The atmosphere in the Imperial Hall grew tense.
Soon,锦衣卫 (Imperial Guards) began to return with reports.
"Report! Censor Cao Rong, silver deposits exceeding seventy thousand taels! Deeds and land holdings are countless!"
Cao Rong, who had maintained a resolute demeanor earlier, instantly collapsed to the ground upon hearing this.
Fang Er sarcastically said to him, "Censor Cao, if this Duke is not mistaken, with your salary, supporting your family is barely making ends meet. Where did these seventy thousand taels of deposited silver come from? According to the rules set by Emperor Taizu, anyone found guilty of corruption exceeding sixty taels would be flayed and their bodies stuffed with straw! You, Sir, would not be wronged even if flayed a thousand times, would you?"
Before Cao Rong could reply, he shouted towards the side, "Luo Yangxing!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"Drag Cao Rong out! Interrogate him thoroughly on how these silver taels were embezzled!"
"Yes!"
Two Imperial Guards, without any preamble, seized Cao Rong and dragged him towards the back of the hall. This fellow suddenly started shouting at the top of his lungs, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, your humble servant is innocent! This, this must be someone deliberately framing your humble servant, burying the silver in my household!"
These words made Fang Er laugh heartily. Zhu Youjian was also stunned. After a long while, he turned to face the assembled officials, feigning regret, and said, "Why has no one secretly hidden silver in the palace to frame me?"
Cao Rong was the first, but not the last.
Soon, one after another, Imperial Guards or operatives from the Eastern and Western Bureaus rushed in from outside, sweating profusely, to report.
"Report! Censor Zhou Gang, silver deposits exceeding fifty thousand taels!"
"Report! Minister of Rites, Wang Jiade, silver deposits exceeding thirty thousand taels!"
"Report! Minister of Revenue, Li Danian, silver deposits of ninety thousand taels!"
"Report! Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat, Wang Tongchang, silver deposits at home of two taels!"
"Report! Vice Minister of Works, Liu Zongzhou, silver deposits at home of seven taels!"
"Report! Grand Scholar of the Eastern Pavilion, Wei Zhaocheng, silver deposits at home exceeding one hundred and thirty thousand taels!"
~~~~~~
Each official discovered was taken away. Of course, those like Wang Tongchang and Liu Zongzhou, who were so poor that even thieves would likely disdain them, were certainly fine.
A stack of ledgers was handed to Fang Er. Looking at the numbers recorded on them, he cast a sympathetic glance at Zhu Youjian. Four years later, this fellow only collected over two hundred thousand taels of silver through imposed donations. But these ledgers, detailing the fortunes of almost every official, were meticulously uncovered. Two hundred thousand taels? Heh heh!
The Imperial Hall was sealed for a full three days. The officials within found it extremely unpleasant, eating, drinking, and relieving themselves all in the hall. Worrying about their own illicit fortunes, more and more began to feign fainting or illness. Zhu Youjian was also relentless, directly summoning imperial physicians to the hall, where they would take pulses, diagnose, prescribe, and prepare medicine on the spot.
For three days, the Imperial Guards and the Eastern and Western Bureaus cooperated seamlessly. Ever since Zhu Youjian took the throne and dealt with Wei Zhongxian, they had been suppressed by the Qi, Chu, and Zhejiang factions and dared not show their faces. Thinking back to previous dynasties, how glorious were these three institutions? Now, having finally found an opportunity, how could they show any mercy?
Meanwhile, Zhu Youjian, watching officials being taken away one by one from within the hall, was initially excited, but gradually, his excitement began to wane. Damn it! Three days ago, at the commencement of the grand court assembly, there were seven hundred and eighty-three officials of the seventh rank and above in the capital. After three days, fewer than four hundred remained standing in the Imperial Hall, with half of them having been taken away!
A table appeared before Fang Er, displaying the confessions of the officials taken away, along with their asset inventories. Although the Imperial Guards could locate their deposited silver, that was only a portion of what they had hidden in their homes in the capital. For example, Zhang Sizhi confessed that at his ancestral home, another sixty thousand taels of silver were buried! In front of the metal detector, no one dared to lie; whether the old residence had it or not, the Imperial Guards could find out with a sweep. Moreover, with the combined interrogation tactics of the Imperial Guards and the Eastern and Western Bureaus, no one could keep secrets!
After hastily perusing the confessions, he walked towards the officials still remaining in the hall with a smile. "Congratulations to you all, your integrity has allowed you to continue standing here!" However, the officials in the hall showed no reaction to these words. They knew themselves best; those with no deposited silver at home had remained calmly in the hall these past few days.
Seeing that the matter had reached a conclusion, someone stepped forward. "Your humble servant, Minister of Revenue Right Vice, Shi Kefa, has three requests for Your Majesty!" Zhu Youjian rose and walked to Shi Kefa, speaking kindly, "Since Vice Minister Shi can remain in this hall, please speak freely without reservation." All these matters were merely advised by Fang Er, and handled by the Imperial Guards and the Eastern and Western Bureaus. He had also seen the confessions, which were sufficient to indicate that those who remained could be entrusted with important tasks.
Shi Kefa bowed deeply to Zhu Youjian and then said, "In times of chaos, severe measures are employed. Your Majesty's decisive actions are what a wise ruler dares to undertake. If that is the case, I request that several cases be thoroughly re-examined. Former Minister of War, Fan Jingwen. Former Libationer of the Imperial Academy, Ni Yuanlu. Former Grand Scholar of the Wenyuan Pavilion, Wang Yingxiong. Former Censorate Official of the Ministry of Revenue, Qu Shishi. Former Minister of War, Fu Zonglong. Former Governor-General of Baoding, Sun Chuanting. Former Commander-in-Chief of Shanxi, Li Fuming. These individuals were framed and falsely accused, leading to their dismissal or imprisonment. I implore Your Majesty to re-examine their cases!"
Hearing the titles and names of these officials, Li Shimin, his face filled with anger, walked towards Zhu Youjian. Before he could speak, he immediately kicked him. "You who pick fat, do not say that I do not save you face in front of the officials! Explain to me, what is the matter with these people?" He had, over these past few days, also understood the structure of the Ming Dynasty's court officials. If the positions of the individuals Shi Kefa mentioned were magnified to the Tang Dynasty, Wang Yingxiong would be equivalent to Fang Xuanling, Sun Chuanting to Cheng Yaojin and Qin Qiong, and the others also held important posts. For such officials to be falsely accused and lose their positions, or even be thrown into prison, was simply unbelievable!
Zhu Youjian brushed himself off and got up from the ground, showing no signs of embarrassment. These past few days, he had a feeling of returning to his childhood, watching his father swagger in the Golden Throne Hall. Having a protector felt wonderful. "Father~~" Ah, no, "Your Majesty, please calm your wrath! I was also deceived before. Rest assured, I will immediately have people investigate this matter!" After speaking, he called out to Luo Yangxing, "Quickly summon Sun Chuanting and Fu Zonglong!" Of the seven people Shi Kefa mentioned, only these two were currently imprisoned in the capital's jail. Regardless of whether they were innocent or not, it was best to bring them in first.