The prince is more stable

Chapter 871 Killing the chicken to scare the monkey

Before becoming emperor, Zhao Xiaoqian in his previous life was a submissive office worker, enduring endless work, overtime, being scolded by his boss, and scheming against his colleagues over trivial matters.

Lacking the ability to stand out, Zhao Xiaoqian could only endure it.

Born into nobility and eventually becoming emperor, if Zhao Xiaoqian still swallows his pride, wouldn't he have been emperor for nothing?
I have no other desires in this life. I don't care about power or status. I just want to live a decent life. I can't bear any hardship or humiliation.

The fact that Zhao Xiaoqian handled the incident of court officials kneeling at the palace gate so severely was not simply a matter of court officials offending imperial authority.

Zhang Dun had already guessed most of what he was thinking.

Yes, the establishment of the Censorate faced too much resistance, and even Emperor Zhao Xiaoqian felt that the matter was difficult to advance.

Even the prime ministers in the Council of State Affairs were showing signs of being passive and unmotivated, let alone the other court officials.

However, establishing the Censorate was something Zhao Xiaoqian was determined to accomplish, and no one was allowed to oppose or question it.

Therefore, Zhao Xiaoqian had already planned to target the Council of State Affairs, hoping to subdue these prime ministers before the establishment of the Censorate could proceed.

He was still lacking a reason to target the Council of State Affairs. These prime ministers were all cunning old foxes, meticulous in their work, and difficult to find fault with.

As it turns out, someone underestimated the enemy, which led to the kneeling incident at the palace gate.

Since the evidence and reasons inexplicably fell into Zhao Xiaoqian's hands, there was no need to be polite.

Plate him!

The Funing Hall still receives a considerable number of memorials daily, but the Political Affairs Hall has clearly already screened them.

In the past few days, the piles of memorials on Zhao Xiaoqian's desk were mostly from officials advising against the Censorate.

Zhao Xiaoqian knew that the Council of State Affairs was deliberately trying to annoy him, so they sent him all the memorials of remonstrance.

The prime ministers dared not or could not easily oppose him, so they expressed their dissatisfaction indirectly in this veiled way.

However, after Zhao Xiaoqian expressed a firm and uncompromising attitude towards the kneeling incident at the palace gate, the prime ministers of the State Council seemed to be intimidated.

There were noticeably fewer memorials offering advice today. Even if there were, they had been screened by the Council of State Affairs. Those that made it to Zhao Xiaoqian's desk were either those with reasonable viewpoints and mild words, or those written by officials of high rank who carried significant weight in their words.

Zhao Xiaoqian ignored all memorials sent by anyone.

The establishment of the Censorate is related to the fate of the Song Dynasty and must be implemented. No one in the world can make Zhao Xiaoqian compromise on this point.

Now that he had become emperor, Zhao Xiaoqian was determined to break the old order and establish a new one.

Around noon, Zhao Xiaoqian put down his pen, stretched, and felt sore all over.

Now he could roughly understand why Zhao Xu often stayed up late; there was no other way, because there were just too many court affairs to handle.

I just finished processing a batch of memorials, and another huge pile has arrived.

Zhao Xiaoqian felt like a donkey pulling a millstone, endlessly circling around the millstone without ever stopping.

Fortunately, Zhao Xiaoqian was not Zhao Xu. This donkey was not only stubborn, but also knew how to be lazy and treated his body very well. When he felt tired, he would stop decisively, eat, and sleep.

It's noon now, lunchtime.

Zheng Chunhe, accompanied by several palace servants, brought food and placed it on the table inside the hall.

Although it was called an imperial meal, it wasn't actually very lavish. There were only two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a bowl of rice in front of us.

There's no need to put on a show all the time. Good taste and exquisite food are enough. Just like cattle and horses, they only eat a few kinds of grass and don't try to eat every kind of grass in the world.

Halfway through the meal, Zheng Chunhe came to report that Zhen Qing from the Imperial City Guard had arrived.

Zhao Xiaoqian continued eating, not even raising his head, and ordered Zhen Qing to enter the palace.

