Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 139 Yan Shifan: I will fight evil to the end! (Third update)
It was just past the hour of Yin (3-5 AM).

The sky was still dark in the first month of the lunar calendar.

Haiyue, Hairui, Lin Daqin, Yan Shifan, Guizai, and Su Zhigao had already left the Imperial College together.

Not only them, but people from all the dormitories got up very early. The crowd gathered together and marched out of Jixian Gate in a grand procession toward the West Market.

At this time of day, apart from officials attending the morning court, there are usually not many ordinary people out, but this time, even before they got close to the West Market entrance, everyone knew they were late.

The area under those old locust trees was already crowded with people.

And there was complete silence.

All eyes were fixed on the two newly erected vermilion pillars in the center of the execution ground.

The iron chains wrapped around the pillar were still covered with morning dew, gleaming coldly in the deep winter wind, and everyone just stared at them.

As dawn broke, the pillar became clearer and clearer, and the eyes of the onlookers grew brighter as well.

"Give it! Give it!"

The first to appear were not the Imperial Guards, but the yamen runners from Shuntian Prefecture, who wielded fire and water sticks to clear the way.

The crowd parted like a tide, only to quickly regroup.

The constables walked back and forth several times, but seeing the situation, they had no choice but to stand guard at the execution ground and maintain order.

at last.

A muffled drumbeat came from afar.

"I'm coming!"

Clearly, the Imperial Guards knew that there would be a large crowd today, so they sent out thirty or forty burly men on tall horses to lead the way, followed by two prison carts whose wooden wheels creaked and groaned as they rolled over the bluestone slabs.

"The villain! The villain has come out!"

Almost as soon as the prison cart appeared, the previously quiet people of the capital suddenly rioted. The constables tried to stop them, but an old woman with white hair rushed out of the crowd first and threw the prepared rotten vegetable leaves hard at the prison cart.

"My daughter... my daughter was abducted to the Marquis's mansion by this beast, and she threw herself into a well less than three months later!"

"Those wicked servants smashed up my shop... My father was kicked a few times and lay in bed for months... We couldn't save him!"

"You damned beast!!"

The crowd erupted in chaos, with rotten vegetables, fruit, and pebbles raining down on them. A cacophony of accusations mingled together, soon becoming incomprehensible to everyone, yet inexplicably coalescing into a powerful wave of sound.

"Dead! Die! Die!"

Around the execution platform, the yamen runners of Shuntian Prefecture stood hand in hand in a circle, barely managing to block the people, but they were also drenched in sweat.

Behind the execution table at the execution ground, a row of officials were already seated.

The arrest of the Zhang brothers was entirely carried out by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, including the search of their residence and the verification of evidence. However, after the interrogation, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was ordered to review the two men's cases at the Ministry of Justice, the Censorate, and the Court of Judicial Review, forming a joint trial by the three judicial authorities.

Therefore, not only did Xiao Zhen, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, attend the execution, but Yao Jingyang, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Zhang Run, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, and Tang Mu, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, also came forward.

At this moment, the four men sat behind the table, watching the crowd surge toward the Zhang brothers' prison cart, their expressions varied.

Apart from Xiao Zhen, the other three were somewhat worried as they looked at the agitated crowd. Glancing at the sky, Yao Jingyang, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, couldn't help but ask, "Gentlemen, since it's an immediate execution, isn't the time for the execution approaching?"

This was immediately met with agreement: "Minister Yao is absolutely right!" "If the crowds get congested and chaos ensues, it will be difficult to explain!" "Execute him as soon as possible!"

Normally, the execution time is noon, which is the middle of the day when the sun is shining brightly. The reason why the Zhang brothers were brought here so early today is because it is known that there will probably be a lot of people watching the execution. If it were during the peak of the midday crowd, there would even be a risk of congestion and stampedes in the West Market.

But they didn't expect that even though they arrived so early in the morning, there would still be so many people. If chaos broke out, it would be a huge problem for the officials in charge of the execution.

Seeing that the three departments had reached a consensus, Xiao Zhen, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, said noncommittally, "Let's proceed with the execution as you three wish!"

The order was given, and the Zhang brothers, who were already tied to the vermilion pillar, were stripped of their prison clothes and subjected to a physical examination. One of them struggled and roared, "I am the Emperor's brother-in-law! My sister is the current Empress Dowager..."

Before he could finish speaking, the constable next to him stuffed a rag into his mouth, pulled up his hair, looked him up and down, and coldly said, "Identity verification complete!"

"Execute them!!"

The executioner spat into his palm and deliberately raised the knife high so that the sunlight would reflect off the blade and create dazzling spots of light.

But it's not noon now, so there's no dazzling light, only the resolute glint of blades.

"Whoosh—!" Two flashes of light appeared, and the center of the entire West Market suddenly fell silent.

The people watched helplessly as a column of blood shot up and heads rolled off. One head rolled into a bamboo basket lined with lime, while another lay askew to one side, its face contorted in disbelief, its eyes wide open in death.

"well!!"

The silence in the center was instantly shattered.

Without anyone noticing, various objects in their hands flew towards the execution platform and smashed against the head, venting their final rage.

Some people even threw away the steamed buns they were holding; the hot buns stuck to the pool of blood and were quickly stained dark red.

Seeing this scene, the people behind the table breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, nothing went wrong.

Seeing the fates of Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling, I felt a deep sense of sorrow.

