Chapter 76 Ming Ye Eats Apples, Night Ends and Dawn Comes

As the saying goes, new year, new atmosphere. The capital city omitted lantern festivals and fireworks, and the lack of festive atmosphere was fortunately made up by South Zhili.

This New Year in Nanzhili can be described as prosperous.

Not to mention the joy among the people, the officialdom was even more lively.

The first incident was caused by a conflict between Zhang Jing, the garrison commander of Nanjing, and Sun Shizhong, the garrison commander of Nanjing and the commander-in-chief of the Central Army, and the Marquis of Huaining.

The two men's men fought privately and a lot of blood was seen, which was a good start to the new year.

The reason for the private fight is also very simple.

The Nanjing garrison had the power and responsibility to control the various guards in Nanjing. Under the premise that the garrison commander Zhang Jing had repeatedly stressed that no one was allowed to leave the camp without permission, a small flag officer of the Feixiong Guard led his troops out of the camp for no reason and returned after several days. When Zhang Jing found out, he wanted to execute him.

When Sun Shizhong, the Nanjing garrison commander, learned about this, he immediately intervened, but found out that Xiaoqi was returning home to visit his relatives and his subordinates had seen him off for a while, and that the procedures were legal and in compliance with regulations, so he was not guilty.

Both sides hold their own views.

Finally, the Nanjing Ministry of War stepped in to smooth things over and gave Xiaoqi a military stick, and the matter was resolved.

But who knew that Zhang Jing was so cunning and treacherous, with a poisonous snake hidden in his belly.

New Years later, Zhang Jing took advantage of Sun Shizhong's absence to capture Xiaoqi and personally executed him in front of all the officers of the garrison battalion.

When Sun Shizhong arrived, only two pieces of the body were left.

A conflict naturally broke out between the two sides, but they couldn't make it too serious, so a private fight broke out among their men.

This then alarmed the Ministry of War again, and even the Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Canal Transport Force, who happened to be on official business in Southern Zhili, joined in negotiating and mediating the matter.

It took a lot of effort to finally stop the movement.

The second hot topic was that of Chen Dong, Shaoqing of Dali Temple. The deputy judge of Transportation Department, Chang Ke, who was detained by him, died in prison for no reason. His relatives and family members went to ask for an explanation.

Chen Dong took out the documents from the three judicial departments and determined that this person was guilty of the death penalty.

But the family members refused to let him go, saying that although Chang Ke was sentenced to death by the Three Courts, it was not a legal execution and there must be something fishy going on.

Afterwards, relatives and family members cried in the streets and protested their innocence, making the matter a huge fuss.

Afterwards, righteous people from all over the country came to show their support.

They dragged the common people together to seek justice from the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple.

Finally, the climax was reached when Chang Ke’s mother, unable to bear the injustice, ran into Chen Dong and died.

The public opinion in the entire Taizhou Prefecture surged in an instant, and everyone gathered together to seek justice for Chang Ke and his mother.

The government office was unable to mediate and could only advise Chen Shaoqing to leave quickly.

After Chen Dong refused, many righteous people wanted to die together with this cruel official.

Under Jiao Ze's protection, nothing really happened, but the situation became more serious day by day.

The third fire was at the Huai'an prefectural government office, which caught fire again.

After Hai Rui raided several salt merchants including Shen Chuanyin, he had already caused panic among the salt merchants in the entire Southern Zhili.

They believed that Hai Rui had insufficient evidence and was deliberately plundering the salt merchants' wealth and framing them for his own selfish desires.

They all gathered at the Huai'an government office to seek justice from Hai Rui.

Needless to say, there were people throwing eggs and rotten vegetable leaves.

However, during this period, some people of unknown origin broke into the government office, identified a pile of boxes, and set a huge fire.

Fortunately, the box was empty and no major damage was caused.

In this way, you finish your song and I take the stage, and Nanzhili stumbles along until the 16th day of the first lunar month.

……

The Lantern Festival had just passed last night, but even though the prefectural government was a solemn place, there was no sense of festivity.

It's not just today. For the past half month, the Huai'an government office has been shrouded in a strange atmosphere.

Governor Hai Rui seemed to be on halftime break. Apart from occasionally confiscating the property of salt merchants, he did not harm the officials in Southern Zhili.

