The ministers heard the rustling sound of turning pages behind the curtain,
After a moment, the noise ceased,
Then they heard Zhao Hua chuckle and ask:
"Lord Yang, I see your monthly salary as a Minister of the Privy Council is five hundred taels of silver, is that correct?"
Lord Yang said impatiently, "What does the Empress Dowager ask such things for?"
Zhao Hua said, "I'm just concerned about you. You have one wife and three concubines, two sons and one daughter, this whole family relies on your salary for sustenance, it must be a tough life."
Lord Yang was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his voice to cover his uneasiness,
"Your Majesty is jesting. Ordinary folks labor the whole year and can't even earn a hundred or so taels of silver. My humble salary as a minister is equivalent to several years of their income, how could it be insufficient to support my family? Even if the household is large with substantial expenses, we can live comfortably by being frugal and economical."
"Frugal and economical? Haha~" Zhao Hua laughed as if she had heard an extremely amusing joke,
The usually solemn former Empress was now laughing unrestrainedly,
"You have no side business, and your wives and concubines don't work either. Even if I subsidize your entire five hundred tael monthly salary for household expenses, last month alone you purchased a large red coral from Huzhou spending three hundred taels;
Your wives and concubines bought the first batch of embroidery from the Capital City, costing four hundred and eighty taels; and the tuition fees for your children studying at Mr. Wanyan's private school amounted to two hundred and ten taels.
Just these few items alone cost nearly a thousand taels, exceeding double your monthly salary. I'd like to ask you, whose eating have you economized, whose living have you frugalized? Huh?"
Hearing Zhao Hua enumerate his household expenses down to the last detail, Lord Yang panicked, and could only argue feebly:
"The manor still has some savings, occasional higher expenditures are not a big deal......"
"Occasional?" Zhao Hua toyed with the record book in her hand and sneered, "What I have here is a record of your manor's expenses for the entire year. It lists everything in detail, showing that your manor spent at least thirteen thousand and six hundred taels last year. Lord Yang must have a poor memory, should I read out all these itemized entries for you?"
"This......"
Lord Yang stammered for a while, unable to come up with a reasonable explanation.
In desperation, he could only try to divert the topic:
"As a lady of the inner palace, how does the Empress Dowager know so much about my private affairs?"
"Private affairs? Do you also consider the silver you've embezzled as your private affair?" Zhao Hua sternly questioned him,
"Your annual salary and bonus amount to no more than seven thousand taels, where did these extra thousands of taels for your expenses come from? Did they sprout from the grave of your ancestors?
No wonder you were eager for me to abdicate, once I'm gone, you ministers can seize control of the court? With me watching over you here, you all dare to be so audacious, if I abdicate, your manor might as well start sprouting gold!"
Zhao Hua's words left Lord Yang speechless,
As he was racking his brains for a rebuttal, Zhao Hua didn't give him the slightest chance,
"You say a woman's benevolence is unfit to govern the nation. Well, today I shall set an example of decisive action for you ministers. The imperial law clearly states that those guilty of corruption and abuse of power, if the amount exceeds three thousand taels of silver, shall be executed by beheading."
With that, she abruptly raised her voice and ordered:
"Guards, take Lord Yang away and behead him immediately!"
Her words caused an uproar in the hall.
Lord Yang pleaded for leniency, arguing that such an act would lose her the people's support,
But Zhao Hua couldn't care less about that.
In her view, these ministers standing below were all scheming and calculating,
After the previous Emperor's demise and the turmoil in the country, who didn't want to take advantage of the chaos for personal gain?
If they forced her to abdicate, the ministers could bypass Cheng Yu and make him a mere puppet, gradually devouring the nation's interests for themselves.
Zhao Hua has always been clear about her likes and dislikes,
She hated Xiao Jingheng, not the country that gave birth to and nurtured her.
When someone gagged Lord Yang and dragged him away for execution, the ministers finally noticed
That the Chaoyang Palace was already surrounded by countless guards.
These guards were neither from the imperial army nor the palace guards, judging from their attire and demeanor, they looked more like loyal soldiers answering only to Zhao Hua's commands......
Under such circumstances, no one dared to plead for Lord Yang.
They were all court officials, and how many of those standing below could truly claim to be clean?
Especially since last year, Xiao Jingheng had neglected to deal with corruption, and the ministers followed suit, all of them earning money on the side. Maintaining integrity and honesty seemed out of place.
At this moment, the record book in Zhao Hua's hand appeared to them like a book of life and death,
Using the law as a pretext and life as a threat, it completely silenced them.
However, what they didn't know was that
The reason Xiao Jingheng had ignored corruption last year was entirely due to Zhao Hua's advice.
She had told Xiao Jingheng:
"Since ascending the throne, Your Majesty has cracked down on corruption every year, and now the ministers dare not commit any outrageous transgressions. The illicit gains confiscated from corrupt officials each year have also been diminishing.
In my humble opinion, Your Majesty should ease up a bit. If the ministers see that you're no longer dealing with this issue, various wealthy individuals will discreetly bribe officials to facilitate their affairs, thinking the policy has loosened. This pool is too clean to nurture fat fish.
Your Majesty, let it go for a year or two, allow them to get fat and complacent, then settle accounts afterwards, forcing them to surrender all the money they've embezzled to the national treasury.
Not only will this replenish the treasury, but this method will only harm the interests of those wealthy individuals who seek to exploit officials for their own desires, without affecting the common people. In fact, it may even provide them with more security due to the enriched treasury."
At the time, Xiao Jingheng thought Zhao Hua's suggestion was excellent,
But he hadn't realized that Zhao Hua's intention was not to benefit him, but to prepare for her own future rule.
Now, the hall was deathly silent, the ministers didn't even dare to breathe, fearing that the next one to be punished according to the law would be them.
Only when a guard returned to report that Lord Yang had been beheaded,
Did Zhao Hua nod slightly and calmly address the ministers:
"The Emperor is my son, and if you wish for me to abdicate, so be it. But before I abdicate, I must first deal with the corrupt officials in the court on behalf of the Emperor, only then can I rest at ease.
This record book in my hand documents many of the ministers' private affairs. If you need, I can read out the entries one by one for you today when I have time."
[8.30 Main story completed, just in time before most readers start school. After the book shows completed status, an additional 100,000 words can be updated for bonus chapters. There will be a bonus chapter voting poll on the completion day, and the bonus chapters with the most votes will be updated. Additionally, happy Monday!]
