jdhmnovel Chapter 1310: 80,002 angers Ji Benchang
Chapter 1310: 80,002 angers Ji Benchang
"The officials under the Ministry of Rites are corrupt and disregard the law. As their superior, I failed to detect their treachery and stop their evil deeds. The blame lies with me! I humbly beg Your Majesty to severely punish me. I... have no complaints whatsoever!"
Guo Bizheng slid to his knees even faster than the emperor had imagined.
The Emperor's smile remained unchanged: "The person hasn't even entered the palace yet, and Minister Guo already knows what happened?"
Guo Bizheng pressed his forehead tightly against the gold brick, wishing he could bury his head any lower.
"Your Majesty, I only learned of this matter a couple of days ago and dared not act rashly. I await Your Majesty's judgment." His voice echoed through the Golden Palace, striking the golden bricks. "Your Majesty, I have failed in my duty of supervision and humbly request that you punish me according to the law!"
The officials were in an uproar, but they quickly realized that the carriage that Huai Gongwang had taken to enter the palace was not a fine one.
They should never sit on it in their lifetime.
"Lord Guo, your subordinates... have become corrupt?!" While the other officials were still pondering, Ji Benchang reacted first: "How do you discipline your subordinates? You, the Minister of Rites, are in charge of the nation's rites and oversee the nation's literary examinations. Your officials, both high and low, usually pride themselves on their 'integrity and nobility.' How dare they commit such a beastly act in the local area?!"
The word "beast" sent a shiver down Guo Bizheng's spine.
But he still didn't raise his head; the shadow of Ji Benchang's shoes was reflected on the gold brick on his forehead.
But then Ji Benchang asked, "How much did Huai Gongwang embezzle? Five thousand taels? Eight thousand taels? Or... ten thousand taels?!"
Guo Bizheng gritted his teeth.
If it were only ten thousand taels, why would he kneel down in public to beg for forgiveness?
"It can't be... twenty thousand taels, can it?!" Upon seeing this, Ji Benchang's heart pounded, and he almost shouted himself hoarse: "It's just a local government office. Even if you sell the land, it's not worth twenty thousand taels!"
The entire hall fell silent in fear.
Ji Benchang was so angry that he trembled all over.
Ten thousand taels of silver... how many kilograms of rice could that buy, and how many people could taste meat?
These local officials in the Ministry of Rites are really asking for trouble!
With a loud thud, he knelt beside Guo Bizheng: "Your Majesty! This old minister humbly requests that you issue an edict to thoroughly investigate local government offices, especially the Ministry of Rites and the Office of the Education Commissioner!"
He raised his eyes, his gaze filled with indignation: "Local students have studied diligently for ten years, and it is already difficult enough to study and take the imperial examinations. If they are further exploited by these heartless local officials in the Ministry of Rites, who use various pretexts to extort bribes, then how will the poor students of the world ever have a chance to rise up?! This trend must never be allowed to continue, Your Majesty!"
The four "ten thousand" characters moved many officials in the hall.
The Vice Minister of Revenue and several censors stepped forward one after another, knelt down, and said: "We beg Your Majesty to issue an edict to thoroughly investigate local government offices and restore a clean environment for students throughout the land!"
Lu Botang clicked his tongue and stepped forward as well: "Your Majesty, I believe that Lord Shen has finally managed to provide books for students from poor families, and we cannot let the Ministry of Rites ruin them."
As more and more officials stepped forward, the smile on the emperor's lips gradually faded.
The Ministry of Rites... really needs to investigate this thoroughly.
He slowly raised his eyes and looked outside the hall.
The officials noticed something and turned to look. They saw Yu Zhengqing, dressed in casual clothes and looking travel-worn, striding into the hall.
"Your subject Yu Zhengqing greets Your Majesty!" Yu Zhengqing "coincidentally" knelt beside Guo Bizheng.
"Yu Qing, rise and speak." The Emperor glanced at the dust-stained corner of his robe and went straight to the point: "Huai Gongwang, how much of the people's hard-earned money did you take?"
Ji Benchang looked up at Yu Zhengqing.
