eldest son of Ming dynasty

After Zhu Houzhao arrived in Huai'an Mansion, it was obviously not as easy as when he was in Shandong. He originally wanted to relax in Jiangnan, but things kept happening.

On the other side, Concubine Xian and Concubine Jing really escaped the shackles of the palace. They walked together, watching the lake view today, visiting the temple tomorrow, enjoying the complicated world outside the Forbidden City, and not forgetting to show some sincerity. Give it to the gods to bless the emperor with good health and good fortune.

I didn't feel it when I was walking outside a few days ago, but when I crossed the street again today, the people on both sides were suddenly enthusiastic and religious.

The two of them didn't know what was going on until they heard the chamberlain explain, "Your Majesty made a decree yesterday to arrest a heinous person for the people, and the people knew that it was the queen's sedan chair, so that's why."

"Your Majesty... will always make decisions for the people."

"Yes, I heard that the case is being tried this morning."

Zhu Houzhao originally didn't want to show up, but after returning to the palace yesterday, he listened to the reports one after another and knew that the people in Shanyang County were basically alarmed.

When there was nothing else to do, he took a sedan chair and entered the back hall of the governor's Yamen in advance.

When going to Jiangnan, in addition to seeing the scenery, you also want to see the original appearance of the people.

It just made Song Heng a little stressed.

Zhu Houzhao reminded him while waving his fan, "You can pretend that I am not here, and you can interrogate me how you want. Our ancestors did not stipulate that the emperor cannot come to your governor's office, right?"

"How dare I stop His Majesty? It's just that... I'm worried that some crazy and rebellious people will make rude remarks and annoy Your Majesty again."

"Have I been annoyed too many times? Don't say any more, bring the suspects and witnesses, and let the trial begin. You are also a good official, so do the trial well and show some performance, and I will reward you with something good later."

Wang Bing and Yang Tinghe sat aside without saying anything.

They didn't know what was going on. The emperor was doing well in the Forbidden City, going down to the south of the Yangtze River, and then he ended up sitting here with them.

Why have we reached this point today?

"Your Majesty, I will leave now. If I do something inappropriate again, please forgive me."

"go Go."

Zhu Houzhao was in a good mood, and he also knew that his current behavior as the emperor had exceeded the imagination of these ministers, so he no longer asked them too much.

"Old Wang Ge, Mr. Yang Ge."

"The minister is here."

"Don't keep a straight face. You should be happy about the exciting scene where the guilty party may be brought to justice today."

Yang Tinghe pursed his lips, but he still swallowed the disappointing words. In his memory, no previous emperor had ever done this.

The monarch and his ministers were each having their own thoughts. It wasn't until there was a 'pop' sound outside that their attention was attracted.

"Bring someone to commit the crime!!"

Following this shout, Zhu Houzhao also started to twist the sweet-scented osmanthus cake on the table, eating and playing bit by bit.

Soon, the harsh sound of iron chains dragging on the ground was heard.

"Snapped!"

"Suspect Zhou Huai, why don't you kneel before an official?" Song Heng sat upright and pointed angrily at the young man with a short beard and a pale face below.

"The student attended school when he was young and became a Linshan student. In the fourth year of Zhengde, the student took the Huai'an Prefecture University Examination and won the second place. Although his talent and learning were limited and he failed to pass the exam, he still managed to become a scholar."

He was suddenly imprisoned yesterday, and he was not punished in prison. He was not hungry for a whole day, so he was still in good condition. Although the clothes on his body looked a little dirty, his face did not lose its arrogance.

"The student also wants to ask Song Zhongcheng for advice."

"Say!"

“I don’t know what the student’s crime was, but the governor’s office sent out so many people and just put the student in jail without asking the whole story!”

Song Hengzhi said: "You were suddenly arrested. It's normal that no one told you. But I can tell you directly that it was the stove workers in your salt field who gathered together to expose you. They said that you abused the people to gain profit and seized good quality products. Female, even harming others' lives. Since there were nearly a hundred people who reported you, I ordered your arrest."

"What? They are all a bunch of unscrupulous people. Could it be that Zhong Cheng can kill someone with just a few words from them?"

"Don't panic first." Song Heng turned to the right, "Bring witnesses!"

Things have evolved to this point, which was basically expected.

But once the witnesses came on stage, chaos arose.It turned out to be an old couple. When they saw Zhou Huai, they immediately became very excited. They broke away from the Yamen servant's hand and threw themselves at Zhou Huai. "It's you, you beast! Give my son's life back!"

After all, Zhou Huai is young and has nimble hands and feet. He directly pushed the person in front of him and said, "Get your dirty hands off! Who has seen your son?!"

Snapped!
"Zhou Huai, don't hurt anyone. This old man's surname is Zhao, and he is known as Zhao Laosan. He is a straw sandal seller. He has a young son named Zhao Dayu. Have you ever used such a person?"

"Zhao Dayu? No impression."

