The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 204

If it were just a few dozen refugees rioting in Suzhou Prefecture, or a couple hundred Japanese pirates appearing, it wouldn't be a big deal at all, and it would basically never reach the capital.

Even if the news reached the capital and the ears of the emperor and his officials, it would likely be disregarded. In reality, it would be considered a dereliction of duty by Yan Song, the prefect of Suzhou.

But now, four or five thousand private soldiers of unknown origin have appeared in Suzhou Prefecture and are looting everywhere. This is a big problem. If Jiajing hadn't known the truth all along, he would probably be restless by now.

A rebellion involving four or five thousand people is never a trivial matter. Rebellions often attract a large following. Although there are four or five thousand people now, once they get going, the number will quickly grow.

Of course, this would only happen if a sufficient number of people were starving. If the majority of people were still able to make ends meet, they would never rebel.

Ordinary people often have very low demands; as long as you don't push them to the brink, things are generally fine.

If we investigate the matter that has just occurred in Suzhou Prefecture, neither Cui Wenkui nor Xia Yan can escape responsibility. One is the governor of Jiangnan Province, and the other is an imperial censor.

It's unbelievable that four or five thousand private soldiers could appear right under their noses; no one would believe they were completely unaware of it.

However, Jiajing did not intend to make a big deal out of this matter. He only wanted to take this opportunity to seize Cui Wenkui's military power. Once he had the military power, the entire Jiangnan region would be under the control of the court, and Cui Wenkui would have a hard time making any waves.

Cui Wenkui didn't care, but Xia Yan was still useful to Jiajing. He was a very useful pawn in balancing the situation in the court.

For the emperor, it was best not to exterminate anyone from either side, otherwise one party could easily become too powerful in the court, which was definitely not what the emperor wanted to see.

Throughout history, there have never been absolutely loyal ministers. When Li Shimin was alive, Changsun Wuji was a loyal and capable minister. However, after Li Shimin died and Li Zhi ascended the throne, a brief power vacuum occurred, and Changsun Wuji became a powerful minister, turning against the emperor.

Countless historical lessons have illustrated one point: once a dynasty experiences a power vacuum, even the most loyal ministers will harbor resentment.

“Your Majesty, given that such a thing happened in Suzhou Prefecture, Cui Wenkui, as the governor of Jiangnan Province, cannot escape blame. Either he knew about it, or he failed to supervise it.”

Yang Shen stepped forward directly.

This one sentence basically set the tone for the matter, and it was exactly what Jiajing wanted to hear. Since Zhou Chu left the capital, Jiajing had looked at all the officials and found that Yang Shen was the only minister who truly cared about him, and that every time he spoke, he could speak to his heart.

Yang Shen always spoke with perfect tact. For example, if it were someone else, they might have said the first part, but they would definitely have added a sentence at the end, asking the court to thoroughly investigate the matter and find out the truth.

This shows a lack of discretion. After all, neither Jiajing nor the court officials needed the truth. The truth was unimportant; what mattered was what the emperor wanted to achieve and what others wanted to achieve.

“Your Majesty, what Grand Secretary Yang said is absolutely right. Besides Lord Cui, Lord Xia is also suspected of being negligent in his duties.”

Han Jie stepped forward.

Since his promotion to Minister of Personnel, Han Jie has become much more active in the court. Almost all of his speeches are supplements to Yang Shen's words. He is very smart, and with the guidance of his uncle Fei Xiazi, Han Jie has become a complete member of the emperor's faction.

"Your Majesty, I believe this matter is not as simple as it seems on the surface, and we need to consider it carefully."

Yang Yiqing stepped forward.

"Does the Grand Secretary really think that thousands of private soldiers could appear out of thin air in Suzhou Prefecture?"