I, Jiajing, successfully cultivated immortality

After that, Lu Fang followed Jiajing's footsteps and returned to Qianqing Palace.

At this moment, Jiajing was casually flipping through the memorials sent by the Supervisor of Ceremonies, while Lu Fang, as usual, respectfully waited on Jiajing's side, like a sculpture.

But at this moment, Lu Fang's heart was far from as peaceful as it seemed on the surface. The previous scene still lingered in his mind, lingering for a long time.

"Your Majesty is now in his fifties, but why is his body and bones still so strong? His physical condition is even much better than that of King Yu!"

"When King Yu came last time, he would inevitably start to pant from the first step to the top. But just now, His Majesty was walking as fast as flying, as if he were walking on the ground, and he didn't even need anyone's support!"

"Sure enough, Your Majesty has already accomplished Taoism, and his lifespan should be far longer than that of ordinary people. Perhaps this is the reason why His Majesty has not appointed a crown prince for so long!"

"Perhaps King Yu and King Jing will be able to walk in front of His Majesty then!"

Lu Fang was shocked by this sudden thought, but combined with everything that had happened before, Lu Fang felt that she had discovered the truth.

At this moment, the guiding eunuch entered Qianqing Palace with extremely eager steps.

After entering the Qianqing Palace, the guiding eunuch subconsciously looked in the direction of Jiajing and reported respectfully: "Your Majesty, the people sent by Zhao Zhenji, the Governor of Zhejiang Province and the Governor of Zhejiang Province, are currently waiting outside the palace!"

When Jiajing heard this, he immediately put down the memorial in his hand, and a trace of doubt flashed across his face.

Immediately, Jiajing looked in the direction of the guiding eunuch, waved his hand, and said: "Well, I understand, let him come in!"

"As you command, Your Majesty!"

After receiving Jiajing's instructions, the guiding eunuch immediately left the Qianqing Palace without stopping at all.

After guiding the eunuch away, Jiajing turned around, looked at Lu Fang, and asked, "Lu Fang, you might as well guess what the reason why Zhao Zhenji wrote to me is!"

Although Lu Fang had some guesses about this, he did not dare to make any judgment.

After all, this time Zhao Zhenji went to Zhejiang to take up a post. In addition to keeping the raw silk in the hands of local people, he also had an important mission, which was to find out the situation of land annexation in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

As the closest person to Jiajing, Lu Fang naturally knew all of this.

But there were some things that Lu Fang didn't want to get involved with, especially matters related to land annexation.

After all, land annexation has been an extremely sensitive topic since ancient times. It can be said that it is related to the lifeblood of a dynasty and can affect the whole body!

But Jiajing is now planning to take action in this regard!

Every time in the middle of the dynasty, the situation of land annexation will become more and more serious. Whether it is the gentry, landlords, or officials and gentry, they will try every means to plunder the land owned by the people.

Land annexation is particularly common during famine years.

Every time during a famine, when the food harvest fails, merchants will hoard food, causing the price of food to skyrocket.

In order to survive, the common people had to sell their fields at low prices in exchange for food rations, while the landlords and gentry took the opportunity to lower prices and acquire large amounts of land.

If the court does not crack down on this situation, it will gradually evolve into a situation where the rich have no land and the poor have no place to stand.

After these gentry and landlords annexed a large amount of land, they would pay as little tax as possible to the court by bribing officials and hiding their farms and population.

In the end, the part of the taxes that the gentry and landlords paid less would be passed on to the common people in various ways. As the burden on the common people becomes heavier and heavier, the contradictions will become more acute.

Once the people could no longer survive, they would immediately turn into refugees and start revolts. In order to suppress the peasant uprising, the imperial court had no choice but to send a large number of troops to encircle and suppress the uprising.

In the process of the court suppressing the rebellion, the production order will inevitably be destroyed. The court cannot collect much taxes in the first place. In this way, the situation will only become worse.

