Chapter 233: Wang Chonggu

Zhu Yijun was very much like Zhang Juzheng. Both were people of great perseverance. Once they identified a goal, they would move forward for it. No matter how many storms and bumps there were on the road, they would never stop walking.

This was the greatest commonality between Zhu Yijun and Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Juzheng had been planning the return of power very early, as early as the moment the Emperor asked him what benefits he had exchanged for the assassination case. Since he was going to return power, he wouldn't change it because of anything. And after five years of accumulation, Zhang Juzheng believed that the Emperor had accumulated enough strength to rule personally.

Not to mention, he was now in the Western Hills, only fifty miles away from the capital. As long as His Majesty needed it, he, this Earl of Yicheng, could rush back to the capital at the fastest speed.

From today on, he was the Great Ming Emperor's greatest trump card.

Zhang Juzheng left. A total of three carriages went out from Xizhi Gate and headed for the Earl of Yicheng mansion in the Western Hills. The Grand Secretary of a generation fulfilled his duty of governing the nation while the sovereign was young and the state was suspicious, returning the world to the Great Ming Emperor.

At the same time Zhang Juzheng left, Wang Chonggu and Wang Qian walked out of the suite in the prison of the Northern Suppressing and Fostering Division. Of all the officials in the prison, only Wang Chonggu and Wang Qian were pardoned, because the mistakes of the two of them were in the completely opposite direction to the mistakes of the others.

Wang Chonggu and Wang Qian had hung up their seals and fled, while the others wanted to attack Zhang Juzheng and his New Policies.

Wang Chonggu and Wang Qian returned to their mansion very, very low-key. The gatekeeper pulled out an inconspicuous carriage pulled by one horse, and they returned directly to the mansion. They didn't perform any rituals to get rid of bad luck; they just returned home, bathed, and changed clothes, which counted as getting rid of bad luck.

Wang Chonggu was qualified to sit in a sedan chair, but he chose not to. The reason was very simple: because His Majesty didn't like it.

His Majesty had gone to the All-Chu Guild Hall twice to mooch a meal, and both times he was looking for Zhang Juzheng's sedan chair carried by thirty-two people. It was said that one could even use the toilet inside. Zhu Yijun was truly curious about how thirty-two people could be arranged in the narrow alleys of the Great Ming capital, and how they could turn.

Members of the imperial clan and meritorious nobles had also asked for sedan chairs, but they were directly rejected by His Majesty.

What His Majesty didn't like, he resolutely wouldn't do. This was Wang Chonggu's way of survival.

"Master, many people have come outside!" The gatekeeper ran in hurriedly, anxiously saying, "The court officials, almost all of them have arrived."

"These dogs, could it be that they really have dog noses? Today the Grand Secretary left, they didn't go to see him off, but as soon as I came out, they came to the door." Wang Chonggu sneered and shook his head repeatedly.

At this time, in front of Wang Chonggu's mansion, countless people were lined up in long queues, all coming to pay their respects.

In the battle of Zhang Juzheng's "retaining office despite mourning," Wang Chonggu could still leave the prison unscathed. That Wang Chonggu's rapid promotion had become a nail in the coffin, so the dogs who smelled the scent had already run to Wang Chonggu's door and barked.

Wang Qian looked at Wang Chonggu with a playful look, and even a bit of ruthlessness. He was not old, but he was ruthless. He was the Emperor's cruel official, the executioner of the strange anti-corruption campaign. When necessary, Wang Chonggu could also be held.

No one would know what kind of changes would happen to this person when he reached the peak of power.

Wang Qian restrained his gaze and said in a low voice, "They all see that Father is about to gain power. Those court officials who repeatedly attacked Father before naturally have to come and pay their respects. Otherwise, with a wave of Father's hand, they might find that being alive is worse than being dead."

"Just a bunch of sycophants." Wang Chonggu spat out a turbid breath, his face full of disdain. "Son, remember, the Great Ming's state and society are supported by people of integrity, not by me, you, or them—they are all small people."

"Small people cannot support the state."

