My surname is Wang, my neighbor Wu Dalang

The case of Yu Zhongchao was the biggest corruption case in the hundreds of years since the founding of the Song Dynasty until now. He pretended to be an honest and honest official and swaggered through the market.

And the iron-like facts are in front of them, which undoubtedly slaps many courtiers and the entire scholarly class in Dayan.

I don't know how many people feel embarrassed.

For a while, Yu Zhongchao became a hot topic in the ruling and opposition parties.

And many discussions attached to Yu Zhongchao are raging.

The students of Yanjing Academy jointly submitted a letter to the emperor, issued an appeal against hypocrites like Yu Zhongchao, and strongly demanded that the court completely eliminate Yu Zhongchao’s remnants, dig deep into many officials like Yu Zhongchao who are good at deceiving the world and stealing their names, and Ming Dynasty is clean and honest. And really corrupt.

Yushitai and the admonishment system under the management of Yu Zhongchao are also raging. Almost all the officials and admonishers are impeaching Yu Zhongchao, vowing to draw a clear line with him and completely eradicate such scum as the court.

For several days in a row, the topic of Yu Zhongchao remained unabated. This was the first time in the Great Yan Dynasty Hall.

Some people scolded hypocrites must have evil looks.

Criticize Yu Zhongchao's cloudy eyes, dull and deep, hidden knife in his smile, sweet mouth with sword in his mouth, cold aura, and hooked nose.

It is said that since ancient times, people with this "nose shape" are mostly cold-tempered and scheming in their hearts.

He also cited two particularly obvious examples, one is Goujian, king of Yue in the Spring and Autumn Period, and the other is Sima Yi in the Three Kingdoms period.

The former had spent many years of hard work and tasted courage, and finally killed the state of Wu and wiped out the roots.

At the same time, Gou Jian also killed all the ministers who knew his humble experience, such as Wen Zhong, who would inevitably end up committing suicide.

The latter endured for decades, and killed three generations of Cao Cao, Cao Pi, and Cao Rui. In the process of capriciousness, he captured Cao Wei's country, and finally killed the Cao family.

There is a folk saying that the nose is like an eagle's beak, which pecks the heart's marrow.

Therefore, a vigorous "hooked nose self-examination movement" broke out in the entire court, and all courtiers with the same hooked nose as Yu Zhongchao immediately became the object of suspicion by everyone.

Regarding this, the emperor heard about it, but just laughed it off.

This is of course nonsense, but if you let them toss about for a while, the gust of wind will pass, it's no big deal.

Moreover, the purpose of the emperor was to create suspicion and division within the inherently small groups in the court, so as not to form a monolith, so that the courtiers formed cliques and resisted the imperial power.

More importantly, which courtiers and local officials did Yu Zhongchao collude with? Many clues and evidence are in the hands of the emperor and Jin Yiwei. This is like a sword of Damocles, hanging high above some people's heads , making some people uneasy.

Therefore, many courtiers submitted their petitions one after another, requesting Jin Yiwei to hand over the case to the San Judicial Department.

The emperor forbids.

Zoubiao still flooded towards the emperor's imperial study.

In the end, even the five veteran ministers in the cabinet couldn't bear the invisible pressure. They took the initiative to attack the emperor and begged him to hand over the case to the imperial court.

In fact, this is a pretext, because after all, even Li Gang is not sure how far the emperor will investigate the case... The cabinet ministers entered the palace collectively, nothing more than to test the emperor's attitude.

Li Gang cleared his throat in embarrassment, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, the old minister thinks... if Yu Zhongchao's case is widely involved, it may cause turmoil in the court, which will be detrimental to the society, and this person has always been the leader of the Qingliu party in the court. Now that he has fallen from the horse, the entire Yushitai and Jianyuan are unmanned, so please Your Majesty decide the candidate as soon as possible."

Wang Lin smiled calmly, and glanced at Wu Minzongze, Huang Qishan and Guo Zhishun, "You guys? Do you have anything to say?"

Wu Min settled down and said: "Your Majesty, the veteran thinks that it is a good thing for Dayan to use the case of Yu Zhongchao to clean up the court and remove some well-hidden black apples.

But it concerns important officials of the court. Should the case be handed over to the Sanju Department? "

Huang Qishan clasped his hands and said, "My minister seconded the proposal!"

Zong Ze also said in a muffled voice: "The minister seconded the proposal!"

Only Guo Zhishun remained silent and stood quietly behind Li Gang and the others.

Wang Lin looked deeply at Guo Zhishun, and suddenly said: "What does Xiang Guo think? You are also like Li et al, asking me to hand over this case to the San Judicial Division?"

