Xu Jie was led into the fine house by Chen Hong, and knelt down about six feet away from the dragon bed: "Minister, Xu Jie, knock to see the saint." ”

After kneeling down, Xu Jie was immediately startled, he saw Hai Rui's song and threw it on the ground not far from him!

Jiajing leaned on the head of the bed and slowly turned to look at him, and saw that he had already seen the music of Hai Rui on the ground: "I read the script of the beast scolding me again, and you will read it again." ”

Xu Jie kowtowed: "Please forgive the emperor." ”

Jiajing: "Forgive whose sins?" Forgive Hai Rui, or forgive you? ”

Xu Jie: "Back to the emperor, please forgive the emperor for the sins of the ministers, the ministers can't bear to look at this music again." ”

Jiajing: "Well said, it's tolerable, it's unbearable!" ”

Xu Jie touched his head: "Yes." ”

Jiajing saw the two notes he placed on the ground beside him again: "Is there anything else you can't bear to show me?" ”

Xu Jie raised his head: "Emperor Shengming, there are two urgent scripts, which were sent today, and they are about to be presented to the Shengshang." ”

Jiajing stared at him gloomily: "It has something to do with Hai Rui, right?" ”

"One is related, one is not." Xu Jie knew that any attempt to support me at this time would arouse the emperor's speculation and suspicion even more, and his answer was very clear.

Jiajing: "According to what you think in your heart, let's talk about the one that has nothing to do with Hai Rui first." ”

"Yes." Needless to say, there is no way to tell, Xu Jie picked up the notebook that was placed on the ground, and sure enough, the one on it was the notebook from Tan Lun, which had nothing to do with Hai Rui, and opened the cover.

Jiajing sneered: "That's it." ”

Xu Jie: "Yes." This piece was handed over by Tan Lun, the governor of Yingtian, from Nanjing on the seventh day of the seventh month of July, and the first batch of cotton cloth from the Songjiang cotton workshop supervised by the Inner Palace Shangyi Supervisor and Ying Tianbu Political Envoy Department was woven, and the cotton merchants and cotton farmers were loyal to the country, and for the first time they handed over 50,000 horses of high-quality cotton cloth to the state treasury and 50,000 horses of Zhongping cotton cloth, all of which had been loaded on ships and were on their way to Beijing. ”

No matter how reserved he was, Jiajing's face immediately showed relief, and his eyes that had been dim also flashed a light. But that relief and joy were only instantaneous, and they quickly disappeared again: "The script of the seventh day of the seventh month of the seventh month of July arrived in Jingshi so quickly, and it is worth six hundred miles of urgency to hand over some cotton cloth?" ”

Xu Jie: "Your Majesty, there are less than two months left before the date of the armistice and peace agreement between Liaodong and Mongolia Alta, with these 100,000 pieces of cotton cloth, the Mongol Altan will withdraw their troops soon, and the two thousand horses they promised to pay tribute to the Celestial Dynasty will also be delivered in time." As a result of this peace talks, military spending in the north will be drastically reduced not only this year, but also in the next few years. Every year, the state treasury can save more than 1 million yuan in military spending for other purposes. In order to relieve the sorrow of the saints, such news should be presented to the emperor as soon as possible. ”

Jiajing: "If you really think so, I have no choice but to believe it." It's time to talk about the one related to Hai Rui, let's talk about it. ”

Xu Jie slowly picked up the notebook at the bottom and stacked it on top, and opened the cover: "According to the Guangdong Governor's Recital, Hai Rui's mother and wife arrived in Leizhou on June 24 and are preparing to cross the sea to return to their hometown in Qiongshan, Hainan. But Hai's wife was pregnant, and she suddenly gave birth early in Leizhou, which was a difficult birth. Because Hai Rui was a criminal minister, the government could not send her a doctor according to the regulations of the imperial court, and Hai's wife was in the post station for three days, the fetus could not be born, and the mother and child could not be saved. ”

Jiajing moved for a moment, and was silent.

Huang Jin was cleaning in front of the altar at this time, and when he heard the news, he slowly picked up three sticks of incense and lit them on the candle, bowed, and inserted them into the incense burner.

Jiajing saw it in his eyes and slowly turned to look at Xu Jie: "Why does Guangdong want to take this script?" ”

Xu Jie: "Hai Rui is very disrespectful to his father, and whenever there is anything about him, the magistrate must urgently play the court as usual." ”

Jiajing was silent again. Of these two texts, the first is the good news, and the second is the injury. This report was obviously discussed, and at this time he was used to change his mind and ask him to pardon Hai Jui's capital crime. Xu Jie, the cabinet and Nanzhili and Guangdong have such a tacit understanding, and the people's hearts are clearly visible. Jiajing felt the isolation he had never felt before, which made him uncomfortable and difficult for him to accept.

After churning in his heart for a while, Jiajing suddenly looked at Chen Hong: "What do you think?" ”

Chen Hong: "Back to the master, as far as the slaves know, Hai Rui is a single transmission of three generations. Fifty sons, wives and children all died, all because he had no father and no king, abandoned the country and abandoned the family, this is God's retribution for him. ”

Jiajing slowly looked at Xu Jie: "Xu Jie, you get up." ”

"Yes." Xu Jie stood up.

Jiajing instructed Chen Hong: "Give me a seat." ”

"Yes." Chen Hong moved the embroidery pier and put it down at the head of Jiajing's bed, and Xu Jie sat down next to him.

