Emperor Zhengde

Chapter 103: Renovation of the Leopard House into a University

Shaanxi Provincial Governor Lü Zhonghe and his relatives, as well as other officials who were involved in the case of colluding with the Tartars to harm the people, were all escorted to Beijing one after another.

At this time, Shao Daxia, who had once pretended to be a Tartar and was instructed by Li Dongyang to massacre the villagers, was also captured by Yang Yiqing.

Originally, when Master Shao learned that Li Dongyang was imprisoned, he immediately went into hiding, but the government was investigating strictly and he himself was unwilling to hide in the mountains and forests as a real bandit. Therefore, when Yang Yiqing contacted Master Shao through people in the underworld and revealed his intention to turn Master Shao and his followers into court officers and soldiers, Master Shao was tempted.

Even this hero Shao met with Yang Yiqing: "Sir, I wonder why you are willing to help me?"

"Based on this, Li Gefu's personal letter to me, to be honest, I also want to have someone like Shao Daxia to help me do things that I can't do in the future. Now that the court is investigating strictly, it is undoubtedly the safest to let you become court officers and soldiers with my help. What do you think, Shao Daxia?"

Yang Yiqing took out the handwritten letter that Li Dongyang had written to him, and this also completely convinced Shao Xia.

As expected, the hero Shao brought all his followers to Xi'an Prefecture. However, as soon as Shao entered the inner city of Xi'an, Yang Yiqing immediately ordered the city gates to be closed. The government troops who had been ambushed in various places rushed out from the houses, and arrows rained down and lead bullets raged. In an instant, the hero Shao and his followers were chopped into a pile of mud.

And Shao Daxia himself was also captured alive.

"Yang Yiqing, you little bastard, you dare to lie to me, I'm going to kill you!"

When Shao Daxia was brought in front of Yang Yiqing, he was furious.

Yang Yiqing, on the other hand, looked calm as he folded Li Dongyang's handwritten letter into his memorial, and said with a smile: "How dare I keep a wanted criminal like you? If I offer you to the court, I can wash away my relationship with Li Dongyang, isn't that better?"

As he spoke, Yang Yiqing instructed a military officer, "Be careful and send Shao the Great to the capital safely. Also, send this memorial to the emperor!"

……

All the officials and bandits who had once conspired with the Tartars to murder the people of Sanyuan County have now been brought to justice.

Zhu Houzhao was not polite and directly ordered: "As the saying goes, if a prince breaks the law, he is guilty of the same crime as the common people. Naturally, killing the people is the same crime as regicide. Execute Lü Zhonghe and Shao Daxia's ten clans as well. This can be regarded as a deterrent to the officials and gentry in the north. Don't think you can really do whatever you want. Once the court finds out that they are colluding with the Tartars and killing the people, the court will not let them off easily!"

In this way, Lu Zhonghe, Shao Daxia and others were also sentenced to death, and the people of Sanyuan County who were slaughtered can now rest in peace.

……

The months-long regicide case and the resulting massacre of the people have now come to an end.

In this major case, the number of people implicated reached over ten thousand, which was no less than the major cases during the Hongwu period. The whole government and the people were shocked, and Zhu Houzhao's imperial majesty was so great that even children would stop crying when they heard his name.

However, Zhu Houzhao still felt that he was actually a very kind and benevolent person, and he was not a ruthless and bloodthirsty person.

Moreover, every time Zhu Houzhao looked in the mirror, he saw that he was just a young man with fair skin and stubble. On the eve of the New Year of the first year of Zhengde, Zhu Houzhao took the initiative to convene a court meeting. This time, he summoned officials from various ministries in the central government of the empire, poets from the Hanlin Academy, and censors from the Censorate to the Qianqing Palace.

There is no other reason.

Even though he killed many people, Zhu Houzhao still had to fulfill his duties as an emperor, and he really wanted to turn the Ming Dynasty into a truly powerful empire, rather than let it perish at the hands of foreigners a hundred years later.

