Rule over Ming Dynasty

Chapter 198 Eliminate the biggest cancer on the Ming Dynasty
A person who has never met with himself turned out to be looking for himself.

When Zhu Youtang heard these words, he immediately doubted himself, quickly searched in his mind, and soon determined that he did not have any intersection with the Dayuan princess in his monotonous life as a prince.

In fact, it is impossible to have an intersection!Daming and Bei Yuan have always been in a state of hostility, and Wang Zhi and Wang Yue even went straight to the Han court for a time. What reason would a prince and a princess meet?
Liu Jin was standing next to the sandalwood stove and fiddled with the sandalwood. Hearing this, he also turned his head to look at the Governor of Shuntian in confusion.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Princess Yikexi claimed that she was entrusted by her deceased teacher Shen Mo, and she came to Shuntian Mansion Yamen to find Huang Shang by name. Huang Shang, this name is worthy of scrutiny, and Yi Kexi even Huang Shang's appearance is different. I don't know, and I saw that the painting of Princess Yikexi turned out to be an imitation of Gu Hong's painting, so I boldly deduced that it was the secret picture that Shen Mo wanted to send to His Majesty through Princess Yikexi!" Song Cheng greeted Zhu Youtang With shocked eyes, he expressed his own judgment.

Zhu Youtang suddenly realized that his thoughts were wrong, and that Princess Yikexi was not his old acquaintance, so he asked in confusion: "I remember that Gu Hong was a painter in the Southern Tang Dynasty. What is the particularity of Gu Hong's paintings?"

Liu Jin had never heard of this Southern Tang painter at all, so he replaced the sandalwood and covered it again, and looked at this dark-faced young man who talked so eloquently.

"Your Majesty only knows that Gu Hong is a painter of the Southern Tang Dynasty, but few people in the world know that Gu Hong is actually a spy of the Southern Tang emperor. Gu Hong was ordered to spy on the important minister Han Xizai. At that time, he drew the famous "Han Xizai Night Banquet Picture", so the minister inferred that Shen Mo I want to convey information about Beiyuan to His Majesty through Princess Yikexi!" Song Cheng made a bold inference based on his own knowledge.

Zhu Youtang knew that apart from Daming sending Ye Bushou into the desert, some commanders or governors also had a tradition of sending spies to lurk in Mongolia, and this Shen Mo was probably the spy sent by Daming to Mongolia.

If others deduce that Shen Mo is Daming's secret agent based on a painting and a person's name, he will not believe it, but Song Cheng has already proved his amazing deduction ability.

Now that Song Cheng dared to make such an inference, and even came to meet him in person, it proved that he was quite sure about this inference.

Zhu Youtang nodded noncommittally, and asked directly, "Where is the painting?"

"Your Majesty, the painting is still in the hands of Princess Yikexi! This painting may involve important secrets, and the matter has nothing to do with the Shuntian government, so I just came here to report!" Song Cheng is not a person who likes to rob, and immediately explained .

Huh?
Liu Jin looked at this black-faced young man seriously, but he didn't know whether he was tactful or principled. It seemed that the painting could be taken directly and presented to His Majesty.

Zhu Youtang knew that it was a very simple matter for him to seize the painting in Yi Kexi's hands, so he changed the subject and said, "Song Qing, you should have met Du Ming and Wang Xiang when you came, right?"

"Yes, I just bumped into him in front of the gate of Xiyuan!" Song Cheng nodded solemnly with firm eyes.

Picking up the teacup on the table, Zhu Youtang asked earnestly, "Song Qing, do you know what kind of errands I sent for the two of them just now?"

"Du Shangshu and Wang Xiang traveled in a hurry. Du Shangshu was a humble servant, but this time he saw the humble minister and left with just his head. The minister guessed that the two of them should search an official's house together according to the order, or search a certain official's house. An official's house!" Song Cheng looked at Zhu Youtang with his eyes motionless, and deduced very honestly.

Zhu Youtang knew that the dark-faced young man in front of him had very keen observation skills, and he poured the tea lightly on the teacup and said, "The two of them were ordered to raid the house, can you guess which one I want them to raid? "

"Your Majesty suddenly talked about this matter with my minister, so the officials who were seized may have something to do with me, and there is only one person who is involved with important officials in the court, and that is my teacher Xu Pu!" Song Cheng thought for a while, then Give your own judgment.

