Let’s not talk about Zhao Junchen’s speculations, only the situation on the field.
Although Shen Changmao was the elder of the court and had the highest status among the ministers, and his views were relatively moderate, but as soon as Shen Changmao expressed his views, he was immediately fiercely refuted by almost everyone present.
Tang Zhen, the Minister of Hubu in Nanjing, was a die-hard supporter of the Minister of Libu in Nanjing. He was also suppressed by Zhou Shangjing back then. He only wished that Zhou Shangjing would be punished by being cut into pieces, so he immediately came out and retorted: "Mr. Shen Ge said this That's wrong! Our dynasty has strict laws and regulations. Those who have merit will be rewarded, and those who are guilty will be punished. How can there be a theory that merit and demerit balance each other? It is really child's play! Your Majesty, I agree with Wang Shangshu's statement. The impact of Zhou Shangjing's various crimes and responsibilities is really bad, so we must Heavy punishment!"
As Tang Zhen finished his speech, officials from the Sixth Ministry of Nanjing also made statements of support.
On the other side, Young Master Zhang Cheng also came out and said: "Your Majesty, I also believe that Zhou Shangjing must be severely punished. Although he has worked hard over the years, he is now the chief minister of the cabinet. It is your Majesty who has given him a heavy punishment." Since merit is already a reward, how can it be used to offset sin?"
Zhang Cheng is Huang Yourong's confidant, and his temperament is somewhat similar to Huang Yourong's. Both of them like to add insult to injury. Now that Zhou Shangjing is about to fall, in Zhang Cheng's opinion, Zhou Shangjing's ending will naturally be as miserable as possible. For a while, he did not take Shen Changmao and Huang Yourong into consideration. The alliance relationship between them refutes Shen Changmao's point of view.
Following Zhang Cheng's speech, many yellow party officials naturally followed suit and expressed their stance.
At the same time, Zhao Junchen turned his eyes and decided to join in the fun, and finally expressed his opinion. He said: "Your Majesty, Zhou Shangjing's various crimes are really bad! If he is not severely punished, I am afraid it will cause serious consequences. The dissatisfaction of the government and the public cannot serve as a warning to those who come after you! It is not conducive to establishing the prestige of the court! Therefore, no matter what, Zhou Shangjing must be severely punished!"
Zhao Junchen said this to express his position to Emperor Deqing again.
At the same time, after hearing Zhao Junchen's statement, Zhao Party officials finally found their own position and spoke out one after another to agree with Zhao Junchen's views.
As Wang Baoren, Tang Zhen, Zhang Cheng, Zhao Junchen and other heavyweight ministers of the imperial court expressed their views one after another, major factions in the DPRK also chose to take sides.
It's a pity that Zhou Shangjing has been standing in the temple for many years. While holding great power, he also suppressed too many people and offended too many forces. So for a while, except for Shen Changmao's unexpectedly gentle statement, almost everyone The factions in the DPRK and China all support Wang Baoren's views and hope that Zhou Shangjing can be severely punished!
After all, in the eyes of most people, Zhou Shangjing is destined to collapse, and the Zhou Party is destined to be uprooted, so the ministers are happily adding insult to injury without worrying that they will be retaliated against later!
"Yes. Your Majesty, Zhou Shangjing's various crimes are all serious crimes. And the impact is bad! If you don't kill him, you won't be able to conquer the world!"
"Your Majesty, Zhou Shangjing is the chief minister of the dynasty, but he knows the law and breaks the law, and uses his power for personal gain. Even if your Majesty cares about old friendships and does not want to kill him, he should be imprisoned for life!"
"Zhou Shangjing not only protected his tribe and provoked civil unrest, but also formed a clique for personal gain and deceived the emperor. In the hundreds of years of our reign, there has never been a precedent for those who committed such serious crimes not to be severely punished! I hope your majesty will think twice... "
For a moment, the temporary imperial study room was full of voices calling for Zhou Shangjing to be severely punished!
It seems that Zhou Shangjing's fate of being confiscated, interrogated and beheaded is already certain.
But he said that when the ministers expressed their opinions, Emperor Deqing was very silent. He just stood quietly in front of Zhou Shangjing, letting Zhou Shangjing kneel at his feet, and listened expressionlessly to the ministers' opinions.
After all the ministers expressed their opinions, Emperor Deqing first took a deep look at Shen Changmao, and then asked slowly: "So, except for Mr. Shen Ge, most of the beloved ministers think that Zhou Shangjing Should I kill him?"
Like Zhao Junchen, Emperor Deqing also believed that Shen Changmao's performance was very abnormal and brought some variables.
However, even Emperor Deqing couldn't figure out why Shen Changmao behaved like this.