Zhu Houzhao obviously felt much more pleasing to the officials in the court during this court meeting, because he could see that these court officials were now very respectful to him. Although it was a bit too cautious, it was better than having them despise him.

"Although a major case of regicide has occurred recently, implicating many people, this is not my original intention. I am only seeking revenge for the late emperor and rectifying human relations for the sake of the country. I still hope that you can work with me to govern the Ming Dynasty. I am determined to continue the will of the late emperor, continue the Hongzhi Restoration, and usher in the Zhengde Prosperity! Become an eternal emperor!"

As Zhu Houzhao spoke, he waved his wide sleeves, and the tassels of his crown fluttered in the wind, instantly revealing the demeanor of an emperor.

"Your Majesty is determined to govern the country with all his heart. The Ming Dynasty is fortunate and the people are fortunate!"

Ma Wensheng, the chief minister of the cabinet, did not expect that his emperor was not disheartened and only cared about enjoying himself because of the assassination of the previous emperor. He felt very relieved and hurriedly paid great tribute to Zhu Houzhao.

"Your Majesty is determined to govern the country with all his heart. The Ming Dynasty is fortunate and the people are fortunate!"

For a time, cabinet ministers Jiao Fang, Xu Jin, Zhang Sheng, and Wang Hua all paid homage to Zhu Houzhao. At this time, although the court was not full of upright officials, there were quite a few pragmatic and politically ambitious ministers. Seeing that Zhu Houzhao first eliminated powerful ministers and then avenged his father after ascending the throne, and now had the hope of ruling the world, they were naturally very respectful and moved.

"My dear ministers, I am very pleased that you share the same aspirations with me. Now that the treacherous ministers have been removed, we should resume the good governance of the new dynasty. You can speak freely. I will not blame you. Unless it involves impeachment, accusation or slander, I will not punish you. Political discussions are only divided into high and low, right and wrong, and there is no discussion of guilt!"

Zhu Houzhao stood up and said this with a smile. Although he looked majestic in his imperial robes, it was too tiring to sit still all the time. He had to stand up and walk around. The censors who were there to maintain order in the court naturally did not dare to care whether Zhu Houzhao behaved in a solemn or casual manner.

Ma Wensheng stood up first and said, "Your Majesty, if you want to be an emperor through the ages, you should show your determination to rule the world so that the people of the world can see your determination to rule the world. I suggest that your Majesty demolish the Leopard House!"

"I second the proposal. Your Majesty built the Leopard House to hide your strength and bide your time. Now the court is full of loyal ministers, and the whole world is left with only loyal and righteous ministers. Your Majesty has already moved into the main palace. In order to show your determination to the world, demolishing the Leopard House is undoubtedly a move to win the hearts of the people!"

Cabinet minister Jiao Fang also echoed this.

Then, a group of ministers began to agree with the proposal, and they were also using this to test whether Zhu Houzhao really wanted to bring peace to the world.

Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but smile. He didn't expect that as soon as he expressed his determination to rule the world, these ministers really didn't give him face. They came up with a big move and wanted him to demolish the Leopard House.

"Your suggestion is reasonable, but I think that demolishing the Leopard House can show our determination, but it is a bit of a waste of resources. Although this Leopard House is just my villa, it was built with the efforts of the people and the country. It would be a pity to demolish it. I think it can be used to build a school!"

Zhu Houzhao continued, "The previous emperor was murdered. The so-called gentlemen in the past regarded him as a traitor who looked like a loyal person. Whenever I think of this, I can't help but sigh that people's hearts have changed. I can't help but sigh that I haven't educated my ministers enough. The Tartars are rampant and the country is in decline. This is because people have no chance to learn. If we want to promote the king's rule and implement virtuous policies, running a school is the first priority. Therefore, I have decided to convert the Leopard House into a university, temporarily named the Imperial University!"

(End of this chapter)