December sixteenth.
Songjiang Prefecture, Huating County, Xu Prefecture.
"That's too much!"
"Cena's bullying is too much!"
Xu Kun was pacing back and forth in the room with a letter in his hand, his face filled with anger.
Hai Rui had just arrived in Nanzhili that day. He condescended to go there and wanted to make peace in private, but the guy didn't even give him a chance to meet.
That's all, now he actually killed the slaves of their Xu family!
"No one dares to stir up trouble now! A defeated general under my command has come to humiliate my Xu Mansion!"
"Hai Rui is just a dog tied up by the cabinet. Don't you know that the chief assistant is my master's student!?"
Xu Jie raised his eyes and glanced at his second son, then closed his eyelids.
On the contrary, the eldest son Xu Fan frowned and said: "That's not right. We have already collected the tax amount of 140,000 yuan, which is enough for the cabinet. Why is Hai Rui still holding on to it?"
Xu Kun slapped the table and said angrily: "Why else? This man is so bold and acts like he's asking for life for the people. He doesn't know how to do practical things!"
"Why didn't Sejong kill him when he wanted to be famous?"
He looked at Xu Jie and said urgently: "Sir, write a letter to Zhang Juzheng quickly and transfer Hai Rui away as soon as possible!"
Xu Fan looked at his anxious brother, knowing that he would be scolded for his stupid appearance.
He quickly held him down and said, "Okay! How can you be so frizzy and frizzy!"
"Before Gao Gong took office, he must have made an exchange with Zhang Juzheng, just to target my family. Do you think it would be useful to find Zhang Juzheng?"
Xu Jie still didn't speak.
His eyes were closed tightly, as if he was thinking about something.
Xu Jie is now sixty-nine years old. He was born in the 16th year of Hongzhi. He has lived through Hongzhi, Zhengde, Jiajing, and Longqing, and is about to reach the Wanli year.
The former chief minister of the two dynasties, after taking office in the second year of Longqing, may have had some free time and maintained good health. Now he looks rosy, full of heaven, and full of energy.
After a while, the two sons stopped making noise, and Xu Jie slowly opened his eyes.
He ordered: "Kun'er, go get all the new newspapers!"
Xu Kun was startled.
Although he didn't know what the old father wanted for the new newspaper, he didn't dare to ask any questions, let alone being disobedient, so he went out to get it without saying anything.
Xu Fan was a little more showy and couldn't help but ask: "Father, what's wrong?"
Xu Jie clasped his right hand on the tiger's mouth of his left hand and kept stroking his palm.
When my son is confused, he naturally tries to teach him everything he can: "You're right, but what's wrong is wrong."
"Gao Gong is purely here to trouble me, but Hai Rui is different. He is here to patrol the salt industry."
"Now that I let 20% out, instead of stopping, he actually killed my people in public. The more I think about it, the more wrong it becomes."
Xu Fan guessed at the right time: "Hai Rui is also a bully. I heard that he released Wan Hao's brother-in-law, the eldest son of Wei Guogong, and the rest of Cao Shangshu and Xuancheng Bo's people, but did not touch them."
"Maybe... it's to vent anger for old grudges."
The old grudge naturally refers to the incident involving Hai Rui's dismissal from office.
At that time, it was the Xu family who mobilized the common people and gentry to throw dirty water on him, instigating officials to impeach him, and even persuaded Zhang Juzheng to use force in the cabinet, which ultimately drove Hai Rui back to his hometown.
Putting himself in Xu Fan's shoes, if he were to take power again, he would find this place again.
Xu Jie glanced at his son and shook his head: "Hai Rui is different from you. He doesn't mix personal likes and dislikes with official business."
"Furthermore, he has already killed two deputy judges of the Salt Division of the seventh grade and three governors of the Salt Division of the eighth grade. The day before yesterday, he also reported to the South Zhili Criminal Department to demand canon punishment for more than 20 unscrupulous ambassadors.
, deputy envoy."
"He would not dare to do this without the authorization of the cabinet, but...it is unlikely that the cabinet would let him act so easily."
Everyone knows that Hai Rui is here to patrol the salt tax, and to put it bluntly, he is trying to steal money.
They gave in to the advantage, but instead of holding back, they slaughtered them wantonly. No matter how you look at it, it doesn't look right.
