"Shoot~"

"Medium!"

When the situation of the court was gradually chaotic, in the imperial garden, five-year-old Zhu Ciran was holding a simple bow and arrow made by a small eunuch, and shot an arrow at a haystack five steps away from him.

When the arrow hit, the little eunuchs around applauded, and the palace maids felt that Zhu Ciran was a little cute.

He was not tall, but he was stocky, his arms and legs were like ripe corn cobs, and his white and tender appearance seemed to make people feel that they had not yet come close to smell a milky smell.

Especially the round head and baby fat face, as well as the pair of big black and shiny eyes and the two small dimples on the side of the mouth, it can be said that they perfectly inherited Zhang Yan's appearance.

The people around him were coaxing him, which made him puff up his chest proudly, and put his bow under the creaky nest, proud like a rooster.

"What are you guys doing?!"

Suddenly, Zhang Yan's voice came, and the eunuchs and palace maids around immediately became honest, and Zhu Ciran also changed from a victorious rooster to a defeated rooster.

Zhang Yan came over with more than ten palace maids, and then saw Zhu Ciran, who was "dancing with knives and sticks", and couldn't help but be a little angry:

"Why is it here? Aren't you going to study in the East Palace today? ”

"Mother...... I'm tired, I don't want to go ...... today" Zhu Ciran was coquettish, but Zhang Yan didn't eat this, but walked forward and squatted, frowned and looked at him seriously:

"You are the prince and the prince, and you will rule the world in the future, and you will let the people have enough food and clothing."

"The story of Huaibei, as well as the story of Shaanxi now, didn't my mother tell you that the people were very pitiful? Why are you lazy now? ”

As a mother, although Zhang Yan loves her son, she also knows that Zhu Ciran will be the prince in the future, so she always makes up stories based on some current events and tells Zhu Ciran.

Every time Zhu Ciran heard it, he would feel pity and feel that the people were living a miserable life.

Zhang Yan thought that after taking him to teach for five years, Zhu Ciran would be very sensible, but when she saw Zhu Ciran playing with bows and arrows here, she couldn't help but be a little angry.

"But I don't want to be the emperor, I want to go to the battlefield like Uncle Qi and ......fight for my father," Zhu Ciran said, his eyes still flashing with inexplicable longing.

"Even if you go to the battlefield, you have to be an emperor immediately, not a general." Zhang Yan knew that it was better to be blocked than to be sparse, so she guided Zhu Ciran along the way and never hit him.

"But when I become the emperor, I don't have time to fight......" Zhu Ciran looked reluctant, but at this time, a voice sounded, breaking the peace:

"Who said the emperor didn't have time for war? Emperor Cheng Zuwen, Emperor Xuanzongzhang, and Emperor Wu Zongyi, aren't they all emperors immediately? ”

As soon as the words fell, everyone looked at them, and then saw Zhu Youxiao who came with a hint of a smile, as well as Wang An, Wei Zhongxian, Wang Tiqian and others who followed him.

"Hooray......

Everyone saluted, and Zhu Ciran ran over with a bow and arrow: "Dad! ”

"Huh!" Zhu Youxiao picked up Zhu Ciran, and Zhu Ciran danced with a short bow in his hand:

"Dad, I just used you to get this half-force bow and hit that target."

Zhu Ciran pointed to the target next to him, and Zhu Youxiao also smiled when he saw it: "My son is powerful and ......."

"When your Uncle Qi comes back, I will ask your Uncle Qi to teach you to ride a horse and shoot arrows, and then find you a teacher who won't stop you?"

"Hmm!" Hearing that he could ride a horse, Zhu Ciran was excited, and nodded continuously, for fear that Zhu Youxiao would regret it.

"Long live ......" Seeing that Zhu Youxiao wanted Zhu Ciran to learn horseback riding and archery, Zhang Yan looked at him with a hint of complaint, but Zhu Youxiao didn't care at all and said:

"It's good to learn some archery, horse and archery, and only by strengthening your body can you live comfortably, you see that my brother and I are not strong people?"

Zhu Youxiao laughed and laughed, and Zhang Yan couldn't say anything when she heard it.

"Okay, take a day off today, and tomorrow Dad will change your teacher."

"Hmm!"

