Ming Dynasty: Moral blackmail? I, Emperor Chongzhen, have no morals!

At dusk, the Chengguo Duke's mansion was brightly lit. Zhu Zechang knelt before Chengguo Duke Zhu Chunchen, recounting his actions.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Chunchen remained unperturbed: "Don't panic! I am the imperial son-in-law, your mother is a princess of Emperor Shenzong, and the current emperor is your cousin. What is there to fear?"

In Zhu Chunchen's eyes, their relationship was much closer than that of those princes who had lived for countless generations. It was incomparable to those people. Moreover, his ancestor, Duke Cheng, Zhu Neng, was a meritorious official who followed Zhu Di in the Jingnan Campaign. Even the current emperor had to think twice about it.

"Father, the Emperor has confiscated the property of the Emperor's father-in-law..." Zhu Zechang said with a worried expression.

Zhu Chunchen waved his hand: "We are different from the Emperor's father-in-law!"

Zhu Chunchen didn't believe the emperor would confiscate their property, after all, the nobles were of the same blood.

"Father!" Zhu Zechang still wanted to persuade his father to go to the palace to explain the matter. In the end, this was just a matter of trying to gain some benefits, and there was no need to resist.

"No need to worry! Besides, the son of the Duke of Dingguo is involved! The Duke of Dingguo is a descendant of Xu Da, the Prince of Zhongshan!"

Zhu Ze saw that his father had no intention of going to the palace, so he had no choice but to give up!

Meanwhile, the same scene was playing out in the Duke of Dingguo's mansion on the other side.

The flickering flames cast long shadows of Duke Dingguo Xu Yunzhen and his son Xu Changwei.

Xu Yunzhen pondered for a long time before slowly speaking, "Wei'er, besides the granary matter, is there anything else?"

"They even sold the disaster relief grain allocated to Henan by the imperial court! But everyone in Henan, from the provincial governor down to the county magistrate, benefited!" Xu Changwei said truthfully.

In Xu Changwei's view, since they couldn't rebel, they should just let the law not punish the masses. After all, there were so many people, including the three provincial governors of Henan, the prefect, the county magistrate, hundreds of officials of all ranks, and even nobles from the imperial court. They couldn't possibly prosecute them all, could they? At most, they would just have to pay some fines and punish a few typical cases!

Upon hearing this, Duke Dingguo Xu Yunzhen nodded slightly. In his view, these matters were not a big deal. After all, reselling grain, even disaster relief grain, had nothing to do with treason. As long as his son had not rebelled, everything was fine.

"Don't go anywhere these next few days! Lest you get arrested by the Eastern Depot or the Embroidered Uniform Guard! I'll go visit these old comrades and speak with the Emperor together!"

After saying this, Duke Dingguo Xu Yunzhen slowly got up and went to his own treasury to prepare some gifts. He would visit the nobles and marquises in turn the next day. At worst, he would pay more silver to the court for military expenses!

Seeing his father about to leave, Xu Changwei quickly stepped forward: "Father, will the Eastern Depot come to the mansion to arrest people?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Yunzhen sneered, "They still wouldn't dare to break into the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, which has been in existence for over two hundred years!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Changwei felt slightly relieved, but said with a face full of resentment, "If that damned Minister of Revenue, Fan Jingwen, hadn't suddenly sent someone to verify the granaries, we wouldn't have resorted to this drastic measure!"

"This man is impervious to reason and won't accept gifts! Then impeach him for factional strife, and at the very least, remove him from his position as Minister of Revenue!" Xu Yunzhen said firmly.

"Furthermore, we must advise the emperor, based on ancestral traditions, to reinstate the various functions of the court. Take the Military and Political Bureau, for example; we nobles have absolutely no say in that!"

Xu Yunzhen nodded: "I will make many visits tomorrow!"

It wasn't just court officials who upheld the ancestral system; these nobles also did so, since the ancestral system was more beneficial than harmful to them, and they could also gain the support of the court officials.