Jiajing: "Huang Jin." ”

"The minions are here." Huang Jin limped and turned around.

Jiajing: "Submit Hai Rui's list." ”

Huang Jin limped to the side of the imperial case and put Hai Rui's list of checks on the tray, picked up the tray, picked up the red pen again, walked to the bed, presented the tray to Jiajing, and turned the red pen over.

The tray was placed on Jiajing's quilt, and he took the pen and looked at the list of Hai Rui.

The three of them, Xu Jie, Chen Hong and Huang Jin, no longer avoided it, and looked at the pen in Jiajing's hand together.

Jiajing looked at Chen Hong: "What time is it?" ”

Chen Hong: "Back to my master, it's noon now, and there are still three moments before the execution." ”

Jiajing: "You just said that Hai Rui's wife's death in Leizhou was God's retribution. Since Heaven has given him retribution, I will also obey the destiny of Heaven. After speaking, suddenly the pen waved, and it was heavily ticked on the list!

A bright red hook, Hai Rui was hooked!

Xu Jie's face turned white.

Chen Hong's eyes lit up.

On the contrary, only Huang Jin was still expressionless at this time, took the red pen in Jiajing's hand, and picked up the tray again.

Chen Hong went to pick up the tray.

"This mission will be handed over to Huang Jin." Jiajing drank Chen Hong, "Huang Jin, there are still three quarters of an hour, can you rush to the edict prison while you walk?" ”

Huang Jin: "The master just said that it is the destiny of heaven to catch everything if you can't catch up." ”

"Master......" Chen Hong answered.

"Shut your mouth!" Jiajing stopped him again, "Huang Jin, you go now, don't use a sedan chair, you can go how you usually go this time." ”

Huang Jin: "The slave obeys the order." Answer, he held the tray and took the red pen to the imperial case first, put the pen on hold, put down the tray, and then picked up the list of Hai Rui in the tray, blew it, dried the red traces on it, and slowly rolled it into a tube, held it in his hand, and limped towards the door of the house.

Xu Jie finally understood the deep meaning of Jiajing's acceptance of his own people. People who have cultivated to the point of "Waves hitting the empty city and returning to the lonely" in this realm immediately became wet at this time, and lowered their heads.

At this time, Jiajing's eyes looked outside the door of the fine house, and looked at the open south window outside the door. Deep is the eyes, and even deeper is the sky that can't be seen to the end. Is the emperor's heart unpredictable, or the heaven's heart unpredictable?

Emperor Heart and Heavenly Heart were all on Huang Jin's lame leg at this time. On duty, not on duty, far and near, I don't know how many pairs of eyes are looking at Huang Jin who is limping towards the forbidden door with a limp in his hand.

It's forbidden to the West Garden. Although Huang Jin was no longer the celebrant at this time, and the twenty-four yamen in the palace did not hold any position, the forbidden army and the eunuch on duty saw him limping and still saluted him together.

As usual, there should be four guardians, who were already waiting at the forbidden door, and when they saw Huang Jin stepping on the stone steps out of the forbidden door, two of them approached him to pick him up.

"There is a will." Huang Jin stopped, "I'll go alone." After saying that, he didn't want them to help him, and limped up the stone steps by himself. When he reached the threshold, Huang Jin picked up his lame leg with one hand and stepped over, and walked out of the forbidden door.

The four eunuchs still followed him out of the forbidden door, and immediately a sedan chair was carried over. Huang Jin stopped again: "There is a will, I don't need a sedan horse, I'll walk alone." You go and ride a horse alone, tell the Zhenfu Division first, and wait for my Zhu Pi to arrive before the execution. ”

One of the eunuchs immediately galloped to a horse, turned over and rode on, and galloped first.

Huang Jin held Zhu Pi and walked unhurriedly with a limp.

The forbidden soldiers and eunuchs standing at the forbidden gate looked at Huang Jin's back, and they all showed solemn expressions.

The execution of the prisoner was chosen at the beginning of autumn, set at three o'clock in the afternoon, and it was all related to celestial phenomena: the autumn wind had risen to kill, the sun was still shining, and when the extreme sun turned to yin, human life was returned to heaven, which was in line with the righteousness of death. Therefore, the date and hour cannot be erroneous. At that time, Hai Rui was in Chun'an, and he used the means of missing the three quarters of the afternoon to save Qi Dazhu and rehabilitate their unjust case. As for the execution ground in Jingshi, one is the Xishi archway where the criminal department openly executes prisoners, and the other is the compound where the edict prison secretly executes prisoners, and in strict accordance with this regulation, there are sundials in the places where the executions are carried out, and according to the correct position of the Qintian superintendent, the sundials are placed in the right position according to the track of the autumn sun, and when the sunlight covers the shadow of the pointer in the middle of the stone plate engraved with the hour, the execution is carried out.

The sundial in the prison compound was placed on the brick floor far from the plane tree, and the daylight shone on the hands of the sundial from day to sunset. At this time, the hands have obscured the noon tick marking.

Qi Dazhu was still kneeling in front of the incense case under the plane tree, while Zhu Qi and the other executed Jinyi guards were standing far away on the side of the sundial that did not block the sun, all eyes were looking at the sundial, anxious, nervous, and full of luck and hope.

"It's past noon!" An executioner brocade guard stood behind Zhu Qi and shouted softly.

