It is not entirely a coincidence that these three memorials, which confused the ministers, were delivered almost on the same day.
More than a dozen literary leaders jointly reported the memorial of the salt inspector Na Feng, which was the condition Lin Tailai put forward when everyone asked Lin Tailai to release Wang Shizhen after the literary meeting in Pingshan Hall, Shugang that day.
Later, Lin Tailai did not rush to send out the memorial as soon as possible, but waited until the situation in Suzhou became clear before sending it to the court.
Li Shida's memorandum of blame to Magistrate Shi was sent normally.
As for Guo Tuiguan's memorial, it took 600 miles to rush, so he caught up with the first two memorials and delivered them to the capital on the same day.
As a unified dynasty with centralized power, if such a turmoil occurs in a land with great wealth, theoretically, ministers should be sent immediately to Suzhou to calm down the situation and declare the majesty of the imperial court.
But theory is theory, reality is reality, and there will always be deviations, big or small, between the two.
For example, let’s take the most practical problem, specific to an individual, who is responsible?
For another example, it is no longer the Hongwu and Yongle dynasties where power was most concentrated in the early years of the dynasty, but the middle Wanli dynasty when people were loose.
A member of the Zhongshu family ran from the inner court to the east court room and shouted: "The cabinet has received an urgent memorandum from Suzhou and must deal with it as soon as possible!
I also know that the ministers and ministers of the outer dynasty are here to discuss matters today, so I would like to invite the ministers and ministers to discuss matters first, and then report the results to the cabinet!"
Under normal circumstances, government affairs operations are not so haphazard.
But now that the emperor is in a bad position, the chief minister is also in a bad position, and the other two bachelors have no decision-making authority, so they can only simplify the procedures and deal with it.
Originally, the ministers gathered in the East Chaofang today to discuss this year's "Beijing Inspection", but unexpectedly they got off topic.
Under normal circumstances, the affairs of the foreign dynasty are presided over by the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. When the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel is absent, the Minister of the Ministry of Hubu will preside over it.
Yang Wei, the old official of the Ministry of Personnel who had not spoken today, glanced at Wang Zhiyuan, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and suggested: "Suzhou has the closest relationship with the Ministry of Revenue, so Wang Situ should preside over it."
The greatest significance of Suzhou to the imperial court was "money and food", which was the work of the Ministry of Household Affairs.
That's why Yang Tianguan said that Wang Situ should be in charge this time.
Wang Situ couldn't push it back anymore, so he could only stand up and say: "What else do you have to say about this Suzhou Incident?"
Shen Li, the Minister of Rites, spoke sternly: "In times of peace, extraordinary things like this must have an extraordinary reason!
Therefore, there must be something wrong with Suzhou City, and the imperial court must conduct a thorough investigation! The source of the trouble must be discovered!"
Shen Shangshu usually behaves like a scholar and rarely comes forward to argue in the court. It is very rare for him to speak so harshly today.
When everyone saw this, they felt that Shen Shangshu might be really anxious.
However, it is understandable that in just a short period of time, Qingliu lost one of the fattest salt patrol censors, the best prefect in the world, a second-rank minister, and a Jiangnan governor who was suspected of being an undercover agent.
The extent of this loss cannot be described as tragic.
Everyone conservatively estimated that two-thirds of the Qingliu forces' layout in Jiangzuo, the richest area in the world, was gone, leaving only a few people in Nanjing who were looking for a living.
Wang Situ, who was presiding over the discussion, had no clue. The main reason was that he was two to three thousand miles away. He didn't know what was going on in Suzhou City, and he couldn't judge what role Lin Tailai played in it.
But Wang Situ also knew by virtue of his bureaucratic instinct that he could not be led by Shen Shangshu, so he said slowly:
"The incident started with Li Shida, Li Lai, and Shi Kunyu. Let me first tell you how to treat these three people!"
Shen Shangshu immediately responded with a presumptuous response: "Li Shida performed his duties poorly and made unclear decisions, which led to a catastrophe! He was deprived of all titles, reduced his status to the people, and served as a frontier army!"
Li Lai, Shi Kunyu, dared to commit suicide, resisted the imperial investigation, and was deprived of his title!
What do the Ministry of Punishment and the Metropolitan Procuratorate think?"
Everyone was surprised again, but they still didn't expect that Shen Shangshu would be so merciless to his own people.
I originally thought that we might have to go back and forth for a few rounds regarding the punishment of these three people.
But if even Shen Shangshu, the leader of the Qingliu forces, doesn't protect his own people, then there is definitely no nonsense.
With one word, three people were definitely guilty of death. Shen Shangshu became even more fierce, "Whenever an incident occurs, the method of handling it is either lenient or severe punishment!"
But this time, I believe that we must not tolerate it, we must thoroughly investigate the cause and effect, and deal with it strictly!"
After Shen Shangshu expressed his position again, no one stood up to confront him for a moment.
This is not to say that Shen Shangshu has no political opponents, but that his opponents have not unified their thoughts and do not know how to deal with them.
Shen Shangshu's attitude can be very firm. He has clearly lost so many party members. What other choice is there but to pursue the matter and seek revenge?
