The Ming Dynasty: The most ruthless imperial grandson, Old Zhu begged me not to kill him.

Chapter 452 The fish is dead and the net is broken
"Yet they told the outside world that they had reviewed all these memorials themselves!"

Upon hearing this, Crown Prince Zhu Biao immediately looked embarrassed.

How did I manage to expose this to him? Now this is troublesome.

At this moment, the cabinet ministers suddenly realized why the authors the Crown Prince had reviewed some time ago were somewhat different from those they usually saw.

So that's how it is. Crown Prince Zhu Biao hurriedly covered Zhu Xiong Ying's mouth, but it was too late. The words had already been spoken, how could he take them back? At this moment, Crown Prince Zhu Biao was extremely speechless. Now it was all over. The glorious and majestic image that he had painstakingly cultivated in the eyes of these ministers had completely collapsed.

The ministers all lowered their heads, trying not to laugh; such matters were not within their control.

It's best to pretend you didn't hear anything.

Crown Prince Zhu Biao sighed. There was nothing he could do; he had to deal with the trouble he had caused himself.

Meanwhile, news spread that Ru Chang of the Hanlin Academy had submitted the list.

The officials in the court were shocked when they heard this. They never expected that the Hanlin Academy would apologize to Zhu Xiong Ying and even surrender to him.

I originally thought the people in the Hanlin Academy were very tough, but now it seems they're nothing special.

The most furious of them all was Zhu Yunwen.

There are so many officials in the imperial court, each belonging to their own faction.

Apart from a few nobles from Huaixi who did not hold military power, most of the military officers supported Zhu Xiong Ying. Therefore, he never thought about this matter. The only group he could win over was the civil official group, with the Hanlin Academy and the Imperial Academy, which had the largest number of civil officials, being the most important.

It could be said that, apart from the Imperial Academy, the institution he had cultivated the most relationships with was the Hanlin Academy, and he had spent most of his money on it. However, to his surprise, his efforts to win them over were completely ineffective, which he found somewhat unbelievable.

Thinking of how the Hanlin Academy had just submitted to Zhu Xiong Ying, he felt like a clown, angrily looking at these people.

"What are you all doing? Didn't you say these people were loyal to me? How come you've all sided with Zhu Xiong Ying!"

Lian Zining, Qi Tai, and the others were extremely embarrassed upon hearing this. They had not expected things to turn out this way. They had assumed that these people had a good relationship with their side, and they had always been praising Zhu Yunwen.

The several sage families treated Zhu Yunwen very well, which made him mistakenly believe that these people had already pledged allegiance to his side. He never expected that such a big problem would arise.

At this moment, Lian Zining spoke.

"Your Highness, there's no need for that. Although some members of the Hanlin Academy have sided with the Crown Prince, they are not all of them!"

"In the end, the Hanlin Academy is still our territory!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yunwen's face turned cold.

"Do you even believe what you're saying? Don't forget what kind of people are inclined towards Zhu Xiong Ying!"

"The Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy is the only one who can speak for himself in the entire Hanlin Academy, not to mention that he is respected by many people despite his age!"

"He alone is worth several people. Besides, there's also Ru Chang, the one you have the most faith in!"

"You said that Ru Chang would definitely be able to enter the cabinet in the future if nothing unexpected happened, but how do you explain that she was the one who led the defection to Zhu Xiong Ying?"

Lian Zining felt extremely embarrassed upon hearing this. He hadn't expected that Ru Chang would lead the way in siding with Zhu Xiong Ying.

Thinking about this, he no longer knew how to explain it.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he thought of something.

“Your Highness, although the Crown Prince has made amends, there are bound to be many mistakes and omissions. There are many issues surrounding this imperial examination, and we can use this as a pretext to make a fuss!” Upon hearing this, Zhu Yunwen’s face turned ashen.

"What do you mean? Don't forget, many of the people who attacked us this time were our own people. Do you intend to turn on our own people?"

However, upon hearing this, Lian Zining smiled and shook her head.

Although most of the officials in the Hanlin Academy knew about this.

But it was Ru Chang who actually did it. As long as we spread this news, Ru Chang's reputation will be ruined, and all the scholars in the world will definitely take this opportunity to condemn him.

Even His Highness the Crown Prince wouldn't dare to defy public opinion and appoint this person.

Zhu Yunwen was extremely curious when he heard this. Even if that person had great abilities, he was just an ordinary person at most. Why should he care?

In response to Zhu Yunwen's question, Lian Zining smiled and said...

"Ru Chang voluntarily pledged allegiance to Zhu Xiong Ying. If his fate is extremely tragic, people will definitely have reservations if he dares to pledge allegiance to Zhu Xiong Ying again!"

If Zhu Xiong Ying dared to protect him, he would be unable to face the scholars of the world.

Either way, it would be a huge loss for Zhu Xiong Ying. Upon hearing this, Zhu Yun Wen's eyes lit up.

Huang Zicheng said from the side.

"Although this won't cripple Zhu Xiong Ying, it will still cause him some losses. That guy actually dared to gather our forces; it's time to teach them a lesson!"

Zhu Yunwen nodded after hearing this.

"Since everyone agrees, let's do it this way!"

The next day at the court assembly.

Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang sat in the very center, with two stools beside him, one for his grandson Zhu Xiong Ying and the other for his crown prince Zhu Biao.

Such a situation, where the crown prince and his grandson are both seated in the court during a court assembly, has never occurred in any dynasty before.

Zhu Yunwen looked at the seat next to Crown Prince Zhu Biao and Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang.

He sighed, wishing he could sit in that position. At the beginning of the court session, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang showed little interest, as Empress Ma's condition was quite serious.

As for the outcome, it is still unknown. He really has no mood to preside over the court meeting, if it weren't for his concern about the instability of the court.

He probably left this place a long time ago.

Then, a dozen or so ministers stepped forward and spoke.

"Your Majesty, I impeach Ru Chang, the Vice-Chancellor of the Hanlin Academy, for deliberately committing fraud in the imperial examinations for personal gain..."

Soon these people also began to impeach him, targeting Ru Chang. In fact, the person who really made them do this was the Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy.

However, this person has been in the Hanlin Academy for so many years, and his background is also very powerful. Such a person is really not to be trifled with.

Therefore, they could only choose the best from among the cripples.

He took a fancy to Ru Chang, who was not of high status.

(End of this chapter)