Although Chen Xun and Huaien came here to ask questions, in fact, it was Chen Xunqiu who came to visit Du Ning.
It's just that in order to avoid getting involved, Wynn, the inner palace official, came to accompany him. Therefore, from the beginning, Wynn didn't speak much, he just listened.
Until just now, when he interrupted, he only reminded Du Ning not to deceive the emperor. Wynn has always done a good job in obeying the rules.
However, some people were different. Seeing Wynn, the emperor's personal eunuch, speak, Bi Wang on the side suddenly became energetic and his voice became a little stern, saying.
"Master Du, now that I'm asking questions according to the order, why don't you tell everything truthfully?"
"The bribes paid by the governor of Fujian over the years add up to more than hundreds of thousands of silver. With such a huge amount of silver, you can't even spend 10/20 of it on the hundreds of acres of thin farmland in your hometown, plus daily banquets, right?"
"Quickly tell me where you hid all this money!"
This tone made Chen Xun and Huai En beside him couldn't help but cast their eyes over. However, Bi Wang didn't feel there was anything wrong. Instead, he was secretly proud of himself.
Relatively speaking, as the subject of the question, Du Ning's face was much calmer. He raised his head and looked at Bi Wang, and instead of answering his question, he asked instead.
"Sir Bi, what you just asked should belong to the scope of the case. So I dare to ask, sir, is there an imperial edict from His Majesty that orders you to preside over the case? If I don't answer, will your Excellency use torture?"
After all, Du Ning was also a minister of Dali Temple, and he knew the process and details of the case very clearly.
Bi Wang's question just now mentioned the amount of bribes paid by Fujian Governor Jia Xiuping, which is obviously something that needs to be verified in the case itself.
As for this case, the Ministry of Criminal Justice was in charge of the trial. Jin Yiwei was only responsible for custody and had no right to interrogate. Not to mention that there were Chen Xun and Huai En watching.
This rude rhetorical question made Bi Wang's face immediately turn ugly, but for a moment, he couldn't think of anything to retort.
On the other hand, Chen Xun, who was on the side, frowned and said when he saw this situation.
"Zong Mi, if he asks you and you don't want to answer, what about me? Do you plan to keep silent to me too?"
These words were quite harsh, just like a teacher teaching a student who made a mistake.
At this time, Wynn on the side spoke again.
"Mr. Du, your Majesty is very concerned about your case. If there is any hidden secret, if you don't tell it today, it will be revealed in the later interrogation by the Ministry of Justice. You might as well save the time and tell it. Since Your Majesty has allowed Chen Shangshu to come over, it is also
I want to give you a chance, Mr. Du, please don’t let down the holy grace!”
After saying this, Du Ning looked a little struggling. He lowered his head and thought for a moment, then raised his head, sighed and said.
"Eunuch Huai'en, Master Chen, I can tell you the secret behind this, but..."
As he spoke, Du Ning looked at Bi Wang aside.
Therefore, several people present immediately understood what he meant. Wynn pondered for a moment, turned to Biwang, and said.
"Sir Tongzhi, can you avoid it for a while?"
Bi Wang's face was a little stagnant. Obviously, he was very dissatisfied with Du Ning's move of excluding him. However, Wynn, the eunuch in charge of the royal family, had spoken. Although there was no subordinate relationship between the two, he did not dare to offend him.
The other party thought for a while and then Bi Wang spoke.
"Prince Huai, according to the rules, I have to accompany you here. However, if you speak in person, I have no choice but to give you face. How about this, I will watch from a distance and won't let others come over. If anything happens, you and Chen Shangshu
Just shout loudly."
"Then thank you Bi Tongzhi."
Wynn bowed slightly as a token of thanks.
Then, Bi Wang glanced at Du Ning in the cell, and like the jailer just now, he retreated to a place where he could see the situation in the cell but couldn't hear the conversation.
After sending Bi Wang away, Chen Xun looked at Du Ning again and said.
"What's going on? Now you can always tell me..."
So, Du Ning raised his head, glanced at Wynn next to him, and then said.
"Jia Xiuping has indeed given me a lot of money over the years. I remember every sum. The total adds up to 427,450 taels, including gold and silver utensils, as well as gifts.
Proceeds from the sale of calligraphy and painting antiques.”