If a foreign enemy invades at this time and the imperial court is unable to do anything, it will have no choice but to perish due to internal and external troubles.

Then, Lu Fang gathered her thoughts, raised her head and looked in the direction of Jiajing, and carefully responded: "Your Majesty, I don't know!"

……

Soon after, the visitor entered Qianqing Palace under the guidance of the guiding eunuch.

After entering the Qianqing Palace, he followed the instructions of the previous eunuch who was responsible for teaching etiquette, knelt down on the ground with a thump, and said in a deep voice: "I bow to your majesty, long live my emperor!"

After the words fell, the visitor took out an envelope and a stack of papers from his cautious arms, raised them high above his head, and said loudly.

"Your Majesty, here is the letter entrusted by Zhao Zhenji, the Governor of Zhejiang Province and the Governor of Zhejiang Province, to be personally delivered to Your Majesty!"

"Well, bring it up!"

When Jiajing heard this, he glanced at the stranger, responded in an incomprehensible manner, and gave the order.

Lu Fang, who was waiting beside Jiajing, saw this situation and without any hesitation, he immediately came to the visitor, took the letter and the stack of papers, and returned to stand beside Jiajing.

"His Majesty!"

"Ah."

After Jiajing took the envelope from Lu Fang's hand, he looked in the direction of the person and gave instructions.

"I have received the letter, you can go down and rest!"

"As you command, Your Majesty!"

The visitor kowtowed a few times with great gratitude, and immediately left the Qianqing Palace under the leadership of a young eunuch.

After the visitor left, Jiajing opened the envelope in his hand and read the contents, only to see what was written above.

"Your Majesty, your minister Zhao Zhenji, you previously asked your minister to investigate the land annexation in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and we have some clues."

"Wei Chen found out that the Yuan family in Jiaxing used various means to annex a large amount of land, reaching as much as 200,000 acres, and hid many farms and people. However, the taxes the Yuan family in Jiaxing paid to the court every year , It’s only a mere two thousand taels of silver!”

"Along with this memorial were sent the farm and population records of the Yuan family in Jiaxing that had been hidden in recent years, as well as the tax payment records of the Yuan family to the court!"

"In addition, Yuan Kui, the young master of the Yuan family in Jiaxing, recently committed a crime. Wei Chen plans to take advantage of this..."

After Jiajing finished browsing the contents of the letter, the expression on his face suddenly turned cold.

Then, Jiajing put down the letter paper in his hand, picked up the pile of papers on the desk, and began to compare them one by one.

What is recorded on it is the hidden farm and population of the Yuan family in Jiaxing, as well as the records of taxes paid to the court in recent years.

The contents recorded on that stack of paper were not significantly different from the facts stated by Zhao Zhenji in the letter.

Then, Jiajing put down the stack of papers in his hand, sneered, and said with a mocking look on his face, thinking to himself.

"Okay, okay. With such a huge family fortune, you only pay two thousand taels of silver in taxes to the court every year. This is treating the court as a beggar. It's really unreasonable!"

Lu Fang, who was on the side, couldn't help but feel a thump in her heart when she heard Jiajing's words. From Jiajing's tone, she could tell that the matter was serious.

Then, Lu Fang summoned up the courage and asked cautiously: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, what happened?"

When Jiajing heard this, he glanced at Lu Fang, then picked up the letter, handed it into Lu Fang's hands, and then said, "Here, take a look at it yourself!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

After Lu Fang received the letter, he read the contents word for word, and his expression changed in the process.

"Isn't this Yuan family looking for death? With such a huge family property, they only pay two thousand taels of silver in taxes to the court every year. No wonder His Majesty is so angry!"

……

Lu Fang knew something about the Yuan family in Jiaxing. After all, he had also received filial piety from the Yuan family.

What Lu Fang knew was that the Yuan family spent a lot of money, relying on bribing officials and heavily supporting poor scholars, and they were considered to have a small network of connections in the court.

