People in Hongwu, from heavenly master to emperor master

Chapter 550: Sacrificing one’s life to become a Taoist, surrendering one’s name
Although Ming Dynasty banknotes have been issued for some time, Yao Guangxiao has been controlling the circulation.

Zhang Yi has been traveling north these days, but has never seen the Ming Dynasty Baochao.

Now it was the first time I saw it. Although this thing was not made by his own hands, Zhang Yi felt an inexplicable feeling of intimacy.

He held the Ming Dynasty treasure banknote, but there was no movement for a long time. The shopkeeper only thought he was questioning this thing.

"Sir, these are the Ming Dynasty treasure notes printed by your Majesty. They can be used as silver..."

Zhang Yi smiled when he heard this and asked the shopkeeper:

"Shopkeeper, if you said this thing can be replaced, you can change it. Are you not deceiving me?"

"Sir, why did I lie to you? If you don't believe me, go to the Banknote Bureau to exchange it yourself. If you can't exchange the money, come to me and I'll compensate you two hundred cents..."

His excited look made Zhang Yi continue to laugh.

"Shopkeeper, don't get excited, I'm just asking. After all, if you give me a piece of paper, I won't be able to hold it safely!"

"Sir, let alone you, even I was not sure about it at the beginning, but everyone went to the Banknote Bureau to exchange it, and they did get the money. The court is trustworthy, so of course we are not afraid!
Sir, if you get used to using this treasure, you won't be afraid of carrying silver in the future! "

"How to say?"

Zhang Yi continued to guide the shopkeeper.

“It’s troublesome to bring too much silver.

Think about it, if you are doing a big deal, it will be hard to find the money, the quality of the money will be different, and it will be extremely troublesome for everyone to do business.

This treasure banknote is so good. You don’t have to consider its quality. As long as you take out the item and verify that the treasure banknote is genuine, you can exchange it for silver.

Being light is one thing, but the main thing is that you don’t have to do the math..."

When talking about the difficulties with money in the past, the shopkeeper felt a lot of bitterness to pour out.

Among the people, copper coins and silver are the main currencies in circulation. It can even be said that there is very little silver in circulation in the hands of ordinary people. Basically, it is either broken silver or various copper coins.

But there is a problem with these money, that is, the quality and wear of silver and copper coins are different, which makes it very troublesome to exchange the same one-tael items.

Everyone was used to this practice in the past, but they didn’t think there was anything wrong with it?
But as soon as more convenient treasure money appeared, many people started using it immediately.

Today's Ming Dynasty treasure banknotes are roughly divided into denominations of one penny, ten pence, and one hundred pence. As long as you can bring the treasure banknotes, you can exchange them for official copper coins in full amount.

Alternatively, you can exchange it for a sufficient amount of silver with silver banknotes.

After initially solving the problem of trust, it is only natural that many businessmen choose the more convenient Ming Dynasty banknotes.

Anyway, when they made large transactions in the past, they either used banknotes from big banks and had the credit of the court as an endorsement. This was no big deal.

Some businessmen even thought they were in trouble, so they simply deposited the broken silver and silver of poor quality in their hands into the Baoqian Bureau.

Bao Chao Bureau will give a fair price based on the fineness and weight of the silver.

After this back and forth, by the time Zhang Yi returned to Yingtian Mansion, the first stage of popularization of the famous banknotes had been completed.

According to the steps Zhang Yi knows, Ming Dynasty banknotes will continue to be issued and their basic popularity will be gradually completed.

However, this still involves a trust cost issue.

Only when businessmen and people found it troublesome and deposited their money in the Baocha Bureau could Yao Guangxiao print more money.

Only by strictly adhering to the standard of anchoring silver or gold at the beginning can more financial operations be carried out later.

As for the tricks in the exchange and the counterfeiting of treasure banknotes,
When Zhang Yi and Yao Guangxiao discussed this matter, they had already made a complete plan. Zhang Yi believed that Yao Guangxiao could do better than him.

"Let's go!"

After understanding what he wanted to know, Zhang Yi was in a good mood.

He walked out of the teahouse, and thin snowflakes were floating in the sky.

Time flies, and the winter of Hongwu ten years has arrived unknowingly.

Winter is not suitable for traveling far away, but it is suitable for staying with family.

