I'm really not doing business

Chapter 442: Flying clouds and rising dragons, the great roc brings luck to the wind

Wang Chonggu was not passing the buck, but his ability and current situation did not allow him to do it. Only two people could promote this matter, and that was Zhang Juzheng and His Majesty. In Zhang Juzheng's fundamentalist class theory, the emperor was a separate class and could not and could not There will be a wrong detached class, so in fact, only one person can do this, and that is Zhang Juzheng, a courtier.

The emperor can choose to support it, because the emperor stepped forward to promote land equalization and caused a big mess, and there was no way to end it. This has always been the rule of the game, such as Shang Yang's reform, Chao Cuo who reduced the vassal state, and Wang Anshi who implemented the New Deal. , such as Yu Qian who deposed the emperor and established a new emperor, such as Zhang Juzheng now.

When ministers promote great changes and cause irreversible and bad consequences, the ministers bear the responsibility. Official appointments, beheadings, and clan executions are all the price of taking responsibility.

Now the issue is stuck here. Wang Chonggu raised it and needs someone to implement it.

Zhang Juzheng thought for a while and said, "I will take charge of this matter."

Don’t worry if you have too many lice. There are really too many lice on Zhang Juzheng’s body. He passed the exam, cleared his father, six books and one account, rectified academic affairs, Ming Dynasty meeting, and did not pay salaries to clan members (the princes and below have to make their own living) Wait, Zhang Juzheng offended the local gentry, famous families, powerful right-wing officials, elected officials, hereditary military honors, clan members, and even the emperor. It can be said that he has offended all the people except the poor coolies. All classes were offended.

Zhang Juzheng's New Five Matters confirmed the emperor's five obligations, which stipulated and limited the emperor's responsibilities. Zhu Yijun himself was not dissatisfied with this and implemented it in depth. Zhu Yijun believed that rights and responsibilities are equal. Since it is supreme, then Also fulfill your responsibilities.

But the matter itself is of the same nature as Gao Gong's attempt to knock off the ceremonial supervisor. It is an act of overstepping the authority of the Lord.

"Sir, this is a big deal. I think we can start by checking the number of Dingkou. Once we have found out the Dingkou, we can then determine the categories of superiority and inferiority, classify the fertile and barren, etc., and divide them into numbers. Zhu Yijun said.

Emperor Wanli was strictly managed by the Empress Dowager and Zhang Juzheng and was always cautious. Finally, under the leadership of a eunuch named Sun Hai, the emperor opened the door to the new world. He had a night banquet in the palace and was so happy that after getting drunk, he brought The eunuchs went on a rampage and asked two maids to dance, but the maids couldn't dance. The 18-year-old Emperor Wanli was so angry that he wanted to behead the maids in public.

This time too, Zhu Yijun issued an order, and it was a very clear order, asking Zhang Juzheng to investigate the production of yellow books in Dingkou. The responsibility was still borne by Zhang Juzheng, but he acted according to the order.

Being dragged to the Ancestral Temple by Empress Dowager Li to teach him a lesson was a matter within the family. The Sinner's Notes must not be read. It is self-evident what the emperor's edict to sin against oneself meant. It is not clear that Empress Dowager Li lived deep in the inner palace. Emperor Wanli Still understand.

Empress Dowager Li was even more dissatisfied and demanded that Sun Hai, the eunuch who had seduced the emperor into absurdity, be killed. She also issued an edict to the cabinet and asked Zhang Juzheng to lead the ministers to remonstrate and have Sun Hai and other eunuchs executed on the spot.

In terms of superiority and inferiority, not every acre of land is fertile and crops can be harvested three times a year. It is also based on local conditions. The acres of land are divided into three grades. The standards for grading are fertile, barren, and silt-rich. These were marked during the Hongwu period. .

