Ming Dynasty 1566

Chapter 35

Tian Youlu: "What, what do you mean?" While talking, he hurriedly walked outside.As soon as he reached the entrance of the lobby, he shivered with fright—it turned out that at this moment, there was a loud commotion outside, and it was already three o'clock in the afternoon!
"It's over, it's over, it's past three o'clock in the afternoon." Natian Youlu muttered, how dare he go through the door again, turned to the corridor, and walked to the side door.

Xu and Jiang Erqianhu also understood, and their eyes hurriedly looked at the hourglass in the hall.

"Three quarters of the noon" was revealed on the wooden sign of the hourglass!
Hai Rui: "It's past [-]:[-] p.m. First, send a group of criminals to the county government prison. Then report to the superior government office immediately!"

This time, Tian Youlu and the others really had nothing to say.

When the food was borrowed, Hu Zongxian was slightly relieved.Coupled with the fact that he was traveling smoothly all the way, his complexion was obviously much better than when he was in Yingtian.

"You met the emperor this time, how is his eyes? Think about it carefully." Li Shizhen sat on the cushion on the right side of the cabin of the big ship, looking closely at Hu Zongxian.

Hu Zongxian was thinking deeply: "There is still light in the eyes, and there is no symptom of dizziness."

Li Shizhen: "Is the eyeball red?"

Hu Zongxian thought: "It seems that the whites of the eyes are a little red."

Li Shizhen's expression became serious: "Pouches under the eyes, are the pouches under the eyeballs blue?"

Hu Zongxian thought about it again: "It's a little green."

Li Shizhen looked outside the cabin: "They are all symptoms of mercury poisoning..."

"Does it matter?" Hu Zongxian expressed his concern.

Li Shizhen: "If you still take pills every day, no matter how well maintained you are, it will only last three to five years."

Hu Zongxian stood there in a daze, slowly, his eyes got wet.

Li Shizhen also let out a long sigh: "I said in the imperial hospital that I advised the emperor not to believe in the techniques of alchemists, but not to take the pills of alchemists. Because of this, I can't stay there any longer."

Speaking of this, Li Shizhen stood up and walked slowly in the big cabin: "Be discouraged. It's not that I said you, the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty, and there are so many famous ministers who claim to be Confucianism, no one dares to stand up Talking, no one persuaded the emperor to stay away from those alchemists' sorcery. Headed by Yan Song, several university scholars, one by one, scrambled to write green poems for the emperor. It is the evil of the king! The strength of the Ming Dynasty, I think it is almost the same."

Hu Zongxian lowered his eyes.

Li Shizhen: "Hu Butang, I have a question for you, don't mind it."

Hu Zongxian slowly raised his eyes again, looking at Li Shizhen: "Mr. Li, please."

Li Shizhen didn't look at him: "You are talented, and you also have the community and the people in your heart, why do you want to attach to Yan Song?"

Hu Zongxian never expected that he would ask such a question, and he was stunned for a while.

Li Shizhen: "Although I am already in the Jianghu, I can't hide. I still have to be invited to see a doctor by this prince or other official. I have heard a lot about you. Do you want to hear it?"

Hu Zongxian looked closely at Li Shizhen: "Sir, please tell me."

Li Shizhen: "Let's talk about it first. I will give you an evaluation of eight characters. I know people and do things well. I use Qi Jiguang to drive Japanese pirates out of the country and settle down in the southeast. Build seawalls, reduce taxes, encourage spinning and doing business, and the common people Ryan. Based on these, for generations to come, your name, Hu Zongxian, should have been indispensable in the biography of famous ministers."

Hu Zongxian's gaze slowly lowered again.

"It's not good, and you know it even if I don't tell you." At this point, Li Shizhen suddenly became excited, "For the sake of the people of Zhejiang, you first resisted, and now you are raising food everywhere, I will give you a word that is clear from the sidelines, Yan Song , Especially Yan Shifan fell within a year or two. You can’t just pay off with merit.”

Hu Zongxian looked at Li Shizhen again.

Li Shizhen also looked at him deeply: "The righteous ones can kill even their relatives! You should stand up and expose their treachery and evil to the emperor!"