But others are still unsure, or because of those words, no one knows what exactly happened in Suzhou City, two to three thousand miles away.
When the information is unclear, it is difficult to make a decisive decision. No one is sure whether leniency or severity is correct.
Seeing that no one came forward to object, Shen Shangshu aggressively said to Yang Wei, the official of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and Wu Shi, the censor of Zuodu: "Do you two agree with strictness or oppose strictness?"
If these two people still don't take a stand, then the leadership will fall into the hands of the forces headed by Shen Li.
Wu Shilai reluctantly replied: "Suzhou is a place rich in money and food, so it is not easy to cause trouble.
The previous memorial from the official of Suzhou Prefecture also stated that it is best to keep it quiet and govern it by doing nothing, so that the place will be at peace."
Shen Shangshu shouted sternly: "Do you think, General Xian, that we should tolerate the rioters who drove the imperial officials to death, regardless of the face and majesty of the imperial court?"
Wu Shi said nothing to refute and was speechless.
Originally, it was the Qingliu forces that started the trouble, but now it turns out that the Qingliu forces have killed people, and the result is "I am weak and I am justified."
At this moment, officials from the General Affairs Department appeared at the door of the East Chamber again. When all the ministers saw it, they all became inexplicably nervous.
The official of the General Affairs Department waved the chapter in his hand and said loudly: "There is a memorial from Suzhou Wei Qianhu Lin Tailai. It has just been sent to the General Affairs Department. I will discuss it with you in advance and then send it to the cabinet."
Hearing the name Lin Tailai, the word "mediation" subconsciously popped into everyone's mind. Is it possible that this person still wants to mediate to the court?
Zhao Zhigao, the right servant of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly jumped out with an agility that was incompatible with his age and asked actively: "What is said in this memorial?"
The official said briefly: "Lin Tai came to report that the prefect and governor died, and the imperial envoy was humiliated. This is a strange thing that has never happened before, and it happened in our Wanli Dynasty!
Therefore, I request the imperial court to strike hard and severely punish the chaos in Suzhou!"
Regarding Lin Qianhu's memorial, the only thoughts the ministers had were four words, which were baffling. If you add four more words, it means you don't know what it means.
I can't see the meaning or purpose of this memorial at all.
Only Zhao Zhigao, the right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, seemed to have received some signal and said loudly: "I support Shen Shangshu's proposal of thorough investigation and severe punishment!"
As an official who was transferred to the imperial court by Shen Shoufu and appointed as Minister of Civil Affairs, Zhao Zhigao's statement was quite explosive.
You actually support Shouxu’s archenemy! You actually support causing trouble in Shouxue’s hometown!
Even Shen Shangshu was very surprised. Could it be that Zhao Zhigao planned to change his family and join the righteous Qingliu forces?
Zhao Zhigao spoke eloquently to everyone: "I served as governor of Jiangnan for a year and a half, often stationed in Suzhou City, and organized two autumn grain collections.
So on the Suzhou issue, I still have a certain say!
Based on my understanding of the situation in Suzhou and some in-depth thinking, I fully support Shen Shangshu’s proposal!”
Others were still thinking deeply about why Zhao Zhigao supported Shen Shangshu, but only Wang Situ felt a familiar feeling.
Zhao Zhigao's speaking style is really like someone who is about to get married to the Wang family!
Wang Situ immediately thought of a possibility. When Zhao Zhigao left his post as governor of Jiangnan, had he received an interview from Lin Tailai?
Could it be that at that time, Lin Tailai had foreseen that the court might have such a discussion?
In other words, when Zhao Zhigao left office and Shi Kunyu and Li Lai went to Suzhou to take office, Lin Tailai had already predicted that these two people would "commit suicide"?
No one else spoke at this time, so Zhao Zhigao continued: "I think Shen Shangshu's proposal can be refined into three items!
First, launch a three-year crackdown in Suzhou City to clean up bad habits and deter unruly people!
What does severe punishment mean? Relatives, friends, and neighbors will sit together, and all crimes will be punished with a third-class penalty. All death sentences do not need to be reviewed by the imperial court!"
After hearing this, everyone sighed, Emperor Hongwu is not as ruthless as you!
"Second, we must purge all government officials in Suzhou City and replace them with new ones. People from neighboring provinces such as Zhejiang and Jiangxi are not allowed to serve as officials in Suzhou to avoid old abuses!"
Shen Shangshu vaguely felt that something was wrong, but he had not yet tasted it concretely.
Zhao Zhigao suddenly took out a piece of paper, looked at it for a few times and then said: "Third, the Suzhou City garrison troops will be transferred to other places, and then troops will be deployed from other places to garrison Suzhou City!
We will also send an additional 5,000 troops from Beijing to guard the towns in Suzhou. If any unruly people cause trouble, they will be directly destroyed!"
When these three items were finished, everyone was greatly shocked. Did they regard Suzhou City as enemy territory?
Shen Shangshu advocated strictness, but Zhao Zhigao turned out to be more severe than Shen Shangshu.
If this is followed, the entire city of Suzhou will explode! From now on, we probably won’t be able to count on collecting money and food from Suzhou, and we’ll just have to deal with chaos every day!
