Raising chickens and pigs and digging for wild vegetables, the county magistrate's promotion wa

Chapter 82 Let's cut off their roots first!

"You..." Emperor Zhu Chongba said with deep sympathy, "You have suffered."

Liu Hongchang, Master Geng, and other local gentry were moved to tears. Liu Hongchang even took the lead in bowing to Emperor Zhu Chongba and saying, "Your Majesty, please do justice for us commoners!"

Emperor Zhu Chongba sighed slightly, "Do you think that just because I am the emperor I can do whatever I want? Let alone a seventh-rank official, even if I want to kill an ordinary citizen, I must first have the government question me, and then have the Ministry of Justice review my case before I can make the final decision."

"If you want me to punish that corrupt official and reclaim the land that originally belonged to you, you must first prepare the people and evidence, and appeal to the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review."

At this point, Emperor Zhu Chongba pointed to Erhu beside him: "These are my personal guards, Erhu. When he asks you anything, just answer honestly. Come back and tell me when he has found out everything."

After saying this, Emperor Zhu Chongba left the central military tent. Erhu stood in front of Liu Hongchang, Master Geng, and others, and said with a smile, "Gentlemen of the village, Erhu is a rough man, so please ask whatever you want. Please answer truthfully."

Liu Hongchang, Master Geng, and the others nodded their heads like chickens pecking at rice, and Erhu then asked them one question after another.

Erhu asked very professional questions, such as, "How many acres of land did that corrupt official seize from your family? How many land deeds and house deeds do you each have that can serve as evidence?"

"What were those so-called community leaders and village chiefs originally doing? Since they were appointed as community leaders and village chiefs by that corrupt official, are they colluding with him? Do you have any evidence?"

"..."

After asking a whole host of questions, Erhu sighed casually, "You have indeed suffered. I really don't know how you managed to make it to Yanzhou, or how you managed to go to the capital to appeal to the emperor."

Liu Hongchang also sighed, "Fortunately, we received help from Lord Chen of Yanzhou Prefecture. If it weren't for him, I'm afraid we wouldn't have even made it to Yanzhou Prefecture."

Erhu said "Oh," and said, "Then we really should thank this Mr. Chen. In that case, if there is anyone else who has been kind to you, you might as well speak up. If you can persuade them to testify for you in court, that would be best. Even if you can't, you should still find a way to thank them in the future."

Liu Hongchang's eyes lit up, and he immediately rattled off a long list of names like beans spilling from a bamboo tube. He then went on to explain in detail how these people had helped him and his group.

Erhu nodded and quickly took notes until Liu Hongchang and the others had finished speaking. Only then did Erhu ask, "Is there no one else?"

Liu Hongchang nodded and answered honestly, "That's all."

Erhu nodded again, picked up the record and read it carefully, then smiled and looked at Chang Yuchun: "Chang Pingzhang, I have asked all the questions I needed to ask."

Chang Yuchun laughed heartily, then his expression suddenly changed. He shouted, "Guards! Seize these arrogant fools who slander court officials and attempt to deceive those in power!"

Liu Hongchang, Master Geng, and the others were taken aback by the sudden turn of events. Liu Hongchang stared blankly at Chang Yuchun and said, "The madmen that Chang Pingzhang mentioned, are we?"

Chang Yuchun sneered, "If it's not you waiting, then am I supposed to wait?"

As soon as Chang Yuchun finished speaking, a group of personal guards rushed over to bind Liu Hongchang and the local gentry, including Master Geng. Liu Hongchang and the others were alarmed and cried out, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Chang Yuchun shook his head slightly, signaling his personal guards to gag Liu Hongchang, Master Geng, and other gentry with rags. He then sneered, "A bunch of fools. The superior's personal guards are right here. Can't you see that?"

It wasn't until Liu Hongchang and the other local gentry were taken away, their faces ashen, that Chang Yuchun couldn't help but complain to Erhu, "If you ask me, this is too much trouble. We should have just taken these bastards down and interrogated them directly. Why did we have to go through all this trouble to get to the top?"