Emperor Wanli, Empress Dowager Li, Zhang Juzheng, and Feng Bao never cared about the life and death of eunuchs such as Sun Hai, Sun Dexiu, Wen Gong, and Zhou Hai. Instead, they revolved around the "Notes of a Sinner". When the "Notes of a Sinner" entered the palace, Empress Dowager Li won. If Sinner's Notes are not allowed to enter the palace, Emperor Wanli will win.

As the emperor, Zhu Yijun would never leave Zhang Juzheng alone. Ever since the assassination of the king, Zhang Juzheng used the assassination of the emperor in exchange for the implementation of the imperial examination law, and the appointment of Yang Bo as the Minister of Personnel, Zhu Yijun has been supporting Zhang Juzheng. To make it more clear, , had it not been for the emperor's connivance, Zhang Juzheng's New Deal would have been blocked at every turn.

Emperor Wanli was very satisfied with Zhang Juzheng's attitude, so he wrote a copybook and gave it to Zhang Juzheng. He also said that he should advise me again and handle state affairs carefully instead of neglecting his studies.

"I obey the order." Zhang Juzheng obeyed the leader's order.

Zhang Juzheng replied very cautiously: I am separated from the outer court and do not dare to believe the rumors. The imperial government has not seen any shortcomings, so I do not dare to say anything.

Again, he wanted to see whether it was the world that sinned against me, or I that sinned against the world.

Zhang Juzheng has been pretending to be confused, refusing to kill, only willing to be exiled. His attitude is very clear. Zhang Juzheng is not willing to write a note about his sins, but only wants to prevaricate and fool by the Holy Mother's sincere teachings and His Majesty's repentance.

Empress Dowager Li was still dissatisfied. After conducting an in-depth investigation into the case, she listed eunuchs Sun Dexiu and Wen Gong of the Bureau of Rites, and Zhou Hai, the eunuch of the War Bureau, as accomplices, and asked Zhang Juzheng to lead the cabinet ministers to remonstrate and behead them in public. Serve as a warning to others.

The 18-year-old Emperor Wanli was very dissatisfied, and immediately issued an edict: I have repented, and Sun Haiguo used him to seduce me into doing anything. Now I am reduced to a small fire, and I am placed in Nanjing. I occasionally fall into a coma, so I should advise you. It was because I was happy for a moment and kept silent, relying on the teachings of the Holy Mother. Now I have changed my ways and set out to drive away evildoers. If there are such villains in the future, I will mention them together.

In the original history, something happened that completely broke up Emperor Wanli and Zhang Juzheng. In November of the eighth year of Wanli, Emperor Wanli had a night banquet in the palace.

This farce happened at the end of November, but broke out in early December. After learning about it, Empress Dowager Li was furious and took Emperor Wanli to the Ancestral Temple. Empress Dowager Li cried, and Emperor Wanli also cried. Then Empress Dowager Li issued an order for the cabinet to draft a plan. Sinji's Notes were read by Emperor Wanli in the Ancestral Temple.

With the empress dowager on one side and the emperor on the other, Zhang Juzheng's cabinet was in a dilemma, and finally made a suggestion: Send Sun Hai and other eunuchs to the streamside, a smog-ridden land. This is a harmonious approach, a compromise, aggravating some punishments, but not killing people, so that everyone can save face.

In the end, the fuss got so bad that Emperor Wanli shaved off the maid's pigtails, which was regarded as a symbolic beheading.

At this point, Zhang Juzheng, the master who pretended to be confused, was still pretending to be confused. He never submitted the crucial "Notes of a Sinner" to the palace.

The meaning of Zhang Juzheng's words is very clear: As long as there are no deficiencies in the government's affairs, such a small issue as the night banquet, he will not care about it.

The Queen Mother wanted to kill Sun Hai and other eunuchs, and Emperor Wanli wanted to demote him to a small fireman (a firewood chopper) and send them to Nanjing.

