I

   Chapter 612 609 [Jiang You faction]

  The boat sailed to Zhenjiang, Zhao Han had passed by here several times, this time it looked more lively.

  The industry and commerce around Taihu Lake are very developed, especially the textile and dyeing industries lead the country. These commodities pass through the river, one route is to enter the Yangtze River from Zhenjiang, and the other route is to enter the Yangtze River from Jiangyin.

   Zhenjiang is richer than Jiangyin, because this road leads directly to the Grand Canal in the north.

  Nowadays, the maritime trade in Shanghai Port is booming, and Jiangyin, which is closer to Shanghai, is gradually catching up, and even has a tendency to overtake Zhenjiang. Waterway cities such as Wuxi, Changshu, and Taicang have also become important cargo distribution centers because they can connect to Shanghai. Even Fushanpu, along with Changshu, has gradually developed into a large port on the Yangtze River.

   "Chen Zhenjiang prefect Huang Shunde, pay homage to Your Majesty!"

  The fleet just stayed on the shore overnight. Except for the soldiers who were sent out to guard, the rest of the entourage did not disembark. Huang Shunde, the prefect of Zhenjiang, brought two officials from Zhenjiang Prefecture and Dantu County to the emperor's ship to have an audience.

  Zhao Han nodded and said: "Excuse me. There are not many stools on the boat, so you all stand."

   "Follow the order!" the officials said.

   Zhao Han said to Huang Shunde: "Your second son, should he be in primary school?"

Huang Shunde looked excited, squeezed out some tears and said: "Your Majesty still remembers the dog, my minister...how can you be capable? I must work hard and be a good, honest and capable official in order to repay your majesty's great kindness." De!"

  Zhao Han said with a smile: "Stop talking nonsense, just don't blame me in your heart."

   "I dare not." Huang Shunde said hastily.

   This is Zhao Han's first scholar who raised his troops in Wuxing Town to help with things.

  Although Huang Shunde joined the gang just to earn some wages and was ready to surrender to officers and soldiers anytime and anywhere, he was considered a very old hero. What's more, Huang Shunde used to be Zhao Han's secretary, and was released as an official by Zhao Han because his family was intermarried with a rich family.

  If you don’t make mistakes, Huang Shunde is at least at the level of a servant.

  Officials are not allowed to intermarry with rich families. This ban has been lifted long ago. Huang Shunde sometimes thinks about it and feels that he has been wronged enough.

   But it is not injustice, because the Datong New Dynasty continued the policy of the Ming Dynasty, stipulating that officials should not marry women from the places where they work. This is a replica of the prohibition of intermarriage with rich families, and it is all to prevent officials from colluding with local rich people.

  Zhao Han asked: "Did you go back to Wuxing Town these years?"

  Huang Shunde replied: "I was transferred two years ago and visited once on the way out. Thanks to His Majesty's kindness, Wuxing Town now lives and works in peace and contentment. It is one of the most prosperous places in Luling County."

  Zhao Han said: "If you keep talking nonsense and flattering, you can get out."

  Huang Shunde hurriedly said: "Although it is not ranked first or second, it is certain to be ranked in the top three."

  Zhao Han suddenly lost the mood to chat. What he wanted to talk about was about the parents and relatives of Wuxing Town, and talk about the current situation of those old people in the past. Huang Shunde was still so blind, to talk about the prosperity of Wuxing Town to the emperor was simply wrong.

  Of course, Huang Shunde couldn't talk like that. He rarely goes back to his hometown, and even if he does, he doesn't care much about the situation in the village.

   Next, we can only talk about business. Huang Shunde reported the situation of the people's livelihood in Zhenjiang Mansion, and was sent away by the impatient emperor after he finished speaking.

  Although it was not very pleasing, after the officials disembarked, they still looked at Huang Shunde with envious eyes. After all, the emperor spent most of his time chatting with the magistrate.

  Huang Shunde put his hands behind his back, strode forward with his head held high, listening to the flattery of the accompanying officials.

