Time flies by quickly, and in a blink of an eye, it’s late August.
Early morning, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, dock.
Since the sun has not yet come out, there is still some mist remaining near the pier, and several ships of different sizes have already docked on the shore.
Today, officials from all over Zhejiang, large and small, are present. Standing at the front of the team are Zheng Michang, He Maocai, and Hangzhou Magistrate Ma Ningyuan.
In addition, on both sides of the road, there were many people who spontaneously came to see him off, and there was no end in sight.
Everyone gathered here to bid farewell to Hu Zongxian, the outgoing governor of Zhejiang Province and governor of Zhejiang Province.
Just two days ago, the transfer order issued by the Ministry of Personnel was finally delivered to Hu Zongxian.
After receiving the transfer order from the Ministry of Officials, Hu Zongxian did not leave in a hurry. Instead, he personally held a banquet at his residence and invited Zheng Michang, He Maocai, Ma Ningyuan, Qi Jiguang and others to the residence.
At the banquet, everyone was extremely drunk, even Hu Zongxian was no exception.
After the banquet, Hu Zongxian handed over the remaining work at hand and packed his luggage.
Hu Zongxian's original plan was to leave Zhejiang quietly without alerting anyone and go to the capital to take up his post. Therefore, he did not disclose his itinerary to Zheng Michang and others.
When Hu Zongxian, escorted by several guards, arrived near the pier, he saw a large number of ordinary people not far away who spontaneously came to see him off, as well as Zheng Michang, He Maocai, Ma Ningyuan and many other officials at the front of the team. .
Seeing this situation, Hu Zongxian couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, while he was still thinking about where the news leaked.
Zheng Michang was the first to kneel on the ground, then looked in the direction of Hu Zongxian and said in a deep voice.
"I respectfully send you my regards, the Governor!"
After that, the officials behind Zheng Michang also knelt on the ground and said in unison.
"I respectfully send you my regards, the Governor!"
Then, people on both sides of the road knelt on the ground and said loudly: "Better farewell to the governor!"
The voices of the people who spontaneously came to see him off were louder and louder, and their words were full of reluctance for Hu Zongxian, his father-in-law.
When Hu Zongxian heard this, he was also quite moved by this. Later, Hu Zongxian stepped forward and lifted the people who were kneeling on the ground from the ground.
But there were so many people kneeling on the ground that Hu Zongxian couldn't help them.
Afterwards, he kept returning the courtesy to the people and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, please get up. I really deserve it!"
Under Hu Zongxian's repeated requests, the people who came to see him off finally got up from the ground one after another.
Not long after that, I saw a white-haired old man walking tremblingly in front of Hu Zongxian with two seven or eight-year-old children.
In the hands of the two children, there was an umbrella respectively, with many silk strips with names written on the umbrella body.
Seeing this situation, Hu Zongxian's pupils suddenly shrank, and his face was full of disbelief.
He had already recognized what the umbrellas in the hands of the two children were - they were Wanmin Umbrellas!
"Sir Governor, please accept these two umbrellas for all people. This is a token of your gratitude to the people of Zhejiang!"
After the white-haired old man finished speaking, without waiting for Hu Zongxian's response, he knelt down on the ground, as if he would not get up if Hu Zongxian refused.
The two children also handed the Wanmin Umbrella in their hands to Hu Zongxian.
Hu Zongxian did not reach out to take it. At this time, his face was full of shame. He glanced at the two Wanmin umbrellas and then spoke.
"During my term of office, I did not do anything practical for the people of Zhejiang. I really deserve it!"
When the old man heard Hu Zongxian's words, his face was full of determination, and he said in a deep voice.
"Your Majesty, your words are wrong. For so many years, under your governance, Zhejiang has had good weather and good harvests every year!"
"There are not so many exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes, and the lives of us ordinary people are getting better day by day. If you hadn't wiped out the Japanese pirates, how could we ordinary people live in peace today?"