There is also the Criminal Department of Southern Zhili. I don’t know what happened. Hai Rui just approved whatever he reported, but in just ten days, dozens of officials were killed!
Xu Fan thought about it for a long time, but couldn't figure out the reason, let alone what it had to do with Xinbao.
I had to shut up and wait for my father to explain.
Not long after, Xu Kun came back with a stack of new newspapers.
"Sir, the latest one is as of December 1st, and the follow-up ones haven't arrived in South Zhili yet."
Xu Jie nodded and reached out to take it. He opened the new newspaper with his old hands and read each issue carefully.
Taking advantage of this time, the elder brother Xu Fan told his younger brother what the father and son had just discussed.
After hearing this, Xu Kun waved his hand nonchalantly: "Why else? It's just because Gao Gong is backing us in Nanzhili!"
"The dignified chief assistant, who invited heaven for his merits, stole the military merit and title that quelled Ananda Khan, and fell down."
"A humble official, who doesn't care about his wife and children, is full of ignorance about the so-called common people in the world, and deceives himself and others."
"The two of them are just like the same raccoon dog!"
Xu Fan sighed.
I couldn't help but sigh: "Hey, Gao Gong got the final blow by becoming an official. It's really hard to withstand."
When Xu Jie became an official, he was able to make conditions for Mu Zong and drive Gao Gong away. Now that it was Gao Gong's turn to become an official, he should not be underestimated in his counterattack.
The two brothers were talking.
Xu Jie suddenly crumpled up the new newspaper in his hand and threw it to the ground expressionlessly.
He pressed his hands firmly on his knees to suppress his subconscious trembling.
Both brothers were startled.
"Father?"
"grown ups?"
Xu Fan quickly picked up the new newspaper, stepped forward and said, "Father...did you find any clues?"
Xu Jie wanted to speak, but found that his mouth was open, his lips were trembling a little, and he gritted his teeth again.
Not knowing what was going on, Xu Fan opened the new newspaper and frowned at the content that had just caused his father's mood swings.
Xu Kun also came over and read word for word: "The household subjects are all in trouble, and the censor Hu Chui, who predicts Weiwei's chaos in the government, has a disobedient heart. On November 29... Ming Zhengdian... punishment."
After Xu Fan read this sentence, his expression suddenly changed!
Seeing his father and brother's reaction, Xu Kun was puzzled and asked: "Hasn't he been convicted before? Why are you so surprised?"
Xu Fan's tone was stiff, he took a deep breath, gritted his teeth and said: "I've been convicted, but I will immediately change the name and amnesty the world!"
When Xu Kun heard this, he finally realized something.
He was shocked and said: "Is this killing before the amnesty!?"
"Ah? How dare the cabinet act like this?"
Xu Jie's mood was not peaceful at all.
At this time, seeing that his son was still acting stupidly, he finally got angry and said: "Cabinet? You think it's the cabinet!?"
"How dare the cabinet kill the spokesman like this!?"
“Can the cabinet ignore the fifty-three petitions from Nanzhili!?”
“How dare the cabinet rush to commit murder in the name of amnesty!?”
He picked up the tea cup and smashed it against the portrait of him worshiping Sejong!
Tea dripped down the portrait.
He said angrily: "It's the emperor!"
"The emperor wants to kill me!"
"That eleven-year-old yellow-mouthed kid treated me like a fattened pig!"
The two sons were shivering.
Seeing the opportunity, Xu Fan quickly stepped forward to support his father and handed the crutch into Xu Jie's hand, fearing that he would get sick from anger.
Xu Jie pushed him away, holding the crutch in his hand, his knuckles turning white.
He closed his eyes hard, trying to suppress the anger and fear in his eyes.
Jia Daiwen and Hu Wei were both township party members in Southern Zhili. Their death revealed the central government's unshakable determination to rectify Southern Zhili.
The question is whose determination it is.
It is difficult to change one person's will, and it is difficult to adjust the will of many people.
Xu Jie has been working in the cabinet for many years, so he naturally understands the virtues of the cabinet.
If the pressure on cabinet affairs exceeds a certain limit, no matter what the chief minister thinks, he must compromise.
But if it were the emperor...
Xu Jie's heart sank to the bottom.
Xu Kun was still confused and frowned: "Your Excellency, are you talking about the emperor? Didn't you hear that Zhang Juzheng is the powerful one in the court now?"