Zhu Qi's eyes were still firmly fixed on the sundial and did not answer.

"Did the emperor pardon Hai Rui?" The other executioner of the Jinyi guard then whispered.

Zhu Qi raised the palm of the fan-sized hand and motioned for them to shut up.

Qi Dazhu, who had been kneeling, also slowly raised his head, looked back at the sundial, and hope flashed in his eyes.

They were all silent, and at this time, the dense leaf autumn cicada in the upper part of the plane tree suddenly chirped, which was particularly loud and harsh.

Zhu Qi's ears moved, his face changed slightly, and his eyes looked at the door.

The others followed suit, and heard the hoofs of horses galloping from outside the courtyard walls, and all eyes looked nervously at the gate.

The sound of horses' hooves stopped outside the gate, and then the eunuch, who had been ordered to come in advance to deliver the decree, strode in with his head held high.

The eyes of Zhu Qi, Qi Dazhu and all the executioners began to show despair, and they looked at the eunuch who was striding over.

"There is a will." The eunuch walked up to Zhu Qi and the others, and the voice was so long.

Zhu Qi took the lead and knelt down.

The eunuch didn't immediately deliver the decree, and it took a while before he picked up the tone: "Hai Rui has been conspired to be executed, and he will be executed at three o'clock in the afternoon." ”

Zhu Qi knelt there and didn't move, and the others knelt there stunned.

Qi Dazhu, who was still kneeling in front of the incense case, slowly reached into the placket of his hand, his hand gripping the hilt of a short sword.

"Command." Zhu Qi knelt there and spit out these two words heavily, and stretched out his two palms together towards the eunuch.

The eunuch: "There is a will, but I have no will here." ”

What does that mean?

Zhu Qi slowly raised his head and looked at the eunuch.

All those who knelt lifted their heads and looked at the eunuch.

The eunuch pinched his voice again: "There is a will, and the will of Hai Rui will be served by Huang Gonggong." ”

The eunuchs have lived in the big house for a long time, and they all have a common virtue, and they can make up stories to sensationalize without a story. Along the way, the horse was pulled straight by him, and when he got here, he still thought about this play in his life, so he was always in the role when he came in to deliver the message, and he said that Hai Rui was hooked for a while, and then said that he didn't bring Gou Zhu, so that he would talk about the ups and downs and thrilling in the future. But Zhu Qi didn't understand, they were all on their knees in a daze around him, and their brains couldn't turn for a while.

When the eunuch played at this point, everyone was stunned when they saw that the seventh master was still kneeling in front of them, and then suddenly remembered that the seventh master could not be offended, and finally came out of the role, and showed Zhu Qi a look: "Seventh master, Huang Gonggong is the official leader at noon, and the emperor specially said that he should go and send Gou Zhu over." You also know his old man's leg, it is estimated that he will not be able to reach it for a while, so the big guys will get up and wait. ”

Zhu Qi seemed to understand, but he still didn't believe his ears: "You said that Huang Gonggong came alone at noon?" ”

The eunuch: "Yes." When I came, he had just come out of the forbidden door. ”

Zhu Qi: "Huang Gonggong's leg...... Is there really no horseback riding or sedan chair? ”

The eunuch wanted to show favor and take the hall: "I said, Seventh Master, what's wrong with you today?" said that Huang Gonggong came on foot, of course, he did not ride a horse or sit in a sedan chair. Wait, get up. ”

Zhu Qi looked at the sundial, it was less than a quarter before three o'clock in the afternoon!

"Big Pillar!" Zhu Qi completely understood, and stood up and called loudly.

Qi Dazhu's hand holding the hilt of the sword immediately let go, and he turned to look at Zhu Qi: "Master." ”

Zhu Qi: "Thank God! ”

"Yes!" Qi Dazhu immediately took out the short sword from the placket, cut the finger of his left hand, inserted the sword back, picked up the fallen leaf on the incense case, dripped the blood gushing out on it, and then stretched the blood-stained fallen leaf to the fire candle of the incense case and lit it.

The bloody leaf burned on the ground.

Qi Dazhu fell down.

Zhu Qi also led the other brocade guards to the incense case and knelt down towards the big tree.

This is what the eunuch didn't expect, standing there and seeing such a scene became even more excited, this paragraph was added, and it will be even more impressive in the future!

There were two wooden beds, a table and two stools in the prison, and Hai Rui and Wang Yongji sat opposite each other at the table, with chains removed from their bodies, looking at the bowl of meat and fish on the table, as well as a bowl of tofu, but neither of them went to serve wine glasses.

"Mrs. Tai and Mrs. Sister-in-law should have already arrived in Guangdong." Wang Yongji broke the silence and raised his glass, "May they have a safe journey." ”

Hai Rui just picked up the wine glass, but neither of them looked at anyone, and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.

Hai Rui picked up the wine jug and poured it full for Wang Yongji first, then filled his own cup, put down the wine jug and looked at Wang Yongji with both hands: "Holy decree, you are going to Liaodong." I can't send you away, if you really have a soul, I will send you all the way first. After saying that, he drank the wine in one gulp.

But the king did not take the cup, but sat there in a daze. Seeing that Wang Yongji did not speak, Hai Rui was silent, and sat opposite Wang Yongji.

As the saying goes, death is like a lamp going out, and the candle in the lantern burns less than half an inch and gradually dims.

