Chapter 181: Secretly attacking Chencang and revealing the murderous intention

As soon as this statement came out, the officials were in an uproar.

Hu Weiyong's face changed suddenly.

He stared at Deng Qianqiu intently, with murderous intent in his eyes.

At this moment, everyone has felt this solemn and murderous atmosphere.

Many people looked at Deng Qianqiu in disbelief.

Deng Qianqiu...this is courting death.

On the contrary, Liu Ji pondered for a moment, and suddenly he felt enlightened. All of a sudden, he had some expectations for Deng Qianqiu.

Zhu Yuanzhang had a blank expression on his face, as if he was calm and composed.

Hu Weiyong was clearly furious: "Deng Qianqiu, what do you mean by this? Are you going to bring disaster to my family?"

This sentence is already full of threats.

No one dared to provoke Hu Weiyong like this. There has never been such a person in the world except Zhu Yuanzhang.

Deng Qianqiu's move was almost tantamount to a fight to the death with Hu Weiyong.

But in fact, what Hu Weiyong did not seem to understand was that from the moment he spread the rumor that Deng Qianqiu was corrupt and committed law-breaking, Deng Qianqiu had actually been prepared to fight to the death.

This was the Hongwu Dynasty, and Deng Qianqiu could not bear the charge of corruption and abuse of power. Perhaps in Hu Weiyong's eyes, this was just a warning to Deng Qianqiu, but for Deng Qianqiu, it was a death sentence.

Since you, Hu Weiyong, want to kill Deng Qianqiu, then... any room for maneuver for Deng Qianqiu has been lost.

Except trying hard.

It can be said that Deng Qianqiu appears to be aggressive on the surface, but in reality, it is a desperate counterattack when he is forced into a corner.

At this time, Deng Qianqiu said solemnly: "The Thousand Households Office of Chunhe Palace is responsible for investigating illegal activities throughout the country. If a prince breaks the law, he will be punished just like the common people. This has been clearly stated many times in your majesty's edict. But the son of Lord Hu has always been domineering and committed heinous crimes in the capital! How come Lord Hu's son breaks the law and brings disaster to his family?"

Only then did Hu Weiyong realize that he had been deceived.

From the very beginning, beneath his arrogant appearance, he actually had a very cautious character.

Because of this, over the years, he has carefully woven a huge web of human relationships and worldly wisdom.

Under his network, countless ministers and meritorious officials formed a community of interests with him and were inseparable.

But precisely because of Hu Weiyong's careful planning, Hu Weiyong could even claim that he was invulnerable.

Even his accomplices could hardly have any flaws, the reason was simple... because this was the Hongwu Dynasty.

Most of the people who were able to become founding ministers or officials in the Hongwu Dynasty had experienced the blood and fire of the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. Except for a few reckless people, almost all of these people... were the best of the best.

Those who were selected through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, unless they had extraordinary luck, and who could occupy a seat in the court of the early Ming Dynasty, were not ordinary people.

Because of this, under Hu Weiyong's careful planning, it was almost impossible for these people... to find a breakthrough from them.

But... there is a kind of people who are different. There is a kind of people who are born rich, but have long lost their reverence for many things. In their eyes, meat and food are dropped from the sky. They have the protection of their fathers and brothers, so they should be superior to others. They are born with fine clothes and delicious food, and they have everything they need. Except for their parents, everyone around them is their slave.

How can such a person understand the principle of being extremely cautious?

Therefore, with their arrogant and domineering nature, they never take others seriously. However, because their fathers and brothers control the central government, they are able to know many secrets.

For example...Hu Weiyong’s son.

Historically, Hu Weiyong's son... was a man without talent, so even though he had such a great father, he was not well-known in history. This shows how low a person's talent must be to end up in such a situation.

And now, Hu Weiyong was afraid. He was not only afraid that his son would be murdered by the Chunhe Palace Thousand Households, but also... his son did know a few things. Once imprisoned, other people might be able to endure it, but his son would definitely not be able to endure the torture.

What's more terrifying is that it's obviously not just that. In fact, Hu Weiyong was cautious in many things and didn't let his son know too much. But...

At this time, many people in the hall were trembling.

Because no one knows how much the young master of the Hu family knows, including many confidential letters, secret communications, and even things said when drunk. Who dares to believe that the young master of the Hu family doesn't know all of this?
Even if Hu Weiyong came out to clarify at this time, would anyone dare to believe it?

We were all grasshoppers on the same rope, but now... everyone is finally starting to feel insecure.

Many people remained silent, but began to observe Hu Weiyong secretly.

Hu Weiyong had to show his anger and dared not show any sign of anxiety.

At this moment, he knew that people's hearts were about to fall apart.

Because once people realize that... the young master of the Hu family might confess something, no one can be sure whether they are involved. Everyone believes what Hu Weiyong says, but... it's hard to say about the young master of the Hu family.

