Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 368 Attracting Carp from All Over the World to Leap

Since the "Da Ming Weekly," which praised Hong Chengchou's achievements in governing Zhejiang, spread throughout the country via the post stations, a strong wind called pragmatism began in the capital and swept across all corners of the empire.

Within the capital, discussions were in full swing; in the imperial court, praises resounded like a tide.

The court discussions in Wenhua Hall had long since evolved into seminars on the Hong Hengjiu model.

"Your Majesty is wise and discerning! Hong Chengchou, a mere border official, possesses such talent for governing the country. If it weren't for Your Majesty's keen eye, such a talent would have been buried in obscurity!" Minister of Personnel Li Banghua spoke eloquently, his face beaming.

"Indeed!" A vice minister from the Ministry of Revenue followed closely behind, holding a copy of the official gazette, his tone impassioned: "'Benefits spread to all corners of the land, and the tax revenue of a single month is equivalent to the total tax revenue of the previous year!' Gentlemen! What an achievement this is! This is true action! I implore Your Majesty to implement this method in Guangdong, Guangxi, and Fujian, and the abundance of the national treasury will soon be within reach!"

For a moment, the hall was filled with voices of agreement.

Everyone quoted from the official gazette, as if it were no longer a newspaper, but the latest classic texts of sages.

A single official gazette has become a high standard for success, attracting carp from all over the country to compete for it; a single imperial edict has become the law of the bureaucracy, requiring all civil and military officials to obey it!
Countless officials, especially those who considered themselves talented but lacked connections, eagerly prepared to write memorials overnight, either outlining new policies or offering sound advice. They all took Hong Chengchou as their role model, always mentioning his achievements, hoping to gain the emperor's favor and become the next Hong Hengjiu.

The entire Ming Dynasty officialdom seemed to have been injected with an unprecedented dose of potent medicine, presenting a vibrant and prosperous scene.

Zhu Youjian, meanwhile, was at Xuanda University, silently calculating in his mind.

Even before his northern tour, Li Ruolian's sharpest blade had already transformed into a merchant and quietly headed south.

Judging by the timeline, it's about time to close the net in Jiangxi, which is thousands of miles away.

……

At the same time that officials in the capital were enthusiastically discussing the "Hong Heng Jiu Model," in Nanchang, Jiangxi...

The back hall of the governor's office was an elegant room.

Outside the window is the desolate scenery typical of winter in Jiangnan, but inside, the air is filled with the warmth of incense and the curling smoke of tea.

The Governor of Jiangxi, Cao Wenheng, was enjoying tea with several close friends and renowned scholars around a stove.

This man was about fifty years old, with three long strands of beard and a lean face. He considered himself a member of the Donglin School of Pure and Refined Scholars.

He was most skilled at philosophical discussions, often criticizing current affairs and commenting on the government. His words were sharp and he was quite famous.

At this moment, he was holding a newly made sweet white porcelain teacup from Jingdezhen, gently skimming off the foam, and speaking slowly and deliberately, his tone carrying a hint of disdain and arrogance:

"You've all seen the official gazette from the capital, haven't you? The Holy Emperor praised Hong Hengjiu; this is the beginning of corrupt officials causing chaos in the government."

A scholar clapped his hands in agreement: "Lord Cao is absolutely right! Hong Chengchou is nothing but a military man from a remote region. His actions are cruel and he competes with the people for profit. He is nothing more than a cunning manipulator who exploits the land. How can he be a statesman who can govern the country? The fact that such a cruel official can receive such high praise from the emperor shows that flatterers are in power in the court and righteousness is not on display."

Cao Wenheng stroked his beard and smiled, nodding and saying, “No. It’s not that flatterers are in power, but rather that the current generation is young, ambitious, and eager for quick success. We who have studied the classics should uphold righteousness and maintain our integrity, nurturing the vitality of the nation for a hundred years. How can we associate with such people? When their policies become corrupt and the people’s resentment boils over, Your Majesty will know who the true pillars of the nation are.”