As soon as Zhen Qing entered and bowed, Zhao Xiaoqian raised his chin and asked, "Have you eaten?"

"Ah? Uh... Your Majesty, I dare not deceive you. I haven't eaten." Zhen Qing said somewhat embarrassedly.

Zhao Xiaoqian ordered Zheng Chunhe to bring a set of bowls and chopsticks, and then asked the imperial kitchen to add two more dishes.

"Sit down and eat first," Zhao Xiaoqian mumbled, still shoveling food into his mouth.

Zhen Qing's cheeks twitched a few times, giving him a fleeting illusion that he was visiting his neighbor and even managed to get a free meal.

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for the banquet. I am overwhelmed by Your Majesty's boundless grace..." Zhen Qing began to express his gratitude.

"Shut up! It's just a simple meal. What 'banquet' or 'imperial grace'? I'm enjoying my meal. I'm warning you not to spoil my appetite."

Zhen Qing didn't dare to say much. She sat opposite Zhao Xiaoqian, like a well-behaved newlywed wife, holding the bowl and chopsticks tightly, carefully observing Zhao Xiaoqian's actions.

Eating at the same table, not with separate dishes, but sharing food with the emperor from the same plate, was frankly quite an ordeal.

Zhen Qing stared longingly at Zhao Xiaoqian. Only when Zhao Xiaoqian picked up some food and started eating did Zhen Qing quickly grab a bite of food with lightning speed, then try his best to chew it slowly and elegantly.

After finishing his bite, Zhen Qing stared longingly at Zhao Xiaoqian again. Only after Zhao Xiaoqian picked up another piece of food did Zhen Qing dare to put down his chopsticks.

There was no other way; they couldn't very well compete with the officials for food. If the two of them put down their chopsticks at the same time and reached into the same dish, this meal would become Zhen Qing's last meal before his execution.

After a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't take it anymore. He put down his chopsticks and sighed, "I'm really fed up. Eating at the same table with you is so awkward... tsk!"

"We used to eat at the same table when we were in the border army camp, why don't I see you being so pretentious then?"

Zhen Qing chuckled dryly, "Back then, Your Majesty was just a Prince, and I barely dared to sit at the same table with you. Now Your Majesty is the Emperor, the most honored ruler of the land, so things are naturally different."

"Forget it, don't eat anymore. I reckon you won't enjoy this meal anyway." Zhen Qing breathed a sigh of relief, hurriedly put down his chopsticks, and said with gratitude, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your understanding."

Zhao Xiaoqian took out a clean white silk handkerchief to wipe his mouth and said, "Let's get down to business."

"Yes, Your Majesty, the rebel Zeng Bu... committed suicide in the Bingjingwu prison."

Zhao Xiaoqian was taken aback: "Was it really suicide? It wasn't Liu Dan who did it?"

Zhen Qing hurriedly said, "It really was suicide. After Zeng Bu was imprisoned, Liu Dan knew how important he was and never touched him. I was ordered to go to the prison to question Zeng Bu, to ask him if he regretted his treason. Zeng Bu..."

Zhao Xiaoqian coldly asked, "What did Zeng Bu say?"

Zhen Qing hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Zeng Bu said he has no regrets. If he could turn back time, he would definitely seize the power of the Palace Guard and take over the Emperor's..."

He stopped before he could finish speaking, but Zhao Xiaoqian understood what he meant.

Zhen Qing continued, "Zeng Bu committed suicide in prison last night, using a belt to hang himself."

After closing his eyes and pondering for a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian sighed and said, "That's fine too. It's a dignified way to go. Now that I'm dead, let bygones be bygones."

"The fault lies solely with Zeng Bu. There is no need to implicate his wife, children, and elderly relatives. Zeng's descendants are still allowed to participate in the imperial examinations. Let's leave this matter here."

"Yes, I obey your order."

"Zeng Bu's body has been returned to the Zeng family. His past crimes will not be made public, but he will not be posthumously honored. Let's keep a low profile and let this matter rest."