Hu Zongxian: "Sir, let me answer you, don't be disappointed."

Li Shizhen already showed a somewhat disappointed expression.

Hu Zongxian: "Anyone can overthrow the old man, but I, Hu Zongxian, cannot overthrow the old man."

Li Shizhen: "Why?"

Hu Zongxian: "I don't need to be a famous minister, but I can't be a villain!"

Li Shizhen looked at him closely, and nodded his head after a long time: "Knowing how to use someone like you, Yan Song still has something special!"

"Butang, Mr. Li." Tan Lun came in from outside the cabin with a serious expression on his face.

Hu Zongxian looked at him.

Tan Lun just looked at him.

Hu Zongxian stood up slowly, and said to Li Shizhen, "Excuse me, sir, sit still."

Hu Zongxian and Tan Lun walked out of the cabin.The two walked to the bow of the big ship, and the captain of the guards led several guards to run to both sides of the ship.

"Curious and unpredictable." Tan Lun said urgently beside Hu Zongxian, "First, Gao Hanwen was forced to sign by them during the discussion on the third day, and he fainted in court. Then the report was that a disaster victim from Chun'an Tongwo called Hai Ray immediately went to execute the criminal."

Hu Zongxian was startled: "Has anyone been killed?"

Tan Lun: "Hai Rui did not execute the sentence. All the criminals were put in prison on the spot. They said that there was a huge loophole in Tongwo's case, so they sent a report and asked the governor's yamen and the governor's yamen to jointly try the case. .”

Hu Zongxian closed his mouth tightly, thinking sharply there.

Tan Lun: "There is also a report that Shen Yishi blatantly used the brand of the Weaving Bureau to transport the grain ship to Chun'an Jiande to buy land. Counting the days, it should have arrived today."

"This day has finally come." Hu Zongxian said in a very heavy tone, "Ge Lao, Xiao Ge Lao, Yu Wang, Xu, Gao, and Zhang are all going to have a showdown." The emperor is also involved! Openly using the brand of the Weaving Bureau to buy people's fields at a low price, what are they going to do!"

Tan Lun: "The dog jumped the wall in a hurry! Zheng Michang and He Mao just realized that they were trapped and couldn't get out, and they lost their heads."

Hu Zongxian: "There is also that Shen Yishi. He made his fortune by relying on the weaving bureau. Why did he get mixed up with Zheng and He?"

Tan Lun: "On this point, I can't see through it either. The ministry, the most important thing right now is Chun'an. Hai Rui doesn't kill people, it's obviously an unjust case. At this time, if the victims are forced to sell their land, it will immediately spark a civil uprising .Hai Rui is alone and can't stand it."

Hu Zongxian shook his head: "Thinking about it further, what will Zheng Michang and He Mao do after this accident?"

Tan Lun thought for a while: "If the Tongwo case is fabricated by them, they will kill people to silence it. The Ministry, you must go in person. Only you can control the situation."

Hu Zongxian shook his head again: "I can't go. After discussing it, I called the boat to dock, and I have to go to Qi Jiguang's camp by land immediately."

Tan Lun was startled: "What does the Ministry mean, that Japanese pirates will make trouble?"

"Internal strife will inevitably lead to foreign trouble!" Hu Zongxian said slowly, his worried eyes cast into the distance.

Facts have proved that Hu Zongxian's concerns are not unreasonable.Of course, these are things for later.

"I'll kick you to death!"

In the lobby of the governor's yamen, He Maocai scolded and kicked Jiang Qianhu on the shoulder angrily.

Jiang Qianhu was kneeling on one leg. Seeing him kicking, the man in charge of the soldiers was still agile, so he instinctively flashed. Dare to hide, knelt there and propped up his hands to support him.

Sitting there, Zheng Michang was already annoyed to death, seeing He Maocai making such a fuss again, his eyebrows frowned immediately.

With a sound of "slap", He Maocai was angry and anxious at this moment, and after being supported by him, he slapped him across the face again. Jiang Qianhu didn't hide this time, and took the slap hard.

