Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 177 0172 [Yangzhou Zhu family, benevolence and righteousness are unparalleled]

The frequency of real estate changes in Tokyo is very high, just like land in the countryside, because it was too common for rich to poor in the Northern Song Dynasty.

For example, Xue Juzheng, the prime minister in the early Song Dynasty, was listed as one of the "24 Heroes of Zhaoxun Pavilion" in the Southern Song Dynasty.

After this old man died, he was served in the Taimiao. Before he had eaten cold pork for a few days, his grandson sold his house, and it was sold at a low price to the new prime minister.

The new prime minister is Xiang Minzhong, who is known for his honesty and diligence.Because of the purchase of the house, he was accused of being a "cheap trader", that is, bullying others to buy it by force - Xue Juzheng's house was worth at least tens of thousands of guan, and Xiang Minzhong bought it for only [-] guan.

At that time, the land in Tokyo was not tight, and the prices were not so high.

100 years ago, [-] Guan was considered a top mansion.

Nowadays, there are quite a lot of houses with [-] guan.

However, the Li family's 30-guan house is still rare.They had thought about selling it for a long time, but they couldn't find anyone to sell it, because the house price had appreciated, and the house was worth 35 to 40 yuan.

In addition, this house involves the princess, and the ownership strictly belongs to the imperial court. If ordinary people buy it, there will be problems.

The golden melon guards opened the way, the palace eunuch led the way, and Zhu Guoxiang was taken to the gate of the mansion.

The plaque on the door lintel has been removed, and it is too late to replace it with a new one.

"Really, please come in." The eunuch bowed and smiled.

Zhu Guoxiang said confusedly: "This is where I live temporarily? The house is too big, and the walls can't be seen at a glance."

The eunuch said: "This house is abandoned and old, and the official house has been given to the real man."

Zhu Guoxiang went in in a daze, and soon found something was wrong. There were obviously traces of life inside, and it didn't look like a deserted place at all.

More than 60 servants lined up neatly to welcome them, and some servants even brought children with them.

The eunuchs and guards quickly resigned, and Zhu Guoxiang faced a group of servants alone.

In addition to the more than 60 servants left by the Li family, there are also servants bestowed by the emperor, and the total number has exceeded 80.

Zhu Guoxiang seriously doubts whether he can raise wages.

There was a guy who looked like a servant leader, Zhu Guoxiang called to him and asked, "Whose mansion was this before?"

The servant was about 50 years old, and he bowed and replied: "Reporting to the master, this place was originally the Princess Yan's mansion, and it was inherited by the princess's heir. The villain is the housekeeper here."

Zhu Guoxiang ordered: "Choose someone, go and call Tanhualang."

"Yes!" The butler immediately executed.

Zhu Guoxiang is completely unfamiliar with this place, so he has to discuss it with his son.

He didn't make any arrangements for the time being, and went for a walk in the house first.

The main building complex is a typical courtyard structure in Tang and Song Dynasties.It can no longer be calculated by "in", because the garden is still sandwiched, and the total construction area exceeds [-] mu.

Fifty acres of outer Tokyo!
"Hey, why is it so bare there?" Zhu Guoxiang pointed to an open space by the pond.

The housekeeper replied: "There was a strange stone there, and it was sold for two thousand coins at the beginning of the year."

Zhu Guoxiang asked: "The princess' heir wants to sell his property?"

The housekeeper said: "The cost is too high. The calligraphy and paintings in the library are almost sold out. If this continues, even if the government doesn't give the house to the master, the original owner will sell the house cheaply."

Zhu Guoxiang walked around and waited in the garden.

About two hours later, Zhu Ming came from Taixue's southern suburb campus.

Zhu Guoxiang asked all the servants to step down, leaving only father and son sitting opposite each other.

Zhu Ming smiled and said, "Congratulations to Dean Zhu, the house is quite big, and you have a lot of old servants."