Yu Zhengqing said, "Your Majesty, according to the preliminary investigation by the Liuyang Prefecture government, Huai Gongwang's assets in Liuyang Prefecture have exceeded 80,000 taels of silver."
"Boom-"
Guo Bizheng, who was kneeling, was forcefully pushed to the ground by Ji Benchang.
"Eighty thousand taels!!!"
Ji Benchang, dragged along by the Vice Minister of Revenue, his eyes bloodshot and menacing, cried out, "Guo Bizheng, have the people in your Ministry of Rites gone mad?! Do you even know how much 80,000 taels is?! That's a whole county's tax revenue for a year! Are you trying to drive local scholars to their deaths?! Ah!!!"
Guo Bizheng clutched his bruised elbow, his brows furrowing as he looked at Ji Benchang, who was yelling at him.
He had previously apologized because he didn't want to be implicated too deeply by Huai Gongwang.
But now that Ji Benchang has the audacity to implicate the entire Ministry of Rites, how can he sit idly by and wait for his doom?
"Your Majesty, you are wise!" He looked away and knelt down again. "Huai Gongwang's corruption amounted to a huge sum. Your Majesty and the Ministry of Rites were negligent in their oversight. But I dare to guarantee with my life that all the officials under the Ministry of Rites followed the rules and regulations and there was absolutely no one who colluded with Huai Gongwang!"
"Bullshit!" Ji Benchang struggled in the arms of the Vice Minister of Revenue, cursing loudly: "I've wanted to say this for a long time, all the crows in your Ministry of Rites are black! Huai Gongwang, a mere Education Commissioner, how could he have been corrupt for so many years without being discovered if he hadn't been protected by his superiors? Guo Bizheng, do you dare to pat your chest and say that every department in your Ministry of Rites can withstand an investigation!"
As the final question echoed and settled in the hall, the peace that the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Rites had maintained for many years was shattered and vanished.
"Lord Ji, stop making baseless accusations!" Guo Bizheng kowtowed to the dragon throne. "Your Majesty, I have no intention of protecting anyone. I apologize for the oversight and negligence in my supervision, but I do not admit to the corruption within the Ministry of Rites that Lord Ji claims! I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"
Ji Benchang gasped for breath: "Investigate, we must investigate, Your Majesty, this old minister will investigate personally...investigate every department of the Ministry of Rites, and every educational office in the country!"
The emperor looked down at Ji Benchang, at the veins bulging on his neck from anger, at the tears welling in his eyes from excitement, and at his beard trembling along with his fingertips. His thoughts drifted back to more than twenty years ago.
At that time, he had just ascended the throne and was the new emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. In the eyes of many court officials, he was an emperor whose power was not yet fully developed.
Ji Benchang, on the other hand, had not yet taken up the position of Minister of Revenue; he was merely a junior official who had just begun to make a name for himself in the court.
At that time, the court was unstable, and nobles formed cliques to embezzle tax silver. All the civil and military officials were silent. Only Ji Benchang dared to kneel among the nobles, just like now, with red eyes and trembling hands, pleading for a thorough investigation with every word. Even when faced with the nobles' coercion, he did not back down.
Time has passed, and the political landscape has changed drastically.
Ji Benchang, however, remained true to his nature and did not change.
Officials privately mocked him as a "foul-mouthed" and "stingy" man, but he never actually blushed. However, when it came to corruption cases or matters concerning people's livelihoods, he would blush and his eyes would turn red.
Such sincerity is rare in the imperial court, and as the emperor, how could I betray my beloved minister's sincere heart?
"Issue my decree." Regaining his composure, the Emperor issued the second decree of the day's court assembly: "Imperial Censor Yu Zhengqing is hereby appointed as Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, granted the seal of an Imperial Envoy, and ordered to go to the provinces to thoroughly investigate the long-standing abuses in all local government offices under the Ministry of Rites. All those involved, regardless of their rank, may be arrested first and reported later!"
Yu Zhengqing stood there, stunned.
I've just returned to Beijing, and now I'm being sent to a local area again?