The king took off the lantern cover, took another candle from the table, lit it on the remnant fire, and then melted the bottom of the candle on the remnant flame and fused it up, and covered it with the lantern.

The cell was lit up again for a while, and Wang Yongji didn't dare to look at Hai Rui anymore at this time, and looked at the re-lit fire candle in a daze: "'Heaven does not give birth to Zhongni, and eternity is as long as night. 'Brother Gangfeng, you, a sage of the Shu Dynasty, have made a word, although you have sacrificed yourself to become benevolent, the light will always be there. ”

"You can't seek kindness, you can't take righteousness. The name of the emperor is infamy, and the name of Bo is his own body. The emperor won't let me die, where can I talk about speaking on behalf of the saint. Hai Jui's voice choked up when he said this.

What does it mean to "the emperor won't let me die"? Hearing Hai Rui's words, Wang Yongji was full of surprise and looked at him fiercely.

Hai Rui's eyes were closed, and he was already in tears.

Wang Yongji was shocked: "You mean the emperor has pardoned you?" ”

Hai Rui wiped his tears with the sleeve of his robe, opened his eyes and looked at the candlelight on the table: "Three o'clock in the afternoon has passed." ”

Wang Yongji's gaze also looked at the candlelight, and he understood for a while. It was an hour after a candle was burned, and when Qi Dazhu changed the previous candle, he said that it was the beginning of noon, and now that this candle has been burned, it should be the end of noon.

"At the beginning of noon, at the end of noon......" Thinking of this, the king's voice trembled, "The emperor has pardoned you, the emperor has pardoned you......" This time the king shed tears with Ji, turned around and rushed to the side of the prison door, grabbed the iron bar, and shouted loudly at the passage outside the prison door: "The emperor is shengming!" ”

The shouts echoed through the cell, and then footsteps came from the other end of the passage outside the cell door, and there were many people, but they walked very slowly.

A lantern light lit up outside the prison door, and Zhu Qi and Qi Dazhu appeared outside the door with Huang Jin in their arms.

Zhu Qi: "Unlock!" ”

A group of brocade guards who followed them walked out of the prison door, and they had already held the key in their hands, and quickly unlocked the door and pushed it open.

Huang Jin was still holding the scroll of Gou Zhu in his hand, and walked into the cell alone with a limp: "There is a will." ”

Hai Rui and Wang Yongji both knelt down.

Huang Jin: "One of the convicted officers, Hai Rui." According to Huang Jin's decree, no horseback riding, no sedan chair, and walking to the edict at noon. If the will is not delivered at three o'clock in the afternoon, it is the mandate of heaven to pardon Hai Jui. ”

Hai Rui knelt on the ground: "The guilty minister is here." ”

Huang Jin: "Thank God." ”

Hai Rui was reluctant to raise his head: "According to the "Da Ming Law", the minister scolds the monarch for being disrespectful, and the sin is not forgiven. Hai Jui begged for a death to correct the law. ”

Huang Jin looked at him: "If you want your ministers to die, you have to die, and if you want your ministers to live, you have to live." Thank you. ”

Hai Rui still didn't want to thank him, but just kowtowed to Huang Jin, still kneeling there.

Huang Jin no longer forced him: "Qi Dazhu." ”

"The subordinate is here." Qi Dazhu responded excitedly and walked in.

Huang Jin: "The Zhu batch was burned." There is a will, take good care of Hai Jui. ”

"Yes." Qi Dazhu responded loudly, took the outdated Zhu Pi and walked to the lantern to light it, his hands were trembling.

Huang Jin took out another decree from the placket of his clothes and turned to look at Wang Yongji: "Wang Yongji listens to the decree." ”

"The sinners are here." The king replied in a voice from Jilang.

Hai Rui raised his head at this time and looked at Huang Jin with concern.

Huang Jin unfolded the purpose: "The Imperial History King of the Metropolitan Procuratorate used Ji to present the Jiangnan Mining Division and the case of Dexing and Kaihua embezzlement of ink, and I was shocked to see it. Wang Yongji was still reinstated, and he went to Nanjing to thoroughly investigate with Tan Lun, the governor of Yingtian, and all the stolen money was confiscated into the treasury. The dead miners were compensated as a whole according to official regulations. Chin this. ”

"The Emperor Shengming!" This was Hai Rui's voice.

Huang Jin hasn't returned yet, Chen Hong has been sent by Jiajing again, and Xu Jie is left in the fine house to accompany Jiajing.

"Elder Xu Ge." Jiajing leaned on the head of the bed, and this voice was very sad.

"The minister is here." Xu Jie replied affectionately and stood up.

