King of Han Dynasty of Ming Dynasty

"Well"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu nodded slightly, looked at the ministers below the stage meaningfully, and spoke again:

"Don't take it for granted. Everything is decided by the prince and the prince."

"I don't know what you really think in your hearts, or why you took such a big risk, knowing that it was impossible, and begged for mercy from these people."

"Since we have come to this point today, I might as well just make some things clear to everyone."

"Fame, fortune, and preferential treatment are what you civil officials value most."

"But I want to say one thing. Don't forget who gave you the fame, fortune, and preferential treatment."

"You all speak in high-sounding terms, talking about morality, Confucianism, and other sacred words. It seems that you are pleading for these bastards, but in fact you are just pleading for yourselves, or protecting yourselves and your own interests."

"Officials, I dare say that as long as I carefully check, none of you dare to say that your bottom is 100% clean. I dare say that so many people who were dealt with today must have more or less ties and connections with you, right?"

"Did the king say anything wrong?"

After hearing this, the ministers who were being questioned lowered their heads even more, not daring to look him in the face. At the same time, they were secretly surprised and frightened in their hearts.

At the same time, all the civil officials frowned, their faces became extremely gloomy.

Today's grand court meeting can be said to have given a loud slap in the face and a warning to the civil officials who participated in the court affairs today.

Everything that Prince of Han Zhu Gaoxu did and said in the court made all the civil officials tremble with fear in their hearts. At the same time, it also made all the officials think about many things and problems unconsciously, and understand many things.

It turns out that His Royal Highness the King of Han knows everything and sees things more clearly than anyone else.

Seeing that everyone was silent, which was almost a tacit agreement, Zhu Gaoxu snorted coldly, looked around at the silent people in the audience with half-closed eyes, and continued:
“Of course, when it comes to the issue of interests, I know that many people think, or blame, the meager salary of the court, and think that it is because of the meager salary that you cannot meet your own needs.

"There are even many people who think that they have studied hard for decades, and that it was not easy for them to pass the imperial examinations and then become officials. Shouldn't they enjoy themselves and live a comfortable life for a few days? That's why they do those dirty things, right?"

"Don't you think this idea is ridiculous?"

"Just like the question of the meager salary, I would also like to ask you, has the court ever forced you to serve as an official?"

"You have read the books of sages all your life, is it just for you to become an official, take bribes, enjoy and live a comfortable life, and oppress the people?"

"Is this what the Confucian scriptures and classics teach you? Or have you read so many Confucian scriptures but learned nothing?"

"Even I, who you call a stinky soldier in private and who doesn't read much, know the holy words and sacred learning of Confucianism, which teaches you how to be an honest official, how to benefit the people, and how to seek welfare for the people."

"For this reason, you did all these things, saying one thing and doing another behind the scenes."

"Don't you find your behavior here disgusting?"

"Of course, there is nothing wrong with yearning for a good life and comfortable days. It is also a matter of human nature. But if you want to live a good life, you should not choose to be an official, because officials should not think about themselves first, but should think about the people first."

"And it is undeniable that in the past, the court gave you meager salaries when the treasury was empty. But since the year before last, when the treasury was full, if I remember correctly, in just these two or three short years, your salaries have more than doubled, right?"

"People should learn to be content. Those who are content are always happy."

"Don't cross the line in anything, otherwise there will be no good ending."

Having said this, Zhu Gaoxu paused for a moment, then suddenly opened his narrowed eyes and stared at the ministers below the stage for a moment. His expression suddenly became solemn, and he said in a deep voice:
"Today's words are about the court meeting."

"That is all I have to say. You should think clearly about what to do next."

"The opportunity has been given to you. Whether you can seize it depends on your luck. I don't want to see what happened today a second time."

"If anyone dares to do the same as today and cannot distinguish right from wrong, I will not be as easy to talk to as I am now. At the same time, I will not simply dismiss him from office. I will directly remove his honors and privileges. No one in the next three generations will be allowed to participate in any imperial examinations. This is the real direct demotion to a commoner."

Directly abolishing the preferential treatment for meritorious service, and prohibiting anyone within three generations from participating in any imperial examination selection and assessment, is this truly a direct demotion to the level of a commoner?

That’s all I have to say.

In the entire Hall of Supreme Harmony, the expressions of all the ministers suddenly changed drastically. The ministers, who had been silent originally, suddenly became uproarious.

If Zhu Gaoxu's previous words were a warning and alert to them, then his current words and the subsequent re-determined handling methods would definitely take their lives, or in other words, directly threaten their vital forces.

At the same time, it also made the ministers understand that the current situation was that although Han Wang Zhu Gaoxu seemed to be dealing with those evil people today, in fact, no matter how you looked at it, it felt like the real intention was to target them.

The current actions became extremely serious due to Zhu Gaoxu's last three sentences.

This is to cut off the source of the problem, to tear each other apart directly, and to directly confront each other!

And
Zhu Gaoxu's last three sentences undoubtedly told them that at this moment, the King of Han Zhu Gaoxu had already thoroughly understood their personal bottom lines and lifelines, and was going to take control of their lives.

At the same time, the remaining ministers in the field also felt tremendous pressure under the current circumstances.

After studying hard for decades, what are they doing for?
Is it really for the purpose of becoming an official? Obviously, it is not just for the purpose of becoming an official, because the whole thing of being an official can only be said to be a reliance on power, and it is not something that can give them the greatest benefit.

But for these individuals, the greatest benefit is the honor and preferential treatment they will receive after they have studied hard for decades and achieved success. To put it more bluntly, it is the preferential treatment given to scholars by the court.