"I heard a few days ago that the emperor had been driven out of Qianqing Palace by Zhang Juzheng and thrown into Xiyuan!"
Xu Fan quietly pulled on his younger brother's sleeve. Xu Kun looked up in confusion and saw his old father with a look on his face that was eager to devour others.
He quickly shut up.
Xu Fan wanted to understand what his father meant.
Although it is still a bit unbelievable, after sorting things out, it seems more reasonable.
"No wonder."
"No wonder Zhang Juzheng clearly disagreed with Hai Rui, but the cabinet still delegated power to Hai Rui. It turned out that the emperor was holding him back."
"No wonder the prince Xu Weizhi, the eldest son of the Duke of Wei, was sent back, and the Duke of Wei's mansion began to close its doors and thank guests."
"No wonder Zhang Jing, the Nanjing garrison, came to take office with the Royal Horse Supervisor."
"Former Chief Assistant Gao Gong, Governor of Water Transport Wang Zongmu, Imperial Envoy Governor Hai Rui, Nanzhili Wang Xijue, Nanjing Guard Zhang Jing, General Soldier Chen Wangmo..."
"Unknowingly moving all these people to key positions is going to kill them!"
"Why is this happening? Why is this happening?"
Xu Fan murmured to himself, the more he thought about it, the more frightened he became.
Although the Xu family is powerful, no matter how powerful the person the emperor wants to deal with is single-handedly picked out, they will be vulnerable to a blow!
Why is this so!
Although Xu Jie has many acres of land, they were obtained through voluntary exchange between both parties!
For example, Sun Wu took the initiative to donate land worth more than 1,500 taels of silver to the Xu family.
The Xu family didn't let anyone suffer. They immediately changed his name to Xu Wu and made him a family member. Isn't this mutually beneficial?
In this way, there is no need to pay taxes anymore - as Xu Jie is the former chief minister, the tax exemption amount is naturally self-evident.
He also lent Xu Wu more than 20,000 taels of silver to open a pawn shop and make a living.
With monthly repayments, it only takes about thirty years to pay off the debt. Is there anything better in the world?
Although many of the people who donated the money were dead, the shop and the fields all belonged to the Xu family.
But didn’t the people also get the protection of the Xu family and half their lives of peace?
If it was really like what Hai Rui said, he was competing with the people for profit, how could the people of Songjiang Prefecture follow him like a duck?
Why don't you think about whether the taxes are too high because the Zhu family is renovating the palace?
The Xu family benefits the country and the people, but will become a thorn in the emperor's side. Is the central government short of money, so it will rob the people like this!?
That’s not true!
Xu Kun still couldn't believe it: "Sir, are you worrying too much? After all, you are only an eleven-year-old child..."
Before he could say anything, Xu Jie threw his crutch at him and shouted: "Kneel down!"
Xu Kun immediately shut up and knelt down with some grievance.
Xu Jie's old voice was extremely fierce: "How many times have I taught you! If you cooperate, expect others to be strict, and if you confront, expect the enemy to be lenient. You are forty now! You still have the face of this playboy, can you improve your memory?
!?"
"Pick up the new newspaper! Take a good look at the little emperor's theory of good and evil! Take a good look at the drama in it that praises the harmony between the king and his ministers!"
"Open your eyes again and read the newspaper's final verdict on Jia Daiwen!"
"I told you clearly that Xinbao is the emperor's mouthpiece, but you still ask how can such an eleven-year-old exist?"
"Do you think that eleven years old should be as stupid as you?"
"Did you know that Shen Shixing from the Suzhou Prefecture next door was a scholar in the Fourteenth Middle School and the number one scholar in the Twenty-sixth Middle School? Now he is actually a Heavenly Official at the Thirty-Seventh School and is about to enter the cabinet!"
"The emperor wants to kill me! I'm going to die! When will you become a weapon!"
Xu Kun couldn't raise his head after being scolded.
The elder brother on the side quickly comforted him: "Father, the most urgent task is to think of countermeasures. Please calm down."
He made a gesture behind his back, asking Xu Kun to kneel further away so as not to be scolded in front of him.
Just at this moment, the youngest son Xu Ying rushed in anxiously.
He ignored his second brother who was punished by kneeling every day, and said: "Father, the prefect Song Zhihan is here again!"
