Jiajing Chengming

Chapter 296: The Great Purge, My Emperor is So Tough!
Zhu Qi was drinking tea, waiting for Zhu Ying to come and report the smuggling trade to him.

After hearing this, he immediately stood up with his tea in hand and asked in astonishment, "What did you say?"

Zhu Ji had no choice but to repeat it.

Zhu Qi's veins popped up immediately, and he threw the teacup in his hand onto the thick carpet, "Wang Hong is going too far!"

"I'm going to report this bastard to the police!"

Zhu Qi then started yelling and cursing in anger.

Zhu Ji hurriedly said, "Father, calm down! The problem now is that he might report us first."

"Afraid of him!"

"I have just wiped out tens of thousands of bandits and have performed great deeds. Your Majesty should not punish me, a duke, just because I killed military households and condoned my family's smuggling, which are not serious crimes!"

Zhu Qi replied disdainfully.

In his mind, he really didn't think killing a military household was a big deal.

Afterwards, Zhu Qi, still furious, put his hands on his hips and paced on the carpet, saying, "On the contrary, it's Wang Hong! I don't understand why he, a civil servant, is so keen on making military achievements!"

"Wouldn't it be good to let the military households just farm for us and serve us, and then make money together?!"

"What good will it do him if the imperial navy becomes stronger?"

Zhu Qi said as he unbuttoned his clothes irritably, then lifted his outer robe and sat on a rosewood chair:
"Have someone write a report to accuse him, and then send someone to Beijing to arrange for the censors to also accuse him of killing officials and accusing others of smuggling!"

"Yes!"

Zhu Qi hated Wang Hong very much.

actually!

Wang Hong also hated Zhu Qi in his heart.

Because what Zhu Qi did in Guangdong and Guangxi was extremely unpopular among the common people, Wang Hong's efforts to recruit the boat households in Guangdong and Guangxi were particularly unsuccessful.

"I bother!"

"You and the Emperor are simply deceiving us. You have no intention of recruiting us or recognizing us as good people!"

"They are just trying to trick us and kill us!"

"We, the boatmen who arrived a day late, all saw what happened in Nanhaiwei. All the villagers who went to accept the amnesty were killed, even the children were not spared!"

When Wang Hong asked Lin Ji, a boatman captured by the Naval Preparation Camp from a nearby island, why the boatmen in Guangdong ran away when they saw their government troops and tore up the amnesty notices, Lin Ji explained the reason to Wang Hong with an angry face.

Wang Hong had also recently heard about the Nanhaiwei incident, and he also submitted a report to impeach Funing Marquis Zhu Qi and Chief Censor Xu Tingguang.

And now.

After hearing what Lin Ji said, Wang Hong couldn't help but frown again and ordered: "Let him go! There's no need to punish him. He can't be blamed for tearing up the notice!"

So, Wang Hong's men released Lin Ji.

Lin Ji was quite surprised by this, and immediately clasped his fists towards Wang Hong: "You are a good official, but not all officials in the court are as good as you!"

After Lin Ji said this, he left Wang Hong.

Snapped!
After Lin Ji left, Wang Hong slammed the desk:
"These bastards have had a profound impact on your majesty's great cause of building a powerful navy, and have also greatly damaged the emperor's prestige!"

then.

Wang Hong once again submitted a memorial to impeach Funing Marquis Zhu Qi and Chief Censor Xu Tingguang.

Zhu Qi, together with other Guangdong officials, impeached Wang Hong because Wang Hong had been entrenched in the coastal areas of Guangdong and Guangxi and had cracked down on smuggling tycoons. They accused Wang Hong of nurturing bandits and slaughtering civilians and allowing his soldiers to become bandits.

And just as the two sides were impeaching each other.

October of the fourth year of Jiajing.

Zhu Qi, who had just returned from climbing a high place to see the distant scenery, received a secret letter from the capital.

The secret letter told him that the emperor had been assassinated.

The secret letter also told him that after interrogation, it was found that the assassins were sent by him and Xu Tingguang, so an order had been issued to search his house, and after evidence of his crime was found, an order had been issued to arrest him and Xu Tingguang.