Zhu Youxiao said, put Zhu Ciran on the grass, and then said with a smile: "Let's go play with your mother." ”

"Good!" When Zhu Ciran heard this, he immediately grabbed Zhang Yan's hand, pulled Zhang Yan and ran towards the target of archery.

Looking at the backs of Zhu Ciran and Zhang Yan leaving, Zhu Youxiao also touched the short beard on his chin, and then said:

"By the way, what is the name of the Yanshan official who impeached Cui Chengxiu today?"

"Jin Xuan ...... in the matter" Wang An reminded in a whisper, while Wei Zhongxian and Wang Tiqian felt that something was wrong.

"Jin Xuan......" muttered again, and Zhu Youxiao smiled:

"This person is good, transfer to the East Palace to teach the prince to read and write, just hand over Yanshan's set to the prince."

"Long live ......" Wei Zhongxian and Wang Tiqian couldn't help but speak, and then quickly calmed their tones and said with a smile:

"Long live, the review of the Hanlin Academy, Zhang Ne's teaching is good, if you change it directly, I'm afraid it will make people think that Zhang Ne has some problems......"

"Heh......" Hearing Wei Zhongxian's words, Wang An laughed disdainfully in his heart.

Saying that there is a problem is actually that you don't want to change people.

Hanlin Academy reviewed Zhang Ne is the teacher Wei Zhongxian found for Zhu Ciran, naturally he is a eunuch, as long as he starts cultivating from a young age, Wei Zhongxian can still rely on Zhu Youxiao, Zhu Ciran's favor before his death, to ensure his power.

At present, Zhu Youxiao proposes to change the teacher, and also to replace Jin Xuan, a Yanshan official who behaves "upright" today, doesn't this mean that the two of them will die?

"Yanshan's teaching method is very good, as for Zhang Ne, he will be transferred to the official department to serve as the middle of the matter, and make up for Jin Xuan's shortage."

Zhu Youxiao didn't care about opening his mouth, but everyone knew that since Zhu Youxiao said so, it meant that his mind had been decided.

"By the way, when will my brother return to Beijing?"

Zhu Youxiao asked Wang An, and Wang An replied:

"Jin Yiwei said that His Royal Highness is not very worried about the new local officials, for fear that they will not be able to govern well, so he is ready to wait until the cold dew, and the people have received food for the winter and then return to the capital."

"It's hard work...... brother" Zhu Youxiao's face showed a trace of guilt, and then he looked at Wei Zhongxian and the others:

"Let's go back to the Heart Cultivation Palace, and deal with the notes that have accumulated in the past few days."

"Yes......" Wei Zhongxian heard this, and also returned the salute, and asked someone to call Bu Yuan.

Zhu Youxiao sat on the chariot, and then returned to the Heart Cultivation Palace.

Just when he returned to the Heart Cultivation Palace, the officials also left the palace.

Because Zhu Youxiao listened to Zhu Youzhen's words and gave the officials one day off every five days, about one-sixth of the more than 3,000 Beijing officials in the capital took a day off today.

The large and small bathhouses in the capital have also welcomed the patronage of many officials.

However, as officials, most people still choose to relax in the bathhouses in the imperial city, which is also the norm.

It's just that compared to them, the officials of Yanshan seem to be unique.

Instead of relaxing in the luxurious bathhouse in the imperial city, they chose to relax in the bathhouse of the southern city, which was close to the common people......

The bathhouses of the Ming Dynasty are actually similar to the modern ones, but the bathhouses of later generations are decorated and lit, so they look clean and tidy.

In the Ming Dynasty, the bathhouse was built with bricks and stones, and behind the pool was a large boiler, and as soon as the hot water was turned on, it flowed into the pool from the water wheel, so the temperature of the pool was kept hot all the time.

Such bathhouses are called "mixed halls" and are also a major feature of civilian bathhouses.

However, compared with the Song Dynasty, only the south had a bath master, and the Ming Dynasty's bath masters can be said to be all over the north and south of the river.

Some simple health measures have also spread, such as back knocking, mud rubbing, etc., and the bathhouse culture is becoming more and more mature.

Yanshan officials like bathhouses, not for enjoyment, but because bathhouses are actually the most direct experience of market life.

Because it is very vulgar here, everyone can come, there is no reason to turn it away, and whether it is a royal relative or an ordinary person, everyone is the same when they take off their clothes.