Zhu Youtang couldn't help giving Song Cheng a high look, then sipped a sip of tea and said, "You guessed right, I just asked Du Ming and Wang Xiang to search Xu Pu's house!" He talked eloquently and authentically: "I ordered the two of them to search Sun Jiao's house this time, and got a number of letters from Sun Jiao's study, most of which were written by Xu Pu, and actually instructed Sun Jiao to help him promote local officials. After verification, Most of the officials who were promoted or relocated were Xu Pu’s protégés and old officials. This act has involved nepotism and committed the crime of treacherous party! Although Xu Pu hanged himself and died, his party members are still there, so they will inevitably be used by treacherous officials in the court. Therefore, I want to find out who the traitors were in the Qing Dynasty. Minister of the Ministry of Punishment Du Ming and Wang Xiangzaiming, I hope you can abandon your relationship with Xu Pu as a teacher and student, and secretly investigate this matter for me, what do you think?"

"Your Majesty, I am a minister of the Ming Dynasty, and now I am deeply favored by Long. Although I was assassinated in the Xu Mansion because of the examination, I never had the heart of forming a party, nor did I have any thoughts of selfishness. , the traitorous party is bound to bring disaster to the country and the people, which is not tolerated by law. I would like to eradicate traitors for Your Majesty, so that the court will be clear!" Song Cheng knew that His Majesty was worried that he would cover up Xu Pu, so he solemnly stated his position.

This is of course a sincere statement.The reason why he took the student assassination back then was due to the bad atmosphere in the officialdom. Although he had some criticisms about this move, Xu Pu had a good reputation at the time, so he followed the same year to worship as a teacher with half-pushed half-hearted.

It's just that what he believed in was never the way of Confucius and Mencius, which unconditionally respects teachers and respects the way, but the pursuit of justice.

Not to mention that it was not his wish to become a teacher and student with Xu Pu, now that he learned that Xu Pu had secretly formed a party, it is naturally his duty to find out Xu Pu's criminal evidence.

Zhu Youtang put down the teacup in his hand, nodded lightly and said: "In that case, I will give you a token, and Du Ming and Wang Xiang will share information with you! You should focus on investigating how these officials secretly transfer benefits , And how do you secretly send letters in private, trying to find evidence of their forming a party for personal gain!"

The case of Sun Jiao has actually exposed the biggest secret of the civil service group. They manipulated the promotion of local officials through the inconspicuous examination department and literary selection department, so as to achieve an ulterior purpose.

It's just that it's not easy to find out those people who are in a group from this intricate network of relationships. After all, it's impossible for everyone to keep letters like Sun Jiao.

However, no matter how difficult it is, an investigation must be carried out. If the investigation is carried out along the lines of the Kaogong Division and the Wenxuan Division, the cancer hidden in the Ming Dynasty will definitely be eliminated.

"The minister leads the decree!" Song Cheng's black face was still Gujing Wubo's appearance, and he immediately saluted politely.

Seeing that the matter was over, Zhu Youtang gently raised his hand and said, "Go down!"

"Resignation, my minister, long live my emperor, long live, long live!" Song Cheng was always grateful for Zhu Youtang's kindness, and bowed respectfully and retreated.

Zhu Youtang watched Song Cheng leave with a pensive expression on his face.

With the talent shown by Song Cheng, coupled with his upright personality, he is actually qualified for the post of Minister of Dali Temple, even more suitable than Du Ming, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment.

It's just that he knows that he wants to be an emperor who is good at power and tactics, but it is not suitable to feed an official in one mouthful, otherwise it will be difficult to control later.

No matter what kind of officials they are, they must let him walk along the palace road step by step in front of them, so that they will understand the difficulty and cherish this hard-won official position even more.

Before he was promoted, Song Cheng was only a member of the Ministry of Punishments, Zhejiang Qingli, Wailang, and now he is the governor of the Yafu of Shuntian Prefecture, known as the Ministry of Punishments.

Just like this, it is not suitable to pull out the seedlings to encourage them to grow, and it is not suitable to fertilize too much. It is absolutely possible for Song Cheng to stay in the position of Shuntian Governor for a year or two.

The time has quietly come to July, which is the most difficult time of the year.

Since it has not rained for many days, the current capital is like a big steamer. The people in the capital will sweat profusely after staying outside for a while, and the water level of the [-]-acre Taiye Pool has dropped, and the area has become slightly smaller.

Since he was transferred to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to handle government affairs, Zhu Youtang's contact with officials has increased significantly, and the most contacts are actually Wan'an and Liu Ji in the cabinet.

Today's weather is still hot, Wan An and Liu Ji were called by Zhu Youtang to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to enjoy the freshly made sour plum soup, which is undoubtedly a supreme honor.

The sour plum soup, which has been continuously improved by Liu Yidao, is not only a good product for preventing heatstroke, but also a delicacy in the world. Drinking the cold, sour and sweet sour plum soup in this hot summer season is definitely a super enjoyment for the body and taste buds.

Seventy is rare in life, and now Wan An is 72, and he has no resistance to the scorching heat, so he likes this sour plum soup the most.

