In the evening of that day, an imperial edict was issued to Nanchang, requiring them to escort all the criminals who had been Shuanggui to the outside of Fengtian Hall the next morning. After receiving the order, Sun Gang notified Liu Ziguang, and Liu Ziguang thought to himself: It seems that the box of confessions is still
It worked. I was afraid that the emperor would be furious tomorrow and go on a killing spree. Then the officials would not dare to persuade him. I just stepped forward and persuaded the emperor to kill as a warning to others, arrest the big ones and let go of the small ones, and let all the corrupt officials go.
Just fine, in this way, the normal operation of the imperial court can be maintained, and these people will be grateful and respectful to Marquis Zhenwu in the future.
In the morning of the next morning, the square outside Fengtian Hall was full of kneeling prisoners. In addition to the high-level corrupt officials detained by Nanchang, there were also a large number of middle- and low-level officials detained by Dali Temple. All of them had their black gauze removed and their robes stripped off.
His face was bruised and white, his hair was messy, and he looked depressed.
Nowadays, there are not many officials who can stand in the main hall. Several senior officials who were originally qualified to stand in Fengtian Hall are kneeling outside the hall. Qian Qianyi stands at the head of the civil service class, his handsome eyebrows furrowed.
The other civil servants also had serious faces. Liu Ziguang stood in the queue of military attachés opposite, second only to Wei Guogong, but his face was full of complacency, waiting for the emperor to show off his eloquence after he ascended the throne.
When the civil and military officials arrived, Zhu Youxiao, dressed in a dragon robe and a golden crown, entered the palace. At this time, the accompanying eunuch beside him had been replaced by a little boy of fifteen or sixteen years old. Although he spoke and acted in an orderly manner, in the eyes of everyone, he was still
It was not as neat as the little Eunuch Wei in the past. Thinking that such a powerful Eunuch Wei had been completely disgraced by Liu Ziguang and spent the whole day thinking about it, everyone looked at Marquis Zhenwu with more fear.
The emperor ascended the throne, and the little eunuch shouted at the top of his voice: "If you have something to do, please report early, but if nothing happens, please retreat." As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Ziguang and Xu Jiujing came out at the same time and said: "Your Majesty, the Jiangdi fraud case has been basically investigated.
, a total of 490 officials from seven yamen were involved, of which 15 were involved in corruption and bribery of more than 100,000 taels, 78 people were involved in corruption and bribery of more than 10,000 taels and less than 100,000 taels, and the rest of the people involved involved amounts ranging from 1,000 taels to 1,000 taels.
Within ten thousand taels, the confession has been signed and sealed, and is waiting for His Majesty’s judgment.”
Zhu Youxiao nodded slightly and said: "Thank you for your hard work, dear sirs. I will give you a reward later. Come here." After hearing this, the accompanying eunuch shook his fly whisk and shouted outside the palace: "Bring it in." Then
Then I saw four imperial guardsmen carrying in a large box, which was exactly the confession box that Liu Ziguang brought into the palace yesterday.
"I am very sad. There were so many corrupt officials in the Ming Dynasty. After Liu Aiqing sent the confession to the palace yesterday, I casually read part of it. It was shocking. I couldn't believe that this was something that the officials of the Ming Dynasty could do. The money for the river embankment project
It is money donated by people all over the world for the victims of the disaster, and it also contains my internal funds. I hoped that this money could be used well to strengthen and build new river embankments, and provide security for the people in the provinces along the river for hundreds of years, but this kind of money
They can also reach out! Do you really think that I don’t dare to kill people?”
Having said this, Zhu Youxiao slapped the armrest of the throne hard, with an angry look on his face. The ministers quickly persuaded him: "Your Majesty, calm down, the dragon body is important." Of course, Liu Ziguang also joined in the persuasion, thinking that he would do it right away.
It's my turn to speak, acting as a good person to persuade the emperor to give lighter sentences to those officials who have less corruption.
But Zhu Youxiao did not give him this opportunity. He went on to say: "I thought a lot, and slowly my anger disappeared. The officialdom of the Ming Dynasty is so dark, and I am also responsible. I have only been in charge for two years, and I have been busy with the southern and northern expeditions.
They took over Shandong and settled Taiwan, Pinghu and Guangxi were conquered by Jiangxi, and they were repatriated. They did not pay enough attention to the integrity work of officials. The officialdom of the Ming Dynasty is no different from the days when the eunuchs were in power in the past. Bribery and bribery are commonplace. It seems that it cannot be done without bribery.
Things, if you develop this habit, you will naturally have to hand out any money. Big officials are corrupt, and small officials are corrupt. Even the doorman at the door of the official residence has to accept the door bag before he is willing to pass the news to the guests. This is the current situation of the Ming Dynasty.
Ah. My people are so profit-seeking, and I, as the emperor, must bear some responsibility."
As soon as this statement came out, the ministers were shocked. They all thought that the emperor was going to go on a killing spree and chop off a lot of heads. Unexpectedly, they actually shook their heads and imitated the wise sage and issued an edict. The emperor said that he would be responsible. The following officials
Naturally, they couldn't just push it aside, so they all knelt down and said, "I also have a responsibility."
