You Mingtang said with a smile: "Back to the prince's words, borrow for nothing, don't borrow for nothing, who doesn't borrow for nothing, now I want to clear, I have to make it clear, the eighth master himself also borrowed 200,000 treasury silver, and he has to repay the money on behalf of others, this cleanup of the debt, is it true or false?" Mingtang is foolish, beg the prince to enlighten me as an unlucky Tanhua! ”

When the officials heard this, there was a commotion, and some people "sighed" and said, "Alas! Who said that we don't have a brother behind us? ”

Others said: "This side forces us to pay back the money, and the elder brother over there borrows money to repay the money on behalf of others, how long will this debt be paid off before the account can match?" ”

This one said, "I'll pay it back!" Ming'er is looking for the third master to say goodbye to Menzi! ”

The one said, "What does the third master want you to do with this account?" Or look for the eighth master! "For a while, there was a lot of gossip, and there were all kinds of cool words.

"Don't talk about it!" The fourth elder brother snorted coldly, "Master doesn't do it twice!" The prince's debts and household officials are cleaned up together! ”

Wang Hongxu was originally a debtless and light person, but he didn't expect to be bitten by You Mingtang, a thorn in the head, and even the eighth elder brother who advanced money was bitten on the head and bleeding, and his belly was uncomfortable, he raised his pale face and got up, and asked the prince: "The minister wants to advise the prince with a copy, I don't know if it's good here?" Or is it better to come down and say it behind the scenes? ”

"Say it!" When the prince heard that it was the eighth elder brother who paid the arrears on his behalf, his heart suddenly became vigilant, and he said with a smile: "I don't have anything to tell behind someone's back. ”

"That's good!" Wang Hongxu bowed again, and said with a smile: "When will the 420,000 silver you borrowed be returned, Prince?" ”

The people who were talking nonsense were silent, as if the rushing river was suddenly blocked by a sluice gate, and the water upstream rose silently higher and higher, so that everyone could not breathe. The prince moved uneasily in front of everyone, and muttered, "I borrowed the treasury silver? When was it borrowed? Is there such a thing? ”

Wang Hongxu looked funny, forced him step by step, and said: "He Zhu'er came to borrow it with Yuqing Palace's edict, the prince thinks about it, have you ever bought a manor, a mansion, a garden or something?" ”

reminded the prince that it didn't cost 420,000 silver to buy Tongzhou Zhou Garden! But after three years of operation, and 50,000 or 60,000 silver, it has been repaired like a palace, how can I give it up? The prince never expected that the first shot would hit him on the head, and he couldn't help but be furious, but he was well-cultivated, blushing, and stood up and said, "Okay...... Okay! I...... I'll start by paying back the 420,000 first! Fourth, you go on, I have to go into the garden to greet Huang Ama! With that, he brushed his sleeves away.

Watching the prince leave, the officials looked at each other and were stunned, but Wang Hongxu sat down as if nothing was going on, and blew away the cigarette ash from the adjacent You Mingtang with a "poof".

The fourth elder brother said quietly: "That's all for today, let's go back and do some work." The emperor's holy edict made it clear that the treasury and silver were not clear for a day, and there was no reason for the lord to stop! Whether it is the prince, the elder brother, or all of you, you should remember the Sacred Heart! ”

"The prince is going to talk about it." Yin Zhen pondered, "It's hard to do one thing, don't be discouraged!" In the past, the Yongle Emperor raised troops, attacked Nanjing, and the ship was windless, and there was a fear of difficulties, Zhou Dianzi said, 'Just go, just care about the wind, if you don't go, there will be no wind in my life!' This is a philosophical saying! If Yongle hadn't listened to this, he was afraid that the history of the Ming Dynasty would have to be rewritten from beginning to end! ”

After the fourth elder brother thought about it, he immediately rushed to the prince to talk, and the two had a heart-to-heart talk, in fact, they persuaded the prince to sell the garden to pay off the debt, the fourth elder brother did not spend much lip and tongue, and the matter was clear: the prince did not repay the money, and no one of the more than a dozen brothers who owed debts refused to bleed to repay the debt. The messenger was smashed, and Kangxi still wanted to ask the prince. The prince was angry that Wang Hongxu relied on the power of the eighth elder brother, leaving no room in front of him, without the courtesy of a minister, and he was sandwiched between the emperor and the ministers, both a minister and a king, neither like a minister, nor like a king, if he was not, he would be reprimanded by the emperor; If there is a slight inappropriateness, it will be attacked by a group, and this prince should have a vain name, and he is really not interested.

Early in the morning of the second day, the prince took the guards of Yuqing Palace and the eunuchs to Changchun Garden, and when they arrived at the Ningju residence, the sky was just bright, and Li Dequan took a few eunuchs to clean the courtyard, some were cleaning the window glass, and some were extinguishing the palace lights under the eaves. The prince bowed down and walked into the Ning Residence, and saw Kangxi sitting cross-legged on the kang, Ma Qi, Zhang Tingyu, and Tong Guowei standing in turn, and an official kneeling below was playing back the matter, so he silently asked for a thousand sons to ask for a resignation and stood beside him.