Coming to the bathhouse is just a habit of loving hygiene, and the appearance of the bathhouse also makes people feel cleaner and make life more comfortable.

Moreover, the bathhouse even has a social culture, a few friends go to the bath together after a busy day, not only can they talk about business, career, and life in the bathhouse, nothing to say, nothing to talk about, this kind of life is very interesting, such as the current Kim Hyun and them......

"Today, Boyu's angry scolding of Cui Chengxiu in the court can be said to have spread, and when I heard about it, I was all amazed."

"Yes! It's a pity that we are all working in the Beijing government, not in the six sections, so we can't go to the temple to face the saints, otherwise we would have to impeach those eunuch officials one by one. ”

"Not only them, but also the group of corrupt officials who ruined our reputation in Yanshan."

"Yes, yes, yes......"

In the bath, more than 20 young Yanshan officials laughed and chatted, but Kim Hyun, who was the object of their discussion, had a stunned expression and didn't know what he was thinking.

"What's wrong?"

"It's okay...... I'm just thinking about what Li Shilang said today. ”

Bo Chengde, the county lord of Daxing County in Shuntianfu, who was familiar with Jin Xuan, saw his friend's distraction, and when he opened his mouth to ask, Jin Xuan also responded to the other party.

What Li Changgeng said to him, he had already told Chengde, and when Chengde heard his friend say this, he also said with a smile:

"Li Shilang is a good official, but after all, he has been an official in the 'old officialdom' of the Ming Dynasty for too long, and he is still conformist."

"Don't forget, we are 'new officials', and we don't have to abide by the rules of the old officialdom."

Sung Deok thought that Kim Hyun was struggling with the so-called rules, but he didn't want Kim Hyun to shake his head and say:

"I'm not thinking about Li Shilang's words, am I really that strong in the rules of the old officialdom?"

"In the first three years of Yanshan's imperial court, such a large number of corrupt officials and corrupt officials were able to come out."

"When I was waiting in Yanshan, I also took a political class, although the textbook clearly explained how dark the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty was and how many tempting things there were, but you and I didn't accept too much after all."

"If a few years later, you and I become like those corrupt brothers, will you still remember who you are today?"

"Don't think about it so much...... Hearing Kim Hyun's words, Sung-deok sighed and said:

"I'm satisfied with the moment anyway, I thought that the main thin Yulu would only be thirty taels of silver, but I don't want other miscellaneous things to add up, and there can be more than fifty taels."

"More than fifty taels of silver...... My family is in Huozhou, Shanxi, and if I divide them according to the class division in the political books, I can be regarded as a rich peasant, but even so, the 50 acres of land at home can only produce 80 or 90 stone of rice and wheat a year. ”

"At this age, after folding and selling, it can only be sold for forty taels of silver, and this is the land accumulated by my ancestors for three generations."

"The efforts of three generations are better than studying in Yanshan for five years, how can I not be satisfied?"

"Yes......" Kim Hyun couldn't help but sigh:

"I have a higher official position than you, and I am in a place like the Six Branches, and I have forty taels of silver just for the main salary, and counting other miscellaneous items, I can have about one hundred taels of silver."

"One hundred taels of silver, even if there is a lot of fish and meat every day, it is enough for my parents, brothers and sisters, aunts, sisters-in-law and nephews and other twelve people to eat for several years, if it is used to buy land, you can also buy eight acres of land around the capital."

Speaking of this, Jin Xuan couldn't help but say, "Yulu is so high, why do those senior brothers still want to be corrupt?" ”

"I'm afraid you and I won't be able to figure it out in this life." Sung-deok shook his head, and Kim Hyun was speechless.

The two of them were lying in the bath, but they didn't want to wait a few seconds before they were splashed with scoops of water by others.

The originally depressed mood also became relaxed with the joy of the "water fight".

After an hour, after everyone had freshened up and enjoyed a meal from the bathing master, they comfortably changed into a robe, put on a square scarf, and walked out of the civilian bathhouse.

The west and east squares are the two most prosperous places in the southern city, and after more than 20 people walk out of the bathhouse, you can see a lot of people and peddlers coming and going in the streets.

Cheng De stopped an old man who sold baked sweet potatoes, bought a lot of sweet potatoes from him, and distributed them to his classmates.

