prosperous age

Chapter 828 917 "Chen Wu Shi Shu"

With the support of Gaoyi, Gao Gong was also determined.

If he goes to the cabinet for discussion at this time, he can say that he has a sure chance of winning and is not worried about Zhang Juzheng coming out to disrupt the situation.

At the same time, his perception of GROHE has improved a lot.

I used to think that this person was quite upright and useful, but now I feel that he is also a person who takes the overall situation into consideration and is aware of current affairs.

In fact, at this time, whether to support him or not is the basis for Gao Gong to judge whether an official is good or bad.

He was satisfied that Gao Yi chose to side with him at this time.

After Emperor Longqing died, it was a matter of course for Prince Zhu Yijun to inherit Dabao, but some procedures were still needed, that is, persuasion.

However, when the ministers went to the "Persuasion Form", Gao Gong had already asked Zhang Juzheng to contact the Sixth Ministry and take full responsibility for the matter.

In the short term, unless something particularly big happens in the court, other matters must give way to the funeral of Emperor Longqing.

Returning to his room, Gao Gong sorted out his relationship with Feng Bao again and found that there seemed to be no room for relaxation.

Although he and Meng Chong had never dealt with each other in the past, Meng Chong was older than him, and the job of serving the emperor was not something that such an aging eunuch could do.

Regardless of the reaction or whatever, it may not necessarily be able to win the little emperor's liking.

Yes, although Zhu Yijun has not officially ascended the throne, he is already the future emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and no one can touch this position.

Emperor Longqing's attitude was very clear. He was not only present at the time, but also Empress Chen, Zhang Juzheng, Gao Yi, and the eunuch Feng Bao whom he disliked most.

In fact, the relationship between him and Zhang Juzheng is very complicated. They admire each other and have similar political views, but they just can't get together. There are a group of people behind each pushing them, and everyone is vying for the right to speak in the Ming Dynasty. .

If the Xu Jie case hadn't been used to capture Zhang Juzheng, I don't know how to deal with him.

Thinking of the childish face of the little emperor he saw yesterday, Gao Gong sighed again.

He did not dare to look down on the emperor, even as a child, but he knew how important it was to educate such an emperor.

The Hongzhi Dynasty incident that Gao Yi mentioned just now was not made up by him. Although Emperor Zhengde was young at that time, he was already over sixteen years old.

But such a big kid still makes people worry.

Can the emperor do whatever he wants and do whatever he wants?

Perhaps because he was keeping Feng Bao in mind, Gao Gong already equated Feng Bao with Liu Jin of the Zhengde Dynasty.

At that time, Liu Jin, the eunuch in charge of the ceremonial department, won the trust of Emperor Zhengde and was good at "criticizing Zhu". He even took Zhang Zuo back to his private residence and criticized it together with his sister-in-law Sun Cong and the diner Zhang Wenmian. The cabinet suddenly became Decoration.

As a result, Liu Jin became the de facto emperor.

The relationship between the officials in the world and him is that Shunchang will perish, and those who sell themselves to seek refuge will become prosperous. Anyone who dares to say "no" to him will be relegated to a plagued land at the least, or be beaten with a stick and abandoned in the market.

Past experience guide for the future.

Gao Gong realized that Feng Bao might become the second Liu Jin. Instead of letting things develop and waiting for death, it was better to take advantage of his unstable footing and fight back. This may eliminate a major hidden danger for the common people of the country.

After much thought, Gao Gong decided to write a memorial to the young emperor in the palace who had not yet ascended the throne, proposing to restrict the rights of the Supervisor of Ceremonies, just as he had said to Gao Yi before.

The only thing the cabinet could do was to overpower the Supervisor of Ceremonies, and it was absolutely impossible to repeat the past events of the Zhengde Dynasty. He hoped to recreate the situation of the Tianshun years, when San Yang was in charge of the cabinet.

You know, in the early Ming Dynasty, when it came to handling national affairs, there was no such thing as a ceremonial supervisor.

Standing in front of the desk, Gao Gong reached for his pen and started writing on the rice paper that had been laid out on the desk.

"Grand Master Gao Gong and others would like to express this inscription: In order to support the new political affairs. I respectfully meet the emperor for his first ascending to the throne and have a comprehensive overview of all the urgent matters at the beginning of the world. I would like to open the document and move forward. I wish you a holy reading, and I will give it to you specially. I can’t help but look up to you, so I would like to read it with the inscription: "

This was to be reported to the emperor in the form of a cabinet meeting, so Gao Gong used the word "wait", and the memorial must be signed by three cabinet members at the end.

Thinking of the scene that happened in the Wenhua Hall yesterday, when the ministers first persuaded him to come in, the young emperor didn't know how to respond, but chose to turn sideways and ask the eunuch Feng Bao next to him, Gao Gong suddenly knew what he was going to say next. if.

He continued to write: "It is an old rule of our ancestors that the royal family listens to the government. Every time there is an issue in the yamen, Yuyin will answer it personally to see that the government order comes from the master. The ministers dare not intervene."