But what Lu Fang didn't expect was that the Yuan family only paid two thousand taels of silver in taxes to the court every year!

You know, the filial piety Lu Fang received from the Yuan family alone was more than 50,000 taels.

"Now things are in trouble. Your Majesty has just sent Zhao Zhenji to Zhejiang to investigate land annexation, and something happened to your Yuan family. Isn't this just at the point of a gun?"

While Lu Fang was still thinking about the next response, she heard Jiajing's voice without any emotion: "Well, it seems that the previous news is correct. The situation of land annexation is particularly serious in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The situation has reached a point where it must be resolved!”

When Jiajing said this, he sighed helplessly and continued: "Oh, what a pity. If Zhang Cong and Zhang Ge were still here..."

Lu Fang, who was waiting on the side, was quite sad when she heard Jiajing's words.

As an old man who has been with Jiajing for many years, Lu Fang naturally knows Jiajing's feelings for Zhang Cong.

Zhang Cong, who clearly supported the emperor during the Great Ceremony Incident when Jiajing ascended the throne, can be called the "White Moonlight" in Jiajing's heart.

In addition to the commonplace disputes over etiquette, the original Great Rites Controversy was actually the most important step for Jiajing to establish its authority as emperor.

It was precisely because Jiajing overpowered his ministers and won the ceremonial meeting that he established his authority as emperor and became one of the few emperors with real power.

If Jiajing had been defeated in the Great Ceremony Conference and failed to proclaim his father, King Xingxian, as emperor, then he would have to be a puppet in the future, and the power of the court would be firmly controlled by Yang Tinghe. in the hands of a group of senior officials.

You must know that Jiajing was only fifteen years old at the time, and as a vassal king, he succeeded to the emperor's throne, and there were not many available people at hand.

The reason why Yang Tinghe and other ministers established Jiajing as emperor was very simple. At that time, Jiajing had little power behind him and was easier to control. After Jiajing established its authority through the Great Ceremony Meeting, he reciprocated the favor and appointed Zhang Cong as the chief minister of the cabinet and began drastic reforms.

Zhang Cong did not disappoint the emperor's expectations. During his tenure, he dismissed the eunuchs in various places, vigorously cleaned up the land of nobles, suppressed land annexation, and eradicated corruption.

However, because Zhang Cong's reforms touched the interests of too many people, he suffered countless criticisms and impeachments.

So later, in order to protect Zhang Cong, Jiajing had to remove him from the position of chief minister of the cabinet.

Later, Zhang Cong died of illness in Wenzhou in the 18th year of Jiajing's reign. Jiajing was deeply saddened by this and often expressed his gratitude.

Seeing this situation, Lu Fang stood up after hesitating for a long time and spoke to comfort her: "Your Majesty, I often hear people mention this saying: This person has passed away, but the living is like this!"

When Lu Fang said this, he paused for a moment and continued: "Although Mr. Zhang Cong and Zhang Ge are no longer here, the policies he once implemented are still there!"

"I remember, I remember, you said before that since it is a good policy, it should continue to be implemented. How can anyone stop the government?"

"Besides, in my opinion, Your Majesty has done the same thing. Whether it is sending Zhao Zhenji to investigate the land annexation in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, or the recent triennial plan of the imperial court, I highly respect your Majesty, Your Majesty is wise!"

After Lu Fang finished speaking, she leaned down and spoke with unusual solemnity.

When Jiajing heard Lu Fang's words, he came to his senses after being silent for a long time.

Then, Jiajing looked in the direction of Lu Fang and gave instructions: "Call Hu Zongxian to me tomorrow. I want to find out the specific situation from him!"

When Lu Fang heard Jiajing's words, she immediately looked stern and responded in a deep voice: "As you command, Your Majesty!"

"Okay, it's getting late, you go down and rest!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

After responding, Lu Fang immediately left Qianqing Palace without any hesitation.

