Da Ming: I told you to die for your cause, why are you actually going to die?

Chapter 109 What rules? My rules are the rules! [Seeking monthly votes]

The following morning, just as Zhang Biao was preparing to lead his men to retaliate for what happened the previous night.

Shen Lang walked over with a letter in his hand.

"Brother Biao, look, someone slipped it in through the crack in the door."

Zhang Biao rubbed his slightly aching forehead and impatiently opened the letter.

There were no words inside, only a few pages of densely packed numbers and scattered names of people and places, like torn pages from some ledger.

It involves the procurement of military equipment and the allocation of provisions, with huge sums involved and the specifics are vague, but one can vaguely sense collusion between the Ministry of War and border generals.

"What are all these things?" Zhang Biao frowned.

Shen Lang leaned closer for a closer look, his instinct for calculation immediately activated, and his expression gradually turned serious:

"Brother Biao, this looks like fragments of accounts related to the allocation of military pay and weapons in the northern frontier by the Ministry of War."

As he spoke, he pointed to the letter: "Look here, the price is more than 30% higher than the market price, the delivery location is vague, and the general's name doesn't match the previous records."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Biao's headache immediately subsided by more than half, and he then asked, "Can you confirm which government department used this accounting method?"

Shen Lang pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said:
"It's hard to tell who it is from the accounts, but since it involves the Ministry of War, it seems that apart from the Ministry of Revenue, no one else can figure out these accounts."

"what!"

Zhang Biao laughed: "That old fox Fu Youwen, is he trying to shift the blame? He wants to use me to stir up a hornet's nest for Ru Chang? Does he really think I don't know about the mess that Tianxia Garrison is in?"

After saying that, a cold smile curled at the corner of his lips:
"Interesting. Keep this safe; it's all evidence. We'll deal with it together later."

"So, what should we do next?"

Shen Lang said with some worry, "The Emperor has already abandoned us."

"What are you saying? You're acting like a woman, abandoning someone?"

Zhang Biao interrupted with a sneer:

"Let me tell you, only an audit of the internal treasury will save you. Otherwise, once you back down, do you see what happened last night? It won't be a threat anymore!"

"why?"

"Because the audit of the internal treasury was too outrageous, and everyone was watching, they dared not go too far."

"But didn't the Emperor forbid us from getting close to the imperial treasury?"

Shen Lang sighed, "Moreover, other departments aren't cooperating with us anymore. We don't even have the chance to reconcile the accounts of the internal treasury with those of other departments."

"Solutions can be found by people! We can't just make things harder for ourselves, can we?"

Zhang Biao rolled his eyes, then prepared to take Shen Lang to find Li Mo and the others.

Just then, Li Mo and the others came looking for them.

"Brother Biao, look at this! It's an official document from Ru Chang, the Minister of War!"

"I can't be bothered to look, just tell him what he wants to do!"

"This"

Li Mo hesitated for a moment and said:
"He said that the Ministry of War's accounts were ready and awaiting our arrival. Finally, the official document mentioned that, due to the involvement of important military matters, the Five Military Commissions had been requested to send personnel to assist in the audit process to ensure its safety."

"Assistant guards? More like axemen, aren't they?"

Zhang Biao scoffed and said coldly:
"Tell the messenger that I'm busy with official business these days, and have him make ten copies of the account books himself before bringing them to me! Also, tell those guards to get as far away from me as possible!"

He wouldn't be foolish enough to sneak into the Ministry of War's territory.

Ru Chang wanted to play hardball, but he refused to take the bait.

As for Fu Youwen's schemes and tricks, he also refused to engage with them.

After all, in the Ming Dynasty, it wasn't just Emperor Zhu who knew how to use the "block" tactic; he could do it too.

His core strategy is only one.

He continued to court death in the most insane and unpredictable ways, forcing Old Zhu to kill him.

You can play your tricks and schemes, I'll do my abstract art.

"Let's go find Jiang Huan! Wasn't he ordered to 'escort us the whole way'? Let him escort us to the Ministry of Revenue!"

"Go to the Ministry of Revenue again?" Zhao Fengman was taken aback. "Didn't we empty the Ministry of Revenue?"

"Who said we're going to steal empty apartments? Can't we just go have some fun?"

"Play?"

