Rule over Ming Dynasty

The so-called Butler Zhang is not the steward of Zhang Luan Mansion, but the steward of another Zhang Mansion.

Originally, Zhang Luan's Zhang family could catch up to the latecomers, but Zhang Yujiao not only failed to take the position of queen, but now the status of concubine Shu has also been reduced to dust.

Now Zhang Luan has lost his identity as the minister of Taichang Temple, and Zhang Yanling is just a young man who cannot stand up to the wall, so the Zhang family is destined to become a very ordinary existence in the capital.

Looking back at Zhang Bangxiang's Zhang family, his grandfather Zhang Di was the governor of the prefecture, his grandfather was the magistrate of Jiaocheng, his father was once the governor of Liaodong, and his father-in-law was Xu Pu, the former left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Zhang Bangxiang has been smart since he was a child. Although he failed to achieve good results in the imperial examination, he entered the official position as a supervisor and is now the Sicheng of the Sixth Rank Shangbao Division.

Although this Sicheng is an out-and-out sinecure, he is an official after all, and he also receives a salary from the court. He is already much better than many second-generation officials.

Just like this, although Zhang Bangxiang's Zhang family has declined due to Zhang Luan's death, it is actually stronger than Zhang Luan's current Zhang family.

But no one thought that Zhang Bangxiang would be implicated in the case of poisoning Concubine Shu.

"Unjustly accused! Unjustly accused! I didn't do such a thing at all. It must be the slave who made the decision!" When Zhang Bangxiang was arrested, he shouted unjustly.

Of course, it was impossible for Song Cheng to stop the investigation because of Zhang Bangxiang's cry of injustice, but with a wave of his hand, he asked Zhao Dayan to lead the police to take the Shangbao Sicheng back to the Shuntian Mansion Office.

In just one day, the dark clouds over Beijing seemed to have dissipated a lot.

"Isn't it rumored that the murderer is Chang Feng this afternoon?"

"The pastry was made by the cook, and she is the biggest suspect!"

"I heard that the affair between the cook and Zhang Luan was being used as a blackmail, so that's why I poisoned him!"

"This is indeed strange. Butler Zhang has no motive for murdering Concubine Shu, right?"

"Who knows what grudges the two families have? I heard that there was something fishy about Zhang Qi's death back then!"

……

The people in the capital learned that there had been a major twist in the case of Concubine Shu, and this became their latest topic of conversation after dinner, and they expressed their own opinions one after another.

It's just that the so-called facts among the people often come from imagination and are destined to be completely different from the truth, especially because many people cannot see through the imperial struggle in it.

As night falls, the Forbidden City lights up, and the Jinwu Guards of the Imperial City are patrolling the city walls.

Qianqing Palace, Dongnuan Pavilion.

Zhu Youtang found that the autumn mood was getting stronger, and he felt very comfortable just entering here.

He originally read the intelligence from abroad and abroad as before, especially when there was some dispute in the East China Sea Governor's Office over the Iwami Silver Mine, but he chose to summon Qin Conggui.

After experiencing ups and downs, Qin Conggui appears to be very mature and stable, and has transformed into a qualified factory supervisor of Dongchang.

After he took Xiao Zi to the Shenjie Department today, he used some methods to torture Xiao Zi, and finally got some key information from Xiao Zi's mouth.

Now facing Zhu Youtang's inquiry, he reported all the information obtained, and Xiao Zi was indeed involved in the case of poisoning Concubine Shu.

Zhu Youtang's impression of the beautiful palace maid was not bad. Even though the princess had eaten him to death, the palace maid had not done anything overstepping the mark.

But now that I think about it carefully, it's not necessarily that this palace lady has a good character or is loyal to herself, but that she is smarter than Zhang Yujiao and understands that she is the real master of the palace in the future.

Zhu Youtang heard Xiaozi claiming that she didn't know there was arsenic on the cake, and saw Qin Conggui's angry look: "Maybe she really didn't know!"

Judging from the entire case, although the palace maids, guards and cooks were all involved, the most critical factor was actually the mastermind behind the scenes. Because arsenic is difficult to detect, the three actual perpetrators may not know the entire truth.

"Your Majesty, is it because she refuses to speak? Do you want me to let her try other tortures?" Tan Conggui asked cautiously as he was now completely loyal to Zhu Youtang.

Zhu Youtang picked up the steaming tea cup and said with a faint smile: "Do you think you can get what you want by using a few more criminal methods?"

"I used my most powerful methods. Now I'm not sure whether Xiao Zi really has something to hide!" Tan Conggui once forced Xiao Zi to the verge of death, and he didn't have much confidence in using torture anymore.

