Yang Ling leaned on the bed, Gao Wenxin sat on the edge of the bed, took a hot towel and wiped his face indiscriminately, after all, he had just finished taking a bath, his face was white and red, and his complexion was so good, no matter how he looked at it, he didn't look like he was dying, so he had to pretend that he had just cleaned his face with a hot towel.

Jiao Fang sat at the table, unhurriedly twisting his beard, his smiling appearance was very kind, if it weren't for the occasional little smile. This benevolent brother is 71 years old, but he is not deaf, blind, healthy, and has white hair and white beard.

On the way back to Beijing, Yang Ling pondered the candidate for the Cabinet Scholar, and also considered this Wenchen who had a relatively good relationship with him. This Jiao Shilang Tianshun was admitted to the Jinshi in eight years, successively served as a scholar, editor, lecturer, bachelor, and later went to the local area to do Tongzhi, Zhizhou, deputy envoy of learning, Tongzheng, Taichang Young Master, the right waiter of the Ministry of Rites, and now he is the left waiter of the Ministry of Officials.

It can be said that he has gone from low to high in technical titles and administrative positions, and his political experience and qualifications are all the best choices. Today's three scholars were younger than him when they entered the cabinet, and he was one of those who were qualified to be promoted to the rank of scholar.

And Yang Ling helped him, because of the Emperor Ling case Yang Ling was imprisoned, he also said good things for Yang Ling, so Yang Ling had a good impression of him and listed him as a possible candidate, so he asked Wu Jie to secretly investigate his situation, but he didn't think that he hadn't decided whether to contact him or not, so he came to the door first.

Yang Ling waved his hand weakly and said, "Wen Xin, you step back first, I want to talk to Master Jiao."

Gao Wenxin looked at the dead surname he pretended, and couldn't help but glance at him coquettishly, then Yingying got up and said coquettishly: "Yes, the old man is weak, don't be too tired, the servant retires."

As he spoke, he took two steps back and saluted Jiao Fang, then quietly retreated and closed the door with his hand.

Jiao Fang took a sip of tea, twisted his beard and said: "I heard that the lord was plotted on the way back to Beijing, so that he was seriously injured, and he couldn't get up when he saw the car today.

Yang Ling couldn't figure out his true intentions, so he pretended to admit it: "I'm tired of the old man's concern, some flesh wounds, it's okay."

Jiao Fang sniffed his nose suddenly, and said meaningfully: "Well, now that I see that the adults are good-looking, the official will be relieved."

Yang Ling saw his movements, and said secretly: "It's bad, if you put gold sore medicine on your body, how can you have no taste, this old man is shrewd enough." He laughed dryly and said, "Your Excellency is busy with official business, and I have to come to visit, and I am deeply grateful."

Jiao Fang sighed and said: "The adult is the pillar of the country, and now there is only one scholar left in the Dingzhu of the DPRK, and the people's hearts are fluctuating, and at this time the adults are needed to turn the tide and calm the people's hearts, so the old man is really looking forward to the early recovery of the adults."

Yang Ling smiled, picked up the teacup from a few stools next to the couch and took a sip of tea, and secretly thought about it by bowing his head and drinking tea: With the qualifications and official position of this Lord Jiao, he came to visit him at this time, and he said so flatteringly, obviously he intended to accept it.

However, I pretended to be injured and withdrew from this storm circle to protect myself, and this old fellow could actually see that shrewdness was terrible, and this person would become my political ally?

He thought thoughtfully, drank the cup of tea, raised his head and was about to put the teacup back on the plate, Jiao Fang had already stepped forward, took the teacup with both hands, poured him a full cup of tea, and gently pushed it in front of him.

Seeing the respectful attitude of this white-haired third-grade official, Yang Ling had already made a decision in his heart, he thought about it, and said with a deep smile: "The boss is overrated, Yang Mou's speed in entering the office is staggering, but he has always gone to the side door, and he has never participated in the major affairs of the court.

