Zhang Zhou went on a trip and arrived outside the Xuanfu Town Government Office on May 27th.
After hearing the news, Ma Zhongxi, the governor of Xuanfu, led his people out of the city to greet him in advance. At the same time, he summoned thousands of city officials, soldiers and civilians to come out to greet him. Zhang Zhou was riding on his horse and saw this scene from a distance, and couldn't help but frown secretly.
Zhang Heling looked up at the city gate and said with a mocking look on his face: "This guy surnamed Ma seems to be on the right track."
Behind Zhang Zhou, on the left and right sides, were the newly appointed commander-in-chief Bao Guo Gong Zhu Hui, and deputy commander-in-chief Zhang Heling. The other deputy commander-in-chief Ma Yi was hiding in the army and did not dare to show his face.
After hearing this, the people around him understood what Zhang Heling meant. The so-called "high way" meant being able to curry favor with others.
Xuanfu is different from ordinary state capitals. It is a military fort. There are no prefectures and counties in the Ming Dynasty. Originally, the general military officer was headed here, but after the governor was established, the governor was the highest officer. Of course, Zhang Zhou was the Xuanfu In the large-scale system, the official position is above that of the governor.
As the former chief official in the city, Ma Zhongxi came out to welcome his new boss, and even mobilized the military and civilians to welcome him. He seemed to be quite capable.
"The person who comes here is not good..."
Zhu Hui had been in the officialdom for a long time and had heard about Ma Zhongxi's character. Naturally, he did not believe that Ma Zhongxi would engage in any kind of battle to welcome Zhang Zhou.
"Haha." Zhang Zhou was just laughing.
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…
At the gate of the city, Zhang Zhouxing dismounted and saw a civil servant in his fifties, dressed in official uniform, with an upright look on his face that was very difficult to get along with, walking towards him.
"I'm here next to Zhang Zhou." Zhang Zhou greeted him first.
The other party also reported his name, it was Ma Zhongxi, and then the current generals of Xuanfu Town also came to report their names one by one.
Except for Ma Zhongxi who gave Zhang Zhou a slap in the face, the rest of the people were still very polite to Zhang Zhou.
"Zhang Zhou, I heard that you met Ma Yi, a fugitive from Xuanfu Town, on your way here. Can you hand him over so that I can deal with him strictly?"
After the ceremony, Ma Zhongxi immediately asked Zhang Zhou for help.
Ma Yi went to "go to" Zhang Zhou, but Zhang Zhou neither escorted the person to the capital nor handed the person over to him, nor even greeted him. In his opinion, it was obvious that Zhang Zhou was prepared to protect Ma Yi.
In this case, they are enemies, so there is no need to show mercy.
When Zhang Heling heard this, he sneered and said: "Calling Shangguan by his name, it turns out that some Confucian officials are so ignorant of the rules."
Obviously Zhang Heling has never been able to follow the wind. If he sees something interesting and says it through his mouth, it will have no other effect except fanning the flames.
Or in his opinion, he is afraid that things are too small and not lively enough.
After what he said, the two sides were really at war with each other.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "What do you call this? Has Commander Ma been convicted?"
"Although he has not been convicted, the evidence is conclusive. He committed corruption, withheld food and wages, exploited the people, recruited soldiers privately, used public weapons for private purposes, and even took credit for his work and concealed it. Zhang, as you are a Jinshi, you should know the rules of Ming Dynasty officialdom. You are guilty. The perpetrators must be dealt with strictly, as covering up is tantamount to complicity!"
Ma Zhongxi looked rebellious and directly attacked Zhang Zhou.
As soon as these words came out, everyone around him was embarrassed.
Not to mention Zhang Zhou, no one present had ever seen such a person meeting his boss.
Zhang Zhou thought to himself, Ma Zhongxi is a mad dog, right?
However, based on Zhang Zhou's understanding of Ma Zhongxi in history, and his past experiences and things he has done, he can probably understand why this man can be so "hateful of evil", or can be said to be ignorant.
Ma Zhongxi's father, Ma Wei, was once the chief historian of the Tang Dynasty. Because he offended the Tang Dynasty with his direct advice, he was imprisoned and escorted to the capital, including the Ma family's family members.
Only Ma Zhongxi was not taken into custody at that time because he was young.
Then Ma Zhongxi worked hard for his father and family at a young age. First, he interceded with the censor and ordered his family to release him. Then, on his mother's order, he went to the capital to redress his father's grievances and get his father to justice.
His childhood experiences shaped his character.
He seems to be honest and upright, but he will suffer disaster if he does not know how to be flexible in the officialdom. During the Liu Liu and Liu Qi uprising in the Zhengde period, Ma Zhongxi believed that the rebels were born because of the excessive expropriation of officials, so he used wine and food to propitiate the rebels, and the rebels also Sure enough, I felt grateful that he was an upright official and did not plunder his hometown... The final result was that after the rebellion, Ma Zhongxi was considered an accomplice of the rebels, and he died unjustly in prison...
