Chapter 264: Seizing the Henan Governor's Household

Of course, that was only how they appeared on the surface; what they truly thought inside, they would never say, nor even allow themselves to think.

Because thinking that way would truly be unworthy of a minister's duty.

In any case, they felt that if the day ever came when the Prince of Fu's line died out, they would not feel the slightest surprise.

After all, among the countless princes of the Great Ming, it was hardly a rare occurrence for one to dig his own grave until he had no son and no one to inherit his title, forcing the Emperor to painfully strip the princedom away.

Of course, that was a matter for the future—who could say for certain?

Not to mention it had not happened; even if it truly did, they would only submit routine memorials praising Your Majesty, then console Your Majesty properly and urge him not to grieve too deeply.

Zhu Youxiao glanced at the several men and felt the atmosphere was somewhat odd—truly not suitable for saying anything more.

So Zhu Youxiao said: "Since the matter has been decided, all of you, beloved ministers, may return and set about handling it. The affair must be handled well—seek justice for the people of Henan, and do not let them suffer any further losses. They are all my subjects; if they lose even a little, my heart will ache."

The several men hurriedly rose to their feet, bowed, and said: "Rest assured, Your Majesty—your ministers will handle the matter thoroughly and without the slightest error; the officials of Henan, great and small, will also be arranged for as quickly as possible."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said with a smile: "Then make haste."

In truth, Zhu Youxiao knew perfectly well what his several Grand Secretaries of the Grand Secretariat were thinking.

This time, the official posts of Henan, great and small, would surely be carved up among them; perhaps, with their mutual collusion, they might even stir up other matters, and there might even be competition among themselves.

But Zhu Youxiao understood that they would not truly devolve into factional strife or bloody fights to the death—they understood his bottom line.

For Zhu Youxiao, this was a very favorable situation.

As for the competition among them, Zhu Youxiao had no intention of intervening—he would do well to act as referee; if he stepped into the arena himself, it would only cause more trouble.

After the several men had left, Zhu Youxiao leaned back in his chair and let out a soft breath.

At this point, he had finally found a bit of the feeling of being Emperor.

Henan Province, Kaifeng Prefecture.

Perhaps because winter was approaching, the weather had suddenly turned cold.

Yesterday a light rain had fallen, making the weather even colder. "One autumn rain, one chill"—that saying referred to exactly this time of year.

Chen Sihai sat inside the room, eating hotpot and drinking wine.

Accompanying him was Xu Xianchun, Deputy Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The two got along quite well, for at present they had no conflict of interest between them; their cooperation was pleasant, and they even felt a mutual admiration.

Of course, that was only in their hearts—on the surface, it was not so obvious.

Setting down his wine cup, Xu Xianchun looked at Chen Sihai and said slowly: "Sir, what answer do you think the capital will give?"

Right now, both men were concerned with this very question.

After all, they had done so much here in Henan—they truly did not want to see it all wasted at the final step.

Besides being ruthless and merciless, Xu Xianchun also very much wanted to accomplish a great undertaking.

"The imperial will is not something we can fathom; we need only wait obediently." Chen Sihai thought for a moment and said.

In truth, Chen Sihai was worried about his teacher.

The affair had been stirred up so greatly that the Office of Transmission would likely become the target of everyone's criticism. Although the capital had not yet sent back an answer, he felt the conclusion was already obvious.

Xu Xianchun nodded; in his heart, he hoped the affair would blow up even bigger. He felt that after returning this time, he would be promoted and would replace Luo Sigong, the Regional Military Commissioner of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

At the thought, Xu Xianchun's heart stirred with excitement.

Just as the two were drinking, a man suddenly walked in from outside.

The man came to Chen Sihai's side and said respectfully: "Sir, people have arrived from the capital. The Directorate of Ceremonial and the Grand Secretariat have both sent men, along with people from the Six Ministries and the Court of the Imperial Clan. They have already reached the front hall and are waiting for the two of you."

Hearing this report from his subordinate, Chen Sihai and Xu Xianchun were both startled, then exchanged a glance and stood up with somewhat excited expressions.

They both knew what such a delegation meant.

The men sent by the Grand Secretariat and the Six Ministries should be for the officials of Henan, great and small. Once a major action was taken in Henan, the province could not be thrown into chaos—people were needed to take over, which was why they had come.

