The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

late at night.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youtang was still reading the memorials, but he read the memorials for nearly half an hour. It was not until Xiao Jing came over to change the wick for him that he made a little noise, which made Zhu Youtang come back to his senses. .

"What time is it?" Zhu Youtang asked.

Xiao Jing said: "It's past the third watch, your Majesty should rest early."

"Ugh!"

Zhu Youtang sighed and said, "No, I've been troubled recently. I can't sleep even when I lie down. I always think about a lot of old things. I don't know why it's just like this. I'd better do something to calm down my mind."

Xiao Jing was thinking, is this considered working or in a daze?
"Is there any news about Bingkuan?" Zhu Youtang asked.

Xiao Jing said: "Not yet."

Zhu Youtang said: "Bingkuan is in Yongping. Although it is not far from the capital, but he is not in the capital, many things cannot be advanced. There are more and more things backlogged in the court."

"Yes." Xiao Jing did not object.

"Replace these copies." Zhu Youtang ordered.

Xiao Jing took down the pile of memorials in front of Zhu Youtang. Only then did Xiao Jing realize that although Zhu Youtang had been sitting there in a daze for a long time, most of the memorials in front of him had actually been approved by Zhu. Obviously the emperor had been careful before. Those who have handled official business.

"Send these copies back." Zhu Youtang said, "Is there anyone in the cabinet now?"

Xiao Jing said: "Today should be Mr. Xie Ge's night shift."

"Then let him look into the details. I think they have been slacking off recently. If this is the case, it seems that we have to add more people to the cabinet." Zhu Youtang seemed a little annoyed and waved his hand, meaning that Xiao Jing was not required to accompany him. Instead, Xiao Jing was asked to go to Xie Qian to discuss the details of the vote with some notes to reject the vote.

……

……

Cabinet value.

Xie Qian was used to staying up late at night. In the past, cabinet ministers only needed to stay up late when there were important matters. However, due to the frequent wars in the northwest in the past two years, the three cabinet members had to take turns staying up late at night. Because Liu Jian was old and had As the chief assistant, Li Dongyang and Xie Qian are usually the ones changing shifts.

At that time, Li Yi, the man from the middle school, came to inform that Xiao Jing was coming.

Xie Qian solemnly stood up to greet him. In fact, in the past hour, Xie Qian himself had been drowsy and had not drafted two memorials. Even though he was young, he was still in the court. As an old man, he couldn't bear the errand of staying up late.

"Eunuch Xiao." Xie Qian welcomed Xiao Jing into the duty room.

The two took their seats.

Then Xie Qian added a lamp himself, which made it look brighter. Although both lamps had large flames, they would be able to illuminate people's faces clearly.

Xiao Jing took out several memorials and put them in front of Xie Qian. Needless to say, Xie Qian knew that the emperor was dissatisfied with their proposals, that is, with the handling of government affairs.

Needs to be reformulated.

It is actually a bit difficult for Xie Qian to be alone without discussing with Liu Jian and Li Dongyang. After all, many things still depend on the attitudes of the three cabinet members and need to be balanced.

Xiao Jing said: "Recently, troops have been sent out everywhere. I heard that although Datong seems to be indifferent, they sent troops to Weining Sea and patrolled north for hundreds of miles. The Tatars fled in the face of the wind. In addition, the Duoyan Guards in Daning Gui Shun actually compares with the edge of several other places."

"Yes." Xie Qian nodded, "Wang Bo'an is indeed a good hand in running the army."

Xiao Jing smiled and said: "But our family has also heard that he is not sophisticated or clever in handling some local affairs."

Xie Qian said: "Datong was not originally the center of gravity of Xuanda University. It is only in the past two years that its position has been highlighted. Grain, grass and baggage rely too much on the transportation of Xuanfu, and Xuanfu relies on the transportation of grain. Over there It has already established a large scale, and there are still capable people like Liu Shiyong, so...that’s why Wang Bo’an was compared to him.”

Xiao Jing looked over with a smile, and that smile made Xie Qian feel meaningful.

Xiao Jing said: "Then Mr. Xie Ge, do you think this will be the northwest without Uncle Xin Xin?"

"Eunuch Xiao means..." Xie Qian was also a little confused.

No matter how you listen to it, you feel that Xiao Jing seems to be targeting Wang Shouren, but logically speaking, Xiao Jing has no reason to have a big feud with Wang Shouren. Think about it from another angle, Xiao Jing, as the eunuch of the Chief of Ceremonies, wants to cultivate himself in the northwest The power is not an exaggeration.

But now that the emperor is so fierce in his grip on power, what chance do you, Xiao Jing, have to get up and down?