  The magistrate of the mansion is Wei Xin, a scholar from Hunan Province. He followed Huang Shunde and flattered him: "The mansion honors Jane in the heart of the emperor, and he really deserves to be an old minister from Conglong."

Huang Shunde bragged: "Your Majesty raised his troops back then, and after he captured Wuxing Town, there were no scholars around him. Although I was not a scholar, I was still a boy. I was the first scholar to work with Your Majesty. It was a difficult time. It is said that it is a town, but it is actually the territory of two villages, and it has to deal with the encirclement and suppression by officers and soldiers."

  Lin Yingchen, magistrate of Dantu County, also followed, smiling and jokingly said: "Your Majesty, why not tell everyone how Your Majesty defeated the officers and soldiers of the former Ming Dynasty."

   "Yes, yes, yes, we all want to hear it." Other officials echoed.

"Let's talk about this mansion," Huang Shunde said as he walked, "At that time, His Majesty only had three or four hundred troops, and Jiangxi governor Xie Xuelong led an army of tens of thousands to attack. Today's old Li Ge also recruited brave men from the countryside to go around Then they rushed to Wuxing Town. Everyone, facing such a predicament, what can you think of to break the situation?"

  The officials frowned, unable to think of a solution. With only a few hundred troops at hand, facing tens of thousands of troops to conquest, and being surrounded by troops led by Li Banghua, no matter how hard they fight, they are doomed.

Huang Shunde smiled and said: "Your Majesty is the son of the real dragon, and he is a genius in heaven. Xie Xuelong came to fight Wuxing Town, and His Majesty went to fight Ji'an County. If you are sure, the city must be empty of troops. Then Xie Xuelong is not easy to deal with. Early Just keep the troops to defend the city. Why do you say that Ming Dynasty will perish? No matter how good the governor can fight, he can’t hold others back. Guess what?”

  The officials really didn't know, and they all pricked up their ears to listen.

Huang Shunde stroked his beard and said with a whetted appetite: "The guarding **** of Ji'an Mansion was afraid that his banknotes would be robbed, so he sent half of the city guards to guard the banknotes. Your Majesty personally led the rebel army to attack at night, not only killed The officers and soldiers were defeated, and the guarding **** was arrested."

   "So it is." The officials suddenly realized.

  Huang Shunde asked again: "Do you know how His Majesty captured the city?"

  Lin Yingchen said: "But let the **** go to cheat the city?"

  Huang Shunde said with a smile: "The deceitful city is a deceitful city, but how to defraud the city, you must never think of it."

   "My lord, please explain in detail." Wei Xin was very itchy to hear it.

Huang Shunde said: "Ordinary people, if they want to defraud the city, they must be quick, and the defenders have not reacted. But your majesty said that if there is a night attack outside the city, the city must be prepared. Your majesty let the defeated soldiers flee, and sent the soldiers of the other side They hid them all in the eunuch's mansion, making the appearance of evacuating overnight after looting the bank."

"After dawn, there were rout soldiers calling the door one after another, wanting to return to the city. The guards and soldiers did not dare to be careless, and they checked their identities before letting them in. When more and more rout soldiers returned to the city, His Majesty disguised himself as a rout soldier and brought them back to the city. The **** came out of the mountain. So many fled back to the city before, the guards thought the rebels had already withdrawn, how could they expect to kill the carbine? The **** shouted a few words, the city gate opened, and all the officials at the prefectural and county levels came Welcome, I will be killed by His Majesty!"

   "You are really brave and careful, Your Majesty is a good stick!" The officials next to him admired sincerely.

Huang Shunde suddenly sighed: "Your Majesty is extremely strict in governing the military and government. In order to prevent collusion between officials and the people, officials are prohibited from marrying gentry. I am a person close to Your Majesty. Unexpectedly, my family concealed it. I really married a gentry, so I was relegated and severely punished. Otherwise, if you don't talk about Shangshu, how can you be a servant. How can you be an official in Zhenjiang Mansion now?"