Deng Qianqiu said loudly at this time: "Your Majesty, Hu Zhengxing, the son of Right Prime Minister Hu Weiyong, killed his slave Zhang Laier in the second year of Hongwu. After killing him, he not only did not repent, but also refused to return the body to Zhang Laier's family. Zhang Laier's family was indignant and filed a complaint everywhere, but the judicial officials turned a deaf ear to it, saying that Zhang Laier just died of illness, and beat Zhang Laier's father and brother in the name of false accusation. Zhang Laier's father became mentally ill and died of illness. His brother Zhang Cheng was also tortured and his feet were cut off. Because he lost the ability to work, he became a beggar. This person... I have sent people to find him, and he has confessed the situation in the Chunhe Palace Qianhu."

After a pause, Deng Qianqiu continued, "In September of the second year of Hongwu, Hu Zhengxing had a dispute with a scholar in a brothel in the capital. They exchanged harsh words. Hu Zhengxing flew into a rage and hit the scholar on the head four times with a porcelain bottle, causing him to die tragically. This matter... was suppressed, and the Hu family paid a compensation of 1,000 taels of silver to silence the scholar's family. I have also found the scholar's clansmen and recorded their confession."

Deng Qianqiu continued, "On the ninth day of the twelfth month of the second year of Hongwu, Hu Zhengxing's carriage met with Liu Bi, the Minister of Fujian, who came to Beijing, in the downtown area. Hu Zhengxing was angry that Liu Bi's carriage did not give way, so he slapped Liu Bi in the street. Liu Bi endured it and did not dare to speak out. Instead, he went to the Hu family's door the next day to confess his crime and apologize to the young master of the Hu family. This matter... has long been a hot topic in the capital. I have found many witnesses of the incident. Not only that, I have also found the driver of the Minister of Fujian at that time to testify..."

When Hu Weiyong heard this, he was stunned.

In fact, the first two things involved murder, but in his mind, they were nothing. After all, the dead were only a maid and a poor scholar of unknown reputation.

The only thing he did do to scold Hu Zhengxing was the matter of Liu Bi. After all, the other party was the Pingzhangshi of Fujian, an official position that had been established since the Tang Dynasty. Initially, it was the prime minister, but... in the early Ming Dynasty, because the system of the Tang and Song dynasties was followed, the Pingzhangshi of each province were actually the same as the provincial governors.

Such a high-ranking official was insulted in the street by Hu Zhengxing just because he offended Hu Weiyong's son. The other party endured it and dared not speak out. Hu Weiyong felt that his son had gone a bit too far. Although he accepted Liu Bi's apology at the time, he turned around and scolded Hu Zhengxing harshly.

But Zhu Yuanzhang listened carefully to Deng Qianqiu's speech, and he began to feel angry from the moment Hu Zhengxing killed the maid.

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang had seen a lot of such things. As the son of a poor family, he had seen many people being bullied and killed at will by corrupt officials of the Yuan Dynasty since he was a child.

Therefore, even though he was now the emperor, when Zhu Yuanzhang heard these things, he still had a sense of empathy, because... he put himself in the shoes of the ordinary maids and common people who had been bullied and killed just like himself.

As for the humiliation of the Fujian Pingzhang, it undoubtedly made Zhu Yuanzhang even more angry. He was a Ming official appointed by the emperor himself and in charge of the affairs of a province, but he was treated like a servant of the Hu family. This obviously... had undoubtedly touched Zhu Yuanzhang's sore spot.

He glanced at Hu Weiyong, but his eyes began to become more and more malicious.

Deng Qianqiu obviously had no intention of stopping, and continued to speak loudly: "In the autumn of the third year of Hongwu..."

Hu Weiyong had obviously realized that the situation had reached a point where it was out of control. He subconsciously frowned and raised his voice, saying, "Deng Qianqiu, you..."

Deng Qianqiu looked at Hu Weiyong calmly and said, "Mr. Hu... I am stating the case."

be cheated.

Hu Weiyong clenched his fists secretly and felt his body go cold.

At the very beginning, the Chunhe Palace Qianhu Office made a big fuss to monitor Hu Weiyong and his accomplices, causing Hu Weiyong to use all his energy to cover up the actions of Hu's party. He thought he was invulnerable, so he was not very afraid at the time.

But it is obvious that the various actions of the Chunhe Palace Qianhu Suo were simply intended to paralyze Hu Weiyong.

Deng Qianqiu was able to investigate so clearly, and he must have had a lot of witnesses and evidence. So it must be that Deng Qianqiu had been targeting Hu Weiyong's son from the very beginning, and all his previous actions were actually just to paralyze him.

Hu Weiyong figured out the whole cause and effect and felt extremely furious. He had been second to none for a long time and had always thought highly of himself. He never expected that at this moment, he would be played around by a mere Deng Qianqiu. One can imagine how ashamed and angry he felt.

Deng Qianqiu could sense Hu Weiyong's anger, and he added coldly, "Please, Mr. Hu, don't interrupt!"

…………

and also.

(End of this chapter)