"According to Shi Shilun, it sounds chilling!" Kangxi ignored the prince, and only turned his face to the three ministers in the upper study and said, "I allocated 100,000 stone grain to help the victims of Fengyang, and only 20,000 stone grain can enter the mouth of the hungry people, what kind of system is this!" Greed is rampant like this, how can the people make a living! ”

Tong Guowei smiled and said: "What Shi played is just what he sees and hears at one time and one place, and the emperor doesn't need to be too anxious." When the slave went back, he issued a document and asked the governor of Anhui to investigate and deal with it! ”

Ma Qi said: "If it is really like this, not only the emperor, but also the slave, I also feel that there is no royal law in my heart!" According to the knowledge of the slaves, it is better to suspend the almsgiving, otherwise, how much food will be needed to fill this hole? ”

Zhang Tingyu has always adhered to the proverb of "ten thousand words, ten thousand words, it is better to be silent", rarely spoken, listened to Ma Qi's words, and couldn't help but say: "If you want to do what Ma Qi said, it will provoke a civil uprising, and you can't do it!" ”

"The minion is willing to ask for his life!" Shi Shilun, who was kneeling below, kowtowed and said, "Within three years, if you can't govern Fengyang Mansion at night, please long live the crime of slaves and bullying the king!" ”

Kangxi said "um", moved his body, and said: "The food still has to be relieved, the people in Fengyang are fierce, if something happens, the country will rejuvenate the army, won't there be more food?" Shi Shilun still went to the household department and followed the fourth elder brother to clean up the debts in the household department, this errand was much more important than Fengyang's matter. With the prince and the fourth elder brother sitting in the array, I will look at you. ”

"Your Majesty!" Shi Shilun kowtowed again and again, and said, "The slave is only a county's material, I am afraid that it will be difficult to be in charge, and he will hurt the master and know people." ”

Kangxi nodded and sighed: "I know that you have your difficulties. With me, no matter what, I will make decisions for you. You don't have to be afraid, villains can't hurt you! ”

Shi Shilun smiled bitterly: "The slave is not afraid of being framed by the villain, the emperor knows so much, even if he is dead, the slave is willing!" ”

Kangxi asked in surprise: "Why do you blindly refuse?" ”

"It's not a prevarication!" Shi Shilun hurriedly said, "It's really powerless!" ”

"Are you afraid that there are too many officials who owe debts and can't pay them off?"

"If you go back to Long live, it's not too much," Shi Shilun replied with his head held high, "It's too big!" For example, many elder brothers, as well as the crown prince, all owe national debts, how can a slave have such guts? ”

The prince heard his head "buzzing" and swelled the boss, yesterday was in the household department, today is in front of Kangxi, everyone is practicing themselves, regardless of the situation, could it be that they all look at the emperor Ama and don't want to see him, and everyone wants the wall to fall down and everyone pushes it? Thinking about it, his head was already drenched in cold sweat, and he knelt down as soon as his robe was mentioned, and said: "Three years ago, because Erchen bought Tongzhou Zhou Yuan, his hands were tight for a while, and he borrowed 420,000 taels of silver from the household department, and asked the emperor to punish him!" ”

That Shi Shilun didn't know the prince, and when he heard that the prince was beside him, he was also stunned, and hurriedly said: "The slave is disrespectful, and asks the emperor and the prince to punish him!" ”

"Get up!" Seeing that the two of them were embarrassed, Kangxi laughed unconsciously, waved his hand and said, "Between the monarch and the minister, father and son, it should be so outspoken!" Yinren, you heard me say that I already knew about the household department yesterday. Although it is the same words, for good and evil, but it is different, you are also a clever person, so that you can't even think through this, don't say it's you, it's me, there is something wrong, people don't have bad intentions when they say it, and they can't blame it! ”

The prince listened and thought about it, Shi Shilun and the fourth elder brother were indeed painstaking, different from Wang Hongxu's deliberate attack, and kowtowed: "Erchen has written it down." Shi Shilun's loyalty, how dare he blame? ”

Kangxi smiled and waved his hand and said, "You don't have to say anything else." The more I think about it in the past few days, the more I feel that cleaning up the treasury is not trivial, this easy thing cannot be done, and it is even more difficult to clean up the officials. The Xing Prison case has accumulated more evils, which is also remarkable. Tear a hole from here, and slowly it can be recovered, there is no silver in the treasury, once the remnants of the Western Galdan are stupid, what will they use to fight? You are so good to do it, and everything will be done! ”

Everyone discussed the matter of the Criminal Department for a while, and after talking for a full hour, Kangxi ordered Shi Shilun to report to the Ministry of Households, and everyone resigned.

