The imperial edict had just been read out in the previous second, and in the next second, Shaoxing prefect Liu Xi took off his black gauze hat and official uniform on the spot and was dragged out of the hall in public.
This scene shocked everyone!
Although they had prepared themselves mentally, this scene was still beyond their expectations. The punishment from the emperor was heavier than they expected!
They thought that Liu Xi might be demoted and fined, and that was the punishment. But they never expected that Liu Xi would be demoted to a commoner! He was demoted to the bottom! His career in the government ended here!
After Liu Xi was punished, Xu Ziyi, who was standing by, suddenly became nervous, clenching his toes. In fact, his situation was almost the same as Liu Xi's. The two of them joined forces to suppress the Japanese invaders, and Liu Xi was demoted to a commoner. How could his fate be any better? However, he still held a glimmer of hope, hoping that the emperor would give him a lighter sentence for his past meritorious service, and let him make amends for his crime... ...
"Xu Ziyi, a captain of Zhenhai Guard, was incompetent in the war against the Japanese pirates and had poor command, which resulted in heavy casualties on his own side. He was careless and allowed the Japanese pirates to escape across the river, killing the returning censor Qian Jing. He failed to live up to the emperor's grace and is unforgivable. He shall be punished with 50 strokes of the cane, stripped of his captain's title, deprived of his hereditary privileges, and demoted to a soldier!" Chen Hong continued to read out.
Fifty strokes of the cane! Demotion to a soldier! Deprivation of hereditary privileges!
Each of these punishments was like a heavy hammer, hammering down on Xu Ziyi one after another!
"The guilty general obeys the order, thank the Lord for his grace!"
Xu Ziyi seemed to have no bones at all. He fell to his knees with a thud, and his head hit the ground hard.
The factory guards who were watching with eager eyes on the side stepped forward without saying a word, dragged Xu Ziyi up from the ground, first took off his cap, then his official uniform, then grabbed his arm and dragged him outside the hall, pressed him on a bench in front of everyone, and started beating him with the imperial cane.
Bang! Bang! Bang...
Ah! Ah! Ah…
The sound of the court stick hitting flesh and Xu Ziyi's screams were clearly heard by everyone in the hall!
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became more depressing and tense.
"Zhang Chang, the magistrate of Changhua County, failed to defend the territory and suppress the Japanese pirates. He was defeated by the Japanese pirates and suffered heavy casualties. As a result, the Japanese pirates invaded Changhua County and burned, killed and looted. He failed to live up to the emperor's grace and was demoted to a commoner..."
"Dong Da, the clerk of Yuqian County, was incompetent in suppressing the Japanese pirates. He underestimated the enemy and was careless. He was ambushed by the Japanese pirates and lost several lives. He was too cowardly to fight and allowed his soldiers to flee. He betrayed the emperor's grace and was sentenced to 100 strokes of the cane, stripped of his official position, exiled 3,000 miles, and never employed again..."
"Ma Long, the magistrate of Yuqian County, failed to defend the territory, had no good judgement of people, and had no proper supervision. The territory was plundered by Japanese pirates, and the people suffered heavy casualties. He failed the emperor's grace and was fined three years' salary and demoted to the position of county magistrate on the spot to see how he would perform..."
... ...
Chen Hong stood in front of a group of officials, holding the imperial edict in his hand, and read it out with an expressionless face. After reading out the punishment for each official, the factory guards would come forward to take off the black gauze hats of some officials, or drag some officials out to be beaten with a stick.
No wonder they had to identify the person in advance. They took off their official hats and beat him with a stick. If they recognized the wrong person, what would happen
All the officials felt sad.
"This feeling is so good..." When the imperial edict was read, Chen Hong glanced at the whole place out of the corner of his eye. Seeing a group of officials standing below like quails, he felt extremely satisfied in his heart. This is what I, Chen Hong, pursue.
At this moment, he couldn't help but think of the time when his family was penniless, his marriage was called off, and he was laughed at by everyone...
