Jinyi Town Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 102 The Confrontation in Yongshou Palace
Yongshou Palace.

Lu Bing led He Liu to the entrance of the main hall.

Lu Fangzai, the chief inspector of ceremonies, greeted him: "The emperor has been waiting for you for a long time."

Lu Fang looked at He Liu with a smile.He Long saw a trace of fear in his eyes.

Lu Fang's godson, Yang Jinshui, was involved in the sale of smuggled salt. If the incident happened, he, the godfather, would also be involved.

Lu Bing and He Liu entered the main hall and shouted "Long live" towards the Qingsha curtain mountain.

Emperor Jiajing's hoarse voice came from the green gauze curtain: "Lu Fang, Lu Bing, you go down. He Liu stay!"

In the main hall, only Emperor Jiajing and He Liu were left.

Emperor Jiajing said: "He Liu, the last time you handled the Ding Wang case, you burned the "Hundred Officials Records" that recorded the illegal affairs of more than 800 officials. I didn't argue with you. This time, I I asked you to go to Jiangnan to investigate the smuggled salt case, but you failed to find out the case, but you brought back 1000 million taels of silver from an unknown source. Are you convicted?"

He Liudao: "Report to the emperor! I did not investigate the private salt case, and I was convicted. But the 1000 million taels of silver did not come from unknown sources. In fact, it was the tax money that Lianghuai owed the court for nearly five years!"

"Oh? In other words, the 1000 million taels of silver are all dirty money from the private salt case?" Emperor Jiajing said with a half-smile in the green gauze curtain.

"The emperor is wise!" He Liu kowtowed and said.

Emperor Jiajing sneered: "Heh, the sixth son of Jinyiwei is very capable! You claim that you did not investigate the illegal salt case, and that none of the culprits who sold the illegal salt were caught by me, but you let the culprits spit out 1000 million taels of dirty silver? In such a case, let alone whether I believe it or not, can you believe it yourself?"

He Liu said calmly: "Report to the emperor. Those culprits who sell private salt are afraid of the emperor's might. I asked the court to set up a Jiangnan disaster relief office to give them a chance to spit out their own money. These The silver, they spit it out in the form of anonymous donation. The emperor is mighty, and in front of Tianwei, the young people regret their previous evil deeds. They can only hand over the silver that does not belong to them in order to atone for their sins."

Emperor Jiajing sneered again: "Oh, since it's an anonymous donation, you, He Liu, don't know who donated the money—who spit out the dirty money?"

He Liu buckled his head again, "Boom~" The sound of his forehead hitting the stone slab on the ground was transmitted into the green gauze tent.

"Why don't you answer my words?" Emperor Jiajing said angrily.

He Liudao: "Your Majesty, I really don't know who spit out the dirty money."

Emperor Jiajing lifted the green gauze curtain.He glanced at He Liu: "He Liu, I don't think you don't know. You are afraid, right? You are afraid that if you say the names of those people, you will offend Yan Song, Lu Fang, and even King Yu in the court."

After He Liu heard this, he suddenly remembered what Lao Hu said: Our emperor has not been in court for 20 years, but he can play tricks on his ministers.He is the most intelligent man in the world.

He Liu kowtowed and said: "Your Majesty, I am not afraid of offending all the superiors. The flowers on my flying fish clothes are all the grace of the Emperor. I have received the Emperor's favor, so I must contribute to the Emperor and the court. Although I am humble, I have a deep heart. There can be no court bureau. Chen Wan died, and he did not try his best to investigate the private salt case. Because once the private salt case comes to light, the south of the Yangtze River will be in chaos, and Jiangnan's finances and taxes account for half of the treasury's revenue. If Jiangnan is in chaos, the court will be in chaos!"

Emperor Jiajing said: "Oh? Unexpectedly, you, a small fifth-rank brocade guard, have such a sophisticated and steady political opinion."

He Liudao: "I dare not lie to the emperor, these words were taught to me by Lord Hu Zongxian."

"Hu Zongxian?" Emperor Jiajing was taken aback for a moment, and then said, "What kind of person do you think Hu Zongxian is?"

