The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

The meeting begins.

Zhu Youtang didn't waste any time, and asked Xiao Jing to read out the memorials of Mou Bin, the commander of the Sixth Section of Jinyiwei. Because there were too many, he only selected a few representative ones.

The ministers present listened carefully. Although they were only involved in the impeachment of Mou Bin and not Zhang Zhou, because Mou Bin was one of the emperor's closest minions, Mou Bin's conviction could be said to affect the whole body. The ministers were also looking forward to the impeachment. Mou Bin was defeated in one fell swoop.

"Gentlemen, what do you think?"

After Xiao Jing finished speaking, Zhu Youtang did not rush to expand the topic, but seemed to leave the right to speak to the ministers present.

Zhu Youtang had just finished speaking, and the minister had not yet responded. Mou Bin, the person involved in the incident, walked forward from the palace door and knelt in the center of the hall, as if he was a criminal waiting for trial.

At this time, the ministers on the scene also learned to be wise.

Even those officials who were critical of Mou Bin before now have to think about whether hitting someone can be a slap in the face. If the emperor is pushed too hard, there will be a backlash. In this kind of emperor, In the obviously malicious questioning, they would rather pretend to be deaf and dumb.

"You have opinions but don't say them, but you speak freely during the performance. Are there some things you can't say in front of me?" Zhu Youtang looked a little angry.

I asked you to speak but stopped talking. Where did your high spirits go when you played Mou Bin? Don’t you have the courage to go to court?

Qu Shen from the military department was the first to come out of the incident. He was not willing to take the lead, but he was included in several impeachment memorials that were read out earlier. In addition, he had close ties with the middle and upper-level civil servants of the DPRK in this matter. He is also responsible for communication and contact, and he can't do anything without taking the initiative at this time.

"Report to your majesty." Qu Shen raised the wat board and said, "From what I can see, those who have been ordered to do things are doing things for the emperor. It represents your majesty's face. If you go to the place with your orders and do whatever you want, even if there are orders from your majesty, We should strictly abide by the law, and those who act recklessly will be humiliating their status as ordered by the emperor, and they should be severely punished."

"it is good."

Zhu Youtang nodded and said, "That's very true. When you go to the place to do business under my orders, you should restrain yourself and return etiquette, so that you can live up to my trust and respect for him. Not only the Jin Yiwei should do this, but you should also do the same. Is that true?"

Qu Shen said: "Yes."

Zhu Youtang nodded again, seemingly agreeing with Qu Shen's point of view.

Zhu Youtang asked again: "Qu Qing's family said it very well, does anyone else have anything to say?"

Not to mention that Qu Shen didn't expect that he could pass the test smoothly, and even the other civil servants around him didn't expect that the emperor's words... were clearly knocking Mou Bin. We can get the emperor's approval by speaking frankly about our feelings. Finally, the emperor is willing to treat the people around him. Take action.

Through this incident, some people seem to have summed up the "rules".

As long as the person participating in the impeachment is not Zhang Zhou, others can still move. That is to say, if Qu Shen can speak out, we can also speak out.

Dai Guan, the official of Li Ke Zuo, also came out and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that since Mou Bin has extorted money in violation of the law in the local area, the people he detained should be released, and the accumulated wealth should be returned to the local gentry. An explanation."

Zhu Youtang said: "Is this what you say?"

Dai Guan was confused by the question.

If you commit a crime, shouldn’t you return the stolen goods? Also asked if this is what it means?
  Lin Yi from the Criminal Division came out to help and said: "Your Majesty, Mou Bin is corrupt and perverts the law. He should no longer retain his official status. The current judicial department will investigate the crime and punish him. Only in this way can the law of the Ming Dynasty be demonstrated. As for the wealth he has collected. , and should be returned together, as this is the embodiment of the rigor of Ming Dynasty's laws."

"Hmph." Zhu Youtang snorted, "That means you have already identified Mou Bin's crime and are waiting to convict him?"

This is obviously not a question, but a question.

Dai Guan and Lin Yi were obviously not used to the contrast in the emperor's tone.

Xie Qian quickly turned around and winked at the two of them, meaning do you know what it means to give up when you see a good thing?

Is that a compliment given by the emperor to Qu Shen?

It was basically luring a snake out of its hole, and you two were so stupid that you actually got lured out? It seems that you should learn more about how to assess the situation!