Zhu Guoxiang said: "Stop talking nonsense, what's the situation in this house?"

Zhu Ming explained the matter in detail, and said, "I will make my own decision and return the house to the Li family, and divide it into two to live in from now on."

"Yes, you've done a good job." Zhu Guoxiang nodded.

Zhu Ming said: "When Wang Anshi was prime minister, he presided over the construction of the East and West Mansions, and also built many official residences. Senior officials lived in the official residences, which were equivalent to the White House and Downing Street. When they were officials, they lived in them. Then move out. First, it can solve the housing problem of officials, second, it can reduce the leakage of important documents, and third, it can prevent the powerful from robbing the houses of the common people.”

Zhu Guoxiang said: "This method is very good."

Zhu Ming continued: "Even if the important ministers after Wang Anshi bought private houses in Tokyo, they would not be too luxurious. This rule was broken by Cai Jing. Cai Jing was the first prime minister who did not live in an official residence in the middle and late Northern Song Dynasty. A mansion was built in the city. The rest of the ministers followed suit, and Song Huizong also donated houses in various ways regardless of the rules."

Zhu Guoxiang said with lingering fear: "Speaking of Song Huizong, I have seen this emperor well, and he really does not look like a gentleman."

"Haha, are you scared?" Zhu Ming laughed.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "Absolute power without restraint will bring very dire consequences."

Zhu Ming shook his head and said, "Actually, the ancient imperial courts had various restrictions on imperial power. Song Huizong is a miracle. He broke this restriction, and similar emperors can be called faint emperors."

Promoting construction, ignoring the government, favoring treacherous ministers, as long as the rules are not broken, these practices are not considered stupid, because the court can still operate normally.

The faintness of Song Huizong lies in his wanton breaking of the rules.

For example, there is a set of strict procedures for the imperial court to promulgate government orders.

The Yintai Secretary has the right to reject a government order that is obviously indiscriminate. Even if it is just for show, the emperor and the prime minister will have to re-issue it two or three times before it can be passed.

However, Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty lost all face, and all imperial orders were issued in the form of central edicts, treating the central government institutions as nothing.Cai Jing, Wang Fu and other treacherous officials also asked the emperor to issue the imperial edict through a secret memorial.

So far, the Ministry of Zhongshu and the Ministry of Secretaryship have become decorations. Even the prime minister and deputy prime minister, as long as they are not favored by the emperor, their actual power can be ignored.

During the 25 years of Song Huizong's reign, the Yintai Division rejected the government orders less than ten times in total, and all of them were in the early Huizong Dynasty.

The government decrees in the middle and late period of Huizong Dynasty did not go to Yintai Secretary at all!

Song Huizong himself abolished the imperial court, and the brain and heart of the entire country have been semi-paralyzed.

No matter how much the Taoist priest Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty appointed treacherous ministers, at least the state machinery was still functioning normally.

If you really want to compare, you should also compare it with Wanli.

It's just that Wanli is more powerful than Song Huizong.

Song Huizong just destroyed the brain and heart of the country, while Emperor Wanli killed all the internal organs and limbs, making the entire Ming Dynasty tend to be in a state of anarchy.

Zhu Ming briefly explained the government structure of the Northern Song Dynasty, and then described the current situation: "The Zhongshu Province has been abolished, and most of the Secretary Department has been abolished. The head of the Shangshu Province has been cut off, and only the limbs can move. The three central institutions of the Northern Song Dynasty, The whole is in a paralyzed state, similar to the Ming Dynasty in the era of Zhu Yuanzhang. However, Song Huizong was not as diligent as Zhu Yuanzhang, and his daily affairs had to be handled by the three provinces.

"Let's think about how to leave the capital." Zhu Guoxiang felt dizzy when he heard that.

Ju Ming said: "I may be released next year."

Zhu Guoxiang asked: "How do you know?"

