Ming Dynasty: Tanks blocked the door and you said to me, "Long live Ming Dynasty"

Everyone knows what kind of people the civil servants of the Ming Dynasty are like.

Do not!

Not only civil servants, but even scholars who have not yet become officials are the same!

As long as you have enough reputation, you will have no worries about getting an official position!

Even if I can't be an official, I can still become a big boss in the future...

Sun Kangwang smiled and waved to Zhen Beiwang and them.

"Don't look at it, Your Majesty has given me so many walnuts, I can't eat them all by myself."

"Let's eat together, don't let His Majesty down."

"These walnuts must be eaten today!"

When the scholars kneeling in the front row heard this, their faces turned green......

There are at least fifty kilograms of walnuts in those two baskets!

But Zhen Beiwang and a group of Jinyiwei smiled like aunts when they heard this.

This is what they love the most!

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

They are all martial artists, so they don't need any tools to crack a walnut. Even if the skin is a little thick, they just need to use their teeth to crack it.

The walnut kernels went into their stomachs, and the walnut shells were thrown in front of the scholars. Everyone got a share, and none of the more than 200 scholars were left out.

After doing all this, they still remembered Zhu Youxiao's instructions and asked someone to bring oil-paper umbrellas.

"Brother, come on, move forward. His Majesty has said that it will rain heavily soon. We can't let you get wet."

"What? You said you'd rather get wet than move? Then you're not giving your brother face!"

"I'm telling you, you have to practice what you're not good at. You're going to be officials in the future, and our king is moody. You'll have to kneel down in the future, so I'll help you practice your knees in advance. When you get calluses from kneeling, you won't feel the pain anymore..."

"That's right, kneel on this walnut skin, and don't move. I can tell you from my thirty years of martial arts experience that if there is something in the wound, don't pull it out before you bandage it, or the bleeding will kill you!"

"........."

Under the "persuasion" of the Jinyiwei, the scholars had to move their bodies and put their knees on the sharp walnut skin.

That taste...

Sour and refreshing!

Sun Kangwang sat on the threshold of the palace gate, watching this scene, and felt a spontaneous admiration for Youtong.

Damn it, why didn’t I understand that this was what His Majesty meant when he gave walnuts as a reward?

No wonder that eunuch can rise to the top so quickly, his brain is second to none!

At this moment he had understood that with Min Hongxue present in the Qianqing Palace, some things could only be hinted at and not said explicitly. Otherwise, if he was caught, the emperor would end up being incompetent and cruel.

But now it is not the case. Even if someone wants to say something, His Majesty the Emperor has something to say. At most, it is just that I, the commander of the Jinyiwei, have misunderstood...

and many more!

What the hell!

Sun Kangwang's eyes widened, and his smug expression suddenly turned into conflict.

Am I taking the blame for the emperor?

But the next moment, he was grinning again.

Not everyone can take the blame for this kind of thing!

But then again, I heard from Zheng Zhilong's brothers that there is a kind of smelly fruit in Luzon, and the skin looks like a hedgehog and is covered with thorns?

When that thing kneels down, it should be more sour than walnut skin, right?

Chapter 187 Now that I'm retired, I have to leave a good reputation for myself

In the Qianqing Palace.

Led by the Embroidered Uniform Guards, a group of ministers crossed the high threshold.

After entering the hall, everyone bowed in unison.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you and wish you a happy new year."

Zhu Youxiao waved his hand casually: "My dear ministers, thank you for your kindness. No need to be polite."

The ministers stood up.

The Minister of War Liu Tingyuan stepped forward, walked out of the queue, and bowed again.

"I heard that Your Majesty pacified the pirate Zheng Zhilong in southern Fujian and gave him the titles of Earl of Nanhai, General Zhenhai, and Prince Taibao. May I ask Your Majesty if this is true?"

Sure enough, it came because of this incident!

The guess was confirmed, and Zhu Youxiao looked at him without changing his expression.

"Lord Liu is well-informed. This is indeed true."

Pfft!

Liu Tingyuan knelt down and spoke in a kind and persuasive manner.

"Your Majesty, appeasing Zheng Zhilong can indeed reduce some of the maritime threats."

"But the Eighteen Zhi have been causing trouble for our Great Ming sea borders for a long time. Now that they have surrendered, even if we don't hold them accountable for their past crimes, we shouldn't treat them so well."

"Your Majesty, please take back your order!"

He is the Minister of War, so he is qualified to speak on matters related to military affairs.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Youxiao's mouth curled up slightly and he said with a smile.

"What Liu Aiqing said makes sense."

"But there is one thing I don't understand. When Shibazhi was causing trouble in the Ming Dynasty's sea borders, what were you, the Minister of War, doing?"

"Why have I never seen you report this?"

Liu Tingyuan's expression froze, and he explained awkwardly: "Your Majesty, I am only the Minister of War in Nanjing..."

Zhu Youxiao had no intention of letting him go.

"If I remember correctly, among the six ministries in Nanjing, only your Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue have real power, right?"