"Although I have already died half of my body, I am far from being an old fool. You are a good official, an out-and-out good official. In your heart, we, the people of Zhejiang, deserve these two positions." Take the Wanmin Umbrella!”
"Please, Lord Governor, accept these two Umbrellas of All Peoples!"
After the old man finished speaking, the crowds of people on both sides of the road knelt on the ground and said in unison.
"Please, Lord Governor, accept these two Umbrellas of All Peoples!"
Seeing this situation, Hu Zongxian immediately stepped forward, took the Wanmin Umbrella from the hands of the two children with great solemnity, and said loudly.
"I, Hu Zongxian, would like to thank everyone here!"
Afterwards, Hu Zongxian handed one of the Ten Thousand People Umbrellas to the attendants on the side, and then carefully opened the remaining Ten Thousand Peoples Umbrella in his hand.
The Wanmin umbrella in Hu Zongxian's hand is round and sewn in three layers.
The first layer is written with the surname Wan Enxing. The second layer is written with the title of General Hussar, Governor of Zhejiang Province, Governor of Zhejiang Province, and Sir Hu Zongxian's virtue and governance. The third layer is filled with countless names. In addition, In addition, there are many silk strips with names written on the umbrella body.
Afterwards, Hu Zongxian solemnly put away the Wanmin umbrella and walked resolutely towards the place where the boat was parked.
After Hu Zongxian stepped onto the sampan, he looked at the officials who came to see him off, cupped his hands and said in a deep voice.
"Everyone, let's just say goodbye!"
"Congratulations, Your Majesty the Governor!"
Gradually, the sun came out, and the sky in the distance gradually turned orange-red. The waves on the water surface were undulating and sparkling. A breeze blew by, and the water waves instantly became turbulent and gradually rippled.
The boat that Hu Zongxian was on just became smaller and smaller, and finally, it gradually disappeared from everyone's sight.
As the magistrate of Chun'an County, Wang Yongji naturally came to the dock to bid farewell to Hu Zongxian.
However, due to his low rank, he could only stand at the very end of the team, a very inconspicuous position.
Even so, he still got a glimpse of the whole thing and was quite emotional.
"Serving as an official will bring benefits to one party. If the governor has done this, he will naturally be loved by the people!"
When Wang Yongji thought of this, he sighed helplessly and murmured to himself.
"Alas, I don't know when I, the King Yongji, will be able to do this!"
After the ship leaves the dock, it will sail along the river according to the established route. Next, they will pass through the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and go all the way north to the capital.
At this moment, Hu Zongxian was standing on the deck, looking at the scenery on both sides of the strait, looking in a daze, and countless memories kept reappearing in his mind.
Gao Hanwen was naturally in this fleet, but he was not on the same boat as Hu Zongxian.
Just a few days ago, the official department also issued a transfer order regarding him.
He decided to return to the capital by boat with Hu Zongxian. At this time, he was full of worries about his future.
After all, he was different from Hu Zongxian, the governor-general of Zhejiang and governor of Zhejiang who was recognized by both the government and the public as a hard-working and meritorious man.
At best, he, Gao Hanwen, made the credit for measuring the fields in the process of converting rice into mulberry!
"Oh, I don't know where I will be transferred next!"
Gao Hanwen thought so, and suddenly felt dull in his heart. Then, he walked out of the cabin and came to the deck, greedily breathing in the fresh air.
The scene where the white-haired old man brought two children and presented the Wanmin Umbrella to Hu Zongxian kept flashing in his mind.
"When will I, Gao Hanwen, be able to have this day!"
I saw Gao Hanwen retracting his gaze from the distant scenery and thinking this way.
…
In the afternoon, the heat is steaming, and the sun shines on the ground through the mottled tree shadows. This kind of weather makes people feel drowsy.
Forbidden City, inside the Qianqing Palace.