Zhu Youtang knew that Qin Conggui now had some shadow of Wang Zhi, so he took a sip of tea and said: "Don't be dissatisfied. It's good to be able to ask her to participate this time!"

"Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty!" Qin Conggui was most concerned about Zhu Youtang's dissatisfaction, and he suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhu Youtang looked at the tea stems floating on the tea, and his eyes suddenly became sharp and said: "It's just Xiao Zi's seller seeking glory. This is a taboo in the palace! She can't die now. I want to know who she is receiving. Who dares to murder my noble concubine?"

From ancient times to the present, every dynasty has no shortage of interest groups.

In the Han Dynasty, they were powerful, in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, they were powerful men, in the Tang Dynasty, they were five surnames and seven kings, but what about the Ming Dynasty?

In the late Ming Dynasty, the famous Donglin Party represented the interests of the merchants and landlords in the south of the Yangtze River. They used political means to avoid taxes for the southeast, resulting in the country only sucking the blood of farmers in the northwest and southwest.

Now that the Ming Dynasty is in its mid-term, are there really no interest groups?

The Donglin Party has not yet formed a climate, especially the salt profits from opening up China and France have not been stolen by Anhui merchants. In what form do interest groups exist today?

Zhu Youtang has never believed that there are no interest groups in the capital, which is the center of power. Especially after so many years of experience, he knows that there is a hidden force in the capital.

This case brought Xiao Zi out, and seeing this chess piece that had infiltrated the palace made him understand that this force had existed for longer than he thought.

Xiao Zi's identity seems to be an ordinary palace maid, but her identity is actually extraordinary.

As the Crown Princess's personal maid, if history goes without incident, she would be someone close to the Queen, and the information she obtained would be astonishing.

Because of this, Xiao Zi cannot be treated as an ordinary palace maid. Perhaps she is the key to solving the mystery and a great opportunity for him to uncover the maggots.

"Your Majesty, she just confessed at the instigation of her brother!" Tan Conggui had just tortured Xiao Zi and immediately reported the report with great energy.

Zhu Youtang found that it was similar to what he had guessed. If these palace personnel were not bewitched by money, then they were using their relatives as bargaining chips.

Xiao Zi's brother can be both an important lobbyist and a bargaining chip for blackmail. He can be said to be the best candidate to control Xiao Zi.

Zhu Youtang didn't want to delve into the twists and turns, so he issued an order: "Find out all the information about Xiaozi's family immediately, and be sure to find out the person behind the scenes!"

"According to the order!" Tan Conggui originally thought that the key to the case was the cook, but suddenly realized that Xiao Zi, who he was responsible for, was the key, and immediately said solemnly.

Zhu Youtang once suspected that Concubine Shu's death was caused by King Xing jumping over the wall. However, judging from the identity of Xiao Zi that has been revealed so far, it may not have much to do with King Xing. The mastermind behind the scenes may just want to cut off the future of her own heir. road.

But he had to admit that his personal safety was at greater risk.

But this is actually a necessity. The resources in this era are limited after all. I am not willing to exploit the people by raising taxes, but only want to usurp their interests.

Now his various measures have actually seriously infringed on their core interests. Not to mention the earlier crackdown on usury and financial rectification, the recent abolition of the silver standard has made a group of powerful people gnash their teeth at themselves.

The current relationship is irreconcilable. It depends on whether they break through the palace walls and kill themselves first, or whether they are pulled out and smashed away by themselves.

Zhu Youtang sent Tan Conggui away before starting tonight's work.

After experiencing all kinds of turbulence, I finally saw a piece of news that made me feel happy: there is good news from Luzon, and a new batch of gold is about to go north.

Although gold cannot promote productivity, it is the cornerstone of the new monetary system of the Ming Dynasty that he built.

Currency is a medium used by people to exchange goods and services in economic activities. Once China can take the lead in completing the construction of the currency system, it can absorb nutrients from surrounding developments.

Like North Korea, once the Ming Dynasty's silver dollar can become the main currency of the imperial court, it will not only deepen the trade between the two countries, but also continue to plunder their social wealth, and even attract their dignitaries to bring large amounts of property into the arms of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Youtang naturally did not allow any accidents to happen to this batch of gold. He immediately issued a secret order to keep an eye on the movements of the various big families in the south of the Yangtze River, but he did not allow any changes to the gold ship.

Things are so helpless. The people we should be most wary of are outsiders, but in fact the most dangerous ones are our own people, especially when so-called "Japanese pirates" appear in the southeast. Wearing a light red palace maid dress, Niu Mengmeng stayed in front of the lamp as usual, taking care of Zhu Youtang's daily life.