After walking out of Qianqing Palace, Lu Fang stopped and looked towards the night in the distance, with a look of loss on his face.

"It seems that many people will die next!"

After Lu Fang murmured this in a low voice, she quickened her pace.

That night, several eunuchs died mysteriously.

……

One night passed in the blink of an eye, and in the early morning, Hu Zongxian was in his mansion in the capital.

Since it is Hu Zongxian's turn to take a rest today, he does not need to go to the cabinet for duty.

Despite this, Hu Zongxian's work and rest habits remained the same as usual, without much change. He got up early and took a walk in the yard.

"Well, Zhang Juzheng recommended soaking wolfberry in water before. It really works. The fatigue in the body has been reduced a lot!"

After Hu Zongxian walked around the yard a few times, he stopped and said with emotion.

In recent days, after the strong recommendation of Xu Jie and Gao Gong, other people in the cabinet have also begun to try to use wolfberry to soak water.

At this moment, the housekeeper came to Hu Zongxian with hurried steps and respectfully reported: "Master, someone is coming from the palace!"

When Hu Zongxian heard this, a look of surprise flashed across his face, and he confirmed: "Who is here?"

When the housekeeper heard this, he didn't dare to hide anything. He immediately lowered his head and said in a deep voice: "The answer to the master is Eunuch Lu!"

After Hu Zongxian learned the news from the housekeeper, the expression on his face instantly became solemn.

Hu Zongxian knew very well that the emperor must have asked him to do something extremely important. Otherwise, Lu Fang would not have asked Lu Fang to visit him in person so early in the morning.

Then, Hu Zongxian looked away from the butler and said: "Well, I understand, I'll be there right away!"

Under the guidance of the housekeeper, Hu Zongxian was seen walking towards the hall used to entertain guests in the mansion.

As soon as Hu Zongxian entered the hall, Lu Fang, who had been waiting for a long time, put down the tea cup in his hand, stood up from his seat, and saluted Hu Zongxian respectfully: "Today it is Mr. Hu Ge's turn to rest. We have taken the liberty to come here to see Hu Zongxian." Mr. Ge, please don’t blame me!”

Hearing this, Hu Zongxian quickly returned the courtesy to Lu Fang: "Where, where, Eunuch Lu is so polite!"

After a few words of greetings, Hu Zongxian was seen sitting in the main seat, turning his gaze in the direction of Lu Fang, and went straight to the topic: "I dare to ask Eunuch Lu, why did you come here this time, or is it your Majesty's side, what is there? Is there something we need to handle?"

Hearing this, Lu Fang glanced at Hu Zongxian and then turned to say: "Mr. Hu Ge, you have been the governor of Zhejiang Province and the governor of Zhejiang for many years. You must be very familiar with the local situation. His Majesty came to you this time because he wanted to To understand something.”

When Hu Zongxian heard Lu Fang's words, he couldn't help but heaved a sigh of relief. Then, he looked away from Lu Fang and said in agreement: "Eunuch Lu, I have learned something about the situation in Zhejiang." learn!"

Lu Fang heard this, with a warm smile on her face, and then said: "Mr. Hu Ge, there is no need to be humble, let's go over without further ado!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Zongxian responded in a subtle way, then got on the sedan that had been prepared and followed Lu Fang to the Forbidden City.

……

Forbidden City, Qianqing Palace.

"Your Majesty, Hu Ge is old!"

After entering the Qianqing Palace, Lu Fang looked at Jiajing, who was sitting on the dragon throne, and reported respectfully.

When Jiajing heard the words, he nodded and responded casually. After that, Lu Fang came to stand beside Jiajing, like a sculpture.

"I bow to your majesty, long live my emperor!"

After that, Hu Zongxian, who had been following Lu Fang before, fell to his knees on the ground with a plop and said in a deep voice.

"Well, get up, come and give Hu Aiqing a seat!"