Wang Chonggu told his son a truth: whether it was this officialdom or this official factory, it was the same. What supported it was absolutely not the vermin crawling on it and sucking blood, but the gentlemen who stood straight and carried the sky.

The "gentlemen" and "small people" Wang Chonggu spoke of here were moral ones. The vermin crawling and sucking blood were all ugly bugs hiding under the feet of gentlemen.

"Isn't father going to support the state now?" Wang Qian said calmly.

"Is that so? Hahahaha." Wang Chonggu was happy when he heard this, and laughed heartily with satisfaction, and began to receive these fickle fellows.

When Zhang Juzheng left, he was alone. The only ones seeing him off were Liang Menglong, Shen Shixing, Zhang Chucheng, Li Le, and a group of die-hard subordinates, because everyone else had come to pay respects to Wang Chonggu.

The sky of the imperial court was about to change.

The high-ranking court officials Wang Chonggu met included Ge Shouli, Fan Yingqi, Wang Jiaping, Wang Xijue, Li Youzi, and so on.

Ge Shouli, as the leader of the Jin faction, came to congratulate Wang Chonggu on his escape from prison. Being able to leave the prison, no matter what, was a happy event.

And Fan Yingqi and Wang Jiaping were Ge Shouli's henchmen. Wherever Ge Shouli went, these two would go.

Wang Xijue was the third-grade official in charge of the Imperial Secretariat, and Li Youzi was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. This time Zhang Juzheng observed mourning, Li Youzi was the only one who submitted a memorial to echo the Emperor, requesting to retain Zhang Juzheng.

Wang Xijue was the leader who opposed retaining Zhang Juzheng. Wang Xijue's reason for opposition was that the previous Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe returned to his hometown to observe mourning, and Zhang Juzheng, as Grand Secretary, refused to observe mourning, which might lead to the notoriety of being greedy for position.

"Scholar Wang, I heard that the villa in your hometown of Taicang has been built? Is it called the South Garden? I heard there are three bridges, two pavilions, two lake-viewing pavilions, a book pavilion, a Buddhist hall, and a hermitage. The water flows through the front and back, and there are countless beautiful trees and flowers. Congratulations, congratulations." Wang Chonggu looked at Wang Xijue, his tone not very polite. Although he was saying congratulations, every word was mocking.

Wang Xijue came from the Taiyuan Wang clan, which was a prominent family. But this family had been branching out for so many years. By the time it reached the Taicang Wang of Wang Xijue, it had actually declined. But this South Garden occupied more than 120 mu of land.

The All-Chu Guild Hall and the All-Jin Guild Hall were only 80 mu.

With two lake-viewing pavilions and three bridges, one could imagine how luxurious it was.

Wang Chonggu didn't like Wang Xijue very much. Some time ago, there was a memorial. The former Nanjing Minister of Personnel, Wang Bengu, submitted a memorial requesting the execution of Lin Afeng in Luzon. Hence Hai Rui, this divine sword, went to investigate whether Wang Bengu had taken money to speak for private interests, and this matter was handled by Wang Qian.

Wang Qian did handle it. Wang Bengu didn't take money, but he was indeed entrusted by others. But the person who entrusted him was just a sea merchant with three three-masted clipper ships, who said he heard there were Japanese pirates like Lin Afeng in Luzon, so Wang Bengu was filled with righteous indignation and submitted a memorial requesting execution.

Logically, it made sense, and the evidence was very sufficient. It was just that the sea merchant and Wang Bengu were on good terms.

Wang Qian was the kind of bad person who was bad to the bone. He didn't believe the facts were like this. Wang Qian chose to close the case and wait for the opportunity. Wang Qian didn't believe Wang Bengu submitted the memorial out of righteous indignation. There was something going on here, and if he wanted to find out clearly, he had to close the case first, let people relax their vigilance, and then lurk in the shadows, quietly waiting.

Wang Qian had a suspect, and the suspect was the one in front of him, Wang Xijue from Taicang, Suzhou.

"Thank you, thank you." Wang Xijue smiled with spring breeze on his face. The new mansion at home was completed, which could be considered bringing glory to his ancestors.