During the rebellious period, Emperor Wanli became more and more rebellious, and the things he did became more and more ridiculous. Night banquets soon became the norm. Empress Dowager Li could not restrain her. Finally, she wanted to depose the emperor, and a copy of "The Biography of Huo Guang" was passed to the cabinet.

Huo Guang, the great Sima general of the Western Han Dynasty, once did something. He deposed the dissolute emperor Haihunhou Liu He and replaced him with Liu Xun, the emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty.

Empress Dowager Li's meaning is very clear. If you don't read the Notes of Sinner, the ridiculous Wanli Emperor cannot hold on to his ancestral legacy, so he will make King Zhu Yili of Lu the emperor.

At this time, Zhang Juzheng finally could no longer pretend to be confused, so he took the sinner's notes to the palace on the grounds that "the holy will was not as good as before". In the end, several eunuchs were demoted to the rank of minor firemen. After being resettled in Nanjing, Emperor Wanli went to the Ancestral Temple to read the Notes of Sinners and promised not to commit the crime again.

The matter seemed to have come to an end at this point, but Emperor Wanli was extremely dissatisfied with Zhang Juzheng's final compromise. He did not even reply to Zhang Juzheng's exhortation note. Instead, he asked Feng Bao to be handed over directly to Empress Dowager Li, who urgently agreed to the request.

Zhang Juzheng clearly knew that he did not have much time left for him, so he hurriedly promoted a whipping method. However, two important prerequisites for the implementation of the whipping method were sufficient silver and excessive taxes and miscellaneous taxes. After all, the law was not accomplished.

Now, Zhang Juzheng finally has enough time to slowly make plans to make the New Deal more stable and able to operate stably.

During the controversy over the deposed emperor, Empress Dowager Li was mainly worried that Emperor Wanli was ineffective and could not maintain the ancestral foundation. Therefore, Emperor Wanli was very angry and severely punished any ridiculous behavior of Emperor Wanli.

Empress Dowager Li's concerns were correct. Emperor Wanli was indeed ineffective and failed to maintain the inheritance of his ancestors.

"Your Majesty, last time the Queen Mother issued an edict to the cabinet, saying that she wanted to supplement the nine concubines and ordered the Ministry of Rites to select beauties to enter the palace. Your Majesty said last time that it would not be necessary for the time being. Can this matter be handled by the Ministry of Rites in the next chapter?" Zhang Juzheng said. An old thing.

For the sake of the sexual happiness of the two sisters, Queen Wang said that Concubine Li and Concubine Liu were pregnant and would have another child. Zhu Yijun was right. After that time, Concubine Li and Concubine Liu had been sleeping together. How conservative they were before, but now they are Be more open-minded.

"Ah, I forgot about this. Let's talk about it after the army returns in triumph." Zhu Yijun only remembered this after being reminded by Zhang Juzheng.

Queen Wang was pregnant, Concubine Ran Shu and Concubine Zhou De were recovering from childbirth, Concubine Liu and Concubine Li were still not pregnant while sleeping, and Zhu Yijun never thought about it.

Now, Empress Dowager Li was not worried at all that Zhu Yijun was ineffective and could not protect the ancestral kingdom. Instead, she felt that the emperor paid too much attention to state affairs and neglected the harem. She wished that Zhu Yijun could have a night banquet in the palace, which was ridiculous.

The last time Empress Dowager Li issued an order to replenish the harem, Zhu Yijun had not bothered to do it yet. He had really forgotten.

"There is no contradiction between the triumph of the army and the acceptance of concubines into the palace." Wan Shihe raised his doubts. The Ministry of Rites was ready and communicated with Feng Bao, the envoy of flowers and birds. The emperor has been stuck in doing something, and now The reason was actually that the army was going out to fight.