As Zhang Cong once wrote in a memorial to the emperor, after all, he was the emperor's brother-in-law. Considering the reputation of benevolence in the historical records, shouldn't we show some leniency?
After all, the Empress Dowager's family members were at least given some dignity throughout history, unless it was a real rebellion.

As for whether the Zhang brothers plotted a rebellion...

Everyone knows the truth!
Of course, now that the person is dead, there's nothing more to say. Let's just be even more cautious!
Even the Empress Dowager's own brother was killed without hesitation. Recently, Grand Secretary Zhang has also been trying to rectify official corruption. I'm afraid there will be another period of fear and insecurity for everyone!
"Let's go!"

Leaving aside the officials behind the desk who got up and left with mixed feelings, Haiyue and her party were also preparing to return to the Imperial College.

To be honest, they got up very early, hoping to witness the execution up close. Yan Shifan, who had witnessed a beheading once when he was a child and was so terrified that he wet himself, had done some mental preparation, but in the end, they couldn't even squeeze in.

Standing on the periphery, one could hear shouts and cries from afar, watch rotten vegetable leaves and pebbles flying everywhere, and finally hear the people cheering one after another.

I just joined in the atmosphere the whole time.

However, the execution of the emperor's brother-in-law still sparked much discussion among students.

Knowing that the Zhang brothers were to be executed and actually executing them are two different things.

The fact that the Empress Dowager's maternal clan was treated so ruthlessly has led some to comment that the current emperor has inherited the spirit of Emperor Taizu, showing no leniency towards evil. Others, however, yearn for the wise and virtuous rulers and benevolent ministers of Emperor Xiaozong's era, and secretly long to return to that time.

The Yixin Society naturally supported His Majesty's decision. Not only did Yan Shifan and Gui Zai praise His Majesty as a wise ruler, but even the usually taciturn Su Zhigao commented: "This move will not only boost morale, but also help Grand Secretary Zhang to rectify officialdom. There are too many redundant officials everywhere, and many of them are just sitting in their positions without doing their jobs. They must be eliminated!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Hai Rui said in a deep voice, "The rectification of officialdom is of paramount importance. Only with a clean and honest officialdom can all kinds of government affairs be carried out effectively!"

The second phase of the Jiajing New Deal was fully launched.

The first stage was the land survey and measurement system and the Single Whip Method promoted by Gui'e.

Things are not going well at the moment. The Single Whip Law already had the drawback of insufficient funds, and the land survey was resisted by gentry from all over the country against the backdrop of land annexation. The survey results were quite absurd and were just fooling fools.

Seeing that local government offices were not cooperating and were colluding with local gentry, the cabinet focused on another major campaign: to rectify official corruption.

Starting with the eunuchs in charge of the garrison, these local eunuchs had long been involved in forming cliques and extorting money, incurring the wrath of both heaven and man. They even used the pretext of serving the court to create various categories of tribute and filial piety to set quotas for the emperor, which was somewhat similar to Yang Jinshui in the TV series.

Zhang Cong is now targeting Yang Jinshui and his ilk. In all thirteen provinces of the empire, there are eunuchs who have been dismissed for "greed, indulgence, and causing trouble." At the same time, he is also promoting the reduction of redundant officials.

This reform came on strong, eliminating a large number of redundant personnel in just one year. It also reviewed the qualifications of officials who obtained their positions through donations or hereditary privileges, dismissed more than 3,000 people with honorary titles, and dealt a heavy blow to a group of parasites who were drawing salaries without working, which greatly improved the finances.

The case of the Zhang brothers serves as a stark warning to corrupt officials. It is impossible for them to completely stop their corrupt practices; even the Taizu Emperor's reign was so arduous that they could not eradicate them all. Moreover, the salaries of Ming Dynasty officials are indeed insufficient to support their families. It is unreasonable to demand that officials be completely incorruptible. However, it is still possible to achieve a period of clean governance and have more officials who are actually doing their jobs.

After returning to the Imperial Academy, everyone threw themselves back into their studies, feeling full of energy and eager to take the imperial examinations and enter officialdom, becoming part of the new policies, revitalizing the Ming Dynasty, and leaving their names in history.

However, a few days later, before the first month of the lunar calendar was over, Yan Shifan hurriedly entered the hall: "Mingwei, do you know that there are rumors circulating among the people that the Zhang brothers are not dead!"

Haiyue was stunned: "Not dead?"

Yan Shifan said in a deep voice, "They said that the two people who died were doubles, not the two heinous imperial brothers-in-law. That's why the executioner hurriedly executed them before noon and destroyed all the evidence!"

Haiyue's expression turned serious: "This matter is of utmost importance!"

Not to mention that these two heinous imperial brothers-in-law survived, which is incredibly unfair. The incident had caused quite a stir, and the execution in the West Market was known to everyone in the capital. It wouldn't be long before the news spread throughout the country. But it turns out that the two didn't die and were replaced.
Where is the dignity of the imperial court? Where is the face of the emperor?
On his way here, Yan Shifan had already thought: "The person spreading these rumors has ulterior motives. This is an attempt to damage the prestige of the court, and it's aimed at His Majesty. How can my Yixin Society sit idly by?"

Haiyue looked at him: "Donglou, what are you going to do?"

Yan Shifan gritted his teeth and made up his mind: "I want to go to the Ministry of Justice to investigate whether there are any death row inmates who have been switched, taken the blame, or committed heinous crimes to deceive the emperor! If so, I will fight them to the end!"

(End of this chapter)