Chapter 1650: The Inevitability of Implication

The Lu Duoxun case could be called the greatest case since the founding of the Great Han—its impact, its depth of involvement, and the breadth of its implications were beyond comparison with any previous case.

From the sixth month through the seventh, and on into the eighth month, the entire case still had not fully concluded. The mere investigation into the various crimes, great and small, committed by Lu Duoxun alone took nearly two months. To this end, Xin Zhongfu even established a "provisional investigation team" dedicated exclusively to verification.

And after two months, aside from Lu Duoxun himself, officials and clerks implicated both inside and outside the court—from the Hall of State Affairs to the Censorate, from the capital to the provinces, from the northwest to the southeast—numbered 573 people. And this was even with the Crown Prince doing his utmost to mediate and protect, not wishing to see the matter expanded.

Otherwise, had they followed Lu Duoxun's network of connections layer by layer, who knows how many more people would have been implicated. Even confined to a few hundred, the complexity of the situation was beyond anything any previous case could match.

Had they simply applied a one-size-fits-all approach, things would have been easy to handle. But His Highness the Crown Prince was watching from above, demanding that everything be investigated thoroughly, that there be evidence for every finding, and that punishments be meted out according to the depth of involvement and severity of guilt, avoiding injustice as much as possible. This nearly drove Xin Zhongfu and the others to white hair.

All those implicated were first arrested and detained, then examined one by one and dealt with according to law. For the most part, the cases followed Lu Duoxun's career trajectory. Apart from the capital, Hexi and Liangzhe were the hardest-hit regions, especially Hexi.

The longer one had operated there, the deeper one's roots, the greater the scale of the reckoning. Especially as the Hexi investigation unfolded simultaneously—two cases being investigated in parallel, two sets of influences bearing down on Hexi at once—the impact on Hexi's military and civil administration could well be imagined.

By the eighth month, three-tenths of Hexi's military and civil officials had been removed, and three-tenths replaced. Lu Duoxun's power base and partisans had been almost completely uprooted. What remained was naturally a mess. Hexi's military and civil administration wasn't quite paralyzed, but everyone was in a state of fear.

The officialdom was gripped by panic, and among the common people, the mood was naturally oppressive as well. It was only because the northwestern garrison troops, under the command of Liu Fang, the Prince of Zhao, were conducting military operations to suppress bandits and maintain order that rebel factions and traitorous cliques were, to a certain extent, prevented from seizing the opportunity to stir up trouble.

If they had relied solely on the court's normal judicial system to handle such a vast number of officials and hundreds upon hundreds of cases with meticulous efficiency, it would clearly have been beyond their capacity.

Therefore, in this process, the Palace City Office and the Wude Office inevitably became involved as well, even if only to provide intelligence support and help gather evidence.

And the participation of these two offices meant that the matter was grave, that the case's development was uncontrollable—and it also caused many people to once again raise their vigilance and fear regarding "secret-police politics."

Out of concern for appearances and to avoid certain disasters, the power of the Palace City Office and the Wude Office had always been restricted by Emperor Liu to a certain scope. Over the years, they had rarely interfered in the court's judicial affairs—at least on the surface. Unless it was a major case threatening the imperial authority or the empire itself, they had no authority to arrest or interrogate.

But this time, they seemed to show no restraint whatsoever. Even with the "imperial sword" granted by Emperor Liu, this was something the ministers found especially alarming.

Among them, the most active, without a doubt, was Wang Yinwu, Commissioner of the Wude Office. He had never cared about his reputation at court, nor did he heed the jealousy and resentment of the courtiers. Therefore, in the purge of Lu Duoxun's partisans, he brought out the full capability of the Wude Office.

The closer one had been to Lu Duoxun, the more vicious the betrayal. After all, once Lu Duoxun was thrown into prison, the one most terrified throughout the entire court was Wang Yinwu himself. Others might not understand the hidden intricacies, but he knew the fundamental reason for Lu Duoxun's downfall. So how could he not exert himself? He had to, at all costs, demonstrate his loyalty and competence to Emperor Liu, to preserve his head on his shoulders and hold on to his power and wealth.

The impact of the "Lu Case" was clearly not confined to the implicated officials. Perhaps when Lu Duoxun had first been imprisoned, most people felt joy and curiosity, and quite a few even joined in kicking him while he was down, beating the drowning dog.

