Prime Minister

Chapter 16-016 [Dead Land]

Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony, all the officials remained silent.

Xue Huai, with the resolute courage of a lone wolf, made a desperate gamble before the emperor, which far exceeded Gu Heng's expectations.

He was not unaware of the great risks involved in reporting Xue Mingzhang, but he had his reasons for doing so. Moreover, he was not slandering Xue Mingzhang out of thin air; the various doubts recorded in the old archives of the Ministry of Works supported his confidence.

But he never expected that Xue Huai would actually confront him publicly before the emperor.

Now that the emperor had spoken, Gu Heng had no choice but to step forward and stand expressionlessly to Xue Huai's right.

Xue Huai turned to face him and said in a deep voice, "Doctor Gu, do you have any evidence to support your accusation that my late father engaged in corruption and embezzlement back then?"

Gu Heng cleared his throat and slowly said, "In the summer of the seventh year of the Taihe reign, Xue Mingzhang, then the prefect of Yangzhou and concurrently the salt commissioner, submitted a memorial to the court, explaining the ferocity of the summer floods and requesting the reconstruction of the dikes along the Yangtze River in Yangzhou. His Majesty praised his loyalty and love for the people and specially ordered the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and the River Conservancy Office to assist Yangzhou Prefecture in rebuilding the dikes. This project lasted for one year and nine months, mobilizing nearly 60,000 laborers and costing more than 450,000 taels of silver, and constructing more than 180 li of protective dikes along the Yangtze River."

He was able to secure his important position as the Director of the Water Conservancy Bureau not entirely by flattering Xue Minglun; these data were readily available to him.

"As a key hub for the Grand Canal, flood control has always been of paramount importance for Yangzhou. At that time, various government departments spared no effort in supporting Yangzhou Prefecture. On the day the dike was completed, Lord Xue publicly declared that with the completion of the dike, the people of Yangzhou would no longer suffer from floods. However, this summer, when floods struck, Yangzhou Prefecture became the most severely affected area. This makes one wonder whether the vast amount of manpower and resources invested by the imperial court were actually used effectively?"

Gu Heng looked directly at Xue Huai, his words actually addressed to the emperor on the throne. He then said solemnly, "At first, I thought the flood was too fierce to be stopped by human power, and even the strongest dam could not withstand the impact. But when I looked through the old files kept by the Ministry of Works, I found many suspicious points."

Xue Huai said, "Please, Physician Gu, speak frankly."

Gu Heng had already gathered his thoughts and immediately said, "The old records of the Ministry of Works clearly show that the amount of stone used for the river embankment in Yangzhou was at least 30% less than the amount provided by the Yangzhou government, but the court had already allocated the full amount of silver."

Upon hearing this, some officials' expressions turned serious.

In this era, the construction of flood control dikes mainly relied on stone and glutinous rice mortar. A reduction in stone meant that the strength of the dikes would be affected.

Perhaps they don't understand the extent of the impact a 30% reduction would have, but it at least proves that Gu Heng wasn't making baseless accusations, making Xue Huai's previous impassioned denunciation somewhat untenable.

Xue Huai did not rush to refute, but continued to stare at the other party with a cold expression.

Gu Heng felt increasingly at ease, and his tone gradually rose: "Let me briefly reiterate a few records. On the 23rd of the third month of the eighth year of Taihe, the River Conservancy Official Li Zhong inspected the new dike at Erli Gate and found that the actual paving stones were 14,000 dan, which was 2,100 dan less than the approved number. On the 17th of the sixth month of the eighth year of Taihe, the Imperial Censor Wang Xiao reported that the dike section in Guazhou was three feet thinner than the Ministry of Works' specifications, suggesting that there was a problem of shoddy workmanship. These records are all detailed and verifiable, which is sufficient to prove that the dikes along the river built under the supervision of Yangzhou Prefecture at that time had problems with shoddy workmanship."

Xue Huai asked, "If what Doctor Gu said is true, these old files from the Ministry of Works were left ten years ago, but why were there no inquiries at the time, and why was Yangzhou Prefecture awarded the title of 'most outstanding in river works' instead?"

Gu Heng explained, “At the time, your father explained that the stone quantity was reduced by 30% to save manpower. Furthermore, he personally guaranteed that reducing the stone quantity by 30% would not affect the dam's sturdiness, and that he would take full responsibility if any accidents occurred. However, no one could have imagined that your father would pass away six years ago, let alone that the Yangzhou Dam, which your father called impregnable, would be so fragile. Editor Xue, I know you don't want to believe this, but you should think about the displaced people of Yangzhou. If we cannot find the culprit, how can our consciences as officials be at peace?”

A slight smile played on his lips, as if he could already see the dawn of victory.

Not far away, Minister of Works Xue Minglun remained calm. He had these records meticulously organized and handed over to Xue Huai, trusting that his distant nephew would be able to find the loopholes.

Xue Huai seemed not to have heard Gu Heng's last words. He stared into the other's eyes and asked, "Doctor Gu, don't you think the old records of the Ministry of Works are inconsistent? If what you say is true, that my late father used 30% less stone during the construction of the Yangzhou dike, yet the court allocated the full amount of silver, where did the extra silver go? If my late father embezzled this silver, how could so many officials, from top to bottom, turn a blind eye? Everyone watched my late father line his own pockets, yet not a single person reported it to His Majesty?"

