diymy Chapter 10 Not only will your three clans be exterminated, but I will also exterminate your nine cla
Chapter 10 Not only will your three clans be exterminated, but I will also exterminate your nine cla
Upon seeing Zhuge Zhengwo, Zhu Houzhao smiled slightly.
"Granted."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Zhuge Zheng took out a memorial from his bosom and respectfully held it above his head.
"Your Majesty, after an investigation by the Six Doors, it has been confirmed that Duke Zhang Mao of Yingguo and Minister of War Ma Wensheng were both involved in the Xuanfu Mutiny!"
"In addition, there were 63 other officials from the capital, including Yi Baiqing, the commander of Shuntian Prefecture, Wei Shaojie, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, and Zhao Xiaoyang, the censor of the Censorate, who were involved in this case."
"Their crimes have all been investigated and verified; the evidence is conclusive and the facts are clear. We request Your Majesty to proceed with the appropriate action!"
While Zhuge Zhengwo was reporting, Liu Jin had already jogged all the way to deliver Zhuge Zhengwo's memorial to Zhu Houzhao.
Having been reprimanded by Zhu Houzhao, Liu Jin now understands his place perfectly and dares not harbor any improper thoughts for the time being.
In addition, he was very good at reading people's expressions and served Zhu Houzhao very well, so Zhu Houzhao was a little reluctant to replace him.
Zhu Houzhao picked up the memorial and began to read it. The facts recorded on it were shocking, making it difficult for Zhu Houzhao to vent his anger!
These officials are absolutely lawless!
They didn't respect him, the emperor, at all. What they did was a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of their families!
Zhu Houzhao slammed the memorial in his hand onto the imperial desk and shouted sternly, "Bring Ma Wensheng, Zhang Mao, and the others to me!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
A moment later, Ma Wensheng, Zhang Mao, Yi Baiqing, Wei Shaojie and others were escorted to the imperial court by constables from the Six Doors.
Upon their appearance, the ministers in the court were immediately taken aback.
The Duke of Yingguo, Zhang Mao, and the Minister of War, Ma Wensheng, two men of such high status, were now disheveled, ragged, and filthy.
His body was covered with hundreds of wounds of varying sizes.
These wounds included knife wounds, burns, scalds, and penetrating wounds...
It's terrifying to look at, and sends chills down your spine.
They could hardly imagine what kind of torture these two had endured at the hands of the Six Doors to end up like this.
Besides the two of them, the other officials arrested by the Six Doors were also covered in wounds.
They didn't even have the strength to kneel on the ground. After being escorted to the court by the Six Doors, they immediately knelt and prostrated themselves on the ground.
Zhu Houzhao looked at these officials with no sympathy in his eyes, only boundless hatred and anger.
"Zhang Mao! You come from a family of meritorious officials, why have you committed such a rebellious act?!"
"You've been drawing a salary without working, embezzling and accepting bribes, colluding with border generals—you've committed such heinous acts! Have you even thought about how you'll explain this to your father and grandfather?!"
"Zhang Mao! You have disgraced your ancestors for eighteen generations!"
Zhang Mao had been tortured to the point of mental confusion by the Six Doors' cruel methods.
At this moment, after being severely scolded by Zhu Houzhao, he suddenly came to his senses and immediately prostrated himself on the ground and wept bitterly.
"Your Majesty, I am guilty! I deserve to die!"
"In a moment of folly, I committed such a treasonous act!"
"I have no face to meet my ancestors; I am ashamed before them!"
I saw Zhang Mao, 65 years old, with a full head of white hair, kneeling on the ground and wailing incessantly.
All the civil and military officials were filled with sighs of regret.
Zhang Maosheng had no particular talents, but fortunately, he was the descendant of a meritorious official and lived in a peaceful era. At the age of nine, he inherited the title of Duke of Yingguo, at the age of thirty-three, he took charge of the Central Military Commission, and at the age of fifty, he was granted the title of Grand Tutor.
He enjoyed a life of wealth and luxury.
Even with such high status, he was still not satisfied and continued to exploit soldiers and embezzle money and grain. How could Zhu Houzhao tolerate this?
"You deserve to die, and I will kill you right now!"
"Shen Lian!"
"Your subject is here!"
Shen Lian, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, stepped out of the ranks and respectfully bowed to Zhu Houzhao.
"Immediately take Zhang Mao away and execute him by slow slicing. After his death, his head should be displayed at the execution ground."
"Strip him of his title, confiscate his property, and execute his entire family!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"As for the others..."
Zhu Houzhao's gaze swept over the other prisoners, and he directly ordered: "Skin them alive, stuff them with straw, and exterminate their entire family!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Shen Lian waved his hand, and immediately a large number of Imperial Guards stepped forward and dragged away all the officials on the ground.
Upon hearing Zhu Houzhao's order, Zhang Mao, Ma Wensheng, and the others felt as if they had been struck by lightning.
They all wept bitterly, as if they had lost their parents.
"Your Majesty, spare my life! Your Majesty!"
"I was confused for a moment! Your Majesty, please spare my family, for I have toiled for the Ming Dynasty for half my life!"
"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. As for whether to kill or punish me, I will bear the consequences alone. My wife and children should not be implicated!"
"..."
Ma Wensheng banged his head on the ground and cried loudly, hoping to soften Zhu Houzhao's heart.
But Zhu Houzhao just smiled coldly, his eyes filled with murderous intent as he looked at Ma Wensheng.
"Well said, Ma Wensheng! Misfortune shouldn't extend to the wife and children, but that's on the premise that good fortune shouldn't extend to them either!"
"You've served as Minister of War for so many years, how many courtyards have you built in your ancestral home in Junzhou? And how many tens of thousands of acres of fertile land have you purchased in Junzhou?"
"Your son, Ma Jie, is a tyrant in Junzhou, forcibly taking women and killing villagers at will."
"Prince Hui, Zhu Jianpei, personally reported to the court. The three judicial departments determined that Ma Jie's crime warranted hanging, but what was the result?"
"Your son is probably back in Junzhou causing trouble again, isn't he?!"
"Your son is just a commoner, yet he needs a prince to personally report him. You, Ma Wensheng, have quite the influence!"
"You, Ma Wensheng, just because you're the Minister of War, do you really think no one in the court dares to deal with you?"
"I will not only exterminate your three clans, I will also exterminate your nine clans!"
In an instant, cold sweat soaked through Ma Wensheng's clothes, and he trembled like a leaf, unable to utter another word.
What Zhu Houzhao just mentioned is an old case that occurred during the Hongzhi era.
But at that time, Emperor Xiaozong had no way to deal with him, and the matter was left unresolved.
But now, facing Zhu Houzhao who holds absolute power, he has lost all his means.
"Take him away! Ma Wensheng will be executed by slow slicing, and his entire family will be exterminated!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Without further delay, the Imperial Guards dragged all the officials out of the court and to the execution ground at Caishikou for public execution.
Inside the imperial court, all the civil and military officials who witnessed this scene changed their expressions.
They were terrified, feeling as if the sky over the Ming Dynasty was about to collapse.
Just now, the young emperor they knew, Zhu Houzhao, who was only fifteen years old, executed sixty-three officials in one go.
Among them were a Minister, a Duke, the Commander-in-Chief of Shuntian Prefecture, and the Governor of Shuntian Prefecture, all of whom were second-rank officials.
His Majesty just killed them on a whim?!
Doesn't he care at all about the impact on the imperial court?
He wasn't afraid at all that the civil and military officials in the court would become disloyal to him.
What exactly does this emperor want to do?!