Liu Ziguang was a little depressed watching the monarchs and ministers enthusiastically carrying out criticism and self-criticism. According to his understanding of Zhu Youxiao, he knew that this young brother-in-law could not say such wise words. There must be someone behind him to give guidance. Huh, let's see.
What's his next step?
Seeing that the atmosphere at the scene was aroused, Zhu Youxiao said again: "After thinking about it all night, I also want to understand a fundamental problem, that is, the salaries of officials in our dynasty are too low, and the old Hongwu system is still implemented.
The monthly salary of officials is only 87 dan, the monthly salary of officials of the fourth, fifth and sixth grades ranges from 24 to 10 shi, and the monthly salary of officials of the seventh and eighth grades is even less, only 57 dan. Now that the grain harvest has been bumper year after year and the price of grain is low, it is equivalent to
There is even less money. Sometimes dignified and high-ranking officials do not earn as much as the servants in the yamen who are not registered and receive monthly cash. Officials in the capital are better off, with some charcoal and silver and the like. Officials from other places, especially those in underdeveloped areas, earn a lot.
Too little, to the point where it is difficult to support a family without corruption. Therefore, too little official salary is also an important reason for corruption. I have decided to use cash to distribute salary in the future. The specific amount will be studied by the Secretary, and it cannot be too small.
, you have to be able to support a large family. Nowadays, our Ming Dynasty’s treasury is still full, and we can afford to spend money to support honest officials. What do you think of this high salary to support honest officials?"
The hall suddenly burst into cheers. The emperor was so wise and wise, which was beyond everyone's imagination. Several old ministers raised their beards with excitement and couldn't stop praising His Majesty's virtues. It is true that this official of the Ming Dynasty
Their wages are indeed not high, and they cannot support so many wives, concubines, maids, and servants without extra money. Corruption is inevitable, not to mention the money for building river embankments, and the military rations and salaries sent to the front line.
, it’s not the same as usual, ranging from 10% to 20%.
The salary increase is very happy news, but what is more unexpected and surprising is yet to come. Zhu Youxiao smiled reservedly, and when the mood of the ministers calmed down a little, he said again: "I have never
I like killing. This Jiangdi fraud case involves a wide range of things. Nearly 500 officials in the six departments have been corrupted and bribed. Although I am angry, I am not prepared to go on a killing spree. In line with the principle of learning from past mistakes and saving others, I have decided..."
Zhu Youxiao waved his hand, and four imperial guardsmen carried the large box containing the confession out of Fengtian Hall. The box was opened, and the snowflake-like confession transcripts were poured out and piled up into a hill in front of the hall. The imperial guard soldiers lit the pile of papers with torches.
The flames burned so high that they were reduced to ashes in less than a moment. The gray-black paper scraps were flying all over the sky like evil butterflies. The prisoners all grabbed the ground with their heads and cried bitterly.
Zhu Youxiao burned the confessions that Nanchang and Dali Temple had worked so hard to compile, indicating that he had pardoned the crimes of corrupt officials. How could this not make the corrupt officials feel grateful, and how could he not let the great leaders in the court
We all deeply felt the Emperor's maturity and wisdom. If all the 490 officials kneeling below were beheaded and made fat, then the vitality of the officialdom in the capital would be damaged, and no one would be able to recover within three to five years.
Come on, let’s talk about it. Many of these people receive money as a rule and do not deliberately extort bribes. If they keep themselves spotless, they will not be able to survive in the officialdom, so they are worthy of sympathy.
Originally, the big bosses were holding back their energy today to persuade the emperor to deal with these people leniently. They were afraid that the emperor would repeat the old Hongwu incident and massacre ministers and damage the foundation of the imperial court. But the decision made by the emperor was more perfect than they expected. Listen.
There were cries of joy outside the hall, the big guys exchanged looks with each other, secretly raised their thumbs in their robe sleeves, and praised the sage. Zhu Youxiao was also very satisfied when he saw this scene, shaking his head proudly, feeling in his heart
He said that Mr. Huang is really a master and the ideas he gave me were good ones.
The only one who was depressed was Liu Ziguang. He didn't say a single line of the lines he had prepared. Zhu Youxiao had all the limelight. He originally planned to act as a good guy, but now he has no chance. Since he can't be a good guy, he will simply be a good guy.
The evildoers were done with it. He went out and said: "Your Majesty, among the prisoners there are some who have extenuating feelings and some who have committed extremely evil crimes. How can we all be pardoned? Doesn't this encourage the culture of corruption?"
Zhu Youxiao said: "Liu Aiqing, don't be impatient. I haven't finished what I said yet. We should avoid past mistakes and forget about future ones. It doesn't mean that past events should be forgotten. Among these 490 prisoners, those who embezzled more than 100,000 taels will still be punished by Dali Temple."
According to strict laws, officials who embezzle less than 100,000 taels will hand over the stolen money and be fined ten times, and then be sentenced to corresponding prison terms according to the law. However, they do not have to serve in prison and can be reinstated in shackles. This can be regarded as doing their best for the court.
, you can only take off your shackles and receive your salary after serving your sentence. What does Liu Aiqing think?"
Liu Ziguang thought that this move was a good one. He had nothing to say and could only say perfunctorily: "Your Majesty is wise."
Seeing Liu Ziguang's defeat, Qian Qianyi sneered secretly from the opposite side and nodded happily: Mr. Nan Lei is indeed an expert.