After reading the letter, Zhu Qi was shocked and felt uneasy.

"How come this was discovered?"

"Didn't you say that the businessman named Yan had been killed?"

Zhu Qi hurriedly asked about Zhu Ji.

Zhu Ji cried and said, "My son doesn't know either. Now that I think about it, I'm afraid there must be some other mistake."

"Don't think about it anymore!"

"The emperor has many reasons to punish me, but it's hateful that he still chooses to punish meritorious people like us severely for the sake of those lowly people! I really don't understand why he, a wise emperor, cares so much about those little people!"

"Isn't he afraid of disappointing the nobles by doing this?!"

As Zhu Qi spoke, he slapped the stone wall beside him.

then.

He looked at the boundless sea in the distance, his lips twitching:

"This ostentatious, mean-spirited tyrant!"

"Father, why don't we rebel?"

"Anyway, we have already placed many of our trusted followers in Guangdong and Guangxi. At worst, after recruiting soldiers and horses, we will march north to Changde, support Prince Rong as the leader, and purge the emperor's entourage!"

Zhu Ji said.

Zhu Qi was a little hesitant.

It was okay for him to vent his anger by cursing the emperor in front of his son, but he still didn't dare to make up his mind to really rebel.

"Father!"

"We have no other way to go!"

Zhu Ji couldn't help but speak.

Zhu Qi nodded: "I know!"

"However, the civil and military officials and gentry in Guangdong and Guangxi may not be willing to join us in the rebellion."

"They are willing to let them make money with us and sit back and watch us cause chaos in Guangdong and Guangxi."

"But if they were to join us in the rebellion, it would be hard for them to abandon their nine clans and the eternal infamy they would face to accompany us in doing such a thing!"

Zhu Qi said with a sad face.

"Then force them. If they don't want to, kill them first and fulfill their reputation as loyal heroes."

"There are always people who are afraid of death and are willing to follow us!"

Zhu Ji said.

Zhu Qi nodded: "This is the only way."

"First recruit soldiers and expand our retainers."

"Otherwise, we can't force these Guangdong and Guangxi civil and military officials to listen to us." "First, you go to our shops in Guangdong and Guangxi to check the accounts, then go to Guangxi in person, spend money to recruit the wolf soldiers of the chieftains, and then bring them to Guangzhou!"

Zhu Qi ordered.

Zhu Ji bowed and said yes.

Zhu Qi then returned to his general's office.

And in the following days.

Zhu Qi has been restless.

Until the seventh day of October in the fourth year of Jiajing.

As soon as Zhu Ji returned to the General's Office in Guangzhou from Foshan to check the accounts, Zhu Qi said to him with a frustrated look on his face: "You don't have to go to Guangxi."

Zhu Ji was shocked and asked, "I'm not going. Why is that, father?"

"The Emperor's personal army, the Xuanwu Guard, has arrived at Mude."

"The vanguard cavalry has entered the city and brought me the secret decree from His Majesty."

"Your Majesty means that if I remain stubborn, I will completely lose the chance to show mercy to my family, Marquis Fu Ning!"

Zhu Qi replied with a dejected look.

Zhu Ji also took a few steps back after hearing this: "Are we just going to sit there and wait to die?"

"Yes."

After Zhu Qi replied, he also slumped down in his chair and said with a wry smile:
"Not only do we have to sit and wait for death, but we also have to honestly confess our crimes and reveal all the officials who have colluded with us. We are at the mercy of others, and since we have become the meat of the fish, we must be prepared to be the meat of the fish!"

"In that case, the Xu family isn't doing much better."

After Zhu Ji said this, he also grinned.

In fact.

As early as a month ago.

As soon as Xu Tingguang arrived in Nanjing, Jinyiwei Zhu Qi and others stopped him and read to him the imperial edict that wanted to take him to Guangdong and Guangxi.

Xu Tingguang was devastated after hearing this, and couldn't help asking Zhu Qi: "Why did you take me back to Guangdong and Guangxi?"

"Of course, I'm going to make amends to the tens of thousands of people you killed."