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere in the hall changed abruptly.

What Xue Huai said was based on very simple logic.

Since the old records of the Ministry of Works prove that they knew Xue Mingzhang used 30% less stone, they couldn't possibly be completely indifferent to the unused silver after the audit. How could the officials of the Ministry of Works be so magnanimous?

It is well known that the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works have long been plagued by rampant corruption among their officials. With piles of silver flowing through their hands, many people could not resist such temptation.

When they discovered that Yangzhou Prefecture had swallowed a large sum of money, it would be strange if they didn't cause a huge uproar, so why hadn't there been any movement for ten years?

Gu Heng frowned and said, "This is precisely where your father's brilliance lies. Although he didn't purchase the required amount of stone, he spent a considerable amount of money in other areas. For example, he bought 3,000 shi of glutinous rice at 40% above the market price, and he also purchased 5,000 cedar logs at three times the market price. There are countless other examples like this. The accounts your father had prepared are flawless, and the final calculated expenditure is exactly equal to the amount allocated by the court." As soon as he finished speaking, an indignant voice suddenly rang out from the Wu Xun side.

"What a brilliant way to amass wealth! I am truly impressed."

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Marquis Qin Wanli of Zhenyuan.

This man was rough and straightforward in nature. He was an unstoppable tiger general on the battlefield, and his fame spread throughout the world because of his military exploits in fighting against the Tartars on the grasslands.

He has always been at odds with the civil officials in the court, and there have been many disputes between them in the past two years. If it weren't for his outstanding military achievements, the emperor would have sent him back to the Nine Borders to suffer in the desert long ago.

Only a fool like that would dare to interrupt in this situation.

Gu Heng was quite annoyed. Although Qin Wanli seemed to be helping him, he didn't need it right now. On the contrary, the other party's interference disrupted his rhythm. Originally, he wanted to take the opportunity to question Xue Huai and leave him speechless.

Just then, a soft cough came from above.

Qin Wanli wasn't stupid; he knew he had offended the emperor, so he honestly apologized.

The minor incident was thus resolved.

Gu Heng rallied his spirits and looked at Xue Huai, saying, "Editor Xue, the authenticity of the old files from the Ministry of Works can be verified, and they weren't handled by just one person. Although ten years have passed, most of the relevant officials are still alive, and they can all testify that the doubts in those files are true. Like you, I don't want to believe that your father would do such a thing, but this year, the Yangzhou dike was breached by floods, and more than 100,000 people were affected. The root cause lies in your father's embezzlement and corner-cutting back then!"

"If I hadn't known about such a harmful act to the common people, that would have been one thing. But now that I've discovered the truth, how can I remain silent?"

Gu Heng vented his frustrations all at once, and then turned to the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, I have never met Xue Mingzhang before and have no grudge against him. I simply cannot bear to see the officials of Yangzhou Prefecture become scapegoats for those who came before me!"

This statement seems to be telling his own story. If he doesn't expose Xue Mingzhang's true colors, he will end up like that unfortunate Yangzhou prefect, imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice's jail.

Whether out of a sense of justice or personal motives, he had to report Xue Mingzhang, even though the latter was a model of loyalty personally established by the emperor.

Looking at Gu Heng's resolute expression, the middle-aged emperor remained noncommittal. His slender eyes turned to the young scholar who still hadn't produced any solid evidence, and he said in a low voice, "Xue Huai, what else do you have to say?"

"Your Majesty, please allow me to report."

Xue Huai bowed respectfully and said calmly, "On October 23rd, while I was on duty at the Hanlin Academy, I received an anonymous long letter. The contents of the letter are similar to what Doctor Gu said today, directly pointing out my late father's various acts of disloyalty. I will not deny that when I first saw this letter, I was overwhelmed with emotion and could not believe it. I even slipped and fell into the Jiuqu River, almost drowning, but fortunately I was rescued by a kind person."

No one knew why he suddenly changed his tone. Was he trying to gain the emperor's sympathy?
The middle-aged emperor, showing slight impatience, said, "Speak frankly."

"The minister obeys the order."

Xue Huai said with a slight self-deprecation, "I truly did not expect the subsequent developments to be so bizarre. I narrowly escaped death, and before I could even calm down, the fourth volume of the 'Study on the Taihe River Works,' which I was responsible for compiling, as well as the original archives, inexplicably disappeared. Those files could originally be cross-referenced with the old archives of the Ministry of Works. What's even stranger is that Liu Pingshun, a clerk in the Hanlin Academy, suddenly jumped out and accused me of hiding those files to Dean Lin, saying that he had witnessed it himself."

"What do you want to say?"

“Your Majesty, I would like to say that after the Hanlin Academy’s files were lost, the Ministry of Works’ old files became the only copies available. With this as evidence, Dr. Gu could accuse my late father of embezzlement and corruption. In this way, no one could refute him. Coincidentally, I am responsible for safeguarding the files. It is also reasonable for me to destroy those files for the sake of my late father’s posthumous reputation.”

Without the slightest hesitation, Xue Huai said in a cold voice, "Your Majesty, although it is said that there are no stories without coincidences, the coincidence to this extent is truly unbelievable!"

"So much so that I have been feeling disoriented these past few days, as if I really did steal the documents, as if my late father did indeed embezzle the funds for the river works!"

(End of this chapter)