Ming Dynasty: My Father Zhang Juzheng
Chapter 115 Four horses share the spoils!
Chapter 115 Four horses share the spoils!
Following the fate of the Taoist priests of Mount Longhu, Empress Dowager Li issued another decree ordering all monks in the world to re-evaluate themselves.
Now, no matter whether it was the monks who were making trouble or the officials who were biased, they all became like eggplants hit by frost - wilted.
Meanwhile, time had unknowingly come to the end of December.
It’s only five or six days until New Year’s Eve, but the whole city of Beijing has already been decorated in red and colorful decorations, firecrackers are ringing everywhere, and the clouds in the sky have turned into beautiful shapes.
From time to time, children wearing thick cotton clothes would run wildly in groups of three or five in the snow-covered streets.
The adults were busy preparing New Year's goods, so they just laughed and scolded and didn't pay any more attention.
Just after three quarters past noon that day, a carriage with brocade apricot-yellow carvings drove out from Dengshikou Street and headed straight for the Forbidden City.
Zhang Yunxiu sat inside, his eyes closed, his body swaying with the shaking of the carriage.
After today, officials in Beijing will start their holiday, which will last until the fifth day of the Lunar New Year.
Therefore, Zhang Yunxiu had to take advantage of the eve of the holiday to discuss with the emperor how to divide the prefectures and counties around Songjiang Prefecture in Donghai and Tianjin Wei in Bohai and directly place them under the jurisdiction of the central government.
These two places are strategically located, controlling the Bohai Sea on one side and the East China Sea on the other.
Due to the special locations of the two places, they were destined to play an extremely important role in the great voyages of discovery.
Just as he was thinking, the carriage stopped. Zhang Yunxiu lifted the curtain and looked out. Everything was quiet and the world around him was covered in snow.
He got off the carriage holding the curb and walked towards the Forbidden City.
After walking around with familiarity, Zhang Yunxiu finally arrived at the east warm pavilion.
Emperor Wanli was yawning, wearing only a bright yellow nightgown, leaning back in the armchair, looking at Zhang Yunxiu impatiently and saying, "Tell me quickly, what do you want from me?"
"I would like Your Majesty to separate Songjiang Prefecture and the prefectures near Tianjin Wei into separate areas and place them directly under Your Majesty's jurisdiction." Zhang Yunxiu glanced at the emperor's dark circles and answered very quickly.
"Give me a reason."
"Make money for His Majesty, and make money for the court." Zhang Yunxiu blinked his eyes, took two steps towards the emperor, and said, "Think about it, these two places, especially Songjiang Prefecture, are fertile and prosperous places."
"In the past, they were under the jurisdiction of Yingtian Prefecture, and most of the money and grain taxes were paid directly to Yingtian Prefecture, which then paid them to the Ministry of Revenue."
Emperor Wanli interrupted, "Yes, it is always like this. Twice a year, once in spring and once in autumn, this is the custom."
"Your Majesty, please don't be impatient. I will explain it to you slowly." Zhang Yunxiu smiled, signaling him to be patient, and continued, "Think about it, which local official is not cunning? The money and grain he actually reported to the court must be quite different from the money and grain he withheld."
"Why do you think Yingtian Prefecture kept so much money and grain?"
"Yes, why do they withhold money and grain?" Emperor Wanli murmured to himself, then looked up at Zhang Yunxiu, urging him to continue.
Zhang Yunxiu accepted the order, clasped his fists towards the emperor, and said in a loud voice: "If Songjiang Prefecture is separated, the taxes and customs duties of Songjiang Prefecture will be directly under the jurisdiction of the court in the future. In this way, the income of the Ministry of Revenue of the court will surely increase significantly."
"What about my inner treasury?" Emperor Wanli swallowed.
"I have thought it through. Twenty percent will go to your inner treasury, fifty percent will go to the Ministry of Revenue, twenty percent will be distributed by Songjiang Prefecture, and the remaining ten percent will be used to silence others."
"Whose mouth are you trying to shut?" Emperor Wanli looked puzzled.