Jiajing looked at him, his eyes were completely devoid of the usual deep coldness, revealing the loneliness of looking for understanding: "I have been in the imperial pole for so many years, so many mistakes, why don't any of you dare to admonish in ordinary times?" ”

Xu Jie: "The emperor has his own difficulties, there are no monarchs in the world, and the ministers do their duty, how can they blame the king." ”

Jiajing: "So many grievances, so many hardships, how did you get through?" ”

Xu Jie's eyes were wet again: "A word of 'respect' and a word of 'sincerity', but with these two words." ”

Jiajing: "This is a big truth, and sometimes a big truth doesn't work. Like that Hai Jui, say something from the bottom of your heart. ”

Xu Jie already felt that Jiajing was greatly admonished by Hai Rui this time, coupled with illness, and began to reveal the inner introspection before the next life, and his heart was sad, so he no longer said "great truth", and replied earnestly: "The emperor asked the minister like this, and the minister had to say something inappropriate. ”

Jiajing: "You say." ”

Xu Jie: "The dynasty rules the world with filial piety, and the world is one family." In the Ming Dynasty, there were two capitals and thirteen provinces, and hundreds of people were born, just like the children of this family, and the emperor was the father and ancestor of this family. The ministers are the daughter-in-law in the middle, and they do everything according to the duties of the daughter-in-law, endure if they can, hide what they should hide, and try their best to take care of both ends. I really couldn't take care of it, so I had to bend my children and grandchildren, and I couldn't bend my in-laws. There is no other way. ”

Jiajing was silent for a long time: "That Hai Rui also said in Shuli, 'If you are a husband in the world, Your Majesty's family is also, and no one has neglected his family. What he admonished was that I didn't take care of this family and didn't do a good job of this monarch. But now I understand that I am already old and seriously ill, and I can't take care of this family if I want to cheer up. Xu Jie, I have been thinking about it for the past few days, abdicate and let King Yu succeed to the throne. ”

"Never!" Xu Jietong knelt down, "As Hai Ruishu said, 'Your Majesty is handsome and decisive, wise and insightful, can be Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, and Wu'." 'All kinds of waste, this is just a matter of His Majesty's cheering up. 'The emperor's majesty and majesty are all subdued by the ministers of the world, and now he is rashly Zen throne, the world is shocked, and King Yu will inevitably behave at a loss, and it will be difficult to advance and retreat. I hope that my emperor will be good at raising the dragon body, and then go back to the palace to look at the court, and lift a hundred wastes and eliminate all kinds of evils, then I will be prosperous. The descendants of the descendants of the generations will be very fortunate in the sect and the world. ”

Jiajing was moved, cheered up and sat up straight: "Xu Jie." ”

Xu Jie: "The minister is here." ”

Jiajing: "The medicine Li Shizhen prescribed to me is in the cabinet over there, Huang Jin is not here, you go to boil it for me." ”

"Yes."

Xu Jie was secretly surprised that he answered so refreshingly.

After Chongyang, the leaves of the trees in the north are yellow.

There are many big trees planted in the courtyard wall of Yuwang's mansion, the west wind is sassy, many leaves are blown down to the courtyard wall, in front of the palace gate, and a layer of leaves is swept down, and after a while, it is full of fallen leaves, the distinguished guests are about to arrive, and they can no longer sweep up the dust, so the eunuchs on duty have to gather people to pick it up. People gather like ants, some are picking up fallen leaves on the ground, some are catching fallen leaves in the air, just this pomp, you can see the wealth of the heavenly family.

"Uncle Guo, they've arrived! Queue, queue! The head of the eunuch on duty shouted loudly.

The eunuchs who picked up fallen leaves immediately lined up in two rows on both sides of the avenue in front of the palace.

The soldiers who received the guests from the palace rode horses to open the way in front, followed by two carriages with people and a carriage carrying goods, and followed the cavalry to the front of the palace.

In order to send 100,000 pieces of cotton cloth to Liaodong before the winter to sign a peace agreement with Mongolia, Gao Hanwen and Li Qi finally arrived in Beijing before the frost fell after the cold dew. On the dock, the cotton cloth was handed over to the household, and then went straight to Yuwang's mansion. State affairs and family affairs must be reported here to King Yu and the princess first.

The two side doors of the palace were opened, Zhang Juzheng, Feng Bao led a ministry and others were waiting in the front yard, the prince loved to be lively, I heard that my uncle came from Jiangnan, and I also stuck to Feng Bao and so on here, because Zhang Ju was beside him, his heart was excited but he didn't dare to make a fuss, he was led by Feng Bao with two eyes wide open and only looked at the open side door, moving piecemeal, and couldn't help pinching Feng Bao and asked softly: "I heard the sound of horses' hooves, why haven't they come in yet?" ”

Feng Bao picked him up and said softly: "Lord Shizi, let's close our eyes dozens of times, and they will come in." ”

"If you don't come in ten times, you will learn to bark." The son of the world forgot about love, and this voice was very loud.

Zhang Juzheng's eyes looked over: "The prince is polite." ”

Shizi was afraid of him, so he immediately shut up, his face was ugly, and he secretly pinched Feng Bao fiercely.

Feng Bao pretended to be in great pain, grinning and pretending to turn that face to Zhang Juzheng, and Shizi immediately let go.

"It's here! Uncle Guo, they have arrived! A voice of surprise came from outside the palace gate.

Zhang Juzheng took the lead to greet him, and Feng Bao hugged the prince and followed.

