Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 282 Does anyone think Yan Song is easy to bully?

"Speak slowly!"

"Who is the deceased?"

"What exactly happened?"

Haiyue immediately got up and asked about the situation as she walked.

Hu Zongxian composed himself and began to speak:
"The deceased was named Hong Chang, and he was a student at the Imperial Academy."

"This man's grandfather was Hong Zhong, who once served as Minister of Justice and commanded the military affairs of four provinces throughout his life. He was credited with protecting the people."

“Hong Chang is not the eldest grandson of the legitimate wife, and the Hong family has declined after three generations. He has some other businesses while working at the Imperial Academy, and it is said that he is suspected of leaking the exam questions this time!”

Hearing this, Haiyue's eyes flickered slightly: "Donglou is investigating the inside story of the imperial examination. Is this the reason for the intersection between the two sides?"

"should be……"

Hu Zongxian nodded and described the events in a deep voice: "When we arrived, we saw that Brother Donglou had already left in a hurry, his clothes stained with blood. There were screams inside the house. When we entered, we found Hongchang lying dead on the ground with a short blade stuck in his left chest, which should be the murder weapon."

Haiyue asked, "How many people were there at the time?"

Hu Zongxian said, "Zhao Mengjing is also here, along with two other classmates. Those two dared not linger, so I had Mengjing stay on site and come to report to the head of the association."

"it is good!"

Haiyue had a plan in mind: "Let's go! Let's go see what's going on!"

With his emotions stabilized, Hu Zongxian became even more determined to unite around this leader.

Adversity sees the truth.

Many so-called close friends would avoid such matters, but the current head of the association, a distinguished scholar, stepped forward without hesitation.

Whether it's due to personal friendship or the bond of camaraderie within the Ikkoku (One Heart Society), such individuals are worthy of following.

But when the two arrived at the Imperial College, they found that the yamen runners from the Shuntian Prefecture had also arrived, and the leader of them was a high-ranking official.

"The newly appointed Prefect Liu?"

The current Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture is named Liu Shuxiang.

This man was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the ninth year of the Zhengde reign. Initially, his official career was unremarkable. However, in the fifteenth year of the Zhengde reign, when Zhu Houzhao made his southern tour, Jiang Bin and other eunuchs were arrogant and tyrannical, and all the officials were afraid to greet him. Only Liu Shuxiang took the initiative to meet with the emperor and presented his memorial, unafraid of the emperor's gaze. The emperor praised him, and he became famous as a result. He then began to serve as an official in various local government offices.

Recently, he gained the appreciation of the Grand Secretary and was promoted to the capital, where he was appointed Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.

He took office on the eve of New Year's Day, and although it has only been a little over a month, he already has the air of a chief official in the capital. When he arrived at the Jixian Gate, he waved his hand and said, "Seal off the inside and outside. All students of the Imperial Academy shall return to their dormitories. No outsiders shall be allowed to enter!"

When Liu Shuxiang said this, she didn't turn around. Her tone was loud, clearly directed at Haiyue who had rushed over.

Hu Zongxian, who was following behind, changed his expression and stepped forward, about to step forward.

Haiyue raised her hand to stop him, and said calmly, "Ruzhen, go to the Yan residence and tell him what you have seen and heard."

"Yes!"

Hu Zongxian did not hesitate and quickly left.

Only then did Liu Shuxiang turn around, her gaze first falling on Hu Zongxian's back before fixing on him, and she asked in a deep voice, "And who are you, sir?"

Haiyue bowed and greeted the Grand Prefect: "This humble official is Haiyue, a compiler in the Hanlin Academy. I have come to pay my respects to the Grand Prefect."

"Hanlin?"

Liu Shuxiang frowned.

He had never heard of that name.

After Haiyue requested to stay in the hospital, her reputation gradually faded away like autumn leaves.

The honors of being bestowed with a courtesy name by the emperor, the position of "leader of the Yixin Association," and the merit of "offering strategies for stabilizing the border" are now rarely mentioned.

