The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 553: Can You Deceive Me Just Because You Don’t Joke?

At around 3:00 p.m., the sun was high in the sky, and it was the hottest time of the day.

The ground seemed to be smoking from the scorching sun, and it was a bit hot to step on.

It is difficult to see many people in the streets and alleys of the capital. No one would come out to bask in such a scorching sun unless there is nothing wrong.

At this moment, hundreds of Jinyiwei cavalry suddenly rushed out from the Chang'an Gate in the east of the imperial city.

The hundreds of riders swept through Tianjie like a whirlwind and soon rushed into the wall of the Jinyiwei Beizhenfu Division.

Although the journey took less than a quarter of an hour, when little Zhu Changxun was carried down from his horse by Wanli, he couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his forehead and said, "Father, it's really hot today."

You might be confused by the heat.

Wanli pointed at the little guy's small Jinyiwei Feiyu uniform and said, "Xun'er, you forgot again that you have to call daddy when you wear this."

It was a really hot day. Even in such a short time of riding a horse from the palace to the Jinyiwei Beizhenfu Division, one was sweating all over.

He couldn't even hold the little guy.

At this moment, both the father and son were sticky all over, and if they continued hugging each other, their clothes would get soaked.

He put little Zhu Changxun on the ground and then took his hand and walked towards the imperial prison.

The outside of the imperial prison was not so gloomy on this hot day.

When Lu Yi heard that he was going to bring little Zhu Changxun to try Li Dai, he hung two rows of palace lanterns in the corridors of the imperial prison, making it bright and clear, brighter than an ordinary cell.

At this moment, there was no one imprisoned in the imperial prison. The outer cells for ordinary officials were empty, and the inner cells for serious criminals only held the former Minister of Revenue Chen Sheng and the former Governor of the Granaries and the Minister of Revenue Li Dai.

They didn't have to go to the inner room because the place where the prisoners were interrogated was in the outer room.

Little Zhu Changxun looked around all the way, his face full of confusion.

Is this the terrifying imperial prison in the legend?
It doesn't look like anything.

The interrogation room was still very cool, even with the fragrance of osmanthus.

Obviously, the ice used here is the same as that used in the imperial palace, both with dried osmanthus flowers added.

Lu Yi was indeed attentive. The two chairs behind the interrogation table were one high and one low. There was even a small step made of bricks and wooden boards under the high chair.

Wanli picked up little Zhu Changxun and placed him on a high chair. He then helped him straighten his appearance before sitting down and saying sternly, "Bring Li Dai up here."

Li Dai was panicking at this moment.

He originally thought that he could get Wanli to promise in person to let him go under the guise of confessing and everything would be fine.

He had discussed this matter with Shen Yikuan a long time ago, which is why he dared to be so corrupt.

They all knew that this shocking corruption case in the Ministry of Revenue would be exposed sooner or later, and he would be arrested sooner or later.

So, they came up with this tactic of pretending to confess in order to save their lives.

On the surface, he really confessed everything. He would confess all the corrupt officials he knew about, except those from the Zhejiang Party.

As for the fact that the Ministry of Revenue would not be able to reconcile the money it lost, they had discussed it and were even ready to find someone to take the blame.

Minister of Revenue Chen Sheng was the most suitable candidate, and he had actually given him gifts many times.

He immediately identified hundreds of corrupt officials, all of whom were genuine corrupt officials. As long as their homes were searched, money that was inconsistent with their salaries would definitely be found, except for Lu Kun.

They had already bribed people in Lu Kun's family. As long as Lu Kun was arrested, hundreds of thousands of taels of gold and silver would definitely be found in his house.

Moreover, there were only tens of thousands of taels of silver left in his family.

This amount of money is really nothing to a corrupt official.

In addition, his confession of so many corrupt officials could be considered as a meritorious service to atone for his sins. They all thought that Wanli should let him go, at least he himself thought so.

Otherwise, how could he dare to be so corrupt.

He was greedy for money, but he didn't want to commit suicide. He wanted to stay alive and enjoy the money he had greedily gained.

Originally, everything seemed to be going according to what he and Shen Yi had agreed upon.

Who knew that suddenly he was taken from the Ministry of Justice to the Imperial Prison by the Embroidered Uniform Guards.

What went wrong?

Li Dai arrived at the interrogation room, feeling apprehensive. He looked up and quickly feigned composure, prostrating himself on the ground and saying respectfully, "Your Highness, I pay my respects to His Highness the Third Prince."

This guy is really good at pretending.

Wanli said expressionlessly, "Li Dai, do you admit your guilt?"

Is this a cliché?
Shen Yiquan said that this little emperor was very rebellious and had to be pampered.

Li Dai nodded repeatedly, pretending to repent, "I acknowledge my guilt and confess everything. I only ask Your Majesty to spare me and my family."

Humph, you are still pretending to be me.

Wanli asked coldly: "Do you know Shen Yiguan?"

There's no way this could be exposed, right?

He hadn't seen Shen Yikuan for a long time, and their confidants were extremely cautious when communicating with each other.

Li Dai thought for a moment, then said carefully, "Your humble servant knows Lord Shen. Both you and I passed the imperial examinations in the second year of the Longqing reign. We used to have some interactions, but since we were both busy, we haven't had much contact since then."