Walking in front was Li Qi, followed by Gao Hanwen, with the dust on his body and a smile on his face, the two of them first saluted Zhang Juzheng: "I've seen Master Zhang." ”

Zhang Juzheng also smiled: "It's hard all the way. ”

Feng Bao came over with the prince in his arms, and the three of them saluted the prince together: "See the prince." ”

Seeing that Li Qi couldn't take care of it anymore, the prince shouted: "Let me go!" ”

Feng Bao put down the son, and the son ran to Li Qi: "Uncle, have you forgotten what you promised me?" ”

Li Qi smiled so much that his face bloomed, and he squatted down and hugged Shizi: "How dare you forget the things you promised Shiziye, and they packed more than a dozen boxes." But there is one of the best things that the prince of the world can't keep, and he must go to the palace to pay tribute to the emperor's grandfather after the day. ”

Shizi: "What is the best thing in the Imperial Grandfather's Palace?" Don't just get something for me to send in, Grandpa Huang doesn't like it. ”

Li Qi stuck to his ear: "Uncle gave you such a thing, there is no such thing in the imperial grandfather's palace, if you offer it, the imperial grandfather will be overjoyed." ”

Shizi: "What the hell is it?" ”

Li Qi shouted: "Carry that vat of Xiangrui in first!" ”

Immediately, I saw four people carrying a large gilt copper jar on the left side of the door and cautiously walked in, and when I carefully crossed the threshold, the water in the copper jar still rippled out.

"Slow down! Slow down! Richie shouted loudly with significant nervousness, "Tap put." ”

The copper cylinder was lifted into the compound and put down, and the laborer who carried the cylinder immediately retreated.

Shizi was already excited, Li Qi hugged him and approached the water tank, Shizi looked into the water tank, and was really surprised.

- There was a big turtle in the tank that was two feet long and one foot wide!

Looking closely, the tortoise shell has obviously been wiped, golden and shiny, and there are several large characters on it, which are vaguely recognizable, some of the sons of the world recognize it, and some of the sons of the world do not recognize it.

"It's huge! There are still words on the back! Shizi exclaimed in surprise.

Gao Hanwen also smiled on the side and told Shizi: "The words on this can be asked by the university, Shizi will quickly ask Master Zhang to tell you." ”

The prince looked at Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Juzheng seemed to know that there was such a thing in advance, so he first exchanged a look with Gao Hanwen knowingly, and then slowly walked to the copper cylinder.

The one who was also qualified to go over to see it was Feng Bao, who also approached the copper cylinder.

Feng Bao was also surprised when he saw the turtle, but Zhang Juzheng's face immediately became excited and solemn.

The words on the back of the golden-armored turtle are obviously engraved by someone many years ago, the words are long with the turtle, there are square inches in size, carefully identify, it is "Wu Yin in the early years of the Han Dynasty" seven official characters!

Zhang Juzheng looked at the turtle in the copper jar and fell into deep thought.

He didn't speak, so the prince had to wait. This is a bit of a covetousness for the eunuchs, palace maids, and ministers who are standing in the courtyard, and they don't know what is inside. They all looked at Zhang Juzheng, waiting for him to say the "university question" inside.

Tan Lun and Gao Hanwen had sent a courier to tell Zhang Juzheng about this matter a few days ago. Zhang Juzheng immediately felt that a plan that had been buried in his heart for a long time had the best opportunity, Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty ruled by inaction, known as a virtuous monarch in history, Jiajing did not go to court for more than 20 years, and often masturbated more than Emperor Wen. At this time, let King Yu dedicate this auspicious rui to him, which will play a role in preparing for a rainy day after King Yu succeeds to the throne.

"Rare! It is indeed auspicious. Zhang Juzheng finally spoke, but he couldn't say the deep meaning at the moment, so he had to turn to the prince and say simply, "This turtle was released during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han." Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty is a virtuous monarch, and the imperial grandfather is also a virtuous monarch. ”

Shizi: "Master, how big is this turtle?" ”

Zhang Juzheng: "Just look at the words on the tortoise shell." Later Yuan is the name of the seventh year of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty, and Wuyin is the early year of the Later Yuan Dynasty. This turtle is ...... years ago," Zhang Juzheng thought for a moment, and then said, "It's been 1,730 years!" ”

"I've lived so long!" Shizi exclaimed.

"It's a loss to Uncle Guo, Master Gao." Feng Bao sighed, "Where did you get it?" ”

Li Qi: "The auspicious rui that fell from the sky, if it doesn't come out sooner or later, ten days before we left, someone netted it from Taihu Lake, and didn't dare to keep it privately, so it was sent to the governor's yamen, Tan Lun Tan knew that we were in Beijing, and said that he would dedicate it to the prince, and let the prince dedicate it to the emperor again." ”

How to make the imperial grandfather happy, this is a tutorial that has been instilled every day since he was a child, and the prince immediately shouted: "I will send it to the imperial grandfather immediately!" ”

Zhang Juzheng: "I have to show the prince and the mother." Speaking of this, he turned to Li Qi, Gao Hanwen, and Yun Niang and his wife: "I've been waiting inside for a long time." Mo Qing went with me to see the prince, and Gonggong Feng accompanied Uncle Guo and Mrs. Gao to see the mother. ”

Zhang Ju was in front, Feng Bao was leading sideways, and Li Qi was still holding Shizi and Gao Hanwen in the back and walking towards the inner courtyard.

The four laborers immediately lifted the copper jar and sent it to the backyard, and many eunuchs and palace maids flocked to the copper jar to see the golden turtle.

Then, outside the gate of the house, many people carried and carried a number of small cages and large boxes to send in.

"It's up to you." King Yu did not hide his appreciation and gratitude, and looked at Gao Hanwen, who had just sat down and was about to stand up, "Sit down, drink tea first." ”

Gao Hanwen just sat down again, picked up the tea bowl, but did not drink, and looked at King Yu.