At this moment, Jiajing was sitting cross-legged on the futon, his eyes seemed to be closed. At this time, Jiajing had already fallen into a meditative state.
After successfully refining the flying sword and mastering the skills of flying with the sword, Jiajing would run to Xiyuan and fly in circles whenever he had time.
In this process, the mana in Jiajing's Dantian has also increased greatly, and the control of his own power has also reached a higher level.
After Jiajing exited the meditative state and roughly felt the condition of his body, he couldn't help but look happy and said to himself.
"Well, doing this will indeed be of great benefit to my cultivation. If I continue like this, one day I will be able to break through to the realm of foundation building!"
Just as Jiajing was feeling so emotional, Lu Fang, who was waiting on the side, saw that Jiajing had finished his meditation, and quickly came forward to greet him, leaned down and said respectfully.
"His Majesty!"
"Um."
After Jiajing responded, he slowly stood up from the futon and went to sit on the dragon chair.
Then, Jiajing turned his gaze to Lu Fang, raised his eyebrows, and asked.
"By the way, Lu Fang, I heard that many chieftains have been busy sending envoys to the capital recently. Is this true?"
"Your Majesty, it is indeed true!"
Seeing this situation, Lu Fang did not dare to hide anything, and then told Yu Jiajing everything she knew about the situation.
After listening to Lu Fang's narration, Jiajing commented with a mocking look on his face.
"Hmph, these guys, the imperial army has already wiped out the Yang family in Bozhou, and they just realized it and want to come to the capital to show their loyalty in a hurry?"
"It's too late! After I implement the reform in the southwest, it will be your turn next!"
When Jiajing said this, he paused for a moment, then looked at Lu Fang aside and gave instructions.
"By the way, Lu Fang, tell Yan Song and the others for me when the time comes, and give strong comfort to the chieftains who are loyal to our Ming Dynasty, such as Yongshun and Baojing in western Hunan, Qiyang in eastern Sichuan, Tianzhou in Guangxi, and Jingdong in Yunnan. As for For the rest, just perfunctory!"
"As ordered, Your Majesty, I will definitely bring the message to you!"
As soon as Jiajing finished speaking, Lu Fang lowered her head and responded respectfully.
Then, Jiajing looked away from Lu Fang, waved his hand, and gave the order.
"Well, since you have nothing to do, Lu Fang, come play two games of chess with me!"
When Jiajing finished speaking, the eunuch on the side quickly prepared the chessboard.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
When Lu Fang heard this, she didn't refuse and sat down opposite Jiajing.
After that, the entire Qianqing Palace was extremely quiet, except for the 'click' sound of the chess pieces falling onto the chessboard, there was nothing else.
…
Forbidden City, Inspectorate.
The departure of Zhao Zhenji did not cause any disturbance in the Inspectorate. The scene in the Inspectorate remained the same as before.
At this time, in the duty room of the Inspectorate.
The hot weather made people drowsy and sleepy, and the officials in the duty room lost the motivation to deal with the impeachment memorials sent to them.
In order not to let themselves get bored, everyone simply gathered together and chatted.
A white-haired old man sighed and took the lead in provoking the topic: "Oh, the weather this year is really evil. I have never encountered such weather in my entire life!"
When the old man finished speaking, a chubby official wiped the sweat from his head with his sleeves, took over the conversation, and spoke immediately.
"No, the weather in the capital has always been so weird. It's cold in winter and hot in summer. This time of year, it's like a steamer!"
What the chubby official said quickly resonated with many officials present.
Afterwards, everyone began to discuss heatedly which place was the coolest in the Ming Dynasty summer.
But the topic unknowingly shifted to Zhao Zhenji.
I saw an official put the brush in his hand back to its original position, and then sighed.
"Oh, Mr. Zhao is really lucky. He was sent by His Majesty to Zhejiang, an extremely wealthy place, and served as the governor-general of Zhejiang Province and the governor of Zhejiang. He is a veritable official in the border areas. Moreover, Mr. Zhao is taking over from Hu Zongxian's class!"