"Thank you...... Kim Hyun got the roasted sweet potato, first thanked him, and then reminded:

"Although there is Yulu, but if you spend it like this, I am afraid you will not be able to resist it for a few months."

"Huh...... Can't say that. Chengde opened the sweet potato skin and began to eat while saying:

"Forgot what it said in economics class? The people have to spend money to drive the local economy, and the small merchants and hawkers have to make money, and the court has to collect taxes, which is called driving the economy, and the ...... is called "huhuhu"

Sung Deok felt a little hot as he spoke, and exhaled, and Jin Xuan also turned his head to the other classmates when he saw this:

"It's okay today, I'll invite you to the stall to eat something."

"Good!"

"Then thank you, Brother Boyu......"

"Thank you, thank you......"

Everyone talked and laughed, like classmates in the same class, and soon walked from the street to a small shop, ordered some common side dishes, three meat and five vegetables per table, and gathered seven or eight people to eat close to each other.

After the interest was high, some people bought a few catties of soju, and everyone pushed the cup to change it, and the time passed little by little.

It wasn't until the sky gradually darkened, and the drum tower sounded the sound of twilight drums, that everyone talked and laughed and walked towards the dining house in Dongcheng.

The officials who graduated from Yanshan actually didn't spend much money.

Because Zhu Youzhen had already prepared everything for them, each county had a dining house, large or small, including an imperial shop, and there were even a number of courtyards in the workshop.

Each courtyard covers an area of one acre, and there are six small courtyards in it, each with a main house and two ear rooms.

Yanshan officials can receive a variety of meal tickets every month, and according to the number of officials' family members, they can eat in the large canteen of the dining house with the meal tickets.

In addition, there are tickets such as kerosene, salt, oil, and tea cloth that can be collected, which is basically that all aspects of life are covered, so you don't have to worry about it.

Such an expenditure is not very large, so far, nearly 260,000 officials who have graduated from Enko, and the annual expenditure in this regard is less than 500,000 taels of silver.

If Zhu Youzhen wants to solve the redundancy, it is destined that the number of officials in the future will not be as bloated as it is now, and he will naturally be able to support the officials.

It can be said that the current life of Yanshan officials is the life of Ming officials in the future.

It is precisely because of such scruples about all aspects of welfare that Kim Xuan and the others are even more puzzled by what the group of corrupt Yanshan officials think.

However, Kim Hyun soon knew why the group of Yanshan officials were corrupt......

"I'm back......"

Back in the courtyard, Kim Hyun shouted into the courtyard, but the strange thing is that Kim Hyun's family members are not at home, and at this time, Kim Hyun's mother walked out of the main house in a panic, took Kim Hyun's hand and whispered:

"There are guests in the hall, remember what my mother said to you since I was a child......"

After speaking, Kim Hyun Niang hurriedly walked out of the small courtyard and brought the door up.

Jin Xuan was stunned, then looked at the hall, frowned and walked into the hall, but he didn't want to see a person in a Taoist robe sitting on the main seat, and there were six family members standing next to him.

"You get out first."

The man greeted the left and right family members, and the six people also retreated.

After they had withdrawn, the man stood up and said to Kim Hyun:

"Congratulations to Jin Zhan on his ascension first, and from now on he will be the prince's teacher!"

"Who are you?" Jin Xuan frowned, although he was a little surprised when he became a person from Zhan Shifu and the prince's teacher, he still asked vigilantly.

"It's just a businessman in Zhejiang, and this time I came to ask for Jin Zhan's Mobao, a small meeting gift, not a tribute."

As he spoke, the man reached out and touched the table, and Kim Hyun saw that there was a box of wooden boxes on the table that filled the table.

As he noticed, the man raised his hand to open the wooden boxes one by one.

In this wooden box, each box contains a small silver ingot, each weighing about five taels, and there are more than 200 such small silver ingots.

"A small gift, not a respect...... the man got up with a smile, and skillfully pulled out a piece of fine rice paper from the last wooden box, and put away the prepared pen and inkstone, and prepared to grind ink for Jin Xuan with his own hands.

However, when he was about to study ink, Kim Hyun grabbed his wrist and the two looked at each other.

"I'm sorry, Jin's ink treasure is not worth a thousand taels of silver, and Jin's handwriting is ugly, please go back......"

