After listening to Zheng Michang's analysis, I saw He Maocai's face full of hindsight.

He Mao knew that Zheng Michang was right, if he had to describe it, they were now dancing on the tip of the knife.

If you are not careful, you will not please both ends, and then end up in an extremely miserable end.

After all, as Zheng Michang said before, they are not Zhang Xuan, Zhang Ge Lao, who can rise and fall three times in the position of the first assistant of the cabinet.

If Zheng Michang and He Maocai secretly assisted the emperor in investigating the land annexation in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and accidentally leaked it, then they would most likely end up with the same fate as Ma Ningyuan.

Being able to commit suicide in prison and save his family is already the best ending.

After all, this involves the lives of those wealthy gentry, and once the imperial court decides to inventory the acres of land and curb land annexation, then they, as vested interests, will suffer great damage.

Therefore, even if it is to kill chickens and monkeys, those wealthy gentry have to find ways to kill Zheng Michang and He Maocai.

In order to deter the latecomers, those wealthy gentry can even dispose of their families together.

Then, I saw He Mao come back to his senses, a trace of palpitations flashed on his face, he looked in the direction where Zheng Michang was, and said slowly: "Old Zheng, when you say this, I'm a little scared!" ”

When Zheng Michang heard this, he glanced at He Maocai, and said unhurriedly: "Now that the matter is over, do we still have a way out, we can only go one way to the dark!" ”

After this, I saw Zheng Michang withdraw his gaze from He Maocai, and instead urged: "Okay, let's go, the governor is still waiting for us!" ”

After Zheng Michang finished speaking, without waiting for He Mao to respond, he walked out of the room by himself.

Seeing this, He Mao hurriedly took three steps and made two steps, keeping up with Zheng Michang's pace, and couldn't help but say: "Lao Zheng, don't go so fast, wait for me!" ”

Subsequently, Zheng Michang and He Maocai each took a sedan chair and went to the governor's palace.

……

At the gate of the Governor's Palace, while the guards were in to report, I saw He Maocai looking in the direction where Zheng Michang was with a weak face, and said in a low voice: "Old Zheng, do you think we can live to the day of Zhishi?" ”

When Zheng Michang heard this, he did not answer in a hurry, but withdrew his gaze from a distance, and said slowly: "Alas, who knows, maybe one day when the East Window incident happens, we will be put in prison and dealt with according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty!" ”

When Zheng Michang said this, he paused for a moment, changed his words, and continued: "But before that, let's count one day at a time!" ”

When He Maocai heard this, he was also quite emotional.

At this moment, I saw that the guards of the Governor's Mansion who had gone in to inform them came to the two of them, bowed down, and said in a deep voice: "Two lords, the governor is waiting for you inside, you can go in!" ”

When Zheng Michang and He Mao heard this, after answering, they immediately stepped into the Governor's Palace.

After entering the Governor's Palace, the two did not hesitate in the slightest, and immediately marched in the direction where the chamber of the Governor's Palace was located.

After entering the conference hall, they saw Zhao Zhenji, who was sitting on the main seat and leisurely drinking tea.

Seeing this, the two did not dare to slack off in the slightest, and immediately stepped forward, bowed to Zhao Zhenji and said, "The lower official has seen the governor!" ”

When Zhao Zhenji heard this, he glanced over Zheng Michang and He Maocai's bodies respectively, and immediately, he saw him put down the teacup in his hand, waved his hand, and commanded: "Don't be so polite, sit down!" ”

"Thank you, Governor!"

After responding, I saw Zheng Michang and He Maocai, and sat down on the side seats one after another.

