Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 319 Upholding Integrity and Dying for Righteousness: The Spirit of a Hanlin Scholar

"Wow—"

A bucket of ice water was poured over his head, and Qiu Luan shivered violently, waking up from his unconsciousness.

He struggled to open his swollen eyes, and through his blurred vision, he saw that he was suspended by iron chains in a torture chamber.

"This lord...this lord is..."

"Imperial Prison?"

After a long period of blank stare, Qiu Luan finally came to her senses.

Not long ago, after the group of Imperial Guards pounded on the door from the outside, they became impatient and viciously broke in.

After rushing into his own mansion, he grabbed anyone he saw and beat them with his fists and feet.

He clearly did not resist; he was forcefully pushed to the ground.

No one in the mansion was spared.

Then they were dragged into the imperial prison and torture began.

The other side didn't even ask any questions and started fighting immediately.

"Snapped!"

The cracking sound of the whip piercing the air exploded in my ears, and another bloody welt appeared on my body.

"what--!!"

Qiu Luan was in so much pain that her whole body convulsed. She tried to grit her teeth and show some toughness, but she failed and screamed more miserably than anyone else.

"Say!"

A chilling, interrogative question came: "How did you collude with the rebels? Which prince are you planning to enthrone?"

"what?"

Qiu Luan's expression changed drastically, and his hoarse voice rose: "This lord...this lord is innocent!"

He forced his head up, blood dripping from his chin: "My loyalty to His Majesty is as clear as the sun and moon; I have absolutely no intention of betraying him!"

Investing in a prince and supporting a prince are two completely different things.

Especially those involving palace coups.

Once this heinous crime of treason is confessed, the consequence will be the extermination of the entire clan!
"As expected, you won't shed tears until you see the coffin. You traitors will certainly not confess easily!"

The commander of the Imperial Guard opposite him sneered, "The appetizer is over, let's get to the main course!"

"bring it on!"

Qiu Luan prepared to grit her teeth.

What if we pull through?
"what--!"

"Stop fighting! Stop fighting!"

"I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!!"

When Lu Bing entered the interrogation room, a signed and fingerprinted confession was already on the table.

Lu Bing picked it up and slowly flipped through it.

Nod with satisfaction.

"Lu Bing... Lu Bing, you... you'll die a horrible death..."

As the other party's blurry outline became clear, Qiu Luan, knowing she was doomed, went completely mad and roared hysterically.

Enemies are extremely jealous when they meet.

The two had quite a few clashes during their time in Annam.

Qiu Luan initially did not want to offend the other party, but Lu Bing kept preventing them from sending troops. In their view, this was an attempt to monopolize the credit, which they naturally did not want.

Later, Qiu Luan was almost completely wiped out by Mo Dengyong, but instead of reflecting on his mistakes, he became increasingly angry and ashamed.

Some even suspected that Lu Bing deliberately leaked military intelligence to the enemy in order to prove his foresight.

Lu Bing's appearance now "confirms" his initial guess.

If he hadn't committed such a heinous act back then, why would he be so determined to frame him now?
Lu Bingli ignored him completely.

You'll feel guilty if you wrongly accuse someone.

But to wrongly accuse Qiu Luan is a matter of no consequence whatsoever.

Upon seeing his confession and comparing it with the account books found in Qiu's residence, even Lu Bing couldn't help but narrow his eyes: "Wow! This scoundrel actually managed to develop so many accomplices in the Beijing Garrison?"

I don't like it when people do things for me without getting paid!
Qiu Luan truly put this saying into practice.

Therefore, in history, he even gave money to Anda Khan.

Anda Khan bypassed Datong, which he was guarding, and as a result, the enemy marched all the way to Beijing.

Qiu Luan has no authority to guard the border, yet he is spending lavishly on the capital garrison.

Twelfth Regiment, battalion, and officers at all levels.

Who hasn't received his "golden bean"?
Lu Bing was very pleased.

Such a person is indeed someone who can report back to His Majesty.

Of course, we also need to take down a number of low- and mid-level generals in the Beijing Garrison.

However, most of these people were from noble families or were related by blood.

Lu Bing had personally participated in the martial arts examination and knew how complex it was.

If civil officials are required to take the imperial examinations and pass based on their true talents and learning, then even if the son of the Grand Secretary enters officialdom as a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examinations), he will still be ridiculed by others.

Although military officers may seem to have a low social status, the hereditary system ensures that the positions of military commanders are firmly held by this group of people.

Previously, Minister of War Mao Bowen wanted to reorganize the military and return the twelve regiments of the Beijing Garrison to the three major regiments stage, but the process was difficult and ended in failure, even with the support of Grand Secretary Yan Song.

It was this group of sons of nobles who stirred up trouble within the Beijing Garrison and obstructed the reform.

Taking advantage of this opportunity to establish a large prison, we can purge a group of these people out; this is also a way to rid the country of a scourge.

"Interrogate them thoroughly!"

Just as Lu Bing made a stroke of his pen, highlighting several names, Zhu Qi strode in and whispered something in his ear.

"Those treacherous guards!"

Lu Bing's face darkened: "You actually dare to target a Hanlin scholar?"

……

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! These are my heartfelt words!"

"Outrageous! Outrageous! Drag him out! Twenty strokes of the cane!!" Xue Kan's arms were grabbed from both sides and he was dragged out violently, with furious roars and cries of anger behind him.

Just now, the emperor, who usually does not receive foreign officials, made an exception and received Hanlin Academician Xue Kan in the Qianqing Palace.

This man is now a renowned scholar in the literary world, and we even discussed the matter of establishing an heir.

After the memorial was presented, Zhu Houcong was overjoyed.