But as the effects fermented and the implications deepened and broadened, as one official after another, one colleague after another, was taken away by the Ministry of Justice or the Wude Office, that mentality of schadenfreude and watching from the other shore gradually disappeared. What remained was mostly only caution and fear, dread of being implicated oneself.

Thus, during the vigorous investigation of the "Lu Case," the bureaucrats of the Great Han were unprecedentedly well-behaved, cautious, and treading as if on thin ice. Everyone could see that Emperor Liu was serious this time.

They even imposed extremely strict discipline on their family members, including servants. After all, failure to govern one's household strictly and indulging wrongdoing were themselves sufficient grounds for arrest and interrogation.

In the early period, quite a few people still submitted remonstrances and spoke up. Later, the entire court fell silent. Most people dared not even speak carelessly, silently performing their duties, hoping that no misfortune or trouble would befall them. Being able to return home safely each day was cause for celebration—celebrating having survived another day.

Social visits and casual calls were greatly reduced. Gatherings among officials virtually ceased during those two months. The pleasure quarters and painted boats of the Eastern Capital lost a large number of customers.

The court had never been so clean and upright. It had been many years since anyone had felt the wind of integrity so profoundly...

In the seventh month, seeing that the net of implication was expanding beyond all restraint, with more and more officials being taken down, Crown Prince Liu Yang—worried about the current state of pervasive anxiety—once again advised Emperor Liu, hoping that the scope could be somewhat limited and that the implication not be extended without limit.

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To this, father and son had another conversation. Emperor Liu's attitude was resolute, his position unequivocal. In Emperor Liu's view, this was not a purge by implication but a cleansing of wounds—another rectification of the Great Han's officialdom.

Even without Lu Duoxun, Emperor Liu would have found another pretext to carry out a rectification, to drive out those he found displeasing, to dispel the bad customs and the corrupt, decadent atmosphere that permeated the court.

On the other hand, this was also a test for the Great Han court, an examination for the Great Han's bureaucrats. From its founding, the Great Han Empire had gradually developed into the behemoth it was today, weathering countless storms and setbacks, breaking through innumerable difficulties and obstacles. It was not so fragile that it couldn't withstand a little turbulence.

It was merely a matter of rectifying a batch of bureaucrats—what great affair was that? Could the empire fall into chaos over it? Those who harbored misgivings and feared this and that were either guilty of conscience or harboring ill intentions...

Emperor Liu's words left Liu Yang speechless. The accusatory tone in those words was rather heavy. At the same time, he knew in his heart that with Emperor Liu at the helm, the Great Han Empire truly feared no storms or waves.

However, perhaps out of consideration for Liu Yang's feelings, to avoid striking him too hard, Emperor Liu still left some leeway and reluctantly agreed to execute fewer people.

But what happened afterward made Emperor Liu quite angry. Upon learning that Liu Yang had petitioned Emperor Liu on their behalf, quite a few officials at court praised the Crown Prince's benevolence and virtue. By contrast, the old emperor was portrayed as stern and fearsome.

Such rumors, even if they were just thoughtless drivel from fools and simpletons, could not escape the ears of those with discerning eyes, and naturally they reached the emperor's ears as well.

Faced with such a reaction, how could Emperor Liu not have thoughts about it? He couldn't help but wonder whether Crown Prince Liu Yang's eager intercession on behalf of his subordinates was for the stability of the court or to win people's hearts. If the bureaucrats all came to fear Emperor Liu and distance themselves from him, choosing instead to draw close to the Crown Prince—how could that be allowed?

Of course, angry as he was, Emperor Liu wouldn't go so far as to rebuke Liu Yang over it. But right on the heels of that, several officials were arrested, on charges unrelated to the "Lu Case"—for spreading seditious words to disturb governance.

At the same time, Emperor Liu issued a special decree ordering the relevant authorities to intensify their investigations, and also directing the Ministry of Personnel to audit past official appointments and removals. Any cases of corruption, embezzlement, or violations of regulations and law were to be dealt with severely.

And he had Crown Prince Liu Yang personally carry this out...

It must be said that even for Liu Yang, who had been Crown Prince for over twenty years, and even though Emperor Liu was wholeheartedly supporting and nurturing him, the stability of his position as heir apparent was hard to call secure.

Emperor Liu's intentions were one thing; how the Crown Prince conducted himself was quite another.