Soon after the two of them sat down, they only heard Zhao Zhenji's slightly emotional voice sound: "The silver that was confiscated from the Yuan family in Jiaxing was finally loaded and shipped out, and it was also a matter of the official's heart!" ”

He Maocai, who was on the side, heard this, and hurriedly said in response: "The governor is right, the silver has been counted and successfully loaded onto the ship, and then it has nothing to do with us!" ”

Zhao Zhenji was noncommittal to He Maocai's words, and then, I saw Zheng Michang pluck up his courage, looked in the direction where Zhao Zhenji was, and asked cautiously: "Dare to ask the governor why he came to me this time?" ”

When Zhao Zhenji heard this, he glanced at Zheng Michang, and then unhurriedly took out a letter from his sleeve, and then said: "Actually, the official called you over this time, it's not a big deal, it's just to let you see this note!" ”

Looking at the letter in Zhao Zhenji's hand, I saw a look of hesitation on He Maocai's face, plucked up his courage, and asked: "Lord Governor, this is ......"

"This is the note received by the Inspectorate, the contents of it, you can see it!"

When He Maocai heard this, a trace of ominous premonition suddenly flashed in his heart, and then, he saw him step forward and take the letter from Zhao Zhenji's hand.

When He Maocai returned to his seat and opened the envelope, his face suddenly turned pale, trembled, and trembled: "This ...... This, this, this is an impeachment recital, who is the Inspectorate to impeach us! ”

Because he was too frightened, He Maocai at this time had dense sweat oozing from his forehead.

Not only He Maocai, but Zheng Michang's face on the side was also very ugly.

Then, I saw him get up from the seat, walk quickly to He Maocai, snatch the song from his hand, and browse it word by word.

"Wanton expropriation, wanton greed for ink, private punishment, preying on the common people, and disregard for the laws of the imperial court......"

The impeachment note in Zheng Michang's hand not only lists the relevant crimes, but also attaches relevant evidence.

By the time Zheng Michang finished reading the contents, his face had turned pale, and he knew that the crime of wanton greed for ink alone was enough to put him to death.

Then, I saw Zheng Michang take the lead in reacting, knelt on the ground with a 'plop', looked at Zhao Zhenji who was sitting in the main seat, and hurriedly explained.

"Lord Governor, the lower officials can swear to the heavens that the crimes listed in this impeachment letter are pure slander, and the lower officials have never done anything that hurts heaven and reason!"

Seeing this situation, He Mao, who was on the side, also knelt on the ground and added: "Yes, Lord Governor, this impeachment letter is purely fictitious and deliberately fabricated, and the subordinate officials are innocent!" ”

Zhao Zhenji took in the expressions on the faces of the two, and after picking up the teacup and taking a sip, he got up from the seat and personally helped the two from the ground.

After that, facing the incomprehensible gazes of the two, I saw Zhao Zhenji explain: "You don't have to worry, this matter has passed!" ”

"This is all the handiwork of the Yuan family in Jiaxing, I saw that you didn't let go of your mouth before, so the Yuan family in Jiaxing used the connections of the court to impeach the two of you, wanting to teach you a lesson."

"However, the court has already clarified the matter, and you two are innocent!"

When Zhao Zhenji said this, he changed his words and continued to add: "Besides, the Yuan family in Jiaxing is secretly hiding weapons and intending to rebel, how can the evidence they submit be counted, right?" ”

When Zheng Michang and He Maocai heard Zhao Zhenji's words, the stone that had been hanging in their hearts finally fell to the ground.

The expression of the rest of his life after the catastrophe appeared on his face, and he couldn't help but respond: "Yes, that's right, the governor is right, this is obviously a deliberate slander!" ”

At this moment, Zheng Michang and He Maocai's heart knew very well that this impeachment letter was deliberately revealed by Zhao Zhenji, intending to show his strength while beating them.

"You see, even such a tricky matter, the official can settle it at will, and then work hard for the official!"

This is what Zheng Michang and He Maocai interpreted from Zhao Zhenji's actions at this time.

……

Thinking of this, Zheng Michang and He Maocai couldn't help but have bitter smiles on their faces.

Because from now on, they can't get off Zhao Zhenji's ship.

