prosperous age

Chapter 829: How can a ten-year-old child rule the world?

"Brother Shi Ju, don't you want to be the second Ma Sen and win the applause of those Qing sects?"

Gao Gong's words struck a chord in Zhang Shouzhi's heart, and he stood there stunned for a moment, blushing.

After a long while, Zhang Shouzhi said: "Yuan Fu, I, Zhang Shouzhi, am not a person who is greedy for fame. Don't misunderstand me.

If there is no legitimate reason for transferring money into the palace, how will the scholars in the world view this matter? "

Seeing that Zhang Shouzhi's attitude softened, Gao Gong was satisfied and replied: "When a new emperor ascends the throne, the court always allocates money to make new head and face jewelry for the palace. What's so difficult about this?"

"That's why I can't agree to this. How old is Your Majesty now? Where did the harem concubines come from, and under what name do they make head and face jewelry?"

Zhang Shouzhi had recovered and argued with reason.

"This"

At this time, Gao Gong suddenly realized that there seemed to be something wrong with this matter. He ignored Zhu Yijun's age. He was only a ten-year-old child, where did he come from the harem.

Gao Gong lowered his head and thought, recalling the records of previous emperors after they ascended the throne. It seems that Emperor Yingzong and Emperor Wuzong did not have a harem because they were underage when they ascended the throne, so they did not seem to have spent this money.

Thinking of this, Gao Gong knew that if he didn't find a suitable reason, this matter would definitely leave people talking about it.

He raised his right hand and slowly rubbed his forehead, lost in thought.

The new emperor has no harem, and the head and face jewelry made were actually used by the former emperor’s concubines. The prince is purely filial.

After all, Gao Gong had rich experience, so he came up with a reason in a short time. It was just a slight change in the procedure, and the new emperor Zhu Yijun had to express his stance.

With this idea, Gao Gong was determined and said: "It is a fact that the new emperor is underage and has no harem.

But the new emperor was pure filial piety. Although he did not have a harem, the former emperor's concubines were all there. It was reasonable for him to customize head and face jewelry for the late emperor's concubines to satisfy the late emperor's unfulfilled wish. "

They are both figures in the court, but they actually understand each other tacitly about many things.

Gao Gong took the initiative to arrange for the Ministry of Revenue to allocate money to the inner court. Zhang Shouzhi actually knew exactly what he had in mind.

But after seeing Gao Gong, he didn't say a word.

Zhang Shouzhi did not expect that Gao Gong would think of such a reason. After thinking for a long time, he nodded and said: "If it is His Majesty's will, this money should naturally be allocated."

If Emperor Longqing was still there and he ordered silver to be used to make head and face jewelry, Zhang Shouzhi would have to follow the example of his predecessor and generously refuse the emperor's unreasonable request, even if he didn't have to wear hair.

Two hundred thousand taels of silver is not a small amount of money.

When Emperor Longqing asked Ma Sen to allocate 500,000 taels of silver for palace expenses, Ma Sen did not agree even though he took off his black gauze.

In the end, after repeated discussions among the ministers, Emperor Longqing could only reduce the number to one hundred thousand taels.

However, if this request was made by the new emperor Zhu Yijun, the Ministry of Revenue really could not refuse.

Customized head and face jewelry were given to the harem out of filial piety, and since the emperor was newly enthroned, this makes sense.

In any case, Emperor Hongwu founded the Ming Dynasty and focused on governing the world with filial piety.

The new emperor Zhu Yijun was extremely filial. If he refused, it would be Zhang Shouzhi who would be cast aside by the scholars.

"I understand what Yuan Fu means, but..."

Zhang Shouzhi hesitated, but he didn't know how to continue.

"No matter what the difficulty is, it doesn't matter."

Gao Gong was impatient and couldn't see anyone being hesitant, so he immediately pressed him.

"The Ministry of Finance has no money to allocate."

Zhang Shouzhi had no choice but to say, "Now there are 1.8 million taels of silver in Taicang, but the military pay that will be escorted soon is 900,000 taels, and there is also 200,000 taels of silver from the Ministry of Industry, and other bits and pieces. Quite a few, probably 200,000 taels, and the remaining 600,000 taels are barely enough to pay for the funeral of the late emperor, and there is no money left to make jewelry for the palace."

"The Ministry of Industry must pay the full amount. When it comes to the late emperor's mausoleum, there is no room for sloppiness."

Gao Gong knew about the financial difficulties of the imperial court, so he knew that there was no money to make trouble, so he naturally had to find a way to cope with the situation.

Without new sources of money, other expenses can only be postponed for a while.

"Look at other miscellaneous expenses. If they are not necessary, they will be deducted for three months first."

Gao Gong continued, but he hesitated about the remaining bulk, which was the military salary of nine hundred thousand taels.

Ordinarily, this money should not be withheld, as it involves military and state affairs, and Gao Gong knows how powerful it is.

If it is handled carelessly, it may cause an accident.

Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there have been many precedents for soldiers to commit mutinies and other incidents just for pay.

