"Father, His Majesty sent out the Jin Yiwei last night and ransacked the homes of all those on the list!"
In the early morning, when Yan Song was concentrating on the small plate of pickles in front of him, he heard Yan Shifan's voice.
"Well, I understand. Since these guys are unwilling to obey, then we can only let them die!"
After Yan Song finished speaking, he picked up a piece of pickles with chopsticks, put it in his mouth, and chewed it carefully.
"Father, everything is ready, here is the pattern of the flag!"
"Oh, let me see."
Upon seeing this, Yan Song put down his bowls and chopsticks, then turned aside and looked at the flag pattern shown to him by Yan Shifan.
After a long time, Yan Song looked away, nodded, and gave instructions.
"Well, that's right. I'll bring it with me when the cabinet discusses it later."
"Yes, father!"
Yan Shifan saw that his idea was approved by Yan Song, his face was full of joy, and he immediately agreed.
"Let's eat some together."
"Yes, father!"
After Yan Shifan responded, he immediately sat across from Yan Song. The maid on the side quickly brought a bowl of thick porridge. Neither father nor son spoke, just concentrating on the dishes on the table.
…
Forbidden City, Hall of Nourishing Heart.
Jiajing slowly stood up from the futon and ended today's breathing.
In order to polish his own state to the best, in addition to daily practice, Jiajing will also meditate to get rid of all distracting thoughts in his heart and lay the foundation for a breakthrough in the realm.
At this moment, Lu Fang entered the Nourishing Heart Hall with silent steps.
"Your Majesty, I have already completed the things you ordered me to do."
"Last night, I asked Jin Yiwei to raid the homes of all the guys on the list!"
"A total of 26,830,000 taels of silver were confiscated, and the rest were countless, such as antiques, land deeds, etc."
After listening to Lu Fang's report, Jiajing looked calm and then gave instructions.
"Continue to investigate for me, so many officials have confiscated less than 30 million taels of silver!"
"These guys must have secretly transported the money back to their hometown and hid it."
After receiving Jiajing's instructions, Lu Fang looked stern and responded immediately.
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
Jiajing withdrew his gaze from Lu Fang's face and then gave instructions.
"Okay, it will be time for cabinet discussions later, so come with me!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Afterwards, Lu Fang followed Jiajing step by step and marched towards the cabinet.
…
In the cabinet, while the emperor was not here, everyone was reviewing the corresponding memorials.
"Send these reviewed memorials to the Supervisor of Ceremonies."
I saw Xu Jie summoning his subordinates and giving these instructions.
"Yes, Mr. Ge!"
After the subordinate officials responded, they immediately left the cabinet with the completed memorial in their arms.
Xu Jie then stood up from his seat. After flexing his muscles, he turned his gaze to Yan Song and asked with a smile.
"Mr. Yan Ge, do you know about the Jinyi Guards' dispatch last night?"
After Yan Song heard Xu Jie's words, he immediately put down the brush in his hand, thought for a moment, and then answered.
"It seems that there is such a thing, but this time the Jinyiwei arrested were all criminals, so it's not a big deal."
"Besides, the imperial examination is about to be held. There are many people in the world who want to be officials. We just need to change a new batch!"
After hearing Yan Song's answer, Xu Jie's expression remained unchanged, and then he cursed secretly in his heart.
"This old guy is so vicious. Who doesn't know that most of the people on the list are members of your strict party!"
"How can we build the Ming Dynasty with an insect like you?"
Seeing Yan Song suddenly mention the imperial examination, Xu Jie sighed helplessly, and then sighed.
"Yes, there are many people in the world who want to be officials! I heard that there are also people in the clan who participated in this child examination."
Yan Song suddenly became interested when he heard what Xu Jie said. He raised his eyebrows and asked.
"Oh, who is it?"
Seeing this, Xu Jie pondered for a moment before giving a response.
"It seems that Zhu Shun came first..."
After getting the exact answer from Xu Jie, Yan Song also chuckled and said slowly.
"Everyone in the world yearns for fame and fortune. Some do it for glory and wealth, some do it for a long-lasting reputation. No one is exempt from vulgarity!"
"In this case, what if people from the clan come to take part in the imperial examination?"
"Besides, in the edict issued by His Majesty earlier, it was written in black and white that members of the clan can freely choose their profession, and naturally they can also participate in the imperial examination."
"Let's see what rank Zhu Shunxian can get in the exam!"
Yan Shifan, who had been silent since the beginning, narrowed his eyes and began to make calculations in his mind after hearing what his father Yan Song and Xu Jie said.
"There are people from the clan participating in this imperial examination. No matter what, your Majesty must want someone from the clan to be able to gain fame!"
"This will set an example for the rest of the clan."
"As the examiner presiding over this imperial examination, there are so many things that I can do. I only need to say hello a little to achieve my goal."
"It's too ostentatious to give the first place in such a grand manner. Let's just lower the ranking a little further. This way, we can not only take care of the royal family's face, but also ensure that nothing happens."
While Yan Shifan was still calculating, he heard a high-pitched voice coming from outside the cabinet.
"Your Majesty is here!"
When everyone saw this, they stopped communicating one after another, and then knelt on the ground, waiting for the emperor's arrival.
"I bow to your Majesty, long live my emperor!"
Seeing the emperor's figure appear, everyone, led by Yan Song, the chief minister of the cabinet, bowed respectfully.
"Well, everyone, get up!"
After Jiajing sat down in his seat, he turned his eyes to everyone and gave the order.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
After receiving the emperor's permission, everyone slowly stood up from the ground and sat down in their respective positions.
Immediately afterwards, Jiajing glanced at Lu Fang, who was standing beside him, and the latter quickly understood, took a step forward, and spoke.
"There are three main things discussed by the cabinet today. One is the flag that can represent our Ming Dynasty. The other is the specific matters of the imperial examination. The third thing is that the imperial court will open more ports to trade with foreign merchants. .”
After everyone present learned what was going to be discussed today from Lu Fang's mouth, their faces were full of surprise and they thought to themselves.
"Before this, His Majesty has never mentioned it to us!"
"Yes, hasn't Quanzhou Port been opened now?"
Jiajing took in the expressions on everyone's faces, raised his eyebrows, and said.
"I know what you are thinking, but I feel that since the sea ban has been lifted, it is better to open more ports."
"Do you have any opinions on this?"
After Jiajing finished speaking, he glanced at everyone present and asked lightly.
"Your Majesty, I think it is very necessary to open more ports!"
As soon as Jiajing finished speaking, Yan Song stood up and expressed his attitude clearly.
"Mr. Xu Ge, what do you think?"
Jiajing saw that Yan Song had made his attitude clear, and then turned his eyes to Xu Jie and asked.
"Your Majesty, I have the same opinion as Mr. Yan Ge!"
When Xu Jie saw the emperor asking for his opinion, he immediately gritted his teeth and answered.
(End of chapter)
