Shen Rui, Shen Jue and others were located more than ten feet away from the official road. Seeing such gossip, they couldn't help but be curious.
Different from Shen Jue and Shen Quan, Shen Rui went out with Wang Shouren to socialize later in his life. He also heard a lot of gossip about the royal family and ministers circulating in the official circles of the capital. From the previous name of this young man in brocade, he suddenly thought of a person. , that is Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites, who retired and returned to his hometown after this "Beijing Inspection".
Xu Qiong was elected in the second year of Jingtai and second in the first year of Yuanshun. By the year of Hongzhi, he had been an official for more than 40 years and experienced three dynasties.
There are rumors that the imperial examination fraud case in the twelfth year of Hongzhi was brought about by Xu Qiong.
In the official records of the Ming Dynasty, although it is stated that there is only one person in one minister, there is actually more than one person in each department.
There were additional titles given by cabinet ministers, various favors, and together with the Minister of Rites of Nanjing, there were up to six people at most.
Non-Jinshi were not allowed to enter the Imperial Academy, non-Hanlin were not allowed to enter the cabinet, and cabinet ministers had to enter the Ministry of Rites before entering the cabinet.
Xu Qiong had a chance to join the cabinet because of his qualifications, but it was because of his behavior that he was despised by civil servants.
A piece of gossip widely circulated among high-level officials in the capital is that in the late Chenghua period, Xu Qiong, who was serving as a wine minister in the Nanjing Imperial College, took a virgin who was not a student of the Imperial College as a concubine when he returned to Beijing to resign.
This incident is not unusual, but what is strange is that the prison supervisor has an eldest daughter who was chosen as the crown princess.
Although this gossip was said, Xu Qiong never admitted it publicly. Before the death of Duke Chang Guo, Xu Qiong remained an official in Nanjing and never returned to Beijing.
However, after the death of Duke Chang Guo, Xu Qiong, who had been sitting on the bench in Nanjing for more than ten years, has indeed risen through the ranks, from assistant minister to minister, and has been promoted to Prince Shaobao, as if he is going to join the cabinet. Moreover, he has been favored several times. Xu Qiong always stood by Jin Shang and supported the re-confession of the Zhang family.
In the twelfth year of Hongzhi's reign, the "Imperial Examination Fraud Case" occurred. Cheng Minzheng, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, who was the impeached examiner involved in the case, was unjustly imprisoned, and finally died of injustice and anger. Xu Qiong's favor also came to an end.
Later, news came out that it was Xu Qiong who secretly instructed Shi Zhonghuachang to impeach the chief examiner for fraud in the imperial examination.
Cheng Minzheng was also ranked second in the rankings, but he was more than ten years younger than Xu Qiong. He was a lot behind in his career in the imperial examination. However, compared with Xu Qiong, whose official career had not been smooth for many years, although he had had ups and downs, his life was much more prosperous.
Cheng Minzheng was recommended to the imperial court as a "child prodigy" at the age of thirteen, and was ordered to study in the Hanlin Academy. He passed the Yuan Dynasty at the age of nineteen, and was ranked second at the age of twenty-three. He once lectured directly in the East Palace, and had a teacher-student relationship with the current emperor.
In the first year of Hongzhi, Cheng Minzheng was slandered and became an official because of his upright character. In the fifth year of Hongzhi's injustice, he was reinstated and has been a close minister of the emperor ever since. In the eleventh year of Hongzhi, he was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of Rites and served as the vice president of the "Da Ming Huidian", in charge of the cabinet. Imperial edict, this is already a prelude to becoming a cabinet minister.
Although Xu Qiong is the minister, Cheng Minzheng is just the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, and between them there is Wang Hua, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, who also has a teacher-student relationship with Jin Shang. However, when entering the cabinet, official rank and first-come, first-served basis are not important.
According to the holy family at that time, it was not impossible for Cheng Minzheng to directly enter the cabinet, bypassing Xu Qiong and Wang Hua.