When everyone heard this, they looked at each other.

"Alright, enough talk, let's go!"

Zhang Biao waved his hand, and then everyone followed him to the Ministry of Revenue with trepidation.

And Jiang Huan, as promised, arrived.

"Halt! This is a restricted area of ​​the Ministry of Revenue; unauthorized personnel are not permitted!"

An official who appeared to be in charge stepped forward to stop them, his voice slightly trembling.

Before Zhang Biao could speak, Jiang Huan stepped forward coldly from behind him, flashing his waist badge: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard is on official business. You may all step back!"

Although he was helping Zhang Biao clear the area, his face was as black as the bottom of a pot, as if to say, "I'm here to guard the prisoners, not to be your bodyguard."

When the official in charge saw that even the Imperial Guards had come out, his legs went weak and he quickly made way for them.

Zhang Biao proudly raised his chin and patted Jiang Huan on the shoulder: "Old Jiang, you're very skilled! I'll write you a letter of commendation and send it to the Emperor later!"

Jiang Huan: "."

I want to fucking kill you right now, and then kill myself!
Although this wasn't Zhang Biao's first time entering the Ministry of Revenue, he didn't order anything to be moved this time. Instead, he went directly to the Ministry's archives.

"Old Shen! Take a few men to the Yi Zi Treasury and bring out the total national treasury revenue ledger from the first year of the Hongwu reign to the present!"

"Old Wu! Go to the C-level archive and find all the records related to military expenditures and the allocation of officials' salaries!"

"Li Mo! You have excellent writing skills and a sharp eye. You specialize in investigating accounts that are exceptionally well-made, meticulously crafted, and without a single alteration! Those are the ones with the most problems!"

"Zhao Fengman! You take some men and guard the door. Every scroll we borrow must be registered and signed! This is a legitimate audit, not a bandit robbery!" "Old Sun! Turn on the lights! Let the 'Light of the Ming Dynasty' illuminate this belated justice—!"

Zhang Biao, hands on his hips, pointed and gestured among rows of towering filing shelves, spitting as he spoke.

The doctors and clerks left behind by the Ministry of Revenue were dumbfounded. They tried to stop them, but were killed by the glares of the Imperial Guards standing nearby.

The entire Ministry of Revenue archives instantly descended into chaos, filled with dust.

Shen Lang and the others stumbled while carrying account books taller than themselves. Wu Naida was hit on the back by a toppled bookshelf, and Li Mo frowned as he stared at a seemingly flawless record.
Sun Gui's chamber pot lamp made everyone in the Ministry of Revenue feel uneasy.

An elderly physician from the Ministry of Revenue, unable to bear it any longer, stepped forward, trembling:

"Vice Censor-in-Chief Zhang, this is against the rules! Accessing such a large number of files requires a warrant from the ministerial level, and also..."

"What rules? My rules are the rules!"

Zhang Biao interrupted him directly, took out the second imperial edict that Yun Ming had sent from his pocket, slammed it down in front of the other man with a "smack," and said in a resounding voice:
"Look carefully! It's the Emperor's own handwriting! He's in charge of the accounting matters and will investigate thoroughly!"

"Does this Ministry of Revenue's account fall within the scope of the accounting review? Is it something that should be investigated?"

"Or"

He paused, his gaze fixed intently on the old doctor: "Are your Ministry of Revenue's accounts bigger than the Emperor's edicts? Are they something you can't hide?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Sun Gui shoved the chamber pot lamp directly at his head, as if to illuminate his ugly face.

The old doctor glanced at the imperial edict, especially the words "investigate to the end," and then at Sun Gui's distinctive chamber pot lamp. He was speechless, cold sweat pouring down his face. He could only watch helplessly as this group of "bandits" turned their painstakingly organized and filed account books into a complete mess.

Jiang Huan stood in a corner not far away, his face dark, and took out a small notebook to faithfully record the "mad dog's" every word and action.

His work log was roughly like this:

[At 3:45 AM: Zhang Biao led his men to storm the Ministry of Revenue, using the imperial edict to intimidate the gatekeepers.]

[At 5:45 AM: Zhang Biao ordered the emptying of nearly ten years' worth of account books from the Yi and Bing accounts. The scene was chaotic, suspected to be retaliatory sabotage.]

