In the twelfth lunar month of the 39th year of Jiajing's reign, there was a severe drought in the capital. The emperor ordered Lan Daoxing to pray for rain at the Temple of Heaven.
The emperor was in a bad mood.
According to convention, at the end of each year, before the sealing of the twelfth lunar month, the cabinet, the six ministries and the ceremonial supervisor will hold a year-end financial meeting in front of the emperor to determine the expenditures of each ministry last year and decide on important projects for next year.
This is also a meeting that Emperor Jiajing has attended every year since he began to seek immortality.
But at this year's imperial meeting, the cabinet and the Supervisor of Ceremonies kept arguing, and the Supervisor of Ceremonies never approved Hong.
The cabinet and the Supervisor of Ceremonies could only send the final results to the emperor's imperial court and request the emperor's sanction.
Over the years, Emperor Jiajing became more and more relaxed about government affairs.
Not only the government affairs, but also matters such as offering sacrifices to the mountains, rivers, sun, moon, and ancestors were also left to the honorable ministers to perform sacrifices on their behalf.
Over the years, Cheng Guogong Zhu Xizhong has been jokingly called the high priest of the Ming Dynasty by foreign dynasties. Almost all the sacrificial activities that should have been attended by the emperor were done by Cheng Guogong.
It's just that over the years, Chengguo Gong Zhu Xizhong has become older and increasingly unable to adapt to the back and forth between his hometown of Fengxiang, the two capitals in the north and south, and the imperial mausoleum in the suburbs of Beijing.
Although he was unwilling to admit it, Emperor Jiajing also felt that he was old.
A few days ago, the emperor summoned Duke Dingguo Xu Yande. Seeing that this honorable minister who was about the same age as himself was already old, Emperor Jiajing, who had never been affectionate towards his ministers, actually pulled Duke Dingguo to start a family affair.
The ancestor of Dingguo Gong can be traced back to Xu Zengshou, the third son of Xu Da, the founding hero of the country.
Ding Guogong and Wei Guogong in Nanjing are both descendants of Xu Da's two sons.
During the Battle of Jingnan, Xu Zengshou secretly supported Zhu Di in Nanjing. Although he was killed by Emperor Jianwen, Duke Dingguo of Xu Zengshou's lineage became prominent.
The Duke of Wei, Xu Huizu, who was in Nanjing, supported Emperor Jianwen, but was demoted and imprisoned after being imprisoned by the emperor Zhu Di, but his hereditary title was not removed. However, later Wei Guogong's lineage could only stay in Nanjing.
The current Duke of Wei, Xu Pengju, was dismissed from his military position because of the Zhenwu Camp mutiny, and is now idle at home.
In contrast, Xu Yande, Duke of Dingguo, gained the emperor's trust and could often visit the palace.
It can only be said that Xu Da's sons are very good at standing in line. Xu Yande, the current Duke of Dingguo, is also a taciturn person and never expresses any opinions on important court affairs.
"Is your eldest son Xu Wenbi also an adult?"
Xu Yande said respectfully: "The dog has grown up and will be attacked next year."
Yingsheng means that when the heir to a noble title reaches the age of twenty, he can hold some positions and wait to inherit the title.
Jiajing nodded and said: "In that case, let this kid Wenbi come out to do something, and let him first serve as the imperial guard."
Even Xu Yande, the usually prudent Duke of Dingguo, was delighted. The red-helmet generals of the Royal Guards and Suwei were all the sons of honorable ministers. The Diansuwei was the leader of the imperial guards, which was a very critical position.
Although the status of the red-helmeted generals of the imperial guard has been greatly reduced since Tumu Fort, and has become a ceremonial guard of honor, the job of the Diansu Guard is still very important.
Emperor Jiajing suddenly said: "Lu Bing is dead."
Xu Yande once again restored the appearance of the wooden sculpture before. The death of Lu Bing, the commander of the Jinyiwei, has now become a taboo topic in the capital.
Since the last incident with Yu Dayou, Lu Bing was recuperating in name, but in fact, the emperor deprived him of his right to be the commander of the Jinyi Guards and was imprisoned at home.
In November, something else happened.
The Imperial Heavenly Supervisor, Zhou Yunyi, wrote to the emperor because of the celestial warning: "The imperial court's expenditures are excessive, the government is corrupt, the people are in dire straits, and the sky is angry and people are resentful."
As a result, Zhou Yunyi was ordered to fight in court because of his "monstrous words to confuse the public and make arrogant comments on government affairs", and he finally died in front of the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City.
After Zhou Yunyi's death, Lu Bing, the commander of the Jinyi Guards who had been recuperating at home, suddenly entered the palace, but this time Lu Bing did not come out of the palace.
On December 11, the 39th year of Jiajing's reign, Lu Bing, the commander of the Jinyi Guards, died violently in the palace, causing rumors in the capital.
The emperor added: "Yang Shen is also dead."
Poor Xu Yande thought hard and finally remembered who Yang Shen was.