After all, Zhao Zhenji was born in Shujishi, and this time he came to Zhejiang to serve as the governor of Zhejiang and the governor of Zhejiang, which was obviously the experience given to him by the emperor.

The content of the experience is to secretly check the acres of land and curb land annexation.

The current Zhao Zhenji is like a wedge, ruthlessly embedded in the boundary of Zhejiang.

You must know that the land annexation in Jiangsu and Zhejiang is particularly serious, and the emperor sent Zhao Zhenji to Zhejiang, which naturally has high hopes, and even gave him the right to cut first and then play.

It can be said that after Zhao Zhenji completes his mission, he will be transferred back to the capital to be reused, and with his status as a Jishi, it is not difficult to even enter the cabinet.

"Could it be that Your Majesty plans to use Zhejiang as a test site, accumulate some experience, and when the time is ripe, then check the acres of land nationwide and curb land annexation?"

For no reason, such an idea suddenly flashed in Zheng Michang's mind, and soon, Zheng Michang was shocked by his own idea, and broke out in a cold sweat.

It was only at this time that Zheng Michang suddenly remembered that because of the change from rice to mulberry earlier, the fields of the entire Zhejiang Province were measured.

In other words, the emperor actually knew how many fields there were in Zhejiang.

And the delay in doing so is because the time is not yet ripe, and there are not so many obedient officials available in the hands of the emperor.

The reason why Zhejiang's fields were measured so smoothly before was because the Yan Party saw that it was profitable.

After all, they were able to take advantage of the change from rice to mulberry to wantonly annex the land in the hands of the people.

Those officials thought that since the land would fall into their hands sooner or later, they would definitely take the opportunity to measure every centimeter of the land, so as not to suffer losses at that time.

With such a purpose, all the acres of fields in Zhejiang have been cleared, and the number of cleared zhangs this time is extremely accurate.

The land that came out of Qingzhang in Zhejiang totaled 869,252 hectares!

However, the final result greatly exceeded the expectations of everyone in the Yan Party.

Not only did they fail to take advantage of the opportunity of changing rice to mulberry and wantonly annex the land in the hands of the people, but they also succeeded in changing rice to mulberry without annexing land.

And some people profited from it, and more people joined the ranks of planting mulberry seedlings after seeing that it was profitable.

When the plan failed, those people had another plan, and simply joined forces with the merchants, maliciously lowered the price of raw silk, and then bought it at a low price.

After all, with the price of silk becoming more and more popular, even the price of raw silk as a raw material has skyrocketed a lot, and it only needs to be purchased at a low price from the hands of the people, and then sold again, which is more than ten times the profit!

This time, however, their plans were shattered by Zhao Zhenji, the newly appointed governor of Zhejiang and governor of Zhejiang.

Not only did they fail to get oil and water from it, but they also suffered a lot of additional losses, and after seeing the death of Yan Maoqing, who was in charge of the matter, these people were frightened.

Because anyone with a discerning eye can see that this is the emperor killing chickens and monkeys, warning them to stop.

After that, those people died down one after another, and they had to suffer this loss, and they no longer dared to make any small moves behind their backs.

Because of this, a situation like Zhejiang's is not replicable.

If officials do not see the benefits of it, they will definitely not do their best to implement the imperial court policy, and with the experience of Zhejiang, many officials will be much more cautious.

After all, not only did they fail to achieve their goal, but they also stole chickens and rice, and measured the fields of Zhejiang for the emperor, and this time the data is more real than ever!

……

Then, I saw Zhao Zhenji withdraw his gaze from Zheng Michang and He Maocai, and after pondering for a moment, he continued: "Let me tell you the truth, the impeachment against you was personally instructed by His Majesty to be suppressed by the Inspectorate!" ”

When Zheng Michang and He Maocai heard this, their pupils suddenly contracted, and their faces were full of disbelief.

