socalfunplaces Chapter 250 Beijing's Reaction
Chapter 250 Beijing's Reaction
With the Tongzhou Health Operation, everything is progressing smoothly.
After the few people in the garrison who had been bribed were taken into control by Xiao Linggao, none of the subordinates dared to outwardly comply but inwardly defy him. Moreover, taking action against the entire Tongzhou officialdom clearly indicated a major case.
You can get merit if you solve a major case!
For a time, everyone in Tongzhou Guard was eager to make a name for themselves and was more concerned about arresting people than anyone else.
Neither the Tongzhou officials nor the merchants who colluded with Huang Yecai were able to escape.
Wen Zongji acted too quickly; they hadn't received a single hint of being investigated, and most of them were still fast asleep when they were arrested.
In fact, even Wen Zongji didn't expect this.
He was only ordered to investigate the Tongzhou Dam breach, but by now the investigation has revealed that the dam breach is no longer a major issue; Huang Yecai's crime is the real deal, the kind that deserves to die a hundred times over.
As Yu Jiacheng arrived in Yangzhou, the Yangzhou Guard also began to take action, sending troops to other prefectures in Jiangnan to arrest everyone on the list.
However, Liu Chengyun's list was not actually complete. As people on the list were arrested, they recruited others.
Pulling out the radish brought out the mud, causing a great stir in the officialdom of Jiangnan.
The person in charge of this case was just a minor official of the seventh rank.
When the prefectures and counties surrounding Jiangnan heard this news, they found it inexplicably absurd.
But upon hearing Wen Zongji's identity and the title of imperial envoy, it seemed not so impossible.
Choosing to protect themselves, Jiangnan launched a massive crackdown on people for several days, while the governments and garrisons in the surrounding prefectures and counties remained completely silent.
Just stand by and watch!
No one blamed them, and no one cared.
At least they didn't inquire about it openly.
The provincial judicial officials who were qualified to intervene in the matter had been thrown into prison for their collusion with Huang Yecai. Unless officials from the capital were sent to handle the matter, no one dared to get involved.
……
Wen Zongji stirred up trouble in Jiangnan, and his letters also reached the capital.
Pei Rujing was overjoyed to receive Wen Zongji's letter, but before she could rejoice for long, the guard from the Marquis's residence who delivered the letter said, "Princess, the Third Young Master said that this letter is addressed to the Crown Prince. It is extremely urgent. Please deliver it to the Crown Prince."
Upon hearing this, Pei Rujing immediately forgot her composure and asked worriedly, "What happened to my husband?"
It's alarming the Crown Prince; it's clear this matter is far from simple.
"The Third Young Master is unharmed, but it seems something major has happened in Jiangnan."
He was only responsible for delivering the message and did not know the details.
Pei Rujing hadn't expected someone who knew nothing to come, and she had no interest in talking to him: "Qinghe, arrange a carriage immediately, I need to go to the palace."
As for the guard who delivers the letter, there's no need to make too many arrangements. He's a guard of the Marquis's residence anyway, so he just needs to wait to retrieve the letter.
Pei Rujing was worried about Wen Zongji, so she went straight to Linhua Palace after entering the palace.
At this time, the Crown Prince was in the Linhua Hall processing memorials with Emperor Shun'an.
Pei Rujing didn't even bother to have someone announce her arrival. She rushed into the hall and called out, "Your Highness, quickly see what my husband wrote for you. Is he in danger?"
Pei Rujing looked anxious; it was already quite an achievement that she had managed to resist watching the whole way.
The Crown Prince, remembering the matter he had asked Wen Zongji to investigate, immediately stood up, took the letter from Pei Rujing, and quickly read it, his expression growing increasingly grim.
"Father, look!"
The Crown Prince never expected that simply asking Wen Zongji to investigate the breach of the Tongzhou Dam would lead to so many complications.
The thought of how corrupt the Tongzhou officialdom was from top to bottom made him furious.
boom--
Emperor Shun'an slammed his fist on the imperial desk: "Such a shocking thing has happened in Tongzhou! What is the Provincial Surveillance Commission doing? Are the officials sent by the Ministry of Personnel to conduct the assessments just sitting around doing nothing?"
