In front of Shao Bo Wharf, Ma Minglu, the prefect of Yangzhou who had already received the news, led the officials of Yangzhou Prefecture to meet him at the wharf.

Nominally, Ma Minglu greeted Zhu Cizhi, the vassal king who was enshrined in Yangzhou and Changzhou, but in fact, he was welcoming Fang Yuan, the new governor of the four prefectures.

Fang Yuan got off the merchant ship, exchanged a few polite words with Ma Minglu, and then ordered Jingjie to command all the sergeants to get off the ship and enter Yangzhou City to rest.

As soon as Ma Minglu heard that Fang Yuan's sergeant wanted to enter the city, he said embarrassedly, "Governor Fang, this, the sergeant is probably inconvenient to enter the city!" ”

Fang Yuan saw through his mind at a glance, because Fang Yuan's reputation for slaughtering Jin merchants in Shanxi, coupled with the propaganda of the demonization of Jiangnan literati, how could the gentry and wealthy merchants of Yangzhou Mansion dare to let his soldiers enter the city? If there is another Hui merchant and Shanxi Chamber of Commerce who slaughter Yangzhou, then what will happen?

Fang Yuan looked at him with a smile and said, "Governor Ma, you take care of the government affairs, and the military affairs have nothing to do with you." ”

Ma Minglu was embarrassed and said, "Governor Fang, I really can't interfere in military affairs, but there is one person who can interfere in Yangzhou's military affairs." ”

Fang Yuan was stunned for a moment, and Ma Minglu had already said loudly, "Shi Shangshu, the secretary of the Nanjing Military Department, has also arrived, and greeted Governor Fang with the lower officials. ”

Nanjing Military Department Shi Shangshu is famous in history, Shi Kefa who was martyred in Yangzhou, Fang Yuan secretly groaned, Shi Kefa is Nanjing's military department Shangshu, but when he came to Yangzhou City, it seems that it is not so simple to welcome himself.

A middle-aged man in his forties dressed in a scarlet brood rooster official mansion strode out from behind the hundred officials, full of energy, and full of capable Yingda.

The scarlet official uniform is embroidered with a brocade chicken, and he is a civil official of the second grade, needless to say, this person is the secretary of the military department.

Shi Kefa walked in front of Fang Yuan, and saluted respectfully to the two princes on Fang Yuan's side, "The two highnesses have worked hard all the way, and the prefect Ma and I have prepared a banquet in the mansion to wash the dust for the two highnesses. ”

Zhu Cihuan was a little bolder, seeing so many officials for the first time, he timidly hid behind Fang Yuan, and stretched out his head from time to time to look.

Although Zhu Cizhi is the same age as him, he is much more sophisticated, and according to the royal etiquette, Shi Kefa got up, "Shi Shangshu doesn't need to be polite, please!" ”

Shi Kefa followed the etiquette, and ordered the prefect Ma Minglu to personally take the two little princes into the city, and then looked at Fang Yuan and said, "Governor Fang, it's hard work along the way, I'll accompany Governor Fang into the city!" ”

Fang Yuan looked at Jing Jie and the others behind him, as well as the sergeant on the merchant ship, and asked, "Shi Shangshu, my sergeant is drinking cold wind outside the city, I'm afraid it's not appropriate!" ”

Shi Kefa hurriedly said, "Before Governor Fang came, I had already made arrangements, and arranged a place to stay in the guard post outside the city, so that Governor Fang's sergeants could temporarily settle in, and there was all the wine, meat, and food. ”

To put it bluntly, although Shi Kefa arranged it very thoughtfully, he was still reluctant to let Fang Yuan's entourage enter the city.

In order not to cause unnecessary tension, Fang Yuan also agreed with Shi Kefa's arrangement, and said, "Shi Shangshu, the accompanying Jinyi Wei should always be able to enter the city!" ”

Shi Kefa obeyed the etiquette in accordance with the law, and said with a glance, "Jinyiwei is a close confidant of His Majesty, and he is a full-time inspector of hundreds of officials, so he can naturally enter." ”

Fang Yuan recruited Qin Zhan and Jing Jie, and arranged for Jing Jie to lead the sergeants of the Xuanjia Army and the Shenji Battalion to the guard station, and Qin Zhan led a thousand brocade guards into the city with Fang Yuan.

Entering Yangzhou City, Fang Yuan saw the prosperity and wealth of Yangzhou City at a glance.

Yangzhou City is divided into a new city and an old city. The old city was home to the gentry, officials, and local people. The new city was built in the southeast of the city, because of the convenience of being close to the Grand Canal, forming the most prosperous business district in Yangzhou City, the handicraft area, and the large salt market, where merchants and wealthy merchants, green buildings and restaurants gathered.

Fang Yuan and his entourage entered the city from the new city of the Grand Canal, the merchants were like clouds, the peddlers were like rain, the green buildings and restaurants were lined up, bustling, and the traffic was busy, it was simply a scene of prosperity and prosperity, which was not much better than the capital and Suzhou.

On the way to the Mansion House, Shi Kefa enthusiastically introduced the customs and customs of Yangzhou to Fang Yuan, as well as the scenic spots, and did not see the slightest rejection.

Fang Yuan realized that he had misunderstood Shi Kefa before, and he did not let the sergeant enter the city not intentionally, but acted in strict accordance with the laws of the Ming Dynasty, and if it was not an emergency, the sergeant could not enter the city.

When I arrived at the Mansion House, the banquet had already been arranged, and there was no female music, but an ordinary banquet.

