My Husband Is Not Easy To Mess With. - Chapter 20: Just Fire Them All
Chapter 20: Just Fire Them All
The military officials, uncharacteristically, were no longer sleeping during court.
They started talking nonsense.
They didn’t listen to what the civil officials were saying, nor did they care how inappropriate their suggested methods were; they were single-mindedly determined to chop off the heads of the Ministry of Rites officials.
With Nie Yao, the only one who could control them, holding back, the military officials were about to bury their heads and rush through all opponents.
“Your Majesty.”
After they had argued enough, Prime Minister Dou Jinyuan slowly and calmly stepped forward and proposed: “Since all the ministers believe the condition of the Ministry of Rites officials is unclear, why not send imperial doctors to check on them, to show Your Majesty’s care?”
Of course, he didn’t neglect the request of the military officials. He suggested that Nie Yao’s soldiers could accompany the doctors under the pretext of escort, so that if anything unusual happened, they could be dealt with on the spot.
His words seemed to treat both the civil and military sides equally, as both suggestions were adopted.
In reality, it was a move to sentence the officials of the Ministry of Rites to death.
If this proposal had been made by anyone else, there would have been a long argument. But since it came from Dou Jinyuan, the civil officials kept quiet. Since Nie Yao didn’t object on the military side, everyone was considered to have agreed.
The matter was thus decided.
Nie Yao appointed a military official to handle this matter.
The military official’s departure had no impact on the court session, and the meeting continued.
Officials with matters at hand realized a storm was brewing and quickly used this brief period of calm to discuss their affairs.
Everyone focused on the essentials.
The progress of the meeting was much faster than before.
Approaching noon.
The military official who went out to work returned invigorated.
He also brought back an imperial doctor.
The imperial doctor confirmed that all the officials from the Ministry of Rites who requested sick leave were perfectly fine; not one was ill.
“Your Majesty, they are deceiving the Emperor! Those old men are simply not putting you in their eyes!”
“They must be taught a lesson, let them know that this Great Yu belongs to Your Majesty!”
With human and material evidence complete, the civil officials couldn’t find a word to save their friends, even if they had some connection.
Only the officials aligned with Sun Ji were still trying to struggle.
“Reporting to Your Majesty, envoys from the Dan and Yuan countries are arriving soon. If all the officials of the Ministry of Rites are imprisoned, who will receive the foreign envoys in half a month? I implore Your Majesty to show leniency and deal with them lightly, considering this their first offense.”
There was only half a month left.
It was impossible to find suitable personnel to take over the Ministry of Rites’ work.
This was the main reason they dared to strike.
In fact, similar incidents had happened before.
Six years ago, Nie Yao, who was not yet fully familiar with the work of the Ministry of Revenue, inadvertently harmed the interests of the Ministry of Works, causing the artisans under the Ministry of Works to stop working.
During that period, bridges in the capital were broken and went unrepaired; pavilions in the suburbs leaked rain and their roofs were not fixed; a damaged road in the city was not filled for half a month… The matter was only resolved when Nie Yao personally apologized to the Minister of Works and reallocated funds to them.
The Ministry of Rites officials thought that no matter how little real power they had, they were more noble than those low-status artisans of the Ministry of Works.
The face of the Great Yu depended on them!
Furthermore, the envoys from Dan and Yuan would arrive in less than half a month, and if the Ministry of Rites didn’t work, no one would receive the envoys.
Thinking this way, they believed they had the advantage of timing and location.
When else to strike but now!
“Your Majesty, don’t listen to his nonsense! Those who disrespect you cannot be kept!”
The military officials disagreed with letting the Ministry of Rites off the hook.
They insisted on quickly gathering everyone and eliminating them all at once.
Nie Yao shared this sentiment.
He stepped forward and suggested in an unequivocal tone: “Your Majesty, it seems the Ministry of Rites has accurately grasped that the reception of foreign guests requires them, which is why they dare to commit the crime of deceiving the Emperor so recklessly.”
“Deception is deception. If they are given leniency just because they are still useful, won’t anyone be able to follow suit in the future? Anyone who thinks they are useful can disregard Your Majesty?”
