Chapter 99: I Don’t Believe The Emperor Can Kill Us All! 【 Monthly Ticket Bonus Update 6 】
Zhang Biao suspended the audit by tearing up the imperial decree, surprising Jiang Huan, Yun Ming, and everyone else, and likely surprising Old Zhu as well.
But that doesn’t mean this matter is over.
On the contrary, the real show has just begun.
Although the audit work was suspended, those government offices and nobles who were audited found themselves in a state of mutual insecurity.
Even though Old Zhu sent messages through Liu Sanwu and Mei Yin that he had been ‘angered to the point of fainting’ again by Zhang Biao, the dark clouds in everyone’s hearts did not dissipate.
Therefore, they had to consider their next steps and countermeasures.
And at this time, at Fu Youwen’s Mansion.
The Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, who had been driven to his breaking point by Zhang Biao’s accounting, had disappeared.
He had been replaced by a shrewd and seasoned political creature who had been active in the Imperial Court for decades.
Then he heard him ask in a low voice, “You say, did His Majesty really faint this time, or was it a pretense? And Zhang Biao, has he really suspended the audit?”
The few trusted subordinates and a strategist opposite each other, then the strategist was the first to reply, “Replying to Esteemed Master, in my opinion, His Majesty is likely faking his faint.”
“Oh?” Fu Youwen raised an eyebrow, then raised his hand and said, “Tell me about it.”
The strategist stroked his beard and pondered, “I believe that when the Jingyang Bell rang, His Majesty had already woken up. For some reason later, he ‘fainted’ again.”
“But it must have something to do with Zhang Biao.”
“Also, I heard that Zhan Hui was imprisoned by His Majesty. His Majesty also issued an imperial decree to reward Zhang Biao and others for their auditing.”
“All these signs indicate that His Majesty wants to use Zhang Biao’s hand to deal with those he wants to remove but cannot due to considerations of face and circumstances.”
“This situation is like the three major cases of that year. If he doesn’t act, he doesn’t act, but when he does, it’s like thunder.”
Hearing this, everyone’s heart tensed, and they fell silent.
The three major cases of the Hongwu era were something they could not ignore.
Anyone who experienced these three major cases would be deeply disturbed.
After a moment, another trusted subordinate echoed:
“Strategist Li’s analysis is very reasonable. Zhang Biao is arrogant and unruly, his words are wild, but his confiscation actions are orderly, his accounts are clear, the lists are confirmed, and it seems to be systematic.”
He then looked around at everyone and said, “If this scoundrel is not removed, he will surely become a major threat to us!”
“Indeed.”
“Hmph!”
Fu Youwen snorted coldly, interrupting the others who wanted to speak, and said, “Systematic? He has no system at all! He’s dancing on the tip of a knife, setting off firecrackers in a cesspool! He’s treating himself as bait, thrown into this murky water of our Great Ming Dynasty!”
Saying this, he slammed the tea cup on the table to the ground with a ‘snap’: “Auditing? Checking accounts? Is he checking the accounts? He’s checking the face of our Great Ming Dynasty! The Emperor’s face!”
“This…”
The trusted subordinates and the strategist looked at each other.
After a moment, a subordinate gritted his teeth and said, “Minister, Zhang Biao is so rampant, can we really just let him…”
“Let him?”
Fu Youwen sneered, narrowed his eyes, and said, “He won’t last long! His Majesty’s current attitude is ambiguous; he may not truly intend to protect him, but perhaps merely use this madman to kill people! Once the people who should be killed are killed, this knife will be broken!”
The strategist stroked his beard, his eyes flashing, “Esteemed Master is absolutely right. The key now is to follow the trend and shift the blame.”
“Oh? What is your plan?” Fu Youwen leaned forward.
“First!”
The strategist said in a low voice, “Zhang Biao has audited many of our problems, hasn’t he? We admit it! But how we admit it matters.”
“We can voluntarily submit a memorial of self-accusation, weep profusely, admit to poor supervision and subordinates deceiving us, and shift most of the responsibility to Zhao Qian, who is already dead and cannot be cross-examined, and to some unimportant clerks!”
“We can also propose to sell our property to make up for some of the deficits, to show our remorse!”
“His Majesty is angry. If he sees that we are sincere, he may impose a lighter sentence. This is sacrificing the rook to save the king, cutting off the tail to survive!”
“Second!”
Saying this, he looked around at everyone, and then sinisterly added, “Zhang Biao’s audit revealed problems not just in our Ministry of Revenue! The other five ministries, and even the Five Military Commissions, who is clean?”
“We will secretly leak more explosive clues about other people’s accounts, or subtly pass them to Zhang Biao’s group!”
“We will guide that mad dog to bite more powerful characters, such as those nobles who hold military power! This is shifting the blame and using a tiger to swallow a wolf!”
“But didn’t Zhang Biao suspend the audit? Will he still bite wildly like before?” a subordinate frowned.
The strategist smiled, “Some things are easy to start, but not easy to stop. Zhang Biao’s audit is like poking a hornet’s nest. If we have a bad time, should we let others have a good time?”
“Exactly! If we die, we die together!”
A hint of ruthlessness and approval flashed in Fu Youwen’s eyes, “Let’s do it! Also, send someone to Jiangnan to find my father-in-law and have him use his connections in the pure stream faction to impeach Zhang Biao!”