As soon as the official finished speaking, the white-haired old man from before quickly stood up and took over the conversation.
"Yes, everyone knows that Hu Zongxian is Mr. Yan Ge's favorite disciple. Over the years, he has made great contributions to the court. This time Hu Zongxian is transferred back to the capital by His Majesty. He should be entrusted with important tasks, and maybe he can even join the army. Pavilion!"
When the white-haired old man mentioned the words "entering the pavilion," his face was full of yearning.
After all, in Ming Dynasty, the ultimate dream of thousands of scholars is to step into the cabinet and hold the position of cabinet minister!
"Don't forget, everyone, Master Zhao is from a common family!"
Among the crowd, I don't know who said this, and then everyone couldn't help but fell into silence.
Yes, Zhao Zhenji was born as a Shuji scholar, and now he is about to serve as the governor-general of Zhejiang Province and the governor of Zhejiang Province. He is a veritable official in the border area!
With a Shujishi background and experience in governing local areas, his future prospects are bound to be limitless. It is only a matter of time before he enters the cabinet!
Moreover, the current censor of the right capital of the Inspectorate, Hai Rui, was promoted by Zhao Zhenji. You must know that Hai Rui was just a small magistrate of Chun'an County.
Thinking of this, everyone was filled with emotion. On the one hand, they were impressed by Zhao Zhenji's sharp eyesight, and on the other hand, they were impressed by Hai Rui's good luck and outstanding ability.
After all, not everyone has the courage to go against those wealthy families.
Not only did Hai Rui do this, but he also personally led troops to confiscate the homes of the wealthy families who opposed him, and brought 80 million taels of silver to the national treasury!
Putting aside everything else, the mere act of not confiscating 80 million taels of silver was enough for Hai Rui to secure his position as the censor of Youdu!
Seeing that the gossip was almost done, everyone returned to their respective posts and began to deal with the impeachment memorials that were sent.
"This, this, this...this!"
At this moment, an exclamation attracted the attention of everyone present. Everyone looked around and saw the chubby official from before, his face was pale and his whole body was shaking. He was looking at the impeachment letter in front of him with a shocked expression. Memorial.
Seeing this situation, everyone stepped forward and asked with concern.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
When the chubby official heard this, he shook his head and said that he was fine. Then, he stretched out his hand, pointed at the impeachment memorial in front of him, and murmured to himself.
"Something big is going to happen!"
After the words fell, an official picked up the impeachment memorial and began to browse the contents.
The impeachment memorial was eloquent and contained several articles. The main impeachment was about the impeachment of Ma Ningyuan, the prefect of Hangzhou, for arbitrarily mobilizing the guardsmen, trampling the rice seedlings, and causing a murder! "
"Not only that, but the memorial also mentioned that this case was suppressed by the Ministry of Punishment unknowingly."
"Therefore, Zhejiang Chief Minister Zheng Michang, Inspector He Maocai, Tongzhi Gao Hanwen, and even Minister of Justice Zhang Runde, etc., were all included in the impeachment list on charges of cover-up!"
After reading the contents of the impeachment memorial, the official broke into a cold sweat.
The people involved in this are undoubtedly key members of the Yan Party!
Gao Hanwen is a student of Xiaoge Lao Yan Shifan, Ma Ningyuan is a student of Hu Zongxian, Zhejiang Chief Minister Zheng Michang, Inspector He Maocai, and Minister of Justice Zhang Runde, etc., are all important figures in the Yan Party!
"It took a lot of effort to calm down for a while. Is it possible that the two sides are going to fight again?"
The official thought so and put the impeachment memorial in his hand back to its original place without thinking.
Because this matter was so important, Hai Rui, who was the censor of Youdu, quickly learned the news from his subordinates.
