Lao Zhu was so angry that he cursed. Tang Shengzong's hands trembled and he almost dropped the bowl. Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him, "Don't waste food! Drink it!"
Tang Shengzong was really scared. He trembled and drank the bowl of soup. Finally, there was something in his empty stomach. Tang Shengzong was actually a little hungry.
"Have another bowl and refill it for him!" Zhu Yuanzhang said coldly.
In this way, Tang Shengzong drank five bowls in a row, and his spirits improved a lot. Except for being still tired and sleepy, he had no other illnesses.
Zhu Yuanzhang also leaned against the wooden fence and sat down, almost shoulder to shoulder with Tang Shengzong. Without this cell door, it would actually be the same as when he raised the army.
Zhu Yuanzhang's face was full of tangle and pain. Even now, he still can't figure out how a person can change so much.
"We're here and we've drank the soup. We hope you can understand. Stop talking nonsense and say whatever you have to say. Maybe we will be more lenient."
Lao Zhu didn't say anything further. After Tang Shengzong hesitated for a short time, he had no choice but to accept his fate.
Is it really going to arouse Zhu Yuanzhang's thunderous wrath? When that happens, he won't be able to bear it!
"Your superiors, guilty ministers, and guilty ministers all understand. If your superiors want to ask anything, just say it!"
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "We want to hear from you, how did you get dragged into the water?"
"I, I fell on the ancestral hall!"
Tang Shengzong finally told the truth... In fact, since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Tang Shengzong was not as diligent as before, but his appearance did not change immediately.
Only a few years ago, when he occasionally returned to his hometown, someone suggested that he build an ancestral hall at his home to pay homage to his ancestors and honor his ancestors.
"Your Majesty, the guilty minister really didn't think of anything else, so he left a thousand coins to his family. That was the guilty minister's salary. Really not a penny came from greedy money! Really not!"
"But who knew that when I returned to Yingtian, they repaired and repaired again and again, saying that there was a gap. Later, there were some key materials that needed to be bought from Yangzhou. I wanted to tell them that it didn't cost so much.
, just think about it. Who knew that after the trip to Yangzhou, someone would actually be willing to help and gave a lot of things. The criminal was also fascinated for a while, so he accepted it. Later, I found out that it was given to me by the Miao family, that is
After Miao Daheng died, they wanted to find a backer!"
"I, I regret it now! My reputation has been ruined by a few pieces of wood and broken tiles!" When Tang Shengzong said this, he stamped his feet, beat his chest, and cried loudly.
Zhu Yuanzhang took a breath silently and couldn't help but sneer.
"You don't need to be aggrieved. In fact, on the day we were knighted, someone asked us if we could build an ancestral hall?"
Tang Shengzong was startled and lost his voice: "Your superiors, I, I don't know!"
"Of course you don't know!" Zhu Yuanzhang said rudely: "As a veteran general in the army and a person who has been awarded the title of Marquis, you can't help but understand these things! Your mansions are regulated, so how can you be allowed to build them privately?
Ancestral hall? Even if it is built, it will have to wait for our will. Mr. Zhang didn’t build it, Xu Da didn’t build it, Chang Yuchun and Hu Dahai didn’t build it, but you! Not only did you build the ancestral hall, but you also accepted bribes from others.
, you deserve it!”
Tang Shengzong was stunned for a moment, and finally lowered his head. Zhu Yuanzhang was right. In the end, he was not cautious enough, or lacked self-discipline. He felt that with his own merit, what could he do if he accepted some gifts, built an ancestral hall, and offered sacrifices to his ancestors?
Who will pursue it?
"What's next? You just collected those fields?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked.
Tang Shengzong was taken aback for a moment, then immediately shook his head, "Your superiors, I didn't think about this at first, but gradually, some relatives from my hometown and old troops from the army came to see me and told me some things. Most of them asked for help.