Zhao Zhigao turned around and asked: "These three items all come from Shen Shangshu's suggestions for strict punishment. Is there anything else Shen Shangshu wants to add?"
Shen Li said angrily: "Such a harsh method is unnecessary and is not my suggestion!"
Zhao Zhigao was stunned for a moment, then shouted sharply: "In troubled times, heavy codes should be used, how dare you say it is unnecessary?
Does Shen Shangshu think that the rioters who drove the imperial officials to death should be tolerated, regardless of the dignity and dignity of the imperial court?"
Shen Li: "."
The momentum built up with the lives of party members was suddenly shattered.
Lu Guangzu, the Secretary of the Ministry of Punishment, came out to smooth things over and said: "No! Although the punishment must be severe, it is indeed not so harsh."
Zhao Zhigao clutched the note and yelled at Lu Shangshu: "Aren't you just worried that if you attack hard in Suzhou, Shen Shoufu will be displeased?
It turns out that you are also a flatterer, so don’t say more! Shen Shangshu and I do not need your guidance on the three principles of strictness!"
Lu Guangzu: "."
You Zhao Zhigao, an old man on the streets, do you think what you are saying is human?
Everyone else couldn't help but look at him with admiration. This new minister's fighting ability seemed to be extraordinary.
Also, if the minister didn't read the note frequently, he would be more imposing.
Zhao Zhigao continuously reprimanded the two ministers of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Punishment, and then said to Wang Situ: "The great Situ is the person who presides over the discussion. What do you think?"
After Wang Situ thought for a moment, he answered in a very competent manner: "From the perspective of the Ministry of Household Affairs, I think the stability of Suzhou is paramount!
Suzhou's grain supply occupies one-sixth of the imperial court's Taicang. Only stability can ensure Taicang's input.
No matter whether it is lenient or strict, everything must serve the overall situation of stability!
Based on this principle, your proposal, Minister Zhao, seems to have some influence on stability."
Zhao Zhigao stuffed the note into his sleeve and said to Shen Li: "What Wang Situ said makes sense, how about you and I slightly modify the three strict rules?
Article 1: Severe crackdowns on unruly people should be carried out. This is related to the court's face, but there is no need to increase the punishment.
As for the second article, there is no need for a general purge of officials in Suzhou City, but the prefect of Suzhou Prefecture must carefully select people, and officials in various yamen who have failed in their duties must also be replaced!"
Shen Li could still only nod, "This is what it should be."
Zhao Zhigao said: "As the Minister of Civil Affairs, I also have some ideas about the candidates for Suzhou City Yamen officials.
I believe that the officials newly sent to Suzhou Prefecture must be upright and incorruptible!
Because Suzhou City is the hometown of the Chief Minister, you especially cannot use flattery to flatter the Chief Minister to take office in Suzhou City!"
Shen Shangshu could not object to this at all, so he could only continue to nod.
Then I heard Zhao Zhigao say: "Therefore, I propose that the officials sent to Suzhou City be selected from those who have impeached the chief minister!
As far as I know, those who have recently impeached the chief minister include Zhong Yuzheng, Chen Dengyun, Zhao Nanxing, Gu Xiancheng, etc."
Everyone: "."
Zhao Zhigao’s bad intentions can be felt from eight hundred miles away! Normally, he looks lethargic, but when he gets bad, it’s simply eye-opening!
These people are all the middle-level backbones of the Qingliu forces in the imperial court. Do you, Zhao Zhigao, want to send them all to Suzhou and then destroy them all again?
Zhao Zhigao thought of something again: "Ah, Gu Xiancheng is from Wuxi and is not suitable to be an official in nearby Suzhou. Forget it."
"No!" Shen Shangshu finally couldn't bear it anymore, "These guys are not suitable."
"Then forget about these." Zhao Zhigao did not delay, and directly nominated another candidate: "I think we can use the Minister of Rites and Foreign Minister Wang Zhiyou to appease the people of Suzhou."
"No!" Shen Shangshu still objected.
Zhao Zhigao refuted: "The Ministry of Personnel chooses local officials, and you don't need the Ministry of Rites to speak!
I object to this and that, why don't I, the Minister of Civil Affairs, let you, Shen Shangshu, sit here!"
Shen Shangshu was so crowded that he had nothing to say and walked away in anger.
Zhao Zhigao said loudly: "Finally, there is the third strict rule. Although there is no need to mobilize troops from other places to disturb the people and cause turmoil, the people in Suzhou are changing frequently and it is indeed necessary to strengthen the defense!
I see that Suzhou Guard Qianhu Lin Tailai has repeatedly mediated against rebellions and civil commotions. He is very experienced. Not only can he be promoted to a commanding officer due to his merits, but he can also serve as the defense of Suzhou City to prevent the recurrence of civil commotions!"
Everyone: "."
The literal logic of using Lin Tai to serve as a guard to prevent civil unrest seems to be fine, but I always feel that something is wrong.
Something suddenly happened today and I didn’t have time to update, so I had to set an alarm to get up and write tomorrow... I can’t go out on holiday!