The so-called "Bing Jing" and "Tan Jing" are nominally in the summer and winter seasons to subsidize the expenses used by officials to cool off the heat and heat their homes. This fee is not clearly stipulated, and it is not paid by the central government, but by the official's fellow townsmen, the same list, and the officials of the same year to "filial piety", which is the main gray income of the Beijing officials in the Ming Dynasty.

And the officials who received the money will naturally return the favor and take more care of the officials who give the money, thus forming a chain of interests and a community. Of course, the money sent out is, in the final analysis, also scavenged from ordinary people, and it is also a kind of corruption in disguise.

Although these officials entered the official career by reading the books of sages and writing moral articles, they still revealed their true nature when they saw real money.

This Suzhou prefect Kou Shen always makes a look of "out of the mud without staining" on weekdays, but as soon as he heard Li Yan's proposal, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he looked at Ji Qingwen, who was really able to call the shots, with expectant eyes.

Ji Qingwen also knew Kou Shen's thoughts, nodded and agreed.

Liu Ruozai, who was on the side, heard this, and hurriedly turned his head sideways and asked, "Oh! I understand, it turns out that when Lord Kou was the prefect of Suzhou, he still took money from Lord Ji. Lord Ji, don't blame me for being greedy for money, now that I am the prefect of Suzhou, you can get a lot of money for Lord Kou, and give me a share! ”

Ji Qingwen knew that Liu Ruozai was an unscrupulous person, so he also joked with him: "Brother Liu, what are these words?" Why are you just coming here and begging me for money? You are a champion duke, so full of copper stench, where do you put the face of Old Master Kong? ”

Liu Ruozai smiled "hehe": "Lord Ji also told me this, Confucius also has to eat, drink and Lazar, and he has to find someone to empty the toilet, right?" Although it's not 'thousands of miles to be an official, for food and clothing', I went to a good place like Suzhou, and I can't be an official with a hungry belly, right? If I really starved to death in Suzhou, wouldn't it be a loss of face for the imperial court? ”

"What about Hai Rui Haigang Peak? Is it also a shame for the imperial court? Li Yan asked with a smile.

"Haigang Peak is a god, how can we ordinary people do it? It is not easy for people to live a lifetime, and it is not good to suffer yourself. Liu Ruozai replied, "But I can't be the kind of corrupt official who exploits the people - even if I am really ruthless, I don't know how to dig three feet into the ground!" So I can only cheekily ask Lord Ji for a few taels of silver. ”

"Haha, what you Liu Zhuangyuan doesn't want to do, just throw it to me Ji Qingwen to do? Champion Gong's abacus is still very fine! Could it be that in the eyes of the champion, I am a bad guy who knows how to dig three feet into the ground and exploit the people? ”

"How can it? Lord Ji has a good way to make money, and he will never do anything to harm the people, otherwise, why did I, the prefect of Suzhou, come to Songjiang Mansion to see you before I officially took office? Take the lord's money, this is called taking it without hurting the cheap! Liu Ruozai said.

Liu Ruozai deserves to be a champion, although this statement is a little far-fetched, it makes sense, which makes Ji Qingwen laugh and say: "Okay, the champion is interesting." You can rest assured, as long as the champion is honest and honest, I will not lose any money in my annual filial piety silver. ”

When Liu Ruozai heard this, his face suddenly lit up, and the corners of his mouth raised a sly smile: "When Lord Ji says this, I am relieved." But I don't know how much silver Lord Ji can give me every year? ”

Liu Ruozai is still a nerd after all, how can this kind of thing be talked about openly in public?

So Ji Qingwen didn't answer directly, but pretended to be mysterious: "What's the hurry?" When you get the money, you'll know. But ......"

"But what?" Liu Ruozai asked hurriedly.

"But I'm a businessman, and my money isn't so easy to get. It's not easy for Zhuangyuan Gong to take my money, and he has to do something for me. Ji Qingwen said.

Liu Ruozai asked again: "What's the matter?" ”

Li Yan answered: "I know what Brother Ji means. Do you want Brother Liu to come forward and invite a few guests to Brother Ji's Dianshan Town to cheer on him as the champion prince, I don't know if Brother Liu is willing or not? ”

When Liu Ruozai and Kou Shen came to visit Ji Qingwen, they also passed by the newly built Dianshan Town, and saw that although there were many shops in the town, the customers were crowded, and it was obviously not a climate.

Although Liu Ruozai doesn't understand economics, he is not a stupid person, and immediately guessed Ji Qingwen's intentions: "It turns out that Lord Ji first asked me to invite some guests here to cheer him on...... That lord is going to be disappointed, I just arrived, I don't know a few people, even if they are all invited, it is only three sparrows, two know, how much noise can be made? Sir, let's ask for another master......"

Li Yan interjected: "Brother Liu doesn't know anyone, it's nothing, as long as others know you, isn't it?" With Brother Liu's reputation as the champion and the identity of the prefect of Suzhou, if you send a few invitations, others still have to give Brother Liu some face. ”

Although Liu Ruozai is free and easy, he still attaches great importance to his name as the champion who has fought hard in the field, and when he heard Li Yan's words, he immediately smiled: "Okay." In the next Hansheng, the name of this champion is worth a little more. Since Lord Ji wants to use it, then I'll lend it to Lord Ji. But I don't know who the lord wants to invite? ”

Zhang Pu, Huang Zongxi, Gu Yanwu...... And also...... Qian Qianyi. Ji Qingwen replied quietly.

"What! The lord wants to invite the Donglin party? Liu Ruozai gasped.

