Ming Dynasty: At the beginning, the house was ransacked and the ancestral temple was burned down.

Chapter 240: Rebellion! It's really a rebellion!
"Why do your official robes look like new every day?"

"what?"

"I asked you why your official robes look like new every day?"

Zhang Chonghui looked at Emperor Wanli with a confused look on his face. He didn't quite understand why the emperor asked him such a strange question.

At the same time, Zhang Chonghui was even more wondering why Zhu Yijun was staring at the oriole patch on his chest?
This conversation between the two interrupted Matteo Ricci's piano playing, and Zhu Yijun also came back to his senses from the piano music.

The cranes with their wings spread out have disappeared, and what remains are only the small and cute orioles.

The only thing that remains unchanged is the robe with distinct creases that looks like a brand new every day.

"Your Majesty, this is the map presented by missionary Matteo Ricci."

Zhang Chonghui seemed to have never heard or seen Zhu Yijun's strange questions and actions just now, and just introduced the map to the emperor.

"Missionary Matteo Ricci said that there are five continents in the world, and our Ming Dynasty is in ..."

Zhang Chonghui said this, pointing to an area in the center of the map, but did not say anything else.

At the same time, Matteo Ricci was in great anxiety. He carefully looked at the expression of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, just waiting for him to smile.

In the eyes of Matteo Ricci and even all the "barbarians", the people of the Ming Dynasty always had a conceited sense of superiority. They were born to believe that the territory of the Ming Dynasty was in the center of the world and was the most Chinese in the world.

In fact, in the world map that Matteo Ricci first owned, the territory of the Ming Dynasty was only a small piece in the corner.

Even if the earth is round, any place can become the axis point.

But Ricci was afraid that the conceited and sensitive people of the Ming Dynasty would not be able to accept that their Celestial Empire was only located in a remote corner on the world map, so Ricci deliberately redrawn the world map.

In order to satisfy the vanity of the Ming people, Matteo Ricci deliberately placed the territory of the Ming Dynasty in the center of the map in order to please these conceited and arrogant people.

Matteo Ricci thought that the emperor of the Ming Dynasty would be like other people of the Ming Dynasty. When he saw that the Ming Dynasty was indeed at the center of the world, he would smile and say happily:
"Sure enough, our Ming Dynasty is the China of the world!"

However, imagination is often rich, but reality is...

The Emperor of Ming did laugh, but after laughing for a while, he only said:
“So there are five continents.”

Matteo Ricci was confused. Shouldn't the emperor of the Ming Dynasty care about how powerful his Ming Dynasty was? Why did he only care about the five continents in the world?
At this time, Zhang Chonghui, who was the translator but had not translated anything at all, smiled strangely and said:

"Your Majesty, the missionary Matteo Ricci really cared about the Ming Dynasty. He deliberately drew the territory of the Ming Dynasty in the middle, which makes it easier for us to find it."

Matteo Ricci was sweating profusely. Just as he laughed off the embarrassing scene and turned to preach their God and the Bible to the Emperor of Ming Dynasty, the Emperor of Ming Dynasty just said lightly:
"Why don't you play another song?"

Matteo Ricci: “…”

……

Matteo Ricci didn't know whether his missionary work was successful.

Speaking of success, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty didn't even bother to ask who the Virgin Mary, Jesus, of their Catholic Church was.

As if he could not succeed, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty rewarded him with many treasures, allowed him to stay in the capital for a long time, and provided him with a residence.

In addition, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty also asked him to personally teach the musicians of the Jiaofangsi to play the iron stringed harp that he presented as tribute...

……

After Matteo Ricci stepped down, it was time for the translator Zhang Chonghui to leave as well.

However, Zhu Yijun asked Zhang Chonghui to stay and asked:

"How is the prince doing lately?"

……

After Matteo Ricci left, Zhang Chonghui stayed in the Qianqing Palace for a long time until someone came to pay respects to the emperor, and then Zhang Chonghui left.

No one knows what was said between the two.

Zheng Mengjing, who came to pay respects to the emperor, only knew that Zhang Chonghui bowed to her outside the palace, looked at the black tabby cat in her arms, and said something ambiguous:
"The Imperial Concubine has a cat again. How cute."

Zheng Mengjing walked quickly into the hall as if he didn't hear anything, but his ears actually turned red.

I guess he was angry.

……

Time flies, and it is March of the 29th year of Wanli.

It still didn't rain, and many places in northern Zhili were so dry that they were about to crack.