"The Ministry of Revenue is in charge of household registration in the south, while the Ministry of War is in charge of the military in southern Zhili, Zhejiang, Jiangxi and other provinces."

"You have the right to submit a petition, and the coastal area of ​​Zhejiang is also under your jurisdiction."

"Why, do you think you don't have to do anything just because there's a Minister of War in the court?"

"Then what are you doing here now?!"

Liu Tingyuan was speechless after hearing this question, beads of sweat the size of beans kept dripping from his forehead.

His eyes moved left and right, and when his sight swept over Yutong's lower body, he suddenly had an idea.

"Your Majesty, I have submitted a memorial, but it should have been suppressed by the Imperial Household Department..."

After saying this, Liu Tingyuan couldn't help but give himself a thumbs up in his heart.

There is still something in my brain...

Wang Zai Jin and other ministers also looked at him with admiration. In their opinion, Liu Tingyuan was setting an example for them. If the emperor asked about such things later, they would just have to answer like this.

Sure enough, Liu Tingyuan's response caught Zhu Youxiao off guard.

In the first few years, Tianqi rarely interfered in government affairs, and all memorials were handled by the Imperial Household Department.

After he said that, Zhu Youxiao really had no idea what to do. It was even more impossible for him to pull Wei Zhongxian over for a confrontation. After all, the old man was still in Beijing.

But soon Zhu Youxiao thought of someone, and he stared at Liu Tingyuan and said.

"Of course I believe what Liu Aiqing said."

"Then I'll have to trouble Lord Liu to recall the time when the memorial was submitted. When I return to the capital, I can have someone look for the original memorial."

Liu Tingyuan was stunned!

He had never written any memorial about pirates, so where could he recall it?

He racked his brains to recall the time points when Zhejiang area suffered maritime disasters in the past two years. As long as the time matched, he could cover it up even if Zhu Youxiao could not find the memorial in the future, such as making an excuse that the Imperial Household Department destroyed the memorial.

"Your Majesty, if I remember correctly, it should be May of the sixth year of Tianqi."

Zhu Youxiao looked at him with amusement, and after a while, he gave the order to Youtong.

"Go to the Tongzhengsi and check if there is any record of Liu Aiqing's memorial in May of the sixth year of Tianqi!"

Tongzhengsi!

Responsible for issuing and receiving the emperor's orders, communicating the situation of the people, reviewing official documents, and reporting the opinions, petitions, military situations, disasters, etc. of the people from all directions!

Memorials from all over the country basically have to be sent to the Ministry of Public Security first, and then sent to the palace together!

So, when Liu Tingyuan heard the three words "Tongzhengsi", his expression suddenly fell.

Wei Zhongxian was far away in Beijing and could not confront him, but the records of the Tongzhengsi showed no trace of his own memorial...

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I may not remember clearly. It may not be May, but it may be June..."

"Oh no, it's August!"

"October?"

Liu Tingyuan tried to cover it up incoherently, but finally decided to give up.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I am old and my memory is a little unclear..."

Zhu Youxiao walked out from behind the imperial desk with great "sympathy" and reached out to Liu Tingyuan to help him.

"Hey! What is Liu Aiqing doing? Get up quickly!"

"My dear minister, you are still serving the court at the age of sixty. You are truly a role model for all officials. It is inevitable that you cannot remember some things for a while."

Hearing this, Liu Tingyuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But before he could open his mouth to thank him, he heard Zhu Youxiao continue speaking.

"My dear, now that you are old and have trouble remembering things, why don't you go home and rest and enjoy your old age?"

"I don't want to be pointed at by scholars all over the world, saying that I only exploit the value of my subjects and don't care about their lives."

"How about this, I have a pen and paper here, you can submit a letter of resignation right now, I will approve it on the spot, and it won't delay you from going back to eat dumplings."

Yutong, who was standing next to the imperial steps, could hardly hold back his laughter, and shrugged his shoulders. When Zhu Youxiao finished speaking, he took a pen and paper from the imperial desk and handed it to him.

"Master Liu, please!"

Looking at the brush handed to him, Liu Tingyuan's face turned greener than malachite...

Now that things have come to this, how dare you not accept it?

That is impossible!

He regretted it so much that his intestines turned green. Damn it, this matter has nothing to do with him!

Wouldn't it be nice to live out your retirement in peace as a minister? Why do you have to get involved?

He took the brush with tears in his eyes and wrote his resignation on it with trembling hands.

Zhu Youxiao was very straightforward. He said he would review it on the spot, and then he said to Youtong.

"Lord Liu has worked hard for the country for half his life, and he should enjoy the same treatment as Mr. Huang and others."

"Take out one thousand taels of silver from my treasury as a gift to Lord Liu."

"Have Sun Kangwang send a team of Jinyiwei to escort Liu Aiqing and his family back to their hometown. Make sure they are sent back safely!"

What does it mean to have the same treatment as Mr. Huang? Yutong understood it immediately!

Check the family assets and confiscate all the income that exceeds the reasonable amount!