Zhu Qiyu was sitting on the throne, his face was calm, and there was no sign of happiness or anger.

As everyone in the cabinet had guessed, this court meeting was a touchstone for the cabinet.

He must protect Shu Liang, there is no doubt about this.

The golden knife case in his previous life taught him a profound lesson. Even if his capable people commit some taboos, they must be protected.

What's more, this matter is not difficult in the first place.

The crux is simply that the Emperor refuses to return to the capital. Someone needs to take responsibility for this matter. In this case, it doesn't matter whether it is Shu Liang or Liu Yongcheng.

Zhu Qizhen's sudden decision during the civil memorial ceremony did catch Zhu Qiyu a little off guard, but it was just as he said to Empress Dowager Wu that day.

The trend is mine!

Today, he has enough ability to deal with these changes.

Therefore, when a memorial was handed over to the prince's resignation, naturally someone was more anxious than him and asked Zhu Qizhen to return to the capital.

From this perspective, Shu Liang actually did not have to go to the palace. He could hide in the harem for two months and everything would be calm.

However, considering the political situation, he still asked Shu Liang to come forward.

It's not that he was asked to explain anything in front of the ministers, but that the test Zhu Qiyu gave the cabinet required Shu Liang's help.

Zhu Qiyu saw the whole scene just now.

As for the response given by the cabinet, he can only say...barely enough!

Although several ministers in the cabinet now should be said to have done their best to use their connections to those who should use their connections, and to personally go to battle for those who should.

However, there is no doubt that the main reason why this questioning was handled lightly was because Shu Liang himself had already prepared his words.

Or to put it another way, when Shu Liang did these things, he left himself a way out.

Although it is said that without the activities of the cabinet, Shu Liang may not even have the opportunity to go to the palace to defend himself. These clean-minded scholars will not listen to the "quibbles" of a "treacherous eunuch".

But after all, the current cabinet cannot fully assume the responsibility of reconciling internal and external affairs.

When will they be able to stop acting as scattered as they are now, and be able to calm the public opinion in the outer court without Shu Liang going to the palace, then will they be able to truly complete the responsibilities of the cabinet.

However, there were too many factors involved, and the cabinet cannot be entirely blamed, so they just managed to make it through, and Zhu Qiyu considered them a pass.

Nodding slightly, the Emperor Yuyin lowered his head.

"Shu Liang's behavior exceeded the rules and his words were inappropriate. He was dismissed from the post of admiral of the East Factory, handed over to the inner court for twenty responsibilities, and sent to Kunning Palace to serve. Tao Jin and Geng Jiuchou were not truthful in their inspections and were careless in their superiors.

The fine is three months, and this will not happen next time."

Although the result had been known for a long time, the emperor's punishment for Shu Liang was indeed a bit light, and the officials could not help but start a low discussion.

However, at this time, the emperor's tone turned slightly cold and he said calmly.

"As for the eunuch Liu Yongcheng who was guarding Gansu Province, he left his station without permission, which is a great disappointment to me..."

"Where is the Jin Yiwei?"

So, outside the main hall, a team of about ten Jinyiwei quickly poured in. The leader was wearing a flamboyant flying fish robe, and it was Lu Zhong, the commander of the Jinyiwei.

"Immediately go to the imperial prison, lift Liu Yongcheng outside the Meridian Gate, and kill him with a stick!"

After the words fell, the palace quickly became silent.

A group of elders, especially the censors and officials, fell silent.

They expected that the emperor would deal with Liu Yongcheng severely, but they did not expect that the emperor would kill him with a stick as soon as he opened his mouth.

Is it such a serious crime to leave one's post without permission?

You must know that before this, the imperial court had experienced many turmoils, but no one was ever killed for crimes. At most, they were dismissed from office, fined, and banned.

Although these censors clamored to have Shu Liangming punished.

But in fact, they never thought about actually taking Shu Liang's life.

After all, they were some of the most important officials among the internal ministers, and their status was comparable to that of the ministers of foreign dynasties.

Therefore, they felt that the heaviest punishment in the end was to demote Shu Liang and Jin Ying so far away that they would never be able to return to the capital again. This would be enough.

As a result, now, due to a strange combination of circumstances, Shu Liang was treated lightly, but Liu Yongcheng was about to die.

Although Liu Yongcheng's reputation among eunuchs was not good, he had guarded Gansu for many years and had made many military exploits. Even if he was an eunuch, they could not help but feel a sense of sadness.

With Dongchang Zhuyu in front, Jinyiwei will naturally not be far behind.