As if it weren't raining, in this year of severe drought, there was new unrest in the Ming Dynasty.

Another civil uprising broke out in Wuchang Prefecture, Huguang.

It is said that the reason why the Wuchang Prefecture in Huguang sparked a civil uprising this time was because Chen Feng, the mine supervisor sent by the emperor himself, was a vicious person and bullied men and women.

Zhu Yijun was accustomed to such things as mine supervisors committing all kinds of evil and inciting civil unrest.

This is indeed the case. Ever since he sent mine supervisors to the local areas to collect money, the poor would rebel every once in a while.

Zhu Yijun didn't know whether Chen Feng was so hateful or not. He only knew that this time, his ministers started to make efforts again.

Because the envoy sent by the imperial court to Wuchang Prefecture was drowned to death by the "rebels"!

……

Qianqing Palace.

"It's the other way around! It's really the other way around!"

I don’t know if it’s because the illness has never been fully cured, causing me to be in a trance due to nightmares every night, or because it hasn’t rained for almost a year, causing drought in many places and triggering many famine disasters.

Zhu Yijun's mental state has become increasingly unstable recently.

At this moment, he was so angry that he tore the memorial in his hand into two halves and smashed it to the ground!

The reason why Zhu Yijun was so angry was that he had just read the memorial from a clerk in the Ministry of Revenue named Tian Dayi.

……

At the same time, in the Chief Clerk's Office of the Honglu Temple.

Zhang Chonghui was also watching the memorial submitted by Tian Dayi, the Imperial Censor, to Emperor Wanli.

Ye Xianggao was drinking tea at the side, and he could hear Zhang Chonghui's low voice in his ears.

"Your Majesty drives wolves and tigers to eat people, causing people all over the world to suffer from skinning and marrow sucking, resulting in natural disasters, earth cracks, mountain collapses and river drying up!
The disaster started with the Emperor, and the people's anger arose from accumulated resentment. But Your Majesty is trying to block the people's eyes and ears and make your own explanations.

Today, the people of Huguang have drowned their envoys because of Chen Feng's rampage, and the imperial envoys have not dared to enter Huguang for more than two months.

I heard that the attention of all quarters is also focused on Huguang. I believe that Your Majesty should immediately abolish the mining tax to bring peace to all quarters, but Your Majesty is still reluctant to give it up.

The world is indeed the most noble, but gold, jade and jewels are actually the most cheap. Even if gold, jade and jewels are piled up like a mountain, they cannot buy a single inch of land in the world. If you lose the world, what is the use of gold, jade and jewels!
Today, the people from all over the country see that Your Majesty has no intention of changing your ways after the people of Wuchang once again caused rebellion. They know that there is no solution to the disaster and they will certainly rise up in rebellion.

At this moment, the only way to save the country is to kill all the mining supervisors and tax collectors to apologize to the world! "

Zhang Chonghui read Tian Dayi's memorial in a low voice while reading it, and then he smiled and said:
"You scholars are so mean when you curse at others. Aren't you afraid that the emperor will get angry and just chop them off... No, I almost forgot, beheading is an honor for you."

"Don't say anything, I don't want to be beheaded." Ye Xianggao said calmly, and then asked:
"Now that things have gotten so serious, even the imperial envoys have been drowned because of the civil unrest. Do you think the emperor will abolish the mining tax?"

"No." Zhang Chonghui said with certainty.

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianggao sighed softly, as if he loved his country and his people very much, and said, "The emperor is really stubborn."

"You might as well just say that the emperor loves money like his life." Zhang Chonghui exposed it mercilessly.

Ye Xianggao put down the tea bowl and looked around again. After confirming that there were indeed no spies here, he whispered:
"I heard that the emperor has been ill since the beginning of the year, and his mood has become increasingly unstable. If this continues, I'm afraid..." "What did the imperial physician say?" Zhang Chonghui asked, "I saw the emperor some time ago, and he was just a little weak. He won't get sicker the more he's treated, right?"

"You know those people in the Imperial Hospital." Ye Xianggao said:
"It is no exaggeration to say that if the person who was ill was a eunuch, he would have been cured long ago, but this time it is the emperor who is ill. If the emperor gets sick from drinking the medicine from the Imperial Hospital, their heads will not be enough to be chopped off."

Zhang Chonghui asked: "So what medicine does the Imperial Hospital prescribe for the Emperor now?"