"Scholar Wang, the land in Suzhou is expensive, so it is better to be cautious. The Suzhou Governor Song Yangshan, the Nanjing Military Preparedness Eunuch Zhang Jin, and the Songjiang Town Commander Zhang Cheng are not easy to deal with." Wang Chonggu still wore a smile and pointed out a sentence to Wang Xijue.

In this day and age, the imperial court's butcher knife against corruption had already been raised. A mansion of 120 mu was truly a bit dazzling.

"Thank you, Minister of Justice, for the reminder. It's just that the fellow villagers are lifting me up." Wang Xijue hurriedly bowed his head and said. He absolutely wouldn't be happy if he were asked to tear down the mansion. That Earl of Yicheng mansion of Zhang Juzheng in the Western Hills occupied 800 mu!

The imperial palace only had 1080 mu. Zhang Juzheng's Earl mansion occupied 800 mu, which was a serious violation of the system. Zhang Juzheng could build it, but he, Wang Xijue, couldn't?

Wang Chonggu was a shrewd person. As soon as he saw Wang Xijue's expression, he knew he hadn't listened to his words, so he was too lazy to say more. It wasn't his own son, so a few reminders were already doing his utmost.

Zhang Juzheng's Earl of Yicheng mansion was paid for by His Majesty's inner treasury, with land from the imperial manor, and built by inner officials. That violation was also a violation by imperial decree. Putting aside his achievements, Zhang Juzheng's mansion was also bestowed by the Emperor. Where did you, Wang Xijue, get the money to build the mansion?

"Mr. Zhang has left. Can this position of Tan Sima be moved?" Fan Yingqi asked tentatively.

Wang Chonggu looked at Fan Yingqi, stood up with a smile, walked step by step to Fan Yingqi, and said, "Tan Sima?"

"Doesn't the Minister of Justice have a gap with the Tan Sima? Back then, when the Minister of Justice entered the capital to take charge of the Capital Garrison, the military equipment of the Capital Garrison was not strong. The Minister of Justice promoted military commanders from the Northwest, but Tan Lun blocked it and refused to approve it, finally causing a great uproar in the city." Fan Yingqi thought he had used the wrong title, that he shouldn't call him Minister of Justice, but should call him Minister Tan, or call him by his name, Tan Lun.

After all, the conflict between Wang Chonggu and Tan Lun was known to everyone. When Zhang Juzheng was in the court, he could still suppress it. Now that Zhang Juzheng had left the court, Wang Chonggu was about to gain power, so he was preparing to deal with Tan Lun in advance.

"Why don't you say 'forming cliques and excluding others'? Zhang Juzheng has left, so why don't you just finish off his Zhang faction together?" Wang Chonggu's eyes were even colder.

"Mr. Zhang has just left the court, should we wait a bit?" Fan Yingqi didn't understand what Wang Chonggu meant, and asked tentatively.

Wang Chonggu leaned down, his hand suddenly pinched Fan Yingqi's neck, and then began to exert force continuously. Wang Chonggu had been managing military affairs in the Northwest for a long time, and he was not a scholar with no strength to truss a chicken. He played with the big ring sword with great skill, and people who played with the big ring sword didn't have small hand strength.

Wang Chonggu pinched very hard, and Fan Yingqi struggled until his face turned red.

"Father! If you pinch any harder, you'll kill him!" Wang Qian was stunned, and hurriedly stepped forward to stop Wang Chonggu from killing him.

Wang Chonggu suddenly threw Fan Yingqi to the ground, then spat out a turbid breath, looked at Fan Yingqi, and asked with his brows furrowed, "Fan Yingqi, are you planning to be Zhang Siwei? To be a hanged ghost by the Tonghui River?"

"Minister of Justice, spare my life, Minister of Justice, spare my life!" Fan Yingqi coughed hard twice before he recovered, kneeling on the ground and kowtowing continuously.

"Get up." Wang Chonggu said with full disgust, "I think you are stupid. In the future, such words must never be said. It is best not to even have that thought in your heart, understand?"

"You are stupid, you don't understand, let me tell you why it is not allowed."

