Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 605: Protecting Private Interests and Shortcomings

At Liu Ji's house.

Du Ming seemed to admit his mistake and sat aside with his head down. Liu Ji was not in a hurry. He took out a memorial he had drafted himself and threw it to Du Ming, saying, "Take a good look at it. If you think it is okay, you must submit it to the court tomorrow no matter what."

Du Ming looked gloomy. He glanced at the memorial and asked, "Lord Liu, will the court meeting be held tomorrow? Is His Majesty really absent from court due to illness, or... is he intentionally leaving room for both sides to maneuver?"

Liu Ji sneered and said, "In every dynasty, when scholars were beaten, it was a serious matter. Now that things have come to this point, we can't just let it go, right?"

"But……"

"It seems that you are determined to go against me!"

Liu Ji was a little angry and frowned, saying, "The scholars were beaten, how could those censors who fought their way through the imperial examinations not be angry? Let them make a fuss! Originally you should just follow behind and watch the fun, but now you've made it... Oh! Do I have to do everything myself?"

Du Ming couldn't help but shook his head and smiled bitterly when he heard this.

"Remember, this is the best chance to overthrow Zhang Laizhan. If you fail to grasp it, it will have to be postponed to the first year of the Hongzhi reign! Once Huai'en dies of illness, Zhang Laizhan will be even more difficult to deal with with his power as the father-in-law of the emperor! The order in the court cannot be disrupted because of a foreign relative."

Seeing that Du Ming was not cooperating, Liu Ji immediately started to increase the value.

Du Ming couldn't help thinking, I'm going to leave the court, what does it have to do with me if the court is in chaos? Why do you have to force me to charge forward and declare war on Zhang Guozhang?
This is too much to ask!

……

……

Not long after Tan Ji returned to the palace, Jinyiwei commander Zhu Ji was summoned to the palace.

The two of them appeared together outside the gate of the Qianqing Palace.

When Qin Ji saw Zhu Ji, he nodded, and then took him to see Zhu Youtang. At this time, there was not a single eunuch left beside the emperor.

"His Majesty."

When Zhu Ji saw Zhu Youtang sitting on the dragon throne, he immediately knelt down and paid his respects.

"Be flat!"

Zhu Youtang greeted him, and then asked, "I heard from my wife that the Jinyiwei had already found out the truth of the matter yesterday?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Zhu Ji was not as stubborn as Mou Bin. He stood up slowly and bowed, saying, "I have already reported the details of this case to Eunuch Qin. Would you like me to repeat it again?"

"No, I've already seen it."

Zhu Youtang sighed, "I didn't expect that my father-in-law would be targeted by so many people just because he did some practical work for the court and gave me some money. Are those merchants and scholars being used by others?"

Zhu Ji said: "At present, it seems to be so."

Qin Ji frowned and said, "Yes, yes, no, no. You can't say such ambiguous words in front of His Majesty."

"Return to Your Majesty."

Zhu Ji replied respectfully, "At present, the Jinyiwei dare not conduct a detailed investigation into this case."

"Ah? Why?"

Zhu Youtang was a little surprised when he heard this and asked.

Zhu Ji glanced at Tan Ji, then at Zhu Youtang, and finally seemed to have made up his mind, saying, "Because someone above us doesn't allow the investigation to continue."

Zhu Youtang shouted, "Who?"

Qin Ji sensed something was wrong and said quickly, "Your Majesty, it's all my fault for not being able to find out the truth in time. I went to the Jinyiwei Yamen today, but I didn't get to the bottom of the case."

Zhu Youtang shook his head and said, "My dear, please don't say anything. I don't think he is talking about you... Zhu Qingjia, please tell me what is going on."

Zhu Ji looked righteous and said, "Your Majesty, it was the eunuch Tan Chang, the commander of the East Factory, who did not allow us to investigate the case. He said that if the case involves ministers in the court, it would not end well, so he asked us... to turn a blind eye."

When Qin Ji heard this, he thought to himself, “It’s over.”

It seems that the things I want to hide can no longer be hidden.

He was also wondering, Zhu Ji, you looked honest and loyal in the past, and you didn't have any major conflicts with the eunuchs in the palace, so why are you so stubborn this time?
"why?"

Zhu Youtang asked curiously, "My dear, could it be that Qin Chang doesn't want this incident to have a bigger impact, so he... wants to keep things quiet?"

"This..." Qin Ji didn't know how to respond for a moment.

Zhu Ji said resolutely: "Your Majesty, according to the investigation of the Jinyiwei, although Qin Chang was not the mastermind of the incident in which the people of the capital went to Zhang's house to make trouble, he knew the inside story in advance. Moreover, when he knew that this matter was related to the ministers in the court, he ignored it and even sided with one side. This is truly a disloyal act."