Then, I saw He Maocai raise his head, look in the direction where Zhao Zhenji was, and tremble: "Patrol...... Your Excellency, Your Excellency, ...... What did you just say? ”

Not only He Maocai, but also Zheng Michang, who was not far away, also had an unbelievable look on his face.

He originally thought that this matter was suppressed by Zhao Zhenji at the behest of Hai Rui, but who knew that the emperor was actually involved!

Facing the suspicious eyes of the two, Zhao Zhenji's face was full of inexplicable looks, he knew that the slap had been completed, and it was time to give a sweet date.

After that, I saw Zhao Zhenji finish thinking the language in his mind, facing the two of them, and explained: "Actually, before this, this official has already truthfully played Your Majesty's contribution to the two of you!" ”

After Zhao Zhenji finished speaking, he picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and said no more.

Although Zhao Zhenji's sentence is very brief, the amount of information contained in it is unimaginable.

One of the most important messages contained in it is that the Emperor has already known about the contributions made by the two of you, so he ordered the Inspectorate to put the impeachment under pressure.

In other words, they are now familiar in front of the emperor, and although they are not to the point of occupying a place, this is also a good start.

At the very least, the emperor was able to remember their names and know that there was also a political envoy and an envoy in Zhejiang, who was conscientiously investigating the land annexation in the face of the world's condemnation.

At this time, because he was too excited, Zheng Michang's body began to tremble uncontrollably.

When he saw the impeachment letter, he thought that the East Window incident had happened, and he would die soon, who knows, this blink of an eye, is another village, they took a huge risk, and all the efforts they made were recognized by the emperor.

This sudden ups and downs made Zheng Michang feel a little in a trance.

Then, I saw Zheng Michang pinching the back of his hand hard, and the clear pain coming from the back of his hand was silently telling him that all this was true.

After doing this, I saw Zheng Michang come back to his senses, looked at Zhao Zhenji, who was sitting on the main seat at the moment, and said in a deep voice: "The lower official is determined to go to the soup for the governor, and he will never give up!" ”

After Zheng Michang finished speaking, the whole person bowed to the ground very solemnly and stopped speaking.

Seeing this, He Maocai on the side also followed Zheng Michang's steps and saluted Zhao Zhenji respectfully.

Seeing this, Zhao Zhenji stroked his beard, glanced at the two of them separately, and thought: "Well, these two people are a little greedy, but it's good to get things done!" ”

Then, I saw Zhao Zhenji gather his mind, retract his gaze, and ordered: "Well, sit down!" ”

When Zheng Michang and He Maocai heard this, they couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

At this moment, both of them knew very well in their hearts that after this incident, their relationship with Zhao Zhenji would reach a higher level.

It can even be said that it has reached the point where both prosperity and loss have been achieved!

After all, being an official in the same dynasty is like taking a boat.

And now, they have the same interests as Zhao Zhenji, and they are all preparing for the upcoming inventory of acres and the suppression of land annexation.

If something accidentally goes wrong in this process, then not only will Zhao Zhenji have no chance to go further, but even they will have to meet the counterattack and pay the price of their lives for the things they did before.

……

After that, the atmosphere in the conference hall was obviously much more relaxed.

Zheng Michang also took this opportunity to report to Zhao Zhenji about the recent situation in Zhejiang.

"Lord Governor, the price of raw silk has dropped recently, and the price of a pound of raw silk is about two or three dollars, but despite this, there is still some short supply!"

"It is worth mentioning that there has been such a type of people in Zhejiang recently, this kind of people are farmers when they are busy with farming, and in their spare time, they go to those machine households to work as weavers, and it is said that they have a lot of income!"

Zhao Zhenji was noncommittal about Zheng Michang's words, after all, before this, the emperor had issued an edict to exempt him from taxes for one year.

No matter how much these people earn, the government has no right to collect taxes for the time being, and it will have to wait until next year to collect taxes on this part of the population.

