Jingming

Chapter 356 Some People Have Been Bold Again

The Ming Dynasty is so big, there are natural disasters from time to time, and the drought in Huguang, Zhu Houcong only said that he knew about it.

Assessing the disaster situation and preparing for disaster relief, the two things will be carried out at the same time, and there is also the State Affairs Hall to worry about.Solemnly report to Zhu Houcong here, one is the due process, and the other is that the emperor needs to order to mobilize the power of many enterprises under the Assets Bureau.

For example, the grain storage bank that has become an integrated grain production and storage bank, as well as the transshipment under Huangmingji, plus the River Transport Bureau.

Zhang Lun was called to listen to the order and went to make arrangements without stopping - His Majesty had warned him: If the enterprises have not improved after three years, he, an Englishman, should go home and retire.

At this time, the people in the capital were not affected by the disaster in Huguang, but they were all talking about the general election of the provincial army teams.

This matter was formally organized last year, and it did not cause much disturbance in the first year.

But since the construction of the Dajiaochang on a vacant lot to the east of the Temple of Heaven at the end of last year, this year's general election has become a hot topic.

The Ministry of War is in charge of the management of that large school field, and the Minister of the Ministry of War today is Wang Hung, who entered Beijing with a blood letter during the Tuen Mun naval battle and later made meritorious service.

He didn't know much about the significance of this matter, and the matter was only entrusted to a right servant to deal with the five mansions on weekdays.

Wang Hung served as Minister of the Ministry of War, and he had an extremely important mission.

Today, he entered the palace according to the order, and waited with Yang Yiqing for the emperor to come from the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Soon after, Zhu Houcong came here with only Yang Bo. After entering the palace, he saw the two of them gathered around the sand table.

This is the topographical terrain of the Ming Dynasty that has been fabricated and perfected over the past two years.Of course, there are still quite a few mistakes, but they are far more precise and practical than purely hand-drawn maps.

"How's the discussion going?" Zhu Houcong asked after sitting down after receiving their interview.

The two of them had already sat down, and Yang Yiqing heard the words and said: "Wang Shangshu stayed in Guangdong and Zhejiang, and Wang Shangshu also led the troops who captured the west bank of Taiyuan in the third year of Jiajing. Looking at it now, the Ming Dynasty has a very large sea area. If you only want to train a serious navy, I’m afraid it’s best to choose Susong. It’s close to Nanjing, and the Yangtze River Navy has some background. It’s not far from Susong to the north and south.”

"Su Song?" Zhu Houcong frowned.

Yang Yiqing said bluntly: "Your Majesty, if the navy is successful, it must be controlled well. If it is located in Ningbo, Taiyuan, Fujian or Guangdong, it will be too far away from the center. Nanjing, after all, still has six divisions with garrison. Furthermore, Nanzhili has one more army, and it is more secure."

Zhu Houcong understood what he meant.

If this sailor is trained well, his combat power will be very extraordinary.In the future, if the leader of the army is not easy to control, it will be really easy to separate the overseas side - such as the island of Taiwan.

Let's set it up closer to Nanjing first. This main base will be easier to control.

Zhu Houcong does not want to be in South Zhili because the three border cities of Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Liaodong, the two light industry and heavy industry parks in Beijing, and the convenient layout of many enterprises are slowly eroding the future of many wealthy families in South Zhili. .

After another dozen or 20 years, Nanzhili will no longer be able to form a strong rebound ability in many aspects such as taxation, food, culture and education.At that time, it will be time to destroy another invisible center of Nanzhili.

"...Your Majesty, in the future, we will definitely go to the north. The south of the Yangtze River is still the top priority for money and grain storage. At the national policy meeting, the Nanjing Household Department no longer has any representations for the grain taxes of the southern Zhili prefectures, Jiangxi, Huguang, and Zhejiang provinces. As for the right to levy, it is better to be more secure."

Hearing Yang Yiqing's words, Zhu Houcong sneered and said: "Starting from this year, the Beijing Ministry of Household Affairs will collect grain taxes from all over the country. Why are they so unsettled? It can only be said that in the past, the Nanjing Ministry of Household Affairs collected taxes on their behalf, and there were too many inside stories."

"The naval division is located in Susong, building warships and armaments, purchasing food and military supplies, and it can always allow some wealthy merchants in Jiangnan to make more money. Even if there is an inside story, it will not make many people in Jiangnan panic and delay their preparations for the Northern Expedition in the future. Food and salary plan.”

Yang Yiqing felt that the emperor's mood had not been very stable for more than half a year.Faced with this matter now, I don't know why I have to express such obvious dissatisfaction.

Is it because after the Mongolian and Yuan rightists had received news from Qinghai, some people re-emphasized the importance of the country in Nanjing?That's nothing, it's not about winning, it's about losing.

Zhu Houcong shook his head: "The purpose of setting up a naval division is very clear, and that is for future major events in Nanyang. You can't tie your own hands and feet because of the consideration of good command. This naval division is located in Guangdong, just in Dongguan and Among the islands in the south. The matter of Nanzhili is easy to handle."

Yang Yiqing's eyebrows showed some hidden worries.