He came here to handle a big case, but ended up hiding in the government office and refusing to come out.

While the officials breathed a sigh of relief, they couldn't help but wonder, what was Hai Rui waiting for?
"Governor, are we just going to wait like this?"

Chen Yinzhao was the eldest son of the Earl of Pingjiang, and he had no scruples when asked many questions.

Hai Rui was sitting on the floor, washing his clothes with a washboard.

Hearing this, he asked without even looking up, "What?"

Chen Yinzhao said helplessly: "Governor, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this is a counterattack by Nanzhili."

"If my father hadn't gone to mediate the matter between the two Nanjing garrisons, I'm afraid they would have driven Zhang back to the palace."

"And Chen Shaoqing, that guy is not a commoner, he was attacked by a crossbow a few days ago! How can there be such a commoner!?"

Having said that, Chen Yinzhao looked up outside the government office, as if he was seeing the salt merchants outside the government office through the wall.

"It's bad enough that the salt merchants outside the government office are causing trouble, but they also let the censor sit in the tea stall and watch. It's obvious that he is here to keep an eye on things. This is really too arrogant!"

"Governor, it's not just me, my father and Governor Wang are also wondering why you keep passively accepting the beatings and not taking drastic measures."

Hai Rui wrung out his clothes and looked up at Chen Yinzhao.

He said why this kid was talking so much today, and it turned out that Wang Zongmu and Chen Wangmo asked him.

No wonder.

In recent days, the counterattack from Southern Zhili has become more and more fierce.

The pressure is increasing day by day.

Wang Zongmu and Chen Wangmo both suffered different pressures.

The two of them didn't really not understand, so they asked Chen Yinzhao to ask on their behalf.

It was precisely because this governor and the general understood the situation so clearly that they urged Hai Rui to act quickly and cut the Gordian knot!

Everyone has their own solution.

Zhang Juzheng wanted to take charge of this matter by using his position as the chief minister of the cabinet.

Gao Gong naturally had his own solution.

He didn't mind killing Xu Jie with his own hands - he still had two more chances to get his immunity from death.

As long as Xu Jie was killed with a single blow and the eighteen boxes of evidence were burned, Hai Rui's case could be continued - whoever was found would be prosecuted, wouldn't it be much simpler than investigating such a huge case?
What's more, Xu Jie wanted to seize the emperor's ambition? But Gao Gong killed him because of personal grudges, and the emperor knew nothing about it.

This method, which to a certain extent achieved the best of both worlds, was recognized by Wang Zongmu, Chen Wangmo, and even Zhu Xixiao.

Now, I am urging Hai Rui to act accordingly and share your worries.

However, Hai Rui did not agree before, and he will not agree today.

He raised his head, looked at Chen Yinzhao, and said seriously: "You can tell your father that I am waiting for the emperor's order."

It could be a public edict asking him to continue handling the case, or a private decree persuading him to stop.

Hai Rui would always wait for the emperor's order before taking any action.

Even if the emperor wanted to stop, there was no rush. Hai Rui would obey the emperor's will and would not act on his own.

He just... wanted to see what the emperor would do.

This was not a matter that Chen Yinzhao could comment on; he was only responsible for passing on the message.

After getting the result, he bowed and turned to go to the Grain Transport Office.

Hai Rui withdrew his gaze, took out a bag of soap nuts, and prepared to clean his shoes.

At this moment, Gu Chengguang walked in from outside, taking three steps at a time.

He reported, "Governor, a senior official has arrived from Yingtian Prefecture. He seems to be the Chief Censor of the Nanjing Metropolitan Procuratorate!"

Hai Rui paused.

He was the Censor-in-Chief, and the arrival of the Chief Censor was probably not a good thing.

He gently put down his shoes and slowly stood up.

He wiped his wet hands on the hem of his shirt.

He looked at Gu Chengguang and nodded, "Lead the way."

No matter why you come, you have to meet him eventually.

In the days since Xu Jie surrendered himself, he has already encountered too many gods and Buddhas.

Fortunately, before leaving, the emperor specifically instructed Gu Chengguang and Jiao Ze, the two commanders, to obey his orders in everything.

It was precisely because of this that he was able to hold out for more than half a month, neither killing nor releasing Xu Jie.