"To shut up these officials in Beijing." Zhang Yunxiu smiled and quoted from the classics, "Your Majesty, back then, Emperor Jiajing wanted to make his hometown Chengtian Prefecture a third-rank government office like Shuntian and Yingtian Prefectures. These officials in Beijing did not agree, so Emperor Jiajing had no choice but to follow Zhongdu Fengyang, which also did not reach the third-rank government office."
"What I want to do is to use this ten percent of the money to increase the salaries of the officials in the capital. Since they benefit from it, they will naturally not object."
Cannibals have short mouths and short hands.
As long as we can keep these Beijing officials stable, the people in the lower prefectures and cities will be easy to deal with.
After hearing this, Emperor Wanli recalled the distribution ratio carefully, and continued with a long face, "Why is it that the Ministry of Revenue takes 50% and I only take 20%?"
"Your Majesty, only a steady stream of income can last." Zhang Yunxiu frowned and advised, "Besides, this inner treasury is only for your use, while the Ministry of Revenue's large warehouse is for the use of the whole world. Twenty percent is already a lot."
"I don't care. This year you earned 300,000 taels of silver for me, and next year you have to earn 400,000 for me." Emperor Wanli pouted, and a cunning gleam flashed in his big eyes.
"I have already sent the 20% from Songjiang to the Emperor's treasury." Zhang Yunxiu explained with a smile.
"Okay, the 20% will also be included." Emperor Wanli clapped his hands in response and urged impatiently: "Okay, okay, if you have nothing else, you can go down. I am tired, ah"
"I obey your order." Zhang Yunxiu bowed respectfully and walked out of the Qianqing Palace.
Before he had gone far, Wei Qing hurried out from inside, holding his crotch, "Zhang Sicheng, Zhang Sicheng."
Zhang Yunxiu stopped, looked back, and asked with a smile, "Eunuch Wei, does the emperor have anything else to say?"
"It's okay. It's okay." Wei Qing took two breaths and said breathlessly, "I have something to talk to you about. It's not convenient to talk here. Let's go to another place to talk."
"it is good."
Zhang Yunxiu grinned and motioned Wei Qing to lead the way.
The two walked to a small pavilion behind the Qianqing Palace and sat opposite each other. Wei Qing was the first to smile and flatter, "It is said that people are in high spirits when they are happy. Zhang Sicheng has a very happy face. I am afraid that good things have happened to him recently."
"Oh, what good things, they are just some troubles." Zhang Yunxiu shook his head and said directly, "Eunuch Wei, we are old friends. If you have anything to say, just tell me directly, don't beat around the bush."
"Zhang Sicheng is straightforward. This time, we came here for our useless nephew, Qin Tianzhu." Wei Qing bowed and said what he was thinking, "Look, he has been in the position of a captain of the Jinyiwei for some time. Can he be promoted to a deputy captain?"
Wei Qingzi's parents died, and he was raised by his elder sister before entering the palace, so he was very kind to his sister's only child. As soon as he gained power, he immediately sent his nephew to the Jinyiwei.
Now, after being a daughter-in-law for many years, she has finally become a mother-in-law and a powerful eunuch in the palace.
Naturally, one centurion could not satisfy his appetite.
"What's the deputy captain, the captain?" Zhang Yunxiu stood up and patted his chest to assure, "Don't worry, let's go back and ask Fourth Brother. I remember that a captain seemed to have committed some crimes last month. Your nephew is also an old man in the Jinyiwei, so it's not a big deal for him to hold this position."
"Oh, Zhang Sicheng, you have given us a big surprise." Wei Qing raised his two white eyebrows, and his wrinkled face smiled as bright as a chrysanthemum.
"We are friends, so we should help each other."
"Don't worry, Zhang Sicheng. We'll take care of the affairs in the palace for you. If there is any disturbance, we will definitely inform you in advance."
The two exchanged a few pleasantries. Zhang Yunxiu looked up at the sky and said, "It's going to snow heavily soon. We shouldn't stay here for long, or we'll get stuck on the road."
"Yes, then let's wish Zhang Sicheng a happy new year in advance."
"Hahaha, Eunuch Wei, you're too polite."
Zhang Yunxiu replied with a smile and walked towards the palace gate. Wei Qing walked with him for about ten minutes and then turned back.
By the time Zhang Yunxiu arrived at Zhang Jianxiu's house, it was already the end of the 3:00 p.m.
