Following Zhu Ling's order, the flag boys took the frightened boys in coarse cloth clothes with tears on their faces and brought them to the front, and then directly pushed them down to their knees.
This operation made all the ministers present look at each other and whisper, wondering why Your Majesty brought these people with him? Could it be that these people can be used to identify the elders of Chen Ge as indeed collaborating with the enemy?
Only Wu Linzheng could tell at a glance that most of these people had thin skin and tender flesh, and their skin was obviously much whiter than that of ordinary people. Moreover, he noticed that these people were obviously uncomfortable in their common clothes. If he guessed correctly, they must be
They are the housekeepers in Chenge's old mansion or some servants who don't need to do menial work.
His Majesty's move must have been to get these people to confess the crimes of Mr. Chen Ge and others, so that the ministers would believe what he had done, and then the infamy would be solved by moving south.
I wonder if my colleagues are a little stupid and forgot to identify this move? Do you really think that His Majesty must be a toddler after being on the throne for so many years? Ridiculous!
"Your Majesty, these people?" Academician Fan was uncharacteristically uncharacteristic, and he pointed at these people and asked softly, without the energy he had shown before.
"Let him speak for himself."
As he spoke, Zhu Ling motioned for the man to speak. The somewhat old man with a bit of jewelry on his face spoke dejectedly: "Your Majesty, gentlemen, my name is Liu Quan, and he is the master of Chen Ge.
Housekeeper."
"What about those people behind you?" Academician Fan was obviously angry, his expression was serious, and he could not contain his anger in his words. If His Majesty hadn't been here, he would have taken action directly regardless of his image as a scholar.
"Two of them are servants in Chen Ge's house, and the others actually recognize one of them, who is the housekeeper of the home of Zhang Jinyan, the Minister of War." After he finished speaking with fear, he lowered his head again.
"These treasures all belong to Mr. Chen Ge's mansion?" Fan Jingwen was still a little unwilling, pointing to the treasures in the box, and continued to ask.
"Not all of them, some of them are from other adults' houses." After Liu Quan finished speaking, he lowered his head.
Fan Jingwen didn't reply. He just felt that he had suddenly aged a lot. He sighed and didn't know what to think. The ministers around him also couldn't bear to look at it anymore. They shook their heads and sighed at the facts in front of them. They thought that His Majesty was just afraid of Mr. Chen Ge's meeting.
Because he was dissatisfied with the infamy he received that day, he used an excuse to kill someone. Unexpectedly...
In these few short moments, he lost his previous sharpness. Boxes of incriminating evidence were displayed in front of him. Even if he didn't believe it, it would be useless. Among those people, the person standing at the front was clearly Chen Yan's house.
The housekeeper.
When he stood in front of him, his last-minute defense was easily defeated. Where is the Chen Yan who once spent the whole night with him toasting to the bright moon and scolding Fang Qiu?
Where has that great scholar gone who was devoted to his country and caring for the common people?
Are all the gold, silver and jewels all over the floor a testimony of your service to the country and the people? It’s ridiculous, it’s ridiculous!
Zhu Ling only heard a bitter smile coming from Fan Jingwen next to him. He subconsciously looked around and saw that Academician Fan had closed his eyes, with tears streaming down his face. He no longer had the stern expression just now, but only a deep sense of disappointment for his friends.
.
The whole person's aura also shrank a lot in an instant, from a lively person to an old man who was declining in his twilight years.
"Mr. Fan Ge."
Fan Jingwen is also a bachelor. Now that Chen Yan is killed by him, one person must take on this important task, and Fan Jingwen deserves the title of "Pavilion Elder".
"Your Majesty, I was wrong. My eyes were dim. Unexpectedly, I saw the wrong person. I almost had a dispute with Your Majesty. Now that I think about it, I am really confused and confused."
Having said that, Xueshi Fan was bursting into tears, shaking his head, feeling regretful in his heart. For an old man who values love and justice, it is extremely absurd to suddenly be told that your friend is actually a treacherous villain.
"Don't Mr. Fan Ge want to know about Mr. Chen Ge's other crimes?"
"This alone is enough. There is no need to say anything else." Fan Jingwen rejected Zhu Ling's idea of continuing. He was already in a state of confusion. This alone was enough to make him unable to bear to continue. How could there be anything else?
Keep listening.
"Mr. Fan Ge, what did I say about traveling south to worship our ancestors?"
Zhu Ling saw that Scholar Fan had already learned about Chen Yan's crimes and was no longer as tough as before, so it would be easier to talk about Yingtian Mansion's ancestor worship.