Gu Chengguang led the way and brought Hai Rui to the government court.

As soon as Hai Rui walked into the court, he saw an old man in a red robe sitting in the main seat of the government office.

He was about to speak.

The old man behind the case said coldly, "I am Xu Yu, the Right Censor-in-Chief of Nanzhili."

"Are you Hai Rui?"

There was no Left Censor-in-Chief in the Censorate of Southern Zhili, only Right Censor-in-Chief.

This means that Xu Zai was the chief official of the Southern Zhili Censorate, a second-rank official.

A second-rank Chief Censor against a fourth-rank Assistant Chief Censor.

When the other party introduced himself, Hai Rui could not lose his manners. He bowed in return and was about to respond.

Xu Yu suddenly asked, "Is this how you greet your superior?"

The condescending rebuke interrupted Hai Rui's actions.

Hai Rui paused.

Since it was so obvious that he was asking for trouble, he might as well not even bother bowing.

He stood up straight, looked directly at Xu Xi, and said solemnly: "My official position is only fourth rank, but I have the job of an imperial envoy and governor, patrolling on behalf of the emperor. What etiquette do you want me to perform? "

"But you, you know that I represent His Majesty and the two palaces."

"How dare you sit in the court so openly and look down upon the imperial envoy? Are you disrespecting the imperial envoy, the two palaces, and His Majesty?"

"You are relying on your status as a second-rank official to point fingers at the governor and brazenly ask for a great gift. Can you bear it?"

"Is your position as a second-rank official more important, or is the imperial commissioner's order more important? Is your Censorate more important, or is the Ming Dynasty's laws more important?"

"Xu Xi, as long as you still have respect for the emperor and the laws of the Ming Dynasty, stand up and talk to me!"

Xu Yu suddenly stood up, furious.

He gnashed his teeth and said, "When I was the governor of Jiangxi and Zhejiang, you were still breastfeeding!"

"I will not argue with a mere scholar like you."

"Where's Zhang Huan, the Imperial Censor? Leave it to me. I want to take him away!"

Last year, or when Hai Rui just came to Nanzhili, he arrested a group of people, including the prince of Wei, Xu Jie's servants, and Zhang Huan, the Imperial Censor.

Some were killed by Hai Rui, some were released, but Zhang Huan was still imprisoned by Hai Rui.

Hai Rui waved his sleeves and said unhappily, "Censor Xu, are you going to interfere in the imperial case?"

Xu Xi suddenly sneered, "Imperial case? Your Majesty is wise and powerful, and he will make the decision. Hai Rui, the day when you return to Hainan to raise fish is not far away."

Nearly a month has passed since Xu Jie surrendered himself.

But there is no movement in the capital.

At least it shows that the central government had not made up its mind until New Year's Day.

Everyone has their own guesses as to what this sign means.

It was precisely because of this that Xu Zai dared to take the initiative to intervene today and come to ask for Zhang Huan.

This is both an invitation to fame and political speculation.

He looked at Hai Rui deeply and said meaningfully, "Even Censor Hai can't deal with a censor, so why bother?"

"Censor Hai, the overall situation is more important. Hand Zhang Huan over to me and I will leave immediately."

Hai Rui did not answer.

Xu Xi had come prepared, and he had also figured out the actions of Hai Rui, Chen Dong and others. Obviously, the senior officials were not qualified to deal with them directly.

Although the censors were only of the seventh rank, their status was extraordinary. "The six departments were promoted to the fourth rank in the capital and the third rank in the government. The ones promoted from outside were the seventh rank and the third rank respectively."

This means that although the censor is only a seventh-rank official, as long as he is transferred, if he is in a foreign country, he will be a third-rank official, and if he is in Beijing, he will be a fourth-rank official.

It is incomparable to ordinary officials.

It also means that Hai Rui is not qualified to deal with censors.

When the emperor wanted to kill Hu and Jia, he had to get the approval of the cabinet and the six ministries before he could do it. Hai Rui alone could not kill censors without permission.

Since Hai Rui was about to be kicked out and couldn't deal with Zhang Huan, there was no need to keep him there.

Xu Shi was 90 percent sure about this matter.