As for the men from the Directorate of Ceremonial and the Court of the Imperial Clan, they should be here for the Prince of Fu.

Chen Sihai and the other dared not delay; they walked quickly to the front and soon met the group.

At the head was Ou Dalun, Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. Clearly, the court intended for him to finish trying the case here in Henan, with no intention of moving it to the capital.

But upon seeing Ou Dalun, both Chen Sihai and Xu Xianchun wore somewhat strange expressions.

This Ou Dalun was quite famous—no one had expected that he would be given such an important post.

It was not that the man lacked ability; the main reason Ou Dalun had never been given an important post until now was his temperament.

There was another reason: Ou Dalun was Hai Rui's close friend and half-disciple.

After Ou Dalun passed the juren examination, he and his elder brother Ou Daxiang went to study at the Imperial Academy in Nanjing. At the time, Hai Rui presided over the Imperial Academy and was very famous; Dalun had a deep friendship with him.

In the jichou year of the Wanli era, he passed the jinshi examination and was appointed County Magistrate of Dongming County in Shandong. Ou Dalun loved the people as his own children, urged farmers to work diligently, taught propriety and deference, redeemed those who had been forced to sell their children due to famine, and used the surplus from deed taxes to buy several hundred head of oxen for those who lacked them.

One should know that the surplus from deed taxes was normally pocketed by the officials in charge—but this Ou Dalun did not do so; he used the money to buy oxen for the people.

A county magistrate could buy several hundred head of oxen—one can see how much money was involved!

Ou Dalun thus became an oddity in officialdom. Combined with his relationship with Hai Rui, he was subjected to much ostracism in his career.

Of course, another reason was that he had inherited Hai Rui's temperament—now that he was advanced in years, he could be described as both stubborn and unbending.

No one had expected that Ou Dalun would be sent to Henan this time.

Even Chen Sihai felt that the officials of Henan were done for.

After the several men exchanged greetings, Ou Dalun looked at Chen Sihai with approval and said with a smile: "You have done well here in Henan this time—unafraid of trouble, showing boldness and resolve. Your future will surely be boundless."

Though he was being praised, Chen Sihai still felt somewhat uneasy inside.

So I've been acknowledged by Hai Rui's faction?

Why don't I feel the slightest bit happy about it?

In truth, Chen Sihai truly did not dare offend this man. In officialdom, he was a hard bone; in the scholarly world, he was a great scold.

Ou Dalun advocated criticizing wild and arrogant empty talkers, encouraging those of integrity who did real work, in order to save the increasingly corrupt social atmosphere; he rejected the heterodox Confucian teachings that combined Confucianism with Buddhism.

Some days ago, after the uproar in the capital, Ou Dalun had criticized Xu Guangqi and his group, considering them oddities and heretics, believing that the things they had produced should be struck down—they were simply the dregs of the literati, unworthy of being disciples of the Confucian school.

He had spoken with great ferocity, yet Ou Dalun supported Huang Kezuan, believing that Xunzi's teachings were most fitting for this age. At a time when academic style was corrupt and social mores had degenerated, harsh measures were needed—Xunzi was just right.

Ou Dalun was also considered to be a supporter of Huang Kezuan.

"Many thanks for the compliment, Senior." Chen Sihai said with a smile.

Although in terms of official rank, Chen Sihai was more formidable—even a man currently in favor—when facing Ou Dalun, he still did not dare to be presumptuous, so his attitude was very proper.

"The court has already made its decision." Ou Dalun nodded and said slowly: "Henan Prefecture can be dealt with now. You are responsible for making the arrests, I am responsible for the interrogations, and then the verdicts will be sent to the court to await His Majesty's imperial approval."

"According to the new rules, you are to provide the evidence and testimony; I am only responsible for the interrogations."

Chen Sihai quickly said: "Rest assured, Senior, we are fully prepared and can begin at any time. The manpower has already been arranged."

"Then go." Ou Dalun nodded and said: "After the arrests are made, someone will take over the affairs of Henan Prefecture, so there won't be any major problems. The people sent this time were all specially selected by the Grand Secretariat, so nothing will go wrong."

Upon hearing these words, Chen Sihai merely nodded lightly without saying anything.

The so-called carefully selected by the Grand Secretariat was in reality the result of bargaining among the Grand Secretaries—people sent after their factions had reached a certain agreement.

Chen Sihai had no standing to object, and he also did not intend to get involved. This matter had nothing to do with him.