At this time, Gao Gong's literary thoughts were flowing, and his pen was full of dragons and snakes. The ancestral systems that he believed to be followed appeared in his mind, and these ancestral systems were all systems that restricted the exclusive power of eunuchs in the early Ming Dynasty.

However, Gao Gong soon thought of another privilege that the emperor had, which was "staying in China."

In fact, when Emperor Longqing was still around, sometimes he would choose to stay in the matter without answering if he didn't know how to deal with it.

There is also the Central Edict, which does not go through the cabinet and the six departments. If there are no restrictions on the Young Emperor's issuance of the Central Edict, I am afraid that the Central Edict will become Feng Bao's speech hall, and he can issue whatever he wants.

So he continued to write: "Three things must be discussed and handled properly, so that they can be helpful and serve the hearts of the world. If they are not discussed and handled, there will be mistakes."

Unknowingly, an hour passed, and Gao Gong finally stopped writing. Looking at the nearly thousand-word memorial he had written, Gao Gong was quite satisfied.

I read it twice and thought about it for a while, making sure that I didn't miss anything and that everything I thought was true.

In this memorial, Gao Gong mainly mentioned five things, so at the end, he respectfully inscribed the words "Chen Wu Shi Shu" on the pale yellow silk cover of the memorial.

Although the memorial has been written, it is too late today. Gao Gong does not plan to summon Zhang Juzheng and Gao Yi to discuss the matter today, but intends to leave it until tomorrow morning.

After the cabinet meeting, it was immediately sent to the palace for approval.

"master."

At this time, the clerk outside the door came in and said respectfully at the door.

"Is something wrong?"

Gao Gong looked at him and asked.

The clerk hesitated for a moment before taking a few steps forward and whispered in his ear: "Eunuch Chen just sent a message. Queen Chen and Concubine Li are together in the palace. They are talking about the palace's headgear. After preparing a set the year before last, , I haven’t made any new ones in the past two years.”

The scribe who can stay by his side is naturally someone Gao Gong trusts. When he heard his words, he understood what Chen Hong meant.

In fact, in the third year of Longqing's reign, the emperor intended to create a new batch of jewelry for the concubines in the harem, but was rejected by Ma Sen, the then Minister of Household Affairs.

This matter was not completed until the fourth year of Longqing's reign, and Ma Sen was not favored by Emperor Longqing and was sent back.

Gao Gong naturally understood what Chen Hong was thinking, which was to please Empress Chen and Concubine Li. One had the power to rule over the affairs of the court, and the other was the biological mother of the young emperor.

Gao Gong nodded slightly, indicating that he understood.

After the scribe went out, Gao Gong was thinking about this matter.

If he were to take the initiative to leave a note to Zhang Shouzhi of the Ministry of Revenue, it would damage his reputation if it spread. He had to let other people go and say hello.

While he was thinking about it, a clerk from outside came to report again, saying that his disciple Luo Zun asked to see him.

Luo Zun, a native of Jingyang, Shaanxi Province, was a Jinshi in the 44th year of Jiajing reign. He was considered his student, and Gao Gong was also very optimistic about him, so he was assigned to the sixth subject when he was awarded an official.

Over the past few years, Luo Zun has become a leader in official affairs and can be regarded as a person who can stand alone.

"Daoxing, what are you doing here?"

After Gao Gong and others entered the door, he asked.

"Teacher, Dao Xing is here for national affairs."

As soon as Luo Zun opened his mouth, Gao Gong was startled. He thought something big had happened, so he immediately asked. "Teacher, my teacher must have seen the scene in the Wenhua Palace yesterday.

I was waiting to pay homage to the prince, but Feng Bao was actually standing next to the prince. We were paying homage to the prince, but those who didn't know better thought we were paying homage to the eunuch, so I wrote a memorial when I got home last night. "

Having said this, Luo Zun took out a memorial from his sleeve and handed it to Gao Gong with both hands.

Gao Gong took it and looked through it, and heard Luo Zun say again: "Feng Bao is bullying the young prince. Such people should be severely punished."

Gao Gong was naturally very impressed by Luo Zun's words. He was also thinking about how to deal with Feng Bao. He had to make good use of Luo Zun's impeachment memorial.

Just hand it over, now is not a good time.

So Gao Gong looked at Luo Zun and said, "I'm very happy that you can see this.

Just now, Mr. Gaoyi Gaoge and I told him that if Feng Bao is not restricted, he will become the next Wang Zhen and Liu Jin. "

Having said this, Gao Gong shook the memorandum and said: "I will keep this thing for now, and then hand it over when the time comes. Now that I have sent it to the palace, it will not be of any use."

"It all depends on the mentor."

Luo Zun naturally didn't dare to have any objections and hurriedly clasped his fists.

"Ah."

Gao Gong nodded, and then said: "You just happened to come over. I originally said to call someone."

"Whatever happens to my mentor, I just give you orders."

Luo Zun said immediately.

"The imperial court has not been financially well-off in recent years, and the palace has not purchased any headgear for several years.

Now that the emperor is in great power, the court must consider the concubines in the harem, otherwise it will inevitably make people feel chilled.

