mtlumby2d Chapter 475 Eunuch Chang Has Fallen
Chapter 475 Eunuch Chang Has Fallen
Before Chang Kun could finish speaking, Wang Lin couldn't help but interrupt, "Chang Kun, you old scoundrel! For your own personal grudge, you actually abused public power, using the Shenji Battalion to vent your anger, almost causing a catastrophe..." There was one more thing he didn't want to say in public: he almost implicated himself and Duke Xu Hongji of Wei. If they hadn't arrived in time and heard Chang Kun admit it himself, the two of them would still be in the dark.
Chang Kun was startled when he heard Wang Lin's voice. Why was he here too? He peered through the crack in the door, looking left and right but couldn't see him. He quickly explained through the door, "Lord Wang, it's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. I do have a grudge against that man surnamed Liu, but leading the Divine Machine Battalion to stop them was to protect the palace from being offended by thieves..."
Liu Ye interjected at the opportune moment: "So you let the Divine Machine Battalion fight us? Is this your way of protecting the palace from being offended, Eunuch Chang? Do you think guns and cannons have eyes and will avoid the Forbidden City on their own?"
Chang Kun was speechless for a moment.
Although Xu Hongji was a meritorious military general during peacetime, unlike his ancestors who had served as dukes and spent their lives on the battlefield, he was still a fiery and impulsive person. Today, in order to quell the situation and prevent a major disaster, he had been suppressing his temper. Upon hearing this, he could no longer control himself and shouted, "Chang Kun, you provoked a conflict with Qionghai Town on your own for personal grudges, almost dragging down the entire Nanjing Garrison. If the two sides were to go to war, it would bring disaster to the entire city of Nanjing. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to cut you into a thousand pieces! Stop making excuses and wash your neck clean so that the Emperor can chop off your head!"
Wang Lin chimed in, "Using public office for private gain, nearly triggering a civil war that ravaged the entire city, is one crime; using your position as the garrison eunuch to extort and plunder in Suzhou, competing with the people for profit, involving a staggering sum of millions of taels of silver, is the second crime. I will report these two crimes truthfully, and you can expect to be impeached!"
Chang Kun was on the verge of tears. The raw silk business did involve millions of taels of silver, but Liu Ye had intercepted it! Could an attempted crime be considered a crime? Moreover, under Chang Kun's control, it was seen as competing with the common people for profit, while Liu Ye, the general, did such a large deal and got away scot-free. Wasn't this a classic double standard? Just because he had troops? Poor Chang Kun forgot that Chang Wei, under his orders, had made a profit without any investment, while Liu Ye had bought the silk at a high price and resold it to Japan, simply taking advantage of his substantial capital and the asymmetric advantage of the fast ships. He was giving real money; it was a legitimate business transaction.
Chang Kun came from the palace and knew the weight of the two charges Wang Lin had listed. If the first charge could very well cost him his hard-earned position as the garrison eunuch, but if someone in the Directorate of Ceremonial spoke up for him, he might not necessarily lose his life, then the second charge could send him to his death.
Emperor Chongzhen was an emperor with many flaws, but he was also a diligent and frugal one. To revitalize the Ming Dynasty, he worked tirelessly day and night, reviewing memorials without complaint. To save money for military training, while imposing heavy taxes on the people for the Liaodong campaign, he also led by example, laying off many palace maids and eunuchs, reducing palace expenses, and even patching his imperial robes – a practice unprecedented in history. How would such a frugal emperor feel if he knew that his eunuchs were trying to extort millions of taels of silver (though ultimately unsuccessful), almost equivalent to a year's Liaodong tax (before the tenth year of Chongzhen's reign, the Liaodong tax never exceeded six million taels)?
Chang Kun grew increasingly frightened, as if he could see Chongzhen's angry face and his rebuke: "I toil day and night for the sake of the country, scrimping and saving. You, a mere servant, not only fail to share my burdens, but also use the power I gave you to plunder so much silver. You deserve to die!"
The eunuch in charge of the garrison in Nanjing wielded immense power, but his authority and status stemmed entirely from the emperor. Chongzhen could grant Chang Kun all of this, and could easily take it away, including his life. For an emperor, killing a eunuch was easier than killing a chicken, unlike killing civil or military officials, which faced various considerations and obstacles. Thinking of this, Chang Kun could no longer stand and collapsed to the ground. The servants around him rushed to help him up, asking, "Master, what's wrong?" They found Chang Kun's eyes vacant and lifeless, as if he had lost his mind.
Outside the door, Xu Hongji grew angrier the more he thought about it. Pointing at the tightly closed door, he shouted, "Men, break down this door and drag out that old bastard Chang Kun. I won't be satisfied until I give him a good beating!"
As soon as he finished speaking, no one answered behind him. Xu Hongji turned around and saw that he was surrounded by soldiers from the Qionghai Army. He then realized that in order to keep the peace, the Zhenwu Camp and Chihe Camp, as well as his personal guards, were all behind him and had not followed. He felt a little embarrassed.
Seeing this, Liu Ye volunteered, "With such a noble status as the Duke, how can we let you do such dirty work as breaking down doors? Leave it to me!"
He waved his hand, and Qin Tian, leading a group of ferocious special forces soldiers, pounced on them, smashing and kicking open the door. They rushed in and dragged Chang Kun, who was slumped on the ground, to Xu Hongji. At this moment, Chang Kun was completely different from his previous arrogance; he was utterly listless and lacked any spirit.
Xu Hongji was about to roll up his sleeves and beat him up when Wang Lin stopped him.
Wang Lin said in a low voice, "Duke of Wei, please calm down. Even when beating a dog, one must consider its owner. No matter what he has done, he is still a servant of the king. It is the emperor's business to deal with him. It is inappropriate for you or me to take action."
Xu Hongji thought about it and felt that Wang Lin's words made sense. It was not worth risking the emperor's opinion of him for the sake of momentary pleasure. So he spat at Chang Kun and said, "Look at you. It seems you know what your fate will be. I won't bother with a dying man. The imperial decree will come down to punish you."
He turned to Liu Ye and said, "General Liu, today's events are all a misunderstanding. It's all Chang Kun's fault, you see..."
Liu Ye laughed and said, "Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor. I'm not an unreasonable person, so naturally I won't hold a grudge against Duke Wei and Lord Wang. I was also wrong to force my way into the city and had a conflict with the brothers of the Shenji Battalion, and I'm willing to accept the punishment..."
Xu Hongji, being a military man at heart, was not in the same camp as the civil officials. He naturally felt close to capable and victorious generals, and after witnessing the Qionghai Army's easy defeat of the Shenji Battalion, he was even more eager to befriend them. Now, seeing that Liu Ye was being cooperative and giving him face, he was pleased. Besides, he had always had a strained relationship with Chang Kun, who was only good at making money and had an ugly way of doing things. He immediately widened his eyes and said, "General Liu, what you said is wrong. It was clearly Chang Kun who orchestrated this whole thing. Qionghai Town was only forced to defend itself. How can you share the blame for him? Lord Wang, don't you agree?" The last half of his sentence was directed at Wang Lin.