Immediately, everyone in the hall agreed, their words revealing both deep concern for the government and a sense of moral superiority, as if they were the only ones who were sober in a world of fools.

Unaware that outside the government office, a cold net of death had already quietly closed in.

Li Ruolian, the newly appointed commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, personally led the team.

Over the past six months, Andu Prefecture has investigated the transaction records of all the banks under Cao Wenheng's name, copied all the related land deeds, and identified all the key figures involved in his corrupt network.

At that moment, with a simple gesture from Li Ruolian.

Several Imperial Guards dressed in flying fish robes and carrying embroidered spring knives appeared like ghosts at the same time in various key locations of the governor's office.

The wooden door to the back room was pushed open silently.

Li Ruolian appeared at the doorway.

Cao Wenheng and the other scholars, who were just talking eloquently a moment ago, suddenly fell silent.

The warm aroma of tea seemed to freeze instantly in the cold air rushing in from outside the door.

Cao Wenheng was initially taken aback, then his face darkened, and he shouted sternly, "Who are you? How dare you trespass into the back hall of the governor's office! Guards..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

Li Ruolian walked in slowly, and the guards behind him, as fierce as wolves and tigers, instantly pinned everyone in the hall to the ground.

Those so-called celebrities, who are usually so upright and dignified, are now trembling like leaves, revealing their ugly side.

Only Cao Wenheng retained a shred of dignity befitting a high-ranking official. He struggled and roared, "Insolence! I am a second-rank official of the imperial court. How dare you lackeys be so disrespectful!"

Li Ruolian walked up to him, looking down at him with an expression as if she were looking at an inanimate object.

He didn't speak, but simply took out a roll of yellow silk from his sleeve.

Imperial decree.

Cao Wenheng's pupils suddenly contracted.

Li Ruolian slowly unfolded the imperial edict, but did not read it aloud. Instead, she showed Cao Wenheng the vermilion imperial seal bearing the inscription "The Emperor's Personal Handwriting."

“Lord Cao,” Li Ruolian’s voice, like his personality, was cold and devoid of any warmth, “do you know that just half an hour ago, the Embroidered Uniform Guard raided the villa where your mistress lived in the east of the city?”

Li Ruolian paused, seemingly admiring the rapid loss of color from Cao Wenheng's face.

"From the cellar in the courtyard, we found a secret shareholding contract of Zhenjiang Tongfu Money Shop, totaling 300,000 taels of silver. We also found an account book that clearly records your collusion with the Fan family business in Shanxi to smuggle salt and the profit sharing."

Cao Wenheng's body began to tremble.

Li Ruolian seemed not to notice, and continued to state the facts in that calm tone.

"At the same time, we found another item at the residence of your trusted accountant, Guo You." He took out another item wrapped in oilcloth from his pocket and unwrapped it layer by layer in front of Cao Wenheng.

It wasn't a letter or contract, but a small, unremarkable blue cloth booklet. Li Ruolian opened the booklet and showed it to Cao Wenheng.

On it was a detailed map and a densely packed set of accounts.

"This summer, Ji'an Prefecture was flooded. His Majesty was deeply worried and specially allocated 50,000 taels of silver for disaster relief and 30,000 shi of grain for grain transport, ordering you to provide relief to the disaster victims. However, this account book clearly records that the actual expenditure was less than one-tenth of that."

Li Ruolian's finger touched a spot circled in red ink on the map, where three elegant characters were marked: Tingsongxie (Listening to the Pine Pavilion).

"You exchanged the remaining silver and grain for timber, rare stones, and bricks, and transported them to the shores of Poyang Lake. There you built a private waterside garden covering a hundred acres for yourself."

“Lord Cao, your greatest skill lies in the fact that you did not disperse the disaster victims, but instead used the guise of a benevolent policy of providing relief through work to turn those starving disaster victims, who were suffering from the loss of funds due to your embezzlement, into slave laborers to build your private garden. You only give them a bowl of thin porridge each day to keep them alive, and make them shed their last drop of blood and sweat for your earthly paradise.”