One is exemption from military service. As long as one goes to school and becomes a scholar, the law stipulates that the two males in the household can be exempted from military service.

The burden of labor service in the Ming Dynasty was very heavy. If a middle-class peasant had 20 mu of land, but no scholar in his family, his family would be ruined once it came time for him to perform labor service.

Therefore, the more scholars and juren there were in a county, the poorer the people became, because they had to share the burden of the gentry.

The second is that they can have slaves to serve them. Under Ming Dynasty rules, common people were not allowed to keep slaves. The Great Ming Code stipulates: "If a commoner's family keeps slaves, they will be beaten with a stick 100 times and then released to become a good people."

The third is the preferential treatment of the law. In the early Ming Dynasty, it was stipulated that Jinshi, Juren and Gongsheng who committed capital crimes could be pardoned three times. Although they were not executed later, they were still treated preferentially. If a scholar broke the law, the local officials could not punish him before notifying the school to expel him.

If the crime is not a serious one, the school authorities will be notified and the student will be punished.

The fourth is exemption from grain tax. Those who are poor and unable to pay the grain tax can apply for exemption from the local officials.

As a result, not only were the scholars themselves exempted from military service and taxes, they even took on cover-ups and made a fortune from it.

According to regulations, the state provided tuition fees of 120 taels of silver to students every year, but those who were restless took over the money and grain from the landlords and requested exemption. "If you sit for 100 taels, and walk for 300 taels," was a colloquial saying at the time. If you don't move, you get 120 taels a year, but if you go to the county government more often, you get 300 taels a year.

The fifth is courteous treatment. The Grand Guest Hall recorded by Gu Gongxie has a legal basis. In August of the 12th year of Hongwu, Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty issued a decree stipulating that gentlemen can only talk about the etiquette of hierarchy with their clansmen. As for banquets, separate seats must be set up and they are not allowed to sit below those without official positions.

When meeting a person of a different surname and without an official position, there is no need to return the greetings. When a commoner meets a gentleman, he must use the etiquette of meeting an official. Those who violate this will be punished according to the law.

For this reason, compared to being dismissed from office, or being demoted, or even not serving as an official in the court, these officials actually did not care that much. What really cared about them was the fame and preferential treatment bestowed by the court.

Because as long as they have merits and honors, even if they are not officials in the court and do not receive salaries from the court, they can still live a comfortable and fulfilling life just by enjoying the preferential treatment and various privileges provided by the court.

For this reason, when Zhu Gaoxu talked about this issue, the remaining civil officials in the court were immediately panicked.

Because if they were really treated as the King of Han said, once the court cancelled their titles and privileges, they would be no different from the farmers and common people they looked down upon in the past. In addition, they would not be allowed to take the examination within three generations, which would almost directly cut off the hope of an entire family, or even a clan, to turn things around.

Such means of action can be said to be cruel and vicious.

Who can and who is willing to accept such a thing?
When this incident happened, all the ministers in the room were instantly furious. At the same time, they immediately threw away the warnings and alerts Zhu Gaoxu had given them before, and were ready to argue for it, show their clear banner, and express their clear attitude.

At the same time, they also banded together again to firmly resist and prevent Zhu Gaoxu from settling the matter.

Because once things are settled, the imperial power will completely lose its checks and balances and become a knife hanging over the heads of all of them. The literati will truly become lambs to be slaughtered and fish on the chopping board, with no dignity left at all.

At that time, only a word from the imperial power would be needed to completely defeat them and the efforts of several generations would be wasted in an instant.

They had to admit that the methods used by King Han Zhu Gaoxu were truly extremely cruel and vicious to them.

However, such a result and situation is naturally not what the ministers want to see, and it is obviously a result they cannot accept.

Thinking about it, Yang Rong took a deep breath, and then had to bite the bullet and speak:
"Your Highness the Crown Prince, Your Highness the King of Han"

"If the honors are really removed, would this be too much?"

"A sage once said, 'No one is without faults,'"

"If one really makes a mistake or acts in a way that is problematic, one will be stripped of one's reputation and sent to hell, who among the court officials would dare to speak out? Who would dare to say anything?"

"The entire court has become a one-man show, with no one to check and balance it, or to trustworthy officials who dare to give advice."

"This kind of court is a fantasy and meaningless court, because everyone says nice things, so whether it's your Majesty or someone in a high position, it's absolutely difficult to hear any real words."

"Everything requires a balance. No matter if the emperor's power is too great and there is no one to check and balance him, or the ministers' power is too great and there is no one to check and balance them, it will only sow the seeds of unpredictable disasters."

"Such an outcome is not what anyone wants to see, whether it's the imperial power or the officials."

"Of course, it is human nature that people should be punished for their mistakes. There is absolutely no problem with that. However, when punishing and dealing with people, we should put ourselves in their shoes and consider and consider the actual situation."

"If we only look at the present, or only think about the problems at hand, Your Highness the King of Han and Your Highness the Crown Prince, is this way of thinking and considering really too one-sided when we think about it carefully?"

"If it is true that our Ming Dynasty court will always use this system and method to handle things in the future, it will be hard to accept, and it will make people angry and difficult to calm down."

"For this reason, we hope that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Royal Highness the King of Han can think a little more about the current situation, be a little more realistic, and truly put themselves in our shoes."

"Otherwise, we'll just kill them all at once."

"Then I really have to forgive you. I really cannot agree with you and support the proposal of Your Highness the Crown Prince and Your Highness the King of Han."

"I, this old minister, request that I retire and return to my hometown, where I can spend my remaining years in peace and comfort!!" (End of this chapter)