"I ask you, if one day, I suddenly fall ill and am sent to the Dissection Institute, and the Tan Sima is also there, who do you think His Majesty will order to be saved—the Tan Sima or me, Wang Chonggu?"

Fan Yingqi frowned and said, "Save both."

"Save both, but the two great imperial physicians, Chen Shigong and Li Shizhen, will both go to the Tan Sima's sickbed. It would be good if I could get two imperial physicians." Wang Chonggu sneered, "There is a difference between closeness and distance. I am just an official of His Majesty. This is the difference."

"Do you know why I am angry?" Wang Chonggu asked again.

Fan Yingqi shook his head.

"Truly extremely stupid. You want to attack the Tan Sima, which is attacking the Zhang faction. Attacking the Zhang faction is opposing the New Policies. Why don't you go and set fire to the Baoqi Department and Guanghan Hall in the Western Garden? We will all be exterminated to the ninth clan, and it will be faster."

"If you want to die, don't implicate the entire Jin faction? If you don't want to live, we still want to live."

Wang Chonggu sat down, looked at Fan Yingqi kneeling on the ground, and explained very dissatisfiedly why he was so angry that he almost did it himself. Zhang Juzheng had left the court, not died.

For His Majesty, when he ascended the throne at the age of ten, the country was in turmoil. Zhang Juzheng, relying on his many years of foundation, managed the Great Ming to this point. That was the merit of recreating the Great Ming.

Attacking the Tan Sima, His Majesty would definitely think that this Jin faction wanted to set fire to the Western Garden. If he didn't pull the entire Jin faction out by the roots, he, Wang Chonggu, would take Fan Yingqi's surname!

"Fan Yingqi, let me be clearer. Is the Zhang faction the Zhang faction? No, the root of the Zhang faction is the Imperial faction."

"The Grand Secretary's son entered the Royal Academy of Logic, clearly not wanting to participate in political affairs. The Zhang faction is not Zhang Juzheng's clique; it is His Majesty's Imperial faction. Zhang Juzheng left the court with the purpose of returning the Zhang faction to His Majesty. You attack the Zhang faction, which is attacking His Majesty. Are you really not afraid that Zhao Mengyou and Qi Jiguang will lead troops to flatten your house?" Wang Chonggu explained the matter clearly and plainly.

Zhang Juzheng had only one successor in politics, and that was His Majesty. Everything Zhang Juzheng had was to be left to His Majesty, and he was doing just that.

"I understand." Fan Yingqi said in fear and trepidation.

Wang Xijue was slightly disappointed. Wang Chonggu had already been scared by Zhang Juzheng. Even if Zhang Juzheng had left the court, as long as Zhang Juzheng was still alive, Wang Chonggu wouldn't dare to oppose the New Policies, which made Wang Xijue very disappointed.

Only in muddy water can one fish.

Ge Shouli watched this scene happen without a word, and chatted with Wang Chonggu about the major affairs of the court. The matter of Zhang Juzheng observing mourning and retaining office was making a lot of noise, but it didn't mean the court affairs were at a standstill. On the contrary, they were operating well. The main thing was the military expedition to Quanning Guard in the ninth month.

To fight or not to fight? The Jin faction needed to unify its voice internally.

It wasn't until dusk that Ge Shouli left with Fan Yingqi and Wang Jiaping, and then Wang Xijue and others also left Wang Chonggu's mansion.

"Congratulations, father, for passing this last hurdle to enter the Grand Secretariat." Wang Qian said very sincerely.

Wang Chonggu looked at Wang Qian, full of suspicion, and said, "Son, you wouldn't be planning to send your own father to the execution ground, would you? You wouldn't, would you? Could it be that because I tacitly approved of Fan Yingqi's approach, you are going to send me to the execution ground?"

"I did have that plan." Wang Qian thought for a moment and chose to tell the truth. He couldn't handle his own father? Zhang Siwei was Wang Chonggu's own nephew, and Wang Qian didn't hold back at all.

"Come, bring my big ring sword!" Wang Chonggu was furious.

"Father! What are you doing? I am an official of the imperial court!"