Amidst the blue bricks and gray tiles of the Hanlin Academy, the name that once drew the attention of the Six Ministries is now quietly disappearing among the figures of the editors.

After Liu Shuxiang arrived in the capital, he took over the position of the Shuntian Prefecture. Faced with the myriad affairs of the capital, he had not paid attention to the deeds of this person, so he was naturally a little puzzled as to why a Hanlin scholar would rush to the scene of the murder.

However, based on what he had just heard, he had a guess, and his gaze swept over like a knife: "It seems that Hai Hanlin is familiar with Grand Secretary Yan. No wonder he arrived so timely. Could it be that he wants to defend the murder committed by the young master of the Yan family?"

Liu Shuxiang's words were extremely harsh, practically slapping the words "sycophantic" in the other person's face.

Scholars value their reputation above all else. If they were publicly humiliated like this, they would probably have turned red in the face and stormed off long ago.

However, Haiyue's expression remained unchanged, and she asked in return, "Didn't Prefect Liu arrive quite quickly? In ordinary murder cases, would the Prefect of Shuntian personally intervene?"

Liu Shuxiang said in a deep voice, "This matter concerns the son of the Grand Secretary, so I must personally go to the scene to prevent any favoritism!"

"That's strange."

Haiyue immediately replied, "Grand Secretary Yan has always been honest and upright, and has never shown favoritism. Prefect Liu is not facing a notorious traitor, so why is he so nervous?"

"you!"

Liu Shuxiang's eyes widened as a man dressed as a clerk approached her and whispered something to her.

His expression changed instantly, and he waved his sleeve, saying, "Expel these irrelevant people! You all come with me!"

Having said that, he hurriedly led his advisor into the Imperial Academy. The jailer, who had received the order, stepped forward hesitantly.

Many of these people recognized Haiyue, so they didn't dare to act rashly, their faces showing an awkward yet respectful smile.

Haiyue waved her hand gently.

They quickly stepped aside.

"It seems Yan Song hasn't killed a whole group of people before, and he really thinks this Grand Secretary is easy to bully..."

Haiyue wasn't in a hurry; she stood with her hands behind her back.

I felt a mix of amusement and exasperation.

Yan Song held power for nearly twenty years and directly persecuted nearly a hundred officials, including Xia Yan, Zeng Xian, Yang Jisheng, and Shen Lian, all of whom were very famous.

Why are the Four Advisors of Yuezhong and the Three Sons of Wuwu praised by the world?

It's because Yan's faction killed too many people.

Those who dare to speak frankly will not only lose their own lives, but also bring ruin upon their families and clans.

Those who, knowing the consequences, still choose to step forward deserve praise and commendation!

As for the so-called protection of the "pure stream" faction, that's wishful thinking. In reality, there was no "pure stream" faction that could stand against Yan Song's faction. Xu Jie bowed and scraped before Yan Song, carefully flattering him and silently accumulating opportunities. Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, on the other hand, had no say at all. They only began to wield power during the Longqing reign, and were practically nonexistent during the Jiajing reign.

As for the Longqing Emperor himself, he didn't even dare to report the birth of his son, the Wanli Emperor, to the Jiajing Emperor. How could he dare to allow several Grand Secretaries to hold a meeting in his own residence to confront the powerful Yan Party?
In this life, due to Haiyue's appearance and interference, Yan Song did not fall into depravity but instead became the Grand Secretary and Zhang Cong's successor.

Of course, the two will inevitably have different styles of doing things.

With Zhang Cong's rise to power, accompanied by a series of collective punishments of officials, such as the Zuo Shunmen Crying Remonstrance and the Li Fuda Prison Case, those people dared not openly hate the emperor, but could only hate Zhang Cong, Gui E, and others who helped the emperor.

Zhang Conggui'e, however, would not tolerate them and would also suppress them with an iron fist, inevitably escalating the conflict between the two sides and making them increasingly antagonistic.