Cheng Minzheng came from a long-standing eunuch family. His family ancestors' official career can be traced back to the Yuan Dynasty. His father was a minister. After he entered Beijing as a boy, he became a student under several famous Confucian scholars. His in-laws cannot be said to be from the Manchu Dynasty. It is not comparable to Xu Qiong.
Although it is just a rumor that Xu Qiong conspired to harm Cheng Minzheng, there is no smoke without fire. In addition, Xu Qiong has always acted in the interests of others and has no literary character. Regardless of whether he did it or not, the blame will be placed on him.
After Cheng Minzheng died of illness, he was given the title of Minister of Rites. His eldest son, Cheng Jin, was originally awarded the title of Jin Yiwei to a hundred households based on his ancestral martial arts skills. After his father died of illness, he was promoted to the rank of Deputy Qianwei through his father's legacy. His youngest son Cheng Tang, Enyin, entered the Imperial Academy to study.
Although there were later rumors involving Fu Han, the successor as the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, saying that he was concerned about Cheng Minzheng's position and that was why he was plotting to harm Cheng Minzheng, but who would believe it?
Fu Han was a close minister of the emperor, with outstanding virtues and praised by the world. Even though he had not held any actual post in the six ministries before, he had already held the title of minister and served as an advisor to the emperor.
Isn't it a scandal for the minister to worry about the official position of the minister?
By the time of this year's "Beijing Prosecution", there would not be two reports of impeaching Xu Qiong; when the "Beijing Prosecution" came, there would not be one or two inappropriate things discovered by the Ministry of Rites.
Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites, had no choice but to "resign his old age and return home." The person who succeeded him as Minister of Rites was Fu Han, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites.
In the hearts of the emperor and the six ministries and nine ministers, they have already made their judgments about who is loyal and who is traitorous.
The replacement of the Minister of Rites was later than that of the Ministry of Punishments, after the Dragon Boat Festival. Xu Qiong should have returned to his hometown, but I don't know if he still has any relatives in Beijing.
That young man in brocade clothes calls Uncle Jianchang "Second Uncle". Is he really Xu Qiong's son?
Looking at Jian Changbo's appearance, he obviously knew the young man, but he didn't look good.
After the young man shouted "Second uncle", Uncle Jianchang raised his whip, said a few words, and ordered the people around to drag the young man down.
The young man looked frightened, but because his mouth had been gagged, he did not continue to speak.
Next, Mrs. Chang Guotai's ceremonial guard continued to move forward and gradually moved away. The few guards in uniforms dragging the young man took the boards and played with them "crackling" on the roadside.
I don't know how many times they were beaten before the guards threw the young man there and roared away.
The crowd also came out from various retreats, pointing at the beaten and dying young man in brocade clothes.
Shen Quan breathed a sigh of relief and said: "It's really shocking. At first, I really thought it was the prince who was incognito...
Shen Jue said: "This Uncle Jianchang really likes to hit people. Last time Shen Zhu was like this, and now this young man is like this too."
Shen Quandao: "I think Jian Changbo's temper is not as domineering as the rumors say... Even if he asked people to hit him with a wooden board, he didn't ask anyone to hit him a few times..." As he said this, he gestured towards the official road.
Everyone looked over and saw the young man in brocade clothes getting up unsteadily. Several boys came over and supported him.
This person was still able to get up after being beaten, which shows that Jian Changbo was really merciful.
"Eh? That's not Cousin Yang..." Shen Jue said in surprise.
Shen Rui saw that the fat man who appeared later was none other than Yang Zhongyan.
In the past, when there were many pedestrians on both sides of the official road, the brothers stood under the tree and were not visible. Now that most of the pedestrians have dispersed, they are more conspicuous here.
When Shen Rui and others recognized Yang Zhongyan, Yang Zhongyan obviously also saw them, said a few words to the young man in brocade clothes, and trotted over.
Shen Rui and others couldn't help but move forward.
"He is the second son from the third uncle's second wife." Since Shen Quan had never met Yang Zhongyan, Shen Jue told Shen Quan in a low voice.