Li Dongyang suddenly took a step forward. In such an embarrassing situation, he seemed to be like a needle in the sea, coming out to take a position. However, his words did not seem to directly state his position, but seemed to be a pretext: "Your Majesty, Mou Bin is going to When he went to Yongping Mansion, Cai Guogong seemed to be with him. Cai Guogong should be more or less aware of this matter, and his opinion should be asked first."

Mou Bin was definitely not the mastermind of the crime. Even if Li Rong died, the blame should be placed on Zhang Zhou.

If anyone else had said this, the emperor would definitely be angry.

But if it was what Li Dongyang said, the emperor would still have to exercise restraint.

"Bingkuan, what do you think?" Zhu Youtang looked at Zhang Zhou.

Zhang Zhou stood still, without moving his body. He only moved his mouth and said in a clear voice: "Returning to your majesty, I believe that the accusations against Commander Mou in the DPRK are all out of date, and I have failed to understand Commander Mou." I think this matter should be viewed from a development perspective. Commander Mou is also very unjust."

"what?"

The ministers present were a little upset after hearing Zhang Zhou's words.

Everyone could tell that Zhang Zhou was trying to defend Mou Bin, but the way he defended himself... was obviously not following common sense.

Xie Qian smiled and said: "Cai Guogong, why can't people understand this?"

Zhang Zhou said: "Mr. Xie Ge, guilty and not guilty, wrong and right, should be essentially different, right?"

Xie Qian asked curiously: "Are you asking whether there is a difference between sin and fault, or the difference between existence and non-existence?"

Zhang Zhou also smiled back and said: "Of course there is a difference between having and not having."

"Of course it's very big. If you have something, you have something, and if you don't have it, you don't have it. Do you need to elaborate on this? Or, Mr. Cai Guo, do you want to have a debate with me and let the world know the difference between guilt and innocence?" Xie Qian was sophistry. Shang is a good player to begin with, but he doesn't focus on the key points at critical moments, with the intention of muddying the waters.

Zhang Zhou said: "What I am talking about, from a development perspective, is that when Commander Mou first acted, he was indeed too hasty and suspected of committing a crime. But fortunately, he adjusted his strategy in time, which not only eased the situation between the court and the There were local conflicts, and the tasks entrusted by His Majesty were properly completed. Even if there were a few mistakes made over and over again, they were finally stopped in time, and everyone was happy."

"Everyone is happy?" Xie Qian's addiction to debate was aroused by Zhang Zhou, and the first person who couldn't stop was himself, and he became the group of people he had just regretted.

Xie Qian continued: "Based on what you said, all the parties involved are happy about this matter. Is it because the officials involved in the impeachment are making things up out of thin air?"

Before Zhang Zhou could refute, Zhu Youtang was unhappy.

Zhu Youtang said: "Mr. Xie Ge, why don't you wait for Bingkuan to explain clearly?"

Xie Qian was also surprised when he heard that there was no one left as the emperor. Zhang Zhou had made such a big deal before, but he was avoiding the important points and not making it clear. Why did he say that I interrupted him and didn't let him make it clear?
  "Yes." But as a minister, Xie Qian still had to maintain the most basic respect for the emperor.

"Bingkuan, tell me."

"According to the order." Zhang Zhou then walked out of the court, looked around at the people present, and then said, "Commander Mou followed me to Yongping Mansion, originally to resolve some local disputes. Just in the past In the past few months, Jin Yiwei was attacked in Yongping Mansion, and some people were injured. Even Jin Yiwei Qianhu Sun Shangqi was injured by an arrow when he went to Jizhen Town, and he has still not recovered."

Hearing this, the people present knew for the first time that it was the people from Jin Yiwei who were attacked first.

Xie Qian originally wanted to question Zhang Zhou, but because of the emperor's previous words, he couldn't interrupt him casually now.

"Actually speaking, it's all my fault. I opened a mine in Yongping Mansion in order to make cannons and other things, and used some methods to find the veins... Please don't think that I am stealing other people's mines. I trust you on this. After asking around, I found out that in the places where I am looking for people to mine, no one has ever mined in the past, and many places are in barren mountains and wild mountains." "With mines, there will be profits, and the local officials and gentry want to get a share of the pie. , they wanted to use the power of local snakes to force me to give in. There were even mine operators, but no one stopped them, and no one even collected their mining taxes, but no one could open the mines. In the end, they could only focus on The mine I opened.”