“Impeach him for what?”
Several trusted subordinates asked in unison.
Fu Youwen then said, “Impeach him for trampling on the court’s laws, humiliating the dignity of scholars, competing with the people for profit, and disgracing the literati! We must muddy the waters and paint him as a sinner for eternity who has destroyed the moral principles of the court!”
“Brilliant!”
The strategist’s eyes lit up, and he stroked his beard, praising, “Esteemed Master’s plan is truly brilliant! It avoids the important and focuses on the trivial, and does not impeach the audit. This is a soft knife!”
“Hahaha!”
Fu Youwen laughed heartily.
Several trusted subordinates also laughed along.
On the other side, the Minister of War, Ru Chang’s Mansion.
The same situation occurred not only in Fu Youwen’s mansion but also in Ru Chang’s mansion.
But his strategy was different from Fu Youwen’s.
He was obese, but at this moment, he was like a brown bear suppressing his rage.
“Cry poverty? Plead guilty?”
Ru Chang scoffed at his staff’s suggestion, “That’s for civilian officials! I am the Minister of War! In charge of all the troops in the empire! You want to play this game with him?”
Saying this, a fierce look of a soldier flashed in his eyes, “Zhang Biao is capable of auditing, isn’t he? He can confiscate, can’t he? Good! I’ll let him audit to his heart’s content!”
“Go! Pick a few of the most outrageous and far-reaching scandals from our army, such as embezzlement of military pay, resale of military equipment, and even killing civilians to claim merit. Make the evidence solid, and deliver it to Zhang Biao yourself!”
“Minister!”
The staff was greatly alarmed, and trembled as they said, “This… this is like destroying our own defenses!”
“Nonsense about destroying our own defenses!”
Ru Chang sneered, then said in a low voice, “Which garrison doesn’t have these messy affairs? The law does not punish the masses! I will reveal the festering wound for him to see! Let’s see if he dares to touch it! After he touches it, will the soldiers of all the garrisons hate him or me?!”
“His Majesty still wants to pretend to faint? Let him continue to make trouble, alright! Then let him make trouble! Let’s see if he can clean up the mess if he continues to make trouble!”
“This is called fighting poison with poison!”
Saying this, he stood up from his seat and looked down on everything, saying, “Do you really think I’ve been the Minister of War for nothing?”
“Over the years, let alone Zhang Biao, even those princes, who doesn’t know about my messy affairs? But do they dare to touch me? Do they dare to impeach me?”
“Even the Prince Yan in Beiping, if I obstruct him, he wouldn’t dare to make a sound!”
“Before, everyone was polite to each other, and everyone knew the score. Now this kid called Zhang Biao gives no face at all!”
“Good! We will use the military’s mess to hold him hostage!”
“If he dares to investigate, he will be the enemy of all military households! His Majesty will have to weigh this carefully!”
“If he dares not to investigate, then his previous audit is a joke! I can then counter-accuse him of slander!”
“Also…”
At this point, Ru Chang turned to his staff again and lowered his voice:
“Pass a message to those old generals in the Five Military Commissions, telling them to have their proud and fierce soldiers spontaneously patrol near the dormitories of Zhang Biao’s group of brothers! No need to fight, just keep an eye on them! Let those poor scholars understand the situation properly!”
“Understood!”
The staff acknowledged and withdrew, and also flattered Ru Chang by saying, “Minister, your wisdom is supreme.”
“Hmph!”
Ru Chang snorted coldly, then walked to the window and looked in the direction of the Imperial Palace, his eyes hazy as he said, “Your Majesty! If you truly kill all of us for that madman, how long will your Great Ming Dynasty last?”
“Or…”
He paused, then said in a low voice, “Have you, Zhu Chongba, forgotten how this world was obtained?”
At the same time, Duke Cao’s Mansion.
Li Jinglong, as a representative of the nobles, felt the most wronged.
Not only was his home raided, but he was forcibly treated to a meal, and his illustrated edition of The Plum in the Golden Vase was confiscated, which was an utter humiliation.
However, he did not shout for war like his father’s generation, but displayed a different kind of wisdom.
He admitted defeat.
That’s right, he admitted defeat.
He neither provoked Zhang Biao and his group nor contacted other nobles to jointly retaliate against them.
Shortly after Zhang Biao and his group left, he asked his strategist to write a memorial to Old Zhu, full of empty words, the core of which was that he was sorry for Old Zhu’s trust and wanted to resign and recuperate.
Then, he spent the night inventorying the valuable items in his home, compiled a detailed list, and submitted it to the palace along with the memorial.
After doing all this, he let out a long sigh of relief and collapsed onto a chair made of huanghuali wood, murmuring:
“This scoundrel Zhang Biao is truly a madman. I don’t know if he will survive. If he does, I really want to be friends with him!”
After saying this, he remembered his father’s dying wish, asking him not to interfere in power struggles and to follow the general trend.
Now, Zhang Biao’s actions made him faintly see a glimmer of the general trend, and he couldn’t help but murmur again:
“I hope this audit does not involve the matter of establishing the Crown Prince. Otherwise, many people will die!”
Thinking of Old Zhu’s madness that day in the Hall of Supreme Harmony Square.
Li Jinglong shivered involuntarily and quickly instructed the butler outside the door, “Tomorrow, tomorrow we will move to the villa outside the city!”