"Two elders, please enjoy!" Liu Jin personally delivered the iced sour plum soup, looking respectful and authentic.

Zhu Youtang is not a person who likes meetings very much, so he chooses to discuss with the two cabinet ministers on matters that do not need to be discussed on a large scale. Naturally, he can't bear to let Li Yu and the others come over in the scorching heat.

Although he is the emperor who promises everything, he still has to use some methods to win people's hearts. It is undoubtedly a good deal to get officials to die with just a thoughtful word.

Zhu Youtang had two beautiful court ladies fanning him, so he cut to the chase and said, "You must have heard about the Li Dynasty, right?"

"The ministers have indeed heard that Li Chao dared to loot the Pearl Fishing Ship of the Great Ming Dynasty, and he has committed the above crime!" Wan An and Liu Ji exchanged glances, and Dang Shi said solemnly.

Zhu Youtang picked up the sour plum soup that had conveyed the coldness in the bowl, and expressed his opinion: "There is no real evidence for the looting of the pearl fishing ship, and now I haven't made a decision on whether the Ming Dynasty wants to go to war against Annan! The Southwest of the Ming Dynasty is restless, and you should be prepared for danger in times of peace, so the granaries in Guangdong must be rammed. Mr. Wange, you order the Ministry of Officials to transfer officials to Guangdong as soon as possible, and let the censors keep an eye on the granaries of each prefecture. Don’t know that there is no rice in the granaries until wartime , that is a crime other than war!"

"Remember, the old minister will definitely urge the officials and the censors of Guangdong!" Wan An knew that this matter was very important, and immediately put down the sour plum soup he had just picked up.

Zhu Youtang took a sip of the refreshing sour plum soup, then turned to look at Liu Ji and said, "Mr. Liu Ge, Datong has started the second round of negotiations, right?"

One of the important reasons why he has no clear attitude towards Annan is that the negotiations between Daming and Mongolia have not yet come to a formal result.

Although he has already decided to take the road of strengthening the country, the war in Jianzhou has already started first, and now that the negotiations with Mongolia have broken down, it is really inappropriate to start a war against the Annan Li Dynasty.

After all, fighting is not only about the combat power of the army, but also the money and food of a country.

Now the shuttle loom has just been popularized, and the trade between Ming Dynasty and North Korea has not yet started, let alone formally involved in maritime trade.

If you choose to fight on the third front now, the salt tax that has just been sorted out is not enough to support such a large military operation, so the best way is to wait for the outcome of the Mongolian negotiations.

"Your Majesty, if you count the time, it should be the second round of negotiations today!" Liu Ji didn't say much, but responded very reliably.

"Your Majesty, are you worried that our talks with Mongolia will collapse? Just judging from the feedback from Xu Qiong and Chen Kun, since Manduhai has already asked about His Majesty's character, I'm afraid he intends to seek peace!" Wan An picked up the sour plum soup again, expressed his opinion.

Zhu Youtang put down the bowl lightly, but shook his head lightly and said: "If we really negotiate a peace, we have to start the next step! Beiyuan has always been a worry in Daming's heart. After all, we are still Ming, so now we have to plan in advance!"

"Your Majesty still wants to fight?" Wan An stopped the sour plum soup brought to his mouth, and asked in surprise.

Zhu Youtang's heart moved slightly, and he said with a slight smile: "There is a way to fight, and there is a way to not fight! Can the two elders be free today?"

"I would like to listen to your Majesty's orders!" Liu Ji expressed his opinion without knowing what kind of medicine Zhu Youtang sold in his gourd.

Huh?
Seeing Liu Ji taking the lead in expressing his opinion, Liu Jin couldn't help but look at Wan An who had been silent for a long time.

goo goo...

Wan An guessed that Zhu Youtang was going to leave here, maybe he went fishing in Tingchao Pavilion on a hot day, but he drank the cold sour plum soup in one gulp.

With this cold, sour and sweet drink, the whole person seems to suddenly look ten years younger.

If there is any difference between Emperor Hongzhi and Emperor Chenghua, it is that the young Emperor Hongzhi is so amazing in eating and drinking, he is simply a gourmet.

Wan An drank the sour plum soup in the bowl cleanly, wiped his sleeve into his mouth, and hurriedly expressed his opinion: "The old minister is willing to obey His Majesty's orders!"

Seeing Wan An's flowing movements, Liu Ji suddenly realized that this old man was young, and he seemed to have to wait a few more years before he could take over.

Zhu Youtang took a deep look at the gluttonous old chief assistant, but there was still room for him, so he got up and led the two of them away from the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

What surprised Wan An and Liu Ji was that Zhu Youtang didn't lead them to Tingchao Pavilion for fishing, but wanted to leave the palace through Xi'an Gate.

(End of this chapter)