The days when I ransacked the house in Jinyiwei

Emperor Zhengde not only supported the Xungui Group represented by the Chang family. At the same time, he also strongly praised his close ministers.

On this day, Emperor Zhengde summoned Chang Feng, Zhang Yong, Gu Dayong, Jiang Bin, and Qian Ning in Baofang.

Emperor Zhengde smiled and said: "The Governor of the East Factory is now a strong man Zhang. He has to be in charge of the ceremonial supervisor, the factory guard, and the capital camp. He is too tired. I really feel sorry for him!"

As soon as these words came out, Chang Feng's heart was like a bright mirror: the Chief Liturg and the Beijing Camp could not do without Zhang Yong. It seems that the emperor is going to change the candidate for the governor of Dongchang.

Sure enough, Emperor Zhengde said: "I have decided to appoint Jiang Bin as the admiral of the East Factory. Zhang Yong will resign and will be in charge of the Supervisor of Ceremonies and the Beijing Camp from now on."

Jiang Bin subconsciously covered his lower body with his hand.

Since the establishment of Dongchang in the 18th year of Yongle reign, the admiral of Dongchang has been a eunuch.

If you want to control the East Factory, you must first own the palace or be palaceed by others.

Jiang Bin didn't want to be castrated. There are hundreds of concubines and beautiful maids in the family. If the bottom is gone, wouldn’t there be no more fun?
Jiang Bin said quickly: "Your Majesty, I have few talents and little knowledge, and lack of ability. It is absolutely impossible to be qualified for the position of governor."

Emperor Zhengde saw through Jiang Bin's thoughts: "Don't worry. I won't let you be castrated. Just serve as the admiral of Dongchang as a military general!"

Emperor Zhengde did not stick to rules. The female general leads the army and the military general serves as the admiral of Dongchang. He is definitely a king who dares to be the first in the world.

After hearing this, Jiang Bin immediately changed his tone: "But the emperor trusts me so much. I can't let him down. I must do my duty and manage the East Factory for the emperor."

Emperor Zhengde said: "Look, as soon as I said I wouldn't castrate you, you immediately agreed happily. Okay, then it's decided. From now on, the admiral of Dongchang will be Jiang Bin!"

Emperor Zhengde turned to Chang Feng and asked for his opinion: "Uncle, what do you think?"

What can Chang Feng say? I can only say good things for Jiang Bin: "Your Majesty, Jiang Bin is a smart and capable person. He is definitely capable of managing the factory guards."

Emperor Zhengde made Jiang Bin the admiral of Dongchang, ranking him above Qian Ning. Naturally, Qian Ning was a bit picky and felt sour.

But on the surface he said: "Ah, Admiral Mengjiang will have to take care of me from now on!"

Jiang Bin cupped his hands and said, "We share the joys and sorrows, we share the joys and sorrows."

Emperor Zhengde turned to look at Chang Feng again: "I sent you to inspect the Hanlin Academy. How is the situation there at the Hanlin Academy?"

Chang Feng said: "Your Majesty, I have discovered a major flaw in the Hanlin Academy! They say that the Hanlin Academy is a Qingshui Yamen, but it is not the case!"

Emperor Zhengde was a little surprised: "Why? Could it be that those corrupt scholars in the Hanlin Academy still have something to gain? The Hanlin Academy has no real power!"

Chang Feng said: "Those rotten scholars have a way to make money! The Hanlin Academy is in charge of the compilation of history books."

"According to the convention of compiling history, officials below the sixth rank are not allowed to enter history unless there are special circumstances."

"Some officials who were ranked sixth, seventh, or even eighth or ninth rank, and after they passed away, their families wanted to leave their names in the history books, so they bribed the corrupt scholars in the Hanlin Academy."

"The price of the bribe is clearly marked. Two thousand taels can be used to record the official position and name in the history books. Three thousand taels can have four words of praise. Five thousand taels can have a whole line of words."

"If you had a bad official reputation during your lifetime and want to change it into a good name in the history books, you will have to pay eight thousand taels of silver!"

"The rotten scholars in the Hanlin Academy have been doing this business for more than 20 years!"

