Chapter 1825

This summer is exceptionally hot.

The Great Ming capital is located in the north, yet it has actually reached the point where people are dying of heat.

Coupled with the chaotic state of the imperial court, Emperor Yuanding's temper has become particularly irritable; the Imperial Prison has received a new batch of prisoners, and the Heavenly Prison is also very lively.

This cannot go on.

Someone suggested that the Emperor head to the imperial villa to escape the heat.

Emperor Yuanding readily agreed.

Unexpectedly, the Minister of Revenue spoke up: "There is no money!"

"If you want to leave the capital to escape the heat, that is fine. Please, Your Majesty, pay out of your own pocket and raise the funds. As long as there is money, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue will cooperate fully."

Emperor Yuanding was so angry that his fury surged.

He knew very well that the Minister of Revenue was dissatisfied with his recent order for the Embroidered Uniform Guard to arrest officials in the capital on a large scale. Moreover, the Embroidered Uniform Guard's methods were quite ruthless; in just a few days, people had already begun to die in the Imperial Prison.

Before being convicted or sentenced, people, unable to bear the torture, died in the Imperial Prison.

Many officials expressed their indignation.

The level of objection toward the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander, Xia Qiuhong, had reached the point where he had to be impeached every single day.

Emperor Yuanding felt slightly guilty, yet at the same time, he was very satisfied with Xia Qiuhong's performance. This ruthless drive, disregarding everything, was exactly what he wanted. There were certain officials in the court he found very unpleasant to look at.

In the past, when Yang Deguang served as Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he was always half-hearted in his work and could not bring himself to be ruthless when he needed to be. Things often went wrong precisely because he was not ruthless enough.

Now that Xia Qiuhong has taken office, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has finally found its fangs again, biting hard whenever they see a corrupt official. But because of this, many officials are quite dissatisfied.

They had grown accustomed to Yang Deguang's half-heartedness, and Xia Qiuhong's ruthlessness was truly unexpected. Even some pro-emperor officials had complaints in their hearts, believing that the Emperor had strayed from the right path.

Emperor Yuanding did not care about the officials' opinions at all; he just wanted to do things straightforwardly without being held back.

The Minister of Revenue challenged him and refused to cooperate, so he gritted his teeth and scolded him severely in front of the court officials, showing no respect at all to a veteran of three reigns.

Xie Changling spoke up to advise him, but Emperor Yuanding retorted very firmly. He felt a sense of courage bestowed upon him by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the courage to act recklessly!

Embroidered Uniform Guard:...

A misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding.

It's the other way around, it's the other way around; the Embroidered Uniform Guard is the one being bestowed with courage by His Majesty.

"Your Majesty!"

Xie Changling suddenly raised his voice, his expression exceptionally serious.

Emperor Yuanding was startled and secretly hated him, "What does the Grand Secretary wish to say?"

"The Ministry of Revenue is empty; this is a fact. Why does Your Majesty make things difficult for the Ministry of Revenue and the Secretariat! If Your Majesty insists on going to the imperial villa to escape the heat, please authorize the disbursement of funds from the inner treasury to cover the expenses!"

Xie Changling's tone was stern, speaking only to the matter at hand.

But his attitude represented the Secretariat: everyone was very dissatisfied with the Emperor.

Harmony between monarch and subject!

First, the monarch must respect his subjects, and the subjects repay him with loyalty and talent. A subject is not the Emperor's servant; how can he scold them at every turn just because he is displeased, completely disregarding decorum?

Emperor Yuanding understood, and precisely because he understood, he was furious. His anger was almost impossible to suppress.

"Is the Grand Secretary accusing me?"

"Your Majesty misunderstands! I am merely reminding Your Majesty that the national treasury is empty."

"There are no disasters, no wars, and it is the height of summer; why would the national treasury be empty?" Emperor Yuanding asked angrily.

Xie Changling spoke with justification, "In the past two years, droughts and floods have occurred frequently in various places, and the imperial court has exempted ten prefectures and seventy counties from taxes in one go. Water conservancy projects in various places have been in disrepair for years; since the autumn harvest last year, the Secretariat ordered local governments to repair water conservancy, with all expenses deducted from the taxes that should have been turned over. The Northwest has suffered from military disasters for years and needs the imperial court to allocate money and grain to help restore production..."

