"Your Majesty, I would like to inform you that this conspiracy to frame the commissioner of the Qing Dynasty and hinder the reform of land tax has involved a total of fourteen nobles including Wei Guogong, Anyuan Marquis Liu Zuochang, and Ancheng Bo Zhang Guocai.

There are also thirty-nine large landowners in Yingtian Mansion involved in the case.

????????However, the people most involved in the case were not Wei Duke Xu Wenjue, but Anyuan Marquis Liu Zuochang, Linhuai Marquis Li Zushu, Longping Marquis Zhang Gongri, Ancheng Bo Zhang Guocai, Nanhe Bofang Yiyuan and five people...

"

????????In the Wuying Hall, Zhu Yuyao was sitting high on the dragon chair, reading the relevant memorials presented by Li Zhenwu. Below, Jiang Yueguang was reporting the results of the interrogation.

?????????In fact, Jiang Yueguang also submitted a memorial.

By reading Li Zhenwu's memorial and listening to Jiang Yueguang's report, Zhu Yu'ao will be able to understand the entire trial results as quickly as possible through both aspects, ensuring that the two of them will not hide anything.

????????If Nanzhen Fusi wants to conspire with the Metropolitan Procuratorate to conceal or lie about something, he must be careful about being found out by the people in Dongchang.

?????????Now the people in Dongchang are doing nothing but keeping an eye on several intelligence departments under Zhu Yuyao.

?????????Even Li Zhenwu, Gao Shengqi, Bai Xiaosheng, and Liu Xiaolian didn't know who among their subordinates was from Dongchang.

????????The Imperial Procuratorate was watched by guards in uniform, who also did not dare to play tricks.

????????So, the result of this trial must be true and relatively "fair".

The memorials of both men showed that Xu Wenjue was not deeply involved in these cases of conspiracy to frame Commissioner Qingzhang, and it is okay to say that they had no connection at all.

?????????However, Xu Changfu, Xu Wenjue's chief steward, was deeply involved in the case, but Xu Changfu did not confess Xu Wenjue.

????????Or maybe Xu Wenjue really didn’t know about some of the things Xu Changfu did.

????????The role played by Xu Wenjue was to be the middleman who contacted the nobles and big landowners on the surface.

?????????After listening to Jiang Yueguang and finishing his report, Zhu Auao fell into deep thought.

?????????Others are easy to talk about, but she is thinking about how to deal with Wei Guogong Xu Wenjue.

?????????Now, Wei Guogong is the only Duke of Nanjing, and can even be said to be the greatest nobleman in the Ming Dynasty.

????????As for those in the capital, most of them have surrendered or even pretended to be Qing. Now even if the capital is recovered, those people are still alive or have descendants, and they will not be able to attack the nobility again.

????????Even, the imperial court will hold them accountable and punish them for surrendering to the Qing Dynasty.

????????Speaking of which, the nobles in the capital also understood this, so they were used by the Qing captives in the first place, wanting to cross the Juyong Pass and escape from Yanqing Prefecture to outside the pass.

????????As a result, most of them were chased and captured by Ma Bao, and they are still imprisoned in the capital as criminal prisoners.

????????Zhu Yuyao has already sent an edict, asking Du Yinxi not to keep those people in vain, but to let them undergo labor reform first, and then deal with it when she has time.

?????????? Some of these people take the initiative to flatter the hypocrites and Qing, while some are just obedient. Moreover, the nature of the surrender to the Qing and the submission to the Qing are also different, so they must be punished.

There is a certain difference.

????????The same applies to the Nanjing nobles this time, and one cannot apply one-size-fits-all.

?????????Zhu Yuluo certainly wanted to confiscate the homes of all the old nobles and exterminate their clans, but if he did this, what would Li Yan, Zeng Ying and other new nobles think?

????????In any case, these old-timers and noble ancestors have indeed made contributions to the Ming Dynasty.

?????????You can be punished for crimes, but you cannot kill them arbitrarily.

????????To kill someone, you must kill your heart. Killing someone to make him submissive is the way to be a king.

After thinking for a while, Zhu Yucao said: "Mr. Ju Zhi, how do you think Duke Wei should be punished?"

????????"this···"

Jiang Yueguang didn't expect that Zhu Yu'a would ask his opinion. After all, Zhu Yu'a used to be a dictator of the Sacred Heart in punishing people.

