Zhang Yuan told Qi Shijiao about the Yicang he built in Shanyin, and Qi Shijiao asked while expressing his admiration: "Can Zhang Xiujiao know why it is easy for the people in the south of the Yangtze River to rescue disasters but difficult to help in the north of the Yangtze River?" ”

Of course, Zhang Yuan knew what the reason was, but at this time, he had to be humble and said sincerely: "Please advise Master Qi." ”

Qi Shi taught: "I don't dare to teach, but the officials have been paying attention to the disasters in Jiangbei for many years, especially in Shandong, they know it well, Jiangnan is rich, because of the grace of the imperial court, since Emperor Taizu Gao, Jiangnan has always been an important source of wealth for the imperial court, in recent years, many Jiangnan gentry complained about the heavy taxes in Jiangnan, but did not mention the many love of the imperial court for Jiangnan, the tax reform of the average land and grain has not stopped, just to reduce the heavy rent of the official land, one of them; It was not allowed to establish a royal palace in Jiangnan, which greatly reduced the burden on the local people. The imperial court attaches the most importance to the management of floods in the south of the Yangtze River, which is the third; Moreover, the emperor is far away, and Jiangnan is rarely interfered with by party disputes and government decrees, so business can flourish, so there are many wealthy households in Jiangnan, and disaster relief is much easier——"

Qi Shijiao is still very insightful, Zhang Yuan nodded and said, "What Lord Qi said is extremely true. ”

Qi Shijiao saw that Zhang Yuan agreed with his point of view, quite happy, and said: "On the other hand, Shandong, the imperial court gave no convenience to the south of the Yangtze River, there were successively King Qi, King Lu, King Heng in the feudal mansion of Shandong Domain, covering an area of 10,000 hectares, these feudal princes and slaves invaded the people's land, opened shops, competed with the people, and ran rampant, this alone is enough to labor the people of Shandong, and the style of doing business in Shandong is far less prevalent than the coastal areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, only big landlords, but no big businessmen, once the famine, the hungry people are everywhere, and the landlords themselves suffer extremely heavy losses, Therefore, it is almost impossible to rely on the compassion of the rich and the relief of the people to tide over the famine. ”

Zhang Yuan nodded and said: "The symptoms must also be cured, Shandong is bordered by the sea in the east, Jianghuai in the south, Heluo in the west, and Jinggi in the north. ”

"Zhang Xiu's clear opinion." Qi Shijiao slapped his thigh, Zhang Yuan's words reached his heart, he took the wine glass and drank it all, poured it for himself, and said: "I am a good chivalrous person, unwilling to starve to death, the disaster relief is not effective, and the people will be born, Zhang Xiu thinks he should deal with it like this?" ”

Zhang Yuan said: "It's just an idea to speak lightly in the next post, please give things to the matter, Wang Langzhong and the two adults in the middle of the country for details——"

Wang Dazhi and Qi Shijiao bowed their hands together and said, "Zhang Xiu, please speak." ”

Zhang Yuan said: "It is foolish to think that the tax on money and grain in the six counties of Shandong should be based on the severity of the disaster, and the four methods of suspending the levy, changing the discount, retiring the level, and retaining the people should be adopted, and the mob that divides the walled city and wantonly robs and kills the rich should be suppressed, and the disaster victims who are small groups of people who are robbing and making a living should be coaxed, first stabilize the situation, and then recruit the victims to build water conservancy, work for relief, drought relief, so that the hungry people can have something to eat, of course, if the money and grain for the construction of water conservancy all rely on the emperor to allocate the inner treasury and the local government to raise money, it is obviously not possible, there must be the participation of the local gentry, the combination of the government and the people, Only then can disaster relief and famine preparedness be carried out, and there is no good governance in famine relief, and it is easy to talk about empty words, but once the interests of the vassal king are involved, the difficulty in implementing them will be much greater. ”

Qi Shijiao nodded and said: "Why don't Zhang Xiu write a note on this and submit it to the emperor, this is also the follow-up theory of Zhang Xiu's Ten Thousand Words Tingce." ”

Zhang Yuan waved his hand and said: "Tingce in Xia is quite criticized, and it is not appropriate to go to disaster relief and preparedness at this time, it is better to be sparse in the upper echelons." ”