Emperor Zhengde was furious when he heard this: "You bastard! History books are meant to be passed down for generations to come! By doing this, are the Hanlin officials going to leave a false history that is full of lies for future generations?"

Chang Feng said: "What the emperor said is absolutely true. I don't know if I don't check the Imperial Academy. If I check, I will be shocked. The officials of the Imperial Academy simply regard history books as a tool for carrying private goods!"

"Whoever offends them will write nonsense in the history books and do their best to slander him."

"Whoever gave them a bribe, they wrote glowing words in the history books."

"Yesterday, I informed the Ministry of Officials and dismissed sixteen Hanlin officials."

Now the power of the nobles has reached its peak. You can even instruct the staff to remove Hanlin officials. This was something that was unthinkable in the Hongzhi Dynasty. At that time, even if Emperor Hongzhi himself wanted to remove himself from Hanlin officials, he would have to discuss it with the cabinet members.

Emperor Zhengde smiled and said: "It's better to avoid it! I have suppressed civil servants in recent years. Hmm, those people from the Hanlin Academy may not know how they will frame and slander me in my records in the future!"

"You need to know that the history pen is like a rafter!"

Emperor Zhengde was not a fortune teller, but the few words he said at this moment were a prophecy.

Emperor Zhengde changed the topic: "Civil officials have a cabinet. But I have never regarded the cabinet as my confidant."

"In my opinion, the five of you will be my 'mini cabinet' from now on. If I have something to do in the future, I will directly instruct you five to handle it!"

Chang Feng and others were flattered when they heard this. They knelt down and kowtowed, and said in unison: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your trust."

Emperor Zhengde changed the topic: "Oh, by the way, I plan to go out for a walk recently. Gu Dayong and Qian Ning will accompany me. Chang Feng, Zhang Yong, and Jiang Bin will stay in Beijing."

Chang Feng's heart skipped a beat after hearing this: "May I ask Your Majesty, do you want to tour the south?"

Emperor Zhengde waved his hand: "No, this time I will only inspect important places in the north and will not go south."

After hearing this, Chang Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

On March 29th of the 13th year of Zhengde, Emperor Zhengde went to Changping to pay homage to the mausoleum.

Aren’t your civil servants opposed to my patrol? Well, I will go to Changping to fulfill my filial piety. You will have nothing to say, right?

After the mausoleum ceremony, Emperor Zhengde did not return to the capital. Instead, he went to Miyun.

I don’t know who spread the rumor among the people. It was said that Emperor Zhengde "wanted to attract women and collect wealth." Therefore, "wherever the dragon came, the people took shelter."

Emperor Zhengde stayed in Miyun until May. He then went to Xifengkou, summoned the leaders of the three guards of Duoyan, and gave them a banquet to reward them.

After inspecting the border defense at Xifengkou, he prepared to conduct a large-scale military exercise. Mobilizing 150,000 border troops from Liaodong, Xuanda, Yansui, Shanxi, Ningxia, and Gansu, they conducted an armed parade on the grasslands.

Although the civil servants headed by Yang Tinghe objected, the military power was no longer in their hands.

In fact, they didn't understand that this was Emperor Zhengde flexing his muscles to the Tatars. Look, our Ming army is now strong and powerful. If you dare to go south and invade, hey, sorry, I will kill you like a pig butchering a dog!

This military parade lasted for two full months. Emperor Zhengde returned to the south of the Great Wall with satisfaction.

After returning to the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhengde granted the second great title to the soldiers who fought in the Yingzhou battle last year. A total of more than 56,000 people were rewarded.

Among them, Jiang Bin was named Pinglupp. Xu Tai was named Anbianbo.

The amount of silver rewarded to meritorious soldiers reached an astonishing amount of more than three million taels.

On the sixth day of the seventh lunar month, Emperor Zhengde proclaimed himself "Mighty General of the Sixth Army of Shenggong Shengwutong, Duke and Chief Soldier Zhu Shou". The civil servants objected, but they didn't.

On the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, Emperor Zhengde left Juyongguan and inspected Huailai and Baoan, all the way to Xuanfu.