  The officials suddenly realized that it was no wonder that Huang Shunde did not do well, this is really unlucky.

  …

   "Why is Your Majesty unhappy?" Liu Rushi asked.

  Zhao Han looked at the surface of the Yangtze River, and said something confusing: "People's hearts are like this river, the surface is calm and the waves are calm, but there are many undercurrents surging under the water."

  Although Liu Rushi couldn't understand what he said, he was able to pick up the words: "Don't be afraid of the undercurrent, just build the embankment and prevent the flood from flooding the banks."

   "That's a good statement." Zhao Han said with satisfaction.

   Mainly because of the exchange just now, Zhao Han found that Huang Shunde hadn't made much progress, and his ability was not worthy of being a magistrate at all. Regarding the situation of Zhenjiang Mansion, Zhao Han asked carefully, Huang Shunde answered vaguely, obviously he was not a competent official.

   But such a person is really a magistrate.

  Seniority is one aspect, and there are connections between the court and China.

  Zhao Han tried his best to balance the forces of all parties, and deliberately promoted officials who were not from Jiangxi, but he still formed a "Jiangyou faction", which is a bit similar to Zhu Yuanzhang's "Huaixi faction" at that time.

  The Jiang You faction has Li Banghua as its center, Song Yingxing as its arm, and Zhao Han's old friends are all leaders.

  When the cabinet was formed, Pang Chunlai was from Liaodong, Li Banghua was from Jiangxi, and Tian Younian was from Shaanxi. In addition to qualifications and credit, it is also balancing power.

  It's a pity that Tian Younian is old and sick, otherwise Zhao Han would never let him go.

  After Tian Younian retired, he was replaced by Song Yingxing, who was from Jiangxi just like Li Banghua. Most of the chief officials of the Ten Departments and the Ten Caos are from Jiangxi.

   Even if they are impartial and selfless, when promoting officials, they will inevitably favor Jiangxi officials.

  Now there is even a jingle: "Full towards Jiangxi, half towards Ji'an."

  The Donglin Party and the Fushe are small forces compared with Jiang You faction.

  This year, Pang Chunlai returned home again, wanting to return to his hometown in Liaodong to take care of himself. But Zhao Han refused to let him go. If Pang Chunlai left, the court would really become the Jiangxi people's world.

   Zhao Han thought about it carefully, and wrote down the three characters "Zhu Zhiyu".

  Zhu Shunshui is an old friend of Zhao Han, and his knowledge and ability are very outstanding. Now that he is a political envoy outside, he can find an opportunity to be transferred to the center, first as the left servant, and then promoted to minister.

   Then, write the name "Wang Tiao Ding" on it.

  Wang Diaoding is the head of the Imperial Academy and has made outstanding contributions to Datong Theory. Officials of the Imperial Academy are not allowed to be easily transferred to political affairs. They can be released to serve in local areas first, and then transferred back to the Ministry of Rites for promotion. After Chen Maosheng entered the cabinet, he asked Wang Diaoding to be the Minister of Rites.

  Wu Yingji, an Anhui native, is already in the center. Zhang Bingwen, who is also an Anhui native, can also find an opportunity to be transferred back as a court official.

   Within ten years, the number of Jiangxi people in the cabinet must be reduced to only 40%. Otherwise, as time goes by, there will definitely be troubles in the future, and maybe Zhao Han will have to learn from Zhu Yuanzhang to kill heroes.

   This is really not alarmist talk. If one side is allowed to dominate, it will be impossible to suppress it at that time.

  As the leader of the Jiangyou faction, Li Banghua, even if he is selfless, the people below will use his name to mess around.

  Li Banghua is seventy-three years old this year. Although he is physically strong, he won't be able to work for a few years. When both he and Pang Chunlai leave the court, Song Yingxing will be the next chief assistant, and then the cabinet officials will be able to make major adjustments.

   (Recommend a friend's book, the old author. "I really don't want to lie down and win", Shenhao Shuangwen.)

  (end of this chapter)