“How can this be allowed!”
Nie Yao and many officials who upheld imperial authority supported arresting and severely punishing everyone who requested sick leave.
As for receiving foreign guests?
The Emperor handed the matter over to Nie Yao.
Everyone had eyes and knew Nie Yao’s spending habits very well.
What was the difference between letting him receive the foreign envoys and directly embarrassing themselves in front of the envoys?
The face-conscious civil officials did not agree.
“Your Majesty! Minister Nie is busy with his duties; I fear he cannot handle such a heavy responsibility!”
Dozens of officials collectively resisted.
However, the Emperor’s heart was hard as iron, and he simply ignored them. Ultimately, the matter was entrusted to Nie Yao.
The civil officials were worried sick and felt despair for the future of the Great Yu.
By the time the court meeting ended.
All the officials of the Ministry of Rites had been arrested and locked in prison. Sun Ji had few remaining people; those who weren’t locked up with him were either minor henchmen or secret pieces he was saving for a crucial moment.
But it would be overkill to use the one chess piece he had cultivated over many years now.
Why use a butcher’s knife to kill a chicken?
Sun Ji still held onto hope at this moment.
He felt the reason for his imprisonment was overly unreasonable, and as long as there were people in the court who could discern right from wrong to plead for him, there was still a chance for a turnaround.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as he wished.
In the evening, Nie Yao’s people found a large amount of evidence from Sun Ji’s home proving his collusion with the former Third Prince and his provision of funds to eliminate rivals in court.
The former Third Prince was already dead.
What good would come from colluding with him?
However, the crime of forming a faction for selfish gain was not enough. Nie Yao had his men continue to dig deeper, and then the matter of Sun Ji poisoning the late Emperor to death was unearthed.
“Now we can start executing people.”
Nie Yao and the new Emperor leisurely ate hot pot.
The soup base was numbing and spicy, making it very enjoyable.
The two ate and discussed business casually.
Nie Yao: “Should we take out the Yuan country first?” Chew, chew, chew~ This tripe is so tender. Speaking of… slurp, slurp, slurp~~ This sweet potato noodle is also delicious.
The Imperial Kitchen is good.
They know what they are doing.
“Mhm.” Du Suilan didn’t use to like tripe or duck intestines, thinking they were dirty. Later, after the Young General left the capital and he couldn’t see him, he sulked and began eating things Nie Yao liked.
After that, he couldn’t stop. Whenever he ate hot pot while missing the person far away, these became essential dishes.
Chew, chew, chew~ Chew, chew, chew~~
The two respectable people who adhered to the principle of not speaking while eating or sleeping in public threw away their manners in front of each other and responded vaguely while chewing: “Mh… Yes… Hiss, hiss… Dan… is not worth… fearing… Hiss, hiss… Give me the milk tea…”
“Here.”
Nie Yao was eating a sausage, too busy to be sentimental.
He was busy blanching beef for the ge’er.
“Eat less if it’s too spicy.” Nie Yao said he had already instructed his men to start preparations, and the effect would surely be noticeable by the time the foreign envoys arrived in the capital.
“Smart of you.” As expected of the person he had his eyes on; he knew where to start and cooperated without a word! Minister Nie handled things quickly, and the Emperor was delighted, rewarding him with a slice of ginger.
Nie Yao: You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?
He gave him a slightly helpless look but ate the ginger slice anyway.
“What are you planning to do with those people surnamed Yan?”
“Kill them.”
“All of them?”
“N-ot… all?” The Emperor deliberately changed his mind, seeing Minister Nie’s eyebrows furrow, making his already intimidating face look even more powerful. Having successfully fooled him, the Emperor was very pleased. “My dear Nie, I killed the old toad.”
To be precise, he and his father killed him together.
Just half a month ago, he ordered his men to use medicine to wake him up, then use a potent dose to awaken all his life force, magnifying his pain, and then—knife after knife.
Death by a thousand cuts.
“How is it, Nie Qing?” Is my method cruel?