But Hai Rui looked at Xu Xi strangely and said, "Censor Xu, there is something I don't understand."

He pondered for a moment, and couldn't help asking, "Why do you all think you are in charge?"

Xu Xi sneered.

Although Xu Jie's move disgusted everyone.

But I have to admit that this trick is definitely effective.

If the emperor refuses to compromise, does he really dare to punish all the senior officials involved in the Xu Jie case?

Even if only half of it was done, it would be enough to shock the two capitals.

Xu Jie was not the only one who was capable of exaggeration. How many officials in the two capitals were clean?
Xu Jie's trick is not difficult and everyone can learn it. However, I am afraid that the emperor will not want to see how far it will be expanded by then.

Unless you let most of them go, you will only kill the chicken to scare the monkeys.

But if we let most of them go, what's the point? It won't serve as a warning to others, and it will only make people see our weakness.

Xu Xi couldn't help but look down at him with pity and said, "Hai Rui, you've never considered the big picture. You don't understand."

A lone minister will never be able to appreciate the overall situation.

Xu Shi wasted a lot of time and effort explaining this.

After saying this, he sat down again and waited quietly for Hai Rui's reply.

Hai Rui did not think about it for long. He said in a serious and blunt manner, "The case is not yet completed. Zhang Huan is spying on the imperial envoy's confidential information. He cannot be released."

After that, he turned around and left.

Xu Shi slammed the table and stopped Hai Rui.

He pointed at Hai Rui's back and cursed, "You are just a piece of shit in the toilet. You have no shame!"

"You keep putting on a face that's more saintly than a saint. How long do you think you can stay proud?!"

"Believe it or not, the imperial edict dismissing you from office is already on its way to Nanzhili!"

Hai Rui slowly turned around and stared at Xu Xi.

The latter is majestic and condescending.

The former had a blank expression and said nothing.

One of the two sat on the desk, and the other stood in the hall.

One up and one down, there seems to be a clear difference in height.

Only the morning light penetrated the lobby and sprinkled on Hai Rui.

A long time passed.

Hai Rui finally spoke.

Just now.

There were crowds of people outside.

There was an inexplicable noise.

Xu Xi raised his eyes and looked.

Hai Rui turned around.

Only a sharp voice was heard into the hall.

"The imperial edict has arrived!"

"The imperial edict has arrived!"

Gu Chengguang came trotting in again and headed towards the lobby.

But there was a line of eunuchs following behind him, and one of them was still singing and shouting.

Xu Yu's expression changed and turned into ecstasy.

Pointing at Hai Rui, he sneered, "Hai Rui, how is it? Do you understand the overall situation now?"

He snorted coldly and finally regained his face.

Hai Rui ignored Xu Shi.

He stood straight, expressionless, quietly waiting for the imperial edict.

Xu Xi had already stepped down from the case: "Hai Rui, don't think that you can be invincible just because you carry the banner of Ming Dynasty law."

He patted Hai Rui on the shoulder, his eyes mocking, and said word by word: "The overall situation is more important."

Luo Sigong on the side looked at Xu Xi again and again, clenched his fists, and it was unknown what he was thinking.

Not long after.

Gu Chengguang led several eunuchs to the court.

Hai Rui and Xu Shi both knelt down to listen to the order.

The leading eunuch hurriedly said, "This is an order for Junior Master Xu Jie. Please call Xu Jie out first and then listen to the order."

After saying this, the eunuch nodded towards Gu Chengguang and signaled him to call Xu Jie.

Gu Chengguang responded and left.

Hai Rui was at a loss for a moment.

He couldn't help but bow to the capital and said, "Eunuch, may I ask how His Majesty is doing?"

Gu Chengguang had just whispered an introduction, so the eunuch naturally recognized him: "Governor of the Sea, Your Majesty, your greetings."

The eunuch knew what Hai Rui was going to ask, so he didn't keep him on suspense and replied amiably, "There is no imperial edict for the governor of the sea, but there is a handwritten letter."

He nodded to the eunuch behind him, and the young eunuch quickly presented a box.

Xu Xi watched coldly from the side, thinking it was a pity.

If he is to be deposed, it should be a clear imperial edict.

This secretive move was obviously to give Hai Rui some respect by allowing him to return to Beijing and be idle.

