[Everyone, if you have any good ideas, you can share them in the comment area! 】
"Sir, is this... not too merciless?"
In the dormitory, after retreating everyone, Zhu Jingyuan asked this question.
It was true that he was coughing just now, but it was false that he was coughing to the point of being unable to do anything. Zhu Jingyuan used this to escape from the hall.
Gao Shuyan sighed softly: "Your Highness, there is no need to worry, we have no choice!"
Compared to a ruthless emperor, the government and the public expect a wise and gentle monarch, and Zhu Jingyuan is undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.
This is why, even though Prince Rui is aggressive, Zhu Jingyuan still sits on the throne.
However, this prince's kindness was too much, and it turned out to be a shortcoming that restricted him. This is also called a gain and a loss.
Standing up and walking towards the desk, Zhu Jingyuan said slowly: "The thirteenth brother is wise and decisive. I really underestimated him in the past!"
In the impression, his younger brother, who only knew how to dance with guns and sticks, was now able to take charge of his own business. This sudden change gave Zhu Jingyuan a huge impact.
"In the past, Thirteenth Master hated studying and was often punished by the Holy One. I thought he was only as brave as an ordinary man, but I didn't expect..."
After Gao Shuyan finished speaking, Zhang Xin, the eunuch who was also the prince's confidant, said: "This is not surprising. I heard that the Thirteenth Master prepared for today's matter all day long yesterday!"
"Oh? How did he prepare?"
"First, we learned about the official's duties and responsibilities in detail, then we checked the character of all the officials, and we also rehearsed it several times with several guards in advance!"
The two brothers were in the same dormitory, with a straight line distance of at most thirty meters. Zhu Jinghong only focused on reading the report, but he had no idea that the younger brother had done so many things.
"This is really...Mr. Gao, the thirteenth brother's behavior is really surprising!"
Gao Shuyan nodded, but didn't say anything more.
Zhang Xin recounted to them what happened in the main hall just now. It seems that Zhu Jinghong's approach was successful so far.
Officials leave under pressure and will always do something after they go down.
In addition, Zhu Jinghong asked everyone to try their best to settle the accounts, and if they couldn't settle the accounts, they would report truthfully after half a month. This was a very bold decision in Gao Shuyan's view.
The objective fact is that the gaps in some accounts are too large to be reconciled in the first place. Current and former officials are responsible for them, and the calculations are inherently confusing.
Therefore, putting aside these confusing accounts, it will undoubtedly be more useful to prepare for war by summarizing the real situation in various places in Jinling as soon as possible.
However, neither Prince Zhu Jingyuan nor Gao Shuyan had the courage to let go of bad debts, so they could only blindly pressure officials to investigate, hoping that these people would find a way to settle the accounts.
As for how these people settled their accounts, whether to pay more taxes or ask for loans from the wealthy gentry, they didn't care at all.
There was silence in the hall for a few moments before Gao Shuyan spoke: "The Thirteenth Master is very talented, he can do things that others dare not do, and he has a deep friendship with His Highness. He will definitely be of great assistance to His Highness in the future!"
These words were a reminder to Zhu Jingyuan that he had to win over this brother carefully, so that it would be easier to fight with Prince Rui in the future.
After all, this person will be crowned prince in another year, and his level will be equal to that of Prince Rui.
Zhu Jingyuan didn't realize this, he just shook his head and said: "That's all... I just hope that he will cause me less trouble in the future!"
The stereotype of Zhu Jinghong as a troublemaker will be difficult to eliminate in Zhu Jingyuan's mind in a short time. Only an outsider can see the key to the problem.
The prince couldn't understand it, and Gao Shuyan couldn't explain it clearly, so he could only hope for guidance in the future.
"Mr. Gao, what do you think it will be like in ten days?"
"His Royal Highness, everything will be settled in half a month. Your Highness only needs to make clear the rewards and punishments!"
Zhu Jingyuan was stunned for a moment, then nodded with a heavy expression.
