Official status means too many things to a businessman like Mei Kejia. In a sense, a few taels of silver cannot enter his eyes. Therefore, the emperor unexpectedly received this reward, and Mei Kejia was not as calm as before. Instead, he became emotionally charged and unable to stop crying.
Needless to say, Zhu Yuanzhang disliked businessmen. This farmer grandfather, except for loving his own family and fearing a little suffering, he is not good to all other classes.
With this background, Mei Kejia was so excited this time. He kowtowed and said: "The villain's humble skills are appreciated by His Majesty, and he is even given an official position. I feel indescribable admiration in my heart. Without him, I will spend my whole life serving Your Majesty!"
Because they were all his own people and there were no civil servants, Zhu Houzhao's posture was very casual. He was half lying on a wooden chair, swaying very leisurely, and said to Mei Kejia, who was kneeling to the side: "I am a person Some protect shortcomings, and sometimes it is difficult to fully care about right and wrong. No matter what, I always have to take care of my own people. Of course, I can't give you a high official to do it, because the official position itself is also a shortcoming that I want to get rid of. , I’m afraid some people may gossip about this sixth-grade merit crown given to you. But I don’t care, because you have done great service for me.”
Mei Kejia didn't expect that the emperor would also hook up with Qing Ming, and he was even more moved and impressed.
"Furthermore, last year, a pair of sisters born to one of your maidservants were involved in rumors due to some strange things. People say that parents' orders are the words of matchmakers. After all, I still have to go through you to resolve this matter. It’s settled.”
Mei Kejia had already heard about this matter when he came to Beijing last time.
The cause was, of course, that Uncle Huaiyuan came to rob someone, and finally asked your Majesty to rescue him.
Even if the facts are indeed innocent, these two people cannot get married. Because no one can be sure whether the emperor has anything to do here.
Maybe not.
But what the hell if there is?
She was just a woman, and her status in the old society was not high. No one would risk their lives just for this.
Unless Zhu Houzhao gives it to someone according to the imperial edict, or takes the initiative to propose marriage for him.
It turns out that this is a possibility, but he went to Mei Mansion once and after seeing it, he was not willing to do it. Since ancient times, heroes have loved beauties. Why did these two little girls take advantage of others because they were pretty?
This is strange to say,
Because it is rare for an emperor to come forward to talk about such things, those who don't understand think that the emperor is lustful. But Mei Kejia also knows the reason. In addition to feeling strange, there is also a feeling... that he has hit a lucky draw. He actually doesn't feel safe enough. With this relationship, he won't do it all the time. What a nightmare.
Some people also say that one does not know whether the future will be a blessing or a curse. But now that the situation was like this, he had no other choice.
He replied: "My little girl Pu Liu is of a humble birth, so she is lucky enough to be able to serve the Tian family. I will obey your Majesty's arrangements in everything."
"There's nothing else, except that I... really can't give the title too high, otherwise there will always be trouble in the court." Zhu Houzhao didn't lie, he told the truth anyway, "I hope you can understand this."
Mei Kejia was slightly startled, "I'm afraid!"
"Why."
Zhu Houzhao didn't know how to continue talking. He had never married as an emperor in his previous life. In this situation, he said too harshly. He felt that he had gone too far, said too softly, and shocked the other party. It was really difficult to handle. .
But it must be done even if it is difficult.
He still remembered that Empress Dowager Zhang had reminded him earlier that since there were such rumors outside, it would be better to get people closer to the palace earlier.
What's wrong with the emperor summoning two women?
Although she is the daughter of a businessman, as long as she is not named queen, the ministers will not have any objection.
If the time drags on for too long, it will make people think that the emperor just pulled up his trousers and wanted to default on the bill.
also,
After the New Year, many ministers wrote to emphasize the inheritance of the royal family.
When I do this kind of action now, it just corresponds to four words: it's a matter of course.
"Don't be panicked. After you go back today, you will explain what I mean to your two daughters. Also..." the emperor thought for a while, "...there is no need to rush to let them enter the palace in the next few days. , you have just come back, so you should give your father and daughter some time to get along. When you feel that it is almost done, send a message to Liu Jin. I will ask Liu Jin to pick him up. "
These arrangements are very humane.