Ye Xianggao smiled bitterly and said, "What else can it be? It can only be a tonic."

Zhang Chonghui did not respond. He probably knew why the imperial physician could only prescribe tonic medicine.

After all, the Imperial Medical Bureau kept records of all the medicines it prescribed to the emperor. If the emperor had a stomachache or a headache, the first thing he would do was check the records of the Imperial Medical Bureau.

If there is even the slightest mistake in a prescription, it will be a handle. The only prescription without a handle is a mild tonic.

Not all diseases require tonics. The imperial physicians all know this, but it is hard to say whether the emperor knows this.

"Over the years, due to the mining tax, civil unrest has broken out everywhere. Right now, an official of the imperial court has died in Wuchang because of the civil unrest. The emperor is unwilling to abolish the mining tax. If this continues, I'm afraid the world will be in chaos."

Ye Xianggao frowned, and it was obvious that he really wanted the emperor to abolish the mining tax. As for whether he really did it for the sake of the poor people, only he himself knew.

"I think you are just too impatient." Zhang Chonghui said casually.

"Do you have any idea?"

"No."

"then you……"

"I only know that you can't become fat by eating one mouthful, and you can't become drunk by drinking one mouthful."

"What do you mean?"

"Have you ever fed your son? Have you ever persuaded your friend to drink?"

"what?"

"Food should be fed mouthful by mouthful. Wine should be poured cup by cup."

……

April 15th, the 29th year of the Wanli reign.

The Wuchang Uprising in Huguang is still continuing to ferment.

On this day, Emperor Wanli in the Qianqing Palace received a memorial, and the person who submitted it was Ye Xianggao.

“Your Majesty, the Wuchang uprising was caused by the fact that Huguang Tax Commissioner Chen Feng, after he repeatedly submitted memorials impeaching Huguang Sub-inspector Feng Yingjing, causing him to resign and become a civilian, issued a large-scale notice to list his faults and evil deeds, and was complacent and exaggerated.

When the common people heard this, they cried bitterly and chased Feng Yingjing. During this time, they were so angry that this happened. Chen Feng saw that the situation was critical and hid in the palace of the King of Chu, otherwise he would be torn into pieces by the people.

The common people were also angry that Huguang Governor Zhi Keda protected Chen Feng, so they followed the carriage and cursed him, and set fire to his government office. But in the memorial submitted by Huguang Governor yesterday, he only mentioned that it was a fire, concealed the truth, and did not mention the real reason for the civil unrest.

Today, the common people are still gathering together and have not dispersed. Even if they temporarily disperse, how can we be sure that they will not gather again and attack each other?
Now, not only Wuchang Prefecture, but the entire Huguang Province, all harbored resentment towards Chen Feng. Because the roads were blocked, the news was not transmitted, and the truth was not known, the public anger was actually like water and fire, which could not be violated.

The people of Wuchang had been disturbed by Chen Feng the year before last, and they hoped that Chen Feng would reform himself. However, Chen Feng was becoming more and more serious and was determined not to let the people survive.

I think Chen Feng will surely meet with disaster, but Chen Feng alone is not worthy of pity, and the national dignity should be given priority.

Your Majesty should issue an edict as soon as possible to punish Chen Feng for his crime, and select experienced, loyal and prudent people to go to Huguang to appease the people. Do not wait until the people kill Chen Feng before taking any action.

Today, tax collectors are spread all over the country, but there are only three or four of them who are cursed by all the people.

Chen Feng could not make the emperor feel at ease, but instead made him angry and worried. Why did the emperor prefer Chen Feng instead of focusing on stabilizing the 4,000 miles of Huguang area and saving the lives of tens of millions of people in Huguang?

As long as an imperial decree is issued to replace a tax collector, the people's hearts will be settled, the state system will be more respected, and tax revenue will not be reduced. The benefits are enormous.

I have been tossing and turning in bed, and I have written this memorial to implore Your Majesty to pay attention and quickly dismiss Chen Feng to reassure the people.

Yours sincerely."

The memorial submitted by Ye Xianggao was the most "gentle" and "considerate" memorial Zhu Yijun had seen in recent days for an emperor like him.

After all, in their memorials, the other ministers not only cursed Chen Feng, the "culprit", but also cursed him, the emperor and father.

Even scolding him, the high and mighty emperor, was hundreds of times crueler than scolding Chen Feng, a eunuch!
Only Ye Xianggao not only did not scold him as the emperor, but even considered him as the emperor and just asked him to replace the eunuch Chen Feng and that was enough.