"In the twenty-sixth year of Kaiyuan, Zhang Shougui, the governor of Youzhou, fought against the Xi tribe. He lost the battle but lied about the military situation. Gao Shi wrote a satirical song "Yan Ge Xing", saying: The warriors are half dead in front of the army, but the beauties are still singing and dancing under the tent. "Zhu Yijun shook his head and said: "It is bitter cold for the soldiers on the front line to fight. I pay tribute to the emperor's billions. I should give up drinking and banquets to focus on daily life, concentrate on raising an heir, cut off rewards to save money, but play well to calm my mind. "Thousands of people should be able to understand the common government and teach diligently to govern."

"This is the way for a monarch to build a province. A large army spends a huge amount of money on a campaign. The soldiers are suffering from the cold outside. When I heard that I was recruiting concubines in the capital, I was naturally dissatisfied. It would be better to wait for the triumphant return of the army."

"Your Majesty's holiness is shining brightly!" Wan Shihe only felt a headache!
You have learned it. Your Majesty has really learned it. Your Majesty has learned the classic trick of Confucian scholars, chanting sutras!
There is a lot of nonsense that makes sense. There is no problem with this truth. The key is that Queen Mother Li only urges the Ministry of Rites, and it is their Rites Ministry that is in trouble!
But Wanshi and this courtier could not tell him that the soldiers at the front would not be dissatisfied if His Majesty kept concubines at the rear. This was to persuade the emperor to be a coward.

From Zhu Yijun's perspective, it is not appropriate to have a concubine now. It's a bit like, brothers are fighting hard on the front line, and I have found two sisters-in-law for you in the capital!
Isn't this nonsense?

But the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty actually didn't care much about this, and the emperor of the Ming Dynasty did not deduct their war food and salary to pay for the concubine. I will do my job, and the emperor will fulfill his pre-war promise. It doesn't matter what you, the emperor, do.

Wan Shihe really had no way to slander him, because His Majesty used a light cake every day to show that Zhenwu was determined and shared the joys and sorrows with the soldiers.

Empress Dowager Li was very dissatisfied with Concubine Li and Concubine Liu, because these two people had been in the palace for a long time, and Wang Yaozhuo was pregnant with a second child. Concubine Li and Concubine Liu had occupied the emperor's time for several months, but nothing happened. Naturally, the fruiting seedlings must be eradicated. Empress Dowager Li has been urging the Ministry of Rites to quickly recruit beauties. Wan Shihe was also in a dilemma. Empress Dowager Li was urging her, but Your Majesty was not in a hurry at all. He was a minister and could only be angry at being splinted.

"Your Majesty, Special Envoy Taixi asked a few questions about the Ming Dynasty's campaign, and one of them was quite interesting." Wan Shi and Jian Zhengshi finished talking and talked about the interesting stories they had heard recently.

"What's the problem?" Zhu Yijun asked curiously.

Wan Shihe said: "Does the gunpowder, lead and other materials wasted by the Ming army during the war need to be compensated?"

"What do you mean? Compensation? What kind of compensation?" Zhu Yijun was stunned for a moment. What kind of hell problem is this? Is he too stupid to understand the question?
Wan Shihe explained more clearly: "Not every fire cannon will hit the enemy after being fired. Gunpowder is so expensive. The artillery fire has no effect. The side chariots are damaged and abandoned by the roadside. These are all prepared by the imperial court." Arms, then who will bear the loss? This is Legaz’s problem.”

"Ah this..." Zhu Yijun looked at Zeng Xingwu, the Minister of the Ministry of War, then at the Great Situ Wang Guoguang and the Young Situ Zhang Xueyan, and said with a blank look on his face: "I have always claimed to be stingy, but this question makes me full of doubts. Military The soldiers fought for the Ming Dynasty and died for the country. I still want to claim compensation from them? "

"It seems that I am not stingy enough, nor am I right. This is not a matter of being stingy or not."

Wan Shihe looked around and said with a dumbfounded expression: "Honglu Temple Minister Chen Xuexue asked: If nothing else, the soldier died on the battlefield, how can we claim compensation? Everyone died." Legasi said: He still has family."