The first sentence he spoke made Chen Xun surprised. By now, he had basically understood the facts of the case. However, after all, he was not the one presiding over the case. Therefore, the specific amounts and transactions involved, Chen Xun was
unknown.
Now, hearing Du Ning admit it in person, he was shocked, but couldn't hide his deep disappointment. He originally thought that there would be some injustice in this case, but now it seems that he is too optimistic about this student.
Taking a deep breath, Chen Xun's face turned cold and he asked.
"So, where is the silver?"
More than 400,000 taels of silver is not a small amount of money. If you want to exchange it for food, you will need millions of dan, and to purchase fertile land, you will need more than 10,000 acres.
However, judging from the property confiscated from the Du family so far, even if the fields and houses in his hometown are included, it is far less than this number.
"it took……"
Du Ning sighed deeply and said.
"I purchased the farmland and houses in my hometown with my salary over the years. As for the money sent by Jia Xiuping, I asked several fellow villagers who were doing business in Fujian to build several canals in the local area, and then built many
Shaoyizhuang purchased some fertile farmland, took in the homeless people, and built a school in the Yizhuang, which is... a small effort."
After saying this, Chen Xun and Huai En immediately looked at each other. They had thought of many answers, but they did not expect that it would be such a situation.
After hesitating for a moment, Wynn asked.
"Master Du, do you have a list?"
If what Du Ning said is true, then more than 400,000 taels of silver can bring about earth-shaking changes to a place. If a charity village is to be opened, it should be able to support at least hundreds of charity villages.
.
If you want to verify such a big movement, it is very easy.
Du Ning pondered for a moment and said.
"Do you have a pen and paper?"
So, Wynn waved to Bi Wang and others who were waiting in the distance, called the jailer over, and soon brought a set of pen, ink, paper and inkstone.
As the heavy lock on the cell door was opened, under everyone's gaze, Du Ning wrote a few lines of small words on the small case that had just been brought over.
After sending the jailer away again, Wynn took the paper handed over by Du Ning and looked at it. There were about seven or eight names written on it. After each name, there were some basic information such as place of origin, age, etc., and finally the address.
Wynn took a quick look and found that these places were all within Fujian, but they were distributed in different places, and many of them were far apart.
"...These are the names of these people. They are all businessmen. Every time they go to the capital to do business, I will give them money and let them do things for me. Each of them has a book in their hand.
Detailed account books, they would write to me every once in a while. Later, after I got the news, I burned these letters. However, the account books are still in their hands. If you want to verify, follow the list
Just look for the address..."
After listening to Du Ning's explanation, Wynn nodded, folded the paper, put it in an envelope and put it away without saying much.
Seeing this situation, Chen Xun's frowned eyebrows slightly opened. His original disappointment was now mixed with a trace of confusion, and he asked.
"You have never told anyone these things?"
Hearing this, Du Ning looked a little bitter and said.
"Even if the money that came from an illegitimate source is used for a good purpose, what's the use of it?"
It's okay not to say it. His words made Chen Xun's anger that had calmed down suddenly rise again, and he said with a look of hatred for iron.
"Since you knew that the money came from an unfair source, why did you accept it? Could it be that you have forgotten the past teachings of the sage's words and the court's kindness to you?"
Du Ning was silent, but Wynn's expression moved. Obviously, this was the key question, and it was also the question that everyone in the court, including the emperor, had been puzzled by.
Over the years, Du Ning's reputation in the court has always been very good. Many people who have been in contact with him have commented that he is a clean and honest person. Although he cannot be regarded as a breeze, he can be regarded as honest and self-responsible in the court. He has never had any problems.
Bad deeds.
Because of this, he was able to gain the appreciation of Chen Xun, and he has made it all the way to the present, and even hopes to reach the threshold of Qiqing.
However, just such a person was found to have accepted hundreds of thousands of taels of bribes for many years. Many officials in the DPRK and China felt that there must be something hidden in this.
After all, it is easy for a person to pretend for a while, but it is very difficult for a person to have a good reputation among most people for decades.
Inside and outside the cell, the three of them faced each other. Du Ning was silent, as if he didn't know how to answer. The rain outside was getting heavier and heavier, and the lightning flashed uncertainly, piercing the dark sky again and again.
After an unknown amount of time, Du Ning's somewhat difficult voice sounded.