Erhu chuckled and said, "As the superior once said, the north has just been pacified, the Tartars have not yet been eliminated, and this matter involves court officials and local gentry, so we must proceed with caution."

After chatting with Chang Yuchun for a while, Erhu left the central command tent and, after finding Emperor Zhu Chongba, handed over the confession he had recorded to the emperor.

Emperor Zhu Chongba glanced at the document several times, his expression gradually turning cold, even revealing a hint of ferocity.

"Fine, fine," Emperor Zhu Chongba said through gritted teeth, "Let's just say they're trying to fool us! Look at the prefect, assistant prefect, and vice prefect of Yanzhou Prefecture—one is a fourth-rank official, two are fifth-rank officials, and four are sixth-rank officials. There are also more than a dozen officials from Yidu, and dozens of local gentry inside and outside Yanzhou Prefecture. All of these people are involved, and they've only been in Shandong for a few months!"

Erhu remained silent and did not express any opinion.

Emperor Zhu Chongba took the confession in his hand and looked it over again. Suddenly, he let out a long sigh and looked extremely tired.

"What do you think they're after?" Emperor Zhu Chongba seemed to be talking to himself, or perhaps asking Erhu: "If they want power, which of them doesn't have power? If they want beauty, which of them doesn't have beautiful wives and concubines? If they want money, haven't we given them enough money and provisions?"

"The monthly salary of a seventh-rank county magistrate would require an ordinary family of five to work themselves to the bone for several years, let alone those officials of the sixth, fifth, or even fourth ranks."

"Do they really have to take all the money, grain, and land in the world back to fill their graves before they're satisfied?"

Erhu remained silent.

In fact, Emperor Zhu Chongba did not expect Erhu to answer his questions.

After a while, the weariness on Emperor Zhu Chongba suddenly disappeared, and he returned to his tense state: "They want to undermine the foundation of our Ming Dynasty, so let's cut off their roots first!"

Emperor Zhu Chongba loudly ordered, "Pass on my order: Liu Hongchang and all the bandit leaders and officials involved in the case shall be escorted back to the capital and handed over to the Ministry of Justice for interrogation. Those who should be executed shall be executed, and those who should be hanged shall be hanged. All male members shall be sent to Ningyang County as slaves, and the female members shall be confiscated and sent to the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment district)!"

"Damn it, we can't let these bastards undermine the foundation of our Ming Dynasty, nor can we stand idly by while they slander and defame a loyal official of the court!"

Erhu knew that things had gotten out of hand today.

Normally, a superior would say "transmit my decree" instead of "transmit my order." Once the phrase "transmit my order" is used, it means that the superior has forgotten that he is the emperor and has unconsciously begun to put himself in the state of military campaigns before he became emperor.

However, Erhu did not feel sorry for Liu Hongchang and Master Geng, nor did he feel sorry for the officials involved in the case.

Gentry figures like Liu Hongchang and Master Geng slandered and defamed Yang Shaofeng, a seventh-rank county magistrate. According to the charges, it was indeed a capital offense, but it certainly did not qualify them as bandits. Their male relatives would not have been exiled three thousand miles away, and their female relatives would not have been confiscated and sent to the brothel.

As for the officials involved, they were not wronged. After all, not just anyone could force someone to take power and start a massacre when the Ming court was severely short of officials.

Emperor Zhu Chongba paced back and forth in the courtyard a few times, then suddenly turned to Erhu and ordered, "Have someone send the male members of Liu Hongchang's family to Ningyang County first, so that he won't keep complaining about lacking money and manpower every day."

After Erhu agreed, Emperor Zhu went back to his room and wrote a letter, which he then gave to Erhu: "Have someone send it back to the capital by fast horse and deliver it to our sister. Tell her that this matter must be handled as soon as possible and must not be delayed."