So Chen Sihai nodded and said: "We'll go right away."

Having said this, Chen Sihai stood up and walked out. Their first stop was the Henan Governor's yamen.

Although there were many officials of all ranks to be arrested this time, they had to start from the top; otherwise problems could easily arise.

Once the biggest one was arrested, those below were just small fry who couldn't stir up any trouble, and things would become much simpler.

After Xu Xianchun and Chen Sihai left the yamen, they headed straight for the Henan Governor's yamen.

In fact, although they were currently in Kaifeng city rather than Luoyang city, the local officialdom had long since gotten word of what was coming—one could say the atmosphere was fraught with tension, and people had been keeping watch these past few days.

When they saw the two emerge, everyone's heart trembled—clearly, arrests were about to be made.

Although people followed them along the way, they only dared to trail from a distance. No one dared to approach and disturb them, for who knew what these men might do.

After all, last time Chen Sihai and his men had raided a Prefect's yamen and shown not the slightest respect to Prince Fu. Even now, the Prince Fu's mansion was still sealed off.

They just didn't know who would be arrested this time.

The answer soon became clear, for from the direction they were heading, one could tell that this time they were going to the Governor's yamen.

Inside the Henan Governor's yamen.

Zhang Woxu, the Henan Governor, was pacing back and forth in agitation.

He had not known at first that the Office of Transmission had sent people to Henan. But with Henan Prefecture already raided, and with the matter of Prince Fu on top of that, it was impossible for him not to know.

The matter had happened on his turf, and there was no way he could escape responsibility.

But there was one thing that frightened him greatly—he had accepted no small amount of bribes over these past few years. If he were punished for this, he would certainly be finished.

Under such circumstances, he naturally had to seek a way out. The normal channels were certainly blocked, so he needed to take an unconventional path.

He wanted to plead with the Grand Secretariat, but couldn't get a word in; none of the Six Ministers would help him either. So Zhang Woxu chose a different group of people—that group being Wei Zhongxian. He felt that Wei Zhongxian should be able to protect him.

After all, everyone knew that Wei Zhongxian was the great eunuch His Majesty trusted most. If Wei Zhongxian could put in a good word for him, he could even accept being stripped of his office—all he wanted was to keep his life.

He just hadn't expected that so many days had passed and still no word had come back.

Thinking of the letter he had written to Cui Chengxiu, Zhang Woxu's heart sank.

As time went on, he grew more and more anxious, like an ant on a hot pan.

At that moment, a man suddenly ran in from outside, sweating profusely and looking anxious.

Though over fifty years of age, he was already panting from just a few steps. He came before Zhang Woxu and said urgently: "Your Excellency, those people have left the post station and are heading this way."

Upon hearing these words, Zhang Woxu's body swayed, and he collapsed straight to the ground.

The secretary who had come to report quickly rushed forward to support Zhang Woxu, helping him sit down in a chair, and said: "Your Excellency, this is not the time for despair, nor the time to give up."

"Then what can we do?" Zhang Woxu said with a bitter smile: "This time, it's over."

"As long as we push all the blame onto Prince Fu, there may still be a chance for a turnaround." The secretary said hurriedly.

He now had to scheme desperately, because many of the matters had been handled by his own hands. If Zhang Woxu were arrested this time, he, as the secretary, would fare no better.

Just then, a crowd of people came bustling in from outside.

At the very front were the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and then the crowd parted as Chen Sihai walked in from outside.

He glanced at Zhang Woxu and said expressionlessly: "Zhang Woxu, Governor of Henan?"

Hearing Chen Sihai's question, Zhang Woxu quickly stood up and said in a trembling voice: "This humble official is he."

Looking at Zhang Woxu, who was shaking uncontrollably, Chen Sihai furrowed his brow.

How did this man get to sit in the position of Governor?

Such a useless coward—utterly disgraceful!

Chen Sihai had originally wanted to say something more, but now he couldn't be bothered.

After giving him a look, Chen Sihai said directly: "Take him back."

At the same time, he said to Xu Xianchun beside him: "Have your men start the search. Be careful not to damage anything. Also, don't stuff any of the good things into your own pockets—these things here, they have no right to take."

"Rest assured, Your Excellency, I'll keep an eye on them." Xu Xianchun quickly acknowledged.

In fact, during a house raid, there were always some things that would mysteriously disappear.