You go to the Ministry of Household Affairs and talk to Zhang Shangshu, asking the Ministry of Household Affairs to allocate 200,000 taels of silver to Concubine Li to purchase headdresses for the concubines in the harem.

In this way, he could send the late Emperor off in a graceful manner, so that he would not have to worry about his situation. "

Gao Gong told Luo Zun.

When he heard about this matter, although Luo Zun had thoughts in his heart, he would never show it on his face. He just agreed respectfully and said that he would go to the Ministry of Revenue to talk to Zhang Shouzhi about this matter in a while.

In the cabinet, Gao Gong handled the government affairs sent to Sanya, then got up and left the imperial city, got on the sedan and returned home.

"Sir, Zhang Shangshu of the Ministry of Revenue is here and wants to see you."

As you walked through the door, the butler came over and whispered.

Now Gao Gong asks his family to refuse all visitors, after all, the time is special.

However, officials, especially his disciples, are a special case.

Zhang Shouzhi does not fall into this category, but he is an important minister in the court, so he must be treated with special courtesy. He cannot be turned away like a small official who cannot be beaten with eight poles.

"Where is he? How long has he been here?"

Gao Gong walked towards the backyard and asked as he walked.

"Having been here for half an hour, I arranged for him to rest in the West Flower Hall."

Butler Gao Fu replied.

"You did the right thing. Although you don't see foreigners, Zhang Shangshu is not an exception.

You go over to entertain them first, and I'll go to the back and change my clothes. "

Gao Gong ordered and entered the backyard gate. Gao Fu only stood at the door for a moment, then turned and walked towards the West Flower Hall.

Not long after, Gao Gong had already changed out of his official uniform and walked out of the backyard to the West Flower Hall in plain clothes.

"Brother Shi Ju, I'm sorry for keeping you waiting."

Before Gao Gongren entered the door, the voice came in first.

Zhang Shouzhi, the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, who was sitting bored on a rosewood chair, stood up hurriedly when he heard Gao Gong's voice, clasped his hands and said with a sullen look on his face: "Yuan Fu, my sudden visit is actually for a reason."

Gao Gongqian smiled. He knew why Zhang Shouzhi came to him, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Now that the imperial court is preparing for the emperor's funeral, money is needed everywhere, and the Ministry of Revenue is the most difficult yamen.

But there was no way, who could have caught up? If it hadn't been for Feng Bao, he wouldn't have considered currying favor with the nobles in the palace, or the nobles with the power of the president.

The money was sent to Concubine Li, but it was actually no different from giving it to Empress Chen.

Because of the affairs in the harem these years, Emperor Longqing asked Concubine Li to deal with it, but Concubine Li would always ask Empress Chen for instructions when something happened, because she once said that the maids around Empress Chen had received many favors, and the relationship between them was very good, and she also looked up to Zhu Yijun. If you come out.

This is why Queen Chen was not favored in the palace, but the eunuchs did not dare to embarrass her.

Zhang Shouzhi saw Gao Gong's tired face, his dark eye circles filled with bloodshot eyes, and his long gray beard that had lost its former luster. The anger in his heart suddenly disappeared and was replaced by feelings of admiration and compassion.

Yes, it is true that these days the cabinet is liaising with various ministries to prepare for the emperor's funeral, and Gao Gong is very busy.

"Yuansuke, I know you are really tired these days."

"Brother Shi Ju," Gao Gong waved his hand to interrupt Zhang Shouzhi, "You must see me tonight. Is it because of the two hundred thousand taels of silver?"

"Exactly," Zhang Shouzhi nodded and said confused, "Luo Zun came to me and said that Yuan Fu asked him to tell him that tomorrow he would allocate 200,000 taels of Taicang silver to Concubine Li to make head and face jewelry for the concubines in the harem. Is this serious?"

"Indeed, I asked Luo Zun to tell you."

Gao Gong answered resolutely. Zhang Shouzhi looked at him in surprise. After thinking for a moment, he mustered up the courage to ask, "Does Yuan Fu still remember Ma Sen's resignation the year before last?"

"Mason?"

Gao Gong repeated the name, then looked at Zhang Shouzhi and said, "Does Brother Shi Ju also want to imitate him?"

The resignation of several ministers of the Ministry of Revenue in the Longqing Dynasty was all caused by Emperor Longqing's request for money from the Ministry of Revenue.

Therefore, the imperial court was in financial difficulties and naturally was unwilling to allocate more money to the inner court for expenses.

Note that the annual expenditures of the imperial court are actually planned in advance. It is not that the Ministry of Accounts refuses to give money, but that it is unwilling to allocate this money that is not included in the plan.

In the final analysis, the imperial court was still too poor, and all the household ministers had to tighten their belts to live in poverty and leave emergency money.

Just like the funeral of Emperor Longqing, it was not expected last year. Now Zhang Shouzhi is still trying to get money, and there will be so much money given away just for Gao Gong.

When Ma Sen resigned, more than 200 officials from the capital went out to see him off, which was a great deal of face.

Thinking of this, Gao Gong couldn't help but said to Zhang Shouzhi: "Brother Shi Ju doesn't want to be the second Ma Sen to win the applause of those Qing sects, right?"

(End of this chapter)