"I first discovered that Jia Xiuping had colluded with Japanese pirates when he took office in Fujian Province eleven years ago..."
It was easy to talk right from the beginning. It took about half a cup of tea for Du Ning to explain everything.
In fact, the thing is very simple. During the third year of Zhengtong, it was still the period when Sanyang was in power. Qingliu's power was rising steadily. As one of the most promising people of the new generation, Du Ning was naturally reused and accumulated a lot of power in the court.
With sufficient qualifications, he was promoted to participate in politics in Fujian through his major in Xuanzong's Records.
Although Du Ning was born in the Han Dynasty, he was not incompetent in practical matters. After a short period of adaptation, he quickly got involved in local government affairs and made outstanding achievements in local politics.
Three years later, in the Ministry of Civil Service evaluation, he received a mid-to-high rating, so it was logical that Chen Xun, who was already a bachelor of the Imperial Academy at the time, suggested that he be transferred back to the capital and promoted to the position of minister of the Ministry of Works and concurrent bachelor of study.
However, just three months before he was about to be transferred back to the capital, he unexpectedly discovered that Jia Xiuping, then a promotion official in Zhangzhou Prefecture, had connections with a group of local Japanese pirates.
This incident originally originated from a young couple who had been robbed by Japanese pirates and stopped their sedan chair to complain. Du Ning followed the clues and finally found Jia Xiuping.
"At that time, I planned to report this matter to the imperial court and severely punish the thief according to national laws. However, the news soon leaked, so that night, Jia Xiuping came to find me..."
Du Ning looked dazed, as if he had returned to the scene at that time.
At that time, Du Ning was young and vigorous, and had the support of Chen Xun in the court. Naturally, he would not care about a mere official appointment. Therefore, he just planned to send the person away and continue to secretly report to the court. However,
That conversation profoundly changed Du Ning's perception.
"...That night, Jia Xiuping knew that he could not stop me, so he simply told everything truthfully. It was also from that time that I found out that he was not the only one who had colluded with the Japanese pirates. Some of the local gentry
Merchants, petty officials and government officials in prefectures and counties are all involved, and the scope of the influence behind them is so large that it is difficult to measure..."
When he said these words, Du Ning looked quite defeated. One can imagine how shocked he was when he first heard the news.
However, faced with such news, Chen Xun just spoke coldly and said.
"So, you chose to go along with him?"
Du Ning came back to his senses, shook his head and said.
"Of course not. I just felt angry at the time. The officialdom in Fujian was so corrupt that it needed the court to make great efforts to rectify it. Therefore, I did not change my mind because of this. On the contrary, I became more determined to report the matter to the court. However, then,
Jia Xiuping's words after coming down made me change my mind..."
Under the gazes of Chen Xun and Huai En, Du Ning took a long breath and continued.
"At that time, Jia Xiuping took out the household registers and tax registers of the entire Zhangzhou Prefecture. He told me that the reason why these Japanese pirates were able to run rampant was because the government was conniving at them, and the reason why the government was conniving at them was because among these Japanese pirates,
Many of them are local fishermen. Either to avoid corvee labor or to make a living, they are forced to pretend to be Japanese pirates and make a living."
"These people violate the maritime ban and smuggle all kinds of goods. They are gangsters wanted by the court. However, they themselves are also from good families. Moreover, the seaside is barren. Without these smuggling merchants, ordinary fishermen want to buy the necessities of life.
They have to travel a long way and pay a higher price, and if they want to sell the fish they catch and the pearls they pick up, they have to travel a long distance and the price will be lowered."
"The imperial court suppressed Japanese pirates. Once a group of them were suppressed, there would soon be another group, because these people were not Japanese pirates at all, but helpless fishermen."
"If I report this matter to the court, then the court will be furious and will investigate the case strictly. Fujian officials will arrest some and kill others. This is not a pity, they deserve it."
"Although I can't bear it for those fishermen who turned into bandits, after all, they violated the court's laws and should be severely punished. However, this only treats the symptoms rather than the root cause. If the Japanese bandits can be eradicated, the price will be worth paying, but,
This was impossible to do at that time. Even if a group of people were annihilated and killed, they would still resurge in the end."
"More importantly, during this gap period, the fishermen who originally relied on smugglers for a living will also have no way of living."
"This is the reason why I finally gave up on uncovering this matter..."