When Yan Song came to power, unlike the life-and-death struggles of the two previous prime ministers in history, he took over smoothly, did not even purge the Great Rites Controversy group, and was lenient towards the other officials.

This is not good.

Instead, they discovered that the emperor liked it.

Yan Song's understanding of Zhu Houcong was certainly not as good as Hai Yue's, who had direct experience from later generations, but he was definitely the most adept at understanding the emperor's mind in his time.

The Grand Secretary, being the official who had the most frequent contact with the Emperor, quickly realized that even though the Grand Secretary was the head of all officials, the Emperor was happy to see the other officials challenge him.

Therefore, Yan Song carefully measured the situation, putting on an act as if the other four Grand Secretaries in the cabinet did not submit to him, and that many officials in the Six Ministries were also in opposition to him.

In fact, the policies he implemented were more successful than those during Zhang Cong's time.

Both the initial implementation of the performance evaluation system and the preliminary preparations for the takeover of the Hetao region are on track.

During this period, a large number of officials who were favored by Yan Song were naturally placed in positions of power.

They value substance over appearances.

But precisely because of this, some people seem unable to distinguish between the big and small kings, and actually think that Chief Minister Yan is easy to bully?
"Does the prime minister have the right to abuse his power and cover up all wrongdoings?"

Liu Shuxiang had already arrived at the scene. She personally examined the body lying in a pool of blood, then summoned Zhao Zhenji, who had been guarding the scene, and coldly questioned him before finally uttering these words.

The reason for saying this is that, according to Zhao Zhenji's description, it cannot be confirmed that Yan Shifan was the murderer, even though his clothes were stained with blood and he left the scene in a hurry.

Liu Shuxiang clearly believed that this was because the other party was wary of his family background. His expression was solemn, and his imposing manner suddenly arose: "Zhao Zhenji, you are the top scholar of this year's imperial examination. You should know what a crime it is to harbor a criminal! No matter who it is, if someone commits murder, they will be punished according to the laws of my Great Ming Dynasty!"

Zhao Zhenji stood tall and straight, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect, and said, “This student dares to say that criminal matters require solid evidence. We have not witnessed any dispute or violence, which is a fact! To make unfounded speculations based on one’s status is no different from fabricating charges. I hope the Grand Prefect of the Capital will understand!”

"Good! Good!"

Liu Shuxiang, enraged, laughed instead. As a high-ranking official of the third rank, he disdained to argue with a mere top scorer in the imperial examination. He waved his hand and said, "Take him away and interrogate him properly!"

This was not the attitude one would give to a witness, but rather the attitude one would give to a suspect. Zhao Zhenji, however, raised his head, his long sleeves fluttering, and followed the clerk to the side.

Liu Shuxiang, however, believed that he was not biased at all. He then summoned several more students to question them, and they all stammered out that Yan Shifan, Hu Zongxian, and Zhao Zhenji had been studying together for many years, which further confirmed the situation.

It must have been Yan Shifan who committed the murder. To cover it up, one of his classmates went to the Hanlin Academy for help, and the other helped him escape. They tried to stir up trouble at the scene, but he saw through their scheme at a glance.

"Immediately arrest Yan Shifan and bring him to justice. This prefecture intends to interrogate him immediately!"

At his command, the constables scattered to search for the person.

However, before Yan Shifan could obtain it, his advisor came to report: "Grand Prefect of the Capital, Grand Secretary Yan has arrived!"

"Are you coming?"

Liu Shuxiang waved her sleeves, showing no fear whatsoever.

Having reached the position of Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, even if one's status in the imperial court is not as high as that of the Grand Secretary, one is still a figure of considerable influence, and is able to face others with neither arrogance nor servility.

But the clerk's face was very ugly. He lowered his voice, but could not hide his fear at all: "I don't know if Grand Secretary Yan went to the palace to ask for orders, but he actually came with the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

"what?"

Liu Shuxiang's eyes instantly cleared.

(End of this chapter)