He pondered for a while, and said slowly: "The emperor loves, of course he wants to share the worries of the emperor as a courtier, this time when he visited the south to pay taxes, Yang saw and heard, and there were some laws in his heart, but I don't know if it is shallow and ridiculous, so I didn't dare to give advice to the emperor. ”

Jiao Fang's white eyebrows raised, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, Yang Ling's words were intended to accept him, this person was full of words in front of the emperor, and now several eunuchs who hold the power of the inner court are obedient to him, as long as he is willing to carry it, do you still need to be angry with people like Ma Wensheng?

However, although the person in front of him is young, he packed up the eunuchs during the southern tour, and returned to Beijing to quell the attacks of the internal and external ministers, all of them are thoughtful, planning and then acting, and the means are very old-fashioned, this is not an ordinary person, I don't know what he wants to test me?

I have to have some unique insights that he can appreciate, but the general policy must be consistent with his, and I have to be careful with the opportunity. When Jiao Fang thought of this, just like when he went to Beijing to take the exam, he raised the spirit of twelve points, moved Jindun forward, leaned over slightly, and said attentively: "I don't know what the adults have to say, the old man is willing to hear the details."

Yang Ling said: "This official went down to the south of the Yangtze River this time, and most of the places he experienced were coastal areas, where piracy was rampant, according to the official's understanding, it was the sea people and maritime merchants who smuggled and smuggled because of the sea ban, smuggling and pirates, this situation has been repeatedly prohibited, so the official has not been able to figure it out, the so-called blockage is better than sparse, why can't the imperial court lift the sea ban and encourage private trade?" In terms of taxes alone, the annual income is more than 10 million.

When the official returned to Beijing, he passed by the Longjiang Shipyard and saw that it was deserted, and the grand occasion of the Three Treasure Eunuchs going to the West in the past was no longer seen, and it was said that it was because the trip to the West cost a lot of money and the national strength was unbearable, so the official thought."

Yang Ling looked at Jiao Fang's wrinkled face and said: "Since the imperial court's main purpose of promoting national prestige is more than worth the loss, there is no need to prohibit non-governmental trade, although the imperial court is based on agriculture and should not suppress commerce too much, can't the officials of the court and China see the benefits of communicating with various countries?" The official is puzzled, can the adults solve my doubts? ”。

Jiao Fang frowned, glanced at him deeply, and said in his heart: "It turns out that Lord Yang is not willing to be lonely, does he want to choose to lift the ban on trade as a political achievement?" It's hard."

Yang Ling saw that he was silent for a long time with his beard, his expression was a little impatient, Jiao Fang saw this and hurriedly said: "The old man and the adult are very close to each other, so some henchmen are willing to tell the adult, if there is something inappropriate, the adult has heard it, although everyone knows some things, it is really inconvenient to discuss them on the table."

Yang Ling perked up and said: "That is, this is the junior asking the elder for advice, you and I will not let the third person know in private."

Jiao Fang calmed down after hearing this, and pondered for a moment before he said slowly: "Do you really think that the scholars are stupid and corrupt in their studies and can't see the benefits of trade?" Hehe, those are just spectacle words. Not to mention the great benefits of non-governmental trade, even when Zheng He went to the West, although it cost a lot of money and rewarded all countries, it was not worth the loss."

Yang Ling has always heard the arguments, all say that the Ming Dynasty went to the West purely to promote the national prestige, and the treasury paid a lot, but there was no corresponding income, which led to the opposition of hundreds of officials, and when he heard Jiao Fang's words, he couldn't help but be a little surprised, and hurriedly asked: "Why did your lord say this?" ”

Jiao Fang smiled lightly: "When the old man was in the Ministry of Rites, he looked through the spies exchanged between various countries during the Yongle period, and he vaguely remembered some things. The fact that the Ming court does not trade with foreign countries does not mean that the court does not need things that we do not have, but they are all traded in the form of tributes from various countries.

Many of these goods are expensive due to geographical differences and short supply. Let's give an example, our Ming Dynasty needs pepper, but it is not produced locally, and it is paid by overseas countries, and its price is equivalent to gold, which is twenty times that of the country of origin.

