Jingtai Fengyun: The First Absurd Emperor of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 868: He left a lot of money to build a royal palace and dispatched the eunuch to run the salt administration
Zhu Qiyu came to Changle Palace, greeted the Queen Mother, and sat beside the couch.

Empress Dowager Wu asked: "Son, you don't go out for half a month. What are you doing at home?"

Zhu Qiyu smiled and said: "Reading, painting, fishing, growing vegetables, and walking the dog."

When Ningxiang heard the word "walking the dog", her pretty face turned red and she glared at Zhu Qiyu fiercely.

The Queen Mother was also not satisfied with this answer: "You have so many children, so you should take some time to accompany them and care about their studies. Take King Han for example, he has skipped school for three days in a row, and the gentleman you invited can't control him. ."

Zhu Qiyu frowned; "Our little King Han is a naughty boy. Last time he was playing around in the mountains and eating mushrooms and got himself bad. This time he played hooky again.

It doesn't matter if he learns or not, as long as he doesn't cause trouble and get himself into trouble. "

The Queen Mother also frowned: "It's ridiculous, how can a father like you have such an attitude?"

"Maybe Little Han Wang just wants to win my attention. Let him accompany me to Kunming Lake to fish and enjoy lotus flowers in two days, and I will test his poetry by the way."

Miao Yue took a sketch and said: "Husband, this is the palace, gardens, amusement park, and other courtyards outside the city planned by the young King of Han and his craftsmen. It will cost a total of 600,000 taels of silver."

The Queen Mother took a breath: "How can our family have so much money?"

Zhu Wenfang first told what happened in Shanxi, and Zhu Qiyu nodded: "You did a good job. Although ten years have passed since the Tumu Fort Incident, I still can't get over it, and I still feel that there is some conspiracy in it.

According to the system before the Jingtai Dynasty, when a prince became a vassal, the imperial court should have paid for it. Now we mainly finance it from internal funds, and only let the court contribute a small part, which is considerate enough. "

If nothing else, it is true that at least Shanxi officials, gentry, and powerful people colluded to empty the treasury and granaries.

"Six hundred thousand taels? For a general prince's palace, even if it is built to be luxurious and magnificent, two hundred thousand taels will be enough. Isn't this six hundred thousand taels too much?"

Japan was conquered by my father, who fought against all odds and worked hard. Minerals worth tens of millions of taels a year cannot be spent by us at all.

Zhu Qiyu replied: "They are all the same, no favoritism, give them all. My daughter also has the same money, I will give it to her without fail."

The Shanxi garrison collapsed and most of the soldiers fled. This is also true.

In any case, Shanxi officials, gentry, powerful people, and merchants must pay the price. If there is no price, there is no fear, and they will not take our father and son seriously.

Zhu Qiyu smiled and said: "I have already said, no money from the court will be used. If the court has to pay, you, the prince, will have to come forward. I will not go back on my word."

The Queen Mother heard this and asked, "What about the other sons?"

Zhu Wenfang responded: "Then let the imperial court provide some. Japan's mineral resources alone include millions of taels of silver a year, not counting gold and copper.

Miao Yue replied: "My husband's estimate is very accurate. The palace and gardens of the Han Dynasty cost two hundred thousand taels. The most expensive one is the other courtyard outside the city."

The King of Han is the patriarch of our Jingtai vassal. In the future, he will still be the great clan leader. Spend more money.

Zhu Qiyu unfolded the sketch and looked at it carefully, then nodded: "Okay, okay, six hundred thousand taels, just six hundred thousand taels. Don't make father and son unhappy over such a trivial matter. Besides, we don't lack this." money.

In a few years, give him one million taels of silver, thirty thousand taels of gold, plus other treasures, and let him go to Xi'an to join the feudal clan in glory. "

Based on these two points alone, they deserve to die, and we, father and son, should go on a killing spree.

But you can just blame me for this purge. I will be the bad guy and you can be the good guy.

