Ouchi Taming the Cat, starting with the Ten Tiger Forms!

Chapter 656 Lessons from the Past
Li Xuan understood that the people had already been extremely disappointed.

Whether it was Gao Yanang, Prince Zheng, or Emperor Yongyuan...

In their eyes, there is no difference between these powerful people.

Prince Zheng's embarrassment did not make Emperor Yongyuan happy. He was also keenly aware of the people's emotions, and his brows frowned uncontrollably.

Prince Zheng also reacted immediately and shifted the focus of his speech from the people back to Emperor Yongyuan.

"Your Majesty, if this case is not investigated strictly, I am afraid there will be countless people who will follow suit."

"The southern tour will also be fraught with dangers. Under these conditions, I do not recommend that Your Majesty continue the southern tour."

As soon as King Zheng finished speaking, several ministers in the court also seconded his opinion.

"Your Majesty, please think again!"

"Then according to your opinion, how should this case be investigated?" Emperor Yongyuan asked in return.

King Zheng glanced at Gao Yanang and others kneeling in front of the hall and said coldly:
"Severe punishment will surely make them confess the truth."

Li Xuan, who was listening outside, couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Give me an explanation?"

"If you want to kill them, just say so."

He was secretly complaining in his heart.

Gao Yangang and others have lost their usefulness. They are nothing more than a burden to King Zheng and his ministers. Naturally, they want to get rid of them as soon as possible.

These corrupt officials are very good at oppressing the people and squeezing their fat and blood.

But his body was extremely delicate and he couldn't stand any severe punishment.

The problem is that they don't even know what to confess. If they really do what King Zheng says, it will undoubtedly be a death sentence for them.

Gao Yangang and others immediately looked at Emperor Yongyuan with nervous expressions. They all knew who was in charge at the moment.

In this court, in front of the people, even Prince Zheng and the ministers did not dare to disobey or contradict Emperor Yongyuan too much.

If they really did this, Emperor Yongyuan could severely punish them in the name of maintaining the emperor's majesty.

Everything Emperor Yongyuan did during his southern tour was to ensure that his orders were better executed, rather than being constrained by others like he was in the court.

However, last night's attack obviously caught Emperor Yongyuan off guard, causing some errors in the original plan.

He only needed to continue to replicate the example of killing a chicken to scare the monkeys in Jinghou County, and he could set off for the next destination today.

But King Zheng used last night's attack to stop him.

It would be a real problem if there was no good explanation for a vicious case of this magnitude.

Not to mention that the local people are worried, the subsequent southern tour will also be full of difficulties.

Wherever Emperor Yongyuan went, attacks occurred, which would sooner or later arouse public indignation and make Emperor Yongyuan a plague god that everyone feared.

When corrupt officials see that this method can divert conflicts, they will naturally follow suit and encounter even stronger resistance.

The atmosphere in the court gradually became tense, and everyone was waiting for Emperor Yongyuan's decision.

Emperor Yongyuan glanced at everyone present and then said:
"What the emperor's uncle said makes sense. These evildoers must be severely punished."

"Since they are here to break into the prison, then execute them immediately and behead all the criminals in the hall to show them to the public, leaving them beyond help."

“Then send capable people to thoroughly investigate the case and hunt down the remaining accomplices.”

Emperor Yongyuan spoke to himself, and then began to call out his officers.

"Minister of Justice Zhang Lin, listen to my orders!"

The Minister of Justice, who was standing with Prince Zheng, immediately changed his expression, but had no choice but to step forward.

"Wei Chen is here."

"I order you to thoroughly investigate the attack on Caiyun County. Make sure to catch all the criminals in one fell swoop to serve as a warning to others."

"I give you three days. If you fail to complete the task, you will be beheaded!"

Everyone was shocked, even the people outside the court.

Although they didn't know much, they knew that the Minister of Justice was a high-ranking official, and the emperor always kept his word and his words were final.

It seems that the emperor really wants to give them an explanation for Caiyun County.

Otherwise, such a high-ranking official would not be willing to risk his life to give them justice.

"His Majesty……"

Just as Zhang Lin was about to excuse himself, Emperor Yongyuan raised his hand to stop him from saying anything.

"Hey, Zhang Lin, as the highest official in the Ministry of Justice, you have no choice but to do this. You also need to set an example for this southern tour."

"I entrust the reputation of Daxing to you. I hope you will not let me and the people of Caiyun County down."

"It's settled now!"

Emperor Yongyuan's tone was unquestionable.