In the fifth year of Yongle, Zheng He returned from the first trip to the West, and the market price per catty of pepper in Daming dropped to ten times. In the ninth year of Xuande, Zheng He came back from the West for the last time, the price of pepper fell to 100 yuan per catty, and I needed more than 10,000 catties of pepper for a year, the difference in price was staggering, and at that time, there were as many as 10,000 kinds of goods exchanged between China and the West, and the treasury saved countless money, deducting the cost of the Celestial Empire's rewards to the countries and going to the West, there was a lot of money."

Yang Lingqi said: "But how did this official hear that the imperial court banned the West because of financial constraints, so the hundred officials raised their opposition?" ”

Jiao Fang smiled deeply, his eyes flashed and said: "During the Yongle period, Yanjing City was built internally, Jiaozhi in the south and Mengyuan in the north were external, soldiers were used everywhere, and money was spent everywhere, but the people were full and the mansion was overflowing. This is all recorded in history, the silk industry in the south of the Yangtze River, the porcelain in Jingdezhen, and even printing, tea, shipping, and logging are all thriving because of this.

After stopping the voyage to the West, the treasury was in a difficult situation. During the Yingzong period, there was a slight flood and drought, it was difficult to recruit and help the people, and it was more than enough to build a city when the foreign army was used at the beginning, and now it takes more than half of the annual income to build an imperial mausoleum, how can this be explained? ”

"As for promoting business and harming farmers, it is even more nonsense. In the Song Dynasty, the amount of land was not as good as that of the Ming Dynasty, the yield of acres of land was not as good as that of the Ming Dynasty, and the taxes of the people were much heavier than those of the Ming Dynasty, but the people could afford it, and their lives and food were richer than the Ming Dynasty.

Now the Ming Dynasty has only a mere 4 million taels at most, only one-tenth of the Southern Song Dynasty, in order to support the people with thin taxes, but the people's lives are still unsustainable. ”

Yang Ling was stunned when he heard it, yes, how could he never have thought about these things before, just by the accusations of those flowery articles, he degraded the act of going to the West to nothing, he has deeply seen the power of the pen in the hands of those civil officials, if he returned to Beijing and was killed by Dongchang this time, he was not a coffin judge, and he would be a annihilation after thousands of years? Could it be that there is another reason for this?

Yang Ling almost sat up excitedly, and only after he bowed down did he react, he hurriedly lay back on the couch, and said sincerely and excitedly: "Don't hide it from the boss, according to this official, closing the country is really misleading the country and the people, opening the ban on trade, eliminating the source of piracy from the root, can enrich the country and enrich the people, can Jingqing Haijiang, can make my Ming understand overseas countries, and will not sit in the well and watch the sky, it is really a lot of benefits, so I have the heart to advise the emperor, but what is the crux of this, but I have never been able to figure it out, can I explain it in detail?" ”

Jiao Fang saw that he looked excited, almost forgot that he was seriously injured in bed, and he was a little funny in his heart, although he was not very optimistic about lifting the ban on trade, but he could show his own unique opinions, and cater to Yang Ling's thoughts, even if this strategy was not feasible, Yang Ling would definitely cite him as a confidant, so Jiao Fang also shook his spirits and slowly said what he knew and explained.

Since Zheng He went to the West, most of the initial imports were luxury goods, and with the increase in exchanges, a large number of items were imported, the prices continued to fall, and the supplies began to increase.

However, at that time, the most advanced was the Ming Dynasty, the so-called luxury goods imported were mostly rare, and after more, they began to import a large number of raw materials, and the output was exquisite silk, porcelain and other things, and also stimulated the development of domestic handicrafts, shipbuilding, iron casting and other heavy industries also developed due to increased demand, which can be described as a lot of benefits, how did it die in a voice of opposition?

Jiao Fang's answer surprised Yang Ling, he originally thought that the small peasant thinking of the Ming Dynasty scholars made them devalue business and suppress business, and despise the role of commerce.

Yang Ling is really grateful for Jiao Fang's arrival, if he holds the original understanding, refutes the short-sightedness of hundreds of officials in the court, and preaches the benefits of lifting the ban on trade, I am afraid that he will really come back.

Jiao Fang got the hint that Yang Ling would recommend him to the cabinet, and he also felt that the trip was worthwhile, and he repeatedly said that once he entered the cabinet, he would help Yang Ling in the court, so he thanked him and left.