Just as Duke Dingguo Xu Yunzhen and Duke Chengguo Zhu Chunchen were each harboring their own ulterior motives, in a civilian granary in Tongzhou, Wang Huamin handed a wine cup to Li Wen, the director of the Eastern Depot: "Drink it!"

"Eunuch Wang, what do you mean by this?" Li Wen looked at Wang Huamin, puzzled.

Wang Huamin stepped forward and said softly, "Having reached the position of Director of the Eastern Depot, you should have thought this through! When you were involved with the Duke's Mansion and took a step back, you should have known what the consequences would be!"

Wang Huamin knew better than Li Wen who the real master was. Even if the investigation extended to the Empress and the Crown Prince, Wang Huamin wouldn't stop without the Emperor's permission, let alone the Duke's mansion! At most, he wouldn't openly interrogate them due to his status!

"I am the Emperor's servant, and I am doing this for the Emperor and my godfather! You yourself want to take his place and become the Director of the Eastern Depot, don't you?" Li Wen said irritably.

He had seen people eager to climb the ladder, but this was the first time he had ever seen someone so eager.

"It's right to think of the Emperor, but you're thinking too much about your godfather!" In Wang Huamin's view, Li Wen was indeed loyal to Wang Dehua, but it was wrong of him to be so cautious about things that didn't involve Wang Dehua himself. The Eastern Depot belonged to the Emperor, not Wang Dehua!

"I won't drink! If you have something to say, go back and talk to your godfather!"

He paused, then continued, "Even if I die, you still won't get the position of Director of the Eastern Depot!" Li Wen didn't catch the implication in Wang Huamin's words at all. Wang Dehua was Li Wen's godfather, not Wang Huamin's!

Wang Huamin smiled politely, then slowly stepped forward to stand beside Li Wen, whispering in his ear, "We're not the Eastern Depot, nor are we under your godfather's control! Our place is called the Big Inside Factory!"

Upon hearing the words "Da Nei Xing Factory," Li Wen's pupils constricted sharply, and his legs began to tremble uncontrollably.

For eunuchs, the Grand Imperial Workshop was exactly what it represented. This institution, which existed for only five short years, was the envy of the entire eunuch group. Not only was it powerful and ruthless, but it could also monitor the twenty-four departments of the inner palace, the Eastern Depot, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard!

"Your Majesty... Your Eunuch... is... is the Emperor..."

Li Wen's lips trembled, and he was only halfway through his sentence when he heard Wang Huamin's voice: "If you've thought it through, then go in peace! After you die, your family and relatives will continue as before!"

After saying that, he looked around again and added meaningfully, "This granary isn't exactly a good place, but if you go there and stay for a couple of days, many people will accompany you on your journey!"

Upon hearing this, Li Wen, the supervisor of the Eastern Depot, knelt down before Wang Huamin with a thud, his voice trembling with tears: "Eunuch Wang, does my...my godfather know?"

"If you don't want to implicate your godfather, it's best not to let him know!"

The four eunuchs from the Eastern Depot who were following Li Wen knelt down beside him, trembling all over. They all understood that they were doomed today!

Li Wen's eyes were blurry, and his arms trembled as he took the wine cup handed to him by Wang Huamin: "Eunuch Wang... I'm sorry to His Majesty... I'm sorry to my godfather..."

After saying that, he drank it all in one gulp. The bitter wine, along with the pain in his stomach, made Li Wen curl up and roll around incessantly.

Images of his youth and his encounter with Wang Dehua flashed rapidly through Li Wen's mind...

Then Wang Huamin waved his hand, and the remaining eunuchs from the inner eunuchs brought wine cups to the four eunuchs who had followed Li Wen to the granary.

"Go with your supervisor! Rest for a few days on the road, and soon you'll see people going down to accompany you!"

Wang Huamin's tone was low and somber, his voice revealing neither joy nor sorrow...