"Yes, I would like to thank Your Majesty for your understanding!"
Zhu Houzhao glanced at the sky outside and said, "You haven't eaten yet? Stay and stay with me for a while."
Neither Gu Dayong nor Mei Kejia dared to accept it, because today's reward was no longer light. Any more would be unbearable.
But Zhu Houzhao insisted, "As I said, we are our own people."
However, in the end, they still did not dare to sit at the same table with the emperor.
Zhu Houzhao didn't pay attention to those formalities. He still did it in a state that made people comfortable. Otherwise, he would be restless. What's the point of eating? This moved two slightly shorter tables so they could sit on either side.
As the altitude went down, Gu and Mei felt a lot more relieved.
"Great use."
"My slave is here."
"After you go to Zhejiang again, Hangzhou Weaving, which is in charge of Meiji, will also be under your control. But you don't care how he does business. You and I are not in business, and even I will not care how he does business. You, go and do business for me. I manage several imperial estates."
This matter is already in the process. "Zhejiang has confiscated some acres of land this time. According to rough calculations, there must be at least 250,000 acres of paddy fields. There are few fields in Zhejiang. I don't want you to pay more grain for these imperial villages. After all, it's still the same." Hire local landless people and let them serve the land. The court can't tax more than 1 in 20 taxes, and any excess will be left to the people."
In the Ming Dynasty, the land tax in the Jiangnan area was heavy. To give a rough estimate, it was about 20% of the total weight, so the tax was one per twenty, which was a properly low tax.
In the past, Gu Dayong would have burst into tears and put on a show, praising the emperor for loving his people like a son, but he didn't dare after being scolded for doing so last time.
"I understand that Your Majesty values the people the most. Even if I have no brains, I won't dare to take money from people's mouths."
Anyway, we were talking while eating.
Zhu Houzhao just said casually, "Zhejiang has arrested many people again this time. I know that many people say that the emperor is too harsh and seems to be targeting Zhejiang. I didn't check the rumors behind these, and I didn't bother to Check. In the end, the people who cultivate these imperial villages have to speak for themselves."
"Furthermore, after the opening of the sea, commerce in Zhejiang and Fujian will be more prosperous, and the people will need to have some spare money. Only when it has real effects will things in the future be easy to do. So it is not completely complete. Love the people, you should remember this section first.”
Mei Kejia nodded. He knew that the emperor's style was to plan ahead before doing anything.
"In addition, the Governor's Office of Zhejiang and Fujian and the Governor of Zhejiang jointly sent me a memorandum, saying that they would request the allocation of silver to expand these cities. I will agree. Now that I have an extra two million and four hundred thousand taels of silver, I am confident. Absolutely. For the two of you, that is, Hangzhou Weaving and Meiji, you can also pay attention to the construction of Ningbo House."
Mei Kejia understood clearly, "Your Majesty, are you talking about the construction that the capital has been doing in the past two years?"
"Yes. After the opening of the sea, internal and external exchanges will be frequent, and people and wealth will gather together. As for me, I always hope that cities like Hangzhou and Ningbo will become more prosperous."
"Wei Chen understands."
In fact, it was essentially the result of opening up the sea that the emperor wanted to show.
Only when there are visible and tangible benefits can the emperor's prestige be continuously strengthened in the process.
There were so many shortcomings in the Ming Dynasty. Of course, Zhu Houzhao wanted to make it easier to change, rather than more difficult to change.
In the land of Jiangnan, business is always prosperous, and only business prosperity can slowly give birth to the so-called sprout of capitalism. As for whether capitalism can really emerge, or whether it will be good or bad, that is another matter.
Zhu Houzhao just remembered that when he was studying, he saw the phrase "capitalism sprouted in the late Ming Dynasty" and felt it was a pity.
At that time, I didn’t understand sociology, economics, the culture behind it, and other factors. I only had one thought in my mind: Our nation is really bad.
Therefore, it cannot be regarded as a great power. When it gained strength, peace and development became the themes again.
And in the current Zhengde period,
The West has just begun its great voyages.
The wealth brought by the Age of Discovery is actually secondary. The most important thing is that human science and technology have advanced by leaps and bounds in the past few hundred years. He wants that knowledge to be passed on.