Xiao Jing said: "We would like to ask, if Uncle Xin Xin is transferred back to the court and becomes a minister or something, or sent to Nanjing, does Mr. Xie Ge think there will be trouble in the northwest?"

Xie Qian felt that Xiao Jing seemed to be targeting Wang Shouren.

But he still couldn't figure out what the specific method of targeting was... Xie Qian could not help but think that with Wang Shouren's current military achievements, Zhang Zhou's support, the emperor's trust and the admiration of everyone in the army, Even if you want to transfer Wang Shouren away, it will be difficult.

"No matter who is missing in the northwest." Xie Qian did not favor Wang Shouren. He even felt that Wang Shouren was now out of control.

If Xiao Jing really had a way to transfer Wang Shouren to a "Qingshui Yamen" so that Wang Shouren could temporarily stay away from the center of military power, Xie Qian would actually think it was a good thing.

Of course, Xie Qian wanted to target Zhang Zhou more, but he suffered from no chance.

Xie Qian also knew that Xiao Jing could not help much with Zhang Zhou.

But Wang Shouren is different... No matter how awesome Wang Shouren is, he still lives in Zhang Zhou's shadow.

Xiao Jing said: "If nothing goes wrong, that's good. Although His Majesty attaches great importance to military affairs, it doesn't mean that he has to become fat in these two years. No matter how good Uncle Xin Xin is, he is still a young man. Its weaknesses and shortcomings need to be practiced when it is time to practice them.”

"Yeah." Xie Qian nodded.

Xiao Jing stood up and said: "Then Mr. Xie Ge will take care of the matters at hand first and take a closer look. We will go back home first."

"Eunuch Xiao, don't you sit around for a while?" Of course Xie Qian also wanted to ask some details.

Xie Qian was also wondering whether the emperor had any opinions on Wang Shouren and it was inconvenient to express them clearly, so Xiao Jing asked him insinuatingly?
Xiao Jing still had a friendly smile on his face and said: "Don't disturb Mr. Xie Ge too much in handling affairs. Our family also has errands to do. His Majesty has been reviewing memorials until late at night these days. His Majesty also said that during this period, the Central Committee of the DPRK There is a lack of capable people, and it seems that we really want Cai Guogong to come back as soon as possible."

Xie Qian asked hurriedly: "When will Cai Guogong return?"

Xiao Jing shook his head and said, "Our family doesn't know either."

Xie Qian felt that Xiao Jing was not deliberately deceiving him, and Xiao Jing might really not know.

……

……

After the morning session the next day.

Xie Qian was not in a hurry to go back to rest, but went back to the cabinet with Liu Jian and Li Dongyang to check the rooms.

Li Dongyang was also a little surprised and said: "Yu Qiao, in fact, apart from the military affairs in the border town, other things have not been busy recently. If you are tired, you should go back earlier. We can still handle it here."

"Eunuch Xiao said something last night."

Later, Xie Qiancai informed Liu Jian and Li Dongyang in detail about Xiao Jing's late night visit and what he said.

Liu Jian didn't say anything after listening.

After Li Dongyang heard this, he immediately frowned and said, "Eunuch Xiao is in court and his time is running out."

"How?" Xie Qian was very surprised. From last night to now, he had thought about many possibilities of this matter, but he didn't think about it in the direction of Xiao Jing's "clarification of the funeral affairs".

Li Dongyang looked at Liu Jian first, and when he saw that Liu Jian made no comment or objected to him continuing, he said: "When Zhang Bingkuan left the capital, the capital was always calm. This is what I have always found strange. Didn’t I also say when I met you that Your Majesty’s move must have a deeper intention?”

Xie Qian said: "That means, His Majesty is going to replace Xiao Jing? Who will go? Li Rong?"

Li Dongyang shook his head and said: "It's not certain who will be replaced, but it depends on the situation. The person being replaced will not sit still and wait for death. Even if Zhang Bingkuan's power in the government cannot be shaken, several people under Zhang Bingkuan's command must be defeated!"

Xie Qian laughed and said: "Eunuch Xiao, are you facing off against Wang Bo'an? It's interesting. Binzhi, you have always been resourceful, but I disagree with this matter. Wang Bo'an did not offend the internal officials, and besides, he is so resourceful. He did a good job in using troops. Even though he may not have much experience in managing local military and political affairs, it can still be made up for."

Li Dongyang said: "What does Mr. Liu think?"

Liu Jian shook his head, meaning that he would not comment on this matter.

Xie Qian seemed to be in a very relaxed mood, and immediately said: "It seems that I should go back and have a good rest, so I will leave first."

