Rise From the Humble

There are more royal guards in the Xingbu Yamen, and there are many times more officials than at the door. If you are familiar with the officialdom, you will find that in addition to officials from the Xingbu and Jinyiwei, there are also officials from Dali Temple, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Personnel in the Xingbu Yamen today.

These officials are not just people watching the excitement. They are either here to preside over today's submissions, or they are here to listen to the submissions.

In the Ming Dynasty, like the previous dynasty, the Ministry of Punishment was in charge of legal punishment and prisons, similar to the modern Ministry of Public Security. Together with Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, it was known as the "Three Law Departments".

Dali Temple is similar to the modern Supreme People's Court, and is also in charge of the trial of Xing prison cases. In ancient times, the person in charge of punishment was Tu, and it was also called Li. The "Li" of Dali Temple means "punishment", and Dali Temple is the "Daxing Temple"; The Procuratorate was the highest supervisory, impeachment and remonstrance agency of the Ming Dynasty. It also handled criminal matters and had judicial powers, similar to the modern Supreme People's Procuratorate.

In the Ming Dynasty, these three agencies all held the power of Xing Prison, but there was also a division of labor. Cases in Xing Prison are mainly tried by the Ministry of Punishment. Dali Temple prefers to be a cautious organ, responsible for refuting and redressing unjust and wrong cases. If Dali Temple does not agree with the trial results of the Ministry of Punishment, it can file a petition to apply for a holy ruling; the Metropolitan Procuratorate is mainly responsible for refuting and redressing unjust and wrong cases. , the supervisor of Dali Temple, enjoys the privilege of "reporting on major matters and making decisions on minor matters." The three agencies check and supervise each other.

General criminal cases are tried by the Ministry of Justice. If the case is more influential or serious, it will be tried jointly with the Dali Temple, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the General Affairs Envoy, and the civil service, household, ritual, military, and industrial departments. It may be a joint trial by nine departments, or it may be a joint trial by several departments, depending on the size of the case. If the case is particularly serious, the top leaders of these nine departments will conduct a joint trial, which is often referred to as the Jiuqing Judicial Trial.

Of course, the factory guard system in the Ming Dynasty was relatively unique. In many cases, Jin Yiwei or officials from the East and West Factory would participate in the trial, and even play a leading role.

Originally, the plan for Zhu Ping'an's impeachment of Zhao Daying was to be reviewed by the Ministry of Punishment and the Jinyiwei Federation. However, the plan could not keep up with the changes. The situation has changed a lot in the past few days. There have been many memorials to impeach Yan Song and his party members, which has led to the impeachment of Zhu Ping'an. much attention.

In addition, add some hints from some people.

Therefore, today's case of Zhu Ping'an's impeachment of Zhao Daying was jointly tried by middle- and higher-level officials from five departments, including Jinyiwei, the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the Ministry of War. As for the commander of the Jin Yiwei, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, the Minister of Dali Temple, etc., these leaders would not condescend to jointly try an impeachment case for a sixth-rank official. Both Zhu Pingan's level and the influence of the case were not qualified.

There is a joint trial by mid-level and upper-level officials from five departments, and Zhu Ping'an's impeachment case has been taken seriously.

However, although it is a joint trial of mid-level and upper-level officials from five departments, since the case indirectly involves Mr. Yan Song, individual bigwigs such as the Minister of Justice, Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Industry, and the Minister of Dali Temple will also be present to observe.

I went, there were so many people.

Although Zhu Ping'an had expected that there would be a lot of officials today when he was at the door, when he walked into the Penal Department Yamen, he was still shocked by the number of officials inside as there were in the previous court.

"Who are you?"

After Zhu Pingan entered the yamen of the Ministry of Justice, a Jin Yiwei officer came over to inquire. The main reason was that Zhu Pingan's clothes were too conspicuous. Others were in uniform with the government officials. Zhu Pingan was the only one who was wearing regular clothes and had a cloth bag slung across his body. It stands out from the crowd.

