Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 30 Ask for advice
At the backyard door, Zhu Lang had a compassionate look on his face. He was about to use two hundred taels of silver to buy a reputation of caring for the people.

The green-robed official standing by had a sad face, listening to the young King Gui's earnest instructions, unable to escape at all.
Zhu Lang was talking when he heard footsteps in front of the gate.
Zhu Lang looked up and saw Wang Kun in a red robe, leading a few young eunuchs in purple robes, walking towards the backyard.
Wang Kun walked to the backyard door and saw the young prince standing at the door. He waved his hand and the eunuch behind him stopped immediately.
"Your servant, the eunuch Wang Kun from the Imperial Household Department, pays respect to His Royal Highness Prince Gui."

Wang Kun took a few quick steps, pretending not to notice the green-robed official beside him, and bowed directly to Zhu Lang.

The green-robed official beside him looked even more bitter when he saw this.

Look, the eunuchs in charge of the Imperial Household Department would bow respectfully when they saw the King of Gui, calling him "servant".

He was just an insignificant official of the eighth rank, but he blocked the gate of the palace for half an hour and argued for two hundred taels of silver. If this matter got out, he would brag about it for the rest of his life.

But if this matter really gets out, he estimates that it will only be enough for him to brag about for half his life.
"Eunuch Wang, something's wrong."

Zhu Lang's eyes flashed with a strange look, but his face remained calm. He said

"Your Highness, the Ministry of Rites has already sorted out the procedures for the regent ceremony. The situation in the city is very tight right now, so some of the procedures have been changed. It is somewhat different from the old system of the dynasty, so I have specially copied a copy for Your Highness to familiarize yourself with in advance," Wang Kun said respectfully.

Yes, when the ministers were persuading him to ascend the throne, Zhu Lang's regent ceremony had already begun preparations.
In fact, persuading the emperor to ascend the throne was just one of the procedures for Zhu Lang to be promoted to the position of regent. At the moment when the ministers submitted the memorial, Zhu Lang was already the future emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Although the current regent is in a hurry, for matters like regent, the ceremony will not be simple no matter how hasty it is.

In fact, the preparations for Zhu Lang's regent ceremony had already begun when all the ministers persuaded him to ascend the throne on the first day. Even in the front yard of the palace where Zhu Lang was now, various facilities needed for the regent ceremony were being built.

Zhu Lang's regent ceremony should have been handled by the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple, but in fact it was Wang Kun and others who presided over it. In recent years, the central government has changed several times, and now there are only a few old officials in the Ministry of Rites who are familiar with the rules and regulations. They are simply not as good as Wang Kun, an eunuch who has experienced several dynasties.

To be honest, Wang Kun and other eunuchs have probably witnessed the emperor's enthronement ceremony two or three times. Who can understand the process better than them?

Zhu Lang looked at the memorial in his hand, which was filled with dense handwriting in neat small characters.

It has to be said that these eunuchs who were able to climb to high positions in the Ming Dynasty were really not to be underestimated. Just this handwriting alone surpassed many successful candidates in the imperial examinations. It was incomparable with Zhu Lang's crooked handwriting. It was really pleasing to the eye.
"Eunuch Wang is thoughtful"

Zhu Lang nodded to Wang Kun and stopped talking, but his eyes flickered, and I don't know what he was thinking.

"Does your Excellency have anything else to do? If not, I have something to report to His Highness."

Wang Kun seemed to have just noticed the green-robed official standing beside him and said

The green-robed official looked at Wang Kun standing beside him, with a look of gratitude on his face. It was like listening to the sound of nature. He was about to say goodbye. He didn't want to stay in this place any longer.
The green-robed official wanted to leave, but Ma Mingtu didn't want to let him go.
"Eunuch Wang, you've come at the right time. Please give us your opinion. The previous dynasty just cut the expenses of my Guiwang Mansion a few months ago, and this month they are going to cut it by half again. They only gave the mansion 300 taels of silver. Tell me, what on earth did these people in the previous dynasty want to do?"