????????As a civil servant, he is naturally on the opposite side of the nobles, and it stands to reason that he should hope to punish these nobles severely.

The problem is that these nobles were charged with obstructing land tax reform. As far as Jiang Yueguang knew, many gentry were also involved.

????????And in the future, as the land tax reform is promoted to the entire southern Zhili and even the whole country, there will definitely be more criminal gentry landlords.

???????Although he was a civil servant, he was also a gentry and a landlord. Most of his relatives and friends were also gentry and landlords.

????????If he proposes severe punishment for nobles today, how can he know that people related to him will not be severely punished tomorrow?

What's more, someone related to him is already involved in the case...

Thinking of this, Jiang Yueguang said: "Your Majesty, after all, the ancestor of the Duke of Wei made great contributions to the Ming Dynasty, and Xu Wenjue was not deeply involved in the case this time, so I think the punishment will be appropriate and not too harsh.

Otherwise, I might hurt your noble heart and harm your Majesty’s reputation.”

Hearing what Jiang Yueguang said, Zhu Yuyao couldn't help but look at him deeply, and then smiled and said: "Well, since Mr. Ju Zhi suggested this, then he will be demoted to one rank and changed to Chengshu."

Hou.

????????Otherwise, the farmland will be cut off and only 10,000 acres will be retained. Then a fine of 500,000 taels of silver will be imposed, so let’s forget it.”

????????As soon as these words came out, the people in Jiang Yueguang below were all dumbfounded.

???????Thinking to myself: Your Majesty, I am suggesting a lighter sentence. What do you call a lighter sentence?

????????The Ming Dynasty went through more than a dozen emperors, but none of them lowered the title of Wei Guogong, and they always let Wei Guogong and his family sit in Nanjing.

?????????Why have you become so ruthless when you are here, Your Majesty?

Not to mention the reduction of rank, the farmland was even reduced to 10,000 acres.

?????????Before, Jiang Yueguang didn't know how many fields the Duke of Wei owned, but after this case, he learned a little bit about it.

????????The land awarded to Wei Guogong by successive Ming emperors has reached more than 100,000 acres.

????????Because they are Fengtian (Grand Fields) awarded by the emperor, these fields are tax-free.

????????The total farmland currently owned by the Duke of Wei is approximately more than 600,000 acres.

????????Those illegally acquired fields will definitely be confiscated as official land or returned to the people after the land is cleared.

????????In this way, Fengtian becomes very important.

????????As a result, it was directly reduced to 10,000 acres by Zhu Yuluo...

?????????'If word of what happened in the Wuying Palace today spreads out, what will other people think? They will definitely think that I suggested that Your Majesty do this... Even if I explain, I am afraid no one will believe it.'

?????????Thinking of this, Jiang Yueguang couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat.

???????But there is nothing we can do.

????????Zhu Aura was looking at him with a smile when he met again. He immediately understood that this was probably Zhu Aura's punishment for him.

Who allowed him and Gao Hongtu to be used by others to persuade Zhu A'ao to postpone the land tax reform?

???????After thinking about it, Jiang Yueguang could only smile bitterly.

????????At this time, Zhu Yurao continued: "Liu Zuochang and other five principal officials, as well as a dozen other big landowners who were deeply involved in the case, all had their homes confiscated and exiled.

?????????The remaining nobles were all demoted two ranks, all their fields were cut off, the marquis was fined 100,000 silver, and the earl was fined 50,000 silver.

Those under their command who were directly involved in the frame-up of Commissioner Qingzhang should be beheaded and exiled.

????????Just follow what I said and deal with it. The Metropolitan Procuratorate will write another memorial and submit it to you on how to punish the crime."

????????As soon as he heard this, Jiang Yueguang knew that Zhu Yura had made up his mind to let the Metropolitan Procuratorate be the executioner to punish the veteran nobles.

???????But he still had no choice but to respond with a bitter look on his face: "I obey the order."

?????????"The matter of confiscating the house will be jointly handled by the Metropolitan Procuratorate, Nanzhen Fusi, and the Second Town of the Imperial Guard. After the house confiscation is completed, Nanzhen Fusi will write a memorial and submit the results."

?????????Li Zhenwu immediately clasped his fists and said: "I obey the order!"

???????Second update.

???????Good night~

?????????(End of this chapter)
Chapter completed!