"I remember that Ye Xianggao is Shen Yiguan's student, right?"

Zhu Yijun suddenly asked this question. After all, the last civil official who could be so gentle to him was Shen Yikuan, who fawned on him.

Chen Ju replied, "Your Majesty, I remember that the year Ye Xianggao entered the Imperial Academy, Shen Yiguan was the instructor of the Imperial Academy. But I also remember that Ye Xianggao did not seem to be liked by Shen Yiguan."

"It doesn't matter whether you like it or not, as long as you can share my worries." Zhu Yijun closed his eyes, breathed a long sigh of relief, and asked again:

"What did Chen Feng say?"

"Your Majesty, Chen Feng came to report and explained that the civil uprising was deliberately instigated by someone, and the envoy who drowned was also deliberately mixed in with the refugees and drowned by force."

After hearing this answer, Zhu Yijun did not speak for a long time. He just leaned on the dragon throne with his eyes closed, as if he was asleep.

I don’t know how long it took, but Zhu Yijun finally spoke.

"Send an order to have Chen Feng return to the capital, and have Chengtian garrison eunuch Du Mao take charge of Huguang's taxation.

Besides, Yu Shenxing is pretending to be sick, Li Tingji is ill, and there is only Fang Congzhe in the cabinet, which is too few, so let Ye Xianggao join the cabinet."

……

Chen Feng's problem was finally resolved, and Ye Xianggao was finally promoted to the cabinet as he wished.

As for why the imperial envoy died unjustly, it no longer matters.

Zhu Yijun felt that he had retreated by replacing the tax inspector, but his ministers found some ways out of this "gradual retreat".

Drinking wine should be encouraged one sip at a time, and should not be forced unless it is absolutely necessary.

The tenth day of May, the twenty-ninth year of the Wanli reign.

Li Dai, the Minister of Personnel, submitted a memorial stating:

"Now the drought is raging in the prefectures of Northern Zhili. The people are having a hard time making a living. All vegetation has dried up and people have to eat tree bark to fill their stomachs. The roads are littered with corpses and the villages are deserted. There is no fire.

According to the report of Governor Wang Yingjiao, there are 180,000 people waiting for relief, the summer wheat has died, and the autumn seeds have not been sown!
Now that the people are forced to sit and wait for death, how can we bear to talk about it! Now that the people are unwilling to sit and wait for death, how can we bear to talk about it!

Since the years of war, taxes have continued to increase. Today's taxes have doubled compared to 20 years ago, and Your Majesty has insisted on reinstituting mining taxes and has sent eunuchs to open mines and collect taxes everywhere.

Regardless of whether there are mineral resources in an area, the people will suffer from the burden of contracting the mines and paying taxes; regardless of whether the people are willing or not, they will suffer from the burden of being assigned mines and paying taxes!
If you point to someone's house and claim there is a mine, his house will immediately become ruined; if you pay less tax, his wallet will immediately be emptied!
Your Majesty only knows that it is easy to make money and that eunuchs can be trusted. How could you have known that such people would exploit and harm the common people to such an extent!
Your Majesty, do you know that the people who suffer from mining taxes today are the same people who suffered from famine and war the day before! The accumulation of hardships, sorrow, resentment, and sighs have led to this!

In the province of Huguang, there have been four or five popular uprisings, and the recent one in Wuchang was particularly severe. Your Majesty may wish to think about why the common people have rebelled.

Who doesn't have a life? Who doesn't have a fortune? It's just because of the extreme exploitation, there is no appeal! Change is death, change is also death! Since you are waiting to die, it is better to die side by side with the victims, and die without regrets!
Today, the villages are empty, the mountains and swamps are empty, the counties are empty, the government treasury is empty, and the people are as poor as a sick person whose blood has been drained out!"

Zhu Yijun finished reading the memorial, but this time, he did not get angry like he did in the previous times. Instead, he stared at the last sentence on the memorial and muttered to himself:

"The villages are empty, the mountains and swamps are empty, the counties are empty, the government treasury is empty..."

Looking at these "empty" things, Zhu Yijun was in a trance, and suddenly thought of a person who was not related to him at all.

This person is Hai Rui, who has been dead for many years.

"The villages are empty, the mountains and swamps are empty, the counties are empty, the government treasury is empty...

What is the difference between this and what Jiajing said, that every household is clean and has no money to spend? "

(End of this chapter)