"Yes."

Emperor Huizong of Song died, and Zeng Bu also died. The old era was swept away by the great waves, and a new order was about to be established. It seemed to be a kind of destiny.

"I have one more thing."

"explain."

Zhen Qing took out a few sheets of paper from his pocket and placed them in front of Zhao Xiaoqian.

"The Imperial City Guard has been ordered to investigate Shi Can, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue; Zhang Fang, Censor; and Wei Hongyi, Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. This is the evidence the Imperial City Guard has found. All three of them have abused their power for personal gain and committed embezzlement. The Imperial City Guard's spies in the residences of the three have found some evidence."

Zhao Xiaoqian took the papers and carefully read through the list of crimes.

Zhao Xiaoqian then placed the paper on the table and said, "The Imperial City Guard has arrested the criminal. First, dismiss him from his post, search his residence, and send the criminal and the evidence to the Court of Judicial Review. Inform the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review to deal with him according to the law."

"The minister obeys the order."

These three corrupt officials were specifically instructed by Zhao Xiaoqian to be investigated by the Imperial City Guard.

As for the cause of the matter, it was because two days ago, the officials submitted a memorial advising against the establishment of the Censorate. Most of these memorials were very harsh, but the three people selected by Zhao Xiaoqian were the most harsh in their criticism.

As I said before, Zhao Xiaoqian can't endure any hardship or humiliation in his life.

So he singled out the three as typical examples and ordered the Imperial City Guard to investigate their illegal activities.

He wanted to personally send these three people to jail, which would also serve as a warning to others, making an example of them and letting the court officials see this negative example. He wanted to subtly tell the officials that it was acceptable to point out the emperor's mistakes, but they should be mindful of their words and not say anything too harsh.

Thinking they were on a moral high ground, they spoke recklessly and criticized the emperor, but Zhao Xiaoqian would never tolerate their behavior.

This can also be seen as a counterattack against the officials' advice to stop the Censorate. Zhao Xiaoqian has faced considerable resistance these past few days, and it's time to put some pressure on the officials.

The crimes committed by the three officials, on the surface, had nothing to do with submitting memorials to remonstrate, but any courtier with a modicum of sense should have known that what they had done was far more complicated than it appeared.

The reason the government wanted to deal with was precisely the things they had done in the past, which had nothing to do with the establishment of the Censorate. The stated reason was sufficient, and no one could refute it.

"Also, Zhu Zhen, the deputy commissioner of the Salt and Iron Bureau who instigated the kneeling at the palace gate, need not be sent to the Dali Temple. Have Liu Dan of Bingjingwu obtain Zhu Zhen's confession as soon as possible. I want to know who instructed him to do this behind the scenes."

"Yes."

"Tell Liu Dan that what I want is the truth, not a false confession obtained through torture."

"Yes."

…………

As Zhen Qing stepped out of the palace gate, he breathed a long sigh of relief.

Turning to look at the heavy palace gate, Zhen Qing felt the same awe as Zhang Dun.

Awe of imperial power.

The Emperor is no longer the same Prince who used to chat and laugh with his soldiers and eat meat heartily in the border army camp.

After donning the yellow robe, the imperial majesty and ruthless decisiveness he exuded made even Zhen Qing, his former subordinate who had fought alongside him, feel immense pressure and deep awe when facing Zhao Xiaoqian.

Upon returning to the Imperial City Guard, Zhen Qing summoned his subordinates and the Imperial Guards.

Inside the main hall, Zhen Qing surveyed the crowd, his face solemn, and said, "By imperial decree—!"

Everyone in the hall stood up straight, their expressions solemn.

"The Imperial City Guard has been ordered to arrest and interrogate the three officials: Shi Can, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue; Zhang Fang, Censor; and Wei Hongyi, Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Their crimes are irrefutable and the evidence is irrefutable. They should be severely punished."

"Set off immediately! Head to the offices and residences of the three officials, apprehend them as soon as possible, confiscate their homes, and send them to the Court of Judicial Review for investigation!"

(End of this chapter)