Ming Dynasty: Is a mere unruly commoner rebelling against heaven?

Those remaining on the execution ground awaiting their turn were pale and sweating profusely.

Mou Bin walked up to one of the Zhou family members and flipped through the Zhou family genealogy.

"What's your name?"

"Zhou… Zhou… Zhou Chang…"

The man stammered, his lips trembling.

Mou Bin took a pen, found the name Zhou Chang in the genealogy, and marked it with an 'X'.

Then, he waved to the Embroidered Uniform Guard behind him, who immediately stepped forward, their swords flashing.

Zhou Chang didn't even get a chance to beg for mercy before his head was separated from his body.

Mou Bin approached the next Zhou family member, flipping through the genealogy in his hand: "What's your name?"

"…"

Compared to Zhou Shou and Zhou Yu, who were subjected to slow slicing, these Zhou family members were considered fortunate to be killed with a single blow.

In fact, there were very few executioners in the court who could perform the extreme punishment of slow slicing.

Zhou Shou and Zhou Yu wouldn't have had the chance to enjoy such treatment if they hadn't committed such a heinous crime as treason.

While the Zhou family members were being dealt with, the officials of the Zhou faction in the court were also being processed.

These people had just come down from the court, still wearing their official robes.

The onlookers were even more excited to see this.

The people being beheaded were all those damned corrupt officials!

Zhang Yuan knelt at the very front, his body limp, trembling like a sieve.

Zhu You樘 had sentenced them to have their homes confiscated and their heads displayed. The Embroidered Uniform Guard was already on their way to confiscate their homes, and the executioners of the Ministry of Justice were responsible for the beheadings.

The executioner, holding a large knife, swung it down.

"Ahhhhh!!!"

"Ahhh!!"

"…"

With a single strike, Zhang Yuan, the first to be beheaded, let out a shrill scream!

The executioners grinned hideously and raised their blades again, continuing to chop at Zhang Yuan's head!

"It hurts! It hurts!"

"Give me a quick death!"

"Ahhhhh!"

Zhang Yuan pleaded desperately, hoping the executioner would grant him a quick death.

Because the executioners' knives were not sharp, in fact, they were very dull.

To cut off a person's head, the prisoners usually had to endure dozens of blows.

The pain of feeling their necks being slowly chopped open often drove people mad.

The purpose of execution was to make people feel pain; if the knife was too fast, wouldn't these prisoners enjoy it?

Therefore, the Ming Dynasty had regulations prohibiting the use of sharp knives.

Later, when Yan Shifan was beheaded, he endured a full thirty-six blows.

He was literally tortured to death.

After a long execution, Zhang Yuan's head finally rolled down.

Then, the other officials were executed in turn.

The execution ground was like a scene from hell.

…

Forbidden City.

Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian followed behind Huai En, walking towards the Imperial Study with apprehension.

As soon as they entered the inner palace, they smelled a faint scent of blood in the air.

A large number of eunuchs were cleaning the streets of the palace, and others were burning incense and sprinkling fragrant powder in the palace.

They then realized that there had probably been a major purge in the palace last night.

First, the palace was cleaned, then the relatives of the emperor were dealt with, and finally, the cabinet was dissolved.

In just one day, Zhu You樘 had taken back all the power from the hands of the inner palace and the cabinet.

He also firmly grasped the two major weapons of the factory guards in his hands.

This made them feel both gratified and afraid of Zhu You樘.

Was this still the benevolent, kind, and weak-willed Zhu You樘?

"Your Excellencies, the Imperial Study is here. His Majesty is inside."

"Please wait here for a moment. This old servant will go in and report."

Huai En stopped at the entrance of the Imperial Study and made a gesture of invitation.

Liu Jian and the other two did not dare to be presumptuous towards this eunuch who was currently in favor with the emperor, and quickly bowed in return.

"Eunuch Huai, please!"

Huai En tiptoed into the Imperial Study. Zhu You樘 was reviewing memorials at his desk.

"Your Majesty, Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian are waiting at the door."

"Summon them in."

Zhu You樘 threw the memorial in his hand onto the desk, closed his eyes and pondered, while slowly pressing his Jingming acupoint with one hand.

A moment later, Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian entered the Imperial Study together.

"Your ministers Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian, pay respects to Your Majesty."

The three knelt and saluted, and Zhu You樘 made a gesture to help them up.

"No need for formalities."

Zhu You樘 opened his eyes and looked at Liu Jian and the other two.

These three were the ministers Zhu You樘 was relatively familiar with.

They were all teachers who had lectured and taught him when he was still the crown prince in the Eastern Palace.

Moreover, the three were also grand secretaries during the middle and late Hongzhi periods, and were historically well-known capable ministers.

Zhu You樘 pondered for a moment: "Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, Xie Qian, listen to the decree!"

The three men's hearts skipped a beat, both surprised and expectant, and they quickly knelt to listen to the decree.

"Promote Liu Jian, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, to Minister of Rites and Grand Scholar of Wuying Hall, to enter the cabinet for deliberations."

"Add Li Dongyang, a lecturer of the Hanlin Academy, as Grand Scholar of Wenyuan Hall, to enter the cabinet for deliberations."

"Add Xie Qian, a compiler of the Hanlin Academy, as Grand Scholar of Dongge Hall, to enter the cabinet for deliberations."

The three were all shocked upon hearing this, and then quickly kowtowed to receive the decree.

"Your ministers, Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, and Xie Qian, respectfully accept the imperial decree, and thank Your Majesty for your grace!"

Among these three, the oldest, Liu Jian, was only 55 years old, and the youngest, Xie Qian, was only 38 years old.

They were at the prime of their lives, with determination, ambition, and ability.

Liu Jian was fine, entering the cabinet from the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, which was justified.

But Li Dongyang and Xie Qian were still serving in the Hanlin Academy.

Now, suddenly entering the cabinet, it could be said that they were rising rapidly, reaching the sky in one step!

Li Dongyang and Xie Qian were so excited that their eyes were filled with tears, and their hearts were filled with gratitude towards Zhu You樘.

They couldn't wait to devote themselves to the Ming Dynasty and die for it.

Zhu You樘 stood up, walked up to the three, and took the initiative to help Liu Jian up.

"Now that the court and the public are in turmoil, there are not many people I can trust."

"The three of you were all former officials in the Eastern Palace, and I trust you very much."

"Therefore, today I specially summon the three of you to enter the cabinet for deliberations and recommend a list of officials to replace those who have resigned."

"Yes, Your Majesty, your ministers will certainly not fail Your Majesty's trust!"

The three men took their orders together, their faces solemn.

Zhu You樘 nodded and pointed to the mountain of memorials on his desk.

"Then the three grand secretaries can start working now and move these memorials back to Wenyuan Hall."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Liu Jian and the other two quickly agreed, and Huai En summoned the eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial to help move the memorials to Wenyuan Hall.

After everyone left, the Imperial Study was quiet again.

Zhu You樘 sat on the soft couch, drinking hot tea, enjoying the rare tranquility.

"Killing a million soldiers in Jiangnan, the precious sword at the waist is still stained with blood."

Reciting the poems of the Emperor Taizu, Zhu You樘 sighed leisurely.

Today's Ming Dynasty is like a broken ship with a bright and beautiful exterior, but in reality, it has rotted to the core.

Various problems are hidden underwater and may erupt at any time.

As the helmsman of the Ming Dynasty's ship, Zhu You樘 must nip these problems in the bud.

Desperate diseases require drastic remedies. Only by making the civil official group feel pain and fear like the Hongwu Emperor did.

Will the world of the Ming Dynasty return to the prosperous age of Hongwu!