It was so quiet in the West Flower Hall of the Imperial Study Room of Daming Tonghe Palace that one could clearly hear the sound of the wind blowing through the curtains.

It was difficult for Zhu Yijun to imagine that scene. After the soldiers were on the front line, the Ming Dynasty Household Bureau Qing Lisi Langzhong sent a bill to the other party's family: "Your son died for the country, and I inform you with great sadness." Before his death, your son used side chariots, muskets, long and short soldiers, armor, etc., all worth XX taels of silver raised and manufactured by the imperial court. This is the bill. After deducting the pension, the remaining part will be charged at XX Interest will be calculated. Overdue interest will be charged at XX interest penalty. Please pay as soon as possible. Thank you and your family for your contribution to the country. ]
"This cannot be summarized by simple cultural differences. Is this documentary literature from The Merchant of Venice?" Zhu Yijun was stunned for a moment and finally asked his doubts.

If he really did this, Zhu Yijun felt that he had better unscrew his head and play football for the soldiers, which saved the intermediate link. Before the Ming Dynasty, it was already outrageous not to pay full wages, and to claim war losses from the soldiers...

Wan Shihe suppressed a smile and said, "I don't know. Chen Xuexue can only express shock and confusion about this."

"Haha." Zhu Yijun and the ministers all laughed, and the West Flower Hall was filled with cheerful air.

Even in the West, Spanish soldiers will not require compensation for the loss of equipment on the front line due to the losses of soldiers in the war. Only the Venetian merchants in the entire West will do this. Similar to the Ming Dynasty, which has always been light on business, the West also hates the Venetian merchants.

Collecting the bones for official burial, offering condolences and praying for blessings, building ancestral temples, paying funeral expenses, sending envoys to express condolences, exempting officials from taxes and servitude, providing for heirs, and giving preferential treatment to the bereaved are all clearly stated pension provisions of the Ming Dynasty. One stone will be paid for the funeral, and he will be given five years of restoration, and half of those who died of illness in the camp will be given; soldiers who were wounded in battle will be expelled from their ranks, and they will be given three years of restoration.

To be faithful to the country, to be virtuous to the people, to erect a temple to bestow honors, to build a temple and to offer sacrifices. This is a sentence that every loyal and brave martyrs' temple has. It comes from the emperor's own handwriting, and it has been the same in all dynasties.

In many places, the Zhongyong Martyrs' Shrine is used as a temple for the City God and the Earth God, and people voluntarily worship them.

On May 12th, the 9th year of Wanli, the light rain in Tianjie was as moist as cake. The Ming Dynasty gradually entered the rainy season. The rainy season on the grassland was later than that in the Central Plains. While the Ming army's campaign was still going on, the Songjiang Prefecture City Boss of the Ming Dynasty ushered in A special fleet.

The Ming Dynasty exploration fleet, led by Xu Jiugao and Liu Ji, finally returned to Songjiang Mansion after a full year of sailing and completed its global voyage.

Songjiang Prefecture New Port is one of the busiest ports in the Ming Dynasty. Songjiang Governor Shen Shixing could not order the port to be closed to welcome the return of the exploration fleet, but Shen Shixing still cleared a section of the channel to allow five five-masted ships to cross the ocean. The stargazing ship successfully sailed into its berth.

Outside the new port, the waiting barge finally saw the sentry post on the top of the ocean-going ship. The seabirds were not afraid of danger and landed on the mast. The sailboat's canvas gradually appeared in everyone's field of vision, and the Big Dipper flag was on it. The sea breeze continued to roll, and as they approached the port, the five large sailing ships gradually dropped their canvas, and the barges threw the ropes to the large ships.

The barge was pulling five large sailing ships gradually towards the port. Seeing this scene, Shen Shixing walked down from the tide watching building and came to the end of the port berth trestle, waiting for the returning warriors.

