated, they will lose their heads."

"Will it not alert the enemy?" Li Xian asked.

"What I want is to alert the enemy!" Zhu Qizhen snorted, "Zhang Jing, Li Dan, and Wang Si were executed immediately. The people behind them should immediately deal with the tail of the granary case. Shi Biao, your people should keep a close eye on those rice merchants. As soon as they start to mess up, our chance will come."

"As you command!" Shi Biao clasped his fists and bowed, "Your Majesty, you are wise."

Zhu Qizhen waved his hand, with a bitter smile on his face: "Stop the flattery. Listen carefully, you must not only do your job well, but also not leave any handles. You are the only ones I can rely on now."

Upon hearing this, the three men bowed solemnly and swore in unison: "We will live up to your majesty's trust!"

A weak request for votes!

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(End of this chapter)