Therefore, Ming Dynasty also wanted to participate in the great voyage.
"How is your shipyard doing now?"
Mei Kejia replied: "It was also after the opening of the sea order that many big merchants needed to buy more ships to go to sea. Unfortunately, the sea was banned for many years and there were very few craftsmen who could build ships. Speaking of which, many people begged Wei Chen to hand over the ship, but Wei Chen There is really no ship to hand over.”
Zhu Houzhao could only sigh when talking about this.
This is just like the decline of some industries in later generations. The most difficult thing to rebuild is how to cultivate a considerable number of industrial talents.
As long as the people are there, recovery is quite fast, such as Germany and Japan after World War II. If the technical talents are gone, it is actually difficult to have money and policies. For example, Russia and Ukraine after the disintegration of the Soviet Union experienced a large loss of technical talents. If something of your own is broken, you can’t even repair it.
But there is nothing we can do about this. After the imperial court banned the sea, the shipbuilding industry was nothing more than building ships for the Grand Canal. Without such a big 'market', naturally there weren't that many people.
"In the past, the imperial court had a long-term maritime ban, and even the Ministry of Industry must not have many craftsmen who can build ships right now. However, after a few years of training, more and more people can be produced. I hope in my heart that one day the Ming Dynasty can recreate Zheng He Treasure ship.”
Zheng He's treasure ship was said to be more than 100 meters long, and it turned out to be an ancient aircraft carrier. According to records from the Jiajing period, when envoys from the Ming Dynasty went to the Ryukyu Kingdom, the "Fengzhou" they took was only 45 meters long and 10 meters wide.
The emergence of fleets will also promote the development of artillery, because disputes at sea must still be fought with artillery. You can't shoot arrows, and you can't shoot fish, let alone people, and you can't chop them with a knife. Therefore, artillery must be more convenient for armed forces at sea. The world's first battleship with side-mounted guns was built by the British in this era.
Ming Dynasty must participate in this process, even if it leads to war. Because to the extreme, war is also a form of technological exchange and integration.
After Gu Dayong and Mei Kejia left,
Zhu Houzhao thought for a long time alone.
Before opening the sea, he thought of opening the sea. When the sea actually opened, he was fantasizing about the Ming Dynasty's invincible maritime fleet.
Liu Jin tried to persuade him to go to bed several times but failed. Later, Qiu Yun came over because it was too late at night and he really couldn't stay up longer.
Three days later,
A major event occurred in the imperial court, and military reports came from Datong.
Zhou Shangwen led eight thousand troops and fought a moderate battle with the Tatars on the grassland. In this battle, more than 140 soldiers were killed, but more than 300 enemy troops were beheaded. Judging from the battle loss ratio alone, the Ming army was victorious. Of course, the Ming army will still retreat to Datong, and the national border will not change in any way.
It seemed that the sacrifice was in vain, and it was a loss of elite cavalry, but after reporting to the capital, the emperor said nothing and just gave him compensation as usual.
Zhou Shangwen is still different from Yang Shangyi. When Yang Shangyi was originally stationed in Datong, he mainly focused on defense. Of course, there would be patrols, but the patrols were just a small team. If they were really caught, the loss would not be big.
And Zhou Shangwen would lead a slightly larger cavalry to the north of the Great Wall to look for opportunities to engage the enemy. This was the first time, and there was another time in September of the 18th year of Hongzhi.
The ministers in the DPRK made some slight remarks, feeling that Zhou Shangwen was careless in using his troops and eager to make meritorious deeds, and was not prudent enough. The first time I walked 80 miles, this time I walked 180 miles.
To put it bluntly, what if someone ambushed me?
But these memorials were blocked when they reached Zhu Houzhao.
He preferred that Zhou Shangwen be like this, raising these soldiers for use, not as ancestors. An army under the leadership of this kind of commander can fight repeatedly, and eventually it can become an army capable of hundreds of battles.
The Tatars invaded the border many times in the past few years. After the battle in the northwest, they became a little more honest. In the direction of Datong is Dayan Khan's army. If Zhou Shangwen does not appear belligerent and capable of fighting, he may be slapped in the face by the Tatars again. Come up.
Civil servants would not like such a general, so they kept talking about something whenever they caught it.