Han Youniang, Gao Wenxin, Yutangchun, and Xue Limei were waiting in the outer hall, and seeing Yang Ling slowly pacing out and hurriedly catching up, Han Youniang saw that Xianggong had something on her mind, and couldn't help but say worriedly: "Xianggong, do you have business to be busy?" ”

Yang Ling didn't want her to worry, so he put down his mind for the time being and smiled: "How can there be so many things?" The noodles are still hot, come, Xianggong will eat a few bites of the noodles that the good wife personally ordered for me. ”

He walked to the table, hurriedly drank a bowl of fragrant noodles, wiped his mouth and said, "Okay, Xianggong is full of food, I'll go for a walk in the garden first."

Gao Wenxin opened his mouth to call him, but after thinking about it, he stopped, and sighed faintly and said, "Forget it, it's stopped for a few days, it's not bad at this time."

Han Youniang saved another important matter, and couldn't help but ask worriedly: "Sister, Xianggong and you entered Beijing separately, I'm afraid there is no difference between the front and back, right?" I haven't had acupuncture in the past ten years, so it won't be a big deal, right? ”

Gao Wenxin couldn't help but smile: "It shouldn't be okay, in fact, the treatment before and after has been for so long, it must have been cured a long time ago, but my sister is also treating this disease for the first time, just in case, I just talked about it for a while."

Anyway, the three people in front of her are all Yang Ling's wives and concubines, and they are all their own sworn sisters, and they don't have so many scruples, she couldn't help but smile and said: "Master, I can watch this trip back and forth for more than two months, and I have been guarding you like a jade.

She said slyly: "Hehe, maybe I can hit it in one fell swoop tonight and let you become pregnant with the flesh and blood of the Yang family."

Han Youniang's face was flushed when she heard this, she shyly slapped Gao Wenxin on the shoulder, and suddenly remembered all the tricks of Xianggong in the boudoir, and her heart "porphyr" and jumped briskly.

"Xianggong's flesh and blood, my husband and I's baby", she couldn't help but stroke her lower abdomen, biting her lip lightly, her face was full of beautiful spring light, and her black eyes released a fascinated light.

Gao Wenxin smiled, suddenly turned his head, and saw Yutangchun and Xue Limei looking behind him with strange expressions, he couldn't help but touch his buttocks, and then looked at his shoulder, and said suspiciously: "What's wrong?" What's the matter? ”

Yutangchun and Xue Limei shook their heads with a smile, glanced at each other, bit their lips and turned their heads away, Gao Wenxin was inexplicable, how could he know what the two of them thought.

Yutang Chun suddenly thought that if her husband's body healed, she might be favored by him, maybe the person who got the pearl first would be herself, but this was luck, and the young lady and sister might not be able to take the lead, so she couldn't help but be excited.

She turned her head and glanced at Xue Limei, only to see that the little girl seemed to have thought of something, bowing her head dejectedly, frowning, looking indescribably annoyed, knowing that she had arrived these days, and couldn't help but be overjoyed.

Although the four of them worship and love each other as sisters, but this kind of thing is always selfish for children and children, how can Yutangchun be generous to that extent?

Yang Ling slowly paced to the inner study, and Cheng Qiyun was sitting at the table boringly flipping through ancient books. She has been neatly dressed, I don't know for what reason, she changed the blouse, wearing a man's white robe, the collar and sleeves are decorated with purple patterns, the skin after the bath is as moist as clear white jade, the nose is like a hanging gall, red lips and white teeth, if she is really a man, that graceful and elegant temperament can compare Yang Ling.

She seemed to know that Yang Ling would come to see her again after meeting Jiao Shilang, so she put down the book with a smile and said: "There are more than twice as many Chinese medicine books in the adult study as there are in the subset of scriptures and histories, look at these places where you tick out the annotations, in fact, there are a lot of pretending to be mysterious, but it is a pity that you will have to return to Jinling after three days of humiliation, otherwise there is a yin and yang technique that is passed down from Sun Simiao, which can maintain health and practice qi."

