After receiving the order, King Zhongshun was very worried and followed Xu Guan, the chief eunuch of Chonghua Palace, all the way to the Tihe Hall.
King Zhongshun looked at the palace in front of him and had no choice but to bite the bullet. Under the gaze of everyone, he followed the eunuch into the palace and moved into the bedroom. Before he could get closer, he knelt down and walked towards the old man on the bed.
He left and cried: "Father, Gong's mausoleum has collapsed. I am guilty, guilty..."
I cried so hard that it really made everyone sad when I heard it, and shed tears when I saw it.
The eldest princess of Jinyang was not far away from Queen Song at the moment, staring at the figure kneeling on the ground, with a little joy flashing through her heart, huh, today too?
Empress Song was instructing the maids, removing the dishes on the table, and looking at King Zhongshun indifferently.
In fact, even if Empress Song did not have much favorable impression of King Zhongshun, if King Zhongshun did not take charge of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, perhaps her relatives or sons would have the opportunity to take over.
"You actually still remember me, my father, ahem..."
Emperor Longzhi's face was as dark as water, he looked coldly at King Zhongshun who was approaching on his knees, said in a cold voice, and then coughed violently.
Queen Mother Feng quickly stroked the Queen Mother's back and sighed secretly.
King Zhongshun wiped his tears with his sleeves and cried: "My son was frightened, the earth dragon stirred, Gongling Mausoleum was robbed, my son was also horrified when he heard about it, and he immediately went to the palace to report to the emperor's younger brother... My son supervised the establishment of the emperor.
If the mausoleum is not strong enough, please ask Father to punish me!"
This statement naturally attributes the collapse of the mausoleum to natural disasters rather than man-made disasters.
"Disaster?" Emperor Longzhi sneered, stared at King Zhongshun, and said sarcastically: "During the palace confinement, even with the power of the Mengdilong's churning, not one of the palaces collapsed. My mausoleum has been repaired for several years, but it has not been destroyed."
If it shakes, it will collapse! Are you saying that I have failed in all directions and committed sins in the world, so I deserve this retribution?"
"My son, I dare not." King Zhongshun cried loudly, his heart was awe-inspiring, and he secretly thought that something was not right. Sure enough, he said this, "bang", violently knocked on the gold brick, and clasped the Mingyu Jade King's hat on his forehead, and suddenly
Traces of bright red blood appeared, and the old body kept trembling, crying: "Father, the people below must have deceived the superiors and deceived the subordinates. I will go back to investigate carefully and give an explanation to my father!"
At this point, we have to lose a few heads to take on this matter before we can give up.
The Supreme Emperor looked up at the sky, stared blankly at the beams on the palace, and said indifferently: "Strict investigation? No need, I have selected another person to investigate the culprits. You can stay in the palace and wait for the results of the investigation."
He has been the emperor for decades and has been at war with his ministers all his life. Once a seed of doubt is planted in his heart, it will immediately take root and grow into a towering tree. How could he let King Zhongshun get away with it?
If he wasn't involved in this matter, that would be fine. If he was involved in the case, there's no way he...
When King Zhongshun heard this, his old body covered in a dragon robe shook violently. He kowtowed like smashing garlic and cried bitterly: "Father, my son has been wronged, wronged."
As he said that, he suddenly looked at Emperor Chongping who was standing aside with a cold face. Prince Zhongshun's gray-haired face showed eagerness, and he cried: "Your Majesty, although there is something fishy about the collapse of the imperial mausoleum, my brother doesn't know about it. Now send Shen."
The people from the Criminal Division will conduct a strict investigation and must get to the bottom of it!"
Emperor Chongping stared at King Zhongshun with cold eyes, feeling extremely disappointed. No matter how arrogant his brother-in-law was, he could still tolerate it, but if he tampered with the mausoleum, where would he be, the emperor?
After pondering for a moment, he said in a cold voice: "The safety of the mausoleum is not a trivial matter. Now it collapsed due to an earthquake for no reason, and so many people were buried. We need to investigate the source. As the chief supervisor of the construction, you are also suspected, so it is not appropriate to investigate yourself."
King Zhongshun was struck by thunder because he noticed some bad signs. Was he suspicious?
Does this mean you want to give up on him?
After calming down his confused mind, he asked in a low voice: "Your Majesty, I wonder who is going to investigate this matter?"
"Jinyi Mansion, internal investigation factory." Emperor Chongping said in a cold voice with a face as solid as iron.
Suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, King Zhongshun felt a chill of early spring coming from all directions, and his heart trembled.
If Jia Heng, who is in charge of Jinyi Mansion, investigates, wouldn't he... make things worse!?
The Supreme Emperor interrupted King Zhongshun's complicated thoughts: "Take him down and kneel at the entrance of the palace until the Jinyi Mansion and the inner guards find out the truth!"