On August 18, from Xuanfu to Wanquan, Huailai, Tiancheng and Yanghe.

On the first day of September, I arrived in Datong and stayed.

On the second day of October, the dragon crossed the Yellow River and arrived in Yulin, then to Suide.

By the way, Dai Qin, the commander-in-chief of Yansui, is really not very shameless. My daughter has been married for more than ten years. He heard that Emperor Zhengde liked other people's wives. So he found a dozen girls with excellent martial arts in brothels to teach his daughter the art of intercourse. He also dedicated his daughter to Emperor Zhengde. Emperor Zhengde felt comfortable being served and promoted Dai Qinguan by two levels to the rank of governor.

Emperor Zhengde spent a whole year on this trip.

Autumn, the thirteenth year of Zhengde. Cabinet value.

The first assistant Yang Tinghe, the second assistant Liang Chu, cabinet members Jiang Mian and Mao Ji sat opposite Chang Feng, Zhang Yong and Jiang Bin.

Nowadays, when discussing cabinet matters, Chang, Zhang, and Jiang must be called. Otherwise, even if the cabinet makes a resolution, it will not be implemented.

The emperor's close ministers have actually overpowered the civil servants.

Yang Tinghe said: "Master Changhou, when will the emperor return to the capital?"

Chang Feng spread his hands: "I don't know."

Yang Tinghe sighed: "Well, let's start discussing government affairs. Shandong Governor Shangshu, the two gold mines in Yexian and Zhaoyuan have been overexcavated in recent years, and the gold production has dropped sharply."

"He hopes that the Ministry of Revenue can reduce the tribute amount from the two mines to 10,000 taels this year to reduce the burden on the miners."

After saying this, Yang Tinghe looked at Chang Feng.

Chang Feng took a sip of tea and nodded slightly: "Yes."

Yang Tinghe was so angry that he almost broke his molars! He is too frustrated to be the chief minister of the cabinet. Regarding government affairs, he actually wanted to look at the face of a noble man who was a factory guard.

Yang Tinghe added: "The Sichuan Salt Tea Ceremony asked the imperial court to formulate the quantity of salt to be distributed this year."

Jiang Bin said: "The cabinet will discuss this matter with Chang Butang of the Ministry of Household Affairs! Chang Butang is a great economic genius. Of course he will make the right decision on such a small matter!"

After hearing this, Yang Tinghe felt as sick as if he had eaten a fly.

As the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, he had to consult with the Minister of Revenue when something happened? And he was the Right Minister!
Liang Chudao: "As for the candidates for the new Chief Envoy of Zhejiang, there are currently two. One is the current Sichuan Inspector Huang Hansheng, and the other is the current right deputy censor Yu Hanping of the Metropolitan Procuratorate."

Chang Feng waved his hand: "No! Huang Hansheng is an upright official. But he has little ability and is dim in his work. After serving in Sichuan for three years, the Sichuan lawsuit files have almost turned into a pot of confusion."

"Yu Hanping is capable, but he is too greedy. Last month, someone spent 20,000 taels of silver to buy him an impeachment memorial. I haven't settled this account with him yet!"

"Zhejiang is a land of wealth. If you send a corrupt official to be the chief envoy, you may not know how he will pluck his feathers during his term of office!"

Liang Chudao: "Huang Hansheng can't do it, and Yu Hanping can't do it either. So does Mr. Chang have a suitable candidate?"

Nowadays, Chang Feng's power is great enough to interfere in the appointment and removal of local officials.

Chang Feng thought for a while and replied: "The ability of Wang Shouren, the governor of Southern Jiangxi, is obvious to all. I think it is better to transfer him to be the chief envoy of Zhejiang. The transfer of a small governor to the chief envoy of a large province is also in line with the rules of the Ministry of Personnel in appointing officials."

Yang Tinghe said half-mockingly: "Mr. Chang Hou really doesn't avoid relatives when he's in the family."

Chang Feng glanced at Yang Tinghe: "You might as well say that I am nepotistic. Oh, let's not talk about it. If I don't nepotize, how can I be nepotistic?"