After a round of drinking, Fang Yuan was socializing with the Yangzhou officials as if he was nothing, and Shi Kefa approached and sat next to him.

After the two exchanged a glass of wine, Shi Kefa suddenly asked, "Governor Fang, what are you going to do when you come to Yangzhou Mansion this time?" ”

Fang Yuan knew that Shi Kefa's words had been held back for a whole day, and finally asked, so he said, "I went to Yangzhou City on the orders of His Majesty to find a mansion for His Royal Highness King Yong to be the palace, and then find a palace chief for him." ”

Shi Kefa was stunned, and when he saw that Fang Yuan had no words, he asked again, "It's gone?" ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "No, after doing these things, I will leave Yangzhou Mansion." ”

Shi Kefa obviously wouldn't believe his statement, and asked straight to the point, "Your Majesty ordered Governor Fang to come to the governor of the four prefectures in Jiangnan, isn't it to increase taxes and silver?" ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Shi Shangshu, I will be the governor of the four prefectures of Nanjing on this trip, and I will never raise taxes." After I left Yangzhou Mansion, everything was business as usual in Yangzhou Mansion. ”

You can collect money without raising taxes, Shi Kefa is half-convinced, before Fang Yuan and his party came, the entire Nanjing area had already been in a rumor, and he thought that Fang Tuzi, who was more terrifying than Wei Zhongxian, would inevitably set off a bloody storm in Sifu.

Therefore, Shi Kefa made a special trip from Nanjing to stabilize the hearts of the army and the people in Yangzhou Mansion, and by the way, he visited this Fang Yuan, who only heard his voice and did not see his face. Unexpectedly, after some exchanges, Fang Yuan in front of him was so easy to talk that he didn't mention the idea of raising taxes at all.

Shi Kefa was not so easy to fool, and asked, "Governor Fang doesn't raise taxes, how are you going to collect cash?" ”

Fang Yuan once again saluted this national hero who resisted the Qing Dynasty and martyred the country with a glass of wine, and then said, "Don't hide it from Shi Shangshu, I don't have a mature idea at this time, I want to inspect the official customs and people of the four prefectures before making a conclusion." ”

Shi Kefa looked at him in amazement and asked, "Is Governor Fang's words serious?" ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Really! There is just one thing to ask Shi Shangshu, the mansion of King Yong, and please pay more attention to Shi Shangshu, not to be extravagant and grandiose, but to have good feng shui and a mansion that can study cleanly. ”

Fang Yuan was entrusted by Tian Guifei, and at least he had to fulfill the responsibility of care.

The so-called self-cultivation Qi family rules the country and the world, and he chose a place far away from the hustle and bustle of the floating world for the Yongwang Zhu Cizhi, which is to let Zhu Cizhi study at ease in the palace and cultivate his self-cultivation.

Shi Kefa hurriedly said, "I have a big mansion in the remote place in the west of the city, far away from the residence of the gentry in the north of the city, and the Qinglou tavern in the east and south of the city, which is a good place to study with peace of mind." ”

It would be best to have such a ready-made place to go, Fang Yuan Daxi said, "Shi Shangshu's house is worth something, and I will pay the silver according to the truth." ”

Shi Kefa shook his head and said, "I received the grace of His Majesty's knowledge, so I had the opportunity to serve my family and country. Your Majesty's kindness is higher than the sky and deeper than the sea, and this is what I sincerely contribute to Your Majesty and to the Yongwang. ”

Since he had this loyalty, Fang Yuan didn't stop him from returning the favor to Chongzhen, and after a few resignations, he agreed.

Shi Kefa asked again, "Is there a suitable candidate for the long history of the Yongwang Palace?" ”

The chief history of the royal palace is the head of the vassal king, and if the vassal king is still young, the long history will also serve as a teacher, and he will be in a high position.

Fang Yuan asked rhetorically, "Does Shi Shangshu have a recommended Jiangnan Confucian?" ”

Shi Kefa said, "Huang Youxuan, a great Confucian in the south of the Yangtze River, once served as the young Zhan Shi of the Zhan Mansion, studied for a bachelor's degree, and is the teacher of the current prince. ”

Huang Youxuan is the Great Confucian Zodiac Zhou, a member of the Donglin Party.

The Donglin Party spared no effort in cultivating the successors of the Ming Dynasty.

From the beginning of Wanli, he forcibly supported Emperor Taichang, a prince of the pro-Donglin Party, to ascend to the throne through the so-called struggle for the country.

After the unexplained death of Emperor Taichang, he took advantage of the palace transfer case to hold the then crown prince and later Emperor of the Apocalypse Zhu Youxiao in his hands.

Later, the Emperor of the Apocalypse, Zhu Youxiao, saw through the tricks of the Donglin Party and supported Wei Zhongxian to fight the Donglin Party, and the Donglin Party supported the current Chongzhen Emperor Zhu Youzhen. After the unexplained death of the Emperor of the Apocalypse, Chongzhen was enthroned.

After Chongzhen, he also saw the true face of the Donglin Party and expelled a large number of Donglin Party officials.

Letting Huang Daozhou, a member of the Donglin Party, give Yongwang Zhu Cizhi a long history, is to give the Donglin Party a chance to infiltrate Yongwang Zhu Cizhi subtly, Fang Yuan vetoed this plan without hesitation, but in terms of face, he still left some face for Shi Kefa, so he pretended to be puzzled and said, "The history of the palace is related to the future of Yongwang, it is impermissible, I will look for it again!" ”

Shi Kefa asked about the singing voice and knew the meaning of elegance, so he didn't talk about it anymore.