But he thought about it again and asked King Zheng:
"Uncle, what do you think?"

Now, everyone looked at King Zheng, making him the focus of the audience.

A glimmer of hope gradually rose in the numb eyes of the people.

Gao Yangang and other kneeling criminals had their eyes filled with satisfaction.

Only the ministers frowned, and the Minister of Justice Zhang Lin was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

"Your Majesty, this is inappropriate."

As soon as King Zheng finished speaking, he felt a tingling sensation on his back.

Li Xuan was also surprised in the crowd that the people's eyes had become so sharp at this moment.

They stared at King Zheng angrily, not even looking at Gao Yangang and the others.

The people of Caiyun County had long been accustomed to the exploitation by Gao Yangang and his men, but at this time, King Zheng made them even more disgusted.

So many people died last night, but he actually wanted to stop the emperor from giving them justice.

When the day comes that it is their turn to suffer this misfortune, will this prince again block the justice that should belong to them?
King Zheng also knew that what he said would offend the people of Caiyun County.

But compared to them, the Minister of Justice is more useful, isn't he?

This kind of comparison does not require any calculation at all.

But at this moment, an angry voice suddenly rang out from the crowd:

"Everyone says that King Zheng is a good man, but I think that's all bullshit!"

“Maybe the people who attacked our county last night were sent by him.”

The deep voice was filled with anger, which resonated with the people of Caiyun County.

They looked in the direction of the sound, only to see a little girl holding a black cat.

Everyone thought that they had not looked in the right direction, and each looked at the person around them who might dare to say this.

In the crowd, a few strong men were stared at with admiring eyes, and they suddenly felt their courage rising.

"That's it!"

"So many people died, so are we going to just let it go?"

"The county has been ravaged like this, and we are still expected to endure it?"

"That damn prince, it's not your family that died!"

"..."

The crowd was excited and the people's emotions were ignited. They didn't care about the prince anymore and started cursing.

"presumptuous!"

"How dare you insult the royal family? I think you unruly people are tired of living!"

The senior official beside King Zheng began to reprimand him, with the airs of a senior official.

"What are you guys doing standing still?"

"Quickly arrest those unruly people who insulted King Zheng!"

They directly commanded the officials in the court.

But there was a eunuch in flowery clothes from the Imperial Household Department standing nearby, so they dared not act recklessly.

Especially at this moment, the eunuchs in flowery clothes looked fierce and glared at the ministers. With Emperor Yongyuan present, they dared to act so presumptuously, which was simply treason.

As long as Emperor Yongyuan gave the order, the eunuchs in flowery clothes were ready to capture those civil servants who could not distinguish between the great and the small princes.

But the common people didn’t know about this. When they saw the postures of these officials, they were subconsciously frightened and stood there in a daze, unable to utter a single word in their excited excitement, as if they were all being gripped by an invisible giant hand around their necks.

This reaction, which was almost etched into their instincts, made it impossible for them to even breathe.

"With His Majesty here, I wonder which of you corrupt officials would dare to do this!?"

It was the same voice from the beginning again.

This voice always brings magical power to the people, allowing them to recover from their frightened state.

"well said!"

"I also want to see who dares to touch the people of Daxing."

Emperor Yongyuan slammed the table with a gavel and turned his gaze to the civil servants who had been the most jumpy.

You are used to bullying Emperor Yongyuan in the court on weekdays, and you thought we were in the capital?

Emperor Yongyuan just wanted to let them see who is more wild outside the capital.

King Zheng saw that things were getting out of control, so he hurriedly continued:

"Your Majesty, I have no objection to investigating the case, but it happened so suddenly. Under such harsh conditions, I'm afraid it will be difficult for Lord Zhang to perform well."

"Alas, uncle, what you said is wrong." Emperor Yongyuan waved his hand.

"You just said that the nature of this case is bad, and I agree with you."

"Such cases must be investigated quickly and thoroughly, otherwise it will only make the people of Daxing feel disappointed."

As soon as Emperor Yongyuan finished speaking, someone in the crowd shouted at the top of his voice:

"Your Majesty is wise!"

In the crowd, Princess Ankang, Yu'er and the Eighth Prince could no longer hold back and looked at Li Xuan with strange expressions.

Li Xuan never opened his mouth, but there were always sounds coming from him.

If you don’t know, you might think Princess Ankang can speak ventriloquism.

Being stared at by everyone, Li Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly, looking as if it had nothing to do with him.

As he led the way, the people of Caiyun County also started shouting.