Wang Chonggu said angrily, "Even if you are the King of Heaven, you are still my son. Today, I am going to clean up the house!"

Wang Chonggu was truly stunned by anger. Thinking that he already had a grandson, this only son, he didn't care if he had him or not. Indeed, he, Wang Chonggu, was a big fish. It was fine that court officials were staring at him, but his own son was staring at him all day long. Was there any justice left? Was there any law left!

"Father, calm down!"

"Rebellious son, take my sword!"

Wang Chonggu finally didn't take lethal action. After all, he only had this one son.

"Father, Wang Xijue came today to probe your tone, and that Fan Yingqi isn't really stupid; he was just pretending to be stupid." Wang Qian analyzed the situation for his old father.

"I taught Fan Yingqi a lesson because Fan Yingqi is one of our own in the Jin faction. Saying Fan Yingqi is stupid is just saying Wang Xijue is stupid." Wang Chonggu sneered. Wang Xijue understood, but didn't agree.

This was "those with different ways do not conspire together."

Wang Xijue wanted to see the political spectrum of this new Grand Secretary, and Fan Yingqi wasn't a fool. Fan Yingqi and Wang Jiaping, who only took money and didn't handle business, were absolutely not fools who didn't understand the court situation.

Fan Yingqi pretending to be stupid was because Ge Shouli wanted to test Wang Chonggu. Ge Shouli was old, and the Jin faction would sooner or later be handed over. Wang Chonggu was the only candidate. There was no one more suitable than Wang Chonggu. But if Wang Chonggu entered the Grand Secretariat, would he drag the Jin faction to run toward hell together? Ge Shouli naturally had to see.

The political struggle in the imperial court was a zero-sum game. In a severe struggle, if one side gains, the other side must suffer.

Therefore, every individual in this largest vanity fair had their own little abacus. Everyone had their own little schemes. Even biological father and son couldn't completely trust each other. This vanity fair was something Jiao Hong and Zhang Juzheng didn't like—they truly didn't like it.

On the third day of the sixth month of the fifth year of the Wanli reign, the Great Ming court meeting proceeded as usual. Zhu Yijun tidied up his appearance and waited for the three sounds of the whip before the court officials filed in.

"We pay our respects to His Majesty. Long live, long live, long live His Majesty." Under the leadership of the second Grand Secretary Lu Diaoyang, the group of officials paid their respects very submissively.

"Exempt from kneeling." Zhu Yijun said calmly, "Mr. Zhang's father has passed away, and Mr. Zhang is heartbroken. I also feel the same. The day before yesterday, Mr. Zhang already left the capital and headed for the Western Hills to observe mourning for his father."

"From today on, the Junior Preceptor to the Crown Prince and Grand Secretary of the Hall of Martial Valor, Lu Diaoyang, is transferred to Grand Secretary of the Hall of Construction and Excellence, in charge of the Hall of Literary Brilliance. The Minister of Justice, Wang Chonggu, is promoted to Junior Preceptor to the Crown Prince and Grand Secretary of the Hall of Martial Valor, entering the Grand Secretariat to participate in secret affairs and assist in state affairs."

Zhu Yijun first broke a precedent, which was that the list of the Great Ming's Grand Secretariat was announced directly without going through the "court recommendation."

Discussions regarding the gains and losses of state affairs were called "court discussions."

Discussions regarding the proposal of personnel promotion and appointment were called "court recommendations."

But regarding Wang Chonggu's entry into the Grand Secretariat, Zhu Yijun did not convene a court recommendation, but directly announced his decision, which made the court officials extremely surprised. Even though everyone knew that after Wang Chonggu was released, he would definitely enter the Grand Secretariat, this lack of court recommendation and direct appointment was still extremely surprising to the court officials.

This did not conform to the rules.

The court recommendation of the Grand Secretariat's assistants was the core power of the officials. The Emperor could only choose to agree or disagree, but this list was pushed out by the court officials.

During the Chongzhen reign, in order to compete for the power of appointing the Grand Secretariat, the Chongzhen Emperor came up with the "gold bottle lottery method." Yes, it was the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Sun Piyang, who came up with the "lottery method" after serving as the Minister of Personnel in the 22nd year of the Wanli reign, using a lottery to decide official positions.

