Chapter 30
"Royal brother, royal brother!" Seeing the Tianqi Emperor Zhu Youxiao waving at him from afar, Zhu Youjian hurriedly got off his horse and walked over to him. He pulled up his clothes and knelt down." Your Majesty, I didn't fail you!”
"Good, good!" The Tianqi Emperor looked at his younger brother with approval. Although his younger brother was only fifteen years old, he could already lead an army into battle. With less than a thousand soldiers, he had wiped out Xu Hongru's army of 100,000 who had dominated the Central Plains for several months. Even the famous generals of ancient times were only so-so!
My brother is really a genius!
" Brother, get up quickly and tell me about the process of quelling the rebellion…" The Tianqi Emperor held Zhu Youjian's hand and spoke as they walked. The civil and military officials also looked at Zhu Youjian with praise.
Except for the Donglin Party.
"Your Majesty, this is the list of people who have contributed to the pacification of the rebellion.”In Taihe Palace, Zhu Youjian presented the merit books of the civil and military officials that he had drafted. The Tianqi Emperor took them and flipped through them, but he did not see the name of Yang Zhaoji, the commander of South Lu.
"Imperial brother, there's good news. Yang Zhaoji led the army and gained a lot, but why isn't his name on the merit book?”
the Emperor asked.
"Yang Zhaoji disobeyed his superiors and attacked Teng County without permission to seize military merits, causing a large number of bandits to take the opportunity to escape. My brother's plan almost failed.”
His words stirred up thousands of waves!
"Your Majesty, I have a memorial!" Zhu Youjian had just finished speaking when Yuan Huazhong stood out on both sides of the matter, raising the wooden board with both hands and shaking the roof tiles.
"Report!"
"I heard that when Prince Xin suppressed the rebellion, he was arrogant and barbaric. He killed his soldiers, ignored the sufferings of the people, and forcefully recruited them. He spent extravagantly. A mere thousand troops actually spent two hundred thousand taels of military silver.”
The Tianqi Emperor's expression changed. Just as he was about to speak, Zhu Youjian had already stepped forward and smiled coldly." Lord Yuan, you know my actions very well! When did Lord Yuan join the Brocade Guard and spy on me like a hawk?”
"Your Highness, although you are a vassal king, I have studied hard for ten years to obtain the title of Jinshi.”
Yuan Huazhong raised the board and said righteously.
"Alright, then this king will ask you. Tell me that I've spent too much. What did I eat and drink in Lunan? List them all for me. If you don't list them today, I won't let you go!”
" This..." Yuan Huazhong's face turned red." His Highness killed the soldier Zhou Lil 'Six in public, and countless Zou County villagers witnessed it with their own eyes!”
"Zhou Lil 'Six is an official soldier, but he robbed the people's wealth and insulted women. His crimes are heinous, and not killing him is not enough to stabilize the morale of the army. This king will personally behead him in front of Zou County's villagers.”
Yuan Huazhong's face turned red and his Adam's apple moved. Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou, who were beside him, kept winking at him, indicating that he didn't want to use hard steel.
However…
As a remonstrant, Yuan Huazhong valued his face the most. Now, in front of all the civil and military officials in the court, he was rendered speechless by Prince Xin's question and was put on the spot. This made him very embarrassed.
"Your Highness has led a thousand soldiers from the capital prefecture and spent two hundred thousand taels of military expenditure. This is enough to punish you for your corruption!”
"Xu Guangqi!"
Zhu Youjian knew that the 200,000 taels of silver had long been targeted by someone. He shouted loudly. Xu Guangqi hurriedly stood up, took out a thick account book, and read it aloud.
"According to the rules of the Great Ming Army, the families of Chen Fangjia, Xu Dachuan, Jiang Liu, Wang Siwu, Zhao Qi, and 134 other deceased soldiers will be compensated for a total of 5,500 taels of silver!”
"18,000 taels of silver will be used to reward Cao Wenzhao, Xu Guangqi, Li Yan, Han Bin, Cui Chengfei, Jia Dahua, and a total of 320 meritorious soldiers…"
"Allocate 35,000 taels of military funds to support the villagers of Zou County, Yun City, Teng County, Dongchang, Cao Zhou, and other places to repair their houses and buy seeds…"
" Order 3,000 coffins to bury the villagers killed by Xu Hongru's bandits…"
He remembered each and every word clearly. All the civil and military officials in the court listened and could not help but be moved. Prince Xin was really a model of wholeheartedly serving the country!
Yuan Huazhong's face turned from red to green. Based on his understanding of the vassal kings, these people were lazy, extravagant, and licentious. With 200,000 taels of military funds in their hands, they would definitely commit corruption. He guaranteed that they would be sued!
However, he never expected that Prince Xin would be so unconventional and not do anything to the account book!
Oh no, he had kicked an iron plate this time!
He looked at Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou as if asking for help. Yang Lian cleared his throat and cupped his hands." Your Majesty, Lord Yuan…"
"Shut up!" Zhu Youjian shouted," Did I let you speak? Let Lord Xu finish reading the account book!"
Yang Lian's face turned red as if someone had slapped his mouth. He glared at Zhu Youjian and returned to his original position unwillingly.
"I paid 370 carriages for the civilian workers who transported the weapons and ammunition, leaving a balance of 200,000 taels of silver.”Xu Guangqi finally finished reading the long bill. He opened his palm and waved a piece of silver in front of Yuan Huazhong." Lord Yuan, do you want someone to check the authenticity of this silver?"”
"Even so…"
"So what? If you don't have any evidence and dare to make up stories to frame this king, we'll meet in the imperial prison!”
Yuan Huazhong's face turned from green to red, like a monkey's butt. He lowered his head deeply, unable to say a word.
"How dare you, Yuan Huazhong, slander a meritorious minister. Men, drag him out and punish him with twenty sticks!”When the Tianqi Emperor saw that he dared to falsely accuse his younger brother, Zhu Youjian, he was furious. He slammed the chopping board in front of him and stood up, reprimanding him sternly!
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