"There's no rush." ​​Li Dongyang said, "Yu Qiao, you still have to go see Dehui first and tell him a little bit about Eunuch Xiao, so that he knows Bo'an's current situation in the court. If you want to When people like Eunuch Xiao target Bo'an, it is inevitable that Zhang Bingkuan can help, but to what extent?"

Xie Qian thought for a moment and asked tentatively: "Will Zhang Bingkuan stand by and watch?" "That's really possible." Li Dongyang said, "In the past, it was always said that Wang Boan was brought up by Zhang Bingkuan, but now you see, everywhere in the northwest Town, how much did Wang Boan listen to Zhang Bingkuan? Zhang Bingkuan cultivated many people, and now there are many people who are favored by the government. It seems that Wang Boan is the furthest with him. At this time, even His Majesty does not dare to say that Wang Boan can I completely listen to Zhang Bingkuan, which is probably why Eunuch Xiao believes that Wang Boan can move the chess piece."

"Ha ha."

Xie Qian smiled and didn't even know how to evaluate it.

Liu Jianze suddenly said: "There is no need to go to see Dehui. In a few days, Jiefu will return to the court. After he comes back, we can talk about some things openly."

Li Dongyang nodded and said: "Understood."

It's obvious what Liu Jian means.

Regardless of whether Xiao Jing and other internal officials want to target Wang Shouren, the cabinet does not intend to preserve Wang Hua and Wang Shouren and his son, which is equivalent to completely parting ways with them, and Liu Jian will "rely" more on Yang Tinghe, who has returned to the court after the end of the rule.

Originally, Wang Hua's development prospects in the government were better than Yang Tinghe's.

However, there are some "unexpected factors" that make the cabinet believe that Wang Hua cannot be promoted to a high position, and his appointment to the cabinet will be ruined.

Xie Qianhui thought that this might be related to Wang Hua's son Wang Shouren's "unclear political leanings."

But in fact, even without Wang Shouren's sudden rise, Wang Hua still would not be able to join the cabinet. The reason is that the cabinet headed by Liu Jian has already established the order and order of successors, and Cheng Minzheng, Wang Hua and others are not in the sequence at all. among.

……

……

afternoon.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youtang was testing the knowledge of his son Zhu Houzhao at the school. Half an hour passed after the test. The results of the test made Zhu Youtang feel mixed.

Zhu Houzhao's performance cannot be said to be too bad, but it is not good either. The two articles he wrote... seemed a bit nonsense to Zhu Youtang, but thinking that his son was not old and there was still room for development, Zhu Youtang again I don’t know where to place the blame.

"Father, how's your test paper? Is it okay to ask my son to take the imperial examination or something?" Zhu Houzhao seemed to have no idea of ​​his own strength and asked with a stern look on his face.

Zhu Youtang said: "Don't say you are going to be admitted to Jinshi. Even if you are going to be admitted to be a student member, your article will not catch the eye of the examiner."

Zhu Houzhao was unhappy when he heard this.

Young Master, I am a genius. I can do anything with just a few clicks. How can I be so disparaged by my father?

"On the contrary..." Zhu Youtang suddenly thought of something, "It's time for the Provincial Examination again soon. The examiner of the Shuntian Prefecture Provincial Examination has not yet been decided. I think that Bingkuan should be the examiner of the Shuntian Prefecture Provincial Examination, and he will preside over another one in the spring of next year. Fan, it’s pretty good.”

Zhu Houzhao seemed to agree very much with this, and nodded: "Very good, train some disciples, so that I will have many senior brothers!"

Zhu Youtang couldn't help frowning after hearing this.

They say they are disciples of the emperor and fellow disciples of the prince... What kind of statement is this?
But thinking about it carefully, there is nothing wrong with what his son said. After all, Zhang Zhou is his son's teacher. If Zhang Zhou selects a group of candidates, wouldn't it really mean that "teachers come from the same school"?Although being a teacher is more of a compliment to a certain extent, the teacher party is still a very powerful force these days.

Because of this, Zhu Youtang wanted to give Zhang Zhou the opportunity to preside over the Shuntianfu Township Examination and the National Examination next year.

"Go back and study hard." Zhu Youtang did not comment on his son's words, but instead encouraged him.

Zhu Houzhao said: "Father, can I go to the border area to see you? I can go to Yongping Mansion. I heard that Mr. Zhang has been there all the time. I want to go to the capital for a visit."

"Don't even think about it!"

Zhu Youtang said with a straight face, "You haven't made any progress in your studies recently, but you are still thinking about those crooked things. Come, send the prince back to the East Palace! Watch him closely in the past two days, and you must study on time every day. If you don’t take good care of yourself, you will be punished as well!”