Let's look for another chance to persuade Fei Hong together.

The matter of Nanzhili is actually not that urgent.For the imperial court, it would be good to prepare more official salaries, and the actual food and taxes that can be collected will definitely be much more than in the past.If there is a big fight, after all, it will still involve the entire imperial court and the family of nearly half of the local officials with some room for unspoken rules that can be manipulated.

……

Starting from the topic at last year's major national policy conference, the emperor's actual plan to take action on Nanjing, another capital, has already begun.

At that time, the outcome of the Mongolian and Yuan right-wing battles in Qinghai was still unclear, and there were many opportunities for advancement provided by the general change of office. There was not much resistance in recovering the Nanzhili and the three provinces' grain tax collection rights from the Nanjing Household Department.

But all the new officials were selected, and the situation became clear.Qinghai changed hands, and the right wing was able to attack the two towns of Gansu and Ningxia from the north and south. Even Fei Hong's attitude was more conservative.

It's not that he thought it would be difficult for Daming to defeat Meng Yuan in the future, it's just that Fei Hong would bear the pressure on Daming's money and food in the decisive battle that would sooner or later destroy the country.Even out of the consideration of completing the task, he can't make any changes in Jiangnan's tax base.

It is also necessary to prepare for the war against the northern captives, and to prepare for the formal establishment of a naval force. In the past few months, Fei Hong's residence has been continuously visited by officials, scholars and people sent by some big families in the south of the Yangtze River.

Nothing else. I am worried about increasing taxes on Jiangnan in order to prepare for a future war.In addition, new laws and new studies have gained momentum, and many officials of the older generation and those who cannot keep up do not want to lose Nanjing as a good place for retirement.

Where would you like to go directly to an official position?
Most of them have high official status, even if they just go to Nanjing to do idle work, it is good to still have some power in their hands.

Fei Hong was caught in the middle, very embarrassed.

He was very clear about the emperor's determination to finally cancel the Six Divisions of Nanjing, and he knew that the emperor would eventually treat Nanzhili as a province that was located in the same province as other provinces.How to disassemble and how to change it is nothing more than waiting until the time is right.

The new era of the Ming Dynasty has arrived. How many remnants of the old era can be carried on this ship of the old era in Nanjing?
People like Zhang Fujing crowded into the center with great momentum. Some people who failed to jump up this time were like Zhang Lun, who was originally the Minister of State. In fact, they were just seniority weirdos.Their talents and practical abilities are clearly inferior to those of some young people.

For them, the best hope is to survive for another three to five years, to go to Nanjing various ministries to become a minister, and enjoy better retirement benefits and posthumous fame.

Fei Hong couldn't ignore them. After all, Daming was under great external pressure, and internal affairs needed to be stable.

The disaster situation in Huguang, the preparations for autumn in border towns, the start of food collection and shipment this year...all these things are under the pressure of the State Affairs Hall.

"Maogong, go to Nanzhili, Jiangxi, Huguang, and Zhejiang provinces, and you and Yongxiu should tell you." Fei Hong said solemnly to Zhang Fujing, "Everyone in the land has re-created the book, so don't make extra troubles. It’s enough to collect according to the amount. Other things are fine, if everyone criticizes each other and everyone has to wait for investigation and defend themselves, then it will miss the affairs of the state.”

He is not worried about the chaos in Jiangnan, he is only worried that many officials from Jiangnan will find breakthroughs from other angles to trigger court and party disputes.Officials, how many people have no black material on them?If protests are triggered in this way, many government affairs will be shut down.

These are not just a few official positions, but the chain reaction brought about by the deprivation of the many operating spaces and preferential treatment enjoyed by the three Beijing provinces in the past because of the Nanjing agent.

If they want to express their dissatisfaction, they will definitely have something to say.If the imperial court wants to maintain the imperial program, it must not sit idly by some impeachments.If it is not handled carefully, it will become a trend of attacking each other.

This is a struggle within the rules, and even the emperor cannot ignore it, just like when Yang Tinghe attacked Wang Qiong, the emperor had to abandon a Liang Chu in the end.

Zhang Fujing understood the severity, nodded and said, "There will be no accidents. There are still disasters in Huguang, and I will reduce them as appropriate after checking."

How other provinces collect grain, the chief envoy will take care of it.

However, the prefectures of Southern Zhili and the three provinces of Jiangxi, Huguang, and Zhejiang were all in charge of the Nanjing household department in the past. This time it is also a new job for the Beijing household department.

After Yang Tinghe and Jiang Mian took office, as a large number of veteran ministers withdrew from the court, Zhu Houcong could not choose anyone with enough weight and talent to continue to take over as the governor of Yingtian and Huaiyang.

These two missions were temporarily cancelled.

The household establishment under Yang Shen has grown larger and larger. There is now a relatively independent tax administration department, and the Thirteenth Cleaning Office has now entered the busiest time of the year.

On Wang Hung's side, Hu Zan, who was the censor of Caojiang in Nanjing, was now promoted to the right servant of the Ministry of War. He was in charge of the preparation of the naval division full-time and set off for Guangdong.

On September 23, the team starting from Duoyan arrived in the east of the capital.

