Chapter 243 There is a posthumous edict from Emperor Daxing
"In this way, it doesn't matter whether I, Chen Cao, accept the emperor's edict or not."
Wei Zhongxian carefully took out the sheepskin-wrapped letter from his arms, and then opened the seal in front of Xu Hongji, revealing a piece of yellow silk.
There is only one thing of this form today, which is the imperial edict.
Wei Zhongxian raised the edict and asked respectfully: "This was written by the slave before the late emperor's funeral. The late emperor personally used the seal. Which prince dares to invite to read it..."
Chen Cao looked at Xu Hongji with a serious face: "Wei Guogong should read it out."
Xu Hong basically wanted to take over, but felt something was wrong, so he said: "Since Eunuch Wei brought this edict, it's better to let Eunuch Wei read it out..."
Wei Zhongxian bowed, then opened the edict, and read inquiringly: "I am entrusted by heaven to carry the emperor, and the edict says: Since I ascended to the throne and established the world...
.............
Chen Cao, Duke of Liang, was excellent in both civil and military affairs, but when he was a model for the country, the world was in ruins, and the war situation was ruined. I feel ashamed that I have lost my ancestors' achievements and brought shame to the ancestral temple and the country; Let’s talk about it separately;
After my great expedition, I appointed Chen Cao, the Duke of Liang, as the governor of Songjiang, and he will always control this land. I should act expeditiously in all affairs involving the southeast;
This is the only thing I have established. I should do my best for the country and the dynasty, and I cannot shirk it. This edict should be sent out to the world, and the envoys should hear about it..."
After hearing this, Xu Hongji was shocked at first, and then became suspicious, so he said without concealment: "Since Wei Eunuch has this edict, why didn't he announce it to the world when he was in the capital? Why did he hide it for so long?"
Wei Zhongxian seemed to know that Xu Hongji would ask this question, so he bowed: "This slave has been suspected by Your Majesty for a long time, and has become murderous. If he had come up with this edict at that time, according to His Majesty's attitude towards Duke Liang, he would have killed him quickly. ..."
Xu Hongji thought it made sense. After receiving the edict handed over by Zhao Xin, he looked at it himself and found that it was indeed covered with a seal and the private seal of Emperor Tianqi.
But Xu Hongji always felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't explain why, so he looked at Chen Cao and said, "In this case, your title as Duke of Liang is irrevocable?"
Chen Cao shook his head: "Whether we evacuate or not is a matter for later. The Duke should know by now that if the generals under my command know that I have been revoked from the title of Duke of Liang, they will be eager to get me a yellow robe."
"Isn't this exactly what you want?"
Xu Hongji's words were full of ridicule. He knew that Chen Cao would never do anything to him, so he simply didn't care about the Duke's airs and regarded it as a conversation between friends.
Chen Cao laughed: "But it's not the case. It seems that I am rebellious when they add a yellow robe to me now. But I am a principled person. I thought I should abide by the emperor's edict. Now that I am the governor of Songjiang, I have withdrawn this A dispensable title is a trivial matter. Besides, I am the Duke of Liang conferred by Emperor Tianqi, so naturally I am also the governor of Songjiang under Emperor Tianqi."
Xu Hongji slandered Chen Cao for a while, saying that he was a 'bitch' who insisted on erecting memorial arches, but he couldn't say such words: "There will be a day when swordsmen will fight against each other..."
"Wei Guogong has come all the way. Why don't you take people to Huating County to have a look? Or maybe you can visit the nearby Shanghai County to see what the people's livelihood is like here?"
...
Xu Hongji really went there. He was dressed in a brocade robe, and he was obviously a kid from a rich family. Plus, he was followed by two tall and strong men as guards. Anyone with a discerning eye would know at a glance that this man must be a kid from an official or wealthy family. .
"Old sir, is it really true that the land has been equalized?"
"This young master, I cannot be called 'sir', but the matter of Jun Tian was arranged by the Duke three months ago."
The old man was farming in his field, looking a little happy.
Xu Hongji asked again: "What about life?"
"How about life? Our whole village has not paid taxes since last year. The food we got after equalizing the land is all our own. Several sons in my family work at Huangpu Wharf, and they get money every month. Compared with It was much better before the imperial court recruited civilian men without paying them."
"that is..."
An old man from the field next door came over and joked: "This young man looks like he comes from a wealthy family. He must be coming to Shanghai County to do business, right? I said you have to hurry up. Now those Westerners have taken over a lot of places in Pudong." It's such a big land, they don't just do business by themselves, they also let us people from the Ming Dynasty join in. I heard it's called 'shareholding', which means money begets money. Now the young people in our village have borrowed money from the Ming Dynasty Bank. We are doing business in the county. Although we have to pay a tax of 15% to 1%, we still make a lot of money..."
Xu Hongji twitched the corner of his mouth, "Fifteen taxes and one tax. Not long after Zhang Juzheng did this, he was so stink that Chen Cao actually dared to do this in Songjiang?"
He didn't believe in evil, so he visited several new villages around Shanghai and got similar results.
"We are untouchables designated by Taizu. If it weren't for Duke Youguo, we would have been untouchables for the rest of our lives..."
"His son is now an officer of the Dingwu Army. He earns a lot of money every month. All members of the untouchable army can work in the workshops of the Dingwu Army, and there is still money available. Old Man Zhang's family is now a wealthy family... "
There was a burst of laughter around him, Xu Hongji looked embarrassed, and led the people back to the post house.