Zhu Ming explained: "The emperor promoted me to be an official in the capital. This is a sign of promotion. Next year, either I will enter the secretary province to be a school secretary, or I will be sent out to be a county magistrate. It is a process of gold-plated experience. Not to mention the school secretary, If a Beijing official is released to the county magistrate, he can be promoted again in one year, instead of working for three years like a candidate."

Zhu Guoxiang smiled and said, "It's normal for a gold-plated cadre to be promoted once a year."

Zhu Ming said: "If a local official only works for one year, he will not be able to do anything. I am afraid that Song Huizong will go crazy, and he will not even bother to do the gold-plating process. He will directly skip the promotion and continue to be an official in the capital. There are many precedents. I can get to the fourth or fifth rank within two years. This is very cool for others, but it is useless for me. I want to go abroad, either to accumulate political experience, or to go directly to the frontier to fight."

Ju Ming still belongs to the keyboard man now, and he comments on the government in a logical manner, but he has never really practiced it. He urgently needs to do it himself.

The father and son chatted for nearly an hour before leaving the garden together.

The housekeeper had been waiting for a long time, and reported: "Master, there are many people outside."

Deng Chun and Bai Sheng waited in the house with the people from Daming Village.

Li Jihui also took his family, waiting to live in and divide the house.

There are also some, but they heard that Zhu Guoxiang was out of the palace, and the dignitaries sent their servants to hand over the invitations, planning to choose a day to ask Master Zhu about Taoism.

Zhu Guoxiang first met Li Jihui, bowed his head and said, "I'm bothering the old man!"

Li Jihui hurriedly replied: "I dare not, congratulations to Zhu Zhenren. Such a talented person must be reused by officials."

Zhu Guoxiang immediately returned the deed, and wrote a house gift document, stating that the Zhu family and his son lived in the house for at most ten years: "Perhaps it doesn't take ten years, my father and son will move out, and the house will be returned to Zhao after that time."

Li Jihui was overjoyed. He was afraid that the dove would occupy the magpie's nest. Now that Zhu Guoxiang had set a ten-year deadline, it was just around the corner to get his house back!

Li Jihui made another long bow, grateful: "The real man is so benevolent and righteous, the old man has nothing to say. Let this pond be the boundary, the real man lives in the main courtyard, and the old man lives in the guest courtyard."

Zhu Guoxiang said: "How can you turn the guest into the main? Please also invite the old man to live in the main courtyard."

How dare Li Jihui?

In case the emperor gets interested one day and comes here to play with Zhu Guoxiang, he finds that Zhu Guoxiang actually lives in the Guest House...

The two gave in to each other, and the main part of the house was assigned to the Zhu family and his son, while the Li family crowded in the corner.

The servants of the Li family, including the housekeeper, returned half of it.

Zhu Ming sent someone to notify Fatty Zheng to move in with his sister.

For the shared house, Ju Ming will continue to pay the rent, and occasionally go back to sit.

A few days later, when the holidays came, Chen Yuan, Bai Chongyan, and Min Zishun came together to congratulate Zhu's father and son on their new home.

Chen Dong and other imperial students also came.

"Why are there outsiders over there?" Chen Dong asked curiously.

Zhu Ming sighed and said, "The government insists on granting a house, but this house has an owner. My father and son dare not disobey the imperial decree, and we don't want to occupy other people's houses, so we came up with a compromise..."

After explaining the matter clearly, Chen Dong said with emotion: "A gentleman in ancient times is nothing more than that."

Zhu Song also said: "Sir and your father can be a model for scholars in the world."

These Tai students admired Ju Ming and his son so much that they talked to everyone when they returned to school.

In just a few days, the four thousand students, together with the leaders and teachers of the school, knew about the story of the Zhu family's father and son splitting the house.

There are also students who regard this as a topic of conversation, write it in a letter home, and spread it to all parts of the country with the letter.

The Zhu family of Yangzhou is unparalleled in benevolence and righteousness!
(End of this chapter)