Wang Dazhi and Qi Shijiao glanced at each other, the atmosphere was slightly cold, no matter how similar they were, now, the estrangement has appeared, Zhang Yuan is pro-Donglin, and there is a new conflict with Yao Zongwen, the leader of the Zhejiang Party, Yao Zongwen and Liu Tingyuan should have prepared a chapter to impeach Zhang Yuan, and it will be sent to the cabinet tomorrow - Qi Shijiao pondered for a moment, and finally spoke: "Zhang Xiuxiu, the lower officials still have something to ask, what is Zhang Xiu's opinion on the court party struggle since Wanli?" ”

Wang Dazhi didn't expect the Qi Poetry Church to ask Zhang Yuan so directly about the party dispute, so he couldn't help but sit up straight, pay attention to Zhang Yuan, and listen to how Zhang Yuan answered, but saw Zhang Yuan leave the table and bow to the sect leader of Qi Shi, and said: "Lord Qi can ask each other honestly, so that I admire it very much, many disputes, contradictions, and feuds in this world are caused by the inability to communicate honestly——"

Qi Shijiao hurriedly got up and said, "Why should Zhang Xiu be polite, please sit, please sit, sit down and talk." ”

Zhang Yuan sat down, looked at the table full of dishes, and said: "I thought that the party was fighting for the country. ”

Wang Dazhi and Qi Shijiao looked at each other.

Wang Dazhi said: "However, how can many things be done without fighting, and there are differences in political opinions, so we must fight." ”

Zhang Yuan said: "At that time, the struggle for the national capital was still a controversial goal, but now it is said that the party struggle is often whether it is right or wrong, only the will, not my party, and it must be eliminated quickly, which is what Xia Ya does not want to see." ”

Qi Shijiao said slowly: "The canon of Jingcha, in one fell swoop in six years, the gentleman is evil, and the villain is complaining, all at this time - Zhang Xiu can know who this sentence comes from?" ”

Zhang Yuan said: "This is what Donglin Zhao Jun said, and it is difficult to agree." ”

Qi Shijiao listened to Zhang Yuan's statement without any hesitation, his heart was happy, his face was impassive, and he asked: "However, the party struggle has started, and mutual attacks are inevitable, what can Zhang Xiu do to eliminate it?" ”

Zhang Yuan said: "I think that being an official in the DPRK should focus on national affairs, and if there are differences in political opinions, there is no need to compete for superiority, but to seek common ground while reserving differences, and officials must have this mind, which is the blessing of the people of the country." ”

At this time, the Dongcheng Drum Tower beat the forbidden drum, 1,230 times for a pass, to knock on the three links, it takes about two minutes to knock the three drums, the curfew in the inner city starts from behind the three drums - hearing the sound of the drums, Zhang Yuan, Qi Shijiao, Wang Dazhi stood up together, Qi Shijiao said: "Today, I said that I had a conversation with Zhang Xiu, and I benefited greatly, and he said that he had time to ask Zhang Xiu for advice again." ”

The three of them got off the Heshou Restaurant, said goodbye, Zhang Yuan returned to his brother-in-law's apartment, and Qi Shijiao and Wang Dazhi rode out of Chaoyangmen.

The bright moon rose early on May 14, the shadows of the trees under the moon were sparse and clear, the canal wharf not far away was still noisy and noisy, and the peak period of Cao Yun had arrived-"Brother Keyan, what kind of person do you see this Zhang Yuan?" Wang Dazhi asked.

Qi Shi taught: "Rare talents, very assertive, not broad-minded, flexible, but the so-called seeking common ground while reserving differences is lightweight, but it is actually difficult." ”

Wang Dazhi smiled: "Of course, the Donglin people are in decline now, of course I hope that we will not rush to kill them all, and ask for the same while reserving differences." ”

Qi Shijiao shook his head and said: "Otherwise, this view is definitely not owned by Donglin people, Donglin people regard themselves as gentlemen, and non-party members are dismissed as villains, how can they ever have the mind of seeking common ground while reserving differences, and Zhang Yuan, obviously does not want to be regarded as Donglin or Zhejiang Party, he has his own political opinions——"

