When approaching the Ministry of Justice, Zhu Ping'an felt a little unfamiliar. The front of the Ministry of Justice was crowded with people, mostly officials, both civil and military officials, but more were military officers. It was as lively as a court session, and Zhu Ping'an almost thought he had walked into the wrong door.
The entrance to the Ministry of Justice seemed to be under martial law, with a Jinyiwei equipped with an embroidered spring sword standing every three or five steps.
In addition to the Jinyiwei, there were about five small flags of soldiers in front of the Ministry of Justice. Each small flag had ten people. They were lined up in front of the Ministry of Justice in distinctive armor, making it look like a military parade.
"Captain Liu, you are here too." Captain Wang greeted Captain Liu at the gate of the Ministry of Justice.
"Captain Zhao was stabbed in the back. As a comrade, I have to come and lend a hand. What about you, Captain Wang?" Captain Liu replied.
"Like Captain Liu, I'm here to support Brother Zhao. How can we be working hard for the Ming Dynasty on the front line while they are enjoying a comfortable life in the back and stabbing us in the back? How can this be justified?" Captain Wang was indignant. He was angry and resentful of the powerless civil servants.
"That's right. If we weren't fighting the Tartars, Oirat and Jurchens on the front line, why would they be drinking tea and dancing in the back? They even repay kindness with enmity. When I see such people, I would spit in their faces!" Another military officer came over and greeted the two men and spoke to them.
"Mr. Zhang..."
"Lord Wang..."
Several military officers greeted each other and then started chatting together in front of the Ministry of Justice. After they arrived, several civil and military officials came and stood in front of the Ministry of Justice, waiting for people and chatting together.
"It's really lively... I'm afraid I'll disappoint you today..."
Zhu Ping'an curled the corners of his mouth slightly and smiled, then walked towards the gate of the Ministry of Justice.
"There is an important case in the Ministry of Justice today. All outsiders are requested to bypass it."
When Zhu Ping'an was approaching the Ministry of Justice, the Jinyiwei on duty on the street stopped Zhu Ping'an with a knife on his waist, saying that the Ministry of Justice had another important case today and asked Zhu Ping'an to take a detour.
The Jinyiwei on duty received an order from their superiors to impose martial law on the road in front of the government office and no outsiders were allowed to approach. They did not know Zhu Ping'an, but saw that Zhu Ping'an was wearing casual clothes and carrying a cloth bag across his shoulder. He looked like a scholar or a businessman, but not an official, so they stopped him.
"I'm not an outsider." After being stopped, Zhu Ping'an smiled speechlessly.
"Who are you smiling at? Leave immediately. If you dare to pester me again, I have plenty of room for you in the Northern Pacification Division of the Jinyiwei!" The Jinyiwei looked at Zhu Ping'an expressionlessly.
"The Ministry of Justice's important case today cannot be without me. I am Zhu Ping'an, a reader in the Hanlin Academy, and I am the party involved in today's important case in the Ministry of Justice. This is the official document sent to me by the Ministry of Justice, ordering me to come to the Ministry of Justice to petition today." Zhu Ping'an shook his head and took out his seal and the official document from the cloth bag across his body and handed them to the Jinyiwei who stopped him.
It's not their fault for stopping me, it's their duty. As for the attitude, I can't ask too much of them in this feudal society, there's no such thing as smiling service in the dictionary of the feudal bureaucracy.
If I were wearing official uniform, they would definitely not dare to stop me.
"Please forgive my sins, sir." After looking at Zhu Ping'an's seal and the official document from the Ministry of Justice, the Jinyiwei who blocked the road hurriedly bowed to Zhu Ping'an and returned the seal and the official document from the Ministry of Justice to Zhu Ping'an with both hands.
"You have done your duty conscientiously, so you have not committed any crime." Zhu Ping'an smiled slightly, took the seal and official documents and put them into the cloth bag he was carrying across his body.
While Zhu Ping'an was packing up his things, a man came from the opposite street, causing a sudden commotion at the entrance of the Ministry of Justice. The military officers at the entrance walked forward together and greeted the newcomer.
The people who came, like Zhu Ping'an, are the protagonists of today's important cases in the Ministry of Justice, and neither of them can be missing.
This person is the person impeached by Zhu Ping'an - Zhao Daying.
Zhao Daying was dressed in armor today, wearing deerskin boots, with a standard long sword hanging from his waist, an iron bow on his back, and a pot of feather arrows hanging from the other side of his waist. He looked very heroic and had the demeanor of a great general.
Look at Zhao Daying, and then look at Zhu Pingan.
Compared to him, Zhu Ping'an is much more ordinary. If you only look at his clothes and demeanor, Zhao Daying is the standard male protagonist, while Zhu Ping'an is probably just a minor supporting role.
"Brother Zhao, now that you are here, don't worry. We have the support of the elder brothers. No one will bully us warriors for no reason."
"That's right. Captain Zhao has shed blood and sweat for our Ming Dynasty. He has made great contributions, but there are still villains who are secretly attacking him. It's really shameless. Don't worry, we will not sit idly by and watch."
"Captain Zhao, we support you."
"We must make that Zhu pay the price today. He has just risen from a peasant to an official and has forgotten who he is. He even wants to become famous by framing us. He can just keep dreaming. Today we will teach him a lesson! Let him know that we warriors are not easy to bully!"
"That's right. Captain Zhao was promoted by Elder Yan. Who does Zhu Ping'an think he is?"
The military officers at the gate of the Ministry of Justice expressed their support for Zhao Daying and made various verbal attacks on Zhu Pingan.
These military officers had very loud voices, and Zhu Pingan could hear them from a distance...
"Thank you, colleagues. I, Zhao Daying, am upright and have no fear of villains doing bad things behind my back! As the saying goes, a man of integrity fears no slander. I have nothing to fear. Today I am just going through the motions. I believe that the gentlemen who are presiding over the petition will clear my name, Zhao Daying, and give us military officers an explanation so that we can fight at the front with all our heart and soul without worrying about being framed behind our backs." Zhao Daying thanked the military officers, and then said with a look of helplessness on his face.
"Okay, Brother Zhao, you are right. You must give us an explanation today." Zhao Daying's words resonated with the military officers. They expressed their thoughts and they all echoed in support.
The ancients said: "The way of civil and military affairs is to alternate between tension and relaxation. Civil and military officials are equally important to a dynasty. But now it is different. The status of military officials is getting worse and worse. Even civil officials of lower ranks than them are arrogant in front of them."
There are too many examples like this: military officers fought and won battles outside, only to be beaten to death by a few petty civil servants in the court...
These military officers had long been feeling unbalanced. In addition to being won over by Zhao Daying's money and connections, a big reason for their support was precisely this.
Most of the military officers in the Ming Dynasty were hereditary. The Ming Dynasty was won by their ancestors with their blood and lives. Not only that, it was the military officers who were responsible for protecting the Ming Dynasty and defending against foreign enemies.
Why have their status become lower and lower than that of civil servants day by day since their ancestors shed blood and sweat to get to where they are today? Why!!!