After Commander Lu received the order, he exited the hall neatly. Needless to say, he had already gone to pick up someone.

Among the court officials, there were several ministers who looked a bit struggling, as if they wanted to say a few words for Liu Yongcheng.

However, in the end, no one stood up.

Suppressing eunuchs is the consensus of civil servants!

Although Liu Yongcheng is pitiful, he is still a eunuch. The emperor wants to deal with eunuchs, and no civil servants have the right to interfere.

What's more, they just wanted to deal with Shu Liang with such indignation. If they spoke for Liu Yongcheng at this time, wouldn't they be slapping themselves in the face?

If someone were to use the topic again and say that one of them secretly made friends with the local guarding eunuch, it would be even more embarrassing.

So, in the end, no one in the hall spoke.

It was silent for a long time, and several ministers came out one after another to announce their affairs.

Among them, there is even a question about the candidate for the lecturer in the East Palace, but the old man’s thoughts have wandered to no one knows where.

But this is normal. The lecturers in the East Palace are very demanding, and they can basically only be selected from the Hanlin Academy.

Therefore, it has nothing to do with ordinary officials.

At most, it's just the bosses at the top who want to support them.

Therefore, the final candidates were decided on the two books "Huang Ming Zu Xun" and "Yuzhi Emperor Xun", and the cabinet ministers took turns to read them to the prince.

The classics such as "Great Learning", "The Doctrine of the Mean" and "The Classic of Filial Piety" were chosen from the Hanlin Academy, who had long-standing qualifications and sufficient knowledge. Most importantly, they had taught in the Imperial College and had considerable experience in teaching students. Ni

Modesty.

However, what surprised the ministers was that the last and most basic books, "Three Character Classic", "Hundred Family Surnames" and "Thousand Character Essay", were finally selected by the Hanlin editor who was not optimistic about anyone.

, Wan'an.

As for the reason, it is also incredible.

It is said that the advice was given by the Queen Mother, the Holy Mother in the palace, who felt that Wan An, with his dignified appearance, would be able to teach the prince well.

Originally, three hundred thousand enlightening reading materials were not difficult, and anyone in the Hanlin Academy could teach them.

Now that Empress Dowager Sun has spread the word, the cabinet will naturally not ignore it.

After all, the Queen Mother Sun had already been offended by the prince's resignation. At this time, there was no need to offend her anymore.

His Royal Highness's studies have now become a foregone conclusion.

However, the emperor had no intention of disbanding the court. In desperation, the ministers of various ministries had no choice but to report all the trivial matters that were planned to be written in the memorial and were not necessary for discussion in the morning.

Just half an hour later, a servant came in from outside the palace. Immediately afterwards, Lu Zhong, the commander of the Jin Yiwei, strode into the palace and prostrated himself in the tunnel.

"Your Majesty, I have been ordered to be imprisoned. Liu Yongcheng, the eunuch, received one hundred and forty-two rods and is now dead! I have come to reply to the order, and please inspect it."

As he said that, Lu Zhong waved his hand, and several guards in Jinyi entered the hall carrying a stretcher.

The person on the shelf has already died.

The ministers glanced at it and couldn't help but feel a little dizzy.

One hundred and forty-two sticks, what kind of beating will a person have? Even if it is said to be bloody and bloody, it is an understatement.

The man on the stretcher could vaguely see his strong body, but his breath was gone. His clothes were in tatters and broken into pieces, mixed with blood and sticking to his bloody body.

Looking at it from the side, Dan could no longer tell which part was his back, which part was his butt, and which part was his thigh. They were all stains of blood that had begun to cool and solidify, like a mass of carrion, hideous and terrifying.

This powerful impact can only be truly felt if it is truly seen before your eyes.

A smell of blood filled the hall, and many ministers started retching at that moment.

Zhu Qiyu didn't do anything special.

Although, he has never seen such a scene.

However, he has seen scarier things.

The capital fell and the Forbidden City turned into a world of blood and fire.

That kind of scene would be much scarier than now...

Waving his hand gently, Lu Zhong saluted again and signaled the guards behind him to carry the stretcher down.

As a result, the elders finally calmed down, although the bloody smell permeating the hall still reminded them of how terrifying the scene just now was.

Then, the emperor spoke.

The old man didn't even mention Liu Yongcheng's name again, he just said:

"From this day on, we once again send an order to all the border areas and the interior, the capital's garrison offices, military mansions, and capital camps. All military commanders, admiral ministers, and garrison eunuchs are not allowed to leave their posts without authorization. Any transfer of large armies must be reported to the imperial court for permission.
To be continued...