Wang Dazhi said: "So Zhang Yuan is not good to win over? ”

Qi Shi taught: "It is difficult to pull him into the camp of the three parties and make Donglin an enemy, but we don't seem to have to rush to be an enemy of him, and see how he seeks common ground while reserving differences between Donglin and the three parties, whether it is a high-sounding empty word, or can he really make a difference, wait and see." ”

Wang Dazhi said: "To say this is to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, my Chu and Qi two parties watch Yao and Liu Zhe fight Zhang Yuan, Zhang Yuan has no other foundation in Beijing except Donglin for assistance, Donglin people are indispensable to support Zhang Yuan, in this way, how can Yao and Liu Zhe not blame me and so on?" ”

Qi Shi taught: "Let's not attack Zhang Yuan, just impeach Wu Daonan, and leave some room for wording, let the Zhejiang Party be the vanguard." ”

Wang Dazhi praised: "Good! ”

…… At three o'clock on the fifteenth day of May, Wu Daonan entered the cabinet of the Jimen Cabinet, Fang Congzhe arrived first, and there was already a stack of recitals sent by officials from various ministries on the desk, Wu Daonan stepped forward and said: "Brother Zhonghan, which recitals are proposed by me?" ”

Fang Congzhe twisted his chin and said: "Brother Huifu, there are three more cases here that are entangled in the fraud case of the Huifu Examination, let me deal with it, those officials are really rude, and the Holy Lord has issued an order to keep Brother Huifu, but they are still noisy." ”

Wu Daonan's thin old face turned red in an instant, as if he had been slapped in the face, as a cabinet minister, it is definitely not a glorious thing to be impeached twice in three days - Fang Congzhe took out two more pieces and said: "This is the chapter of Liu Tingyuan, the imperial history of Shaanxi Province, and Zhao Xingbang's impeachment of Zhang Yuan, the champion of the new department, in the matter of the military department, and it is up to the Huifu brother to deal with the opinions." ”

Wu Daonan endured his shame and indignation, and watched Liu Tingyuan and Zhao Xingbang's impeachment of Zhang Yuan, the two of them obviously agreed, and pointed the spearhead directly at Zhang Yuan's Wanyan Tingce Binghe said, denouncing Zhang Yuan as a flattering minister - I remember that yesterday there were Yang Lian and He Shijin impeaching Yao Zongwen, and today there are five impeachment notes of the Zhejiang Party, Qi Party, and Xuan Party coming at him and Zhang Yuan, which is obviously a continuation of the turmoil at the Yuhe North Bridge the day before yesterday, Wu Daonan pondered for a moment, and returned the two impeachment notes to Fang Congzhe, saying: " It's still the head of the square, I'm a person who has been impeached frequently, and I have no face to vote, so I will ask for a retreat. ”

Fang Congzhe hurriedly comforted Wu Daonan and said: "Brother Huifu, we are waiting for the shaft to be in the middle of the axis, naturally attracting material discussions, and now the road is open, we are a little careless, and the Taiyuan officials will be criticized, and it is difficult for the cabinet ministers to do it, but we are invited by the emperor's favor to introduce the cabinet to assist the government, if we are impeached and will be retired, can the cabinet still be able to keep people, these three impeachment chapters are nothing more than a repetition of the same old tune, Brother Huifu must not care." ”