And this lottery method was used until the end of the Qing Dynasty.

Zhu Yijun didn't need to do this. This was the political legacy of the power to respect the sovereign's authority left behind by Zhang Juzheng. Zhu Yijun perfectly inherited it and used this legacy.

Wang Chonggu walked out tremblingly, bowed five times and kowtowed three times, kneeling on the ground, and said submissively, "Your Majesty, I am terrified. I am a person with a guilty status. His Majesty does not abandon me and forgives my crime of great rebellion. I have no virtue, no merit, no benevolence, and no righteousness. I am just a treacherous official who gathers wealth and promotes profit. I implore His Majesty to withdraw the order."

"Does the Minister of Justice want to defy the decree?" Zhu Yijun looked at Wang Chonggu and asked curiously.

Wang Chonggu was startled. The base scholars who blocked Zhang Juzheng from retaining office truly deserved to die. When Zhang Juzheng was in the court, he had refused the Emperor many times like this, and nothing happened. The Emperor still showed favor, giving him crane cloaks and national wine. Now, just slightly declining, he was hit with a big hat. Who could withstand this?

Now Zhang Juzheng had left because of the nonsense of the censorate officials, and the Emperor was becoming more and more cold-blooded.

The censorate officials slandered Zhang Juzheng as unfilial, denounced him as greedy for position, and cursed him as a beast for not observing mourning. Now that Zhang Juzheng had left, who would persuade the Emperor to be benevolent?

"I... I dare not." Wang Chonggu said tremblingly.

"Your Majesty is wise." Wan Shihe immediately stepped out, took the lead in shouting "Long live," and led the group of officials to pay their respects. His Majesty's decision—did you support it or oppose it? If you supported it, you followed along and shouted "wise." If you didn't support it, you could remain silent. As for opposing, then hold it in.

The Emperor's dominance was a matter of course, because the Emperor had not yet married, was young, and had lost the power of the Grand Tutor, this pillar of the court. Even if it was just bluffing, he had to show dominance.

Hence Hai Rui stepped out and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I request the execution of the national thieves! The censorate officials are full of false accusations. This bad habit cannot be corrected without thunderous means. Today, there are national thieves in the court who are conspiring to join forces, forming cliques for private interests, and excluding others. This wind must not be allowed to rise!"

"The Vice Minister of Revenue Lei Yingzhi, Xu Yuntao, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief Zhang Jiayin, the Investigating Censor Sun Xun, and twenty-seven other officials have falsely accused court ministers. According to the Great Ming system, false accusations should be punished with the same penalty. Since it is slander, it is appropriate to punish them with beheading!"

Hence Hai Rui requested the execution of the national thieves. The crime Hence Hai Rui gave was not colluding with the Japanese, but false accusation.

The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Lu Guangzu, stepped out and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please listen. Among these twenty-seven rebellious officials, Lei Yingzhi, Xu Yuntao, Zhang Zhu, Liu Dongxing, and others have committed the crime of colluding with the Japanese."

"Is there solid evidence?" Zhu Yijun asked coldly.

Lu Guangzu bowed and said, "There are several customs declaration documents from Nagasaki, showing that Liu Dongxing sold bird guns, cannons, and other items to Nagasaki, transported them to Japan, and sold them to Oda Nobunaga."

Xu Wei had organized some old cases of customs declarations in Nagasaki and discovered some very interesting things.

The court officials were discussing it. Not colluding with the Japanese was the Great Ming's political correctness, especially after the Japanese pirate scourge in the Southeast. Colluding with the Japanese was a heinous crime.

The Nagasaki old case that Lu Guangzu mentioned was just one key piece of evidence, the key evidence that turned other evidence into an evidence chain and ironclad proof. Since he dared to say this at the Grand Court meeting, it meant he had mastered sufficient evidence and was not framing a good person.