Inviting the Donglin Party, Ji Qingwen was not very happy in his heart, so he didn't want to admit it, but nodded silently.

Liu Ruozai made a difficulty: "It is said that the lord has always been not on good terms with the Donglin Party. Especially Qian Qianyi, the leader of the Donglin Party, is said to have a big holiday with the lord, how could he think of inviting them? ”

As soon as he mentioned the Donglin Party, Ji Qingwen was full of greasy taste, and he was unwilling to answer Liu Ruozai's question, so he snorted at Li Yan and said, "This idea was come up with you, Brother Li, and the truth in this is that Brother Li told the champion Gong." ”

Li Yan had no choice but to explain what he had discussed with Ji Qingwen before.

Liu Ruozai listened very carefully, and when Li Yan finished speaking, he breathed a sigh of relief: "I see, but the method that Lord Ji worked hard to come up with seems to be about to fail." The Donglin Party is now out of power, and it is no good to provoke them. ”

"Oh? What do you mean by that? Ji Qingwen asked hurriedly.

Liu Ruozai sighed: "Lord Ji has done a lot of work here, and he doesn't seem to know enough about the situation in the imperial court. Tell your lord that Zhou Yanru, the first assistant of the cabinet, is about to be cut down by the emperor and forced to return to his hometown. And the one who took over as the first assistant, nine times out of ten, was the second assistant Wen Tiren. These two people, the lord knows, although Zhou Yanru is not a member of the Donglin Party, his position is biased towards the Donglin Party. Now that he has stepped down and replaced him with Wen Tiren, who has a close relationship with the eunuch party, hasn't the good life of the Donglin Party come to an end? ”

Ji Qingwen has been soaking in Songjiang Mansion every day these days, far away from the center of the imperial court, and he does not know much about the changes in the situation in the imperial court.

After being stunned for a long time, Ji Qingwen finally asked, "What about Boss Xu Guangqi?" ”

Liu Ruozai said: "Elder Xu Ge intends to return to his hometown, but the emperor thinks that the cabinet cannot be left unattended, and he is forced to keep the elder in the cabinet to continue to serve." ”

Ji Qingwen nodded: "Isn't there only two people in the cabinet?" There are still too few people, I'm afraid that Lord Wen can't be busy! Wen Tiren and Ji Qingwen have some discord, and they know that this person is known as a "traitor" in history, so when he talks about him, his mouth is full of ridicule.

Liu Ruozai said: "According to Lord Wen's meaning, I plan to transfer Master Zhang Zhifa into the cabinet and rank after Master Xu Guangqi." ”

"Zhang Zhifa? What is it? Ji Qingwen asked while thinking to himself: Zhang Zhifa's name is very rustic, and he doesn't look like a capable official just by listening to his name.

Liu Ruozai replied: "He is a member of the Qi Party, Yan Maoqing, who had taken refuge in the eunuch party back then, but he didn't have time to worship under the eunuch party, so he was spared the turmoil when the emperor personally counted the eunuch party......

When Ji Qingwen heard this, he was already embarrassed - the political wind of the Chongzhen Dynasty changed too fast, and the eunuch party that had just been liquidated in the first year of Chongzhen was now less than five years later, and it was about to appear again.

Ji Qingwen traveled to the end of the Ming Dynasty in these days, and the officials up and down the court have also seen a lot. In his eyes, the history of the Ming Dynasty has developed to the last years of Chongzhen, and the entire bureaucratic system has been corrupted, except for a few officials who still have some conscience, the rest of the Manchu officials are some corrupt officials, corrupt officials, mediocre officials, stupid officials, and bastard officials.

Emperor Chongzhen's sentence: Civil officials are all said to be killed, and it is not all unreasonable.

Among these officials, although the Donglin Party members are narrow-minded and the party is in the same direction, as soon as they encounter political opponents, they will attack them like mad dogs. But they are still believers in Confucius and Mencius, at least they can at least not fish the people, do not exploit the township, and can also speak directly about some absurd behaviors of the emperor.

And those eunuchs, who have no bottom line in life and work, actually recognize a eunuch Wei Zhongxian who has no eggs as his grandfather and father. Such a person who does not know etiquette, righteousness and shame will not be able to deny this even if the future generations are whitewashed and criminalized. People like the eunuchs, even if they may occasionally be able to do one or two good things in the administration of government, their actions are devastating to the entire Ming Dynasty's judicial, political, and social destruction.

The so-called "lesser of two evils" is slightly better than those eunuchs who do mischief and in the pit, and the Donglin Party, which is cowardly and inactive, occupies the pit and does not.

However, in the troubled times at the end of the Ming Dynasty, it was impossible to just rule by doing nothing, and in history, it was in the mutual persecution between the eunuch party and the Donglin party, Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, Huang Taiji, Dolgon and others kept inserting a sharp knife into the body of the Ming court, which was already rotten.

But the arrival of Ji Qingwen is a clear stream, which can flow out of a new riverbed in the two turbid and rancid turbidity currents of the Eunuch Party and the Donglin Party, and gradually absorb the unpolluted water sources in these two turbid streams, and finally irrigate a fertile field.

However, before changing his life against the sky and changing the trajectory of historical development, Ji Qingwen's first task is to survive and develop, and the most urgent thing at hand is to bring up the business of Dianshan Town, otherwise the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver spent on infrastructure construction will be wasted. And the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver that he advanced through the over-issuance of silver bills will become a big burden on his back, and the industry he has worked so hard to build will go bankrupt.