He Maocai was out of breath: "Two thousand households, with hundreds of soldiers, even a few criminals can't be killed, what do the court and the court support you people for?"

Jiang Qianhu also became stubborn at this time: "He is the prison officer, and the adults don't give us instructions, and we don't have the right to execute criminals."

"You won't let him hook Zhu?" He Maocai realized that what he said was reasonable. Although he was still stern when he said this, it was obvious that he had lost the momentum just now.

After all, he is a confidant, Jiang Qianhu calmed down at this time, no longer argued, raised his head and said: "My lord, this person is a desperate person, this time he is willing to go all out to fight with the province. Over there also sent People went to report to Hu Butang, and the subordinates thought that this matter was a big deal, and the adults had to make up their minds quickly."

"You go down first." Zheng Bichang interrupted.

Jiang Qianhu: "Yes." After saluting, he stood up and walked out.

He Maocai's eyes suddenly went blank, and he was obviously thinking wildly, and slowly looked at Zheng Michang.

"Tell me, what should I do?" Zheng Bichang asked him.

He Maocai: "You are dead, what else can you do? If he doesn't kill people, the only option is to kill him!"

Zheng Bichang: "How to kill?"

He Maocai: "Slash with a knife, chop with an axe, or twist a rope with poison, whatever works!"

Zheng Michang: "I ask you what reason you used to kill him?"

He Maocai: "To communicate with the Japanese, to disturb the national policy, he can be killed for any reason."

Zheng Michang sighed: "The big hat doesn't work anymore, to be honest."

He Maocai: "How else can I do it? The Japanese pirates are all on the execution ground. At three o'clock in the afternoon, the beheading officer dares to indulge the criminals. This is a capital crime."

"Just this one can't stand." Zheng Bichang's tone became a little irritable, "There is no confession, no case file, the person arrested in the morning, and the report arrived in Hangzhou in the morning, and he said that he had been sentenced for more than ten years. How could you reveal it? Such a big handle for others to hold!"

He Maocai was stunned by Zheng Michang's words, and his heart became more angry and anxious. On a hot day, sweat dripped down his face, he turned back to his chair, grabbed the fan from the tea table and fanned it vigorously.

"Have the dozen or so Japanese pirates in the prison been released?" Zheng Michang stared at He Maocai.

He Maocai replied: "Not yet."

Zheng Michang: "It can't be released any more. And the silk promised to the Japanese pirates can't be given any more."

"Then the only way is to put Shishiro Inoue and those unscrupulous people in prison immediately!" He Maocai's eyes showed a fierce look again, "Then use this to immediately arrest Hai Rui!"

Zheng Michang: "Who will be sent to do it?"

He Maocai: "Tell Jiang Qianhu to leave immediately. He and Xu Qianhu will do it together."

"You!" Zheng Michang sighed, "Can two thousand households detain the county magistrate?"

He Maocai patted himself on the head: "It's terrible. But the two of us can't get involved now."

Zheng Bichang: "Tell Gao Hanwen to go."

He Maocai's eyes lit up.

Zheng Michang: "Tell Jiang Qianhu and Xu Qianhu to do the first thing first, and ask Gao Hanwen to arrive later and ask him to detain Hai Rui. We must make a decision before Hu Zongxian arrives in Chun'an."

He Maocai finally understood: "It just so happens that Gao Hanwen and Shen Yishi will handle the matter of buying the land there."

Zheng Michang: "This is the last move. If you can't do it well, you and I will sit in the prison car by ourselves."

In order to ease the atmosphere, Zheng Michang specially came to Hangzhou Zhifu Yamen in casual clothes after lighting up the lights.At this moment, he sat in the middle seat and looked at Gao Hanwen warmly, with a gentle expression on his face.

Of course Gao Hanwen could only see him in casual clothes.A man of literati character, he knew that the setbacks he experienced this time were all related to this person in front of him, so although he was sick and weak, Gao Hanwen was sitting there with a strong body, making no effort to conceal his dissatisfaction and indifference on the outside.