"what?"

Zhu Youtang was completely confused by these straightforward words.

Zhu Ji seemed determined to draw a line between himself and Tan Chang, and continued to report: "I have also found out that this matter is closely related to the Minister of Justice Du Ming... In the past two days, Minister Du has met with at least a dozen officials in Beijing and asked someone to secretly plan all this."

Zhu Youtang was furious, but he suppressed his anger and asked in confusion, "What is Du Ming planning? Is it just to prove that my father-in-law is bullying the market?"

Obviously, in the mind of this young emperor, this was a very small matter and not worth the concern of the bigwigs in the court.

Who would have thought that not only the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, Tan Chang, was implicated, but also the Minister of Justice Du Ming was involved?
They have nothing to do and think my father-in-law makes too much money in business, so they are jealous and send people to cause trouble?

What's the purpose of doing this?
Zhu Ji patiently explained: "Du Shangshu's purpose may be to undermine Minister Zhang's prestige in the court and prevent him from joining the cabinet."

"This……"

Zhu Youtang couldn't figure out the internal logic for a while. After thinking about it for a while, he couldn't figure it out. He looked at Qin Ji and asked, "My dear, do you think there is a connection between the two?"

"I do not know."

Qin Ji could only pretend to be confused at this moment.

"Oh!"

Zhu Youtang looked at Tan Ji with a slightly disappointed look, then waved his hand and said, "Mr. Zhu, please continue."

Zhu Ji said: "I think it is rare for officials to engage in business among Confucian officials. Even if someone does get involved in business, they will pretend to be someone else rather than participate in person.

"Zhang Guozhang's family doesn't seem to be shy about this. They have opened many workshops outside the city, producing and selling products in a one-stop manner. Their business is booming, and they have openly donated funds to the inner court. This violates the code of conduct for Confucian officials. Some people use this as an excuse to force Zhang Guozhang to leave the court."

"Just because he donated money to me, my father-in-law has committed a serious crime and needs to leave the court to atone for his sins? What does this mean?"

Zhu Youtang’s brain is a little bit insufficient.

Qin Ji said, "Your Majesty, Commander Zhu seems to be saying that someone dislikes Zhang Guozhang and is trying to find fault with him, using the Zhang family's business as an excuse to drive him out of the court."

Zhu Youtang frowned even more and questioned, "Is it really that important to be able to work for the court and share my worries, rather than to be engaged in business?
"Besides, what's wrong with my father-in-law donating money? That sum of money can be regarded as solving my urgent needs. I withheld part of it for the construction of the mausoleum of the late emperor, and the rest was allocated to the court... Didn't the people in the court see it?"

Zhu Ji said cautiously: "Perhaps others will think that Zhang Guozhang wants to use small favors to exchange for greater benefits, and his main purpose is to earn more money for his own use."

"Hey, is this considered judging others by one's own standards?"

Zhu Youtang was very angry, and then said, "Even if it is true, it is because my father-in-law has the ability to make money. Besides, the business affairs of the Zhang Mansion have always been handled by Yanling, and my father-in-law rarely manages or asks about it.

"Yanling does not hold an official position, so there is nothing wrong with what he does. Why do those people have to target my father-in-law?"

Zhu Ji lowered his head and said, "When it comes to disputes in the court, I dare not speak rashly."

Qin Ji was anxious.

I thought, you are talking nonsense! You mentioned Qin Chang and Du Ming, and dragged many officials in the court into the water, making it seem as if everyone in the court is against Zhang Guozhang.

You're trying to jump into the fire pit by offending so many people at once!
Zhu Youtang turned his head and asked, "My dear, what do you think about this?"

Tan Ji shook his head: "I don't know."

"Your Majesty."

Zhu Ji said seriously, "The Jinyiwei also found out that many censors in the court have colluded with each other and are unwilling to let go of the beating at Zhang Guozhang's house. Perhaps in the next few days, they will impeach Zhang Guozhang one after another."

"Who is there?"

Zhu Youtang asked angrily.

Zhu Ji lowered his head and said, "I shouldn't speculate rashly."

"Then let's do this!"

Zhu Youtang's eyes were gleaming and his attitude was firm. "Whoever impeaches my father-in-law will be imprisoned. Tomorrow morning, you take some people to the Fengtian Gate and make preparations.

"Remember my words. You don't need me to signal or give you any instructions. If anyone impeaches my father-in-law, you will arrest him directly. I will not let him off easily!"

(End of this chapter)