There should be no loopholes in this statement.

He did not say that he did not know Shen Yikuan, nor did he strongly deny that he had any contact with Shen Yikuan in the past.

Seeing this, Wanli asked directly, "Most of the money you embezzled from the Ministry of Revenue was given to Shen Yiguan and his gang, right?"

what?
How did you know!
Dai Li felt his entire body go limp, nearly collapsing to the ground. He couldn't afford to admit this. If he did, it would be the end of him!

He forced himself to stay strong and shook his head repeatedly, saying, "Your Majesty, I did not give any money to Lord Shen. Most of the money I embezzled was given to Lord Chen as a gift."

Can Chen Sheng take on such a huge blame?

That’s tens of millions of taels!
Wanli said coldly, "You call this a confession? I ask you again, do you confess or not?"

I can’t recruit!
Li Dai gritted his teeth and said stubbornly, "Your Majesty, I really did give most of the proceeds I embezzled to Master Chen. Master Chen probably hid it all."

Nonsense!

Do you still want me to torture Chen Sheng and find the money that is not in Chen Sheng's possession?
Am I so stupid?

How dare you deceive the emperor like this!
Wanli snorted coldly, "You dare to talk nonsense? I will kill all your clans."

what? !

Li Dai shuddered, and said with a stiff upper lip, "Your Majesty, I never joke. You said that as long as I confess honestly, you will let me and my family go."

I'm afraid you've been fooled by Shen Yikuan and have lost your way.

Are you serious?

So what if I break my promise once?

Is there anyone who dares to scold me for breaking my promise and getting rich?

What's more, I don't have to go back on my word at this moment.

Wanli sneered and said, "You think you can deceive me if I say that I am not joking?
When I say let you go, I mean let you go for the crime of corruption and abuse of power.

How dare you deceive the emperor? How can I forgive you for your crime of deceiving the emperor?
Besides, you didn't confess honestly, so you were deceiving the emperor.

Punishing both crimes together and killing nine generations of the family is considered a light punishment.

How dare you talk nonsense in front of me? Do you want to be cut into pieces?"

Cut into pieces by a thousand cuts!

This little emperor is not trying to scare people. If you make him angry, he will really do it!
Li Dai was so frightened that he couldn't stop shaking, his brain was a little out of control, and he didn't know what to say.

Seeing this, Wanli suddenly shouted, "Are you going to confess or not?"

Little Zhu Changxun was so frightened that he trembled.

Li Dai was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground.

Can he recruit?

If he confesses, then everything will be over.

With one move from him, Shen Yikuan and his gang would be doomed.

If he doesn't confess, Shen Yikuan and his gang will probably find a way to rescue him.

By then, as long as he could get out, the money he gave to Shen Yikuan and his gang would be enough for him to live a life of luxury for the rest of his life.

At this time he was still hoping for a lucky break.

He just collapsed on the ground without saying a word.

Seeing this, Wanli immediately waved his hand and said, "Come here, loosen up his skin first, let him feel what it feels like to be cut into pieces."

In this imperial prison, the bark is not pineappled by hand, but with a special knife.

That guy is a bit indescribable, so I won’t go into details here.

In short, Li Dai was so tired that he screamed in pain and begged for mercy.

It was hard to look at Xiao Zhu Changxun.

Wanli, however, acted as if nothing had happened. He stared at the guy straight in the face until his skin finally loosened. Then he asked coldly, "How is it? How does it feel? Do you want to try being cut into pieces?"

How do you still feel?
You are so cruel!
Li Dai didn't know if he was in too much pain or if he was just hoping for a lucky break and didn't want to confess. He actually kept begging for mercy, "Your Majesty, please spare me! Your Majesty, please spare me!"

You're still hoping for a lucky break, right?

Wanli said coldly: "You still think Shen Yiguan will find a way to save you, right?

Let me tell you, since you were arrested, I have not received a single memorial to exonerate you, and no one has said a word for you in front of me.

Don’t you know what Shen Yi Guan is like? He is playing chess and you are just a chess piece. When it is time to give up, he will give you up without hesitation.

Moreover, he is the best at understanding people's hearts, and he knows my temper quite well. He knows very well that I will not let you go just by seeing a few memorials or hearing a few slanderous words.

Originally, when you were arrested and thrown into the prison of the Ministry of Justice, he had no intention of saving you. In his eyes, you had already been abandoned.

In this situation, it's even more impossible for him to find a way to save you. He can't save you either. It's very likely that he will send someone to kill you and silence you at the risk of their own life."

This is really possible!

Shen Yikuan really knew the little emperor well. He used to often analyze the little emperor's thoughts and actions in front of him.

Under the current circumstances, it is unlikely that Shen Yikuan will come to rescue him, or at least it is unlikely that Lai Wen will persuade the young emperor to let him go.

This guy must be very clear that if he submits a memorial to advise, he will be in danger of being exposed.

Who would take that risk?

As for Lai Wu, the entire capital and even the entire capital area are now full of the Beijing Camp, the Imperial Guards, the Embroidered Uniform Guards, and even the Secret Guards. It is impossible to rescue him from the imperial prison.

What will Shen Yiquan do if he feels that he can’t save him?
This guy will most likely send someone to kill him and silence him at the risk of his life!
(End of this chapter)