Guo Zhishun's mouth twitched, and he said slowly: "Your Majesty, I... think that since His Majesty is personally presiding over this case, His Majesty should continue to be the main one to find out the truth, understand the case as soon as possible, and avoid turmoil in the court."

Wang Lin laughed heartily, thinking that Guo Zhishun was also a real old fox.

He is not dedicated to the public like Li Gang and the other four. Guo still has some personal interests in mind.

After all, he is Guo Yuan's father, a relative of the emperor.

In any case, he must stand on the same ground as the emperor, otherwise, he felt that the status of the Guo family would not be guaranteed.

Therefore, Guo Zhishun rarely expressed his position on issues related to the emperor's attitude.

And Li Gang and the others also knew his difficulties, and often pretended not to know, not to pierce this layer of window paper.

If the emperor hadn't questioned him face to face today, Guo Zhishun would not have expressed his position anyway.

But Guo Zhishun's financial management ability is the best in the world, and no one can match it.

With him in control of the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Industry, Dayan's business is prosperous, all industries are thriving, and the treasury is no longer in danger of being empty.

Moreover, Guo Zhishun is very clear-headed.

He never touched his son-in-law.

It's not that he doesn't have the slightest bit of greed, but that he maintains a tacit understanding and balance with the emperor.

The emperor continued to send benefits to the Guo family through Guo Yuan.

The emperor's gifts in various forms are enough for the Guo family and their descendants to live comfortably for several lifetimes. Guo Zhishun knows the seriousness of the problem, so he will not anger the emperor on a fundamental basis and shake the foundation of the Guo family.

Guo Zhishun's dedication to his duties has also supervised and promoted the cleanliness of the entire household finance and taxation system.

Wang Lin smiled softly: "Dear dears, I want to hand over this case even if you don't tell me. To tell you the truth, Xiao Yi just left, and Xiao Yi repeatedly asked, and Jin Yiwei took the initiative to hand over all the case files and physical evidence. The witnesses were handed over to Dali Temple.

But I weighed it over and over again and didn't agree. Do you know why? "

Li Gang and others cupped their hands and said, "Please make it clear, Your Majesty."

Wang Lin smiled: "Actually, the so-called hypocrisy of Yu Zhongchao, which has been hidden for decades to deceive the world, is simply nonsense.

In the case of Yu Zhongchao, dozens of courtiers and more than a hundred local officials were involved. Yu's family was domineering and bullying in the local area.

Detective Jin Yiwei learned that there have been countless lawsuits against the Yu family for controlling merchants and trade over the years, and they were all suppressed by local governments.

Therefore, Yu Zhongchao's Qingming name was originally a false proposition. Many people in the court knew his true face, and it was only me who was hiding it!

Of course, there may be some veteran cabinet ministers like you! "

Li Gang and the others looked at each other with embarrassing expressions.

"That's why I hesitated. If the case is handed over to the San Judicial Division to act as an agent, it will really be concocted into an earth-shattering case. It is related to the majesty of the imperial court and the state law. Jin Yiwei is on the sidelines. At this time, favoritism.

But if it is in the hands of Zhen and Jin Yiwei, the consequences will be controllable... Do you understand what I mean? "

Li Gang took a deep breath, he understood the emperor's intention.

That is to say, the emperor has his own opinion to what extent this case has been handled.

Of course it depends on the development of the situation.

In other words, the person the emperor wants to deal with will definitely be involved in the case, and the person the emperor doesn't want to deal with will probably pass the test this time.

Li Gang and Wu Min looked at each other, they were worried that the emperor would hold on to them, and took the opportunity to clean up the court. Since the emperor "targeted", Li Gang felt that there was nothing to worry about.

Li Gang and others resigned, but Guo Zhishun was retained by the emperor: "Guo Xiang, Yuan'er has been feeling unwell for the past few days, why don't you visit her palace."

Guo Zhishun was slightly taken aback, and immediately bowed and said, "I accept the order!"

……

Guo Yuan's palace garden is quiet and quiet, with many green bamboos planted.

Hidden by a sea of ​​bamboo, Guo Yuan wore a pink palace dress, without any makeup on her face, but it was also very beautiful.

Sitting upright in the pavilion, she was reading the emperor's anthology with her head down, when she suddenly heard the report from the female officer and her father's visit, she couldn't help being a little surprised and pleasantly surprised.

Now that Guo Zhishun is in such an important position, he has already avoided many things very much.

He seldom visited Guo Yuan in the palace, and even did not allow Guo Yuan to return to her natal home frequently.

There is a close relationship between powerful officials and concubines, which is enough to arouse the suspicion of the emperor.