When Jiajing heard this, he glanced over Hu Zongxian's body and followed up with instructions.

As soon as the words fell, a eunuch came forward, prepared a seat for Hu Zongxian, and laid a soft cushion on the seat.

Seeing this, Hu Zongxian quickly bowed his hands to Jiajing and thanked him: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness!"

Jiajing didn't care about this, just waved his hand and said: "Sit down!"

After that, Hu Zongxian didn't make the slightest excuse and sat down on the seat next to him. He sat upright and didn't dare to make the slightest move.

Then, Jiajing's voice without any emotion sounded in his ears: "Hu Aiqing, I came to you today because I want to know about the situation in Zhejiang!"

After Jiajing finished speaking, without waiting for Hu Zongxian to respond, he looked at the letter on the desk and continued: "This is the autographed letter sent to me by Zhao Zhenji. You should read it first!"

After that, Jiajing glanced at Lu Fang, who quickly understood, stepped forward, picked up the letter from the desk, and handed it to Hu Zongxian respectfully.

"Mr. Hu Ge!"

"Ah."

After Hu Zongxian took the letter from Lu Fang, he browsed the contents with a little anxiety.

After all, this is an autographed letter written by Zhao Zhenji to His Majesty, and the content in it must not be simple.

Soon, Hu Zongxian had read through all the contents of the letter. At this moment, his face was full of horror that could not be concealed.

"Is it possible that His Majesty sent Zhao Zhenji to Zhejiang just to investigate land annexation?"

Jiajing took in the expression on Hu Zongxian's face, raised his eyebrows, and asked: "Hu Aiqing, is what Zhao Zhenji stated in the letter true?"

After hearing what Jiajing said, Hu Zongxian did not dare to hide anything, so he had to bite the bullet and said: "Your Majesty, what Mr. Zhao said in the letter is indeed true. The tax paid by the Yuan family in Jiaxing to the court every year is only two thousand taels." silver!"

When Hu Zongxian said this, he paused and continued to add: "Your Majesty, I have been the governor of Zhejiang Province and the governor of Zhejiang for many years. Jiangsu and Zhejiang are indeed very wealthy, but the land annexation there is also the most serious!"

"The fields there are fertile and easy to cultivate. Compared with the fields in other parts of the Ming Dynasty, they can be called fertile fields. They can produce two or even three crops a year!"

"In the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas, in addition to the Yuan family in Jiaxing, there are also powerful landlords such as the Xu family in Qiantang and the Yu family in Yuyao. They have annexed a large amount of land and have quite a lot of connections in the court."

"But because the Japanese invasion along the southeastern coast of the Ming Dynasty was very serious in the past, which seriously threatened the safety of the people, the ministers focused on suppressing the Japanese, and adopted a conciliatory attitude towards these powerful landlords!"

When Hu Zongxian said this, his face was full of shame. Then he lowered his head and apologized to Jiajing: "I didn't expect that things would develop to such an extent. Please punish me." !”

After listening to Hu Zongxian's narration, Jiajing nodded, and then said: "Don't blame yourself, my dear, you made the right choice. The Japanese invasion was very serious at the beginning, and if you rashly attack those powerful landlords, many additional troubles may arise. .”

"If the interests of those powerful landowners are harmed and they choose to secretly fund the Japanese pirates, the court will have to spend extra energy to suppress the Japanese pirates. In this way, the gains outweigh the losses!"

When Hu Zongxian heard what Jiajing said, he couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief. Since the emperor had said it to this extent, it meant that all the previous things had been changed.

After that, Hu Zongxian had a look of gratitude on his face. He stood up from his seat, bowed to Jiajing and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

When Jiajing heard this, he shook his head, looked away from Hu Zongxian, and continued to give instructions: "Okay, tell me everything you know!"

After Jiajing finished speaking, Hu Zongxian organized the words in his mind and continued: "Your Majesty, as far as I know..." (End of this chapter)