Yang Ling was stunned for a moment, and then came back to his senses, knowing that what she was implicitly talking about Yin Yang Technique, in fact, it was still referring to the Fang Zhong Technique, so he couldn't help frowning, and said, "I fancy you, it's your talent, why do you want to belong to the likes of Fang Shi Warlock?" ”

Cheng Qiyun was stunned, but stood up solemnly and said: "What the adult taught me is that my humble duty is wrong."

Cheng Qiyun has a slender figure, wearing a son's white robe, a purple scarf, and a bright bamboo branch, which is really exquisite, like a jade tree in the wind. Yang Ling snorted, knowing that she was pretending to be like a god and a ghost, and her expression and tone were not credible at all.

He sat down at the table, frowned slightly, and said: "I'm afraid that within three days, you won't be able to go back to Jinling, this official originally thought about the reason for the sea ban too simply, but now after listening to Jiao Shilang's words, he realized that it is intricate and difficult to explain."

Cheng Qiyun raised her willow eyebrows and said in surprise: "What's the reason?" I expect that the lord must be a superior vision, and I can see that you are the master behind the resolution of the inner court and the outer court of the emperor, so I have the heart to take refuge. Isn't it for your appreciation, deliberately alarmist? ”

Yang Ling shook his head and said: "It turns out that I have simply regarded the scholars under the teachings of the ancients and the ancients, most of them are not the nerds who cling to the teachings of the saints in my imagination, at least those who have become officials and have mixed in the officialdom are mostly not this kind of people."

Cheng Qiyun pursed her lips and smiled: "That's natural, even if the pretentious and rigid scholar enters the officialdom, he will stay for a long time, and he will inevitably be like a big wave sweeping the sand, and finally he will be forced to chant the wind and the moon, and the mountains and forests are gone, how can the scholars who can stay be so simple, why do adults feel this way?" ”

Yang Ling sighed softly and said: "There are many reasons for the Ming Dynasty to ban the sea, not for a simple reason, if we can't prescribe the right medicine, just with your clever plan, the hundred officials in the DPRK and China may not respond."

Cheng Qiyun's expression became solemn, she turned over the two cups, lifted the pot and poured a cup of tea for Yang Ling, and said: "Fortunately, now that the DPRK and China have just encountered great changes, and they are afraid of their personal future, many officials may not dare to make things difficult for adults.

What's more, the inner court is in your hands, and the emperor is very convinced of you, so you have most of the power, and the outer court will install a few more capable people to divide them, and things will be very promising. Adults, please take your time, what are the reasons, let's peel off the cocoon and deal with them one by one."

Yang Ling nodded, and said with a dumb smile: "This official always likes to think about things without thinking about success, thinking about defeat first, and being too cautious, but you are much more optimistic than me."

He pondered for a while before he said slowly: "The first reason for this forbidden sea is because of the party dispute between the DPRK and China."

He smiled bitterly and said: "This party is a dispute between the civil party and the eunuch party, the eunuch is in charge of shipping, has soldiers and money, and has great power.

They believed that the Celestial Empire could be self-sufficient, that it was insignificant not to trade with other countries, and that it was impossible for a small foreign country to have the ability to ruin the Ming Dynasty, and that the power of the eunuchs might cause chaos in the world, so they tried their best to oppose the eunuch-led shipping, and they won."

Yang Ling sighed and said: "Feng Shui takes turns, now that I want to lift the sea ban, it seems that I still have to rely on the help of the inner court, how will the civil officials of the outer court feel?" ”

Cheng Qiyun raised her eyebrows, stopped talking, and asked, "What about the second one?" ”

Yang Ling said: "This second article is due to the imperial checks and balances. What are the checks and balances between the civilian and military leaders, the military department, and the five military governors? Prevent generals from supporting their own troops, if you want to open a maritime business, you must have a strong naval division, and the huge naval division is like a country on the sea, what if the tail is too big?

Therefore, with the courage and courage of the Yongle Emperor, he also insisted on leading the fleet with eunuchs, and if the eunuchs had no descendants, they would not have the heart to crack the earth, and it was difficult to establish absolute authority among the soldiers.