Yang Tinghe's son, Yang Shen, who was demoted to Yunnan for a lifetime because of the Great Rites Discuss, finally died.
Emperor Jiajing took out a piece of paper and recited:
"The rolling waters of the Yangtze River pass eastward, and the waves wash away the heroes. Right and wrong, success and failure are all gone. The green mountains are still there, and the sunsets are red several times.
The white-haired fisherman and woodcutter on the Nagisa River is used to watching the autumn moon and spring breeze. Happy reunion over a pot of wine. Many things in ancient and modern times are all talked about with laughter. "
After Xu Yande listened, he almost clapped his hands and applauded. Yang Shen is worthy of being the leader of the literary world. This poem is really superb!
However, Xu Yande did not dare to praise him. He secretly glanced at the emperor's face and quickly lowered his head.
"I have pardoned the Yang family and allowed his family to carry the coffin and return home."
Only then did Xu Yande discover that the emperor's hair also had white hair. Emperor Daojun, who once claimed to be immune to cold and heat, now also put on winter clothes.
Xu Yande quickly lowered his head again.
Emperor Jiajing knocked the copper pipe and said:
"Stay back, Huang Jin!"
Xu Yande quickly retreated, only to see Huang Jin, the top eunuch, who was honored as ancestor by the eunuchs in the palace, hurriedly walked into the palace.
Huang Jin's hair had also turned white. Xu Yande lowered his head and passed by this powerful eunuch, trying hard not to see or hear anything inappropriate.
However, when he walked to the palace gate, Xu Yande still heard the emperor's conversation.
"The construction of major projects and palaces cannot be stopped. The Ministry of Works cannot have less money. Let the important ministers and ministers of the imperial court submit a letter on how to solve the holes in the Ministry of Works next year!"
Naturally, the Supervisor of Ceremonies did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly spread the emperor's order to all the yamen in the capital before the New Year.
After receiving the emperor's order, Yan Shifan, who was the Minister of the Ministry of Industry at the time and was known as Xiaoge Lao, immediately gathered in the mansion.
His confidants Zhao Wenhua and Yan Maoqing gathered at the house, and Yan Shifan paced back and forth, cursing.
"Old thief Xu Jie! His household department knows how to cry for poverty. Doesn't he know where our work department's money is spent?"
Yan Shifan became furious when he thought of the verbal battle at the imperial meeting.
Zhao Wenhua quickly advised: "Don't be angry, Mr. Xiaoge, this is also a good opportunity for Mr. Xiaoge to show off!"
Yan Shifan sat on the Grand Master's chair and asked, "Master Zhao, do you have any good ideas that can solve the imperial court's deficit?"
Zhao Wen also said quickly: "Mr. Xiaoge, do you know how much silk Fuzhou Shipping Company sold this year?"
Yan Shifan was stunned for a moment and shook his head. The Shibo Division was an institution within the palace. As the Minister of Works, of course he didn't know the Shibo Division's accounts.
Zhao Wenhua said: "The silk purchased by the Ryukyu envoy in Fuzhou amounted to two hundred thousand taels of silver."
Yan Shifan took a breath.
Zhao Wenhua added: "That's it, it's because there isn't enough silk sold. With the current market, the Ryukyu envoy can collect as much silk as we can produce."
Yan Shifan was not a fool. He asked doubtfully: "Ryukyu is just a small country, how can it have so much money to buy silk?"
Zhao Wenhua chuckled and said, "Aren't there still Japanese and Folangji people?"
So that’s it!
Yan Shifan suddenly realized, but he said again:
"But there's only so much silk here, so I can't get more."
Zhao Wenhua said mysteriously: "I have a plan."
Yan Shifan asked in a respectful tone: "Brother Yuanzhi, please enlighten me."
Zhao Wenhua stroked his beard and said: "Change rice into mulberry."
"Changing rice into mulberry?"
Both Yan Shifan and Yan Maoqing were chewing on these four words spoken by Zhao Wenhua.
Soon Yan Maoqing clapped his hands and said, "Wonderful!"
Only then did Yan Shifan react, stroking his palms and saying, "What a brilliant idea!"
Yan Shifan stood up again, raised his hands and said to Zhao Wenhua: "Brother Yuanzhi, since we want to change rice into mulberry, where should we start?"
"Zhejiang!"
Zhao Wenhua said almost categorically.
Zhao Wenhua added: "However, there is a stumbling block in Zhejiang's conversion of rice to mulberry, Hu Zongxian."
Yan Shifan showed a fierce look and said: "Hu Zongxian treats me sincerely because he is my father's disciple, but this person is fighting against the Japanese in Zhejiang and is very important to my father."
Yan Shifan added: "But if it is a national policy, Hu Zongxian will definitely implement it!"
During the entire New Year period, Yan Shifan spent all day meeting with Zhao Wenhua and Yan Maoqing, and even his newly married concubine was not "taken care of".
At the same time, in the new year of the 40th year of Jiajing, Su Ze still took Fang Ruolan back to Changning Guard to spend it.
But this time they took a new type of clipper ship and arrived at Changningwei from Shanghai in only fifteen days.