Zhang Zhou was also thinking in his mind.
You said that when you are an official, you are an official. You don't even understand your position, so you have the nerve to accuse others?
"Oh." Zhang Zhouxiao looked at the surrounding soldiers and civilians and said with emotion, "It's rare to see so many local officials, gentry and people come out to greet me. I am new to officialdom and have done nothing in local governance. I feel ashamed. "
Ma Zhongxi looked coldly at Zhang Zhou.
Probably saying, are you shameless? Can't you see that I found someone to greet you just to put pressure on you in front of others? Want you to hand the person over? You actually think this is an honor?
Ma Zhongxi stressed: "Zhang, I am asking you for the criminal.
Zhu Hui came over to smooth things over and said, "Zhang Zhitai is new here. Can't we wait until we enter the city?"
Ma Zhongxi said: "How can we tolerate the right and wrong? There are so many people here, and they are all waiting for the court to administer justice. Do you want to go against God's will, Zhang?"
I wipe it!
Zhang Zhou thought to himself, these days I am the only one talking about God's will. You are such a bad old man, how dare you use God's will to suppress me?
Zhang Zhou said: "Speaking of God's will, I saw a severe drought around Xuan Mansion along the way. Even if the land is not thousands of miles away, I think the crops along the way are almost dead!"
Ma Zhongxi sneered and said: "It is precisely because there are parents and officials who do not care about the emperor's favor, do not obey the laws of heaven, harm the country and the people, and abuse the people, so that they are punished by heaven!"
Zhang Zhouxin said, what I want is your words.
Zhang Zhou said: "I have just arrived, and I have nothing to give to the people. However, I have learned a little bit of Taoist Kungfu. In two days, I will open an altar outside Xuan Mansion to pray for rain. Why don't we talk about it after praying for rain? What about God’s will?”
"you……"
Ma Zhongxi glared at Zhang Zhou.
Obviously, after he learned that Zhang Zhou accepted Ma Yi, he had already decided to break up with Zhang Zhou.
Historically, Ma Zhongxi served as governor of Xuanfu for three years and returned to his fields in the twelfth year of Hongzhi. Obviously, he had made preparations for retirement, so he would not give Zhang Zhou any more face.
I don’t plan to hang out in the officialdom anymore. Do I still need to look at the expressions of an emperor like you and a former sycophant?
You can show off your power in the capital, and even use your sharp teeth and sharp tongue to compete with cabinet ministers and ministries in the court.
But when you get to Ma, I won't show any mercy to you!
Otherwise, wouldn’t I, Ma, be ashamed of my official reputation?
When Zhu Hui heard Zhang Zhou's suggestion, he deliberately looked surprised and said loudly: "Mr. Zhang is an immortal master of the Ming Dynasty. His immortality and Taoism are unparalleled. The immortal master is willing to pray for rain for the people of Xuanfu. How magnanimous is that?" Going out will definitely be a good story!”
Even when the Duke of Guo flattered Zhang Zhou, he could do so without blushing and his heart skipping a beat.
This made Ma Zhongxi grit his teeth even more.
Zhang Zhou also smiled and announced to the onlookers: "Everyone, I will open an altar here the day after tomorrow to pray for rain. I hope you will come together to bear witness! I am here on the order of the emperor. In addition to going out of the fortress To frighten Di Yi, we also have the responsibility to appease the military and civilians and educate the people. Please come back, all my fellow villagers."
Zhang Zhou ignored Ma Zhongxi.
When dealing with the onlookers, Zhang Zhou appeared to be very experienced. He was not stage frightened at all. Instead, he seemed to go deep into the grassroots and actually walked over to get close to ordinary people.
The common people have never seen such an official who is so friendly to the people. They are just here to watch the excitement. Any requests for people or witnesses, or God's punishments are all Ma Zhongxi's personal words, or Ma Zhongxi wants to incite the people to give in to Zhang. Weekly pressure.
But how can a group of ordinary people who have never even read a book understand that?
On the contrary, Zhang Zhou's closeness to the people and Zhang Zhou's reputation as a god made them feel more friendly.
"Mr. Zhang, can you pray for rain and make it rain?"
Some people among the people were already asking loudly.
Zhang Zhou said: "My dear fellow, you asked a very good question. I can only say that I will try my best! If God refuses to rain because of corrupt officials in the local area, there is nothing I can do. It all depends on man-made things!"
"It must rain, otherwise the food will be confiscated this year..."
"Yeah yeah!"
The people are responding.
In their view, catching corrupt officials is a trivial matter. Making their land more productive is more important than anything else.