"I understand your Majesty's thoughts. If your Majesty wants me to do anything, I will do it." Fan Jingwen, who was hit in his heart, spoke softly and stopped refuting blindly with Zhu Ling. He was very cooperative.
When the ministers saw what had happened just now, they stopped speaking out to stop him. They didn't feel any resentment towards Zhu Ling in their hearts. Instead, they felt a little regretful that they had defended Mr. Chen Ge so much before. They were kept in the dark, and they actually did this for such a small thing.
The man tried to defend himself, but felt a burning pain on his face. All the benevolence and righteousness of the scholar were completely lost by this guy.
If he were still alive, I am afraid that his disciples and students would immediately draw a clear line with him, and even despise him regardless of the feelings of teachers and students. There are many scholars who are greedy for false fame. How could they have this opportunity to make themselves famous?
Lost such a good opportunity?
"Mr. Fan Ge, come with me to Yingtian Mansion to worship our ancestors. It is not appropriate to stay in the capital any longer." Zhu Ling said this from the bottom of his heart. Fan Jingwen's heart belongs to the Ming Dynasty, and he is also a member of the Ming Dynasty.
He didn't want to see Fan Jingwen stay in the capital, and when the intruders broke into the city, he led his family to commit suicide and die for the country. He could have survived, and he could have continued to contribute his strength to the Ming Dynasty.
"Hahahahaha." Unexpectedly, Fan Jingwen looked up to the sky and laughed, as if he had heard the most ridiculous words in his life. This laughter made other ministers feel that it was too much.
"I wonder why the elder is laughing so hard?" Wu Linzheng couldn't stand it anymore, so he stepped out of the queue and asked. He had always insisted on His Majesty's position. Faced with such disrespectful behavior, as a minister, he would naturally rebuke His Majesty.
.
"Your Majesty, do you think I am a person who is greedy for life and afraid of death?" Fan Jingwen was not angry. Instead, he ignored Wu Linzheng and said sternly: "Although I am over fifty years old, my heart has always been guarding the Ming Dynasty. It's just a group of people.
You are just a bandit, how can you scare me? Has Your Majesty forgotten that in the second year after you ascended the throne, you ordered me to lead eight thousand people to serve the king? I already have several swords at home, so that one day I can send them to you.
It comes in handy.”
After the words fell, many ministers present were moved to tears by these words. They raised their hands to wipe away their tears. They couldn't help but sigh. Mr. Fan is so fearless when he is over fifty years old. What reason do they have to dare not fight to the death with the intruder?
Thinking again that Chen Yan and Zhang Jinyan were both cabinet ministers, but they were not as corrupt as Mr. Fan, and even surrendered to the intruder. This should be regarded as a shame to all the scholars in the world! Such villains will definitely be punished.
Despised by the world.
With just one sentence, Fan Jingwen's image among officials has improved a lot.
Hearing that Mr. Fan said this, even Zhu Ling, as the emperor, could not force him anymore. Scholars value integrity the most. If he forced himself, Mr. Fan would definitely do the same.
"In this case, I will no longer advise you, but Mr. Fan's children can go with us." Mr. Fan is so loyal and patriotic that he has no choice but to stay in the capital, but his children can avoid this disaster.
"That's fine. Thank you, Your Majesty." Fan Jingwen had no intention of blaming Zhu Ling at this moment. In his eyes, Your Majesty never gave up on the Ming Dynasty, let alone the people, and he still fought to the death even at the last moment.
This is the emperor.
"Everyone, will anyone follow me when I go south to Yingtian Mansion to worship my ancestors?" Zhu Ling turned around and said loudly to the ministers. It was his choice not to leave, and what he did was to respect Grand Scholar Fan's choice.
But other officials had to leave. Whether Meng Zhaoxiang could hold the capital was just a guess. If he couldn't hold it, the officials of the Ming Dynasty would not die here in vain.
"I am willing to follow Your Majesty!" This is the moment Wu Linzheng has been waiting for. There is no need to hide anymore. Moreover, His Majesty's move is for the purpose of traveling south. He is also the first person to follow him. In the future, he will also have the merit of following the dragon when he arrives at Yingtian Mansion.
.
"I am willing to follow Your Majesty."
Afterwards, some officials also bowed and saluted, and shouted in unison, expressing their willingness to follow His Majesty to Yingtian Mansion to carry out another act of saving the country, but there were still some people who were unwilling to leave the capital and stood there.
Zhu Ling was not angry either. Some people valued integrity more than the etiquette of a monarch and his ministers. Although he felt sad that these people insisted on staying in the capital, it was not easy to force the matter in an emergency.
Immediately, Zhu Ling also bowed to the ministers and said seriously: "The Ming Dynasty depends entirely on you!"