Yang Zhongyan's head was sweaty, but he didn't bother to wipe it off. He looked at everyone with surprise and said: "Cousin Rui, cousin Jue"
Shen Rui and Shen Jue, who also called themselves "cousins," met him, and Shen Rui introduced Shen Quan.
"So it's brother Quan San..." Yang Zhongyan didn't notice anyone else, so he followed Shen Rui's call.
Shen Quan saw that although he was not as fat as Shen Bao, he still had a friendly smile like a big fu, and he couldn't help but feel good about him.
Seeing that the young man in brocade clothes was waiting not far away with his young servant chief, Shen Rui said: "Is there something wrong with Cousin Yang? If anything happens, please go ahead and take care of yourself. We are not outsiders."
Yang Zhongyan looked back at the young man in brocade clothes with a somewhat tangled expression. After a while, he explained in a low voice: "That is Xu Wu, the youngest son of Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites. When Xu Shangshu became an official, Enyin's son was imprisoned, so Xu Wu was left behind. I am in Beijing. The Xu family is my neighbor. Today, Xu Shangshu returned to his hometown. My father's office could not leave, so he asked his eldest brother and me to come and see him off. After seeing him off, his eldest brother went back to the city first. Xu Wu heard someone mention Mrs. Chang Guotai. When they arrived by boat, they refused to leave even though they were not paying attention. It was really a headache to let him run past without paying attention... After all this trouble, it would be hard to introduce this troublesome spirit to Quan Sange and the two brothers. I know my cousin, so I will send him back to the city first instead of picking up my second uncle with everyone. When I go over to pay my respects to my second uncle tomorrow, we brothers can have a nice talk...
Shen Rui and others naturally had no objections and said goodbye to Yang Zhongyan, watching him and the young man in brocade clothes get into the carriage and drive away.
Shen Jue asked strangely: "Master Guan of the Secretariat calls Uncle Guo 'Second Uncle', how can we say that? Is his brain broken?"
The rumor about Duke Xu Qiong Na Chang's concubine being a concubine was widely circulated in the official circles of the capital. Shen Jue and Shen Quan would hear about it one day. Shen Rui had nothing to hide, so he recounted the gossip he heard.
Shen Quan said in surprise: "I really didn't expect that this 'Second uncle,' it's not just random talk, it's actually for a reason. What did Duke Chang Guo think? Even if you are a concubine, you can't give someone as a concubine! The queen's natal family actually What do you call a daughter who comes out to be a concubine?"
Shen Jue was also surprised: "The queen's sister is actually a concubine..."
Shen Ruidao: "It's really unbelievable, but there are rumors that Mrs. Changguo has the style of Mrs. Fang...
Shen Jue thought for a while and said: "Even if Xu Shangshu was a concubine at the time, it would be time for him to take up his position later... We can't let the queen's own sister continue to be a concubine..."
Shen Quandao: "That's not necessarily the case with Jianchang Bo's appearance. It's obvious that he doesn't recognize this relative... The empress is the direct descendant of the emperor, so what does it mean to have a concubine to support her? Is this asking the people of the world to respect orthodoxy, or is it? What's going on? If Zhang's concubine has been living in the side room, the rumors are just rumors. If she is really straightened out and socialized, there will inevitably be similarities between the sisters. Do we need the reputation of the Queen and the Zhang family..."
Shen Rui nodded and said, "Brother Quan is right. Although Xu Qiong lost his first wife in the early years of Hongzhi, he never remarried or straightened things out..."
Shen Jue said: "The posture of Mr. Xu Wu just now is that he is determined to recognize his mother-in-law... How many times do you make trouble like this? How will the Zhang family respond?"
If you were a commoner, you would be killed if you provoked the authority of the royal family and relatives in this way.
Xu Wu was the minister's son, and he stayed in Beijing to study at the Imperial Academy. The Zhang family really had to think carefully if they wanted to kill him.
I am a benevolent king and treat the Zhang family so kindly. If the Zhang family is cold-blooded and ruthless and disowns all relatives, how will I treat the Zhang family?