Beijing, Forbidden City.

The river under the Jinshui Bridge flows quietly, under the sunset, glowing with golden light, the stone lions on the bridge are playing or playing, or dancing with teeth and claws, silently guarding, the glory of the Forbidden City behind is still there, a solemn and solemn atmosphere.

Chongzhen is a diligent emperor, get up early to go to the morning court, and there is a noon dynasty in the afternoon, the so-called noon dynasty, is to convene important ministers, discuss military and political affairs, and today's discussion is the trilateral governor Yang He's 800 miles of urgent music.

This year's drought in Shaanxi, starvation everywhere, Liukou everywhere, what Zijin Liang, the eight kings, the sky full of stars, a gust of wind, rushing to the sky, slippery in the oil, urging the mountain tiger, these are the leaders of the Liukou, have appeared on the stage, among them is known as Gao Yingxiang, who is known as the king of Chuang, at this time Li Zicheng is just a fierce general under Gao Yingxiang, but a general.

The common people have nothing to eat, some people come out and rise up, naturally from the thief, from the thief, at least can eat a large household, better than starve to death, for a time like the wind and clouds, the northwest ground, especially in Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces, peasant uprisings one after another, smoke everywhere, thieves are getting bigger and bigger, and it has become a prairie fire.

Yang He, the governor of the three sides, adopted the strategy of 'suppressing and appeasing at the same time, focusing on appeasement', but pacification requires silver, and without silver, how to feed a large number of hungry people? Those who have already been appeased have to rise again, and the officers and soldiers are also seriously short of salaries, and many officers and soldiers mutinied, joined the ranks of the rebels, and even became the main force of the rebels.

This is what Yang He said in the chapter, and in the final analysis, there are two words: silver.

In the afternoon dynasty, he convened several high-powered ministers to discuss Yang He's recital, and in the end he didn't talk about a result.

In fact, since Ming Guangzong was fooled and coerced by the Donglin Party to cancel the mine supervision and tax envoys, the tax revenue of the Ming treasury has been sharply reduced, and after Chongzhen ascended the throne, the treasury has been heavily indebted, and the treasury has long been empty, and now I am afraid that only rats remain.

Raiding the eunuchs, Chongzhen got some silver to fill the deficit, but now the Ming Dynasty is worried about internal and external troubles, and there are too many places that need silver. The northwest is full of thieves, whether it is to suppress or caress it, it requires silver; Disaster relief in various places requires silver, and the inner courtyard of the palace, food and clothing, and silver; Officials need money for their salaries, but where does it come from?

Han Zanzhou expected that Emperor Chongzhen had returned to the Qianqing Palace at this moment, sitting behind the bookcase, and there was a bunch of unreadable folds on the bookcase, and the one that unfolded on the table was still the one of Yang He, the governor of the three sides.

Chongzhen is a young emperor, but he is seventeen years old, but he has no young man's heart at all, where he is sitting at the moment, his brows are tightly locked, and he stretches out his temples from time to time, looking physically and mentally exhausted and full of sorrow.

Wang Chengen held a bowl of white porridge in his hand, and walked in quietly, this white porridge is made of millet and white fungus.

Why is the emperor worried, Wang Chengen's heart is like a mirror, but he is the same as the emperor, he has just been promoted, the treasury has no silver, and he has no good way.

It's just one thing, the emperor can't sit there in a daze all the time, there are a lot of twists and turns that he hasn't watched, according to Chongzhen's habits, if he hasn't finished reading these twists and turns, he won't sleep, and I'm afraid he will stay up late at night.

Wang Chengen couldn't bear it, and reminded in a low voice: "Your Majesty, you, drink the porridge first, and let's deal with the excerpts on the case first, otherwise we should stay up late at night, and the emperor should also take care of the dragon body, right?" Yang He's excerpt might as well be put first, maybe there will be a way tomorrow. ”

Chongzhen was excited, looked up and saw that it was Wang Chengen, sent the porridge, smiled reluctantly, and said, "Companion, then I'll drink the porridge first." ”

Wang Chengen is now the chief supervisor of ceremonies, but Chongzhen is still used to calling him his partner.