Everyone has seen clearly that Emperor Yongyuan is the only one in the court who agrees with them.

The others are just like the dog magistrate kneeling on the ground, none of them are good people.

Fortunately, the person present had the final say, and the words of Emperor Yongyuan were the most important.

After realizing this, the people became more confident and no longer feared the threats from officials as before.

Emperor Yongyuan enjoyed the people's support for a while, then he gently raised his hand, and the people immediately quieted down.

This feeling made Emperor Yongyuan very happy, as it finally allowed him to experience the sense of accomplishment of being an emperor.

"Fellow villagers of Caiyun County, rest assured that I will give you justice."

When Emperor Yongyuan said this, he glanced at Prince Zheng inadvertently.

"But the emperor's uncle's opinion is also reasonable, so let's do it this way."

"you you you……"

Emperor Yongyuan pointed at several civil servants who had been arrogant with the people just now.

"If you help Lord Zhang investigate the case, I will extend the time limit to seven days."

"If you cannot find a result that satisfies me, you will all come to see me with your heads raised."

After saying this, Emperor Yongyuan did not give them a chance to object. He slammed the gavel again and pointed at Gao Yangang and others who were kneeling in the hall.

"Come here, behead them first!"

"His Majesty……"

Zhang Lin and others wanted to stop them, but King Zheng stopped them with his eyes.

"Your Majesty, please spare my life, please spare my life..."

Gao Yangang and other Caiyun County officials begged for mercy hysterically.

"Your Majesty, I can report my superiors. I will tell you who I bribed."

"They, they all have a share!"

"..."

The eunuchs in flowery clothes took all the people to the courtyard of the county government office and made them kneel down and wait for their death.

The people couldn't help but stretch their necks to look, wanting to witness this scene with their own eyes.

The next moment, the knife chopped down quickly.

The heads left a trail of blood and rolled to the gate of the county government office.

Those heads were only a few steps away from the people.

They looked at the unfamiliar expressions on those familiar faces, and felt a wave of unreality as if they were dreaming.

"Well, the dog official died well!"

This time the crowd burst into cheers, no longer needing anyone to lead them.

"Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty is wise!"

The people could not utter any fancy words, they just knelt on the ground and shouted in unison.

Princess Ankang also squatted in the crowd holding Li Xuan, and Yu'er and the Eighth Prince followed suit.

A smile appeared on their faces, but their brows were not much relaxed.

The southern tour only passed through two counties in total, but the local magistrates were so despicable that they were hated by gods and ghosts.

Princess Ankang and the Eighth Prince were a little scared, afraid that the whole Daxing would be like this.

But at this time, they saw the lame registrar standing alone in a corner of the court with a dazed look on his face.

Perhaps, there are indeed many corrupt officials in Daxing, but there are definitely good officials as well.

Emperor Yongyuan also smiled and watched the scene with satisfaction.

Only by being freed from the constraints of the court could he truly exercise the rights and duties of an emperor.

Although the journey was dangerous, he felt it was all worth it.

Many people had indeed become numb towards the imperial court, but Emperor Yongyuan believed that as long as he worked hard, he would be able to make the people trust the imperial court again.

The faces of King Zheng and the civil servants were so gloomy that water seemed to drip out.

Unlike Emperor Yongyuan, they felt out of control.

Emperor Yongyuan wanted to kill them all and then re-establish a bureaucratic system.

No wonder there was a group of young people without official positions accompanying him during his southern tour.

Only then did they discover that these were all successful candidates in previous years, but they had never been given official positions and had been waiting for opportunities in the capital.

These are all young men who don't understand the ways of officialdom. They passed the imperial examinations but could not get official positions. Naturally, it is because they don't know how to deal with things.

Whether you don't know how to do it or you can't do it, it doesn't matter.

What’s important is that they are not on the same page as the current civil service system.

After all, if these old guys don't make room, they will never be able to get ahead in their lives.

After beheading Gao Yangang and others, Emperor Yongyuan immediately arranged for people to fill the vacant official positions in Caiyun County.

Zhang Chou, the former Caiyun County Dianshi, was promoted to county magistrate, and the other vacant positions were filled by candidate Jinshi.

They gave their thanks in front of several warm headless corpses.

Emperor Yongyuan also did not forget to encourage them.

"I hope you will be loyal to the emperor and serve the country, and bring more benefits to the people, but if you oppress the good and take up your position without doing anything..."

Emperor Yongyuan stood up and pointed towards the yard.

"They are your warning."

(End of this chapter)