King Zhongshun felt nervous and opened his mouth to say something.
Xu Guan, the eunuch in charge, approached and whispered: "Your Majesty, let's go."
As he spoke, he winked at the two eunuchs.
King Zhongshun felt his hands and feet were weak, so he was dragged outside the palace with the help of two young eunuchs.
At this moment, the rain curtain outside the palace was deep, like a curtain or fog, the huge palace garden was a vast expanse, the wind and rain were like darkness, the rainwater gathered on the eaves tiles was like broken pearls, washing away the dust that had been shaken by the earthquake in front of the palace, and
Dark clouds gathered in the sky above the Tihe Hall. The owl-kissed beast on the ridge had its neck and eyes soaked by the rain. Not far away, a willow tree with new branches and leaves was also swaying in the wind in the early spring of February.
, verdant and full of greenery.
Ministry of Internal Affairs
In this yamen with red doors and copper rings, red walls and black tiles, a large number of guards from the Jinyi Mansion rushed into the government office and began to search for Luo Chengwang, the construction director of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and his subordinate officials.
Because it was raining, Jia Heng and Dai Quan, surrounded by a group of guards in royal robes, entered the main gate, the Jingyi Gate, and entered the official hall. Because the rainy day was gloomy and the light was dim, the guards had already lit a lot of candles. In an instant,
In between, the spacious and tidy official hall is illuminated with bright lights.
At this moment, the official hall was crowded with people and noisy. The bright candlelight shook the panicked faces under the black gauze hats. They were the officials of the Seventh Department and the Third House of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
In fact, when the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Jinyi Mansion were confronting each other in front of the door, the staff of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were all worried and confused.
Jinyi Mansion sent people to arrest Luo Chengwang, the construction manager. Is something big going to happen?
However, Zhou Changshi, the Zhongshun Prince's Chief Historian, who was in charge of the government affairs, actually ordered all officials in the government office to stay in their positions and not to act rashly. He even ordered the government guards to gather troops to resist the Jinyi government guards who entered the government office and took people away.
Therefore, although all the officials were anxious like ants on a hot pot, they had no choice but to cry out in vain.
Along with Jia Heng, Dai Quan and a group of internal guards, darkness poured into the hall.
The officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, who were originally crowded around and chattering away, all looked over in panic.
"quiet!"
The guards of the Jinyi Mansion who were accompanying them began to shout loudly, as if spring thunder exploded in the official hall, making everyone's hearts tremble and the noise suddenly stopped.
"Eunuch, please take a seat." Jia Heng looked at the case in the main hall of the official hall and invited him.
Dai Quan smiled and said: "Dudu Jia is the presiding judge of this case, and he should be the one who takes the seat."
Seeing this, Jia Heng did not go behind the case, but sat down on the chair on the left side of the case. He glanced at the officials and saw the panicked officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs is a large-scale ministry and yamen. Each of the doctors is responsible for the secretary, and the foreign minister is the assistant, responsible for the affairs, and the scribes are running around doing things.
"The governor, Zhou Shun, the chief historian of the King of Loyalty and Shun, Xie Shan, the doctor in the Kuaiji Division, and Du Jing, the doctor in the Shenxing Division, have all been captured!" At this moment, a member of the Jinyi Mansion from a hundred households strode into the official hall, clasped his hands in fists, and reported.
.
Jia Heng frowned and said in a cold voice: "Bring everyone here, I want to question you."
The hundred households in brocade clothes made a promise, turned around and called to the eaves of the corridor: "Bring the prisoner here."
Following a burst of scoldings and quarrels about "Be honest, hurry up", Zhou Changshi and two officials wearing fifth-grade green robes and black veils entered the official hall.
The figure is staggering, and the official hat is crooked.
The scolding and pushing clearly came from a middle-aged official with a tall stature and a dark complexion.
When several people arrived at the official hall, one after another looked at the three people.
Jia Heng looked at Zhou Changshi with his stern eyebrows and said, "Is Zhou Changshi okay?"
Zhou Changshi raised his head and looked at the young man in python suit sitting on the chair. His face was as gloomy as iron. He snorted coldly and said nothing.
Jia Heng ignored him and asked in a deep voice: "Where is Luo Chengwang, the construction manager?"
At this time, a man in rich clothes said in a low voice: "Sir, these two are Xie Shan, the doctor in the Kuaiji Department, and Du Jing, the doctor in the Shenxing Department. Luo Chengwang is not among them."
Jia Heng nodded, looked at Zhou Changshi again, and said in a deep voice: "Zhou Changshi, I want to ask you, is it your intention or the intention of King Zhongshun to resist arrest by the guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs?"