"Brother Shi Ju, I understand the difficulties of the Ministry of Revenue, but now is the time for everyone to work together to tide over the difficulties. The financial situation of the imperial court is getting worse year by year. This is a fact that is obvious to all. But the current political situation, compared with the financial situation, It’s even more of a mess.”

Gao Gong nodded to Zhang Shouzhi, he thought this was enough.

After all, dealing with Feng Bao is not his business alone, but the common interest of the civil service group.

"You'd better collect the surrounding money as soon as possible and urge them to have these gold and silver escorted to Beijing as soon as possible.

As for expenditures, if you can deduct it for a period of time, deduct it as much as possible, and if you can't, let it go. This is a matter of course. You must not let anything happen at this time. "

Gao Gong continued to speak to Zhang Shouzhi.

"Okay, I'll go to the Ministry of Works tomorrow to see if they can advance some of the money. If they weren't eager to complete the late emperor's mausoleum, the money from the Ministry of Works should have come from themselves."

Zhang Shouzhi sighed, but then he said seriously to Gao Gong: "Master Yuanfu, I have one more thing to say. If the finances are really in the most critical moment, the Ministry of Revenue can only borrow money from the Changying Treasury of Taipu Temple. , the Ministry of Industry and Taipu Temple may also need a note from the cabinet.

After all, it takes time for money to arrive in Beijing. If there is any inconvenience in the process, I can't think of any other way to do it except Chang Yingku. "

"Okay, if the Ministry of Finance is really unable to make money, let me know and I'll go talk to the Ministry of War."

Gao Gong replied immediately.

The current situation is special, so we can only take it one step at a time, there is no other way.

The next day, the ministers went to the palace again to persuade the prince Zhu Yijun to ascend the throne and inherit the great treasure.

This was already the third time in the past few days. The persuasion ceremony was completed, and the prince agreed through sobs as per the procedure.

The next step is for the Ministry of Rites to prepare for the enthronement ceremony. In fact, planning has already begun, and the enthronement ceremony has been prepared.

When all the officials returned to their respective offices after the court, Lu Tiaoyang, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, took Pan Sheng, the minister, to deliver the enthronement ceremony to the cabinet.

Zhang Juzheng sent the notes to Gao Gong, but Gao Gong didn't read them. In fact, the notes were based on the previous process of the Ming Emperor's accession to the throne. Unless there is force majeure, the contents of the notes will not change.

"Are the instrument notes the same as before?"

Gao Gong just asked.

"It's all based on the previous procedures, there are no changes."

Zhang Juzheng replied.

"Then let it be like this. You and I both know that these cannot be changed casually."

Gao Gong replied. After saying this, before Zhang Juzheng could speak, he shouted to the clerk outside the door: "Go and ask Mr. Gaoyi Gaoge to come over. I have something to discuss here."

Although Zhang Juzheng was surprised, he didn't say anything and just waited.

After a while, Gao Yi was summoned. After the three of them handed over to each other, Gao Gong took out the "Chen Wu Shi Shu" he had written, handed it to Zhang Juzheng, and said lightly: "Uncle, please read it and then invite Zi Xiang." Look, we’ll discuss it after reading it.”

Zhang Juzheng took the memorial and opened it to read. His expression soon changed slightly, but he soon returned to normal.

After reading it, he gave the memorial to Gao Yi and asked him to read it before finally returning it to Gao Gong.

"What do you think?"

Gao Gong looked at the memorial in his hand and asked.

After Gao Gong finished asking, he saw that Zhang Juzheng and Gao Yi were silent, so he said to Zhang Juzheng, "Uncle, what are you thinking about?"

Zhang Juzheng, the second assistant, first asked him about his attitude, which was actually reasonable.

"I didn't think anything of it. I was just worried about the emperor..."

Zhang Juzheng sighed.

How can he say that this memorial kidnaps the interests of civil servants all over the world. If he says something wrong and the news spreads, it will have a very bad impact on him.

After all, what Gao Gong said most in his memorial was actually to reduce the rights of eunuchs, although it was actually not good for him.

Therefore, at this moment, he could only say this, and could not speak out against Gao Gong's memorial.

"Zixiang, what do you think?"

Gao Gong asked Gao Yi again.

"What the Lord Chief Assistant has played is absolutely correct. I have no objections."

Gaoyi replied immediately.

Gao Gong nodded slightly, and then said in a somewhat passionate tone: "I have something to say, please think twice."

After finishing his words, Gao Gong stood up and moved forward slowly, saying as he walked: "In this troubled autumn, I have been appointed to take care of you. I have a long way to go. I should cooperate sincerely to assist the young emperor in governing the world. I must not have two minds! "

After saying that, Gao Gong suddenly turned around and looked at Zhang Juzheng and Gao Yi, "I was waiting here that day to receive the news of the late emperor's grand visit. At that time, I felt like the sky was falling.

Qianqing Palace, Your Majesty has entrusted the world to us and asked us to do our best to assist the Crown Prince."