Originally, she was more inclined to stand here and guard the lights, but today the little cat got into trouble, which made her feel uneasy, so she diligently rubbed Zhu Youtang's ink gently.

The ink of this era has a very strong fragrance, so under her careful grinding, the inkstone pool under the light is like a pool of incense exuding light.

Although Zhu Youtang smelled the fragrance of ink next to him, he didn't pay too much attention to the suddenly attentive Niu Mengmeng.

After so many years of repeated purges, the maids and eunuchs around me are now very trustworthy, so I read the relevant information about Xiangcheng Hou Tunmi.

Although the Marquis of Xiangcheng Li Jin and others have become a piece of cake, he always feels that this matter may not be as simple as it appears.

The Marquis of Xiangcheng, Li Jin, and his gang initially farmed rice for profit, but after they expressed their determination to stabilize rice prices and revealed their strong imperial treasury, their practice of continuing to farm rice became intriguing.

He is no longer the polished emperor who just ascended the throne, but already holds military power and has the support of many important ministers. As a result, this group of people just insist on one path and end up in trouble.

Although his victory was mainly due to using Tongzhou Granary as a backup, the persistence of Xiangcheng Marquis Li Jin made him feel that it went beyond the scope of profit-seeking.

Especially after he launched cloth tickets and new silver dollars, he still dared to spend a lot of money crazily. It was more like preventing himself from launching a new currency system.

"Your Majesty, Xinyi money shops are no longer popular in the capital!" Niu Mengmeng came closer to the place without knowing when, but he took the initiative to break the silence and said.

But when Zhu Youtang looked away, she thought of the trouble she had caused during the day, and she immediately stuck out her tongue with guilt, fearing that Zhu Youtang would punish her with this.

The reason why I was so proactive just now was because I wanted to perform well and wipe out the trouble I had caused today.

Zhu Youtang knew that Niu Mengmeng's life circle was actually very simple, and he was immediately confused and said: "Do you know Xinyi Money Store?"

"Of course I know! This is the most reputable bank in the capital. In the past, slaves used to go to this bank to exchange money orders for their families, but after the palace changed to cloth tickets and new silver coins, slaves have moved to the royal bank!" Niu Niu Mengmeng nodded matter-of-factly and told the whole story.

Although Zhu Youtang knew that the financial industry of this era had already taken shape, he did not expect that the most famous bank in the capital would be the humble Xinyi Bank: "Do you know who owns this bank?"

"How could I know this? But I heard that many powerful people have connections. No matter how much money they put in this bank, they won't worry about it. Didn't the former corrupt officials Li Min and Xie Yikui also exist here?" Niu Mengmeng is a talkative person. It’s also about telling everything you know.

When Zhu Youtang heard what Niu Mengmeng said, he couldn't help but slap his forehead.

He always felt that this Xinyi Bank was very familiar, but he never thought that the depositary check of 13,213 taels that Xie Yikui thought of came from this bank.

Judging from various signs, this bank that provided a large amount of funds to Xiangcheng Hou Li Jin was indeed very extraordinary.

"Your Majesty, did you say the wrong thing just now?" Niu Mengmeng asked worriedly when he saw Zhu Youtang patting his forehead.

Zhu Youtang signaled Niu Mengmeng to keep silent, and then slowly perfected his new plan, but he was planning to make people start looking for Xinyi Money Store, which appeared frequently.

Vaguely, he felt that this Xinyi Money Store would solve the mystery in his heart, and even uncover all the members of the mysterious organization.

The night is getting darker, and the lights in Dongnuan Pavilion have been extinguished.

After Zhu Youtang finished his long day, he returned to his bedroom as before. Immediately, a palace maid undressed and undressed him, and there was always a fragrant beauty lying on the dragon bed.

Although Chang Feng's incident happened, as originally planned, Empress Chang was still arranged to come to bed tonight and receive her thunder or rain.

"Your Majesty, are you worried?" Queen Chang was a very considerate woman, but she noticed Zhu Youtang's frown.

Zhu Youtang gently hugged this woman who shared his heart and said very naturally: "This capital is not peaceful, so I was thinking about how to clean it up!"

"I would like to thank Your Majesty for your trust in me and my brother!" Queen Chang expressed her gratitude since she knew Zhu Youtang could handle everything well.

In the case of Concubine Shu, she and Chang Feng were originally involved, and for a time they became the target of being framed by others.

In less than a day, all the suspicions of himself and his brother were eliminated, and the palace maid Xiao Zi and the cook were also traced. Even the guard was found to have been killed to frame his brother.

Seeing such a stable emperor now made her feel extremely at ease, and she felt satisfied that she could marry such a wise emperor.

Zhu Youtang never doubted Queen Chang from the beginning. He looked down at this delicate face and smiled: "How could I doubt you!"