There was no expression on Xu Jie's face at this time. He said coldly: "What's the trick this time?"
Xu Ying said quickly: "This person has documents signed by His Majesty, the Cabinet, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Household Affairs, and wants to redeem 10,000 acres of fertile land for Ding'an Bo!"
Hope rose in Xu Fan's heart.
It's just 10,000 acres of fertile farmland. Twenty thousand acres had been earmarked for Gao Gong before, but this guy didn't take it.
At present, the cabinet does not want them all to be returned. Could it be that they choose to calm down the matter and reduce the major issue to a minor issue?
And not only does it only require 10,000 acres, but it also requires money to redeem it, which seems to be releasing goodwill...
Thinking of this, Xu Fan couldn't help but ask: "Redemption? How many taels of silver?"
Xu Ying blushed as if she was constipated: "Six hundred and ninety-eight taels...four coppers."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw his brother and father blushing at the same time, and their knuckles turned white.
Xu Ying continued: "Also, Song Zhihan took this as a pretext. In order to prevent the disputes over the land, he had to measure all our land first."
As the eldest son, Xu Fan couldn't just sit back and watch, so he turned around suddenly: "I'll go out and meet him!"
The government office is just empty, with only a few dozen people, but the family members of the Xu family are different. Most of the entire Huating County is the family of the Xu family.
A mouthful of saliva can drown someone.
Xu Fan is not a stubborn person, but he thinks clearly... If the emperor really wants to touch them, he should show his ability to get a chance to cut off his flesh and survive.
A vulnerable pig is destined to die.
As for the value of united front in later generations, this Xu family man realized it the last time Mu Zong wanted to take action against the Xu Mansion.
Just as he was moving, Xu Jie suddenly said: "Stop!"
The two brothers stopped quickly.
Just listen to Xu Jie say: "Don't come forward."
Xu Fan asked: "Father, what should we do?"
Xu Jie finally regained his composure at this time, and the soldiers came to block him. Even if the emperor wanted him to die, they could not kill him at the neck.
He looked solemn: "Gao Gong asked for the order, but didn't come to trouble himself. It's not like his style."
"It's better to be cautious, don't have a head-on conflict, let them measure it first."
"There are some of our people in the government office. Then..."
He paused and said in a cold tone: "In order to gain political achievements, Han Zhi of the Song Dynasty snatched acres of land and did not hesitate to command the soldiers and kill innocent people!"
After saying this, he stood up slowly.
He signaled his second son to stand up.
He ordered: "Xu Fan, please tell me about this and come and hold Gao Gong while I go out!"
…
In the Yamen of Songjiang Prefecture.
Gao Gong sat in the main seat, Zhu Xixiao accompanied him in the guest seat, and Chen Fuxing stood behind Zhu Xixiao.
Zhu Xixiao asked curiously: "You really don't need us to come forward?"
He originally planned to come forward directly to subdue Xu Jie, but unexpectedly Gao Gong only asked the prefect Song Zhihan to come forward.
Without Zhu Xixiao and Gao Gong, a prefect could not suppress Xu Jie.
Gao Gong casually glanced at the honorable nobleman in front of him. Perhaps he was in a good mood and explained: "Isn't it just right if Xu Jie resists and disobeys the decree?"
Chen Fuxing stood behind him and couldn't help scratching his neck when he heard the words.
Although the emperor often used him to do some hard work in order to test the loyalty of the Chen family, I have to say that this was really enlightening.
Ding Amber's heart is at least eighty evil.
Zhu Xixiao asked curiously: "What are Ding Anbo going to do?"
Gao Gong said confidently: "If Xu Jie refuses to comply with the decree, then just arrest him directly with the Jinyi Guards and save a lot of effort!"
"If Xu Jie is ready to die, then he will reclaim the land, and after that, he will clear up the ownership of the acres."
"Return to the country as a citizen! Return the land and reduce taxes!"
It’s hard to say how much donations the Xu Mansion received from the people, but at least it was in the thousands.
At the time, "the number of Huating's family members numbered in the thousands, and they were recorded in one book, half of which were borrowed from others."
Pretend is to be given the name of Guizhou head after being dedicated.
The last time Hai Rui came, he returned all the people to their place of origin, "asking them to reduce their status and leave only a few hundred for service."