The unwritten rule of the cabinet, if the cabinet minister is impeached, he must be accused at home, and when the impeachment is clear, he can re-enter the cabinet to see the matter, and often have to put on a full shelf, and he is willing to come out only after the emperor gives an edict to comfort him, this is for the sake of decency, otherwise he will have no prestige and no way to do things in the future - Wu Daonan said: "Thank you for the relief of the old pavilion, but the old man has to go back to Taifusi Street to stay." "After sitting and drinking a cup of tea, he resigned from Fang Congzhe, went out of the Jimen Gate, and went out of the noon gate through the Six Branch Corridor - today he is on duty in the Six Science Corridor to impeach Wu Daonan's hardest working engineering department Liu Wenbing, Liu Wenbing is a native of Zhending, Hebei, originally had nothing to do with the Zhejiang Party, Qi Party, Xuan Party, and Chu Party, but now he has a hot fight with Yao Zongwen, Liu Tingyuan and others, this is because when Wu Daonan arrived last year, the Six Departments gave the matter to meet the new cabinet ministers according to the custom, and presented the name thorn, Wu Daonan accepted the name thorn of others, but threw Liu Wenbing's name thorn back, And warned him that "Mo Xue Yan Song", the reason is that Liu Wenbing's attitude was very flattering and sycophant at that time, Wu Daonan was very unaccustomed to it, Liu Wenbing was slapped with a smile, so he hated Wu Daonan, as soon as the fraud case came out, he took the lead in impeachment, but Wu Daonan stayed in the apartment on Taifusi Street for two days and came out again, yesterday he said that in response to Liu Tingyuan's plan, he was impeached again, at this time he saw Wu Daonan frowning and going out of the noon door, Liu Wenbing was secretly happy, thinking: "Look at how thick-skinned you Jiangxi people are, you are embarrassed to re-enter the Jimen!" ”

Fang Congzhe saw that Wu Daonan was gone, shook his head and smiled, looked at the recital on the desk, sighed again, and put the recital of Yang Lian and He Shijin impeaching Yao Zongwen yesterday and the five parts of the impeachment of Wu Daonan and Zhang Yuan today, and planned to send it to the celebrant - Fang Congzhe knew the thoughts of Emperor Wanli, after decades of national capital disputes, Emperor Wanli was quite tired of the mutual attacks between courtiers, and now he sent these six pieces together, the biggest possibility is that all of them will not be sent, in this way, Yang Lian, He Shijin's attack on Yao Zongwen naturally failed, and Wu Daonan should be embarrassed to come again, as for Zhang Yuan, because he is a new science and technology jinshi, he will not receive any punishment for this recital, but Fang Congzhe is ready to publish Liu Tingyuan's impeachment of Zhang Yuan in the Di Bao, so that the government and the opposition can discuss this Binghe theory, which has been deliberately misinterpreted by Liu Tingyuan——...... In the evening, Zhang Yuan returned to the courtyard of the East Fourth Archway and received a stack of letters from the Civil Information Bureau, which were sent from Hangzhou, Nanjing, Kunshan, Qingpu, Suzhou, Huating, Shanghai, Shanyin, Huiji and other places, there were as many as 23 letters, Jinghui exclaimed: "Little uncle, how can so many people write to you?" ”

Zhang Yuan smiled: "There are many friends." "Looking at the envelope, it is all a letter written by the head of the Hanshe Society of each county, such as Feng Menglong, Xia Yunyi, Jin Langzhi, Yang Shixiang, and a letter is Mao Yuanyi's, and suddenly turned to a letter, the signature is Huiji Wang Binglin, Wang Binglin left Beijing at the end of March, at this time it should not have arrived in Shaoxing, how can there be a letter, look at the handwriting on the envelope, round and beautiful, it is clearly from the hand of the infant sister-" This is a letter sent by the infant sister. ”

Zhang Yuan's heart jumped suddenly, and Xiao Jinghui, who had been looking at him with his head long, said: "What's the matter, little uncle, whose letter surprised you?" "The little girl's mind is very delicate.

Zhang Yuan smiled and said: "It's not much, there are so many letters that I am surprised, and when I reply to the letter, my hands will be sour." ”

Jing Hui smiled "Gege": "Who makes my little uncle have more friends." ”

Zhang Yuan took the letter back to the room, a letter was opened, the letter of the infant sister was put at the end, a little afraid of the demolition - the forbidden drum in the distance sounded, the fifteenth moon was urged up, just when Zhang Yuan of the East Fourth Archway read the letter, there was a man with a jujube stick on his sleeve mixed into the imperial city of Bei'anmen, Bei'anmen is also called Houzai Gate, is the door with the most eunuchs and miscellaneous servants, in the long live mountain, Taiye Pond around, gathered 12 prisons, 4 divisions, 8 bureaus, collectively referred to as the 24 Yamen of the Inner Palace, so there are a lot of people in and out of the thick door, after the forbidden drum sounds, The eunuchs who were on business outside returned to the imperial city one after another, but the guards did not notice that outsiders had mixed in.

(To be continued)