Thinking of his wives, Zhang Yi felt hot.

He said something to the Jin Yiwei beside him, then sped up and rushed towards Yingtian Mansion.

……

"Zhang Yi is back?"

Before Zhang Yiren arrived in Yingtian, the news of his return had already reached some people's ears.

In the palace, Zhu Yuanzhang put down the memorial in his hand and raised his eyebrows.

Yao Guangxiao, who was reporting to him, raised the corners of his mouth slightly.

"Your Majesty, I have finished reporting on my work. I will retire..."

Yao Guangxiao stood up and said goodbye.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at him deeply and refused to expose the fact that this guy was planning to skip work.

But as Yao Guangxiao went away, Lao Zhu didn't know what to draw on the paper, and his eyes became dark.

……

"Husband!"

When Zhang Yi returned to the Imperial Master's Mansion, he came to nothing.

He transferred back to Spring and Autumn College and found several of his wives.

Compared with the life of a husband and a child in the Duke's mansion, it is obvious that the three women have become accustomed to working days.

The three girls were overjoyed to see Zhang Yi back.

Mengyao and Zhang Yi were the closest, and she threw herself into Zhang Yi's arms without thinking. She immediately remembered that someone was there, and her face immediately turned red.

Although the Xu family girl and Guanyin slave were not as outgoing as she was, they kept looking at Zhang Yi with smiles.

If there was no one here, they would probably walk there.

Zhang Yi smiled at his wives. They had a lot to say to each other, but they could only put it down temporarily.

"Same for you, you won't take care of yourself when you come back!"

The girl from the Xu family felt a little distressed when she saw Zhang Yixian's dusty appearance.

He seemed much darker than when he left home.

"Where have you been these days and why are you so tanned?"

"After staying in the mine for a few months, I went looking for oil again. Finally, things went smoothly. I found a suitable place for development..."

Zhang Yi opened his chatterbox and kept talking to the Xu family girl.

The two of them met on the channel and immediately became indifferent.

Zhang Yi said, Xu family girl listened.

Guanyinnu and Mengyao looked at it with a look of envy in their eyes.

Zhang Yi's feelings for all of them are considered sincere, but in terms of compatibility, no one can replace the Xu family girl in Zhang Yi's heart.

The two of them looked at each other and smiled. Mengyao went to prepare food for Zhang Yi. Guanyin Nu thought for a moment and went to boil water for him.

Although these things can only be done by slaves.

But when their husband returned from a long trip, they all wanted to use their own methods to make Zhang Yi relax.

Zhang Yi was talking about what he had seen and heard, and the Xu family girl was also telling Zhang Yi about the situation in the capital.

Among them, the most popular one recently is naturally the sudden rise of Yao Guangxiao.

"You know, there are recent rumors that in addition to the Huaixi, Zhejiang and other factions, there is now a group of people in the court called the Spring and Autumn Faction..."

"Spring and Autumn Sect?"

Zhang Yi didn't react for a while, what is the Spring and Autumn Sect?
Seeing his dumb look, the Xu family girl couldn't help laughing:

"Or called the National Teacher Party..."

Zhang Yi: ...

He was just going out, why did he form a clique for personal gain when he came back?

And he is also the so-called leader of the party, right?

Whether it is the Spring and Autumn School or the National Teacher Party, in essence, the emperor used the students of the Spring and Autumn College more and more, and gradually formed a faction.

The conscience of heaven and earth, when he opened the Spring and Autumn College, he really did not think about training officials for the Ming Dynasty.

He still remembered that he told Zhu Yuanzhang that the best way to select talents was to select scholars through the imperial examination.

But Lao Zhu couldn't help but like the students of Spring and Autumn College.

Zhang Yi also understood that Lao Zhu's high regard for the students of Chunqiu College was largely related to the public opinion in recent years.

As the reform progressed, the relationship between Lao Zhu and the big landowners in the south became worse day by day.

Today's political struggle can no longer be described as an undercurrent.

When he goes out and the emperor sends a royal guard to protect him, it means that things are gradually getting outrageous.

In this kind of environment, civil servants like to use a routine, that is, people with different principles should not work together.

Just like the first enke in Hongwu three years, many people chose not to serve the court.