Zhu Qi replied in a deep voice.

Xu Tingguang couldn't help but shake his head: "How can this be? I am a minister who has passed the imperial examination. Why should I apologize to those lowly people?"

"Cut the nonsense!"

"Whether you are noble or humble is determined by the emperor, not by your own self-consciousness!"

Zhu Qi scolded Xu Tingguang and had him taken to the boat.

"Seniors can be killed, but not humiliated!"

"Your Majesty, if you do this, it will chill the hearts of scholars all over the world!"

Xu Tingguang kept saying these two sentences all the way.

But the Jinyiwei ignored him.

When Xu Tingguang was not brought to Guangzhou, Yang Yiqing also arrived in Guangzhou.

"Zhou Zai, the Left Governor of Guangdong!"

"Pan Bangyuan, the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Guangdong!"

"Guangzhou Prefect Song Jing!"

"Wu Zhen, the commander-in-chief of Guangdong!"

"Guanghaiwei Commander Tao Shining!"

……

After Yang Yiqing arrived in Guangzhou, he summoned the civil and military officials of Guangdong to the general's office, and according to the list and evidence provided by Funing Marquis Zhu Qi, he read out the names of officials who had worked with Zhu Qi and Xu Tingguang to commit favoritism and abuse of power.

Then, Yang Yiqing waved his hand and said, "Take him down!"

Liu Hui's soldiers appeared and detained these people one by one.

Naturally, these people looked at Zhu Qi in astonishment at this moment.

"Marquis Funing, what's going on?"

The Left Governor Zhou Zai also asked Zhu Qi.

Zhu Qi did not answer.

Yang Yiqing then read out the imperial edict from Zhu Houcong asking him to deal with these people, and ordered: "According to the imperial edict, take Xu Tingguang, Zhu Qi and these people to Nanhaiwei and behead them!"

Zhou Zai was even more surprised after hearing this.

then.

Liu Hui then took these people to Nanhaiwei.

When Zhu Qi and Xu Tingguang came to Nanhai City again, they naturally felt sad.

Because they didn't expect that after just over two months, they would be the ones trembling with fear and waiting to be killed in the South Sea City.

The two of them even seemed to be able to hear the crying and see the pool of blood floating here.

"cut!"

When Yang Yiqing shouted, the executioner raised his knife.

At this time, Xu Tingguang still shouted "A gentleman can be killed but not humiliated!" and then his head fell towards the city wall.

"Yang Yiqing, Wang Hong, Liu Hui, you treacherous ministers, this day will come for you too. I will be waiting for you in my grave!"

Zhu Qi did not dare to curse the emperor. Before he died, he just shouted to Yang Yiqing, Wang Hong and Liu Hui. Then he closed his eyes and waited for the knife to chop him. When he saw his head flying to the ground but his body was still there, his eyes suddenly turned black. Then with a thud, he fell to the ground where the killed boatmen had fallen in the past.

Subsequently, Zhou Zai and others were also executed.

Lin Ji, who was called to Nanhaiwei by Wang Hong to watch the execution, was dumbfounded for a long time after seeing this scene. He looked at Yang Yiqing, Wang Hong and Liu Hui on the city wall with a complicated expression.

Yang Yiqing, Wang Hong and Liu Hui, three officials who had turned to the emperor, returned to Guangzhou City after dealing with Zhu Qi and others.

Because Yang Yiqing was going to temporarily promote officials to fill the vacancies in Guangdong caused by this case, Wang Hong started chatting with Liu Hui and asked, "Prince Rong, was he sent to the capital in chains?"

Liu Hui nodded.

After hearing this, Wang Hong couldn't help but sigh: "Your Majesty is really tough! The road to the prosperity of the country is unstoppable!"

Liu Hui did indeed send someone to send Prince Rong's weapons to the capital in accordance with the emperor's order.

After Prince Rong arrived in Beijing, Zhu Houcong summoned him to see him.

"Your Majesty, do you really want to kill me?"

Prince Rong specifically asked this question after meeting Zhu Houcong.

(End of this chapter)