The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

British government.

Zhang Maoben thought that after meeting Jiang Dezhong, he would be able to regain Zhang Zhou's favor, and he could wait for the letter after returning home.

As a result, they received news that the East Factory was investigating a corruption case within the Governor's Office, especially one involving kickbacks and embezzlement in the procurement of the Beijing Camp.

Facing Zhong Decai who was seriously summarizing the situation, Zhang Mao looked as pale as death, as if he was about to find a wooden pillar to bang his head against.

"Don't worry, sir. No one in the court or the country knows about this yet. We were able to learn the news in advance because we have some of our own people." Zhong Decai said.

Zhang Mao said with a dark face, "Are you trying to say that because I was involved in the case, I knew about it earlier than others?"

"This..." Zhong Decai didn't know how to describe it.

Zhang Mao said, "Decai, tell me the truth. In the past few years, after you followed me, the purchases in the capital, especially the goods that passed through your hands, were not put through the court accounts, but..."

"Sir, please stop beating around the bush. I know what you mean. Isn't it just how much silver you have embezzled? Although I don't know the exact number, if I count it up, it should be at least a hundred thousand taels of silver in the past ten years..."

"You...what did you say?" Zhang Mao felt like his head was about to explode.

Zhong Decai said helplessly: "Where did the money for repairing the ancestral hall come from? And your concubine, and the expenses of the mansion? You also know that the expenses of this mansion are very high. In a year, at least tens of thousands of taels of silver are spent. To say hundreds of thousands of taels of silver is not too little."

Zhang Mao was surprised and asked, "My house costs tens of thousands of dollars a year? It's copper coins, not silver, right?"

"You are such a joke. Tens of thousands of copper coins are only ten taels of silver. You can't even afford ten taels of silver when you go out for a drink or call a troupe to sing a play at home." Zhong Decai said helplessly.

Zhang Mao frowned and asked, "How much is your annual tuition?"

Zhong Decai said helplessly: "It's only... two or three hundred taels of silver."

"You...you really make me mad." Zhang Mao almost wanted to hit someone when he heard it.

Zhong Decai said: "If you feel that this price is unfair, just tell me. I won't bother you. It is really difficult to survive in the capital. I will remember your kindness when I travel around the world."

Zhang Mao sat there, looking annoyed, but helpless.

Come to think of it, the silver he gave to Zhong Decai alone was two or three hundred taels a year, and his own wives and concubines were also expensive, plus there were a lot of expenses at home...

Zhang Mao asked, "You don't mean to say that all the expenses of the mansion were taken back from the court, and none of them were earned by me?"

Zhong Decai sighed, "Master, think about it, how much land do we have in our mansion? How much can those lands yield in a year? Besides, we have tenant farmers to cultivate the land, and the rent we collect is not much. We do have some shops in our mansion, some of which we rent out and some of which we run ourselves, but if it weren't for the business supported by the court, all of these shops would be losing money."

Zhang Mao said angrily: "Then this old man is useless?"

“Sir, you can’t say that. Now, everyone in the Beijing army still remembers your kindness. At least in the past, there were rules for doing things. As long as you spent money, you could get things done. Now, we have money but nowhere to spend it…” Zhong Decai was helpless.

Zhang Mao said angrily, "You want to tell me that I also sold official positions and titles in the past, so now they all want to find connections to give money but have nowhere to give it, right?"

"Oh!" Zhong Decai sighed heavily.

Zhang Mao said: "Then let me ask you, how many steps of the case can be traced to me?"

Zhong Decai said seriously, "All those who had direct contact with you have been arrested. This time, I heard that in addition to investigating the procurement of the Beijing Camp, it seems to be related to the local mining. Several people from the Construction Department of the Ministry of Works have been arrested. Now the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works are in a panic."

Zhang Mao asked, "Where is the Governor's Office? How many people were arrested?"

"The Governor's Office... has been relatively peaceful so far." Zhong Decai said, "Even if the generals of the Beijing Camp were involved in the case, they are not involved now. His Majesty seems to be very tolerant of military generals involved in the case. Besides, the profits of the Beijing Camp are mainly from procurement. Mining is only related to the generals of Jizhou and Xuanfu. The Beijing Camp is no longer a popular destination for generals."

Zhang Mao was shocked and said, "The Beijing Army is under the emperor's feet, and no one wants to come to the Beijing Army?"