Ma Mingxiang seemed to have found an outlet for his venting. He said loudly with an excited look:
His Royal Highness Prince Gui, who had been loyal to his country just now, was silent at this moment. There was only a hint of strangeness in his eyes. He stood quietly aside, watching the situation develop.
Wang Kun's face suddenly darkened, and he looked at the green-robed official beside him and said in a deep voice:
"Sir, is this true?"

“Yes, that’s true.”

The green-robed official felt a chill in his heart when he saw Wang Kun's face darken. Could it be that after offending the future emperor, he was going to offend the Nine Thousand Years Old Man in the palace today?
What sin had he committed to deserve being sent to do such a thing?
"Listen to me, Eunuch Wang. This matter has nothing to do with me."

"The previous dynasty said that there are many ministers coming from Fujian Province, and the salaries of these ministers all have to be paid by the governor's treasury. The treasury is short of money, so the expenses of various places have been cut. I just sent some silver, it's really none of my business," the green-robed official said in panic.

"absurd"

Wang Kun's face darkened, staring at the trembling green-robed official in front of him.

"The salaries of the officials in the court must be guaranteed, but the expenses of the palace do not need to be guaranteed. The affairs of the various government offices are important affairs of the court, but the affairs of the palace are not important affairs of the court."

"Now that the prince is about to take over the throne, the affairs of the prince's mansion are important to the court. The palace is now preparing for a grand ceremony, and money is needed from all parties and places. If money is missing, the prince's mansion will lose face, and the court will lose dignity."

"How do you people from the Ministry of Revenue do your job?"

Wang Kun stared at the green-robed official in front of him with a cold expression on his face.
"I don't know. I just gave some money."

The green-robed official wanted to cry but had no tears. Just now, the prince was only concerned about the country and the people. It was up to him to worry about whatever he wanted. It had nothing to do with him. But when it came to Wang Kun, it became a matter of losing face for the court.
It was just a matter of two hundred taels of silver. How could he, a minor official of the eighth rank, have such virtue and ability to make the imperial court lose its dignity?

"Give me the signed form." Wang Kun didn't care about the green-robed official's expression and spoke directly. The green-robed official subconsciously handed over the signed form in his hand.
"How much did the palace cost before?" Wang Kun said in a deep voice.

"It used to be five hundred taels per month," the green-robed official answered mechanically.

"Go back to the Ministry of Revenue and tell the officials there to send another 700 taels of silver to the palace to make up a total of 1,000 taels."

"When will you send the silver over? When will you ask your superior from the Ministry of Revenue to come to our house to get the receipt?" Wang Kun said in a cold voice.
"Why don't you leave quickly? Do you still want us to send you off?"

Wang Kun looked at the green-robed official standing there without saying anything, and said:

"Oh, yes, I'll leave right away."

The green-robed official woke up as if from a dream, and realized that he could finally leave this place, and couldn't help but burst into tears.

The green-robed official bowed and left in a hurry, as if he was fleeing. Looking at his speed, it seemed as if there was a beast chasing him.

"These low-ranking officials are cunning and treacherous, Your Majesty, do not take them to heart."

Wang Kun's expression calmed down at this time, and he respectfully said to the young prince who had been silent beside him:
"The ministers in the court are having a hard time making a living right now. If the government increases the expenses now, will it cause criticism from the previous dynasty?" The young prince looked hesitant, hesitating to speak.
Wang Kun looked at the young prince in front of him, and a hint of understanding flashed in his eyes.

This Gui Wang is no different from the emperors of the Zhu family. He wants money but is afraid of damaging his reputation, so he is so hesitant.
Thinking of this, Wang Kun spoke again
"Your Highness, don't be fooled by those civil officials. They always say something about the righteousness of the court to deceive you. Although our Ming Dynasty has suffered some setbacks, it is still rich. How can it be short of a few thousand or ten thousand taels of silver?"

"Besides, all the ministers who came to Zhaoqing are high-ranking officials in the court. How could they not survive without this month's salary? Those civil officials just saw that the prince had no experience in court affairs and did not understand the truth of the court, so they lied to deceive him," Wang Kun said with his head down.
"These people are so bold. I worry about the Ming Dynasty day and night. How dare they treat me like this? This is really too much." The young prince's face was full of anger.