King Yu said with emotion: "In such a short period of time, I have brought 100,000 pieces of cotton cloth to the imperial court, and Liaodong has reached a peace negotiation this time. ”

King Yu's reward did not make Gao Hanwen excited, but looked at Zhang Juzheng gloomily.

Zhang Juzheng: "There has always been a dilemma in the world. After a while, the creatures in the north were naturally spared from the charcoal, but the jade silk was exchanged for the net worth of the people in the south of the Yangtze River. ”

King Yu was stunned: "How do you say this?" ”

Zhang Juzheng sighed: "'Rip off the flesh of your heart, and heal the sores in front of you!'" 'Mo Qing, tell the prince in detail about what happened over there. ”

Gao Hanwen roughly told King Yu about the output of cotton cloth. When King Yu learned that sixty percent of the cotton cloth income went to the landowners and cotton merchants, and thirty percent went to the imperial court, and only one percent was distributed to the people, he stood up at once.

Zhang Juzheng and Gao Hanwen both looked at King Yu.

"What six, three, one!" King Yu suddenly got angry, "What is the difference between this and Yan Song and Yan Shifan, who changed rice to mulberry in Zhejiang back then!" Master Zhang, call Xu Ge Lao for me. ”

"Lord Wang!" Gao Hanwen immediately became anxious, "This matter has nothing to do with Elder Xu Ge. The prince just called Xu Ge Lao here, and he just went to reprimand his family in a letter. The Xu family put aside the picks and quit, and no one dared to do the cotton spinning industry in the Songjiang area, and the imperial court's plan to enrich the treasury by expanding cotton fields would immediately go to waste. ”

King Yu: "Annexing the land of the small people, the landlord should not pay taxes to the imperial court, and no matter how much cotton cloth is produced, it will not return to the treasury, but it will suffer the people, so if you don't do it!" Gao Hanwen, you are from Kejia, don't learn from Shen Yishi! ”

King Yu was jealous of the evil and the powerful to merge and accumulate wealth, and opposed the "six, three, one" wealth distribution plan proposed by the gentry in the Songjiang area, mainly the Xu family, which was expected by Zhang Juzheng and Gao Hanwen, but his last sentence made Gao Hanwen both moved and aggrieved. Thinking of the country and caring about the people who do things for the country, this is the biggest difference between King Yu and the current emperor. Ke Yuwang compared himself to Shen Yishi, and he clearly had a suspicion of suspicion, which was what Gao Hanwen had to confess.

Gao Hanwen: "Lord Shengming." At that time, the imperial court changed rice to mulberry in Zhejiang, and the strategy of 'changing and relieving oneself and solving the dilemma' was put forward by me, and the original intention was to take into account both the court and the people. It was precisely because the Yan Party and the Weaving Bureau used Shen Yishi to think half of the palace, half of himself, and he didn't want the court or the people, misleading the country and harming the people, that the strategy at that time failed. Yan Dang was defeated, Yang Gonggong went crazy, and Shen Yishi burned himself to death, all of which I have personally seen. I am now a commoner, a glass of wine, a book, and a piano to get by. When I went out to do business, I wanted to try it for myself, whether my strategy of taking into account both the court and the people was feasible. The prince is right, I, Gao Hanwen, am learning from Shen Yishi, and what I am learning is a lesson from the past. ”

Gao Hanwen was suddenly so impassioned, and said these deafening words, which King Yu didn't expect, and he was stunned for a while.

Zhang Juzheng immediately answered: "There is something I didn't want to tell the prince, the 100,000 pieces of cotton cloth that I agreed with the Mongolian family can be gathered so quickly, and half of it is taken out by Mo Qing and his wife from their own home. Mo Qing has already been dismissed, and he doesn't have to do this for the imperial court. ”

Only then did King Yu understand, and slowly turned to look at Gao Hanwen again, his eyes full of guilt: "I blame you wrongly." But you really don't have to. Millions of acres of cotton fields, return to the principal and interest, there are 200,000 horses in net profit, why are the Xu family and those gentry only willing to give 50,000 horses? How did Tan Lun, the governor of Yingtian, become the governor, and there was no way to manage them? ”

"That's where the difficulty lies." Zhang Juzheng continued, "The tax exemption of the fields of the official gentry is the ancestral system. Whether they grow rice and wheat or cotton in their fields, there is no tax to be collected at this level. Weaving cotton cloth, he did not trade it himself, and waited for the cotton merchant to buy it at home, and the government could only receive the cotton merchant's commercial tax on the centi card, and the court could only receive 20,000 horses of cotton cloth in 100 horses. If it weren't for the arrival of the governor of Yingtian, and Li Niangniang's younger brother who was also a tax collector, he would have collected taxes on the spot while buying cotton in the Songjiang region, and he would not have been able to collect even 50,000 horses this time. The prince was dissatisfied with the division strategy of 'six, three, and one', but he didn't know that he could fight for thirty percent for the imperial court, involving Xu Ge's old family, and so many official gentry, Tan Lun was already doing it. ”

Speaking of the ancestral system, when it came to Xu Jie, King Yu's eyes immediately lost his mind: "Then there is no way to take them?" ”

Zhang Juzheng: "There is a way, but it can't be done at the moment." ”

Yuwang: "What's the solution?" ”

"Restructuring!" Although the two words Zhang Juzheng lowered their voices, they were still like a muffled thunder.