But the Great Ming's "colluding with the Japanese" could also be turned from a big matter into a small one, and from a small matter into nothing. If they really discussed colluding with the Japanese, did the Chengzu Wen Emperor, who enfeoffed the Ashikaga shogunate of Japan and allowed the Ashikaga shogunate to pay tribute, count as colluding with the Japanese? Did Xu Wei, Sun Keyi, and Ma Jin, who were in Japan, count as colluding with the Japanese?

But selling prohibited items to Japan was a heinous crime of colluding with the Japanese, and according to the system, they should be executed.

Wang Xijue stepped out and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, of the nine classics of the world, only one is practiced, which is benevolence. Yao knew that Gun could not be used, which can be called the wisdom of knowing people. Why did he use him after knowing it? Because the trapped people cannot be ignored, which is the benevolence of saving the people. However, Bo Gun finally had no success, which shows that people without virtue, even if they have talent, cannot save the state's affairs. Those who use people cannot but be cautious."

"Your Majesty, the censorate officials speaking on matters is the ear and eye officials set up by the Great Ancestor. Speaking on matters based on wind is their duty. What is loyalty? Criticizing Chen Shan is loyalty. Small faults are not a loss, and big faults are not a loss."

"I implore Your Majesty to be lenient."

Wang Xijue started from benevolence to plead for these people, saying that small faults were not a loss and big faults were not a loss. Small faults were naturally making money, and big faults were naturally criticizing Chen Shan and scolding the Emperor. This was the loyal minister of the country.

Being so harsh on the censorate officials, I fear the censorate path of the world will be blocked, and if the country has difficulties, no one will dare to speak up for justice.

Zhu Yijun smiled. With Zhang Juzheng not in the court, the tails of these people were finally exposed.

Wang Xijue was chanting scriptures, chanting scriptures. Zhu Yijun really couldn't punish them. A holy king naturally had to practice benevolent government. Wang Xijue was right to chant.

"Yao knew that Gun could not be used. Is Scholar Wang saying that Mr. Zhang is Gun?" Zhu Yijun used the scholars' method, taking things out of context, picking on words, and first put a big hat on Wang Xijue.

Wang Xijue felt his brain buzzing with pain. This is the Emperor? This is simply a scholar. One move, and it's taking things out of context.

He helplessly bowed and said, "What Mr. Zhang Jiangling said... is extremely correct." Wang Xijue's mouth twitched. This Emperor was truly difficult to deal with.

"Colluding with the Japanese is faith and reality. The Great Ming Collected Statutes say: those who collude with the Japanese and sell prohibited items should be executed." Zhu Yijun looked at Wang Chonggu and asked, "What does the Grand Secretary Wang think?"

"Kill!" Wang Chonggu didn't have any hesitation and expressed his attitude. He was just a clay Grand Secretary. Except for the matters he managed before, he followed the Emperor's will in everything else.

Wang Xijue was very disappointed. Wang Chonggu hadn't taken less goods to the North, especially salt. Salt was also a prohibited item. But now that Wang Chonggu said kill, wasn't he afraid that His Majesty would use this crime to kill him, Wang Chonggu, in the future?

Wang Chonggu also didn't take less secret collusion with the barbarians now. He had a very good relationship with the Third Lady.

Reporting the reason for taking leave yesterday: sitting for a long time caused problems with the neck. I went to the hospital to see it, and it was late when I got home. It wasn't cervical spondylosis, just a stiff neck, but it was relatively serious. It has recovered a bit today. Please vote for the monthly ticket, Awooooo!!!!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 234 =====

Wang Xijue was very disappointed. Wang Chonggu had previously transported all sorts of goods to the north, especially salt—which is also a prohibited item. But now that Wang Chonggu speaks of killing, is he not afraid that His Majesty will use this very charge to execute him, Wang Chonggu, in the future?

Wang Chonggu is currently also secretly colluding with the Hu, and he has a very good relationship with the Lady San Niangzi.

Reporting the reason for yesterday's leave: I have had neck problems from sitting for long periods, so I went to the hospital for a check-up and got home a bit late. It wasn't cervical spondylosis, just a stiff neck, but it was quite severe. I've recovered a bit today. Begging for monthly votes, Awoo!!!!!!!

(End of this chapter)