Faced with his ten years of money, Kim Hyun now knows why so many senior brothers are sinking into corruption.

This is just a businessman's investment, if the matter is decided, then I am afraid that Jin Xuan himself will need to face more than a dozen businessmen, and the silver they bring is a fortune that Jin Xuan will not earn in his current official position in his life.

Most of the people who enter Yanshan Academy are orphans from poor families or even parents who have died.

They have known the importance of gold and silver since they were young, and in the face of the temptation of hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of taels of silver, how many people can stick to their hearts?

Ten taels of silver and one gold, and ten thousand taels of silver is one thousand taels of gold, and if these gold are brought to future generations, they can also be worth tens of millions.

In the face of such temptation, how many people can stick to their hearts?

Moreover, this is just a name for itself, and the follow-up investment is the most shocking existence.

Three years of Qing Governor's Mansion, 100,000 snowflakes of silver, this sentence is not a word......

"Why is Jin Zhan so excited? The imperial court has never abolished the pen silver, isn't it also an opportunity for you? ”

The businessman did not leave in a hurry in the face of Kim Hyun's attitude, but bargained with Kim Hyun with a smile.

Because he has dealt with too many Ming officials, especially officials like Jin Xuan, who have a bitter cold family and have ascended to the sky in one step.

Even if they refuse for the first time, they only need the bribe person to say a few more words, and the already wavering heart will still collapse.

"Kim Zhan Shi ......"

Shang Jia still wanted to strike while the iron was hot, but he didn't want Jin Xuan to let go of his hand directly:

"If Your Excellency doesn't leave with the silver, then the official will have to inform the Soldiers and Horses Division and the Jinyi Guard!"

"You ......" Seeing that Jin Xuan was so tough, the businessman's expression was immediately difficult to look at, and then under Jin Xuan's gaze, he walked out of the hall, and several family members who had been listening to the movement at the door also hurriedly walked into the house and packed the silver to resist leaving.

The courtyard door was pushed open, and Jin Mu, who had been guarding the door of the house, was startled, and was not relieved until she saw the six family members resisting the wooden box.

She hurriedly entered the courtyard, then bolted the door, walked all the way into the hall, and looked at the silver that had not fallen before saying to Kim Hyun:

"Xuan'er, you are an official in the court, you have to be cautious, we can't earn one or two of these unclean silver, you have to be worthy of His Royal Highness King Qi's cultivation of you."

"Mother, don't worry, Xuan'er is not that kind of person." Seeing his mother, Kim Hyun also barely squeezed out a smile.

Kim Hyun's character is like this, naturally because of Kim Mu's teachings, so Kim Mu will remind Kim Hyun not to forget what she taught him before going out.

At the moment, it seems that Kim Hyun has indeed stuck to his heart, but unfortunately, this time is just a test on his long road to becoming an official in the future, and there are thousands of temptations on the road ahead.

......Thinking of this, Jin Hyun understood why those Yanshan's senior brothers couldn't withstand the pressure and chose to accept bribes and become corrupt officials and corrupt officials that he once despised.

It's not terrible to woo, it's not terrible to bribe, and the most terrible thing is that someone keeps pulling in and bribing all the time.

In the face of such temptations again and again, who can stick to their hearts every time?

Kim Hyun suddenly thought of his classmates who went to the bathhouse with him today, and couldn't help but look up at the courtyard gate.

Looking at the courtyard gate, he couldn't help but sigh in front of his mother:

"I don't know how many people can make it to the end in this long journey......

Jin Xuan, after Li Zicheng's Dashun army broke through Beijing, Emperor Chongzhen was martyred, Jin Xuan learned about it, untied the tooth card and handed it to his family, so he ignored his family's obstruction and threw himself into the Jinshui River. The river is shallow, and Kim Hyun sinks his head into the mud and commits suicide. The Dashun army entrenched in Daechi for more than a month, during which no one collected the funeral for Kim Hyun. The internal official Yao pointed to the crown robe on the Jinshui River and said: "This Jin Soldier Department is also." Later, his brother Jin Qi collected his head and buried it with a wooden body.

After the fall of the Ming Dynasty, Chengde cried bitterly when he heard the collapse of the emperor, ran to Donghua Gate with chicken wine, and bowed to the emperor's body, and the whole family was martyred.

(End of chapter)