The sky over Beijing was covered with a layer of black fog.
The two brothers continued, Zhang Jianxiu curled his lips, spread his hands and snorted: "You kid, you come to my place all day long, you really think this is your home, right? Come, pay the meal money for this period of time."
"Fourth brother, don't forget that we gave you tens of thousands of taels of silver a few days ago." Zhang Yunxiu smiled and brought up the past.
"The past is the past, and the present is the present." Zhang Jianxiu shamelessly urged, "If you want to eat now, you have to pay for it, so that you don't have to come to me all day to beg for money."
Before Zhang Yunxiu could say anything, Wang Ling walked in from the outer hall with a smile on her face, holding a child of about two years old in her arms.
Handing the child to Zhang Jianxiu, Wang Ling gathered the hair by her ears, then smiled and said to Zhang Yunxiu, "Yunxiu, don't listen to his nonsense. It only costs a few dollars to eat. Even if you come here to eat for a year, the money you spend on food is not enough for him to go out for a drink."
"Madam, we were having a social gathering, not drinking wine," Zhang Jianxiu explained hurriedly.
"Socializing? Can't we go somewhere else for socializing? Why do you have to go to that dirty place? Aren't you afraid of catching some disease? Look at Yunxiu, he runs around all day long, but he never goes to that kind of place." Wang Ling pouted and looked at Zhang Jianxiu with disgust.
Zhang Yunxiu smiled and shook his head without answering. He just looked at the couple with an eye that showed he was waiting for a good show.
Seeing that the atmosphere was not right, Zhang Jianxiu changed the subject and asked, "Madam, is Old Taishan in good health after returning home?"
"Fortunately, I'm still strong." Wang Ling replied.
"Oh, then we don't have to worry. We were worried that Old Taishan was still mad at our father."
"What do you think of my father? Is he such a stingy person? My father-in-law and my father have been friends for many years. Is there anything that cannot be explained?"
Wang Ling was a little angry.
Zhang Jianxiu smiled awkwardly, and Zhang Yunxiu beside him smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Sister-in-law, I've been here for such a long time, and my stomach has been growling with hunger. You two are singing the same tune and leaving me aside. Are you deliberately not giving me food?"
"What are you talking about, you little brat!" Wang Ling raised her eyebrows, put her hands on her hips, and scolded with a smile, "Although our family is not rich, how can we lack a bite of food for you? Wait, I'll go and ask the kitchen to prepare some food."
"Thank you, sister-in-law."
Zhang Yunxiu smiled and watched Wang Ling go away.
"Women are women, they are unreasonable. If you weren't here, I wouldn't talk to you so easily." After seeing the tigress leave, Zhang Jianxiu straightened his back and said proudly.
"Fourth brother, did you see it?" Zhang Yunxiu suppressed his laughter and asked, pointing his finger at the roof.
"See what?"
“There are cows flying!”
"Are you looking for a fight?"
Zhang Jianxiu's face flushed red and he pretended to be furious and hit Zhang Yunxiu.
Suddenly, Zhang Zhongyun in his arms opened his eyes and uttered a sound: "Daddy."
"Oh, my dear son." Zhang Jianxiu was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling. Zhang Yunxiu also came forward and teased the chubby little nephew.
Zhang Jianxiu's expression changed, and he acted like an older brother, saying earnestly: "Yunxiu, you will be almost twenty soon. You have to work harder. Chongrun can already be a soy sauce player, but you are still not even close."
"That's because we don't want to. Besides, if Xier gives birth to a boy, wouldn't Ruoxi be embarrassed?" Zhang Yunxiu evaded the question.
"That's right. If this illegitimate son gets ahead of the legitimate son, that would be a big problem indeed. Looks like you'll have to wait another year or two." Zhang Jianxiu also nodded and teased his fifth brother with a smile.
Zheng Xier was just a concubine. Even if she gave birth to a son, he would only be a bastard's son and had no right to inherit the family property.
"There's nothing good about sons. They always know how to cause trouble. It's better to have daughters. Daughters are the little cotton-padded jackets of their old fathers." Zhang Yunxiu smiled freely and muttered with his mouth raised.
"I think you are just saying the grapes are sour because you can't eat them."
(End of this chapter)
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