"Isn't it? Now the border soldiers can cultivate the land, and they also receive money and food allocated by the court. It is easy to make meritorious service in battles. I heard that they can also distribute land. There are even more commercial settlements in various places. Especially for the commanders of the garrisons in the mining areas, they can't go there even if they spend money. They must have strong connections. The Chengguo Mansion is very prosperous now, but from what I heard, this time the Chengguo Mansion may... be in trouble."

"Humph! Does Zhu Tingzan think that he can stay out of this matter just because he is in Nanjing? I am just waiting to see what happens to him. Isn't he doing well now? A battle in the northwest will bring him back to his original form!"

"Sir, should we report it ourselves now? I'm afraid some people will implicate you. According to the past, as long as we take the initiative to report it, even if these people implicate you, you can say that they are framing you. You are selfless and righteous."

Zhang Mao's face darkened again and he said, "It's good that I'm not dead. Tell the people outside that the door will be closed to visitors for the next few days. No one is allowed to come in. Even if they are from the mansion, those who leave the door are not allowed to come back! I want to meditate and sit in meditation. In the end... just treat me as dead!"

Zhong Decai said helplessly: "It's useless to do this. If you are really involved, it must be the emperor's order. Now the Anyuan Marquis's mansion is also in trouble. Don't you still want to..."

"Don't mention the surname Liu to me. His family situation has nothing to do with me. Bringing him to the northwest was the biggest mistake of my life. Now I just want to drink tea, listen to music, and stay at home... to recuperate..."

"Are you recovering from an illness?"

"What's wrong? If I tell the public that I'm terminally ill and won't live for many days, then maybe His Majesty will show mercy and forget about me? Humph!"

……

……

Jiao Fang is leaving the capital and returning to Henan.

Li Dongyang had no way to pry Jiao Fang into words, and not knowing the inside story, he could only find someone who had a good relationship with Jiao Fang, namely Qi Zhong, whose ancestral home was in Henan, to go and see Jiao Fang off.

Qi Zhong was from Shandong, and like Jiao Fang, he was a northern official. Jiao Fang usually looked down on southern officials and even cut ties with them... But he and Qi Zhong still had a friendship, at least in terms of face.

"Lord Li is still concerned about what happened in your house. In fact, I have mentioned to him that some people in the Ministry of Revenue have been arrested by the Eastern Depot recently, but the news cannot be leaked now. It should be that the Eastern Depot is investigating a case. If you, Meng Yang, tell us clearly, we can be prepared."

Qi Zhong's tone was also helpless.

He really didn't have many days left in the court, and everyone knew he was leaving. Even if he didn't leave, the authority of the Ministry of Revenue was repeatedly reduced. After all, the current Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue was Lu Wan, and the biggest difference between Lu Wan and Wang Qiong was that he was very enterprising, and he had experience in serving in the Shangtingchu, so Lu Wan also had a wide network of contacts in the court.

Although Qi Zhong is now the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, his power has actually been basically hollowed out.

Jiao Fang looked at his family members who were packing up in the yard and said helplessly, "My son's family has been convicted now. There is nothing for me to stay in the capital."

"Your son?" Qi Zhong was very surprised.

Jiao Fang said: "My son did some wrong things, but his crime is not punishable by death. It is also a misfortune for my family that he was involved in the court disputes."

Obviously Jiao Fang did not think it was his or his son's fault, but believed that it was the court disputes that harmed his family, and that his son Jiao Huangzhong was a victim of the political struggle. It seemed that Li Dongyang should take the blame instead of finding someone to come and make sarcastic remarks.

Qi Zhong said helplessly: "You are in the Imperial Academy, and the court affairs in recent years should not involve you too much, so how could it be related to your son?"

"Didn't you hear what I said?" Jiao Fang said sternly, "Don't you know who is involved in the case, who wants to blame others, and who wants to watch the fire from the other side? How dare you say that you are completely unaware of the internal affairs of the Ministry of Revenue?"

Qi Zhong was speechless after being asked this question.

He was helpless.

After all, Qi Zhong himself was not involved in the mining taxes and mining affairs. It was not because he did not want to, but because Wang Qiong and others blocked him, and this relationship had not yet jumped to him.

But according to the intelligence from the Eastern Depot, it seemed that he, Qi Zhong, was the big man behind the scenes and the overall planner.

Jiao Fang would also feel that the mining case was somehow related to Qi Zhong, and that Qi Zhong was more likely to add insult to injury rather than to help him.

Jiao Fang pointed to the yard and said, "My son usually comes to visit, but now his family, including his wives, concubines, and children, have all been convicted and are nowhere to be found. If you still want to help me, then bring them back for me, and my Jiao family's ancestors will be grateful to you. If not, then please go back first, you are not welcome here."

