OBS Chapter 378 The Blank Seal Case: The Gentry Group is Truly a Damn It
Chapter 378 The Blank Seal Case: The Gentry Group is Truly a Damn It
Yang Shaofeng planned to prepare more New Year's goods, after all, he had married two beautiful wives, and he could not be as sloppy as he had been in the first and second years of the Hongwu reign.
At the very least, offerings such as whole chickens, whole fish, and meat slices should be prepared, some meatballs should be fried, some green radishes should be prepared, and more steamed buns and the like should be made.
The main room must house the family shrine, the east room must house the God of Wealth, the west room must house the guardian deity, the courtyard must house the Jade Emperor, the kitchen must house the Kitchen God, and the door gods must be placed at the entrance.
Things like lucky money should also be prepared in advance.
It's just a pity for those naughty kids. They receive lucky money on New Year's Eve, but it gets taken away by their parents on New Year's Day, with the excuse that "we're saving it for you to use when you get married in the future."
I wonder if these mischievous kids in the Ming Dynasty will brag to each other about how much New Year's money they received, or if they will complain to their parents about the heartache of having their New Year's money confiscated.
Yang Shaofeng felt increasingly troubled and was just wondering whether to call the Princess's household steward for help when Chen Zhong, that damned eunuch, actually traveled all the way from the capital to Ningyang County.
No way, it's almost New Year's Eve, and that damned eunuch Chen Zhong isn't in the capital preparing for the New Year, but has been sent to Ningyang County by Old Zhu?
Seeing Yang Shaofeng's completely bewildered expression, Chen Zhong could only sigh and say, "Your Highness, a major mess has occurred."
Big trouble?
No, let me sort this out first.
Firstly, because he was recalled by Lao Deng ahead of time, Chang Yuchun, who was supposed to be executed in the second year of Hongwu, is still alive and kicking.
Secondly, apart from the Leopard Guard being transferred to Dengzhou, the remaining twelve Imperial Guards were all stationed in or near the capital.
Furthermore, Xu Da, Tang He, Lan Yu, and a host of other ruthless figures are also currently in the capital.
Furthermore, neither Li Shanchang nor Liu Bowen resigned from their official posts, and Liu Bowen seems to have recently gone mad, relentlessly targeting his fellow townsmen from eastern Zhejiang, showing signs of a complete break with them.
Finally, Zhu Chongba, that old man, was a ruthless man who could kill generals and seize flags back then. It was precisely because of his merit of being the first to ascend that he caught Guo Zixing's eye and was able to successfully marry Empress Ma.
With such an incredibly powerful and dazzling lineup of gods stationed in the capital, what kind of major trouble could possibly arise?
Chen Zhong sighed again and said, "The remnants of Qian Hegao's gang in Songjiang are causing trouble. The military camps of Dahewei and Changhuaiwei are on fire. The military camp at Fengtaimen is on fire, which has spread to civilian houses and the armory of Wudewei. In Changsha Prefecture, a certain barbarian named Tian gathered a crowd to cause trouble and plundered nearby prefectures and counties."
Yang Shaofeng was completely stunned.
The location of Songjiang is self-evident. Dahewei was stationed in Huai'an Prefecture, Changhuaiwei was stationed right next to Fengyang, Fengtaimen was one of the eighteen city gates of the outer city of the capital, and Wudewei was one of the twelve imperial guards directly under the emperor.
What kind of lunatic would dare to cause such a commotion right under Emperor Zhu's nose?
No, were the gentry of the Ming Dynasty really that brave?
Yang Shaofeng stared blankly at Chen Zhong for a moment, then asked, "What did His Majesty say? I suppose Mr. Chen didn't come to Ningyang County just to tell me these few pieces of news?"
Chen Zhong shook his head slightly. "His Majesty originally intended to pardon Qian Hegao's remaining gang and exile them to Dengzhou for five years of hard labor. However, so many things happened at this critical juncture, which enraged His Majesty. He ordered that all of Qian Hegao's remaining gang in Songjiang be executed, and that their entire families be sent to Dengzhou for ten years of hard labor."