If you punish your son for not giving up, then punish the eunuchs of the East Palace together with him.

From what Zhu Youtang saw, his son was not good at anything else, but he was somewhat good at loyalty.

Or can this be used to restrain the son's character?

……

……

"Your Majesty, do you really want Duke Cai Guo to preside over the Shuntianfu Township Examination?"

After Zhu Houzhao left, Xiao Jing couldn't help but asked with concern.

"Yes." Zhu Youtang nodded, "The Shuntianfu Provincial Examination is also an important assessment for the selection of scholars, but there are still two months... This year is a leap July, so there is still time to wait for Bingkuan to come back and preside over it. But also The chief examiner of Yingtianfu Provincial Examination must be appointed as early as possible."

Seven years before Jiajing, the emperor appointed the chief examiner of the provincial examination, which was limited to Shuntian Prefecture and Yingtian Prefecture, that is, North and South Zhili.

Because Yingtianfu is a long way away, it is necessary to make an appointment for the exam more than a month in advance. However, there is no rush to confirm the exam for Shuntianfu. You can make the appointment a few days beforehand.

Xiao Jing said: "But after all, Cai Guogong... has just entered the court. Considering that he presides over the provincial examination, I'm afraid he doesn't have much experience."

"What experience is needed for this?" Zhu Youtang asked, "Even if he may not be able to do a good job, as long as there is someone to cooperate with him. Speaking of which, Wang Hao's talent is very good, and it just so happens that this time he can work with Bingkuan Host it together.”

Xiao Jing couldn't help but feel ashamed after hearing this.

The last time Zhang Zhou was a tribute student taking the exam, only three years later, Zhang Zhou was already able to be the examiner.

What's even more remarkable is that it was the former seat teacher Wang Hao who presided over the Shuntianfu Provincial Examination together with Zhang Zhou.

And there is still a joint in it. Xiao Jing knows very well that now the emperor plans to let Wang Hao and Zhang Zhou join the cabinet, which means that the emperor has sent two potential cabinet ministers at once to preside over the Shuntian Prefecture Township Examination... If If this is the case, then the quality of the questions in this Shuntianfu Township Examination will seem to be very high.

The person selected will directly be the disciple of Mr. Ge.

"Go and get the few things I wrote before. I happen to have some free time to add a few more." Zhu Youtang said.

Xiao Jing was startled at first.

Zhu Youtang is not an arty person, and he has never played with paintings in the past, but recently Zhu Youtang has been sorting out some military policies, as if he wants to sort out some of his experience in running the army.

When Xiao Jing thought of this, he knew what to get and quickly went to the bookcase nearby to find something.

"The progress of the wars everywhere is still too slow. It is not as spectacular as the previous battles, and there is a bit less expectation."

Zhu Youtang felt a little regretful about the ongoing border patrol.

When Xiao Jing brought his "book" to him, he picked up the pen and prepared to continue writing down his feelings.

……

……

Zhang Zhou is finally leaving the mine.

But he was not in a hurry to return to Beijing. He wanted to first inspect the site for shipbuilding, and at the same time design a route to prepare for the future construction of railways around Yongping Prefecture.

It is unrealistic to build the railway directly through Shanhaiguan, but the terrain in Yongping Prefecture and other places is relatively flat. Iron ore and timber need to be transported here. In addition, this is also a prosperous area in Gyeonggi Province, and it also needs to transport troops. etc., to form a strategic response, it seems necessary to build railways.

Li Rongben was going to accompany Zhang Zhou to the coast of the Bohai Sea.

But he was sick, and Zhang Zhou was very considerate of him and asked him to return to Beijing early, but Li Rong just said that he would wait locally.

But before Zhang Zhou could leave the mine for two days, Mou Bin, the commander of the Jinyi Guards, hurriedly came to inform Zhang Zhou that Li Rong had "traveled to the immortal world".

The suddenness of the incident made Zhang Zhou unexpected.

Li Rong, who had chatted with him two days ago and even saw him off, suddenly passed away under seemingly good circumstances, leaving Zhang Zhou with some regrets, and it seemed that all of this was because of Li Rong was ordered to come to Yongping Mansion to do some hard work with him.

But no matter how you put it, it is also birth, old age, illness and death.

After all, Li Rong's age is there.

"How could things be like this?" Zhang Zhou Duoyou said helplessly, "For condolences and other matters, I may not go there in person. Commander Mou, please go and express condolences for me. Eunuch Li, he is a good person."

Li Rong died.

Obviously, the order of the imperial court was going to change again, and it was forced to change. (End of chapter)