He took a sip of tea and said: "The third reason is my original opinion, Confucianism is the country, what is the importance of 'parents are not far away', 'only villains value profits', and the end of the businessman is also of great use to the national economy and people's livelihood." He also thought that the Celestial Empire was in the middle of the earth, and the foreign barbarians were not enough to take it, and they were unwilling to trade. ”

"This fourth reason", Cheng Qiyun was surprised: "What, there is a reason? ”

Yang Ling smiled dryly: "The last one, the last one, this reason, even I never thought of it in advance." ”

He thought for a while and said: "Overseas trade, the benefits are so great that people are coveted, and the people are more or less secretly smuggling for profit. It is the interests that are concentrated in the imperial court.

In any case, the eunuchs of the scholars in the coastal cities were not capable of competing with the huge fleet of the Ming court, and their various relationships with officials in the court naturally found all kinds of reasons, thinking that the posture of asking for the people's life attracted and blinded more courtiers to admonish and stop them.

The land of the coastal eunuchs was already poor, and they all started by trading and shipping. They are more excited than anyone else, clamoring to pacify the Japanese and fight against the Japanese, if someone really wants to appease the sea and sweep away all the smuggling forces, they will turn a blind eye and drag their feet in the court, and the sea ban has become a means for them to make profits for their families."

Cheng Qiyun was also stunned when she heard this, she thought about it, took a snow-white letterhead, took the wolf hair on the shelf, opened the inkstone box and dipped it, wrote four lines of words on her wrist, briefly wrote down the four reasons, and then frowned and groaned.

Yang Ling said four reasons, while thinking about the corresponding countermeasures, he had some plans in his heart, and thought about it for a while, since there is such a division between the officials of the DPRK and the central government, each with its own plans, if the measures are appropriate, it seems to be a little easier than convincing a group of officials who are completely rigid in their ideology and concepts, and he can't help but feel relieved.

He had some ideas in his heart, and he couldn't help but be very happy, and when he turned his eyes to see Cheng Qiyun's attentive appearance, he couldn't help but smile slightly, Cheng Qiyun was frowning and pondering, and when he heard the sound of soft laughter, he raised his head and said in astonishment: "What are you laughing at?" ”

Yang Ling said with a smile: "I see that you are like taking the exam, hehe, do you still have to accept and solve the problem?" ”

Cheng Qiyun's eyes turned, and she said: "Yes, come out of the top exam, and then enter the cabinet to pay respects, and better serve the adults."

Yang Ling snorted and said, "I'm afraid that Miss Cheng really became the prime minister, and Yang will not be looked at by you."

Cheng Qiyun rarely saw him joking with herself, and couldn't help but be very happy, she just wanted to blurt out: "If I want to be the emperor, I will be the emperor, and I will include you in my harem as the queen, and see if you dare to despise my existence", when it came to her mouth, she felt that this was too rebellious, Yang Ling was a member of the imperial court, maybe she would be annoyed when she heard this, so she shut up.

Yang Ling saw that she wanted to speak and stopped, and asked, "What?" What is there to say? ”

Cheng Qiyun smiled and said: "Since the adults have not thought about winning everything, they have to worry about defeat first, and now they know that the reasons for the forbidden sea are complicated, but they still have the heart to laugh, but have you already made a bamboo in your chest?" ”

Yang Ling smiled happily: "Haha, sure enough, Bing Xue is smart, and he doesn't hide it from the girl, if the hundred officials in the court are really a group of corrupt Confucians, and they only know how to stick to the teachings of the saints, Yang is really at a loss, how can he talk about them?"

I'm afraid that I will vomit blood, and they will think that I am a lie. Since most of them are profitable, whether it is for the benefit of the court or the family, it is not a monolith."

Cheng Qiyun's eyes lit up, and she couldn't wait to say, "What is your plan?" ”

Yang Ling stood up, turned around and walked out, and said, "I just went home today, but I'm going to taste my own food, Miss Cheng, please." As for countermeasures? I'll need to find a few more people to come and talk about it then."

Cheng Qiyun was extremely angry, and looked at his back and said angrily: "What are you angry? I'll see if I tell you if I come up with an idea."

As soon as she spoke, she suddenly felt a heat on her cheeks: "In the past, I was light and angry, and I pretended to make people happy, but now what's wrong?" In front of him, why is it getting more and more uncomposed? ”

(To be continued)