The prince was in a mess in his heart, followed everyone out, walked to the flower hedge, Li Dequan chased him out, and said: "The prince stays, long live the lord called you in, and there is something to say." ”

When the prince came in again, he saw that Kangxi's face had changed, and he was so frightened that he hurriedly knelt down and asked, "Huang Ama, what is the son-"

"Is there anything you need to ask again?" Kangxi stood on the ground, staring at the prince and said, "Ask for the field, a mediocre person, I am ashamed to death!" Think about how much I've put my heart into you over the years! The pearl harmed you, and I degraded him; Suo Etu has put you in a land of injustice, and I have imprisoned him! You're so angry! Thou scepter Narsu county king, what kind of bitter words and painstaking soothing servants I have taken care of thy face. I heard that you still have complaints behind your back! What does it mean to say 'to be a prince for more than 30 years'? Now that you are checking the accounts, you are the first to owe debts! You're also in your thirties, do you want me to help you go through the rest of your life? ”

This burst of thunder and fire flashes, the prince has no way to dodge, no way to dodge, and it is difficult to explain one by one in a hurry, just kowtow and beg for favor.

"Listen!" Kangxi saw that no one was eavesdropping, and said in a low voice, "Emperor Wen of Sui is wise, and he died in one generation because Emperor Yang is not enough to take advantage of the world!" I expect you to inherit the ancestral business, you have to think carefully! ”

Hearing this, the prince fell to the ground with his whole body, kowtowed his head and said in a trembling voice: "The emperor is gracious and earnest, and the child will always be remembered in his heart." If it is said that the sons and daughters are cowardly by nature and are confused, if they say that the sons and daughters have the heart of the emperor, complain about the emperor Ama, or even say that they are not subordinates, the sons and daughters will not dare to have this thought for a while, and ask the emperor Ama to shine ...... candle"

Saying a sour nose, he whimpered and suppressed it strongly, just choked and sobbed. After a while, Fang listened to Kangxi sigh with a sigh of relief: "Don't be afraid, I am in a hurry to choose what I say, and what I say may not be accurate." How hard it is for me to protect your blood and bones! You must know that it is difficult to start a business, and it is even more difficult to keep a business. ”

After saying that, he sat down dejectedly, thinking about the past, and Kangxi's two lines of old tears ran down his cheeks. The prince was shocked and painful, only to feel that his five hearts were boiling, tears were gushing, and he choked up and said: "Huang Ama is angry, your old man takes care, and his sons must change their ways." ”

Kangxi had a seizure for a while, felt a little better, wiped his tears and got up and said: "Among the more than 20 princes, I love you the most, not only because you are the prince, but also because your emperor has contributed to the society and is kind to me!" If you don't do wrong, which prince or minister wants to endanger you, I will not be soft on you or punished or deposed; But if you are wrong, and the heavens will not allow you, how can I protect you? Go for it, you're doing it yourself! ”

The prince left the residence in a daze.

Shi Shilun, who had just entered the household department, did not have so much thought, he was very bold, in addition to the people brought from Tongcheng, he hired more than a dozen masters, all of whom were veterans of the accounting room, so he simply let go of his hands and feet, as large as thousands of dollars, as small as a few taels of money, and did not let go, and cleared it to the end. The clearing up of the deficit and arrears was in full swing, and for a time the officials of the six ministries were urged to talk about the "households" and complain bitterly.

On this day, the fourth elder brother was discussing with Shi Shilun to collect the arrears of the feudal officials outside, all of whom had merit, were in high and prestigious positions, and were very favored.

The fourth elder brother pondered for a long time and asked, "As far as you know, how do these governors and generals deal with the arrears of the household department?" What are their respective plans? ”

"In my opinion," Shi Shilun shook his head and said, "Their reasons are different, some really can't afford to pay it back, some want to delay, and some want to repay the debt, and they have to wait for others to pay him back before they are willing to bleed." ”

The fourth elder brother asked: "Who can't afford it, I'll listen to you if you say a few." ”

Shi Shilun said: "Li Bingjun, the governor of Guangzhou, owes 100,000 yuan, and has already repaid 70,000 yuan. ’； And Cao Yin owes the most debts, repaying more than 200,000 and still owing 1 million. ”\-

When the fourth elder brother heard this, he suddenly woke up and said, "Alas! I know what they're thinking! ”

Shi Shilun was a little confused, he didn't understand, why he said two names, and the fourth elder brother understood so many things, so he asked, "Fourth master, what's wrong?" What do you understand? Urge them again, just let them come back! ”

"It's not that easy." The fourth elder brother sneered and said, "If you are willing to pay it back, you won't pay it back long ago!" They were staring at Cao Yin. What about Cao Yin? I heard that the money he borrowed was used to support the emperor's southern tour, you think about it, it's not easy! ”

Shi Shilun gasped: I didn't expect to come and go, and Qing came to the emperor, what should I do? (To be continued.) )