"Zhu Pingan, the Imperial Academy's Attendant, was ordered to come here to express his feelings." Zhu Pingan slightly arched his hands, and then took out the official documents from the Ministry of Punishment.

"It turns out to be Lord Zhu. Sir, please come this way."

Jin Yiwei took the official document from Zhu Pingan. After looking at it carefully, he returned the official document to Zhu Pingan, and then led the way to lead Zhu Pingan to the court.

This Jin Yiwei's surname is Liang, and his name is Liang Bi. Liang Bi is a hereditary Jin Yiwei. Testing Baihu is an official position of Jinyiwei. It is one level lower than Baihu and is a sixth-grade official position.

"Your Excellency, if you go further, you will be able to express your feelings. I will not see you off because I am on duty. There is only one thing that I would like to ask Master Zhu to keep in mind. Zhao Qiu, the left minister of the Ministry of War, is Zhao Daying's uncle. Please also ask Zhu." Sir, please be careful with this person."

Liang Bi led Zhu Pingan through the courtyard of the Ministry of Justice and entered the second gate through the corner gate. When passing the corner gate, the Jin Yiwei reminded Zhu Pingan in a low voice, and then left straight away with his hands clasped in fists.

oh?

Zhu Ping'an was startled, looking at Liang Bi's leaving figure, and was very curious as to why the Jin Yiwei told him such a secret. However, looking at Liang Bi's cautious and quick departure, Zhu Ping'an did not go up to ask questions. If he wanted to let himself know, he would naturally tell himself. If he didn't tell himself, he would have something hidden. He kindly reminded himself that he could never make things difficult for others again.

In fact, what Zhu Ping'an didn't know, the reason why Liang Bi reminded Zhu Ping'an was not very complicated. Shen Lian, the Jinyiwei who had impeached Yan Song and was exiled outside the Great Wall, was Liang Bi's old friend. Liang Bi was just a trial member of the sixth grade. When Shen Lian was persecuted by the strict party, Liang Bi was powerless and the strict party was powerful. Liang Bi could only quietly help Shen Lian take care of his wife, children and family.

When Shen Lian was persecuted by the strict party and faced the danger of beheading, Zhu Pingan said in front of Emperor Jiajing, "I heard that before this person submitted a letter, I had bought a coffin and placed it at home." This extinguished the anger in Emperor Jiajing's heart and made Jiajing mistakenly Thinking that Shen Lian was seeking fame by dying, he changed his death sentence to exile. Because of this, Shen Lian was able to survive.

Liang Bi reminded Zhu Pingan that on the one hand he was grateful to Zhu Pingan for Shen Lian's incident, and on the other hand he admired Zhu Pingan for daring to impeach the strict party.

Liang Bi's family had a wife and children, and he knew that he did not have the courage to practice deeply, so he could only use this hidden method.

After Zhu Ping'an entered the second door, he saw the court hall of the Ministry of Punishment being decorated. The guards outside the court hall were arranged in two rows with killing sticks. Guards in golden uniforms were scattered around the courtyard. The clerks and servants were setting up in the courtyard under the command of the head of the Ministry of Punishment. In the courtroom, tables and chairs were moved, a pergola was set up, and the presiding judge's seat and auditorium were arranged.

Because this petition was jointly presided over by five departments, there were nearly ten officials sitting in the court alone, plus He Ao, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Zhao Qiu, the left minister of the Ministry of War, the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Minister of Dali Temple, and fellow Jinyi guards. There were as many as twenty or thirty people including the magistrate and other officials attending the event.

Although the lobby of the Ministry of Justice is larger than the lobby of ordinary yamen, there is no room for so many people to sit down, especially since the number of officials who are observing are more than the officials who are presiding over the trial. They are all officials of third rank or above. The Ministry of Justice cannot let these big shots crowd in the corner. .

Therefore, the Chen Qing Gong Hall was temporarily located in the courtyard, which was open enough to accommodate so many people.