Having said this, Zhang Zhou paused.

He seemed to be waiting for someone to ask him, where did you know where those mineral veins were? How did you measure it? Why are they targeting you and not others? If Jin Yiwei doesn't look for trouble, the local government will target him...

Questions like this.

But over time, the officials in the court have become accustomed to Zhang Zhou's way of speaking in the past two years. In addition, Zhang Zhou has a strong backing from the emperor, and they really don't understand mining, and then... no one talks about it. talk.

The scene was strangely quiet.

Perhaps some people felt that it was awkward that no one was speaking at the scene. It was Zhang Mao who broke the silence and said: "It seems that Duke Cai Guo worked hard for the military and political affairs of the Ming Dynasty. He is my first-class loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty."

"Yes."

Almost everyone at Wu Xun responded.

This is flattery. Regardless of whether it is justified or not, it is important to compliment him first. Who made Zhang Zhou the first martial artist of the Ming Dynasty and the minister of the Ministry of War? Strictly speaking, the people on Wu Xun's side were working with Zhang Zhou.

There is also the effect of punishing Zhu Hui. Even the once arrogant Lord Baoguo has now become a prisoner. Now instead of standing by Zhang Zhou's side when he is in trouble, wait until Zhang Zhou defeats all his enemies. , it’s too late to stand in line again.

Zhang Zhou said: "Thank you for the compliment, Mr. British. But in fact, I just did something that I could do. I used what I have learned in my life to find veins and mine iron ore. Many people think that I have made a lot of money. In fact, I have made a lot of money." My mining accounts are all verifiable, but I did not move the mining proceeds to my home, all of them were basically used for military expenses."

Zhu Youtang nodded and said: "Bingkuan, you don't need to explain this. You found the mine. Even if you keep it all for your own use, no one can say anything, not to mention you paid the mining tax. Unlike those who mine in the local area , not only did they open the mine without paying taxes, but they also didn’t care about the emperor’s favor, and actually dared to attack the people I sent! It’s their own fault!”

Before anything else happened, the emperor seemed to have the moral high ground.

Is that Mu Bin doing something random?
  That is forced to fight back, and it is just!
  Qu Shen came out at this time and said: "Cai Guogong, according to the report below, there are at least dozens of families that have been raided in the local area. I don't believe that so many families are involved in attacking the mine? What's more, the mine is yours. In the name of the government, this is just a private fight, why use the royal guards? Do you want to use public weapons for private use?"

Qu Shen, who was being praised by the emperor just now, suddenly seemed to be possessed by Wei Zheng and wanted to fight Zhang Zhou to the end without leaving any way out.

Zhang Zhou said: "Your Excellency is right, that's why I said that Jinyiwei acted too hastily when they first responded to this matter."

"Then you admit that you are the instigator of all this?" Qu Shen seemed to have found a breakthrough, which was to involve Zhang Zhou in this matter.

Even if Zhang Zhou has the support of the emperor, the emperor will not bring Zhang Zhou to justice, but as long as Zhang Zhou admits that this matter is related to him, Zhang Zhou's reputation among officials, subordinates, and common people will be ruined.

For his own selfish gain, he quarreled with others after opening the mine, and then used the Jin Yiwei to suppress local officials and gentry, even at the expense of making accusations.

Zhang Zhou said: "Who is the instigator? I don't know what you mean. Jin Yiwei is on official business and I was not involved. I just think Jin Yiwei acted too hastily... By the way, you know exactly what these people have committed?"

"It's... because I have a personal dispute with you, you invited the Jin Yiwei to avenge your personal revenge!" Qu Shen completely broke up with Zhang Zhou this time.

Although Qu Shen was in the Military Department, he was not directly subordinate to Zhang Zhou, the Minister of War. On the contrary, the Military Department was established to supervise the affairs of the Ministry of War, which is equivalent to the supervisory department. It is most reasonable for him to come out to question Zhang Zhou. of.

So much so that Zhu Youtang didn't interrupt immediately after hearing this.

It seems that Zhu Youtang is also confident that his Bingkuan can handle this matter well without him having to step in to support it. This is also because he heard some rumors that Zhang Zhou does everything in his name. .

Zhu Youtang will not admit that he cleared the way for Zhang Zhou, but he also needs to worry about Zhang Zhou's situation. Now he is trying his best to leave the opportunity to perform to Zhang Zhou himself.