But today the emperor took the initiative to ask Guo Zhishun to come. In fact, Guo Zhishun was more surprised than his daughter Guo Yuan.

"Minister Guo Zhishun, pay homage to your empress!"

"The daughter has seen her father."

The father and daughter exchanged polite greetings. Seeing Guo Yuan's beautiful face and eyes filled with happiness and nourishment, Guo Zhishun felt a little warmth in his heart.

On that day, he took the initiative to offer his daughter to the then King Qi, with the original intention of a kind of promotion.But from his perspective as a father, it was a blessing for her widowed daughter to marry someone like Wang Lin.

And the emperor treated Guo Yuan very well.

This gradually dissipated the guilt in Guo Zhishun's heart.

"Father has not visited his daughter in the palace for a long time, why today..."

Guo Zhishun also frowned slightly and said: "Your Majesty just said that you are not feeling well, so let me visit you. I feel a little uneasy as a father. Could it be your side..."

While talking, the female official Shangguan Qing Yingying approached and said with a smile: "I have seen your mother, Xiang Guo."

Although Shangguanqing was only on the fourth rank, she was the head of the female officials around the emperor, equivalent to the head of internal affairs, and the emperor relied heavily on Shangguanqing.

Therefore, Guo Zhishun didn't dare to be arrogant even though his status was very different. He stood up and smiled slightly, "Where did the Shangguan's female officer come from?"

Guo Yuan also nodded slightly to Shangguanqing.

Shangguan smiled and said: "Guo Xiang, Your Majesty asked the next official to come to Concubine Guo's side and bring something to the empress."

As Shangguanqing said, he handed over a letter in his hand.

Then he saluted and retreated.

Guo Yuan opened the letter and saw that it was written by the emperor himself.

And after she hurriedly scanned the contents of the letter, her pretty face changed drastically, and her shoulders were trembling slightly.

Guo Zhishun felt an ominous premonition.

He hurriedly said: "Daughter, what did Your Majesty say?"

Guo Yuan turned pale, and slowly handed the letter in her hand to her father.

Guo Zhishun took it and looked at it, his expression changed suddenly.

He was trembling with anger, and scolded loudly on the spot: "Guo Liang, that bastard, evil, he is going to kill our Guo family!"

Guo Liang is the second son of Guo Zhishun.

Guo Zhishun's eldest son, Guo Peng, is gentle and elegant, and was born as a Jinshi. He is now serving as a magistrate in the south of the Yangtze River.

The second son, Guo Liang, doesn't like to read books, and he is a very important one among the dandy brothers in the capital.

It's nothing more than calling friends, courting prostitutes and drinking, spending time and drinking, making a lot of trouble out of nothing.

But he won't do too much evil, so Guo Zhishun usually doesn't bother to take care of him.

However, Jin Yiwei found out that Guo Liang was actually one of the key figures in the Yu family business, and he obtained no less than [-] yuan in property from the Yu family every year.

Guo Zhishun's face was terribly gloomy, because he knew that this incident alone was enough to destroy the Guo family.

If it was exposed, he would not have to be a cabinet minister.

Just the spit and saliva of the people in the world can drown him.

And this matter can be big or small, if the emperor uses this to make a move, the Guo family...

Guo Zhishun's complexion was pale and he was sweating profusely.

He got up and bowed and said: "Your majesty, I also ask your majesty to intercede in front of His Majesty. Guo Liang is involved in the Yu Zhongchao case. I really don't know if I am a father. This evil person will be sent to the Jinyiwei Prison for my father. As a father, I will never allow this bastard to destroy our Guo family..."

At this time, Guo Yuan had actually gradually calmed down, and Guo Zhishun was also concerned about it, causing chaos.

Guo Yuan said softly: "Father, the second brother has always been misbehaving, and my father was negligent in discipline, which led to this disaster. But His Majesty's move is obviously for you and my father and daughter to discuss a countermeasure, and then... Your Majesty should have saved us Guo home."

Guo Zhishun took a deep breath: "We all depend on the empress."

Obviously, the emperor did not pierce the window paper, but quietly ordered the Guo family father and daughter to meet each other, this is to protect the Guo family.

And the emperor's care was undoubtedly for Guo Yuan's sake.

I don't want my female relatives' natal family to be ruined and their reputation ruined.

Guo Yuan sighed and said, "Father, since Your Majesty said that the evidence of the second brother's involvement in the case is convincing, I am afraid that he will not be able to escape punishment. I wonder what father is going to do this time?"

Guo Zhishun's complexion changed from blue to red.

Of course, the safe way is for the emperor to order Jin Yiwei to suppress this matter, ignore Guo Liang's past, and act as if nothing happened.