Due to emotional problems, many people chose to resign, or did not take the imperial examination to threaten the court. However, such circumstances intensified the emperor's determination to reuse the students of the Spring and Autumn College.

As students trained as administrative officers, there is actually no pressure even if they become administrative officers.

When the ancients studied, there was no inevitable connection between Confucianism and being an official.

When Zhu Yuanzhang discovered that these technocrats were doing a pretty good job and were even more down-to-earth, the rise of the so-called Spring and Autumn School was natural.

What took the Spring and Autumn Sect to a higher level was naturally Yao Guangxiao's entry into the court, becoming the talker of the Baochao Bureau and leading the monetary reform of the Ming Dynasty.

This authority does not seem to have as much authority as the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Household Affairs, but many people may not realize the hidden authority over money matters until many years later.

Yao Guangxiao has actually led the reform of certain aspects of the empire. His authority actually far exceeds that of the Six Ministers, and is vaguely comparable to the two prime ministers of Zhongshu Province.

In this case, the students of Spring and Autumn College, who were originally only low-level officials and had no backbone in the court, naturally felt refreshed.

And with one thing going down and the other going up, it would be strange if the so-called Spring and Autumn Sect does not grow stronger.

However, Zhang Yi always felt that Lao Zhu had taken too big a step.

"Master!"

While chatting with the Xu family girl, Yao Guangxiao also came to Chunqiu College and met Zhang Yi.

Zhang Yi looked at this disciple whom he hadn't seen for several months. He was no different from when they were separated.

He nodded slightly, being able to enjoy wealth and status without changing his original intention, he was just like what the history books said.

For a normal person, when he first gets rich, even if his heart is calm, there will still be some difference.

It's no wonder that the girl from the Xu family learned that Yao Guangxiao's recent reputation in the court was that to a certain extent, he was the most ideal minister in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind.

His ability is T0 for this era, and he has no materialistic desires at all.

Even like Liu Ji, although he can maintain his own integrity, he still has to seek benefits for the elders in eastern Zhejiang behind him.

Only Yao Guangxiao can throw away everything except the ideals in his heart.

This kind of minister is too fond of Lao Zhu.

It is simply a model of social animals.

"You came!"

After spending so many years with Yao Guangxiao, Zhang Yi and he had already formed a special tacit understanding.

If we say that the Xu family girl is a Taoist companion in her life.

To a certain extent, Yao Guangxiao was his best Taoist friend.

Both of them are what Lao Zhu calls madmen, and at least on the way forward, they walk together for a part of the way.

"Wait for me. I came back in a hurry and didn't even wash up properly. Wait for me to take a shower and then we can eat together!"

Zhang Yi's few casual words left one of the most powerful people in the imperial court where he was.Yao Guangxiao smiled. Compared to other people's flattery, he seemed to feel more comfortable getting along with his cheap master.

"Master Yao, please have a cup of tea and wait!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Ma!"

Yao Guangxiao's etiquette is impeccable.

Zhang Yi didn't let him wait long. After bathing and changing clothes, the master and apprentice went to the dinner table.

Originally, Meng Yao and others wanted to have a good meal with Zhang Yi, who had just returned, but knowing that Yao Guangxiao and Zhang Yi had something to say, they simply avoided it.

In the middle of winter, Zhang Yi took a sip of white wine and his body felt warmer.

He didn't pour wine for Yao Guangxiao.

Although he became a Taoist priest in recent years, he has always followed the rules and regulations in his daily life.

He rarely drank unless he couldn't avoid it.

Zhang Yi naturally wouldn't force him.

"How about currency reform?"

"Very good, we are advancing step by step. If Your Majesty can tolerate Pindao for ten years, Pindao is confident that he can promote the success of the reform..."

"Poverty?"

Zhang Yi smiled and changed into a gossipy expression:

"Didn't the emperor have any intention of letting you return to secular life?"

Yao Guangxiao's expression remained unchanged and he said:
"Indeed, I did. Last time I was busy late at night, Your Majesty sent two beauties to me..."

"The results of it?"

Zhang Yi was very interested. Inquiring about gossip is an innate instinct of human beings.

"The poor monk asked them if they could read? They said they could. It happened that the poor monk had some information that he needed others to copy..."

"Hahaha!"

Zhang Yi laughed so hard that he fell forward and backward. This decision was very Yao Guangxiao's.

