Chapter 887 Killing the chicken to scare the monkey

After being repeatedly excluded by their colleagues and experiencing the turbulent situation in the court, Yang Ren and Yin Jiao had no choice but to compromise.

The two of them did not compromise with King Zhou and were almost killed by him. They thought that they would be deified and ascend to heaven, with all the wise men in the court and a clean and honest government. The Jade Emperor would be a wise king for all ages and would not encounter the injustices they had experienced before.

But ideals are full and reality is skinny. There is nothing new under the sun and all crows are black.

Everyone says that King Zhou was a tyrant, but the Jade Emperor has also done cruel things like designating a place where it would never rain when he was in a bad mood.

In the court of the Shang Dynasty, when King Zhou committed atrocities, there was Wen Zhong who rebuked him to his face, and there were loyal and brave men like Yang Ren who spoke out against him, and there were resourceful and capable ministers like Wen Rui who tried their best to mitigate the harm caused by the tyranny to the people.

In the court of heaven, the Jade Emperor did ridiculous things like summoning chickens, teasing dogs, and burning golden locks with candles. The gods were very secretive about it and did not even dare to mention it, let alone advising him in person.

The hush money they received over the past five hundred years was not a small amount. After all, they had seen too much corruption hidden beneath the splendor of heaven, and they did not squander this huge sum of money.

Now that he had returned everything and received Wen Rui's promise, he felt free of debt. Yin Jiao also turned around and walked towards the Tai Sui immortal team with brisk steps.

All members of the Tai Sui tribe set an example, and the pressure suddenly came to the other tribes. The seven gods exchanged glances with each other, but no one followed Yang Ren and Yin Jiao's example and stepped forward to pay donations.

Wen Rui was also quite helpless. Not to mention the Dou and Lei tribes, Wen Zhong and Dou Mu Yuanjun were hoping that the Heavenly Protection Array would not be completed so that they could meet with Taoist Mosquito and avenge the Turtle Spirit Mother.

The rest of the Water Department, Fire Department, Plague Department, Smallpox Department and Finance Department, if divided in a broad sense, are all Wen Rui's followers. Relying on the fact that they are his old friends and relatives, they don't worry that Wen Rui will not come to rescue when Taoist Mosquito launches a sneak attack.

This is awkward.

The corruption of the Heavenly Court and the decadence of the imperial court really require a thundering anti-corruption storm, but the biggest leader of the treacherous gang is actually myself. What should I do?

But Wen Rui was not some big shot, so he only hesitated for a few seconds and then let it go immediately.

Even brothers have to settle accounts clearly. As an old businessman, Wen Rui has always only cared about money and not people when it comes to business.

What happened to our good relationship before?
If you want to get rich, you will cheat your relatives and friends, and even your beloved ones will have to pay extra!

After quickly completing the psychological preparation, Wen Rui snorted coldly, turned to the Jade Emperor, stood up and bowed, saying: "Although the Tai Sui Department actively collected donations, the funds raised are still far from enough to repair the Heaven Protection Array. If the repair is not thorough, it is better not to repair it at all. It's like a mosquito net. After patching it up, there are still many holes left. How can it possibly keep out the mosquitoes that can get in through all the holes?"

At this point, Wen Rui raised his eyebrows and said meaningfully: "In fact, whether the formation can be repaired is not important. What is important is that among the eight divisions of the Heavenly Court, only one division has shown loyalty to the public. Your Majesty understands the difficulties of your subjects, but your subjects do not understand your suffering."

The Jade Emperor looked increasingly unhappy, his face becoming so dark that water seemed to be dripping out of it.

"You won't cry until you see the Heavenly Law. I have indulged you for too long. You really don't feel the pain until the Heavenly Law falls on you!"

The Jade Emperor said coldly: "Do you really think that the things you did behind my back are unknown to God and ghost? Today I will let you know what it means that the net of heaven is vast and nothing can escape it!"

After saying that, the Jade Emperor looked at Taibai Jinxing and said, "Taibai Xingjun, recite!"

"Your Majesty, why is it so..."

Taibai Jinxing seemed to be forced to the execution ground, and said with a bitter face: "Why don't I visit the gods of each department one by one after the court meeting and persuade them with kind words."