"Your Majesty, Concubine Shu has been poisoned, what should we do next?" Empress Chang asked with worry in her eyes as she thought of the vicious intentions of the people behind the scenes.

Originally, she had been ready to give up her position as queen, and only hoped that Concubine Shu could give birth to an heir for Zhu Youtang. But now that Concubine Shu is dead, even if she is willing to give up her position as queen, it will no longer help.

Zhu Youtang knew that Queen Chang was finally affected by that heavenly message, but he deliberately mocked her and said: "Queen, you don't really believe the nonsense of the Taoist priests, do you?"

"Your Majesty, who doesn't know that Dongfang Wudao is the Dongfang Dao who was granted the title of Gaoshi by you!" Queen Chang was certainly not a stupid woman, but she revealed a fact full of resentment.

Zhu Youtang's face was comparable to that of a city wall, but he said in a half-truthful manner: "The reason why I named Dongfang Dao a scholar is because he is very smart and can be used by me! Not to mention Jiang Wei is a golden phoenix. When it comes to reincarnation, he cooperates very well!"

"It's just that my concubine and the rest of them haven't had any movement in their stomachs so far. I'm really worried that the secret is true!" Empress Chang expressed her worries.

Zhu Youtang couldn't explain that he had recently completely changed the imperial direction of the Ming Dynasty, so he smiled and borrowed a fable: "The wife of Le Yangzi in Henan is not the daughter of He's family. When the Yangzi traveled on the road, he left a piece of gold and a piece of cake in return. and his wife. The wife said: "I heard that men with lofty ideals do not drink the water from the stolen spring, and honest men do not eat the food that comes from complaining. How about picking up leftovers and seeking profit, thereby tainting their deeds!" Yangzi was so ashamed that he donated money to the wild and went to find a teacher from afar to learn from him. . One year later, when he returned home, his wife knelt down and asked him why. Yangzi said: "I have been thinking about it for a long time, and there is nothing different about it." His wife pointed the knife towards the machine and said, "This weaves silkworm cocoon, and it is made by the machine. One thread is tired, and the machine is used to weave silkworms." As for the inch, the number of inches is endless, and it becomes a piece of horse. If you cut off the weaving now, you will have lost your success, and the time will be wasted. Master will accumulate knowledge, and he will know his death that day, so he can follow the virtue; if he returns in the middle way, Why is it so different to cut off the weaving? 'Gapzi felt that his words were the same and returned to his final deeds, so he did not return for seven years."

Queen Chang is a smart woman, so she naturally knows the meaning of this fable, and she suddenly said with a charming look: "What does Your Majesty want my concubine to do tonight?"

"Let me think about it first!" Zhu Youtang pressed the queen's noble head down, and was ready to work hard again tonight.

Although Queen Chang was the queen of the dynasty, she had already been conquered by Zhu Youtang, but she breathed completely according to Zhu Youtang's wishes.

It was late at night, and the courtyard of Qianqing Palace seemed very quiet.

As the weather gets colder, the cat family, which originally liked to play the role of bodyguards, stayed in the cage, with only the heating hole carefully burning charcoal fire.

Niu Mengmeng was affected by what happened during the day and was always worried that Zhu Youtang would punish her.

After tossing and turning for a while, she suddenly became worried about her little cat that accidentally ate the cake, so she got up and took a look. I felt relieved when I went to the cattery next door and saw the little tabby cat staying in the cage obediently.

The autumn night was already a bit chilly. She yawned, got up and returned to her small bedroom, but was stunned when she walked out of the cattery.

At this moment, the Qianqing Palace, which had been shrouded in darkness, was now ablaze.

"Go away!"

"Go away!"

Niu Mengmeng couldn't believe his eyes and didn't know who dared to set fire to murder the emperor and empress, so he shouted loudly.

As soon as these words came out, dozens of eunuchs and maids woke up and rushed out with wooden basins to help put out the fire, while some eunuchs wanted to rush into the fire to rescue Zhu Youtang.

Just as everyone rushed towards the main hall fearlessly, they looked at each other in shock.

The hall in front of me is filled with red light, the light is bright and steaming, like fire but not fire.

Zhu Youtang and Chang Yourong didn't know what was going on behind them, they just felt it was a bit noisy, but it didn't affect his performance and pleasure, and finally completed the most critical output.

Things are changing, and everything is changing quietly.

Jiajing's mother was beheaded on the execution platform, Zhengde's mother died after eating arsenic cakes, but Zhu Youtang was still working tirelessly to sow seeds in the spring.

As for who will become the next generation heir of this emperor, in the sobs of Queen Chang, it seems that God is ready to give an accurate answer. (End of chapter)