Given Zhang Conggui'e's deeds, this person naturally believed that another courtier would step forward to provide theoretical support for his actions.

Confucianism values ​​propriety, and even the most powerful person cannot act recklessly.

Although Emperor Taizu of Ming moved the Mencius tablet out of the Confucius Temple to show his rejection of the saying that the people are more important than the ruler, he promoted a rule based on the emperor's absolute authority.

However, it is ultimately difficult to break free from the constraints of Confucian theory, and etiquette and reason must still be observed in all matters.

The endorsement of a great Confucian scholar is the best testament to this.

He was once a loyal father, now he is a figurehead prince.

They all used Confucian rites to exercise imperial power.

However, during the exchange between the emperor and his minister, Xue Kan's words shocked Zhu Houcong.

Xue Kan did not come to endorse his decision not to establish a crown prince. On the contrary, he came to advise that an heir must be established, even including the unusual celestial phenomena in his argument.

Why is God angry?
Because the Crown Prince has been vacant for a long time, the foundation of the nation is shaken!
Zhu Houcong endured it for a long time, but finally couldn't hold back any longer. He was so close to the enemy that he smashed the jade ruyi in his hand to pieces.

"This man is remonstrating to the death!"

"I never expected that after Zuo Shunmen, there would be such a person!"

At this moment, the eunuchs grabbed Xue Kan on both sides and dragged him out with all their might. Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong, the leaders of the secret guards, who had learned of the news, rushed to the scene.

They exchanged a glance and both saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.

"The state has nurtured scholars for 150 years, and today is the day to uphold integrity and die for righteousness." The incident of Zuo Shunmen's tearful remonstrance became a tragedy for the scholars—more than 180 people were flogged in court, 17 died on the spot, and more than 200 were imprisoned or exiled.

After that, the court fell silent, and people lamented that the officials had lost their dignity and integrity, which was truly regrettable.

However, upon closer examination, compared to the seriousness claimed by the opponents of the Great Rites Controversy, how could there be no ministers of integrity?
The Zuo Shunmen Crying Remonstrance was a complete coup attempt, and many people were coerced into it, including the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, who were put on the spot. If Yang Ting and his son Yang Shen were really so principled, why didn't they gather a crowd to submit a memorial during the Zhengde reign?

Because at that time, standing out meant certain death, and Jiajing had only been on the throne for a short time and his power base was unstable. He thought he could force the emperor to submit, but instead he was brutally killed.

Those who dared to speak frankly and offer honest advice continued to emerge thereafter.

For example, many of the eight great talents of the Jiajing era were demoted after submitting memorials to the emperor. Does this mean they had lost their integrity?

Now that the nation needs capable people, we see loyal and upright individuals stepping forward, which is enough to prove that integrity will be passed on from generation to generation.

Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong were well aware of the consequences of taking drastic measures against such a minister.

But they cannot remain still.

As a newly trained guard, they felt an even greater sense of crisis regarding the emperor's assassination attempt.

Once the emperor no longer trusts them and discards them like worn-out shoes, there will be no one left to speak in the outer court, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard will wish they were dead.

The emperor was their only lifeline.

Can only walk one way to the dark.

In the blink of an eye, Xue Kan was taken to the Meridian Gate, and his official hat and belt were taken away.

"By imperial decree! I'm asking you one question!"

A eunuch hurried up from behind: "Why isn't it snowing this year?"

"As I have said, without establishing an heir apparent, the foundation of the nation will be unstable. This is a warning from Heaven!"

Xue Kan tilted his head slightly back and looked at the sun in the sky.

The eunuch then asked, "Who taught you to say these things to His Majesty?"

Xue Kan snorted and simply refused to answer.

"Tsk!"

The eunuch who was asking the question made an angry snort and turned to look at him.

Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong said no more and waved their hands.

The cane was moved.

Two rods passed under Xue Kan's armpits, supporting his upper body, and simultaneously struck his back knees.

Xue Kan knelt down involuntarily.

The first two canes that were supporting him were pulled back again, and his body fell face-first onto the brick ground of the Meridian Gate.

Four feet immediately stepped on the back of his hands and the back of his ankles, pinning him down in a spread-eagle position.

Then, the eyes of the four executioners all turned to the eunuch.

This is a question.

How exactly do you play it?
However, the eunuch remained motionless, seemingly oblivious to everything around him, and offered no response whatsoever.

The executioner then looked at Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong.

Zhang Zuo closed his eyes, while Gao Zhong's two toes, which were initially pointing outwards, slowly turned inwards, forming an inward-pointing stance: "Court flogging!"

This is the Death Staff.

The four executioners locked eyes and raised their arms high.

The four canes struck Xue Kan repeatedly, aiming for his kidneys on his back.

Each strike of the staff produced no loud sound, nor did any blood seep from the robe.

It shattered internal organs.

Fresh blood quickly gushed from his mouth and nose.

The twenty strokes were finished in a short while. The first two strokes went close to the ground, passing under Xue Kan's armpits, before lifting his upper body up.

Her head hung limply.

Her upper body also hung limply.

The eunuch then walked around to the front, squatted down, picked up Xue Kan's head, plucked a hair, and held it in front of his nostril.

The hair didn't move at all.

The eunuch sighed and stood up: "Why bother with all this?"

After saying that, he stood up and looked coldly at Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong: "His Majesty only said twenty strokes of the cane, a small punishment to serve as a great warning. What did you do? You actually beat a dignified Hanlin Academician to death?"

Zhang Zuo and Gao Zhong showed no surprise whatsoever. They smashed the gold and jade pillars to the ground and cried out in unison, "We are guilty!!"

(End of this chapter)