Jiao Fang's indifference made Qi Zhong realize that he was an unwelcome person.

"Meng Yang, I know you have many misunderstandings in your heart. The current affairs of the court are not something we can control. His Majesty did not mention this matter in the court, but it should have been mentioned in the next few days. Then someone will definitely speak for you. Don't worry."

……

……

Qi Zhong gave a few simple words of comfort and went back home immediately.

However, before he reached his door, he saw a visitor's vehicle. After getting off the carriage, he asked a few questions and found out that it was Lu Wan who came.

Qi Zhong did not want to see Lu Wan, especially in such a private occasion, because in Qi Zhong's view, Lu Wan was a "villain". In big and small matters, Lu Wan was obviously his subordinate, but within the Ministry of Revenue, everything was under his control.

But he still entered the yard and saw Lu Wan who was waiting in the main hall.

Lu Wan came over, and seemed to know that Qi Zhong didn't like him. He said, "I came here for the case that the East Factory is investigating recently."

Qi Zhong said: "Just say what you want to say."

Lu Wan nodded, and without further ado, he said directly: "What we can be sure of at the moment is that the court is investigating corruption."

"Quan Qing, you are not trying to say that the Ministry of Revenue is seriously corrupt and even those who were arrested are not clean, right? You have to know that they don't supervise Taicang at all, so they don't have the opportunity to take action even if they want to."

Qi Zhong still has to speak for his subordinates.

Lu Wan said: "I know, so I came to remind you, Shangshu, it is best to be observant and check everything clearly, otherwise it is easy to fall into a trap."

"Trap?" Qi Zhong frowned.

Lu Wan said seriously, "The few people who have been arrested are the baits set by the East Factory. Whoever bites will fall into the trap. Now they are no longer using fish hooks, but more like using fishing nets."

"Speak clearly." said Qi Zhong.

Lu Wan said: "These people are all involved in one thing, that is, the court's mining in various places in the north. In name, these mines are the private property of Duke Cai, but you and I both know that Duke Cai has never taken these mines for himself. Initially, it was the Jinyiwei who helped him to mine."

Qi Zhong's face turned dark, as if he realized something.

"Later," Lu Wan added, "the cabinet took the lead, and the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War and other government offices. At that time, Minister Ma was still in office. They strongly proposed to Your Majesty that the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works should supervise these mines. You have seen what happened afterwards. Although the mines continued to develop and more and more were opened, the profits were decreasing day by day."

Qi Zhong said: "You mean, all the ore from the mines was taken by people?"

Lu Wan shook his head and said, "Things are definitely not that simple. More and more mines were opened, but most of the later mines were funded by local governments. These mines themselves did not produce much, and every time a mine was opened, local governments would conscript civilians to work on the mines. The court even had to take out money from the original mining revenue to maintain these new mines, but new mines often did not make enough money to cover their expenses."

"Really?" Qi Zhong frowned.

It was obvious that Qi Zhong knew nothing about mining.

Lu Wan said: "If they just took away the ore, then the method was too low, and the court would probably have conducted a thorough investigation long ago. The key is that the subsequent mines collected and opened are far less profitable than the mines opened by Duke Cai at the beginning. Most of these mines are just taking advantage of the situation. The reason they entered the system, in addition to meeting the huge demand for ore by the court military... is to satisfy the pockets of the people in the court. Most of the silver went into the pockets of this group of people."

"Then why didn't Your Majesty check it before?" Qi Zhong asked coldly.

Lu Wan said helplessly: "Your Majesty originally wanted ore, especially iron ore. These new mines cost a lot of money, but at least they can increase the output of iron, although this iron... is made at a high cost. Your Majesty tolerated it. But later... some people found a way to make money and became even more aggressive, so that the court spent more and more silver on these useless mines."

"Of course, not all of this money was taken by officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works. Most of it was taken by people who managed the imperial farms and official lands. But officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works were also behind the scenes fanning the flames. Many people from the government offices were involved, vying to profit from this business... It was as if this was the private property of Duke Cai, and it would be a waste not to take it."

Qi Zhong said with a dark face: "I didn't take it, what does it have to do with me?"

Lu Wan laughed and said, "That's right... there are quite a few people in the court who profited from this. Your Majesty couldn't stand it and asked the East Factory to conduct a thorough investigation. The next step will be to expand the case. Some people... will be punished sooner or later. But they will also be cursed and infamous for eternity." (End of this chapter)