"Huh? Even you want to disobey my order?"

"I dare not, I dare not! I will announce the decree right away!" Taibai Jinxing quickly took out a golden book from his arms, slowly unfolded it, cleared his throat, and weakly announced:

"Luo Lingxiao, the chief steward of the Imperial Horse Administration, embezzled the spiritual herbs, causing the celestial horse to be malnourished and weak and sickly, unable to ascend to the sky."

"The official Shang Qingxian of the Music House prepared an opportunity to perform at the grand event in the Heavenly Palace. He falsely reported the cost of musical instruments and costumes, and arbitrarily deducted the rewards from the music fairies to enrich himself."

"Lu Mingzhu, the immortal official in charge of lamps, stole and sold giant Kun oil, replacing it with whale oil from the mortal world, and profited from it, causing the palace lanterns in the heavens to dim and the soot to pollute the holy halls."

"Lin Qiwu, the head of the fairy seedling nursery, stole and sold rare fairy seedlings, bullied and harassed the flower fairies..."

"Wen Zangxuan, the head of the Tianji Pavilion, accepted a huge bribe and leaked the magical power of the Heavenly Book..."

……

Every time a crime was read out, the divine guards of Lingxiao Palace who had been prepared would pounce on the group of immortals, drag out the immortal official whose name was called, and force them to kneel in a neat row in front of the golden treasure chest.

By the time he finished reading, Taibai Jinxing had listed twenty charges, and the divine guards had dragged out twenty guilty immortals.

The immortal officials who were dragged out all looked ashen, but no one cried out for justice. They all knelt there trembling in defeat.

It’s not that these immortal officials suddenly repented and confessed their crimes on the spot, but no matter how stupid they were, they understood that now was the time to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys, and they were the chickens that were about to be slaughtered.

Even if you are wronged, the Jade Emperor will make it clear that you have to plead guilty whether you are guilty or not.

Has the Jade Emperor ever wronged a good immortal?

Of course I was wronged.

Over the years, there have been too many immortals who have been unjustly exiled.

The introduction to many myths and legends is the story of some unlucky immortal being wronged by the Jade Emperor.

But in the end, the Jade Emperor would never admit his mistakes, nor would he correct them. At most, he would vindicate the innocent immortals who had suffered so much and give them some compensation.

Among these twenty mid-level immortal officials in heaven, some were guilty with solid evidence and deserved to receive retribution according to the Heavenly Law, but some were simply unlucky and were included in the list by mistake, taking the blame for others.

None of this matters. What matters is that the Jade Emperor wants to use their lives to convey a strong message to the various righteous gods.

——If they don’t pay the donation obediently, the Jade Emperor can take action now to destroy their immortal blessings without waiting for Taoist Mosquito to sneak into Heaven and wreak havoc.

"The constellations in the Heavenly Palace should have performed their duties conscientiously, protecting the Three Realms and benefiting the common people. However, Luo Lingxiao and the other twenty immortal officials were treacherous and corrupt. Gu Yunyuan stole and sold immortal food, causing famine among the people; Su Zhiyue privately made gorgeous clothes, damaging the dignity of the Heavenly Palace; Pei Xuming sold inferior goods as good ones, disrupting the foundation of the alchemy path... Each and every one of them violated the red line of the Heavenly Rules, and is truly an unforgivable crime!"

"I hereby issue a decree: twenty immortal officials including Gu Yunyuan shall be stripped of their titles and positions, and shall never be allowed to join the ranks of immortals again; all stolen goods shall be confiscated and put into the heavenly treasury to be used to repair the heavenly protection formation; the karma gained from their corruption shall be transformed into a thousand-year thunder punishment, and they shall be imprisoned on the Immortal Execution Platform to be punished as a warning to others."

After Taibai Jinxing finished reading the divine decree, the divine guards of Lingxiao Palace dragged the twenty immortal officials out of Lingxiao Palace like dead dogs. They did not give them any chance for trial or to defend themselves, and directly imposed punishment on them in one go.

The administration of Heaven is based on tone. No evidence or investigation is needed, and no rebuttal is allowed. The Jade Emperor is the king and the heavenly rule. No matter if the sinning immortals are guilty or not, they will be beaten and made to stand at attention.

(End of this chapter)

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