Not far from the west side of the palace, in the courtyard behind the Chief Secretary's office, there were also people with heavy hearts.
After changing from his official robe, Zheng Xianlin put on a blue moiré robe and sat in the hall drinking tea.
In front of him, the inspector He Gujin walked back and forth, stopping to sigh from time to time.
Being upset by him, Zheng Xianlin put down the teacup heavily, and then said: "I said... just don't leave, it makes my head hurt!"
After walking back and forth for two more times, He Gujin finally stopped: "Old Zheng, is it true that the Thirteenth Master said that the people below should report the situation in detail?"
The two of them knew roughly how much of the outstanding accounts went into private pockets, how much was sent to the court, and how much was requisitioned by the palace.
Just because they knew it, they knew that this thing could not be exposed to the public, otherwise everyone in the Jinling officialdom would suffer.
Corruption and bribery, the exploitation of the people, the treasury is in deficit...
In a prosperous place like Jinling, most prefectures and counties were so short-changed that they didn't care what happened to their subordinates, but they had to care about their own fate.
"What else can we do? Let them borrow as much as they can, and deal with this first!" Zheng Xianlin said impatiently.
This is also a common tactic used by the government. They borrow things to pass inspection and then return the originals to each house.
Even if the borrowed money and grain are expropriated, as long as they pass the inspection, they can be deducted from taxes in the coming year.
It will take half a month to plug such a big gap, but I'm afraid it won't be that easy.
"They have been preparing for the past few days. Another half month will be enough!"
"Enough? Old Zheng... do you really not understand or are you just pretending to be confused? Such a big gap can be filled in half a month?"
"So what? Can we conjure up silver?" Zheng Xianlin asked.
After staring at Zheng Xianlin for a few seconds, He Gujin sat directly on a chair nearby, picked up the tea cup and took two sips.
"If things get serious, you and I will both suffer. We need to make plans early!"
Turning to look at He Gujin, Zheng Xianlin asked, "How to plan?"
"Send a letter to someone in the court and ask them to try to stir up trouble in the court and put pressure on the prince!"
"You are quite brave to instigate the court to impeach the prince!" Zheng Xianlin said leisurely.
"If things get serious, everything will be broken. We have no way out!" He Gujin said with a serious expression.
"If things get too big, we may not be dead, but if we go to Xindu, we will really get into trouble!"
"Don't even think about it, what's the situation in the DPRK and China now?"
Standing up, Zheng Xianlin walked towards the hall with his hands behind his back: "The prince and Prince Rui are fighting with knives. If we send a letter to the capital, wouldn't we stick our heads under their knives?"
"You and I are still a high-ranking official in Jinling, but in the capital and in the court, I am just a nobody. I am no different from the people who were beheaded before!"
"Amidst the light of swords and shadows, no matter the outcome, we will die without a burial!"
After saying so much in one breath, Zheng Xianlin sighed slightly, and then turned around: "On the contrary, he did nothing and tried his best to clean up the trouble in Jinling. Even if the incident happened, he would only be dismissed from office, and if he was unlucky, he would be sent to prison and exiled!"
"At least, you and I can still save our lives!"
Hearing these words, He Gujin's eyes widened.
He always felt that Zheng Xianlin did not understand how serious the matter was, but now it seems that he was careless.
He also wanted to get through this disaster safely, and the old man Zheng was ready to be dismissed from office and sent to prison.
"Have we really reached this point?"
Glancing at He Gujin, Zheng Xianlin said slowly: "I don't need to tell you the truth about the fish disaster, right?"
He Gujin knew this before he was ten years old. Hearing this, he couldn't help but sigh again.
"Is there really no way to escape unscathed?" He Gujin frowned and patted the table, breaking the silence in the room.
Who wants to lose glory and wealth, but it is normal for He Jin not to accept it.
He asked innocently, but unexpectedly Zheng Xianlin said: "Well... there is a way!"