He had to admire that the people in Lao Zhu's family used exactly the same methods to lure people into trouble.

But it can be imagined that Zhu Yuanzhang was indeed very satisfied with Yao Guangxiao's ability.

Human nature is despicable.

When others ask for something, Lao Zhu worries that others are too selfish and is always on guard.

But when it comes to Yao Guangxiao, he wants nothing, no desires and no desires.

Lao Zhu also felt uneasy.

Zhang Yi smiled, thinking of his current situation.

Wasn't it true that Zhu Yuanzhang tested him last time?
Accompanying a king is like accompanying a tiger. Even in the friendship between him and Lao Zhu, one must pay attention to propriety.

Treating this incident as a joke, Yao Guangxiao continued to report to Zhang Yi on the situation in the court.

Yao Guangxiao also noticed the problems that Zhang Yi noticed.

That is, the emperor's pressure on the civil servant group has reached a critical point.

In the past, Zhu Yuanzhang had no choice. All the elites in the world were Confucian!

Even Lao Zhu can only choose who to use or not to use at most, but he cannot challenge the rules and regulations set by the Confucians.

Therefore, he chose to promote the noble class to fight against the civil servant group.

The biggest problem of your group is that there is no follow-up.

After the Tumubao incident, the group completely declined, but in Zhang Yi's view, even without Tumubao, the Xungui Group would still have declined.

With peace in the world, the way to gain merit through military exploits will gradually be blocked.

And the nobility that relies on bloodline can't be compared with the civil servants who have blood in the imperial examination.

Therefore, if we want to make civil servants irreplaceable, another interest group that can create blood and be qualified for the work of governance must appear.

Only when the emperor has a choice can he have a bargaining chip.

Now it is obvious that Zhang Yi's Spring and Autumn Academy has given Lao Zhu another option.

Maybe it can't compete with the existing civil service group, but its existence is to warn some people that you are not irreplaceable.

The emperor hopes that Confucianism will compromise, but how can it be so easy after thousands of years of practice?

The collision made Lao Zhu feel some pressure in extreme operations.

The same is naturally true for Yao Guangxiao, the person who was pushed out by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Lao Zhu needs him to have a weak point in his hands, whether it's a beauty or something else.

When Yao Guangxiao said this, he silently presented a notebook.

Zhang Yi only looked at the name above and was stunned.

"Daoyulu".

Zhang Yi was silent. He didn't need to open the book, but he knew what Yao Guangxiao wrote in it?
The book "Tao Yu Lu" is a work written by Yao Guangxiao in his later years. The content of the book is probably a direct reference to the criticism of Buddhism and Taoism in the articles written by Er Cheng in the Northern Song Dynasty and Zhu Xi in the Southern Song Dynasty.

This matter seems normal to Zhang Yi. Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism itself is the process of Confucianism completing its divinity and transforming into a pan-religious one.

The Confucian scholars headed by Cheng Zhu were forced to transform themselves into Confucianism because of competition from Buddha and Laoism.

Neo-Confucianism and its great rise in the Song and Yuan Dynasties have long become the mainstream thought in the world.

In the past hundred years, only Confucians have pointed their noses at Buddhism and Taoism, but few Buddhists and Taoists have refuted Confucians. In other words, their voices have been ignored by Confucians who have the right to speak.

In Yao Guangxiao's original fate, it was only in his later years that he spoke his mind and wrote this book.

However, he also underestimated the social impact at the time.

Probably because of his high position and authority, when he wrote this book as the Prime Minister in Tsing Yi, it came out.

Even his sister broke up with him.

From this we can see the status of Cheng and Zhu.

Now, Dao Yan has written this book at least 30 years in advance.

Didn't he know that this incident would lead to many consequences, causing him to betray his family?
Zhang Yi took the book over and read it carefully.

Although Yao Guangxiao became a Taoist priest, his book still criticizes Cheng Zhu from a Buddhist perspective.

Cheng Zhu, in this era, is almost comparable to Confucius, the most holy teacher.

Scholars all over the world are followers of Cheng and Zhu, and even common people who do not study are still stipulated by Confucian rules and regulations on how to live.

Kong Ne, as the future Duke Yansheng, only proposed the New Confucian concept.
How they were all attacked.