Zhang Zhou said: "Your Excellency is wrong. As far as I know, when Li Rong went to Yongping Mansion with Commander Mou and others, the matter they investigated had nothing to do with the mine, but involved a case in Liaodong related to foreign affairs. Commander Mou, I wonder if there is a crime of trade collusion?"

Mou Bin was kneeling there, but as a person involved, it seemed as if the matter had nothing to do with him.

Anyway, he also knew that no matter how prestigious he was among Jin Yiwei's men and the people, he was just a vase in front of the group of big guys in front of him.

Even destiny has to be influenced by others.

Zhu Youtang said: "You say."

Mou Bin then said: "Yes."

It is equivalent to saying that now the responsibility must be pushed to a certain extent on Li Rong, since the person is already dead anyway.

"I don't know, what did you find?" Zhang Zhou continued to ask.

Mou Bin did not need to wait for the emperor's response this time, so he replied: "We have found out that local officials and gentry were not going through the channels of the border market. Even after the horse market was closed, they still bribed the border officials and others to get in touch with Wu Liangha." The other tribes traded privately and leaked some information about the Ming Pass to the Tatars, and some Tatars even tried to obtain the Ming's secret recipes for making cannons and sky gunpowder from them."

"what!"

The ministers present never expected that Mou Bin could reveal the secret recipe for making gunpowder.

If Tongfan and treason is just a pocket crime, and Jin Yiwei can ensnare anyone for this crime, then leaking the Ming Dynasty's biggest weapon secret will become an obscure matter.

Zhang Mao used his old-fashioned characteristics again, as if he was sighing loudly on purpose: "If this is true, once the secret recipe for making weapons of our dynasty is leaked, the advantages accumulated in the past few years will be lost! But we must Only by getting to the bottom of this can we give an explanation to the imperial court and the soldiers on the border."

Qu Shen was very passive at this time, but he still gritted his teeth and said with his body trembling slightly: "Cai Guogong, didn't you say that you made those things? The secret recipe is in your hands. If it is leaked, it will definitely It’s related to you.”

Zhang Zhou said: "Your words are wrong. I was the one who originally invented firearms, but when it comes to manufacturing, preservation, transportation, assembly and use, and even subsequent maintenance of weapons, anyone who works in the Ministry of War will know this. Clearly, if you don’t know how to maintain a weapon, how can you maintain it well? How can it be effective in a battle? Master Ma, am I right?"

Zhang Zhou suddenly turned his attention to Ma Wensheng, who was silent in the court hall.

Recently, Ma Wensheng has often been absent from court meetings, citing old age and illness, and has even been impeached by officials.

Civil servants always keep their eyes open when it comes to this kind of thing. Even Ma Wensheng doesn't give face to them, to show that they don't form cliques. Only when fighting with "sycophants" will they take a surprising stance. consistent.

Ma Wensheng even resigned and returned home many times. According to the rules of the court in the mid-Ming Dynasty, anyone who was impeached must submit a memorial to resign before the emperor.

Rather than directly punishing you and dismissing you, but asking you to step down voluntarily, it is the same as asking you to resign, so that the final dignity between the monarch and his ministers can be maintained.

But the emperor seemed to be very tolerant of Ma Wensheng and had no intention of letting him leave.

Ma Wensheng seemed to be pretending to be confused. His head shook slightly before he replied: "That's true."

Zhang Zhou said: "Since many people below know the maintenance and upkeep of weapons, how can it be blamed on me? What's more, Yongping Mansion is one of the main production areas for iron ore mining, iron smelting and cannon casting. In the Ming Dynasty, Liaodong The cannons used in Jizhou and Jizhou were basically cast in Yongping Prefecture. There were many local craftsmen, and there were a large number of craftsmen transferred by the imperial court. Foreign barbarians wanted to obtain cannon casting and other technological processes from Yongping Prefecture. Isn’t it surprising?”

This is equivalent to blocking the way for everyone to come out and ask questions in advance.

It seems that someone is expected to come out and ask questions such as "Why is the Tatars coveting the secret recipe of firearms related to Yongping Mansion?"

"It's reasonable." Zhang Mao spoke again, and then he respectfully said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, I also believe that this matter should be investigated thoroughly, and no suspicious person should be let go. If anyone is really involved in this matter... Even if your family is confiscated and your clan is exterminated, you still deserve it!" (End of Chapter)