Xu Jiugao stepped off the trestle, stepped on the hardened ground, chopped his feet hard, and said sincerely: "The earth is under our feet. We sailed all the way eastward from Songjiang Prefecture, passing by Ryukyu Naha, Waguo, Mexico, Peru, the Strait of Magellan, Rio de Janeiro, Natal, and the City of Liberty, arrived in Lisbon, Tessin, and set off from Lisbon, passing through the City of Liberty, the Cape of Good Hope, the Peak of the Compass, Manbasa, Malin, Guri, Malacca, and Manila , returned to Songjiang Mansion."

"The world is very big. We are back. The earth under our feet is indeed a ball."

Xu Jiugao, Liu Ji and other Ming Dynasty soldiers, including 1,300 military and naval divisions, completed the Ming Dynasty's first circumnavigation. They all studied at Songjiang Maritime Academy. In "Jiang Jian", I learned that the earth is a ball, and it is a ball with an inclination angle, which is why there are four seasons of cold and heat. However, if you don't go there in person, it is not practice.

Ming Dynasty finally completed its first circumnavigation, and sixty years have passed since Taixi completed his first circumnavigation.

The total mileage of this voyage exceeded 160,000 miles, which was equivalent to fifty round trips from Beiya to Nanya. It was divided into six major sections, the Pacific section, the Strait of Magellan section, the upper Atlantic section, the lower Atlantic section, the Western Ocean section, and the Nanyang section. It filled a large number of gaps in the star maps, needle maps, and star maps of the Ming Dynasty's global navigation. It also completed the preliminary drawing of the globe, confirmed the conjecture that the sea covers land and is connected with the ocean, and also determined a basic fact, that is, relying on wooden By building a sailboat, Ming Dynasty could also cross any ocean.

Similarly, this round-the-world voyage was also a voyage to open up the Maritime Silk Road. After the Ming Dynasty had its own needle map, it could truly realize ocean-going commerce. The five-masted ocean-going ship was finally no longer an illusion, but worthy of its name.

Xu Jiugao, Liu Ji and others were very excited, but not as excited as they imagined. Along the way, they also discovered that Ming Dynasty was lagging behind in its exploration of the sea for sixty years. Daming, it is actually difficult to accept it, although it has long been clearly aware of this fact.

The sun never sets on the Empire. Some people in the West have already achieved this. So since the Ming Dynasty claims to be a celestial empire, it is natural for them to strive for this achievement.

When Antonio and Legaz, on behalf of Felipe II, met the Ming Emperor for the first time in the first year of Wanli and claimed to be the empire on which the sun never sets, Zhang Juzheng had already realized the seriousness and urgency of this problem. Nine years later, Time, the special envoy of the Ming Dynasty, saw with his own eyes that it did exist. Even if it was a simple declaration, it would never set, and the sun would not set from the territory of the empire.

"Welcome home." Shen Shixing, Songjiang Commander-in-Chief Chen Lin, Songjiang Town Admiral Zhang Jin and others welcomed Xu Jiugao and other soldiers home.

Compared with Magellan and Francis Drake's first circumnavigation exploration, which took two to three years, the Ming Dynasty only took one year and one month.

First, thanks to the ships of the Ming Dynasty, the five-masted ocean crossing ship is still the fastest ship in the world, with the largest load capacity and the strongest ability to withstand wind and waves, and five ships were dispatched at one time; second, thanks to Before setting off, the Ming Dynasty already had some proven sea charts, needle maps and star maps of the Eastern and Western sections, and part of the Pacific section; third, because the Ming Dynasty exploration fleet already knew clearly that the earth is a ball before setting off. , the purpose is clear and not unknown; fourthly, due to precision manufacturing, the Ming Dynasty has more advanced navigation instruments, and the star observation ship is an extremely professional observation ship, responsible for piloting.

Shen Shixing did not immediately greet Xu Jiugao and other soldiers. After they had a simple meal, they would immediately set off for Tianjin Guards and go to the capital to meet. They would only rest after the emperor returned their orders. Shen Shixing, Chen Lin and others , brought Xu Jiugao and Liu Ji to the huge dock.

