Chapter 158: The most heinous incident since Emperor Hongzhi ascended the throne, and indeed since the founding of the Great Ming Dynasty!

Witnessing Ma Wensheng being dragged away amidst agonizing screams, and hearing Xie Qian's piercing cries echo through the hall, Li Dongyang and Liu Daxia trembled incessantly, while Senior Grand Secretary Liu Jian turned ashen-faced with terror.

Ever since the ascension of the Hongzhi Emperor—and indeed, since the founding of the Great Ming Dynasty—such a heinous incident of a second-rank senior official being beaten to death right in the imperial court had never occurred!

Not since the reign of the Renzong Emperor had officials felt so viscerally the lethal power of an emperor commanding the military directly!

To hold the universe in one's palm, with the absolute power of life and death!

Li Dongyang took the lead in prostrating himself, and respectfully said, "The manifestation of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Xianzong in the court to purge corrupt sycophants has merits that benefit the contemporary era, advantages for a thousand autumns, and serves as a warning to future generations. Our Great Ming shall certainly produce generations of virtuous ministers and capable generals!"

Zhu Youcheng simply ignored him, turned around, and loudly denounced, "Imperial Father, Liu Daxia also secretly harbored nautical charts, hoarding all the materials of Zheng He's voyages to the Western Oceans, including the *Navigation Routes of Zheng He's Embassies*, for his own clan. His crime is even graver!"

During his years as a puppet, he could only play with eunuchs within the palace—and didn't even understand eunuchs well—yet he had managed to uncover plenty of the courtiers' dirty secrets!

Not only did Liu Daxia conceal the national-treasure-level *Navigation Routes of Zheng He's Embassies* while publicly claiming they were burned, but he had also hidden the *Documents of Emperor Taizong Dispatching General Zhang Fu on the Southern Expedition to Annan* when Emperor Xianzong sent Wang Zhi to recover the territory of Jiaozhi!

This caused Wang Zhi's mission to conquer Jiaozhi to end in a fruitless stalemate!

He was the Great Ming's number one book thief!

And a traitor to the state!

Liu Daxia was dumbfounded. The excuse of burning navigation records could be spun to the ignorant commoners as the Western voyages being a waste of manpower and wealth with no benefit to the nation. But to spout such nonsense in front of the emperors? Unless Emperor Jianwen were alive—or even if Emperor Yingzong Zhu Qizhen were alive—they wouldn't believe a single word of it!

The primary way the Yongle Emperor made money was through the voyages to the Western Oceans. His successive northern campaigns had shown the ancient and modern worlds, both Chinese and foreign, what true wealth meant!

Regarding the young Zhu Youcheng's act of informing on him, Liu Daxia felt deeply grief-stricken and anguished. He pleaded, "Reporting to Emperor Xianzong and Your Majesty, this old minister's hands are relatively clean. I am willing to return the treasures such as the *Navigation Routes of Zheng He's Embassies* completely intact to the imperial court. I beg Your Majesty to show mercy!"

The moment Emperor Taizong Wen made an appearance, he was completely checkmated. The *Navigation Routes of Zheng He's Embassies* in his hands instantly became worthless. After all, since Taizong himself had manifested, Zheng He could be summoned in person—who the hell needed a nautical chart?

Precisely because of this, he hesitated not a moment to offer up the charts, knowing that offering them or not made no difference. Being proactive at least prevented him from dying too ugly a death.

Zhu Jianshen let out a cold snort. "You admit you were the one who took them?"

Liu Daxia's expression stiffened, and he sorrowfully said, "Your Majesty, this minister was simply too terrified of poverty. In the past few years, I didn't dare use them even once."

Zhu Youjian added, "Liu Daxia is rolling in wealth. If there were a Jiangnan Rich List, his name would definitely top it!"

"Hey, are you little bastard's games never-ending? Isn't bringing down Xie Qian enough? Do you really have to drive this old man to his death?! If your heart is not that of a beast, how can you bear to do this?!" Liu Daxia lost his temper and shouted curses at the top of his lungs.

If he couldn't curse the two true deities of Taizong and Xianzong, couldn't he curse a mere little pawn like him?!

Zhu Youjian's face instantly darkened.

In an instant, thunder roared!

Inside the hall, heavenly thunder suddenly cracked. In the blink of an eye, thunder rolled continuously, with blue and white lightning raging menacingly, terrifying the worthies of the Hongzhi court so much that they scrambled and rolled across the floor.

"I curse his old mother…"

Liu Daxia's head was buzzing; he felt as though he had chosen to pick a one-on-one fight, only to end up clicking on the absolute strongest boss.

"Two ancestors, I overstepped." Zhu Youjian said with a gloomy expression.

"Go right ahead, go right ahead!"

The two emperors nodded repeatedly.

Zhu Jianshen still appeared relatively calm, but Zhu Youcheng was so frightened that he threw himself straight onto his father's body, shivering uncontrollably.

Boom!