Three more days passed,
Mei Kejia handed the note and entered the palace.
Zhu Houzhao only took one look and asked Liu Jin to go do the work.
It's not like marrying the queen, this matter is actually quite simple.
But this matter has to go through the Ministry of Rites. It is said to be a selfless matter in the Heavenly Family, because people have to be banned.
In the Ming Dynasty, there were many levels of concubines in the harem, which could be roughly divided into queens, imperial concubines, concubines, concubines, concubines, Zhaoyi, Jieyu, beauties, talented people, nobles, selected attendants, and ladies. There are some changes in different periods, but generally the same.
Zhu Houzhao felt that it was not good to give others too low a position. After all, Mei Kejia was in charge of a lot of his money and had made great contributions.
So there is no need to be a lady. As for choosing an attendant, there seems to be a man named Li who sounds like he is always making trouble, so I don't want him.
Finally, he was granted the title of nobleman.
Zhu Houzhao's idea is that even if it is his own woman, he will not give rewards easily, because the reward must have a reason, otherwise it will be chaotic. The meaning behind this is that the harem must also have rules, and as an emperor, he must take these rules seriously.
In a word, he is not here to engage in palace fighting.
In this case,
The two girls, Mei Huaixiao and Mei Huayan, were taken to live in the palace. The emperor doesn't have any concubines yet, so there is plenty of room in the Sixth Palace in the West, and what they were given was the Yongshou Palace. Emperor Xiaozong's biological mother Ji once lived here briefly.
They had to take care of face, so on the first day after they entered the palace, Zhu Houzhao set off for Yongshou Palace after approving the memorial. Before leaving, he asked Liu Jin to bring the snacks he had eaten.
This is probably my old habit, don't meet a girl empty-handed.
The emperor arrived at Yongshou Palace, and the maids and eunuchs who were sent to Yongshou Palace to serve him knelt on the ground outside. Mei Huaixiao and Mei Huayan were not in a hurry.
From this, Zhu Houzhao knew that he must have taught Mei Kejia before entering the palace.
"Pingsheng, please come inside."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The two girls stood up. This was their second time meeting the emperor, so they were still a little nervous.
When they arrived at the house, they didn't know what to say, so they just lined up beside the emperor.
"Which one of you is smiling?"
Over time, he had forgotten that the two of them were similar in size, looked somewhat similar, and wore the same clothes. He could not remember where they were.
"I am pregnant with a smile." She is on the right. If there is anything special about her, she has a very pale and light mole on the tip of her nose.
There is no sister.
Both of them have extremely bright complexions, because their mother was bought by Mei Kejia from the Western Regions, so the girls they gave birth to are not as flat-faced as the Han people, but are very three-dimensional and taller than the average Han women. Be bigger.
"Then you are just showing off your face." Zhu Houzhao turned his head to the left.
Looking at it like this, the girl's big eyes dodge a little, and there is also shame on her face, "In reply to Your Majesty, yes."
"You have just entered the palace today. I want to come and take a look. From now on, you will live here. If you need anything, just ask them to do it. If there is something you want to do but don't know if it can be done, just come and ask. Come to me. As for how to get along with me, use your own brains. In a word, just be obedient and follow the rules."
Huaixiao and Huaiyan knelt down, "I must obey your Majesty's orders."
"Everyone, please get up." The emperor also stretched out his hand to pull them. "There is no need to kneel down after answering a sentence like this. Oh, by the way, I also brought some snacks. You can eat them together."
"I thank you, Your Majesty."
It's probably because I've been taught the etiquette.
However, the two of them were so stiff that it actually made Zhu Houzhao scratch his head. "Then let's do this for today. I have some state affairs, so you can eat first."
】
So the two people went to the door to see each other off.
When the emperor returned to his palace, Qiu Yun and others were thrown into confusion.
Qiu Yun was very strange, and seemed a little confused about what to say, "...Your Majesty... why are you back?"
"Can't I come back?"
"How dare you say that, slave? It's just weird."
"What's weird? Bring me some hot water. I want to soak my feet."
So a group of people rushed to fetch water and towels.
Maybe it's a matter of the length of time they've been together, but Qiuyun is actually more natural, or maybe she's used to serving him over the years. After figuring out his temperament, Qiu Yun dared to say some things.
