LRAB Page 219
Page 219
He immediately summoned his trusted confidants.
"Send this memorial to Kyoto as quickly as possible."
The confidant responded and quickly withdrew.
The eldest prince frowned slightly and looked unsteadily toward the direction of the capital.
I hope my mother is alright.
at the same time,
The Second Prince Li Chengze, who had only recently gone to his fiefdom, naturally also received the news that Emperor Qing had abdicated in favor of the Crown Prince.
He wasn't particularly surprised by this.
He could tell after the family dinner that day.
There was already an undercurrent of tension and a tense standoff between Emperor Qing and the Crown Prince.
A battle between them is inevitable.
He just didn't expect that,
This battle has come to a conclusion so quickly.
However, he was still somewhat surprised to learn that Emperor Qing was still alive.
Is Li Chengqian really not afraid that Emperor Qing will cause him trouble while he is alive?
Or is it that he has enough confidence to keep Emperor Qing in check?
After a moment's thought, he shook his head and began preparing to write a memorial to the throne.
However, it wasn't a resignation letter, but a congratulatory message.
He was, after all, a prince who was idle and unemployed.
However, given Li Chengqian's personality,
His days of being able to stay peacefully in his fiefdom are probably numbered.
He could tell the difference between the newspaper and the post office.
His younger brother, the crown prince, was not only seeking innovation, but also change.
The world is about to undergo a major change, let alone the old policy of granting titles of kings.
However, he was also aware that the future new emperor would never kill his younger brother, the crown prince.
Even Emperor Qing could tolerate him, let alone an ordinary idle prince like him?
This might be his chance, who knows?
Having been well-versed in literature since childhood and possessing exceptional strategic skills, he was unwilling to simply live a life of idleness and be a mascot-like prince in his fiefdom.
Although the Qing Kingdom was somewhat affected by the edict of succession,
But overall, it remained in an extremely calm state.
It was at this moment that the new emperor, Li Chengqian, issued his first decree.
Move the capital!
In an instant, the entire city of Kyoto was in an uproar.
A great commotion ensued.
Chapter 136 Moving the Capital to Nanjing! Who's in favor? Who's against?
The Taiji Hall has been razed to the ground.
However, with so many halls and pavilions in the palace, finding a large hall to use for court assemblies was not difficult.
In the imperial court,
Perhaps because they were back in familiar surroundings, although they felt some fear and awe towards the new emperor Li Chengqian, some still couldn't help but voice their opposition when faced with matters concerning their own interests.
Let's not even talk about where the relocation will be.
Every relocation of the capital implies, to some extent, a reshuffling of interests and rights.
The implications are far-reaching and cannot be taken lightly.
"Your Majesty, moving the capital is a matter of great importance and will cost a fortune. Your coronation ceremony has not yet been held, the vast territories you have conquered have not yet been settled, and everything is in need of rebuilding. Moving the capital at this time is by no means a wise move!"
"Yes, Your Majesty, the situation is still unstable at this time, so we should prioritize stability."
""
Countless court officials who had previously remained silent on the matter of Emperor Qing's succession now stood up one after another.
He had an air of profound understanding and righteousness.
He seemed to truly be a good official who devoted himself to the cause of the Qing Kingdom until his dying breath.
Only Lin Ruofu, Chen Pingping, Fan Jian, Guo Youzhi (Minister of Rites), and a small number of other officials remained silent.
Li Chengqian listened to the seemingly heartfelt admonitions around him.
A hint of sarcasm appeared at the corner of his mouth.
After they had finished speaking, he lowered his gaze slightly and swept his eyes over the assembled officials.
"Finished?"
Those three simple words instantly silenced the admonitory voices in the hall.
An invisible aura of power made many people's hearts sink suddenly.
Li Chengqian opened a file on the table, his gaze falling on a certain spot, and read aloud indifferently:
"Chen Li, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, has accepted bribes on 238 occasions in the five years since he took office, totaling 123,621 taels of silver, and has obtained more than 12,000 mu of fertile land through various means."
His gaze turned cold as he stared at the official who had initially opposed moving the capital and said:
"In my opinion, Minister Chen's position as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel is somewhat beneath his talents. With such methods of accumulating wealth, he should be sent to the Ministry of Revenue."
Chen Li's face was extremely pale at this moment, and his whole body was trembling.
In fact, even he himself couldn't quite remember.
How many times did he accept bribes, how much money did he receive, and how much fertile land did he own?
However, we still know the approximate number; at least what Li Chengqian said was not far off.
His mind went blank, filled with terror.
His deeply hidden secrets were suddenly revealed.
He knew it even better than he did.
What a terrible thing!
This means that he had absolutely no secrets from the young emperor before him.
He wanted to speak up in his defense, but he couldn't utter a single word.
Such detailed data,
There is absolutely no way there is no evidence to support this claim, so what is there for him to argue?
Especially under the gaze of this new ruler,
Under that terrifying force that seemed to strike straight to the soul,
If he has nothing to hide, he might be able to say a few words.
But he had no confidence to begin with, and under the influence of his aura, where did he find the courage to speak up and defend himself?
Seeing Chen Li standing there, silent, Li Chengqian sneered and continued reading.
However, this time the person reading the poem was changed to Wang Yu, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.
As the person in charge of the nation's waterways, this man did not amass his fortune through bribery, but rather through outright corruption.
The Great River in Qing Kingdom has breached its banks year after year, causing people to be displaced and their lives to be miserable. The imperial court has certainly allocated funds to alleviate the situation.
In fact, there are quite a few.
However, it had absolutely no effect.
Ninety percent of this money was embezzled by officials of all ranks in the river administration department.
Wang Yu, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, who was in charge of the river management department, occupied the majority of the position.
In just three years,
The amount of silver embezzled even exceeded that of Chen Li, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel who was in charge of the promotion of officials of all ranks.
a moment,
Li Chengqian read out the names of nearly thirty officials, both high and low-ranking.
The amount of silver involved ranged from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, totaling several million.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Take Wang Yu, the Vice Minister of Works, for example. In three years, he embezzled nearly 200,000 taels of silver.
The reason they have been able to live in peace is...
That's because within the river management office...
The total amount of silver embezzled by all the officials was far more than 200,000 taels.
There are more than a hundred officials in the river management office. It would take more than a million taels of silver to feed them all.
The nearly thirty officials that Li Chengqian mentioned
Those who are able to attend the court assembly today are all of relatively high rank.
Behind each of them lies a complex web of interests.
If all of them are apprehended, the amount of money involved in the case will certainly be in the tens of millions.
Of course, the person he didn't read wasn't necessarily particularly upright or honest; he was just relatively restrained in his methods, and while his actions were somewhat inappropriate, they weren't considered serious.
The court still needs manpower, so he naturally cannot eliminate them all at once.