Zhou Changshi's heart trembled, he looked at Jia Heng and said coldly: "Since they have no edict, who knows if they are falsely passing on the imperial edict? The prince is worried about the safety of the secrets of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and he cannot allow people from the Jinyi Mansion to enter the mansion and do anything rashly.
rash!"
"The Jinyi Guards are the emperor's personal soldiers, and there are also internal guards accompanying them. The oral instructions are unquestionable. You are the emperor's servant, but you are so unruly and resist arrest. This is to resist the order and disobey the emperor's prestige. Now you have been exposed.
How dare you make sophistry!" Jia Heng said coldly and shouted: "Kneel down and slap your mouth!"
The Jinyi captain who was pressing Zhou Changshi's shoulder first kicked Zhou Changshi hard in the crook of his leg, causing him to kneel to the ground. Then, a hundred households rolled up their sleeves, rounded their arms, and faced Zhou Changshi.
Changshi's cheek was slapped hard.
"Pa bang..."
After several slaps, Zhou Changshi groaned in pain. His originally thin cheek swelled to the height of half a finger, and a little blood oozed from the corner of his mouth, dripping on his beard and the front of his official robe. However, this palace chief historian
, staring at the boy in the python suit with resentful eyes.
All the officials in the Ministry of Internal Affairs were frightened.
This is the official historian of Prince Zhongshun, who was beaten and humiliated in public like this!
Du Jing, the doctor of the Shenxing Division who was still struggling, stopped struggling and lowered his head slightly.
Dai Quan saw this and nodded secretly.
I'm obviously here to manipulate you, but I'm not trying to reason with you. I'm going against the guards of Jinyi Mansion, causing the guards to fight with each other. How does it feel in the eyes of outsiders?
Using the words of later generations, it greatly tarnished the image of the royal family and shook the emperor's prestige!
Neither the Ministry of Internal Affairs nor the Chief of Staff of Prince Zhongshun were considered court officials, nor did they have anything to do with the scholars of the "Two Lists of Jinshi".
At this moment, Qu Lang came in from outside the official hall, cupped his hands and said: "Captain, when I first arrived, Luo Langzhong was hung from a beam by several of Zhou Changshi's retinues, and he fainted."
Zhou Changshi's retinue was obviously not stupid. He would not strangle the person first and then hang him from the beam. Instead, he would directly gag the person and hang him from the beam. This would create the illusion of "suicide out of fear of crime."
When Zhou Changshi heard this, his pupils shrank sharply and his heart sank to the bottom of his heart.
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "You are so brave to kill and silence prisoners of the imperial court!"
Zhou Changshi's expression suddenly changed, and despair came over him.
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "In order to destroy the evidence of the crime, kill people, silence them, and kill their comrades, the three of you are all part of Luo Chengwang's party. Someone came and locked all three animals into a prison car, took them to the imperial prison, and tortured them severely!"
"yes!"
As a group of Jinyi Mansion captains responded to their orders, Zhou Changshi, Du Jing, and Xie Shan all had their hands cut behind their backs and were escorted to the Jinyi Mansion Prison.
Jia Heng turned to look at the other five ministers and the officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, his eyes scanning the faces of young and old one by one.
Everyone lowered their heads, looked away, looked pale, and did not dare to look away.
"I have received the emperor's order to investigate the real culprit in the collapse of the imperial mausoleum. Since the imperial mausoleum was supervised by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Works, the two yamen must be suspected! All officials related to the Ministry of Works have been imprisoned for questioning. The Ministry of Internal Affairs built the
As the chief officer, Luo Chengwang, the chief minister, is guilty of a very serious crime, and Xie Shan, the chief minister of Kuaiji, is in charge of the money and food expenditure, and he may not be aware of it. If you have any knowledge about this case, you can tell the truth.
Those who raise it will be equally guilty!"
I dare not say that the officials in the five divisions in front of me are all good and honest officials, but they are not all related to the imperial mausoleum case.
Because people talk a lot, it is easy for rumors to leak out.
At present, two officials from the Ministry of Industry are all involved in the case. Luo Chengwang, a doctor in the Construction Department, is the direct handler in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Xie Shan, a doctor in the Metropolitan Audit Department, may have done some assisting work. As for other officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they know some secrets.
, but pretended not to know.
When the officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs heard what the young powerful man said, their expressions changed and they did not dare to respond.
Jia Heng ordered the officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to be brought to Baoxia for questioning one by one.
After doing this, Jia Heng turned to look at Dai Quan and said: "Eunuch Dai, now that the officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are involved in the case, all the affairs of the government office have come to a standstill. I still need my father-in-law to ask for the emperor's will."
As a huge organization, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will inevitably have to be replaced by someone else after this incident. Although he wants Li'er to take charge of it, this matter...can't be planned, he can only let nature take its course.