Ma Zhongxi felt even more angry when he saw that Zhang Zhou had turned against the guest and actually incited the people before him, and muttered: "Short-sighted!"
This is because he hates the people for being deceived by Zhang Zhou's rhetoric.
You people, this official is making the decision for you and wants to investigate and deal with corrupt officials. How dare you be deceived by this person just to make it rain? Besides, it rains when he says it rains? Who does he think he is?
…
…
Originally, the dispute between old and new officials at the city gate had to be decided through a contest.
But because Ma Zhongxi mentioned God's will and Zhang Zhou mentioned praying for rain, the matter came to an end for the time being. Also because Ma Yi followed Zhang Zhou into the city, which meant that Ma Yi did not escape. Ma Zhongxi also felt that Zhang Zhou was unwilling to surrender, which was a big deal. It is enough to report Zhang Zhou to the court for harboring criminals, but there is no need to fight Zhang Zhou to death.
If someone else’s official is higher than him, what else can he do if he doesn’t come?
You can't send someone to your door to rob it, right?
Ma Yi is the chief military officer himself, and his status in the city is not low. If he really wants to use violence, he is not sure who will suffer, and it is not impossible to cause a mutiny in the army.
The soldiers and civilians entered the city.
Zhang Zhou was also alive. When he entered the city, he did not ride a horse, a sedan, or a carriage. Instead, he walked instead. He even shook hands with the onlookers along the way.
"Fellows and fellow villagers, I am the newly appointed General Secretary of Xuanda. All surrounding affairs are under my control. If you have any grievances, you can come to me and I will redress your grievances. The day after tomorrow, I will set up an altar at the gate of the city to pray for rain. Everyone. Come and witness it!”
Zhang Zhou seemed to be afraid that the people on the way could not hear clearly, so he kept repeating his words.
He also took out a "megaphone" made of a simple paper tube and spoke loudly to the people along the way.
Not only did he say it himself, but he also asked his personal followers, Jin Yiwei Qianhu Sun Shangqi and others to come and say it together. As soon as he arrived, he played a trick that was widely publicized.
Only then did Ma Zhongxi know who was the expert at inciting people's emotions.
I also saw what it means to fully harness the power of public opinion.
"Ma Zhongcheng, do you think the rain the day after tomorrow...can it come down?"
When the officials around Ma Zhongxi saw this scene, they even began to have doubts about life.
The newcomer Zhang Zhou is so famous. He said that he would pray for rain the day after tomorrow. If he was not sure, how could he be so sure to tell the people in the city? But if Zhang Zhou prayed for the rain to come down, wouldn’t it mean that God was on Zhang Zhou’s side?
Ma Zhongxi stood at the gate of the city without even intending to follow him in. Hearing this, he glanced sideways at the subordinate officer.
The subordinate officials were dejected and did not dare to say anything.
A military general next to him said: "But I don't know how this Zhang Zhitai is compared to the previous Liu Shilang. I heard that he can use troops like a god."
Ma Zhongxi knew for the first time that Zhang Zhou's status in the hearts of the Ming Dynasty's frontier soldiers was very high.
The previous "big man" who came to Xuanfu was Liu Daxia, who served as the left minister of the Ministry of Revenue in the tenth year of Hongzhi two years ago and came to Xuanfu to manage military pay. At that time, Liu Daxia had left a good official reputation in Xuanfu, but Liu Daxia came to Xuanfu. After all, the government is not for fighting. Now that the imperial court has sent General Xuanda, everyone in the army seems to want to follow Zhang Zhou into a big fight.
The anticipation in the eyes of the soldiers gave Ma Zhongxi a headache and anger just looking at them.
After all, since Yu Zijun in the 21st year of Chenghua, the imperial court has not established the Xuanda General System for more than ten years, let alone used the Xuanda General System to prepare for sending troops to suppress traps.
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…
"Mr. Zhang, you are so powerful. With Ma Zhongcheng's aggressive look, he thought that today would not end well and that he could not even enter the city."
After Zhang Zhou entered the city, he first stayed in the post house.
Zhang Lun followed Zhang Zhou like a follower and admired Zhang Zhou very much.
There is no governor's palace in the city. Zhang Zhou will live in the governor's office later. Now Zhang Zhou and Ma Zhongxi are having a very unpleasant quarrel, but it does not affect Zhang Zhou's sending people to let Ma Zhongxi open the courtyard.
Zhang Zhoubai glanced at this kid and said: "The general manager and the governor are not on good terms, and they will have to manage things under the same roof in the future. What do you think is a good thing? Have you settled in?"
"No... they said there is no place for me to live in the General Military Mansion."
Zhang Lun felt aggrieved.
He was brought here to study with Zhang Zhou, and he did not hold any military position. Naturally, the General Military Office could not arrange it.
Zhang Zhou said: "Then go and find a room downstairs to live in. From now on, you can run errands for me. I won't embarrass you too much, right?"
