The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 572 Where the Tomb Tiger Goes, Rivers of Blood Flow

The morning in Kuaiji City was ripped apart by the rapid sound of galloping hooves. Xu Chu led three thousand Imperial Guards into the city like an iron torrent, splitting into four groups to attack the residences of the four great aristocratic families: Wei, Kong, Yu, and Xie. At the same time, Wang Ling led his men to surround the county government office and dragged Zhou Mingde, who was still asleep, from his bed.

Sima Yi stood atop the city wall, coldly observing everything. In the morning light, his figure resembled a drawn sword, its sharpness fully revealed.

"My lord, the Wei family is putting up a fierce resistance. General Xu requests reinforcements!" a messenger reported, kneeling on the ground.

Sima Yi's eyes flashed with a cold light: "Pass down the order: anyone who resists with weapons is to be killed without mercy."

Kuaiji City was thrown into chaos. Inside the Wei family mansion, servants, armed with weapons, confronted the Imperial Guards. Xu Chu charged ahead, his long sword flashing, blood splattering wherever he went.

"How dare you! Do you know this is the Wei family residence?!" Wei An, disheveled and angry, roared from the steps, "My Wei family has been distinguished for generations; how dare you brutes run wild like this!"

Xu Chu sneered and said, "By order of Lord Sima, Wei An has colluded with the government to damage the dikes, embezzle disaster relief funds, and seize land from the people. The evidence is conclusive; arrest him immediately!"

Wei An's expression changed drastically, and he turned to flee, but Xu Chu caught up with him in a single stride and kicked him to the ground. Upon seeing this, the Wei family members all knelt down and begged for mercy, and the entire mansion was filled with the sound of weeping.

The same scene played out simultaneously in the other three major aristocratic families. The patriarch of the Kong family died on the spot, the head of the Yu family attempted suicide but failed, and the entire Xie family was escorted out of their mansion. On the streets of Kuaiji City, the once high-ranking scions of aristocratic families were now chained and escorted by the Imperial Guards to the county government square.

At noon, a temporary courtroom had been set up in the county government square. Sima Yi sat on the high platform, with the powerful and influential people of Kuaiji County kneeling before him. Zhou Mingde was ashen-faced and trembling all over; the heads of the four great families either glared angrily or remained silent with their heads bowed; the other officials involved in the case were limp as mud.

Tens of thousands of people gathered outside the square to watch and discuss the scene.

"Silence!" Wang Ling shouted.

Sima Yi slowly rose, his gaze sweeping across the entire room like lightning: "Zhou Mingde, the Prefect of Kuaiji, colluded with local powerful figures to embezzle disaster relief funds and deliberately destroyed dikes to create floods, causing 50,000 people to be displaced. The evidence is conclusive, and he shall be executed according to the law!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Mingde collapsed to the ground, repeatedly kowtowing: "My lord, spare my life! I was just confused for a moment!"

"A moment of folly?" Sima Yi sneered, picking up an account book from the table. "Last August, you accepted 5,000 taels of silver from the Wei family and approved their purchase of official land; in September, you conspired with the Kong family to embezzle funds intended for dike repairs; after this year's floods, you notified the major clans in advance to purchase farmland from the people at low prices. Each and every one of these actions was pre-planned. How can you call it a moment of folly?"

Upon hearing this, the people in the square were immediately filled with indignation.

"So the floods were deliberately caused by them!"

"My family's land was bought by Wei Jiaqiang!"

"Kill him! Kill these corrupt officials!"

Sima Yi raised his hand to signal silence and continued pronouncing the verdict: "Wei An, Kong Ying, Yu Shinan, and Xie Xuan, the four great families, colluded with the government to seize farmland and hoard goods, causing widespread famine and death. According to the law, they deserve to be executed! The remaining officials and scions of the families involved, totaling one hundred and twenty-eight, will be sentenced according to the severity of their crimes, either by beheading or exile, and all their property will be confiscated!" The verdict caused an uproar. The women of the four great families fainted on the spot, and the scions wailed in despair.