It was not until the personnel sent to covertly visit Huating County reported back that Xu Hongji clenched his fists, galloped his horse and whipped his whip and left Shanghai County.
...
"In the eyes of the common people, they all know that they don't know the imperial court, they only know the Duke of Liang..."
In the eyes of any emperor, this sentence would be a serious crime that could lead to beheading and treason. However, when it was said from Xu Hongji's mouth at this moment, it was so bitter.
Songjiang Prefecture's taxes are still handed over to Nanzhili as usual, and there is no difference from every year. However, in previous years, most of the taxes turned in were goods that had been offset by grain. But now, all the taxes turned in are equivalent silver after discounting.
During this period of peace, the Southern Zhili Household Department was eager to collect gold and silver money. After receiving the grain, they had to sell part of it at a discount to embezzle the money. However, now they have omitted the step of selling money.
Qi Boyu stroked his beard and thought for a long time with a cold face: "Xiaoguan received some news that most of the grain from Huguang, Jiangxi and other places was sold to Songjiang Prefecture."
At present, the Ming Dynasty needs money to quell chaos in Shaanxi and to use troops in Liaodong. However, money is not food and cannot be eaten. Soldiers need money as well as food.
However, Shandong had just been plundered, and millions of people were taken captive to Liaodong. The guards in North Zhili did not even have the option to stop them. Summer had just begun, and after the grain was sown, it was a time of drought. If there is no food, Shandong is likely to have civil unrest.
In fact, Southern Zhili did not receive the news at all. Civil uprisings occurred in Dongchang, Yanzhou and other prefectures in Shandong Province, and the government offices were robbed. However, what they did not expect was that the government offices also had no food.
Southern Zhili was supported by Suzhou and Song Dynasty, so food was not a problem. However, in addition to paying taxes on the grain from Huguang, Jianghuai and other places, which were the granaries of the Ming Dynasty, most of the grain that could be circulated fell into Songjiang Prefecture. This What exactly is going on?
Xu Hongji looked at the imperial edict on the table, frowned in a circle, and then said with regret: "I am ashamed of my country and your Majesty's expectations. I will submit a letter to accept my guilt in a few days and ask to resign from the garrison of Nanzhili." One position..."
Historically, the Duke of Wei, Xu Hongji, was fired from the post of Admiral of Caojiang and the garrison of Nanzhili at the end of the Tianqi Dynasty. This position was a high and powerful one in Southern Zhili. Looking at the nobles of the country, only Wei Guogong could hold such an important position. pulse.
Since the Xuande Dynasty, Wei Guogong Xu Jia has become the chief military officer of Southern Zhili. During the Zhengde period, his power became more and more important. In order to commend Wei Guogong for his contribution in suppressing the rebellion of King Ning of Jiangxi, Emperor Wu Zong also gave him the title of Commander-in-Chief of the Rear Army. authority.
Now as long as Xu Hongji submits a letter to resign, Emperor Chongzhen will definitely agree to Xu Hongji's request without even thinking about it.
Chen Cao, Duke of Liang, is a typical negative example. Once a lord with military and political power rebels, it will be a big trouble.
...
"Bullshit edict..."
Emperor Chongzhen rarely cursed. His words simply and clearly expressed his disapproval of the imperial edict left by his brotherhood to Chen Cao, and Chen Cao clearly had objections.
"The ambition of Shu Zi and Lang Zi is obvious... If I don't kill this Shu Zi, it will be difficult to eliminate the hatred in my heart."
Fortunately, there were no outsiders in Dongnuang Pavilion, but at this moment, only Li Guo, who had just become the chief minister, and cabinet minister Han Xu were present.
Shi Nuolai and Zhang Ruitu were promoted to official positions by Chongzhen just last month, but everyone in the public eye knew that they were from the eunuch party, and it was only a matter of time before they were dismissed.
"Your Majesty, think twice..."
Chongzhen looked at Han Xu, squinting his eyes with a murderous look on his face: "Why, Han Qing wants to put in a good word for the traitor Chen Cao?"
Han Xu was shocked when he heard this, and immediately bowed: "Your Majesty has misunderstood, how can I say a good word for him? However, the civil unrest in Shaanxi is very serious at the moment, and it has spread to three other places. The rebel Gao Yingxiang and other thieves have plundered northern Shaanxi. Not a single blade of grass is left, and now it is also heading towards Henan Province;
Shandong has just been plundered by Jiannu, and the people's livelihood needs to be restored urgently. This has happened in Beizhili and other places one after another. If His Majesty forces Chen Cao to rebel at this moment, it will not be of any benefit to the court. "
Chongzhen was already furious. He didn't understand that he, a majestic king of a country, could not even deal with a small nobleman. However, when he looked back, he realized that this was a mess that his royal brother had left for him.
"Li Qing, what do you think?"
Li Guo saluted: "I think Master Han's words are reasonable. Now that Wei Guogong has resigned from the Southern Zhili garrison, on the surface he does not want to take over this hot potato. In fact, with the shrewdness of Wei Guogong's government, how could they not know how to force rebellion? Chen Cao's consequences, and the Dingwu Army's record was good. Tens of thousands of people in the South Zhili garrison were beaten by a regiment of the Dingwu Army and were almost annihilated;
I heard that the Dingwu regiment system is somewhat similar to that of the former Tang Dynasty, with a regiment numbering no more than a thousand people..."
Li Guo's words were very low. He didn't want to say it so clearly. Tens of thousands of people were beaten by more than a thousand people and almost the whole army was annihilated. If he said this, wouldn't it lose the face of the court?