"What is this?" Xu Jiugao looked at the huge dock and skeleton in front of him in horror and asked dully.

There are two docks in total, with two huge keels lying inside. Hundreds of people are working around the docks. Busy craftsmen are everywhere. Various materials are being loaded onto the boats. There are craftsmen holding spray guns and burning. The rivets are red and forged hard, and the scaffolding is full of craftsmen who are busy installing ship planks, constructing it meticulously.

"The Youlong is as graceful as a startling giant and graceful as a wandering dragon. The other ship is the Feiyun, with flying clouds and undulating dragons, and the roc transports the wind." Shen Shixing looked at the two fast sailing ships and was filled with excitement. Ambition.

The emperor gave two million silver, and Wang Daokun fought hard for it, saying that one million silver was completely enough. However, the emperor gave too much, so he directly trial-produced two ships. Compared with the Youlong, the Feiyun's hull was longer and narrower. You can tell the difference just by looking at the skeleton.

"The Youlong is a sealing ship, mainly carrying cargo, while the Feiyun is a warship. It only has three masts, but its speed is faster than the Youlong. It is mainly equipped with artillery, and it carries a total of one hundred and ten artillery pieces. In comparison, the Youlong is more like a merchant ship or a flagship and is not suitable for combat, while the Feiyun is more suitable for warships in terms of speed and firepower." Shen Shixing briefly introduced Feiyun. No., the design skeleton of Feiyun has been completed, but it is still not finalized.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty gave too much. Two million silver just allowed the Youlong to be developed from a model to a real object. It was too wasteful. The Feiyun was also planned. Because it received sufficient financial support, the development was advanced in advance. On the agenda.

Shen Shixing had two models brought up and said: "Within two and a half years, these two ships can be launched as scheduled. Special Envoy Xu returned to Beijing and helped me bring two models to His Majesty. His Majesty likes these. It’s like telling His Majesty what we have done.”

"It's easy to talk." Xu Jiugao agreed directly without asking for any benefits. He was originally the counselor of the Songjiang Navy. This time he was ordered to go to sea, and he had to return to Songjiang in the end. Everyone was a grasshopper on the rope of opening the sea. Helping Shen Shixing is helping yourself.

Shen Shixing only made two models and sent them to the capital, one for His Majesty and one for His Royal Highness King Lu. This meant very clearly that the governor of Songjiang, a thoroughfare of nine provinces, could only be an imperialist and not a member of Zhang Juzheng's party. His Majesty could order military campaigns. The bureau made some gifts to Zhang Juzheng, but they were all gifts from His Majesty and had nothing to do with Songjiang Ground.

"Special Envoy Xu is in a hurry this time. Did he prepare any gifts for His Majesty? I have some seafood here." Shen Shixing looked around and asked in a low voice.

Xu Jiugao also whispered in a low voice: "Get ready. No matter how many gifts you have, it's not too much. What good things do you have here?"

After returning from the sea, you don’t have any rare treasures to present to His Majesty. How dare you say that you went to sea? Every time Zheng He came back from his voyages to the West, he would bring gifts. Once he brought back two unicorns, but everyone preferred to call them giraffes.

It is obvious that Xu Jiugao and Shen Shixing were cheating and treating the rare treasures received by Songjiang Mansion as obtained overseas. This was a long-standing shortcoming of the Ming Dynasty, and the government was accomplished through bribery.

"I have a twelve-pound pearl here. It is round and purple, so it is most suitable." Shen Shixing murmured in a low voice.

Xu Jiugao nodded and said: "This one of mine only weighs eight pounds. It's better to use yours. Just use yours."

The Shibo Department is known as the Southern Treasury of the Emperor. This twelve-pound pearl was originally intended to be dedicated to the emperor, but it ended up being transferred to the internal funds.

(End of this chapter)