However, people returned to their place of origin but not their land. After Hai Rui was driven away, people naturally became members of the Xu family again.
Especially in the past two years, it has expanded again and now has nearly 10,000 families.
Since there were hundreds of people left at that time, it means that the real family members of the Xu Mansion were only a few hundred people, and these nearly 10,000 people were all dedicated.
Now that Gao Gong wants to restart the donation project, he must return the people who donated the land to their original place of origin, and after the land is returned, taxes will be reduced and it will be farmed by the common people.
Zhu Xixiao handed over his hand: "Beizhen Fusi will obey Ding'anbo's arrangements."
Jinyiwei can set up private prisons anytime and anywhere without having to go through the procedures of the Three Laws Division.
As long as Beizhen Fusi is determined, there is no ironclad case that cannot be solved.
Gao Gong waved his hand: "It will be easier if you come here. The government office will start accepting reports from the people tomorrow. Zhu Shaobao will help take care of it!"
Previously, I could only make side effects. Firstly, it took time to control the government officials, and secondly, I was afraid that Xu Jie would jump over the wall in a hurry.
There are only dozens of officials in the government office, but Xu Mansion is different, but there are tens of thousands of family members, not to mention half of Songjiang Mansion are "peripheral family members".
There are too many involved, so we have to be cautious to prevent mass incidents.
Now that Jin Yiwei is here, Gao Gong can relax his hands and feet.
This is the result of a weak center. No matter what the case is, nothing can be done without some troops.
If it is strong, the central government can issue a dozen or so edicts and wait for three to five years, but it will still produce results.
Chen Fuxing couldn't help but echoed: "In this way, the case should be settled soon."
As soon as he finished speaking, a guard dressed as a police officer came in.
"Commander, Ding'an Bo, the Xu Mansion said that their master Xu Jie is out, and we have to wait for him to come back before we can sign the transferred land deed."
Huh? Several people were startled.
Is Xu Jie out at this critical moment?
Chen famously asked: "Did you say where you are going?"
The Jin Yiwei shook his head.
Gao Gong also frowned.
At this point, Zhu Xixiao couldn't help but said: "Uncle Ding'an, do you want me to send someone to pursue him?"
He brought people here secretly, and he is not in the public eye now. If he sends people to hunt him down, his identity will naturally be exposed.
Whether it's worth it or not depends on Gao Gong.
Gao Gong thought for a while, but shook his head: "We can't be led by the nose, let's save our lives!"
"Let the news go out now. The government will accept the revelation of the donation, return the land to the country, and reduce the tax in half!"
…
December twenty-three.
It is almost the end of the New Year, but the capital is not as lively as in previous years.
Just because the emperor listened to the advice of the cabinet, he canceled lantern festivals, fireworks, cruises and other extravagant things.
Some people praise the emperor for his simplicity and frugality, and he can be called a holy king. His cabinet education is effective, and he can be called a wise minister.
There are also people who are not used to such a deserted New Year's Eve, and privately say that the emperor is a tough rooster and that ministers in the cabinet only invite people by name.
But in any case, the emperor did not forbid celebrations outside the palace and enjoy himself wantonly. Instead, he treated everyone equally and did not allow extravagance and waste even in the imperial city.
At this time, the ministers who invited me were fishing beside the Taiye Pond with the Iron Cock Emperor, looking very relaxed and at ease.
Chen Jingbang and Shen Li, two Hanlin bachelors, fanned the flames behind the crowd and grilled the fish on a skewer.
There were eunuchs not far away, driving the fish in the Taiye Pond to fishing places.
Zhang Juzheng said helplessly: "Your Majesty, if you have something to say, you might as well say it directly."
The first assistant fished all afternoon, but even if the eunuchs chased the fish to his side, none came up. He had already lost his patience.
It sounds good for the king and his ministers to get along well with each other, but I have to find some interesting pastime.
Zhu Yijun went fishing for the first time in this life, and it seemed that the novice protection period was triggered again, and he caught fish one after another.
Being called out by Zhang Juzheng was another step.
He pulled up the fish and threw it to Shen Li, asking him to help roast it.
He turned to look at Zhang Juzheng and said with a smile: "There are a few things that I need to discuss with the cabinet."
Look at the 9,000-per-day logo next to my directory! No need to worry!
Chapter completed!