As time went by, I had no money at home. Every time my relatives and friends came over, I had to entertain them, but I was afraid that they would come over. Several times when people came, I couldn’t get the money, so I lost people. And then... and then again.
, someone found the guilty minister and said that it was no big deal, and as long as the minister nodded, he could easily get it."
Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but snorted, it was another drama of acknowledgment of kinship and relationship.
Is it very fresh?
When he became the king of Wu, even Zhu Xi's descendants came to establish relations with him. Zhang Ximeng became famous all over the world, and a pair of relatives came to him.
It's not that just because he's a relative, he's not a good person.
After becoming an official, I wish I could disown my relatives.
But you should always be on guard and see clearly what these people are planning.
There must be a moderation in everything.
In a situation like Tang Shengzong's, he was dragged into the pit step by step and could never get up again.
"You got into the water yourself, did you drag others along?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked.
Tang Shengzong hesitated slightly and stopped talking.
"Your Majesty, I know that I am guilty, and I deserve to die! I only hope that I can die to warn others. I also hope that my superiors will remember their past friendship, be open-minded, and not implicate other people."
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Okay! You are quite loyal! You thought that if you save them, you will be saved. Unfortunately, you are wrong! Your hypocrisy will only make us sick! You
What did you just say? Have you forgotten? You made a fortune from navy smuggling and implicated Mr. Zhang, why didn’t you keep it secret? Shameless! Hypocritical! Hypocritical!”
Lao Zhu cursed loudly, and Tang Shengzong was stunned. He had no idea that his casual words would cause such a big disaster...
"Your Majesty, guilty minister, guilty minister has no intention of trying to get involved with Prime Minister Zhang. How dare you, guilty minister! It's just that there are indeed people from the navy who are smuggling, and guilty minister, guilty minister doesn't know Prime Minister Zhang..."
Snap!
Zhu Yuanzhang waved his fist and hit the wooden railing hard, causing Tang Shengzong to walk away.
"Bring the torture instruments!"
Lao Zhu roared angrily, but Guo Ying did not dare to neglect and quickly brought a rawhide whip. Zhu Yuanzhang took it in his hand and suddenly swung it. The whip passed through the gap accurately and landed on Tang Shengzong's cheek.
The skin was torn open and blood was flowing!
"Sign up, the guilty minister deserves to die!"
While he was kowtowing, the second whip came!
"Tang Shengzong! You beast! When you joined the army, it was Mr. Zhang who gave you names and taught you how to write stroke by stroke... He is not only our husband, but also the husband of you people! What has Mr. Zhang been over the years?
Everyone knows this kind of person! Not long ago, in order to divide the province, he argued hard and refused to allow civil servants to guard the border, because he was afraid that the civil servants would usurp your right to lead troops!"
"Mr. Zhang is easier to talk to than us. He is kind to you, and then you repay the kindness with hatred, which is completely unscrupulous! No matter what, we can't spare you for a beast like you!"
Zhu Yuanzhang was furious. On the other side, in front of Zhang Ximeng's house, someone knelt down straight.
This person is Lu Zhongheng!
It's just that the door of Zhang's mansion is closed, and there is no intention to see him.
In the flower hall of Zhang Mansion, Zhu Di was grilling venison. He regarded Zhang Ximeng's house as a barbecue stall.
Zhang Ximeng had no choice. He suddenly asked curiously: "King Yan, now the prince is managing Peiping for you. In a few years, you will go to Peiping and become a vassal. What do you want?"
"I want everything! Everything is mine!" Zhu Laosi said vaguely.
Zhang Ximeng snorted, "You have forty-eight hours a day? Everything is given to you, what can you control?"
Zhu Di thought for a while and suddenly said: "Well, can you ask Zhang Shuning to help me?"
"No!" Zhang Ximeng said coldly: "Zhang Shuning will be a teacher in the future, teach and educate people, and inherit the mantle of my Zhang family. How can he have time to help you?"