At this moment, in the duty room, Hai Rui looked at the impeachment memorial placed in front of him and couldn't help but frown slightly.
He had already read the content in it. It was about the incident when Ma Ningyuan, the prefect of Hangzhou, mobilized the soldiers of the guard without authorization, trampled the rice seedlings, and caused a loss of life.
Hai Rui clearly remembered that when he was the magistrate of Chun'an County, because of this incident, he ruthlessly participated in Ma Ningyuan's book in front of Hu Zongxian.
But not long after, Hai Rui was valued by Zhao Zhenji, who was the imperial minister, and he went to serve in the Inspectorate. Later, the case went nowhere.
"I didn't expect that after so long, this case could still be uncovered!"
Hai Rui sighed with emotion, picked up the teacup on the side and took a sip.
At this moment, Zhao Zhenji's instructions before leaving the capital slowly emerged in his mind: "The water in the capital is much deeper than you think. If you don't pay attention, your family will be destroyed!"
Then, Hai Rui came back to his senses and said silently to himself: "Sir, you are right, the water in the capital is not ordinary deep!"
After Hai Rui finished his emotion, he immediately turned his attention to the signature on the impeachment memorial. He did not recognize the official who signed it.
"Is there someone who wants to use this matter to stir up trouble, or is it..."
At this moment, Hai Rui was in a state of confusion, frowning, unable to make a decision for a long time.
Time passed by slowly. I don't know how long it had passed. Hai Rui suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his heart and called his subordinates.
Then, Hai Rui pointed at the impeachment memorial on the desk and gave instructions.
"Tell them that all memorials related to Hangzhou Magistrate Ma Ningyuan will be suppressed, and everything else will remain as usual!"
"Yes, sir!"
When the subordinate saw that Hai Rui, one of the top officials of the Inspectorate, had made a decision, an expression of relief suddenly appeared on his face. After saluting Hai Rui respectfully, he turned and left the room.
After the subordinate left, Hai Rui stood up from his seat, opened the door and walked out of the duty room, looking at the scenery in the distance, wondering what he was thinking.
…
That day, after getting off duty, Xu Jie didn't hesitate at all and took the sedan directly back to his mansion in the capital.
Since the imperial court sent troops to pacify Bozhou, many chieftains have sent envoys to the capital to express their loyalty to the imperial court.
The cabinet was also in a state of confusion because of this matter.
Not long ago, Lu Fang came to the cabinet in person and conveyed the emperor's intention to everyone: "Except for a few chieftains such as Yongshun and Baojing in western Hunan, Eiyang in eastern Sichuan, Tianzhou in Guangxi, and Jingdong in Yunnan, the rest Toast, just be perfunctory."
After everyone learned the news from Lu Fang, they couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief, because that was what they had originally planned.
Now, with His Majesty's instructions, a lot of energy can be saved.
As soon as the sedan heard this, the housekeeper came up quickly and said in a low voice.
"Sir, Mr. Wang just sent someone to deliver the news, saying that the memorial to impeach Ma Ningyuan has been sent to the Supervisory Council. The result should be available soon!"
After Xu Jie learned the news from the housekeeper, his spirits were lifted.
Then, he nodded imperceptibly, looked away from the butler, and followed up with instructions.
"Well, I understand. Tell them to pay more attention to this aspect and remember not to take it lightly!"
"Yes, sir, I will definitely bring your words to you!"
When the housekeeper heard Xu Jie's words, he immediately looked stern, lowered his head and responded in a deep voice.
Then, a look of hesitation appeared on the butler's face: "Old... Sir, there is actually one more thing..."
Before the housekeeper finished speaking, he was interrupted decisively by Xu Jie: "Okay, this is not the place to talk. If you have anything to say, we can talk about it when we get back!"
"Yes, sir!"
Afterwards, Xu Jie stepped into the mansion under the guidance of the housekeeper.
(End of chapter)