Then, as if he suddenly remembered something, Zhao Zhenji looked in the direction where Zheng Michang was, and asked: "By the way, what is the situation on the Weaving Bureau recently, the order of 500,000 pieces of silk that was negotiated with those Fanbang merchants before must be delivered before the end of the year!" ”

Since Pang Qian, the chief eunuch of the Weaving Bureau, was escorted to the capital, the Weaving Bureau was temporarily managed by the Zhejiang government.

So far, nothing has gone wrong, everything is working normally.

When Zhao Zhenji's words fell, Zheng Michang on the side responded after thinking for a moment: "Lord Governor, there are 480,000 pieces of silk in the warehouse of the Weaving Bureau, and there is only a gap of 20,000 pieces of silk!" ”

"These 20,000 horses of silk can be completed before the end of the year, and there can even be a surplus!"

When Zheng Michang said this, he couldn't help but sigh, after all, at the beginning, this business was negotiated by Yang Jinshui.

And Tan Lun and Hu Zongxian were also at the scene, now Yang Jinshui is crazy, Tan Lun has become the governor of Hu Jian, and Hu Zongxian was transferred to the capital by the emperor, appointed as the secretary of the ministry, and also entered the cabinet.

After doing it for a long time, it seems that he is the only one who does not move, and he is still serving as a political envoy in Zhejiang.

At this moment, the afterglow of Zheng Michang's eyes inadvertently caught a glimpse of He Maocai on the side, and he felt a little comforted in his heart.

"Well, it's okay, I'm not alone!"

Because He Maocai was thinking about something else at this time, he didn't notice Zheng Michang's eyes looking at him.

After listening to Zheng Michang's report, Zhao Zhenji nodded and said in response: "Well, as long as you can complete this order before the end of the year!" ”

After that, I saw Zhao Zhenji withdraw his gaze from the two of them, waved his hand, and then ordered: "Okay, this official still has things to deal with next, if there is nothing to do, you can leave!" ”

When Zheng Michang heard this, he just wanted to get up and say goodbye to Zhao Zhenji, and then, as if he suddenly remembered something, he pretended to inadvertently mention to Zhao Zhenji the matter of Wang Yongxian, the prefect of Jiaxing.

"By the way, Lord Governor, the lower official suddenly remembered that Wang Yongxian, the prefect of Jiaxing, seems to have a close relationship with the Yuan family in Jiaxing, and he has dealt with the aftermath for them, you see......"

After Zheng Michang finished speaking, he lowered his head, stopped speaking, and waited anxiously for Zhao Zhenji's decision.

When Zhao Zhenji heard this, after thinking for a while, he waved his hand and ordered quite casually: "Okay, you two can do this matter!" ”

When Zhao Zhenji's words fell, I saw a trace of excitement flashing on Zheng Michang He Maocai's face, and then, I saw the two of them look awe-inspired, and responded in a deep voice: "Obey, Lord Governor!" ”

"Alright, let's do this for today, you can leave!"

"Yes, Lord Governor, the lower official will retire!"

After bowing to Zhao Zhenji, Zheng Michang and He Maocai did not hesitate at all, and immediately left the meeting hall of the Governor's Palace.

Zheng Michang understood that Zhao Zhenji acquiesced to their next move.

"I don't know if the governor will accept it, alas, it doesn't matter, when I get the money, let's explore the governor's tone first!"

Thinking of this, Zheng Michang couldn't help but speed up the pace under his feet.

After Zheng Michang and He Maocai left the meeting hall of the Governor's Mansion, he saw Zhao Zhenji retract his gaze, slowly got up from his chair, and then went straight to the study of the Governor's Mansion.

"When the matter here is over, I, Zhao Zhenji, may be able to go further and enter the cabinet smoothly like Hu Zongxian!"

After that, I saw Zhao Zhenji gather his mind and deal with the official documents sent by the officials of the Governor's Mansion in an orderly manner. (End of chapter)