Just like Prince Yiwen, he presided over three of Hongwu's four major cases, but in the end he became a benevolent prince praised by both the government and the public.

Just learn to do it like this. I have done too many bad things. One more thing is not too much, and one thing less is not a lot. I'm not afraid of taking the blame, even if the pot is broken. "Zhu Wenfang nodded and took out Zhou Chen's memorial.

After Zhu Qiyu saw it, he asked: "Did the ministers discuss at the court meeting whether the sixty people Zhou Chen asked to be sent to supervise the salt administration were civil servants or eunuchs?"

Zhu Wenfang smiled and said: "My son knew that my father had this question, so before the minister had time to discuss it, I stopped him and said that I would give an answer after reporting it to my father."

"Yeah, okay, okay, okay, you're still smart and quick. Send eunuchs to these sixty people. It's useless for you to send civil servants to supervise things like salt administration."

Ningxiang was on the side, and quietly said two words to Zhu Qiyu from the blind spot of others' sight.

Zhu Qiyu was speechless. This was really a whisper. There was almost no sound at all. He could only guess based on the shape of his mouth.

Fortunately, the couple had a good understanding, and Zhu Qiyu figured it out after thinking about it for a while, so he told Zhu Wenfang: "Although the top eunuchs in Beijing are all confidants of our family, it's hard to tell from below.

So choose from Nanjing and give this task to Yan Li and let him select sixty capable eunuchs to supervise the salt administration for us.

Moreover, an edict must be issued to the south of the Yangtze River to warn the officials and salt merchants that if one of these sixty eunuchs dies during the salt patrol, I don't care whether he choked to death on drinking cold water or fell into a gutter while walking at night. drowned in.

If one person dies, ten salt merchants will be killed and buried with him; if two people die, twenty salt merchants will be killed and buried with him. By analogy, I will kill as many salt merchants as there are, and I will kill the whole family, leaving no one alive.

To reestablish the emperor's authority that your uncle destroyed, we have to use heavy codes even in the prosperous times. If anyone refuses to obey, we will kill him until he obeys.

In this way, the cost will be smaller. After killing a few waves of people, the whole country will be honest. "

Zhu Wenfang nodded: "I understand."

Zhu Qiyu further instructed: "When you become emperor, be fierce first and then gentle, and everyone in the government and the public will praise your gentleness.

If you have been gentle from the beginning, the government and the public will only think that you are weak and can be bullied.

Human nature is so mean. Confucius said it well, only villains and women are difficult to raise. If you are close, you will not be inferior, and if you are far, you will be resentful. "

Zhu Wenfang nodded repeatedly and said it was very good. Ningxiang lightly kicked Zhu Wenfang, and the poor prince shut up.

……

On June 25, Li Bing received the prince's order. Along with the prince's decree, Lu Gao, the commander of the Jin Yiwei, and the three thousand Jin Yiwei he led also arrived.

Three thousand Jin Yiwei, no one needs to take chances now.

The Tiance Guards opened the south gate, and three thousand Jinyi Guards entered the city to arrest people, accompanied by ten thousand Shenji Battalion soldiers for protection.

If there is even the slightest resistance, they are ready to kill.

This is a royal charter. Killing is in vain, and dying is in vain.

Unfortunately, surrounded by 50,000 emperor's troops, the powerful gentry in Shanxi still did not have the courage to violently resist the law.

The powerful people can do whatever they want and commit lawlessness in the local area, but when it comes to serious matters, they are nothing in front of the imperial power.

Tumu Fort is only a hundred miles away from Juyong Pass. After annihilating the Ming army and capturing Baozong, why not take advantage of the victory to break through Juyong Pass and reach the city of Beijing? This is a big mystery.

Zhu Qiyu had been thinking for ten years but could not come up with an accurate answer, so he always harbored great malice towards Shanxi officials, gentry, powerful men and businessmen.

(End of this chapter)