She squinted her crescent-shaped eyes and said with a smile: "Your Majesty must not understand what the girl is thinking. She has already left, so why not stay in Yongshou Palace? Both nobles are like immortals."
"Can't you just stay?"
Qiu Yun rubbed his legs and said, "Your Majesty wants to give birth to a prince. How can you give birth to a prince if you don't leave?"
Zhu Houzhao chuckled in his heart, "Do I have to stay to give birth to a prince? How can I have a baby if I stay? Why don't you teach me?"
Qiu Yun was stunned for a moment, then blushed instantly. But she knew something was wrong when she saw the emperor's smile, so she said lightly, "Your Majesty is causing trouble!"
"I think we need to let them get used to it, step by step, and there is no need to rush. If you are free tomorrow, just talk to them first. I will be very busy these days."
"Your Majesty, don't worry, I know this."
What the emperor said was very busy meant that the court was recently discussing government affairs for the first year of Zhengde.
After the opening of the sea, the emperor had no major disagreements with his ministers. With his style and personality as an emperor, as long as there were no such things, the civil servants would highly approve of him.
Because he is diligent, thrifty, loving the people and relatively obedient to advice.
It's strange to say that he listens to advice, but in fact, Zhu Houzhao does listen to advice in most things.
For example, Li Dongyang asked a question about 'participation'. To put it simply, some dignitaries and ministers will occupy the officers and soldiers at will. This is actually a manifestation of unruly behavior. This malady has appeared since the orthodox years. After Zhu Houzhao understood everything clearly, he played everything accurately.
Lin Han, the Minister of Rites, also petitioned to abolish more than 1,800 people who were engaged in weaving and fasting. The so-called Zhaijiao actually means doing rituals for people in Taoist temples. After Chenghua, more and more officials were appointed. To put it bluntly, the emperor liked this one, and then gave these people official titles.
A major event like the opening of the sea is not an everyday event. It is mostly ordinary government affairs. Under normal circumstances, Zhu Houzhao will agree to it after understanding it clearly.
Therefore, in the first year of Zhengde, at the beginning of Yin Dynasty, the monarch and his ministers in the court were in harmony.
Until Zhu Houzhao saw a memorial, the person who wrote this memorial was no one else, but Gu Zuo, the minister of household affairs.
After seeing it, Zhu Houzhao did not say anything, but first asked someone to bring him to the palace. The monarch and his ministers had a private conversation. In order to avoid the eyes and ears of eunuchs and attendants, the emperor simply summoned him in the pavilion.
Gu Zuo probably knew the reason, so he was not as relaxed as usual when he was in front of the emperor. He knelt down and said, "Gu Zuo, Minister of Household Affairs, please see your Majesty."
Zhu Houzhao did not ask him to get up, but reached out and took out the memorial from his arms, "Gu Liqing, if you can write this memorial, I guarantee you that your name will be included in the "Biography of Famous Officials" of the Ming Dynasty."
Gu Zuo was shocked, "I don't want to fight for the reputation of this world, but I want to fight for the good governance of the Ming Dynasty."
"I don't believe what other people say. But if you say it, I do." Zhu Houzhao raised his hand, "Tell me first, why are you here?"
Gu Zuo seemed to be inspired and said excitedly: "Because your Majesty is a rare wise king and wise ruler, I believe that as long as it is good governance that is truly beneficial to the country and the people, your Majesty will implement it no matter what. Your Majesty will rectify the horse administration." , training the capital camp, nothing has been without difficulties since running the country. Your Majesty is like this, let alone the humble ministers?"
"The Salt Transportation Department is under the management of the Ministry of Household Affairs. You must have been holding back for a long time in the Ministry of Household Affairs for so many years. It is not easy for ministers to dare to submit such a memorial. I want to encourage you. Okay, then today we, the emperor and ministers, will spend some time Time, let me explain this salt method clearly!"
Gu Zuo felt very happy after hearing this!
This is the style of Mingjun!
We are willing to listen, think and deal with the boring state affairs day after day. At this moment, Gu Zuo didn't envy those ministers who left their names in history, such as Wei Qing and Wei Zheng... because he also met the wise kings those people met!
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This chapter is a small transition, some things still need to be mentioned.