Dai Quan smiled and said: "We will go back and report it to the Holy Emperor. Of course, when Zi Yu presents the case in front of him, he can also report it."
As mentioned before, Dai Quan really positioned himself in the role of assisting Jia Heng.
Jia Heng looked at the officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, patiently sat on a chair and waited for a while, then ordered: "Seal all the account books of the Construction Department and the registered account books of the Kuaiji Department and move them to Beizhen Fu
Secretary, please check and make sure there are no mistakes!"
This time we have to pull out the carrots and bring out the mud, so we should also check the accounts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Ji Yu, who was in charge of punishing thousands of households, handed over his hands and said yes, and then led his people to the Kuaiji Department to build the department's records library and search for account books and official documents.
Although... they are all fake accounts.
Just when the official hall of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was enveloped in an atmosphere as solemn as ice, a Jinyi Mansion guard came quickly from under the eaves of the corridor, cupped his hands and said: "Captain, Mr. Luo Chengwang of the Construction Department has woken up."
"Oh?" When Jia Heng heard this, his face softened slightly and he asked, "Where is he?"
"Captain, we have been brought to the corridor." The guard of Jinyi Mansion responded.
Jia Heng said to Dai Quan on the side: "Eunuch Dai, you might as well meet him and see what he says."
Dai Quan nodded and said, "It would be nice to meet."
"Bring people in!" Jia Heng paused slightly and shouted.
If Luo Chengwang's confession was obtained, and then he "followed the clues" to search the Zhongshun Prince's Mansion, and then uncovered all the evidence, the process of obtaining the account books would be more natural and would not arouse the suspicion of the emperor's "post-facto review"
.
Not long after, several lieutenants in Jinyi carried Luo Chengwang, the construction manager, and walked into the official hall. At this time, Luo Chengwang's official robe was messy, and on his fair cheeks, there were still "pork liver-colored" marks left behind the hanging beam, but his mental state looked...
fine.
Jia Heng waved his hand, signaling to Captain Jinyi not to force him to kneel down, and asked: "Mr. Luo, how does it feel to walk through the gate of hell?"
Luo Chengwang stood still, looked at the young man opposite, his voice trembled a little, and said, "But Mr. Jia in person?"
Compared with Zhou Changshi, who had frequent interactions with Jia Heng, Luo Chengwang, who served in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, had never met Jia Heng, but often heard King Zhongshun and Zhou Changshi scold him behind their backs, saying "Jia Heng is a child" and so on.
Jia Heng said: "Mr. Luo, you are a smart man, so I will not go around in circles. Gongling collapsed, something fishy happened, and there must have been corruption cases. As the official in charge, you should know the details.
Don’t hide what you know and see, tell the truth!”
However, Luo Chengwang closed his eyes and said: "I don't know what Mr. Jia is talking about. Gongling silver is allocated and materials are withdrawn. The Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Internal Affairs all have account books for record. Your Excellency will know it as soon as you check it."
When Jia Heng heard this, he took a look at Luo Chengwang. It was very different from what he had thought before. King Zhongshun was supposed to get rid of this person. Shouldn't he switch sides at this time?
Maybe he knew he was going to die, so he refused to admit it in order to keep his family safe?
If there is a case of corruption in the supervision of the imperial mausoleum, there is no doubt that the whole family will be killed.
If beans are poured out of a bamboo tube, the fate of the Yi people will not escape.
In the blink of an eye, Jia Heng grasped his thoughts and said to Dai Quan who was standing aside: "Eunuch Dai, how about taking him back to the imperial prison first and then making a fuss?"
Dai Quan acted like a repeater and said, "Then take him back to prison for questioning."
Dai Quan was originally here to supervise Jia Heng's handling of the case. In fact, even if the case was handed over to the three judicial divisions for trial, the Ouchi authorities would send people to accompany the investigation and observe the handling of the case for supervision.
Jia Heng didn't say much, waved his hand and said, "Take him over."
Since then, in addition to Prince Zhongshun and the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Internal Affairs have arrested and interrogated all officials involved in the supervision of the mausoleum construction.
"There is another place, which is the Ministry of Household Affairs..." Jia Heng frowned, thinking.
The Imperial Tomb Project not only involves the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but also the Ministry of Household Affairs.
To sort out the construction process of Gongling Tomb, the Ministry of Household Affairs allocates funds, the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Internal Affairs jointly undertake the construction, and a prince of the country is in charge of the affairs and coordinates the various ministries.
As the party who allocated the money, the Ministry of Revenue must be responsible for the whereabouts of the money, and according to Qi Guan'er, Liang Yuan, the minister of the Ministry of Revenue, was involved in the case.
However, the Emperor's decree did not mention the Ministry of Household Affairs, which is normal because he is not the person directly responsible.