King Yu was startled, and his eyes immediately looked out of the door: "Be careful." ”

Zhang Juzheng: "I know. Lord, there are some things that should not be said right now, but the vassal king does not pay taxes, the gentry do not pay taxes, and the taxes of the imperial court are all pressed on the common people, and the people are overwhelmed, so they can only sell the land to the vassal king or the gentry, and if the annexation continues, one day the treasury will be empty, and the people will be poor! If you don't reform the system, you will have to change the dynasty! ”

Yuwang: "Be careful! Be careful! Zhang Juzheng, now is not the time to say these words. ”

Zhang Juzheng lowered his voice, but still insisted: "There are some things that must be said now. Lord Wang, those who can't seek eternity can't seek eternity, and sometimes they seek eternity for eternity. I heard Imperial Doctor Li say that the emperor's illness has become difficult to get up, and it will only be a matter of a few months before the sky collapses. Lord, you must have a plan now. ”

King Yu's expression immediately became solemn: "What should be done now is to ask Li Shizhen and them to do everything they can to cure the emperor's illness!" As a retainer, I can't plan anything to covet the succession. Master Zhang, none of you can have such thoughts. ”

Zhang Juzheng's expression also became solemn, more solemn than King Yu: "Lord, compared with the ancestors and ancestors, and the world of the Ming Dynasty, which is more important!" ”

King Yu slowly looked at him: "What the hell are you going to say?" ”

Zhang Juzheng: "For example, the peace agreement with Mongolia, they are in the desert and want my Ming cotton cloth." This year's peace talks were finally negotiated with the help of the 100,000 pieces of cotton cloth sent by Gao Hanwen and them. But where are the 100,000 cotton cloths next year? Where is the year after tomorrow, and the year after next? Not next year, the war will start again; Every year there is no peace. The restructuring I just mentioned will take time, but the restructuring of the Jiangnan cotton field tax cannot be delayed. Lord, can this not be planned? ”

King Yu listened, but he was even more gloomy: "But I can't tell the emperor now, and I can't hope to take over the throne as soon as possible to implement these strategies." ”

Zhang Juzheng: "The minister did not ask the prince to have these ideas, the minister only reminded the prince to prepare for the implementation of these strategies." ”

Yuwang: "What preparations?" How to prepare? ”

Zhang Juzheng: "The minister only said one thing. What the prince can do now is to persuade the emperor to keep a person's life, and he will come to Jiangnan to restructure, and this person must be. ”

Yuwang is also a person who understands in his heart, and immediately thought: "You mean Hai Rui?" ”

Zhang Juzheng: "Lord Shengming." In the future, we should continue to expand the cotton fields in the Songjiang area, so that those officials and gentry can pay taxes as one, and the most important thing is to ask the officials and gentry to return the annexed land to the people. With one person against 10,000 people, there is only one Hai Rui in the Ming Dynasty! ”

With such a deep plan for the country, King Yu finally realized Zhang Juzheng's painstaking efforts, but immediately wondered again: "Hasn't the emperor already pardoned Hai Rui?" ”

"Lord Wang." Zhang Juzheng must let him understand, "The emperor is a patient now, and his illness is mostly caused by pills, he is moody, and rain, dew and thunder are often in an instant. Today, the emperor can not kill Hai Rui, but tomorrow the emperor may suddenly kill Hai Rui. The prince must let the emperor understand that leaving Hai Rui is to leave a sharp weapon of the country for the ancestors and ancestors. ”

King Yu thought about it even more, and looked at Zhang Juzheng: "You just said that you will come to Jiangnan to reform Hai Rui, but the first person who will be hurt by the restructuring is the old Xu Ge family." Xu Ge Lao also worked hard to save Hai Rui, and really let Hai Rui go, how to face Ge Lao? ”

Zhang Juzheng: "The prince thinks deeply. Since the Jiangnan reform is imperative, it is inevitable that the Xu family will be hurt. Xu Ge Lao has a great contribution to the society, and has great virtue in the government and the opposition, and anyone who goes will either be unable to implement the new policy, or put the cabinet in a desperate situation. Only when Hai Jui goes can he not only implement the new policy, but also take good care of the elders. Lord Wang, for the sake of Xu Ge Lao, he must also keep Hai Rui! ”

King Yu finally had a whim: "Prepare a recital for me, and I will go to see my father tomorrow." Reprimanded, deposed, I also admit it. ”

Zhang Juzheng and Gao Hanwen exchanged a look, and then turned to King Yu and said: "The ministers have made preparations for the prince, and the prince's visit will never cause the emperor to be unhappy." Mo Qing, tell the prince about the thing you brought. ”

King Yu looked at Gao Hanwen.

Gao Hanwen: "It's also providential." Just before we left for Beijing, someone fished up a turtle released during the period of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty in Taihu Lake, and the name of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty was engraved on the back of the armor. We brought it to the prince this time. As long as the prince takes the prince to see the emperor tomorrow in the name of offering auspiciousness, everything will be fine. ”

"Is there such a thing?" King Yu was shocked when he heard this, "How many years should it be?" I will never present anything that is deceitful or pretending to be a ghost to the emperor. ”

Gao Hanwen replied: "It's true! This turtle was released in the early years of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty, 1,730 years ago. It is now in the backyard of the prince's palace, and the prince can go to inspect it in person. ”

"Take me to see it!"

King Yu immediately walked to the door of the study, with a look of disbelief in his eyes.