Song Heng didn't expect him to be so difficult to deal with, and immediately said angrily: "There are many people who know who you are using under you. I can tell just by asking anyone, why are you messing around here?!"

Zhou Huai straightened his collar, "Ah, the student remembered. There is a man named Zhao Dayu, but what does it have to do with them?" "That's the son of this old couple!"

"Zhongcheng, this is not necessarily true. There are many people with the same name in the world. The Zhao Dayu here must be their son? Besides, the Zhao Dayu used by the students later stopped working for the students. He left. Zhou Mansion, as for where he went or whether he died, how will the students know? It can't be that everything that happens to everyone who passes through Zhou Mansion is the student's fault, right?"

In the back hall.

Zhu Houzhao put down the porcelain cup in his hand and made a gentle collision sound.

Wang Bing smiled awkwardly, "Your Majesty, please don't be anxious."

"Bring your ID!"

This time it was Ningshan and Ninghe, as well as the people they gathered last night.

When Zhou Huai looked at the two of them, there was evil in his eyes.

"The villain Ninghe, the villain Ningshan, see Zhongcheng!"

"rise!"

"Zhou Huai, do you recognize these two people?"

Zhou Huai raised his head and said, "The reason why I like Cheng Cheng is that he and I are the stove workers in my salt farm."

"Is not it?"

"No, that's what Zhongcheng said. But there are more than [-] stove workers in my salt farm. Students have bad memory, so they can't remember them all."

"You don't have to remember me!" Ning He said angrily, "You only need to remember that girl named Xiao He. She is my niece. She was taken back by you in early April this year. You dare to say that this is not the case. real?"

"Hmph, where's the evidence?"

There was anger in Ning He's eyes, "When you kidnapped her and used force on her, she scratched your arm. She told me this personally. Do you dare to show your right arm?" "

Zhou Huai's expression changed.

"Yes, our brothers have tried to rescue her. But she was raped by you and has no desire to survive. She only wants to kill you and then be quick! In mid-April, you rested for a few days, so you must have injuries on your body, right?"

Song Heng stopped talking nonsense and immediately gave the order, "Take off his clothes!"

"Slow!!" Zhou Huai was calm, and he raised his hand to Song Heng, "Zhongcheng, the student's arm is injured, but... what can just a few wounds mean? Couldn't it be that he knew in advance, Then he made up a story to slander the students? How can he prove that this wound was caused by that woman named He?!"

Ning He was immediately anxious upon hearing this. He had never read a book and was not as sharp-tongued as this guy. He could only emphasize, "You have always disliked the stove workers. It is impossible for us people to know in advance where your wounds are."

"It's hard to say, what if you are deliberately planning it for a long time?"

"Zhongcheng!" Ning He was anxious.

Zhou Huai took advantage of the situation and said: "Zhongcheng, although I am a low-class businessman, I am not comparable to this kind of stove worker. I also have an uncle in my family who is an official in Zhejiang. He often warns me that my nephew must be humble and never do anything." Self-reliant on his status, he behaves recklessly. Although the students have no hope of success in this life, they always yearn for the seniors in the clan. With them as examples, how can they confuse right and wrong in the court? On the contrary, such lowly people may feel that the salt field It’s too hard, and it’s true that I’m thinking about the rich family wealth of my students.”

Zhu Houzhao in the back hall raised his eyebrows after hearing this.Ordinary people will never understand this passage, but it is actually very mysterious and very powerful.

This person actually told the officials who were investigating the case in a roundabout way that I had a government background and a lot of wealth.As long as you are biased toward him, you will not be mistreated financially even if you make friends.

On the other hand, if you look at these lowly people, what can you gain by letting them make the decision?
So, this is open bribery.

It's just more hidden.

If it is an ordinary official with relatively poor moral character, he will definitely be greedy and be tempted by it.

As for those who are not greedy, most of them are timid. If they are timid, they will fear whether their connections with the Zhejiang government will be regained.

Therefore, only a person who is not greedy and not afraid of death will have the penalty result unfavorable to him.

But how many such people are there in the world?
Based on this alone, Zhu Houzhao could conclude that this person was guilty. Even if it was not the crime mentioned by these witnesses, he must have committed other crimes.Because he is so skillful and sophisticated in his methods and so thick-skinned, he cannot be a good person.

Another thing, this bastard is a little irritating.

Swish!
Zhu Houzhao flicked the fan in his hand and said, "Two pavilion elders, have you heard this?"

Wang Bing and Yang Tinghe also expressed their thoughts, "Your Majesty, I heard them all."

"It's good that you heard it." Zhu Houzhao stood up, his smile gradually froze, and his face started to look frosty, "I'm not in the mood to listen to the scoundrels wrangling here. I don't want to hear about this case anymore, You Zhi, follow me out. "

"Yes!"

Wang Bing and Yang Tinghe looked shocked, "Your Majesty!"

It's a pity that these two 60-year-old men can't keep up with the pace of the young emperor.

As soon as he appeared, Song Heng immediately moved his butt off the stool to make way for him. Zhu Houzhao sat down without any politeness.