Chapter 330 Zhao Xing's Cruelty
Although there are regulations on the number of people admitted each time in the imperial examination, it is not necessarily the full number that will be admitted.
Zhao Xing did this to tell the scholars that two hundred people would be admitted regardless of their grades.
He didn't believe that no one would be willing to take the imperial examination if he did so.
Seeing that Zhao Xing was so persistent, Yan Kuan and Zhang Qingzhi stopped trying to persuade him.
This is Zhang Qingzhi's usual style. He would give advice, but he would not give advice to the death, nor would he give advice all the time.
Yan Kuan was worried that Zhao Xing would really compromise and throw him out as a discarded pawn.
…………
Imperial City, outside Xuande Gate.
Hundreds of scholars sat quietly, and many common people gathered in the distance, watching the excitement.
"Squeak~"
At this moment, the side doors on both sides of Xuande Gate suddenly opened, and a group of soldiers rushed out from the side doors and surrounded the hundreds of scholars who were sitting in silence.
Among the hundreds of scholars, most of them were a little panicked.
A scholar in front of him shouted, "Don't be afraid, everyone. We study so that we can serve the country and bring peace to the people. Now the treacherous ministers are in power and have deceived Your Majesty. If our blood can wake Your Majesty up, we will die for what we deserve!"
"shut up!"
Zhang Feng shouted, "You are blocking the palace gate with ill intentions. His Majesty has ordered that you be stripped of your honors and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice for strict interrogation! Come, arrest them!"
"Yes!"
The soldiers responded and rushed forward to capture the man.
"Let me go! We are sitting here in silence to wake up Your Majesty and revive the government! If Your Majesty still doesn't wake up, the Song Dynasty is in danger, and the whole world is in danger!"
The leading scholar struggled and shouted.
"Shut him up!" Zhang Feng shouted.
Upon hearing this, the soldier who was holding the man punched him hard in the abdomen. The scholar turned pale instantly and was unable to speak.
Soon, hundreds of scholars were arrested.
Zhang Feng led his men to disperse the people and personally escorted these people to the Ministry of Justice.
For a time, the Ministry of Justice’s prison was overcrowded.
…………
Officials and scholars throughout Bianliang were paying attention to what was happening at the palace gate.
Upon learning that Zhao Xing had actually issued an order to forcibly arrest people, some officials sighed with regret, while others gloated over their misfortune.
No matter what they thought, they all rushed to the palace as soon as they heard the news.
The other scholars in Bianliang who came to take the exam were very angry.
Many of them don't even know the full story.
However, this did not affect their ability to distinguish right from wrong. In their opinion, the government must be wrong, otherwise why would so many people sit in protest at the gate of the palace?
In fact, this phenomenon is also the norm when disputes break out between the emperor and his ministers.
Most people are unaware of the situation. In their eyes, since so many people oppose it, they are naturally right.
This is also the reason why most emperors in history chose to retreat when major conflicts broke out between emperors and their ministers.
In the eyes of many people, the emperor is supreme and has the power of life and death over everyone in the world. As long as he takes a tough attitude and refuses to compromise, the ministers will have no way to deal with him.
In fact, it was not the case at all. The world belonged to the emperor, not to the ministers. The emperor needed to consider the stability of the world, the stability of the imperial power, and his reputation after his death, so he naturally became the one who retreated and compromised.
Even a powerful emperor like Emperor Wu of Han was forced to issue a self-criticism edict, admitting that he should not have pursued war and thus emptied the national treasury.
In the inns where many scholars lived in Bianjing, some people emerged and began to incite those scholars to go outside the imperial city to petition.
At this moment, several strong men suddenly rushed out and arrested the person who instigated the scholars.
This scene was played out everywhere in Bianjing.
…………
Outside the Longtu Pavilion, hundreds of officials knelt on the ground.
Sanshui came out and said to Han Zhang, who was at the front, "His Majesty has summoned the Prime Minister to an audience!"
Han Zhang stood up upon hearing this and followed Sanshui into the hall.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!" Han Zhang bowed.
"Does the great minister still have eyes for me, the emperor?" Zhao Xing said sarcastically, "What do the civil and military officials want to do by kneeling outside the Longtu Pavilion? Are you trying to force me to abdicate? If I don't do what you want, will you kneel and die outside the palace?"
"I dare not!" Han Zhang bowed and said, "But now the matter has become too big and is not good for the country. It should be settled quickly."
"Calm down?" Zhao Xing looked at Han Zhang and said, "Then, my Lord, please teach me how to calm down the situation."
"Restore the honors of those scholars and release them!" Han Zhang said.
"Will this work?" Zhao Xing asked sarcastically, "Sir, can you guarantee that if I release them, they won't continue to sit in silence at the palace gate?"
Han Zhang fell silent upon hearing this. How could he guarantee this?
"Do you think I want to be so tough?" Zhao Xing sneered, "As long as I issue an order never to kill civil officials again, this matter can be settled immediately, but can this order be issued?"
"Emperor Taizu only said that officials who speak out should not be killed, but it was misinterpreted as not killing scholars and officials. If I really issued such an order, civil officials would have a golden ticket to avoid death. In the future, will the world belong to the Zhao family or the civil officials?"
The root of everything, after all, is the killing of civil servants.
Things have come to this point and he has already killed people. Unless he promises not to kill civil servants in the future, things will never be settled.
Zhao Xing took a deep breath and said, "I called you here to tell those people outside that I don't intend to pursue this matter any further. I will also issue an order to release those scholars, but their reputation will not be restored."
"If they are still unwilling to give up, then don't blame me for being cruel. Who bewitched those scholars? Don't think I can't find out. Ask those people kneeling outside, how many of them have clean butts."
"If they still want to make trouble, I will show no mercy even if it causes chaos in the Song Dynasty for a while. Anyway, Liao and Xia are both at war now, I am not afraid!"
"That's all I have to say. My Lord, just tell me the truth. I want to see how stubborn they are!"
Han Zhang sighed when he heard this. He didn't expect Zhao Xing's attitude to be so firm.
I want to persuade him, but I don't know how.
It’s not that there is no way, but Zhao Xing is as hard as iron and cannot be persuaded at all.
After a long silence, Han Zhang bowed and said, "I obey your order!"
Looking at Han Zhang walking out of the hall, Zhao Xing showed a sneer.
The purpose of killing several civil servants this time was not only to deter them, but also to test their attitudes.
The reactions of these civil servants did not disappoint him.
If we want to solve the problems of the Song Dynasty, we have to kill them. Reasoning is completely useless.
"Sanshui, select some young and beautiful ones from those who were sent to the Jiaofangsi, and reward them to the heads of various departments in the court. I heard that Peng Qingzhong's second wife is only 30 years old, so reward her to the Minister of Personnel Hu Zhongyan. The rest, send them all to Guangyuntai. Tell the people in Guangyuntai that these people must tell the guests their identities before receiving them." Zhao Xing said coldly.
Don’t these civil servants like to make trouble? Zhao Xing just wants to let them see what happens to the families of executed officials.
(End of this chapter)