"No." Zhang Lun scratched his head, "My grandfather asked me to do this."
"It's good to know. I'll leave it to you to build the platform for praying for rain. Bring a few people with you to build momentum. You can also tell them that you are a British prince."
"Then...that's not necessary."
Zhang Lun thought.
If you have a big face, you are not afraid of being embarrassed. If I have a small face, I should take it easy.
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…
Ma Zhongxi was not angry.
After returning home, he was not polite. He even wrote a memorial to impeach Zhang Zhou and sent it to the capital on horseback. He felt that he wanted to fight Zhang Zhou to the end.
From the Xuan Mansion to the capital, it didn't take a day or a night to reach the destination.
The next morning, the memorial was placed on Zhu Youtang's desk in Qianqing Palace.
"hehe."
After Zhu Youtang read Ma Zhongxi's performance, he was not angry at all, but smiled happily.
"Has the cabinet seen it?" Zhu Youtang asked.
"I have never shut up the cabinet." Dai Yi replied.
This kind of border report is usually notified to the emperor first and handled by the emperor himself. It often does not require the cabinet to draw up opinions. If it really needs to be drawn up by the cabinet, the emperor will have someone send it to the cabinet.
Zhu Youtang smiled and said: "I actually want to know the reaction of those courtiers when they see this thing. Bingkuan's work is really unexpected."
Dai Yi hesitated and said, "It seems inappropriate for Mr. Zhang to take Ma Yi in. It's easy to prove the facts."
"What's the matter?" Zhu Youtang said, "Only the Three Law Divisions can convict Ma Yi. Besides, it is the responsibility of the censor to inspect matters in the northwest. When will it be the governor's turn to convict the military generals? Isn't it for the border areas? Did you lay the foundation for discord between the generals?"
"yes."
Only then did Dai Yi know that although the emperor had previously given Ma Zhongxi the authority to investigate the case, he did not support Ma Zhongxi's approach of investigating the former chief military officer.
One is the head of the civil service, and the other is the head of the military generals.
When your civil servants are investigating military generals, who knows if there is any suspicion of public revenge or private enmity arising from the struggle for power, or the suspicion of abolishing the public service for private purposes?
Zhu Youtang said with a serious face: "Is Bingkuan returning to protect Ma Yi? He is just maintaining justice in the northwest army! If the generals in the army can be investigated and punished by the governor at any time, then wouldn't everyone in the northwest be in danger? ?Even if Ma Yi really committed any crime, as long as it does not involve the stability of the military, he can still be forgiven."
Dai Yi and the other eunuchs smiled bitterly in their hearts after hearing this.
Is this the emperor's desire to protect the interests of the northwest generals?
If Zhang Zhou hadn't taken Ma Yi under his wing, the emperor probably wouldn't have sat back and watched the corruption of the northwest generals. It would be better to say... As long as Bingkuan needs it, I can accept it.
"Should it rain this time?" Zhu Youtang suddenly asked a question that Dai Yi and others could not answer.
Dai Yi asked: "Your Majesty, if you ask about praying for rain, Mr. Zhang has already said that he does not have such ability."
"He said he didn't, so he didn't? Maybe he didn't want to take credit?" When Zhu Youtang asked, he and several eunuchs naturally thought of the past when the emperor and his ministers went to worship the sky and pray for rain together, pretending to be in front of others.
Zhu Youtang himself made a lot of money that time.
Xiao Jing said with certainty: "Mr. Zhang's words about praying for rain should not be false. Maybe Mr. Zhang knew that it would rain in Xuanfu that day? After all, Mr. Zhang also said that only for things that are going to happen recently, he would have to be there on the spot. , to be sure.”
"Not necessarily." Zhu Youtang continued to smile, "Didn't he directly say that there was going to be an earthquake so far away from Jianchangwei? Speaking of which, when he left this time, he didn't even ask him to give more money. Divination, it’s a pity to say that.”
Xiao Jing wanted to say something else, but Dai Yi glared at him and blocked Xiao Jing's mouth.
Dai Yi himself said: "Then Your Majesty, do you want to issue an order and let Mr. Zhang do the math?"
"No need. If something big happens, I believe Bingkuan will tell me in advance. If he doesn't tell me, it means it doesn't happen, or it's not very important. Then there is no need to let him know the secret every time."
Zhu Youtang seemed to understand Zhang Zhou very well.
Probably also want to "slowly flow".
If Zhang Zhou is allowed to pry into the secrets of heaven, and Zhang Zhou is punished by heaven and burps early, then as the emperor, he will have no way to find someone to inquire about the secrets of heaven.
Keep Zhang Zhou and ask again if something big happens in the future.
Without troubling Zhang Zhou, the emperor would feel that he was benevolent and would not bother Bingkuan with everything.
(End of chapter)