Wei An struggled to his feet and shouted angrily, "Sima Yi! You also come from a powerful family in Hanoi. We are all noble clans. Don't you have any consideration for us? You come to Jiangdong today and dare to touch my Jiangdong noble family? My Wei family has connections in the court. If you kill me today, someone will avenge me tomorrow!"

Sima Yi looked at him expressionlessly and coldly snorted, "I am acting on the Emperor's orders. What threat have I to fear? Guards, carry out the execution immediately!"

He knew that if he didn't deal with these people today, the Tang emperor would deal with him tomorrow. And he was nothing more than a knife in the emperor's hand; whoever the emperor ordered him to kill, he had to kill.

The executioner's blade gleamed coldly in the sunlight. The first to be led to the execution platform were Zhou Mingde and the heads of the four great families. With Sima Yi's command, five heads fell to the ground simultaneously, blood splattering several feet high. The crowd in the square was silent at first, then erupted into deafening cheers.

The executions lasted for three full days. The moat of Kuaiji City was stained red, and the air was thick with the stench of blood. Sima Yi personally supervised the executions every day without fail. In addition to the main culprits, those middle and lower-ranking officials who had embezzled disaster relief funds and oppressed the people were also not spared.

"My lord, isn't this too harsh?" On the third night, Wang Ling couldn't help but advise, "We've already killed over three hundred people; there's a risk of criticism in the court."

Sima Yi stood by the window, gazing at the Wei family mansion engulfed in flames in the distance—it was being raided. "Wang Ling," he said, "do you know why Jiangnan suffers from floods every year, yet the problem remains unresolved? It's because these corrupt officials control the area, manipulating things from top to bottom. If they aren't eradicated completely, the consequences will be endless."

Wang Ling hesitated, then said, "But..."

"Report!" A soldier from the Imperial Guard rushed in and said, "Reporting to your Excellency, correspondence between the Yu family and officials of Wu and Danyang counties has been found in the Yu family's secret chamber."

Sima Yi's eyes flashed with a sharp light: "Just as I thought. It seems the case in Kuaiji is merely the tip of the iceberg." He turned to Wang Ling and said, "Prepare a memorial; I request an imperial decree to thoroughly investigate the entire officialdom of Jiangnan!"

Ten days later, Sima Yi's memorial arrived in the capital, causing a stir in the court and among the people. A group of ministers, led by the Grand Censor Chen Qun, immediately submitted a memorial opposing it, claiming that Sima Yi's killings were excessive and contrary to the will of Heaven.

Unfortunately, they underestimated Qin Shou's murderous intent towards the aristocratic families. The foreign tribes beyond the Great Wall were stirring, and the powerful families within the country were constantly thinking of drinking the blood of the Tang Dynasty.

He immediately ordered Sima Yi to handle all matters in Jiangnan.

With the imperial edict granting him a significant boost, Sima Yi immediately expanded his investigation to include Wu Commandery, Danyang Commandery, and Yuzhang Commandery. As the investigation deepened, a corrupt network spanning the entire Jiangnan region gradually came to light. Local officials colluded with powerful families, amassing wealth and seizing land through methods such as creating disasters, falsifying disaster reports, and embezzling disaster relief funds, thus forming a vast interest group.

"My lord, Zhang Qian, the prefect of Wu Commandery, has fled overnight!" Xu Chu rushed in to report.

Sima Yi sneered, "Run? Where can he run to? All land under heaven belongs to the emperor. Order all checkpoints to conduct a thorough search, and at the same time, confiscate Zhang Qian's mansion. I want to see how much gold and silver this fellow has hidden."

Under Sima Yi's iron-fisted rule, everyone in the Jiangnan officialdom lived in fear. News of officials committing suicide or being captured kept coming from all over the country. Every day, envoys from powerful families in various regions came to Sima Yi's headquarters, bringing generous gifts to plead for leniency, but they were all turned away.

(End of this chapter)