A barrel-thick, ghostly white bolt of lightning struck down. In a split second, Liu Daxia was blasted to ashes, and along with him, the bewildered Li Dongyang was struck so thoroughly that, counting both man and his ashes, only five pounds remained, completely wiped out of existence.

Senior Grand Secretary Liu Jian looked left and right. The first four people had all died, and he instantly panicked.

Oh no, I've become the protruding rafter that gets sawed first!

Liu Jian hurriedly professed his loyalty, saying, "Your Majesty, this minister is utterly loyal! Even from our standing positions, you can tell that this minister, as Senior Grand Secretary, was merely a figurehead precisely because I refused to associate with their corrupt clique!"

Utter nonsense!

That was simply because you were too old and they refused to let you play with them!

The two emperors and the gathered dignitaries knew the truth perfectly well.

Zhu Jianshen said softly, "Spared for now, to observe your future actions."

"Thank you, Emperor Xianzong! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your boundless grace!" Liu Jian was overjoyed, kowtowing repeatedly.

Zhu Youcheng straightened up, full of vigor, and suddenly spoke up, "Since Minister of Rites Xie Qian has received his just punishment, let Han Ding be promoted to Minister of Rites."

Zhu Jianshen flicked his gaze slightly, saying nothing.

Han Ding, kneeling at the very back, exchanged a tacit understanding glance with Zhu Youcheng. Seeing that Xianzong offered no objection, he stepped forward and kowtowed respectfully. "Thank you, Emperor Xianzong, for your boundless grace! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your boundless grace!"

Zhu Youcheng personally helped him up and said earnestly, "Liu Jian is frequently ill; you must strive to assist him well!"

Zhu Youjian leaned close to Zhu Jianshen with a teasing look in his eyes, muttering under his breath.

The Hongzhi Emperor had been married for four years without producing an heir. Zhu Youcheng was anxious, and Han Ding—then serving as a supervising secretary in the Ministry of Rites—was even more anxious, repeatedly submitting memorials urging the emperor to take imperial concubines.

His memorials had been rejected by Empress Zhang.

Han Ding was undeterred, and that very same month submitted another memorial petitioning the emperor to select virtuous maidens to enrich the inner palace. The Xiaozong Emperor had longed for this memorial like a starving man for food!

He replied with an imperial edict stating: This matter can be discussed at length and handled gradually.

For an emperor to be this cautious just about taking a concubine, being manipulated to such an extent by both the inner cabinet and the harem, Xiaozong was truly the only one in the Ming Dynasty.

When Empress Zhang learned of this, she was furious. *Your Ministry of Rites repeatedly seduces the emperor into finding women, subtly implying that this old lady is a hen that can't lay eggs! If I don't give you a taste of your own medicine, you really think the inner palace is just for show!*

Back then, the Ministry of Rites had mysteriously caught fire (the inner palace of the Ming Dynasty always suffered from the wrath of the God of Fire). Though the fire wasn't massive, it was more than enough for the cabinet to make a fuss, impeaching the Minister of Rites Geng Yu and the left and right vice ministers, sentencing them to twenty heavy bamboo strokes and throwing them into prison.

The Empress, standing firmly on her dignity, didn't target Han Ding directly; if she wanted to strike, she would strike the head of the Ministry of Rites. Ever since then, the Ministry of Rites never dared to offer advice urging the emperor to take concubines again.

"This minister will certainly not fail Your Majesty's boundless grace!" Han Ding said with utmost sincerity.

He understood; he understood everything!

Zhu Youcheng felt deeply gratified, quickly turned around, cupped his fists, and pleaded, "Imperial Father, Youjian, might this subject borrow the firearm guards to execute two people?"

Ahem!

Zhu Jianshen coughed, snapped out of his state of watching the gossip, and asked curiously, "Of course you may. Whom do you wish to kill?"

"Marquis of Shouning Zhang Heling, and Marquis of Jianchang Zhang Yanling. These two scoundrels are the Empress's own younger brothers. They violated the Ancestral Precept left by the Grand Progenitor that imperial relatives without military merit shall not be ennobled as marquises. They deserve to die!" Zhu Youcheng said with shifting, evasive eyes.

"Tell the truth!" Zhu Jianshen knitted his brows and rebuked.

Zhu Youcheng's expression turned awkward. He turned around and barked at the officials, "Why haven't you rolled out of here yet?"

"This minister and others take their leave!"

Senior Grand Secretary Liu Jian moved with nimble agility, taking the lead to turn and run. With his swift-footed gait, he looked nothing like an old man in his seventies.

No wonder he lived to the ripe old age of ninety-four.

Inside the hall remained only the three Great Ming emperors: Zhu Jianshen, Zhu Youcheng, and Zhu Youjian.

The young Zhu Houzhao was outside the hall, whipping Xie Qian's corpse.

Zhu Jianshen instructed, "Speak."

Hoo!

Zhu Youcheng exhaled a turbid breath, his face turning extremely ugly. "These two beasts not only dared to wear my Yishan crown, but they also violated and defiled my women deep within the imperial palace!"