"Wang Shouren's ability and character are first-class. He has been in Nangan for many years, so it's time for him to be promoted to a higher level, right?"

Yang Tinghe said: "Come on, let's listen to Lord Chang. We propose to appoint Wang Shouren as the Chief Envoy of Zhejiang."

After the discussion, Chang Feng, Zhang Yong, and Jiang Bin came out to check the cabinet.

Zhang Yong smiled and said: "Master Hou, the way Yang Shoufu looks at you now seems to be full of fire."

Jiang Bin agreed: "Yes, since the emperor went on tour, the cabinet has almost become a decoration. The power is all in the hands of the three of us. How can Old Yang not be itchy to the teeth?"

Chang Feng said: "It doesn't matter whether they hate us or they love us. We just do things fairly and do whatever we can."

"Oh, if you ask me, giving Wang Shouren an envoy to Zhejiang would be an understatement! He should be in charge of the Ministry of War and be a summer official in the imperial court to make the best use of his talents."

Chang Feng did not expect that Wang Shouren's transfer to Zhejiang was opposed by one person.

This person is Wang Shouren himself!

Soon after, Wang Shouren sent a letter to Chang Feng. The letter begins with a thank you to Chang Feng for never forgetting his old friendship.

Then the conversation changed and Zhejiang was the money bag of North Korean civil servants and a den of right and wrong. We, Lao Wang, don’t want to go to Zhejiang and make a fuss!
Besides, Nangan is a miserable place. Our Lao Wang likes to use his talents in hard places to benefit the people there.

The most important point is that King Ning of Jiangxi is not a good person. In recent years, they have been winning over bandits and counselors. There is no chance of rebellion. Our Lao Wang is based in Nangan, so we can at least check and balance him.

Wang Shengren himself didn't want to go to Zhejiang, so Chang Feng couldn't force him. I had no choice but to recommend another person to Yang Tinghe.

All in all, all in all. In the autumn of the thirteenth year of Zhengde, the power of the Chang family reached its peak.

The appointment and dismissal of officials, economic and major affairs, all matters handled by the cabinet must be approved by the Chang family.

Not to mention that You Jingwu was in charge of most of the troops of the 12th Regiment. Equivalent to the capital garrison commander in later generations.

Chang Feng's wife Liu Xiaoyan was also ordered to take charge of the Wucheng Military and Horse Division. Basically equivalent to the captain of the Capital Patrol Corps.

It is said that Yang Yiqing did not return to his hometown immediately after becoming an official, but stayed in the capital for half a year.

On this day, Yang Yiqing came to Chang Feng to say goodbye.

In Chang's study, Chang Feng said goodbye to his old friend.

Yang Yiqing said: "Before I leave, I have to advise you. The Chang family is too powerful now. I'm afraid."

Chang Feng said: "Brother Yang, are you trying to persuade me to curb my sharp edge?"

Yang Yiqing nodded slightly: "It's not a good thing to be too sharp."

Chang Feng said: "When I was young, I reminded myself to 'reinforce my talents' every day and thought about finding a substitute all day long."

"However, when I got older, I realized that it was useless to temper my sharp edges. It was useless to find a substitute. People who wanted to kill me still found ways to trip me up."

"A kind-hearted person cannot survive in the officialdom! Only by making them afraid will they not dare to attack my Chang family rashly!"

"It took me more than thirty years to figure this out."

Yang Yiqing said: "If you are afraid, just be afraid. What day will your Majesty"

Chang Feng frowned: "How is the emperor? The emperor is very powerful. I heard from Qingyun that he took care of three widows in one night without even breathing heavily."

"Brother Yang, have you heard anything?"

Yang Yiqing said quickly: "No. I mean, people have misfortune and good fortune, and the emperor will do it sooner or later. What will the Chang family do then?"

"The Chang family is now surrounded by enemies on all sides in the court. When the emperor is here, their power can be guaranteed. If the emperor..."

Chang Feng smiled and said: "So, I burn incense and worship Buddha every day, hoping that our promising Emperor Zhengde will live a long life and live forever!" (End of Chapter)