Emperor Shun'an was so angry that his face turned ashen.
Pei Rujing was completely confused: "Uncle, what are you talking about? Is my husband in danger?"
Emperor Shun'an suppressed his anger and reassured him, "Don't worry, Anhe, Wen Zongji is fine. He has the Tongzhou Guard at his disposal, so no one can harm him."
Even if Huang Yecai were to wield absolute power in Tongzhou, without actual military force, he would be nothing more than a paper tiger.
That's why he was so eager to oust Xiao Linggao, and when he realized he couldn't, he planned to join forces with the middle-level officials of Tongzhou Guard to sideline Xiao Linggao.
Unfortunately, the plan had only been underway for a short time when Wen Zongji arrived, directly causing the plan to fail.
Pei Rujing finally breathed a sigh of relief: "So what exactly happened?"
Emperor Shun'an shook his head: "This is none of your business. Go find Changning to play."
Pei Rujing pouted: "I did send you a message, and you just kept it from me like this... Never mind, I have something to do, I'll be going now."
As long as Wen Zongji is alright, she has no interest in understanding politics.
Watching Pei Rujing leave, Emperor Shun'an said coldly, "Immediately send someone from the Ministry of Personnel to Jiangnan, firstly to fill the vacancies in the Jiangnan officialdom, and secondly to temporarily take over the mess in Tongzhou Prefecture and clean it up properly."
Now that the corruption in Tongzhou Prefecture has been exposed, the question of how to handle the aftermath has become a problem.
What will happen to the rescued women?
How should the families of the murdered women be notified and compensated?
And how will those who were arrested be sentenced?
All of these things require someone to handle them.
Wen Zongji, after all, did not hold a high official position. Even though he was an imperial envoy, he did not have a legitimate imperial decree. Therefore, he could only detain those people and wait for someone from the capital to deal with them.
Zhou Wangliang responded, "This servant will immediately send a message to the Cabinet."
"Show them this letter. Let them think carefully about how to explain this to me. They keep talking about national peace and prosperity, is this what they mean by national peace and prosperity? Who recommended Huang Yecai, the prefect of Tongzhou? Who has been protecting him all these years without anyone discovering the shady dealings in Tongzhou?"
Emperor Shun'an spoke in a calm tone, but the coldness in his voice was clearly visible.
Zhou Wangliang went to the cabinet with Emperor Shun'an's decree and questions.
Emperor Shun'an looked at the Crown Prince: "You're sending Wen Zongji to investigate Huang Yecai?"
The Crown Prince shook his head, his expression complex: "Your Majesty, I only suspected that there might be other details to the Tongzhou Dam breach last year, but I never expected to find out these things."
Emperor Shun'an then remembered that the letter had also mentioned the breach of the Tongzhou Dam: "According to Wen Zongji's investigation, the Tongzhou Dam breach was caused by insufficient mortar during its construction. The main responsibility for this lies with the officials in charge of water conservancy in Tongzhou, and it has nothing to do with Xie Zixing?"
Not only was the officialdom in Tongzhou corrupt, but a wrongful conviction was also committed in the capital?
The Crown Prince said, "The people sent to investigate this matter were probably bribed by Huang Yecai."
"Then arrest them all and reopen the trial!"
Emperor Shun'an said with a stern face, "Could it be that because my temper has improved these past few years, some people think they can do whatever they want? Crown Prince, you previously said that Wen Zongji planned to grant local gazette offices the power to publish their own official gazettes?"
The crown prince nodded: "Exactly."
Emperor Shun'an waved his hand and said, "This matter does not need to be discussed by the cabinet. I approve it. At the same time, the chief officials of the local offices will all be officials of the eighth rank and will receive salaries from the court."
The Crown Prince was surprised by Emperor Shun'an's generosity, which allowed the Ministry of Revenue to increase the salaries of more than one hundred eighth-rank officials every year with just a word.
Emperor Shun'an continued, "But I require the local offices to monitor local public opinion. Any unusual activity can be reported directly to you through the Capital Gazette Office."
The prince understood instantly.
Emperor Shun'an intended for local officials to act as informants, in order to prevent a repeat of incidents like the one in Tongzhou.