Tana was very curious when she heard the deafening applause from the south, and asked, "Tong Dianzheng, what's going on there?"

After being elected, she learned Mandarin from this female officer, and now she is only familiar with her.

Next to the carriage, the female official who knew very well that she would dress as a foreign queen from now on answered first: "It is the people of the capital who are applauding the military teams selected from each province to compete in the capital."

After finishing speaking, he warned again: "Your Majesty, after entering the palace, it's better to be more cautious in your words and deeds. Your Majesty is now...too curious."

She was a little helpless, the temperament of this foreign empress was too different from other empresses.

Along the way, she often lifted the curtain to look around, and the female officer was very worried that she would be disrespectful if she entered the palace later.

Although Tana said hello, her eyes were still looking at the big school field over there.

To her, it looked like a fortress.There are stone walls around and many flags.

Military teams compete in martial arts?I don't know what's going on inside now, but tens of thousands of people cheered and cheered.

"Your Majesty! The father-in-law of the Supervisor of Rituals is already waiting, you should sit in the car! You are about to enter the city soon, how can you allow the common people to see your face?"

"……Oh."

After she reminded her, Tana finally put down the curtain reluctantly.

So, what does Daming's capital look like, can't you take a look?

Entering the city like this, I only listened to the hustle and bustle outside, but I couldn't open the curtain to look outside.

Then it gradually quieted down. After the car stopped somewhere for a while, it passed through the doorway as if it had entered the city before.

After a while, I heard the eunuch who was called Eunuch Zhang shouted respectfully from outside the carriage: "Your Majesty, please get out of the carriage first."

Tana nervously saw that the curtain in front of the carriage was pulled open, and Tong Dianzheng stretched out his hand to help her get off the carriage.

Zhang Zuo looked at this Jinxian beauty in a Mongolian costume, and couldn't help but be attracted by her clear eyes, and then quickly lowered his head.

"According to the decree of the Queen Mother, I would like to ask Queen Tana to undergo the ritual of exorcism from Tao Zhenren in front of the Qin'an Hall, then take a bath and change clothes. After meeting the Queen Mother and the Queen, she will be sent to the Yangxin Hall to meet her."

Tana didn't know why, and then she looked dizzy as a Taoist priest walked around her with a magic weapon.

Tao Zhongwen was also helpless.

After so many years, he has actually gradually accepted his identity as a "master of refining chemistry". To be honest, those various wonderful reactions really made him feel like he was searching for the avenue.

It was just burned today, and the ashes do indeed contain the kind of phosphorus that His Majesty mentioned in urine. This result shows that they can be used as fertilizers, and the reason is probably not least because of this phosphorus.

As a result, he received the Queen Mother's order to exorcise the beauty of Duoyan Sanbu first.

Tao Zhongwen was so absent-minded, he was still thinking about the reactions in those bottles and jars.

And Tana gradually understood that the emperor's mother was worried that there was something unclean on her body, just like a shaman exorcising ghosts.

She pursed her lips and lowered her head. Standing there, she had no intention of marveling at the Forbidden City she had just seen. She only felt a lot of humiliation welling up in her heart.

She is as pure as the white clouds and dew on the grassland. Where can there be anything unclean?
Then, many people helped her bathe, washing her over and over again.

Tana, who had already been inspected once in the diplomatic embassy, ​​once again faced a stricter inspection by the female officer in the palace.In fact, they just carefully inspected Tana's body like the draft girls did, whether there is any problem, whether there is any smell, etc., but after all, those actions made Tana feel that she is being scrutinized like a cow or a sheep.

Seeing the queen mother and queen, it was just admonitions and instructions coldly, asking him to abide by the rules, not to charm the emperor, and not to say anything to the emperor to seek benefits for Duoyan Sanbu.

Tana just bowed her head in the palace, going through one process after another.She was hungry, and she was only allowed to eat a little bit first, so as not to be upset when she saw the emperor.

Following Zhang Zuo and Tong Dianzheng, when Tana passed by the palace called Changle Palace, she saw a girl who was also not Han.

She was taken aback and couldn't help but look at her twice more.

"That's Concubine Shu, it's time to greet." Tong Dianzheng saluted Wen Suyun first, and then reminded Tana.

Watching the excitement at the entrance of the palace were naturally the lively and active Wen Suyun, Carolina, Qu Mei and others who lived in the same palace with her and had the status of beauties.

Tana saluted and was then taken to the back hall of Qianqing Palace.

While sitting there quietly, all he could hear was a roar suddenly sounded from the front yard.

"How can the Suzhou government suffer such a severe disaster this year? All the southern provinces, Suzhou alone has destroyed [-]% of its crops? Lu Bing, send someone to investigate thoroughly!"

"Your Majesty calm down..." Several voices came.

Tana looked over there blankly, and then couldn't help feeling uneasy.

Why is it so unlucky that the emperor happened to be angry when he entered the palace...

Zhu Houcong was really furious now, with a cold light in his eyes.

Is it because the heavy reliance on food and taxes in the south of the Yangtze River during the Xuanda war the year before gave some people courage?
(End of this chapter)