But Guo Zhishun knew the emperor's character well, and it was absolutely impossible for him to abolish the public because of personal interests.

It is already a gift from the emperor to let his father and daughter meet first and discuss countermeasures.

Guo Zhishun gritted his teeth secretly after a long time and said lightly: "Daughter, I know what to do for my father. To preserve the Guo family, the only way to save the influence is to kill the relatives for the father's righteousness, take Guo Liang to Jinyiwei Prison in person, and impose strict punishments. Otherwise, Our Guo family will definitely be involved in this big case, as a father, and your elder brother, if it is light, the official position will be lost, and if it is serious, the lives of family members will be hard to survive."

Guo Yuan burst into tears and sobbed.

But she knew it was the only way.

The emperor ventilated in advance, nothing more than hoping that Guo Zhishun could make the right choice.But tiger poison does not eat its offspring, Guo Liang is no longer a weapon, it is also the blood of the Guo family, how can Guo Zhishun be able to do it?
But if Guo Liang doesn't die, the Guo family will be finished.

This is a very painful choice.

And if it weren't for a decisive politician like Guo Zhishun, it would be difficult for ordinary people to make a decision in a short time.

……

Guo Zhishun left the palace.When the news was sent back to the imperial study, Wang Lin sighed. He hoped that Guo Zhishun could make the right decision, not only to make a quick decision, but also to act quickly.

Otherwise, after the incident, the Guo family will be caught in a huge wave of criticism from the government and the public, and there will be no room for recovery.

Wang Lin wanted to protect Guo Zhishun in his heart.

At present, no one is more suitable to be in charge of Dayan Finance than Guo Zhishun.

And he is Guo Yuan's father after all.

Wang Lin couldn't do things that were too selfish and bent the law, but as the emperor, he didn't want to see his woman heartbroken because of family affairs.

What's more, Jin Yiwei has already detected and found out that only Guo Liang in the Guo family was lured onto the pirate ship by the Yu family, and none of the Guo family was involved in the case.

This is an example.

But in fact, among the children of high-ranking officials in the capital who were dragged into the water by the Yu family, there were also the heirs of the six chief officials including Chen Zixuan.

It's just that Wang Lin didn't bother to take care of these people.

It is hard to imagine how many officials in the DPRK and China have been corrupted by Yu Zhongchao through the ups and downs of the officialdom over the past few decades with a lot of money to clear the way.

Guo Zhishun returned to his mansion, and went straight to the private courtyard where his son Guo Liang was, with a murderous look.

Guo Liang had sex with a group of cronies and prostitutes in the middle of the night last night, and he was still awake when he heard the door being kicked open. He frowned and opened his sleepy eyes. Seeing his father Guo Zhishun holding a sword, his expression was not good.

Guo Liang broke out in a cold sweat suddenly.

He rolled from the bed naked, covered his inconvenience with his robe, and shouted, "Father, what are you doing? Are you going to kill your son?"

Guo Zhishun slashed heavily on the desk next to him.

He roared angrily: "Come here, let this old man catch this evil obstacle, kneel down!"

……

Guo Liang was cloaked and desperate, and was firmly controlled by the servants of the Guo family to kneel on the ground. He honestly explained how much money he had received from the Yu family during the past three to five years.

Before and after, Yu's family gave him no less than [-] guan in money. In addition, there was a farm outside the city and two beautiful concubines.

Guo Zhishun looked gloomy, and asked Guo Liang indifferently what he had done for the Yu family these years.

Sure enough, as Guo Zhishun expected, what the Yu family wanted was not what Guo Liang, a dude, could do, but him, a cabinet minister who controlled the household department and the world's trade. There was no doubt that the Yu family must be behind his back Banner has done a lot of forced buying and selling.

Let Jin Yiwei follow the vine to find out, and Guo Liang will die.

Guo Zhishun looked up to the sky and sighed.

The hatred in his heart.

He wished he could cut off this wicked son with a single sword.

Is the Guo family short of the [-] yuan?
A mere [-] coins, to him as a treasurer, to the Guo family who are relatives of the emperor, what is it?
Guo Zhishun gritted his teeth and said, "Load all the floating wealth and money in Guo Liang's house into a cart, tie up this evil person, and personally escort this old man to Jinyiwei Prison, and hand it over to the Supreme Judge!"

……

Not long after, Guo Zhishun took off his official robes, wore only casual clothes, and carried a bundle of thorns on his back. He knelt down outside Chaotianmen with a gloomy complexion.

And his son, Guo Liang, was flogged with his own hands until it was time for a cup of tea, and he was sent to Jinyiwei Prison.