When Chongzhen drank the porridge, Wang Chengen put away Yang He's fold and put it there to be an eyesore, so that after the emperor drank the porridge, he would not be entangled in the matter of silver for a long time, and he could also review other folds.

Sure enough, Chongzhen, who drank the porridge, buried his head in reviewing the other folds.

At this time, the light in the room gradually dimmed, Wang Chengen, who was waiting on the side, took out a match from his arms, pulled out one, and with a bang, the match was lit, and he was about to light the candle, Chongzhen noticed that it was different from the usual, and looked up, only to find that Wang Chengen was lighting a candle with something he had never seen, and couldn't help but wonder: "Big companion, what is this?" ”

"Back to the emperor, this is called a match, it was honored by the Nanjing Garrison Mansion, and it was just sent today, and the old slave has just learned to make it, or the young man named Yang Bo did it."

Chongzhen put down the pen, reached out to take the match, looked at it carefully, and tried it, Wang Chengen pointed out on the side, but it was not difficult, Chongzhen stroked twice, and the match head snorted.

"This thing is called matches?" Chongzhen said happily: "Compared with the fire twist, there is indeed a convenience, this is also what Yang Bo did?" ”

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Previously, Yang Bo's hot pot also spread to the Forbidden City, the hot pot tasted hot, easy to use, and could save silver, and Queen Zhou liked it very much.

Chongzhen usually goes to Kunning Palace to have dinner with the queen, and he has eaten hot pot many times, so he naturally knows it.

Not only these, there are good deeds, with the so-called white fire, that is, solid alcohol to transform the candles used in the palace, using the core of white fire, wax skin, so that the candle does not need to be twisted with cotton thread, it can be lit directly, there is no oil smoke, and it is brighter than ordinary candles, it is very popular in the harem, and the candle on the Chongzhen table is also that kind.

This matter made Chongzhen think, so he asked Wang Chengen to send Han Zanzhou to Haizhou to understand the situation, but Han Zanzhou needed to go to Nanjing first and then the garrison to say hello, after all, things were sent to Beijing by others, Han Zanzhou met Xu Wenjue in Nanjing again, so Xu Wenjue simply brought Han Zanzhou to Ningbo and met Yang Bo in Ningbo.

"Yang Bo, it's Yang Bo again, what is the origin of this Yang Bo, and how can he make such magical things one after another?" Chongzhen seemed a little puzzled and muttered.

You must know that a person will do a magical thing due to a special encounter, because of fate, it is not surprising, but this Yang Bo, the previous time was a white fire, this time it is a match, one is more magical than the other, although it is a small thing, but it is an innovative thing that has not been seen in the previous life, Chongzhen's heart is quite shocked.

"Your Majesty, the old slave also inquired privately, it is said that this Yang Bo a few months ago, somehow, fell into the sea, drifted on the sea for three days and three nights, and did not drown, and finally let people rescue Shenjiabao. He has a master, is a Taoist priest of Huashan, called Ma Yizhen, ouch this Taoist priest is amazing, there are rumors that he lived to be 300 years old, 300 years ago, 500 years later, is a supernatural figure. ”

"Ma Yizhen, Huashan Taoist?" Chongzhen frowned, as if asking himself, "I seem to have heard of it, this name sounds familiar." ”

As soon as Chongzhen said this, Wang Chengen seemed to feel that the name Ma Yizhen seemed to have heard of it somewhere, and he couldn't help but think about it, and suddenly, patted his head, and said: "Your Majesty, Yuan Chonghuan, it was mentioned in Yuan Chonghuan's notebook, and the old slave will look for it." ”

Wang Chengen hurriedly went to Wenyuan Pavilion, where the royal archives were specially stored, and the processed pieces were all classified and stored there, which was very convenient to find.

Not long after Wang Chengen went, he took Yuan Chonghuan's recital and came back and handed it to Chongzhen.