Xie Changling listed in one breath the projects that needed money and were currently spending money.

"... as well as the salaries of officials in the capital, which have been in arrears for years and need to be paid..."

One item after another, it was all about money.

Where did the money in the national treasury go? He calculated the accounts in detail with the Emperor, explaining the use of the money clearly, with the accounts being clear and distinct.

Emperor Yuanding's head was spinning, and he was filled with resentment.

He stared at Xie Changling, "So, the Ministry of Revenue really has no money?"

"Indeed, there is no money!" Xie Changling said solemnly, "Please authorize the disbursement of funds from the inner treasury to resolve the Ministry of Revenue's predicament."

"I have no money!" Emperor Yuanding gritted his teeth, furious to the point of death.

The Song family is all of one lineage, all obsessed with money.

Emperor Taixing indulged Jiang Tu in gathering wealth, truly an iron rooster that wouldn't shed a single feather.

Emperor Jian Shi was also fond of wealth, but fortunately, he still did the surface work, and his eating habits were barely not so ugly.

By the time it reached Emperor Yuanding, he just said he had no money, refusing to even do the surface work.

The officials were silent, but their attitude was very clear: since there is no money in the national treasury and no money in the inner treasury, the Emperor should not leave the capital to escape the heat and should stay in the palace. It's only hot for a few days anyway!

Emperor Yuanding was almost laughed to anger.

This group of officials, in order to retaliate against him and make him unhappy, truly stopped at nothing.

He was so angry that he flicked his sleeves and left, ending the morning court session.

The matter of escaping the heat was thus shelved.

The officials were more than happy for this to happen.

Chen Guanlou was not in the court, but he could feel the tense atmosphere of the court from the movements of the Ministry of Justice.

Sun Daoning sighed and lamented in front of him, looking very worried.

Chen Guanlou was very dismissive of him, "You can't even enjoy a drink properly; Old Sun, if you want to worry about the country and the people, don't come out. Hurry back to the Ministry of Justice, be your old workhorse, and serve until your dying day!"

Sun Daoning did not take it to heart, picked up his wine cup, and took a small sip, "I have complicated feelings!"

"No matter how complicated, it shouldn't delay drinking. Besides, if the sky falls, there are taller people to hold it up."

"His Majesty's temper is like the weather, very irritable, and he is almost unable to endure it anymore."

"Could it be that he has the courage to flip the table?" Chen Guanlou smiled, not quite smiling.

He did not believe Emperor Yuanding had the courage to summon the Three Great Camps to the capital and flip the Secretariat over in one go. According to his intentions, he would reorganize the Secretariat.

If he really had this ability, he would look up to Emperor Yuanding a bit more; he would have the drive Emperor Taixing had when he deposed the Crown Prince back then—awesome!

Sun Daoning rolled his eyes at him, "Court struggles are inevitable; how can you flip the table just because you are displeased? Do you think this is a street fight!"

Chen Guanlou chuckled twice, "Court struggles are sometimes really not as good as street fights. The Emperor wants power, you won't give it, and you've been competing with each other for so many years. Seeing that the Emperor's patience is about to run out, you are worried again, fearing he will go to extremes. Can't you leak a little benefit through your fingers to the Emperor to let him vent his anger first?"

"How can power be ceded!" Sun Daoning snorted coldly, dismissing Chen Guanlou for not understanding politics, "This is a life-or-death struggle; not a bit can be leaked."

Oh my!

It is rare to see Sun Daoning take such a strong stance.

Has he finally figured it out?

Chen Guanlou was very curious, scanning up and down, wanting to see more clearly. What kind of stimulation did Old Sun receive to stop being a loyal official?

Sun Daoning put down his wine cup and said angrily: "His Majesty indulging Xia Qiuhong in acting recklessly is truly inappropriate."

Chen Guanlou understood instantly; it turned out the crux was the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard is truly hated!

Xia Qiuhong's methods were too crude, having only force and no strategy; he was neither as comprehensive as Xiao Jincheng nor as measured as Yang Deguang.

One word: rotten!

No wonder even Sun Daoning couldn't stand it!