What Yao Guangxiao handed over was the certificate of nomination given to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Don't you, the emperor, worry about me? Then it won't be wrong for me to turn myself into a traitor and alienate my relatives, right?
"Why are you suffering?"

Zhang Yi put the book down and sighed.

Yao Guangxiao laughed:
"Master, the man in the palace is too suspicious. If he had a choice, Pindao wouldn't be like this.

However, since I agreed to Master and am involved in the cause and effect, I will not be timid..."

Zhang Yi heard this and said:

"Then you won't hesitate if your relatives are separated?"

Yao Guangxiao's pupils shrank, he didn't understand the meaning of Zhang Yi's words.

Looking at "Dao Yulu" in front of him again, Yao Guangxiao laughed:

"Since you want to follow Master and change this world, what do you care about?"

Zhang Yi nodded silently, and the madness flashed in Yao Guangxiao's eyes made him feel palpitated.

In later generations, when he read about Yao Guangxiao, he once joked with his friends, saying that except for the fact that this guy liked to rebel, everything was fine.

Now, he has committed his own crime and deceived the Prime Minister into following Yao Guangxiao's ambition to change the world.

Yao Guangxiao believed it, and compared to something like rebellion, which was waiting for an opportunity, he seemed even crazier in this matter.

"Then when you go out in the future, you should also apply for some royal guards from the emperor!

I guess there are no fewer people who want you dead than Pindao! "

The master and apprentice looked at each other and couldn't help laughing.

For a moment, people in the distance looked sideways, wondering why the Imperial Master and Yao Guangxiao were acting like this?
Zhang Yi's message asking to see the emperor has been sent through Jinyiwei.
But the next day, he entered the palace and asked to see the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang met with Zhang Yi at the beginning of the morning and the afternoon.

When Zhang Yi saw Lao Zhu, Yao Guangxiao's Taoist Records had already appeared on Lao Zhu's desk.

This is his certificate of surrender and Yao Guangxiao's determination.

The same "Dao Yu Lu" has different effects when placed in different time and space.

It turns out that Yao Guangxiao of time and space was criticized crazily by scholars because of this book, but with the prestige of Qingyi Prime Minister and his feelings of rebellion against Zhu Di, no one could do anything to him?
At most, he would be cut off from his friends and cut off from his relatives.

But in this time and space, it is really possible for Yao Guangxiao to be killed. This is not a political fight, but an offense of faith.

Zhang Yi never really questioned Cheng and Zhu publicly.

It can be said that Yao Guangxiao, who lost the emperor's protection, would be killed by Cheng Zhu followers in an instant.

Zhu Yuanzhang saw Zhang Yi staring at the book on the desk and said with a smile:

"Your disciple is even crazier than you!
But his words are not unreasonable! "

Zhu Yuanzhang naturally understood that what this book involves is Taoism.

With the determination of Cheng and Zhu Neo-Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism became so-called paganism.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who had been a monk, naturally felt the contempt from above, but he did not have the ability to refute these people.

“He asked me to publish this article, and I agreed!

But how to publish it, since you are his master, just figure it out! "

Lao Zhu seemingly handed the manuscript to Zhang Yi casually, and Zhang Yi couldn't laugh or cry.

Co-author, It's not enough to drag Yao Guangxiao into the water, but you also have to hook up with him?

However, as the saying goes, debts are too much to bear, and Zhu Yuanzhang has seen too many methods of making people become lonely ministers.

He silently took the manuscript and put it away.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report!"

Zhang Yi remained calm and began to report to Zhu Yuanzhang what he had done and gained during these days.

……

On the second day,
Amid the cries of newsboys, the people ushered in a new day.

As the newspaper sales network gradually spreads, the journalist profession gradually matures.

The Sun and Moon Times has changed from a weekly newspaper to a three-day newspaper.

Reading newspapers has long been a daily enjoyment for Yingtian Mansion, from common people to scholars.

When they opened the newspaper, the front page headline was normal, it was about moving the capital.

As winter approaches, it will only be a few months before the Ming Dynasty moves its capital!
After everyone has finished moving the capital, let’s read the serialized novel.

After reading these, some people will take a second look at the editorial section that few people usually read.

Just this one glance revealed a huge wave.

(End of this chapter)