"I've said everything I need to say." Zheng Michang said softly, "You should be allowed to rest for a few more days. But it's related to national policy. Chun'an and Jiande can only let you work with illness tomorrow. Fortunately, it is by water, and I also found a good doctor for you to accompany you all the way. You have to do things, and you have to take care of your illness."

"I will go. I don't need any doctor." Gao Hanwen replied so simply.This made Zheng Michang startled for a moment, and couldn't help staring at him, as if he wanted to see what was going on in his heart.

Gao Hanwen's face was indifferent, and Zheng Michang really couldn't see his thoughts for a while.

Zheng Michang: "Brother Gao, this trip is to implement the national policy of changing rice to mulberry. Chun'an and Jiande will plant mulberry seedlings anyway in June."

Gao Hanwen: "I am the one who raised the proposal of 'Reform and Relief', and I know what to do."

Hearing what he said, Zheng Michang was at a loss again: "The grain from the Weaving Bureau has already been transported to the disaster county, and the fields cannot be bought, and the mulberry seedlings cannot be planted. Gaofutai, you should know the consequences."

Gao Hanwen stood up: "Zhong Cheng, if there is no other order, this subordinate should prepare to pack."

"Okay, okay." Zheng Michangxu responded, and had no choice but to stand up, "Also, the province will send troops to escort you tomorrow. It's a hot day, it's best to catch the early cool."

Gao Hanwen: "I'm sick, so I won't send Zhong Cheng away."

This was a faux pas in the officialdom, Zheng Michang was taken aback, and immediately said: "There is no need to stick to that etiquette." Then he walked out alone.

Gao Hanwen sat down slowly again, and when he couldn't hear Zheng Michang's footsteps, he called weakly: "Come on."

A follower walked in.

Gao Hanwen: "Bring a bucket of water."

The attendant was stunned for a moment: "Sir, do you want hot water or cold water?"

Gao Hanwen: "Put buckets of well water and wash the ground."

"Yes." The follower glanced at him again and walked out.

The entourage just walked out, and a clerk hurried in again, calling softly: "My lord."

Gao Hanwen looked at him slowly: "Speak."

The scribe said, "Someone from the Weaving Bureau is here."

Gao Hanwen didn't respond at all.

The clerk: "It's strange. They came from the back door. It seems that they want to avoid Mr. Zheng on purpose. They say they have something important to see Mr. Zheng."

Gao Hanwen: "Come on. Let them all come."

Seeing his strange expression, the scribe replied in a low voice: "If the adult is unwell, the younger one will go back to him?"

Gao Hanwen: "Did I say I was unwell?"

"Yes." The scribe hurried out.

The attendant came in with a bucket, knowing that he was going to wash the floor, and there was still a ladle floating on the water.

Gao Hanwen: "That chair and the floor in front of me have been washed."

"Yes." The entourage scooped up a ladle of water and poured it down the back of the chair Zheng Bichang sat on.

It was time to wash the floor, so the attendant said to Gao Hanwen: "My lord, the younger one is about to wash the floor. Would you like to go in and rest first?"

Gao Hanwen: "My side is clean, just wash the other side."

The entourage had no choice but to scoop up water, and poured the water carefully away from Gao Hanwen.

"Wait." The scribe shouted at the entrance of the hall, and the attendant stopped.

The clerk walked in quickly and said to Gao Hanwen, "My lord, the people from the Weaving Bureau are here."

While talking, the man had already walked in, wearing a black satin cloak with a hood on a hot day.

Gao Hanwen looked at him.

The man just sat down on the chair opposite him, and took off the hood on his head—it was Yang Jinshui!

Gao Hanwen didn't know him, and the scribes and attendants obviously didn't know him either, but they were startled when they saw the wingless gauze cap inlaid with gold thread on his head.

Yang Jinshui said to the scribe and his followers, "I have something important to tell Gao Futai, you all go down."

This was a natural imposing manner, the scribe and the attendants didn't wait for Gao Hanwen's order, so they all retreated.

Yang Jinshui looked at Gao Hanwen: "Gao Futai doesn't know me, I am Yang Jinshui."

Gao Hanwen stood up abruptly.

Yang Jinshui: "Sit, sit."

Gao Hanwen slowly sat down again.

(End of this chapter)