"Your Highness, please calm down. When you take power, these people won't dare to be so presumptuous. I've long been accustomed to the tricks of these civil officials. If there are any more things that make things difficult for you, you can just blame me and I will argue with them," Wang Kun said respectfully.

"Thanks to the presence of eunuch Wang Gonggong, otherwise I would have been deceived by these people."

The young prince looked angry and said to Wang Kun who was standing respectfully beside him:

"Eunuch Wang is familiar with all the affairs of the previous dynasty. You can come to the palace more often if you have any problems in the future. I can also ask Eunuch Wang for advice."

"I dare not. If the prince gives any instructions, I will tell you everything I know. How dare I ask for your advice?"

A hint of satisfaction flashed across Wang Kun's eyes, but his expression remained respectful.

Zhu Lang and Wang Kun then discussed some things to pay attention to during the state regent ceremony, and then sent Wang Kun out of the backyard and returned to the study.

In the study, Zhu Lang had a calm expression on his face, and said to Li Chengzhi and the other man who followed him into the room:

"Chengzhi, Mingwu, you two have worked hard. Go down and have a rest. There's no need to wait outside the door. I'll send someone to find you if anything happens."

"Yes"

The two responded, bowed to Zhu Lang, and quietly closed the door and left.

Just as they reached the gate of the courtyard, they heard a crackling sound coming from the study behind them. They looked at each other, and then, at the same time, they sped up their pace and left the courtyard quickly.
Since they entered the palace, they have never seen the prince angry. The prince usually smiles when he sees everyone, but now he even broke the cup, which shows that he is extremely angry. They don't want to offend the prince at this time.
In the study, Zhu Lang slammed his right fist on the table, making a slight bang. The lid of the teacup also jumped up and hit the edge of the cup, making a slight clang.

Zhu Lang had an angry look on his face. Although he was angry that Ding Kuichu had withheld money from his family, it was not to this extent. He wanted to seize power from others, so it was reasonable for others to fight back. Zhu Lang was prepared.
What really made him angry was Wang Kun. Others might not know, but Zhu Lang had memories of his past life and knew very well that Wang Kun was in the same group as Ding Kuichu.
In other words, everything today was a plot by these two people.
On the one hand, Ding Kuichu sent people to cut down the expenses of the palace, to make things difficult for the palace, to demonstrate to Zhu Lang, and to warn Zhu Lang not to do anything else.
On the other hand, when Zhu Lang was in trouble, Wang Kun appeared and scolded the petty official, so that Zhu Lang would regard Wang Kun as his confidant.

The whole palace is so big, why didn't they quarrel early or late, before or after? Just when Zhu Lang was on his way back to the palace after exercise, the two of them started quarreling.
Because the side door of the backyard was a place that Zhu Lang had to pass through every day. Only there could they ensure that Zhu Lang would notice the matter. Only by involving Zhu Lang could they let Wang Kun appear and act out the scene of scolding the courtiers.
Ding Kuichu and Wang Kun are using 1,000 taels to exchange for a position as a confidant in the palace.
His money, give it back to him, and still ask him to thank them?
"What a great Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, what a great eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, great, very great"

"You really want to be the confidant, right? Then I'll let you do it. But it's not easy to be the confidant of Emperor Gui, so you have to accept it firmly."

Zhu Lang whispered to himself, with a cold look on his face.

Thanks to classmate 212127 for the reward

Thanks to Rulong, Zhinian, Tianqi Zhu Youxiao and other classmates for their monthly tickets. Tianqi Zhu Youxiao voted for this book. Why do I always feel an inexplicable sense of joy?
Thanks to Lost Wings, Little Tiger Eats Vegetarian, Hu Tingting Kankan, The Stormy Waves, Water Mirror Like Shadow, Chunyu and other classmates for their recommendations
Thank you for your support and encouragement, thank you
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(End of this chapter)