Therefore, just in case, Emperor Deqing no longer hesitated and decided to immediately determine Zhou Shangjing's guilt and put Zhou Shangjing into a place of eternal destruction.
For Emperor Deqing, the most important thing was to completely defeat Zhou Shangjing. As for how Zhou Shangjing should be punished? Beheading or imprisoned? In the eyes of Emperor Deqing, there was not much difference.
Nowadays, most of the important officials in the imperial court want to severely punish Zhou Shangjing. After a brief inquiry, Emperor Deqing followed suit and said, "Well, what you all said makes sense! Now, Zhou Shangjing has committed a serious crime. , Although I want to take care of the old relationship between the monarch and his ministers, I have to take into account the public opinion... In this case, it is my will to remove Zhou Shangjing from the position of chief minister of the cabinet, and immediately escort Zhou Shangjing to the capital. After my southern tour is over, Convene a court meeting to bring him..."
"Your Majesty, I still have something to say! I hope your Majesty will make a decision after listening to it!"
However, Emperor Deqing's decree was interrupted before he finished announcing it!
The person who interrupted Emperor Deqing was the elder Shen Changmao whose behavior was somewhat abnormal.
Seeing Shen Changmao suddenly interrupting his will, Emperor Deqing's eyes flashed with a hint of coldness.
However, after looking at Shen Changmao for a moment, Emperor Deqing still said: "Oh? Mr. Shen Ge has something else to say? Tell me, I want to hear what other unique insights you have!"
"Your Majesty, I know that the Japanese pirate rebellion in Suzhou is not that simple. In fact, there is another hidden secret! These hidden secrets are of vital importance and involve the reputation of the royal family. If they are discovered, the foundation of our Ming Dynasty will also be destroyed. There would be wavering, so Zhou Shoufu tried to conceal it, and even the factory guards did not find out! The reason why Zhou Shoufu concealed the Suzhou Japanese pirate rebellion was definitely not to protect his grandson Zhou Suhai, but actually for my Ming Dynasty. The century-old society is truly one of sincere loyalty!"
Having said this, Shen Changmao's originally clumsy and cold face turned flushed with excitement.
After a pause, without waiting for anyone to question, Shen Changmao continued: "Actually, due to a coincidence, after the Japanese pirate rebellion broke out in Suzhou, the old minister quickly got the news, and also discovered that this matter was reported by Zhou Shoufu. He was suppressed! The old minister was very angry at the time. He felt that Zhou Shoufu had committed a serious crime of deceiving the emperor, so he immediately went to confront Zhou Shoufu! Then, after receiving Zhou Shoufu's explanation, the old minister realized that there was actually a shocking hidden secret in this matter!
This hidden secret is really too important! Originally, after getting the advice from Zhou Shoufu, the old minister decided to keep it in his belly and never make it public! And Zhou Shoufu obviously had the same idea and would rather bear all the blame for the offence. He was unwilling to tell these hidden secrets... However, all the officials in the court wanted to severely punish Zhou Shoufu, but the veteran couldn't bear to see a loyal minister like Zhou Shoufu die unjustly. Therefore, after hesitating for a long time, the veteran decided to tell these secrets. To your majesty, in exchange for your majesty’s forgiveness and to alleviate Zhou Shoufu’s guilt!”
On the other side, Zhou Shangjing, who had been silent all the time, trembled when he heard what Shen Changmao said, and turned his head to stop him: "Mr. Shen Ge, please be careful what you say! You know very well that these hidden secrets are absolutely Don't tell anyone, otherwise the world will be in chaos! Since I have decided to bear the responsibility of the crime alone, why should you do this?"
Shen Changmao shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Now that things have come to this, I have to say it!"
Seeing Zhou Shangjing and Shen Changmao singing in harmony, Emperor Deqing's eyes became even colder.
The overall situation was already decided, but I didn't expect that Shen Changmao would make a stab in the side!
Obviously, Shen Changmao has been bribed by Zhou Shangjing! And the so-called "hidden secret" mentioned by Shen Changmao may be Zhou Shangjing's trump card!
However, at this time, Emperor Deqing had to cooperate and asked coldly: "Oh? You said so much, what is the secret? How can I forgive Zhou Shangjing if it is so unclear? ?”
Under the gaze of Emperor Deqing, Shen Changmao looked very magnanimous. After looking around, he said: "Your Majesty, please ask all the ministers to step down. These secrets are indeed very important. I can only tell them to you." Your Majesty!"
After Emperor Deqing hesitated for a moment, he felt that Shen Changmao could not be allowed to tell the "hidden secrets" in his mouth in public, so he said: "Except Shen Changmao and Zhou Shangjing, everyone will retreat outside and wait for the time being."
After a pause, Emperor Deqing seemed to have thought of something again and added: "Well, Zhao Junchen also stayed to listen!"