0p0 Chapter 733 Corrupt Practices in Officialdom
Chapter 733 Corrupt Practices in Officialdom
Chapter 733 Corrupt Practices in Officialdom
Royal study room.
Wang Wenzhou, with his arm around Da Yu'er, took a sip of wine and said, "Brother Zhu, Qian Qianyi has already confessed. Do you want to kill him or dismiss him from office and return to civilian life? I can help you find a charge against him."
Zhu Youjian shook his head and said helplessly, "The Donglin Party is very powerful. Although he has confessed, it is not easy for me to convict him!"
"Look at this!" Zhu Youjian pointed to a pile of memorials on the table and said helplessly, "Even though Qian Qianyi has confessed, all these memorials are defending him. Although I am the emperor, punishing my subjects is harder than climbing to heaven!"
Wang Wenzhou chuckled inwardly. Zhu Youjian, you deserved it! Wei Zhongxian was so loyal to your family and did things for you, but after you ascended the throne, you forced him to his death, ultimately allowing the Donglin Party to grow too powerful and become uncontrollable. It's all your own doing!
Wang Wenzhou casually picked up a memorial and glanced at it. Actually, Qian Qianyi's crimes weren't that serious at the moment; in modern terms, they were bribery, accepting bribes, and possessing a huge amount of unexplained wealth. These memorials defending Qian Qianyi were all reasonable and well-founded.
Even emperors are aware of the corrupt practices in officialdom. This matter isn't really the fault of the Ming Dynasty officials. Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, came from a poor background. When his parents died, he didn't even have enough money for their burial, which shows how poor his family was.
Because Zhu Yuanzhang had experienced poverty, he particularly hated wealthy officials. After becoming emperor, he set the salaries of Ming Dynasty officials very low. Even the notoriously foolish Hai Rui was so poor he couldn't afford to eat, only managing to get a couple of ounces of meat a year on his mother's birthday.
Of course, to the common people, Hai Rui was an honest official, and that is something worth praising. But to Hai Rui's relatives, Hai Rui was a complete idiot!
Because most people cannot escape human nature, corrupt practices developed in the Ming Dynasty's officialdom. For example, when officials from outside the capital came to the capital to report on their duties or when officials from the capital were transferred to local posts, they had to give gifts to their social circles. There were many kinds of gifts, with regular items including ice gifts, charcoal gifts, farewell gifts, and group greetings.
"Ice Respect" means money given to buy ice to cool off in the summer, "Charcoal Respect" means money given to burn charcoal for heating in the winter, and "Farewell Respect" is a "parting gift" when leaving the capital. In addition, there is a "Water Gift" for the Spring Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival. People from the same hometown and the same year also have the title of "Group New Year Greeting", which roughly means "group New Year greetings" every year.
Qian Qianyi's enormous wealth, of course, came from the corrupt practices of officialdom, namely, from his colleagues. It was precisely because of this that after Qian Qianyi was imprisoned, not only did the Donglin Party members object, writing memorials criticizing him, but even those officials who weren't part of the Donglin Party also objected.
Only a fool like Hai Rui wouldn't accept the corrupt practices in officialdom. Other officials wouldn't want to be just an honest official and not a good father, husband, or son.
Wang Wenzhou thought for a moment and then said, "Brother Zhu, this is easy to handle. The key is how determined you are!"
Zhu Youjian said with a wry smile, "Of course I want to punish Qian Qianyi, but your actions have already aroused public anger!"
Wang Wenzhou, with his arm around Da Yu'er, took a sip of wine and said irritably, "Brother Zhu, you've gone too far! I did what you said, and in the end you made me take the blame! You've done this kind of scumbag more than once!"
Wang Wenzhou finally understood why Zhu Youjian became a ruler who brought about the downfall of his country. Zhu Youjian, though a decent person, had glaring character flaws. He lacked the courage to forge ahead, and even more so, the courage to take responsibility.
For example, when Li Zicheng attacked Beijing, Zhu Youjian originally wanted to move the capital to Nanjing. However, he was unwilling to take the blame and wanted his ministers to take the blame instead. The ministers, especially the shameless Donglin Party members, were unwilling to take the blame, so they opposed moving the capital.
In the end, Zhu Youjian, that idiot, couldn't escape and could only hang himself on Coal Hill. His last words were, "I am not the ruler who brought about the downfall of the country; it is my subjects who brought about its downfall."
At first, Wang Wenzhou also felt that Zhu Youjian was wronged. Such a virtuous and ambitious person had become emperor but neglected the country. It was truly the fault of the Donglin Party. However, after time-traveling, Wang Wenzhou spent more time with Zhu Youjian, and so many things happened.
Wang Wenzhou now believes that while the Donglin Party bears some responsibility for the fall of the Ming Dynasty, the greatest responsibility lies with Zhu Youjian. But that pig Zhu Youjian, even on his deathbed, refused to admit his mistakes!
"Boxin!" Zhu Youjian said with a wry smile, "The court and the people are in turmoil, and I have no choice but to appease them. Otherwise, the court will surely descend into chaos! The Ming Dynasty is beset by internal and external troubles, and the siege of Lu Xiangshan has not yet been lifted. The court cannot afford any more trouble at this time!"
Zhu Youjian was too embarrassed to say it, but Wang Wenzhou, you scoundrel, you colluded with the Tartars to cause trouble, and Lu Xiangshan was besieged. Wasn't it all your fault?
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "I understand. The reason why the officials are so opposed is because they are afraid that you will pin this crime on them in the future. After all, everyone in the officialdom is subject to these corrupt practices, and no one has a clean record."
Zhu Youjian nodded. "Boxin, it's good that you understand."
Wang Wenzhou continued, "This is easy to handle; we can change the charge!"
"Huh?" Zhu Youjian said helplessly, "How can you convict someone without evidence?"
Wang Wenzhou said irritably, "Brother Zhu, you're such an idiot! You must have read a lot of history books. Let me ask you, who was a better person, Liu Bang or Xiang Yu?"
“Of course it’s Xiang Yu!” Zhu Youjian said quickly.
“That’s right!” Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, “Liu Bang was a shameless villain, but he still won in the end. So, sometimes, in order to win, you have to use some underhanded methods. In military terms, this is called a brilliant strategy. Of course, outside of military terms, the descriptions are much more unpleasant.”
"What do you want?" Zhu Youjian asked.
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "Old Wen has already obediently listened to me. He will say whatever I tell him to say. Let's do this so that Old Wen admits to colluding with the Tartars, and then drag Qian Qianyi down with him."
Zhu Youjian shook his head with a wry smile. Wang Wenzhou was truly shameless; this was indeed despicable. Zhu Youjian didn't know whether he should do this or not. He was really afraid that things would be exposed. Although he could shift the blame onto Wang Wenzhou and make him take the fall, even so, his reputation as a wise ruler would be ruined.
Seeing Zhu Youjian's hesitation, Wang Wenzhou quickly said, "Brother Zhu, do you want your country or not? The Donglin Party is now in control of the government, and you've already dealt with Wen Tiren. If you don't immediately crack down on the Donglin Party, are you going to give up your country?"
Zhu Youjian thought for a moment and then said, "Alright! I agree, but you must make the case airtight! There should be no possibility of overturning it!"
Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "Brother Zhu, don't worry! Qian Qianyi only has one son, and I've already taken care of him. What I'm doing now is to show the officials that when a wall falls, everyone pushes it down. As long as Qian Qianyi doesn't make a comeback, no one will get involved."