[At 2:45 AM: Zhang Biao boasted to his accomplices, "The more perfect the accounts are, the deeper the pit will be buried." This suggests he may have mastered some secret method for auditing accounts, or it could be a bluff.]

[At 5:45 AM: Zhang Biao ate lunch at the Ministry of Revenue's kitchen, finishing three bowls of rice and taking a dish of pickled vegetables. Comment: He had a good appetite; he doesn't seem like someone seeking death.]

[At the hour of Wei (1-3 PM): Zhang Biao loudly complained that the tea served at the Ministry of Revenue was of poor quality, even worse than the horses ridden by those scoundrels the previous night. This carries a strong sense of humiliation and accusation.]

[Shenshi: Zhang Biao claimed to have discovered a discrepancy between accounts and actual funds, suspected of falsely reporting disaster relief funds for the Huai River floods, but refused to disclose details, stating that further auditing was needed.]

These logs were delivered to the Huagai Hall at breakneck speed.

As a result, within half a day, Lao Zhu received the following messages in succession:

"Report! Zhang Biao has forcibly broken into the Ministry of Revenue's archives!"

"Report! Zhang Biao has moved mountains of account books!"

"Report! Zhang Biao has been suspected of being involved in corruption!"

"Report! Zhang Biao complains that the food at the Ministry of Revenue is terrible!"

"Report! Zhang Biao has stolen a dish of pickled vegetables!"

"puff--!"

Old Zhu almost spat out the medicine he had just drunk.

He was so angry he was trembling, and he threw Jiang Huan's diary on the ground:

"That scoundrel! Was he going to check the accounts or go on a picnic?! And he even stole some pickled vegetables?! Do we need his pickled vegetables?!"

"What is Jiang Huan doing! Just watching him make a fool of himself?!"

Yunming cautiously reminded him, "Your Majesty, Commander Jiang is merely acting on imperial orders to escort the records."

Old Zhu was momentarily speechless, then suddenly remembered his own imperial edicts, and felt a sense of frustration, as if he had shot himself in the foot.

They won't let us manage it, we can only watch and sit idly by as a bunch of 'huskies' run wild and destroy our home!?
This is even more painful than being killed!
That's exactly the effect Zhang Biao wanted.

He didn't care at all whether he could actually uncover any earth-shattering case from the vast sea of ​​ledgers in a short period of time.

That's exactly the kind of momentum and excitement he wanted.

He wanted the entire court to know.

Zhang Biao, armed with the "Imperial Sword" bestowed upon him by the Emperor and leading a "ceremonial guard" composed of Imperial Guards, brazenly dug up old records in the Ministry of Revenue's archives.

Those officials with guilty consciences are probably sweating profusely and feeling extremely uneasy right now.

They would speculate wildly:

What exactly did Zhang Biao find out?
Who will he investigate next?

Will they trace it back to me?

Why are they auditing repeatedly after just one audit? When will this ever end?
This uncertainty and fear are Zhang Biao's sharpest weapons.

Sure enough, before the afternoon, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Works, and even the Five Military Commissions secretly sent people to the vicinity of the Ministry of Revenue to inquire about the situation.

Seeing the dark mass of Imperial Guards and the commotion inside, they all turned pale and scurried away.

In the teahouses and taverns of Yingtian Prefecture, rumors and gossip spread like wildfire.

"Have you heard? Imperial Censor Zhang went to the Ministry of Revenue for another audit and uncovered a shocking case! It involves several ministers and vice ministers!"

"That's not all! It's said that Lord Guo and Duke Cao are just appetizers! There are many more marquises and dukes waiting to be investigated!"

"The Emperor sent the Imperial Guards to follow us; I think it's an open surveillance, but covert protection!"

"Hahaha! I knew it! Zhang Qingtian hasn't fallen out of favor! The Emperor is about to get serious!"

"Now there's something good to watch!"

Zhang Biao perfectly utilized Zhu De's decree, giving himself a mysterious aura of "investigating the case by imperial decree, with the Imperial Guard protecting him," thus maximizing the panic effect.

At the same time, I also warn everyone that if anyone dares to send someone to threaten my brother again, I'll be at your house tomorrow.

They don't need to investigate anything; they're just playing around. A bunch of people will play you to death in your house.

(End of this chapter)