"For the demon case is famous, I dare not hide it, according to the facts, I rely on the holy judgment. Because the minister has been in the spring since the summer, the rain along the border has not been obtained. According to Li Maogen, the judgment of Ningliangtong, there is a Huashan Dao humane horse Yizhen, smell can pray for rain, now near, please pray to save the drought and so on to the minister, the minister began to remember that there were Huashan Dao people who came to see the minister in the winter, so the grain hall took the front to pray, and the fruit dew was raining for four days. So he came to pray before the grain hall, and it rained for four days in the fruit dew. It is said that the person who embroidered the head of Huashan Dao, who was 300 years old, acted extraordinarily, knew what was going to happen in the future, and read the newspaper on the sixth day of the first month of this month, and saw that Liu Guangsheng, the governor of Shaanxi, was the first evil in the demon case, and found out the actual traces of the rebellion, and said that the demon party gathered the people to rebel and obtained all kinds of adverse evidence..."

Yuan Chonghuan's recital is very long, Chongzhen read it carefully with patience, and probably understood that Ma Yizhen mentioned by Yuan Chonghuan, it is rumored in the world that this person has a perverse personality, has many strange things, can pray for rain, can pinch and calculate, and knows the future. But because of this, people had a lot to do with the Wenxiang Sect or the White Lotus Sect in their early years, and asked for instructions on how to deal with it, but the court did not follow up, and it was over.

Obviously, Yuan Chonghuan didn't believe that this person could live to be three hundred years old, and Chongzhen himself had no special hobby for gods, ghosts, Buddhism, and Taoism, so he basically had a respectful attitude, so he naturally wouldn't believe it.

And it is rumored that Yang Bo drifted on the sea for three days and three nights and did not die, Chongzhen also categorically did not believe it, he believed that this was all Ma Yizhen playing tricks, pretending to be a ghost, in order to deceive people's hearts, walk the rivers and lakes, and swagger and deceive.

After all, who saw Yang Bozhen drift on the sea for three days and three nights? Since you see people floating there, why don't you rescue them immediately, and you have to wait for three days and three nights to save them? Chongzhen is not stupid, and he can see the flaw of this legend at a glance.

Chongzhen suddenly lost interest, he threw Yuan Chonghuan's inscription to Wang Chengen, and continued to review his recitals, coincidentally, a letter from Zuo Wencan, the governor of Haizhou, was also related to Yang Bo, which made Chongzhen shocked.

Zuo Wencan mentioned in the recital, one, detailed Yang Bo and his affairs, saying that Yang Bo is artificial in manufacturing, and his attainments are so deep that the world can not reach them, which can be called a miracle, and the evaluation is so high that Chongzhen smacks his tongue.

Second, Huai'an Wei Qianhu Qiu Sizhou set up an army in Meizhen, ransacked the mountain people, tried to blockade the West Mountain, and forbade the mountain people to mine phosphate ore, but was mistaken for a thief by the mountain people and killed, and the mountain people who mined phosphate ore were employed by Yang Bo.

Third, the Huai'an Wei Institute sent a thousand households to Qiu Sizhou to blockade the Xishan military operation, but the Haizhou Zhizhou Yamen did not know about it, and the motive was unknown, and it needed to be clarified by the imperial court.

Fourth, Yang Bo is willing to sell the alcohol method free of charge, and all of Yang Bo's industries can pay taxes according to the regulations, promising that from next year, the guaranteed tax of 100,000 taels of silver, and the fold also mentioned that this has nothing to do with Qiu Sizhou being killed, because before Laimei Town, Qiu Sizhou, Haizhou Yamen had reached a preliminary intention with Yang Bo, and Zuo Wencan also euphemistically mentioned that the imperial court may need to give Yang Bo an official and a half position to ensure that he pays at least 100,000 taels of silver.

At the end of the recital, a local rumor was attached, saying that Yang Bo and the emperor were born in the same year, month, and day, and I don't know if it's true or not.

Wang Chengen didn't know why, standing on the side, only to see Chongzhen looking at the fold, he was sitting at first, and he quickly stood up, furious, and saw that in the end, the anger was gone, but he was at a loss, just standing in a daze, not saying a word, and he didn't know what the emperor was thinking.