After finishing all the New Year matters, Su Ze got on the boat without stopping and followed Lin Mojun out to sea to Dong'ao Island.
At this time, Dong'ao Island also looked like a Chinese New Year scene. Su Ze looked at the increasingly crowded Dong'ao Island and asked Lin Mojun beside him:
"Why are there so many people on the island?"
Lin Mojun sighed and said: "The situation in Fujian this year is not very good. These are the people who have fled."
"Escape?"
Lin Mojun nodded and said: "Not only are there Japanese pirates in Fujian this year, the government has also imposed a lot of exorbitant taxes, and people in many places have fled."
"Is it so serious?"
Lin Mojun nodded and said: "There was even a civil uprising in Guangdong, but now that Fujian and Guangzhou have elites from the imperial court, they were quickly suppressed."
Lin Mojun said: "Aren't you trying to recruit immigrants to develop Dajuan Island? The people near Fujian have a tradition of going to the sea to go to Southeast Asia, so I recruited these immigrants in the name of going to Nanyang."
Su Ze said excitedly: "How many people are there now?"
Lin Mojun said: "I will place the newly recruited immigrants on Dong'ao Island first, and then send them to Damuan Island after they have adapted for a while."
"There are currently more than 2,000 people on Dong'ao Island, and 5,000 people have been sent to Dayuan Island."
Su Ze didn't expect that Lin Mojun would achieve such results in just half a year.
Lin Mojun said: "In addition to the people in Minguang who can't survive, there are also slaves redeemed from the Japanese country. There are more than 500 of them, and they have been resettled on Dayuan Island."
After inspecting Dong'ao Island, Su Ze took the clipper boat non-stop and went south to Damuan Island.
A blockhouse has been built on the place purchased from the original residents of Taiyuan Island, and a small city has begun to take shape around the blockhouse.
"According to your instructions, every citizen who comes to the island, regardless of male or female, will be given a hoe and a hammer; one household will be given an iron pot; five households will be given one farm tool. Every month in the first year on the island. Give them one stone per meter and allow them to open up wasteland on the island, and no grain will be levied on the income from the first year’s acres.”
After raising a special flag, a speedboat was immediately dispatched from Damuan Island to escort the clipper ship to the port.
When the clipper ship docked, Su Ze saw a neat team of soldiers practicing on the dock.
"Dayuan Island is not that peaceful either. Nanyang pirates and Japanese pirates often invade it. It was only after building this fort that it became more peaceful."
Su Ze nodded, and he soon saw a familiar figure among the officers leading the team.
"Ms. Su!"
Zhang Biao stepped forward quickly. He was the general banner that Su Ze took away from the Zhenwuying Incident half a year ago.
Su Ze not only rescued these rebellious officers from the military camp, but also moved their families out to sea to Da Yuan Island, thus avoiding the imperial court's reckoning.
In the past six months, Su Ze has been "lecturing on martial arts" in various military camps in Nanjing. As he continued to give lectures, he also picked out some seeds of progress.
Some of them were left by Su Ze in various camps in Nanjing, while some were smuggled to Dajuan Island by Su Ze.
Zhang Biao was holding a blunderbuss and wearing a Yanping blue dyed cotton military uniform. He was completely different from the last time Su Ze saw him in Nanjing. He was full of energy.
"Ms. Su, these are the soldiers I lead!"
Lin Mojun said from the side: "Now there are 500 gunners on Dajuan Island. They are all soldiers who have been trained off-duty. They use the enlightenment textbooks you compiled, and the training materials you used are all the ones you sent back last time. drill book."
Su Ze nodded with satisfaction, and Zhang Biao said to Su Ze: "Ms. Su, everyone is looking forward to you giving lectures to everyone!"
Zhang Biao was originally literate, otherwise he would not have been elected by the soldiers as a leader in asking for wages.
After the Zhenwu Camp mutiny, Zhang Biao originally had some illusions about the Ming Dynasty and was not ready to leave.
But after listening to Su Ze's analysis and Su Ze's short lecture, I completely gave up my illusions about the Ming Dynasty.
Later, the progressive soldiers sent by Su Ze to senior officials also told Zhang Biao about the Ming Dynasty settling accounts after the fall and arresting Zhang Biao. Zhang Biao was both frightened and grateful to Su Ze.
Of course, Su Ze readily agreed. He gave three consecutive lectures at the assembly hall built on Taiyuan Island. By the third lecture, even the aborigines on Taiyuan Island came to listen.
Immediately afterwards, Su Ze visited the newly opened farmland and sugar cane plantations on the island. It was not until before the Lantern Festival that he and Lin Mojun returned to Changning Guard.
On the boat, Lin Mojun hesitated and asked:
"If it is just to immigrate overseas, there is no need to prepare for war like this. Aze, what exactly do you want to do?"
Su Ze said: "I'm just going to do this and wait and see what happens."
Years later, the imperial court in the capital issued an order to promote the conversion of rice to mulberry in Zhejiang.
(End of chapter)