"Ah? So that's it." Zhu Di thought for a moment and said, "Then, can I inherit my father's mantle?"
Zhang Ximeng smiled, even though he was not good-looking, he still wanted to be so beautiful!
Zhu Laosi, you have gone too far!
"I can only ask His Majesty."
Obviously, Zhu Di did not have the courage. After gritting his teeth for a long time, he raised his head and asked Zhang Ximeng.
"Sir, what can I order?"
Zhang Ximeng smiled, "There are a lot of things, such as soldiers and horses, money and food, land, talents..."
"This is good!" Zhu Di said excitedly: "I want soldiers and horses, the more the better! With soldiers and horses, I will have money and food! I will also have talents! Whoever doesn't listen to me, I will give him
Kidnap me!"
While talking, he secretly glanced at Zhang Shuning.
Of course, this guy's evil thoughts cannot be hidden from Zhang Ximeng.
"I can give you soldiers and horses, but I can't give you land in the Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Di was startled, "Then, what is the territory of the Ming Dynasty?"
"This...of course we still have to wait for the lord to delineate it. But if you want more land, you have to fight for it yourself. Do you understand?"
Zhu Di thought for a while, nodded and said: "I understand, you just don't allow me to occupy people's fields casually!"
Zhang Ximeng couldn't help but smile, "King Yan is quite well-informed, does he even know about this kind of thing?"
Zhu Di grinned, do you really think I'm a fool?
The arrest of Tang Shengzong this time involved such a big case, which has long been discussed in martial arts. And with Lan Yu here, it is difficult for the students not to know about these things.
"Xiang Zhang, don't worry, I won't go against you! Even for Zhang Shuning's sake, I will respect you. Moreover, it would be too boring and shameful for the common people to grab land!"
Zhang Ximeng couldn't help but laugh, "If you dare to love me, do you still want to accept your love as your son?"
Thank you, Mr. Zhu, for giving me the face!
"Zhu Di, what do you think about those shameless things that rob people of their property?"
"What else can we do? Kill!"
Zhu Di suddenly said: "Just like we did with the salt road officials before, kill them all!"
Zhang Ximeng thought for a moment, didn't expect Zhu Di to be so murderous?
"Did you say this, or did Lan Yu tell you?"
"Lanyu said it to others. I'll just say it if it makes sense!" Zhu Di said confidently.
Zhang Ximeng pondered for a moment, then suddenly said: "Tell the people outside the door that all I have thought about and worked hard on all my life is nothing more than the word "Jiuntian"! Who gave him the face to dare to come to my door?"
Zhang Ximeng, who has always been as gentle as jade, does not seem to refuse people, but he can actually say such heartless words?
The servants were stunned for a long time, and then they ran out, shouted at Lu Zhongheng through the crack in the door.
"You annexed acres of land and occupied people's land, and you still have the nerve to ask for forgiveness from Prime Minister Zhang. Where did you get the courage?"
Almost instantly, Lu Zhongheng felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
The situation he faced was even more desperate than Tang Shengzong!
Does Zhu Yuanzhang seem to be able to intercede?
But in Zhang Ximeng's case, destroying the equalization of land has violated Zhang Ximeng's taboo, and death is already the cheapest option.
Disgraced has already been booked in advance!
Lawrence Lu stood up, staggered and almost fell!
It’s hopeless!
Just when he turned around, the men and horses of the Arch Guard were already waiting.
"Lu Zhongheng, you have embezzled 50,000 acres of farmland. Your crime cannot be punished. Come with us to jail!"
Tang Shengzong, Lu Zhongheng, the Miao family, and the three military ministers were all meritorious people.
After touching Tianmu, there is still nothing to say.
Soon Zhu Yuanzhang issued an order to select a day to try the case!
What is surprising is that the Menxia Province later announced a list of civil and military officials involved in the case, and Zhang Ximeng also took the initiative to release the news that he would coordinate the trial.