Gao Gong accidentally mentioned his sadness again. The death of Emperor Longqing was the biggest blow to him, not only because of his deep relationship with Emperor Longqing, but also because he was confused about his future.

He is already sixty, and the prince Zhu Yijun is only ten years old.

With Emperor Longqing here, he could push forward the reforms he wanted without any burden, but when faced with a ten-year-old master, how could he be so confident that he could go all out and ignore the teachings given to him.

What's more, in Zhu Yijun's heart, his status is no higher than Zhang Juzheng and Wei Guangde.

For a moment, Gao Gong felt sad in his heart, feeling that everything he was thinking would turn into nothing. His defenses were shattered instantly, and he couldn't help shouting hoarsely: "O late Emperor, how can a ten-year-old child rule the world? Ugh. "

The next day, the new emperor's enthronement ceremony was held as scheduled, and Zhu Yijun took that position and became the nominal master of the Ming Empire.

After the new emperor ascended the throne, Zhang Juzheng received the first imperial edict, ordering him to go to Tianshou Mountain to inspect the Daxing Emperor's mausoleum project.

Now Emperor Longqing's Zi Palace is still parked in Hongxiao Hall. He will wait for the Tianshou Mountain Mausoleum to be completed and send it in at a selected date. This will be the end of the emperor's funeral.

Regarding this decree, Zhang Juzheng naturally accepted it and prepared to leave early tomorrow morning to check it out.

Of course, Zhang Juzheng had various speculations about leaving this matter to himself, but he had no choice but to think about it these past two days.

That day at the cabinet, Gao Gong apparently lost control of his emotions and made a gaffe.

Although Zhu Yijun did not ascend the throne, he was the future emperor after all. Gao Gong called him a ten-year-old child. Although he was not wrong, he was rude.

At that time, Zhang Juzheng glanced at Gao Yi and saw that he also had a sad look on his face. Instead of having any doubts about Gao Gong's memorial, he vaguely guessed that he might have known about it before, and that he was the only one who was In the dark.

Thinking that Gao Yi might fall to Gao Gong in the future, Zhang Juzheng felt very uncomfortable in his heart.

How can I fight with Gao Gong in the cabinet?

Could it be that when Wei Guangde comes back, they will discuss it again, and then they will have to share profit rights with Wei Guangde.

The key is to be tied to Wei Guangde, and he may not be able to win against Gao Gong.

Today is different from the past. After more than a year, Gao Gong has placed his own people in many key yamen of the imperial court.

Zhang Juzheng still hopes to control the court by himself instead of joining forces with others.

He knew exactly who the "Chen Wu Shi Shu" was aimed at.

As a civil servant, he could not object, but after knowing that this memorial was sent to the palace, someone should be more anxious than him.

However, asking Feng Bao to attack Gao Gong would be like hitting an egg against a stone.

You have to hand Feng Bao a knife, otherwise Feng Bao will be helpless and unable to deal with it.

You must know that in the current world, the new emperor Zhu Yijun is nominally in charge, but in reality it is Empress Chen of the harem. The CEO does not just say it casually, it means the final word, and is more effective than the cabinet led by Gao Gong.

Zhang Juzheng already knew about the 200,000 taels of silver sent by the Ministry of Revenue to the palace, and he also saw through Gao Gong's intention to win the support of Empress Chen and Concubine Li. Together with the memorial, he wanted to oust the Chief of Ceremonies. Reproduce the situation in the early days of Yingzong.

This is naturally good for the cabinet and civil servants all over the world, but it may not be good for him, Zhang Juzheng, because he still has a high arch above him.

Gao Gong cannot be allowed to defeat Feng Bao.

It was just that Zhang Juzheng made the decision after sorting out the situation of the court. It was in his interest to assist Feng Baodou to defeat Gao Gong, so that he could legitimately advance to the position of first assistant.

Moreover, Feng Bao also had an advantage that these cabinet ministers did not have, that is, Feng Bao was a eunuch and a slave of the master in the palace.

Relatively speaking, whether it is Empress Chen or Concubine Li, they naturally believe in the eunuch's words more.

After "Chen Wu Shi Shu", Gao Gong should still mobilize officials to impeach Feng Bao.

Zhang Juzheng thought of this, so he wrote down the rude remarks he made in the cabinet that day on a note, and gave it to the housekeeper You Qi just before his carriage left the capital.

"Give it to Feng Bao quietly without being discovered."

Although he wanted to maintain a relationship with Feng Bao, Zhang Juzheng still cherished feathers and did not want people to notice that he and Feng Bao were still involved.

At least for now, his connection with Feng Bao has not been widely circulated outside.

At this time, Feng Bao had already seen the memorial handed over by Gao Gong in the Supervisor of Liturgy. He scolded all the eighteen generations of Gao Gong's ancestors in his heart, but he still wrote on the memorial: "I understand, obey. ancestral system".

In fact, this was a euphemism for the emperor to ignore, and now Feng Baoliang was dealing with Gao Gong first.

However, after seeing this memorial, Feng Bao became alert, and his previous coquettishness disappeared.

(End of this chapter)