"The commanders of the Dahewei, Changhuaiwei, and Wudewei were beheaded and their heads displayed in public. The soldiers in the military camps who were responsible for preventing water leaks and the ambassador of the Ordnance Bureau were also beheaded and their heads displayed in public."
“Tian, a barbarian from Changsha Prefecture, and his entire clan were beheaded, and their nine generations of relatives were sent to Dengzhou Prefecture for ten years of hard labor.”
Chen Zhong paused, then sighed and said, "The inspector has been arresting people like crazy lately. In addition to the officials and their relatives involved in the blank seal case, more than two thousand gentry and their relatives in Jiangnan have also been arrested, mostly from Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangxi."
"In addition, almost all of the Ministry of Revenue officials were imprisoned, more than fifty students of the Imperial Academy were imprisoned, and as many as a thousand scholars from the common people who had no official rank were imprisoned."
"All told, more than two thousand people have already been beheaded. More than six hundred prefectural and county officials and more than two thousand gentry from Jiangnan are waiting to be beheaded. I wonder if the students of the Imperial Academy and those without official titles who have been imprisoned will be beheaded."
As Chen Zhong rattled off a series of numbers, Yang Shaofeng was momentarily speechless.
"If you don't court death, you won't die?"
If this had happened after the North-South Listing Case, when Zhu Rongji was already running out of energy, things might have been a little better if these people had acted this way.
Old Zhu is in his prime now, and these people still dare to act like this? It's like looking for shit in a toilet with a lantern.
However, Yang Shaofeng had to admit that the gentry group of the Ming Dynasty was truly awesome, and their influence had even extended to Dahewei, Changhuaiwei and Wudewei.
After all, just by looking at the locations of these three guards, it's clear that Changhuai Guard and Wude Guard were definitely Zhu's most trusted and loyal confidants.
In particular, the Wude Guard was not only one of the twelve imperial guards stationed in the capital, but also the place where Zhu Yuanzhang imprisoned the officials who were involved in the blank seal case.
Now even the Wudewei Guard has inexplicably caught fire, causing the armor and cannons of the Ordnance Bureau to be burned. I guess this is also a warning from the gentry of Jiangnan to Zhu Yuanzhang.
However, these gentry groups probably did not expect that Emperor Zhu's counterattack would be so ruthless. More than 600 prefectural and county officials were arrested without hesitation, as were more than 2,000 gentry and more than 1,000 scholars.
What's even more outrageous is that Zhu Yuanzhang could kill the commanders of the Dahewei, Changhuaiwei, and Wudewei guards, as well as the ambassador of the Ordnance Bureau, without hesitation.
If things continue like this, unless the Guo Huan case, the Hu Weiyong case, and the Lan Yu case involve more people, future historical records may list the blank seal case, which was brought forward by several years, as the biggest case of the Hongwu era, while the Guo Huan case, the Hu Weiyong case, and the Lan Yu case will be listed as the three minor cases of the Hongwu era.
Yang Shaofeng sighed inwardly, then suddenly felt that something was wrong.
The gentry group in Jiangnan made their move, and Zhu Chongba, that old scoundrel, accepted it.
Jiangnan Gentry Group played two pairs against two, and Old Deng immediately responded with a pair of royal flushes.
Logically, the next part of the plot should have been Emperor Zhu's massacres, with the gentry hurling insults and condemning him from every angle, portraying him as a brutal and bloodthirsty tyrant who was the greatest official-killing maniac in history.
and then?
What does this have to do with me?
Is that old man trying to take advantage of me again?
Just as Yang Shaofeng was pondering this in his mind, Chen Zhong sighed again, took out a letter from his pocket, and handed it to Yang Shaofeng.
"This is a letter from the superior to the prince consort."