He Liu replied: "Report to the emperor. I believe that the emperor's evaluation of Hu Butang is very insightful: the court cannot live without the southeast, and the southeast cannot live without Hu Zongxian!"

Emperor Jiajing smiled and said, "How much benefit have you received from Hu Zongxian? You defend him everywhere."

He Liu raised his head suddenly, he ignored the rules in the palace, and looked directly into Emperor Jiajing's eyes: "Your Majesty, even if Hu Zongxian wanted to bribe his ministers, he might not be able to give any money! He is an official in the south of the Yangtze River, and he is as clean as the one in the Qiantang River." The water is average. Three meals a day, only rice and pickles to satisfy hunger."

Emperor Jiajing saw in He Liu's eyes his sincere admiration for Hu Zongxian.

"Rice with pickled vegetables? He is a senior member of the second rank, even if he is not greedy or corrupt, his annual salary is not a small sum. Is treating himself like this a way of gaining fame?" Emperor Jiajing asked.

He Liu replied: "It's not about fame and reputation. It's because he really has no money to buy fish and meat for food! All his salary was donated to the Qi family army and Yu family army as military pay! A dignified second-rank official has nothing! Mr. Hu For the sake of the people in Zhejiang and Zhizhi provinces, the hall eats food and clothes every day, and eats food three times a day. I heard that Hu Butang is also a child of Jinyiwei. He practiced martial arts since he was a child. The skinny man in his 50s looks like he's in his 70s!"

Emperor Jiajing smiled: "Hu Zongxian is Yan Song's student. If you say that, you are suspected of pleasing the chief assistant Yan Song."

He Liudao: "I don't know who is Yan Ge's old student. I only know that the emperor's governor of Zhezhi is loyal to his duties, clean and self-defense, and he is old enough to seek the country! The military and state affairs in the southeast against the Japanese depend more than half on the emperor's wisdom." The decision-making, the other half, must be carried on the shoulders of a pillar of the country like Hu Zongxian!"

Emperor Jiajing thought for a long time, and sighed: "Whether it is Lu Fang, Yan Song, King Yu, or you, Jin Yiwei, they are all full of praise when they mention Hu Zongxian. It seems that Hu Zongxian is indeed impeccable as a man and an official. Okay. Now, let’s not talk about Hu Zongxian, let’s talk about the private salt case. He Liu, let me ask you, do you really know who donated the dirty money?”

He Liu kowtowed and said, "I really don't know."

Emperor Jiajing stepped down from the green gauze curtain, walked up to He Liu, and bent down.Almost face to face, he said to He Liu: "You really don't know?"

Emperor Jiajing is the king of a country, the honor of the Ninth Five-Year Plan.He carried an innate majesty about him.He Liuyi was stunned by this majesty for a moment.He thought: It is always said that the power of the sky is mighty, but today I really feel it, what is the power of the sky!

"Minister... Indeed... I don't know." He Liu couldn't help but become hesitant.

Emperor Jiajing raised his head, looked at the white clouds floating outside the Yongshou Palace, and said, "Walk to the poor water, sit and watch the clouds rise. He Liu, in this hall, there are only me and you, heaven and earth. I know that you don’t punish those chief criminals because it is for the sake of my country. It’s hard for you, a Jinyiwei with five ranks and a hundred households, to be like Hu Zongxian, who is so old-fashioned to seek the country! I let you say in front of heaven, earth, and your father. The name of the person who donated the silver!"

He Liu was silent for a while.

"Say!" Emperor Jiajing let out a roar.

For some reason, He Liu had already made up his mind to hide it for Yang Jinshui, Zheng Michang and the others.However, after Emperor Jiajing's roar, he blurted out in a strange way: "Report to the emperor... the donators are Zheng Bichang, governor of Zhejiang, Zhang Jin, secretary of the household department of Nanjing, Jiangnan Weaving Bureau and Zhejiang Bosi. Chief Eunuch Yang Jinshui, Nanjing Jinyiwei Town Governor Lu Da, Hedao Yamen Patrol Battalion Commander Hu Xiong..."

(End of this chapter)