At that time, he swore: I would rather bully an old man with white beard than bully a poor young man. I will eventually become a dragon and a phoenix, but I will never live my life with holes in my pants! My life, Chen Hong, should not be like this! I want to climb up, I want to stand out! I want to be the best! I want to make those who laugh at me, humiliate me, and look down on me pay the price with blood! I want to retaliate against them, retaliate against them severely! I want to be strong! I want to change my fate!
See? I did it. These civil and military officials trembled in front of me. Their life and death, honor and disgrace were all in my hands...
I will do better and climb higher!
Chen Hong was not satisfied.
Zhu Ping'an listened carefully below and found that the order of punishment was based on the route of the Japanese pirates in Shangyu. Shaoxing, Changhua, Yuqian... ... the officials along the route were named one after another.
According to this order, the next target should be Chun'an County. Wait, Chun'an County...
Wasn’t the magistrate of Chun’an County the famous Hai Rui in the future?!
Does that mean Hai Rui is here too?!
Zhu Ping'an remembered that he had met Hai Rui once on his last trip to Beijing, but he guessed that Hai Rui didn't remember him. So Zhu Ping'an looked around the crowd inconspicuously and indeed saw Hai Rui.
In fact, Hai Rui stood out in the crowd!
All the officials present were wearing brand new official uniforms, except Hai Rui, who was wearing a starched and somewhat faded blue official uniform with three patches on it. Although the stitching was fine, it was still very obvious.
Uh, I remembered that the last time I met Hai Rui, his official uniform looked like this. It was two patches last time.
More than half a year has passed and another patch has been added.
In the crowd, Hai Rui stood straight, like a pen holder. Unlike the other officials, Hai Rui was calm and composed. Even though it was his turn soon, he remained calm and composed.
"Hai Rui, the magistrate of Chun'an..." Chen Hong's voice rang out.
Just as he had guessed, Zhu Ping'an narrowed his eyes slightly and listened attentively.
As far as I can remember, Chun'an County was also attacked by Japanese pirates, but the situation was better. Chun'an County was not breached by the Japanese pirates. Chun'an County was safe, but the towns and villages below were burned, killed and looted by the Japanese pirates. I don't know what kind of reward or punishment Hai Rui will receive.
Chen Hong's voice continued, "Although the magistrate of Chun'an County, Hai Rui, defended the county city of Chun'an, the Japanese pirates circled the city and successively captured the three towns of Chun'an, burning, killing and looting. The magistrate of Chun'an, Hai Rui, led his troops to attack, but was defeated head-on by the Japanese pirates. More than a hundred of his own men were injured, and two of the enemy were injured. He fought and retreated, retreated to the county city, and invited troops from Changhua and Yuqian counties to attack the Japanese pirates together. Before the reinforcements from the two counties arrived, the Japanese pirates had already fled to Xi County... The magistrate of Chun'an was fined one year's salary and was rated as incompetent in the annual performance evaluation."
"Your Majesty, Hai Rui, accepts the order and thanks you for your grace. I have failed to annihilate the Japanese in the territory, and I feel so ungrateful..." Hai Rui knelt down to accept the order, looking ashamed.
Fortunately, he was only fined one year's salary and was rated as incompetent in the annual assessment. Upon hearing this, Zhu Ping'an couldn't help but feel relieved for Hai Rui.
Although Hai Rui's performance in resisting the Japanese pirates in Chun'an County was not good, although he managed to defend the county town, the Japanese pirates broke into three towns in a row. He led his troops to attack, but was defeated by the Japanese pirates again, and his own side suffered more than a hundred casualties... But fortunately, he had his peers to contrast with him. Zhang Chang, the magistrate of Changhua County, was even worse in suppressing the Japanese pirates. Not only was he defeated by the Japanese pirates, but his county town was also broken into by them. In Yuqian County, the county clerk Dong Da was ambushed while suppressing the Japanese pirates, and he fled in fear after suffering several casualties. He did not even dare to fight the Japanese pirates. In comparison, Hai Rui's performance was acceptable. He defended the county town and even injured two Japanese pirates.