But it doesn't matter. Hai Rui, who has suffered two setbacks, is now just a pure auspicious sign. He can just watch the ups and downs in the officialdom.

He sneered inwardly.

Hai Rui bowed to the eunuch and took the box containing the emperor's handwritten letter.

A handwritten letter can be considered a private message, but it can also be considered an imperial decree. In today's political environment, one has little power and can only give instructions.

So...what did the emperor want to tell him?

Summon him back to the capital? Or just punish the main culprit? Or should we consider the overall situation?

Hai Rui took a look at the signature, "Chang Wei Jushi", and confirmed that it was a private letter from the emperor.

He took a deep breath and read slowly from the beginning.

Just at this moment, Gu Chengguang led Xu Jie out from the inner hall.

He quickly bowed: "Meet the angel."

The eunuch quickly asked him to stand up.

At this time, Gu Chengguang had already set up the incense table and was waiting for the imperial decree to be announced.

Seeing that the eunuch was so polite to Xu Jie, Xu Xi put aside his last bit of doubt.

He walked to Xu Jie's side and couldn't help but sarcastically said, "Master Xu has passed this level, but there are still many levels to come."

Xu Jie's move put everyone on the scale to be weighed by the emperor.

Now the emperor has let him go, but those who have been on the scale may not let Xu Jie off easily.

Xu Jie shook his head: "Xu Du Yu Shi is joking. It is a good thing that we can pass the test one by one."

Xu Xi couldn't help but feel dissatisfied with this person's mentality.

He said a few words and didn't stop until Xu Jie went to wash his hands and prepare to receive the order.

He turned and looked at Hai Rui again.

At first, the governor had a saintly face, cold and stern, and no one could change his expression.

Now he has a look of astonishment.

Xu Xi felt happy.

It was really hard for him to have any good feelings towards this kind of official stinky stone.

Now that she has been abandoned by the emperor for the second time, it is obvious that her mind is breaking. She really deserves it.

Do you really think that the emperor of the Zhu family can be trusted? That's too naive.

He glanced at him again and couldn't help but frowning. This Hai Qingtian looked relieved?
Does this mean that he has forgiven the emperor's backstabbing again?
What foolish loyalty.

Xu He shook his head.

He was too lazy to worry about this stinky stone anymore. At least today, he could take Zhang Huan away.

Hai Rui slowly closed the emperor's letter and regained his composure.

He thanked the eunuch, who quickly moved aside.

Xu Xi interrupted Hai Rui's empty politeness and attracted everyone's attention by saying, "Censor Hai, can Zhang Huan be released now?"

He didn't believe that Hai Rui could hold out in this situation.

Hai Rui paused, looked at Xu Xi from side to side, then smiled and nodded gently: "It's time to reunite Xu Du Yushi and Zhang Huan."

Xu Xi patted Hai Rui's shoulder with satisfaction.

He turned around and went to wait for someone outside the government office, also to give Hai Rui face.

Hai Rui did not have official ethics, but he could not lack this quality.

Just after taking two steps, he heard a voice behind him: "Catch this thief and lock him up next to Zhang Huan."

As soon as the words fell, Xu Yu was stunned, not realizing what they meant.

He slowly turned his head and saw that the Jinyiwei beside Hai Rui had already pounced on him.

Xu Xi finally realized what that sentence meant. His expression suddenly changed: "Hai Rui!"

I only had time to utter two words.

Luo Sigong's big hands clamped directly around his neck and pressed him to the ground.

Xu Xi struggled but couldn't make a sound.

Luo Sigong kicked Xu Xi with all his strength, and Xu Xi stopped struggling immediately and was dragged out.

The sudden change did not surprise anyone.

Only Xu Jie, who had just washed his hands and burned incense, suddenly stood there in a daze.

His mind raced, and he vaguely understood something.

But he looked at Hai Rui in disbelief: "Governor of the Sea, was that a second-rank official just now!?"

Hai Rui's expression suddenly cleared up and he quietly stepped aside.

He did not explain, but smiled and said to Xu Jie: "Master Xu, please accept the order first."

　I have indeed overestimated the difficulty of production. The unstable updates are my problem, but the number of words this month will definitely not be small, so I'm afraid I'll have to consider the update time in the future.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)