Li Ruolian closed the ledger and gently placed it on the table, making a soft sound.

"This is cannibalism, sucking the marrow from bones!"

As Cao Wenheng looked at the small blue cloth booklet, the last trace of arrogance in his eyes shattered completely, turning into pure fear.

He collapsed to the ground, his face ashen.

Li Ruolian looked at him and finally uttered a comment that, though understated, was more hurtful than any insult:
"His Majesty once said that a worm that harms the country must have two sides. On one hand, it presents itself as refined and elegant, while on the other hand, it devours the very foundation of the nation. Seeing this today, I can see that he was right."

He put away the evidence and gave orders to the guards beside him:

"No need for further investigation. The evidence is here—his confession. Imprison him, seal all evidence, and compile it into a book. Tomorrow at noon, the execution will be carried out by the court officials."

The phrase "No need for review" perfectly encapsulates the emperor's absolute authority and the ruthless methods of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Before Li Ruolian set off, she had already received the emperor's permission.

The emperor didn't want his repentance, but his death.

His sole purpose in this world is to serve as a warning to the world!

……

The next day, noon.

The execution ground in Cao County, Nanchang City, was packed with people.

The people whispered among themselves, none of them expecting that the governor, who was high and mighty yesterday, would become a prisoner today.

Li Ruolian personally oversaw the execution.

There were no cumbersome procedures for joint trials by the three judicial departments, nor were there lengthy sentencing documents from the Ministry of Personnel.

The executioner read aloud only a concise list of charges compiled overnight by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"...During his tenure, Cao Wenheng, the governor of Jiangxi, embezzled treasury funds and engaged in the illegal sale of salt, totaling 1.53 million taels of silver!"

"...forming cliques for personal gain, defying national policies, coercing and bribing local gentry, signing blood oaths, and obstructing the new policies!"

"...They harbored assassins and embezzled government land, causing countless people to be displaced!"

Each charge drew a murmur of anger and curses from the crowd below.

"cut!"

It was noon, and Li Ruolian tossed down the token with a blank expression.

A flash of light, and a head fell to the ground.

The market was bustling with people, yet the vast space was shrouded in an eerie silence.

The previous hatred for the cruel officials and the anxiety about the unknown outcome have now turned into eager anticipation.

When the executioner publicly revealed Cao Wenheng's crimes of embezzling disaster relief funds and grain and enslaving disaster victims to build his private garden, gasps of shock first rose from the crowd, followed by suppressed murmurs of curses.

On those weathered faces, shock, anger, and a long-suppressed sorrow were intertwined.

The moment the head hit the ground, time seemed to freeze for a split second.

Immediately afterwards, the crowd seemed to awaken from a long nightmare, erupting in a deafening roar.

The shouts contained the exhilaration of revenge, the wailing of pent-up resentment, and even more so, a heartfelt homage to the emperor in the distant capital.

Li Ruolian's eyes remained completely unmoved by the joys and sorrows of human life.

He simply watched indifferently as the captain stepped forward, wrapped the still-dripping head in lime, placed it in a wooden box, and prepared to hang it on the city gate for public display.

From breaking down the door and arresting people last night to executing them at noon today, it only took a day and a night. The thunder has fallen and the dust has settled.

The sky over Jiangxi's officialdom has collapsed, but in doing so, it has also brought a bit more clarity!
Li Ruolian slowly turned around, waved to her trusted confidant behind her, and said in a cold, iron voice: "Make three copies of all indictments, signed confessions, and evidence drawings immediately. One copy for archiving, and two copies sealed in a black box and sent directly to the Xuanfu headquarters by express courier."

The captain accepted the order, leaped onto his horse, and rode away in a cloud of dust.

Li Ruolian then raised her eyes and looked towards the long road back north.

He knew that this head in Nanchang Prefecture was just the opening act of this grand drama.

What the emperor wanted was far more than just the head of a high-ranking official.

The real battles are fought not on the blade, but on the ink and brush.

The goal is to grind this filthy blood into the thickest ink, and to inscribe new laws and majesty on the entire map of the Ming Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)