After Fei Zhen saluted, he stood up after Zhu Yuanzhang agreed. His body was upright, neither humble nor arrogant, and his posture was majestic.
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded secretly and looked at Liu Weiqian and Li Yan, the ministers of the Ministry of Justice: "We have been investigating Fei Zhen's corruption case for two months, and the investigation is still not clear?"
Liu Weiqian walked out and saluted: "Your Majesty, Fei Zhen wrote an epitaph for the wealthy Wang family. Wang Quan did give him three taels of silver. However, Fei Zhen did not accept it. Instead, he immediately ordered someone to buy eight stones with three taels of silver. Rice was distributed to the poor people in Hanzhong. It has been found out, but the Metropolitan Procuratorate believes that corruption comes first and good deeds come later, and there are traces of hypocrisy..."
"The Metropolitan Procuratorate thinks that there are so many people in the Metropolitan Procuratorate. Who are you talking about?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked with a cold face.
Liu Weiqian did not dare to hide anything, he lowered his head and said: "Chen Ning, the censor of the right capital."
Zhu Yuanzhang was quite dissatisfied and knocked on the table: "Then have you asked Wang Guangyang, the imperial censor of Zuodu, for his opinion?"
Liu Weiqian broke out in cold sweat and didn't know how to respond.
Zhu Yuanzhang took out a document from the desk and threw it out. The document fell on the ground: "I ordered people to investigate Fei Zhen's affairs and found that he was a rare and honest official. When he was appointed as the governor of Jishui, he was generous to the people. , later he was promoted to the prefect of Hanzhong, and his good governance was praised by the people. Now someone has accused him of accepting a bribe of three taels of silver. Now the facts are clear. He did not accept bribes for himself, but showed kindness to the people. What crime is he guilty of? "
Liu Weiqian and Li Yan were so frightened that they immediately knelt down.
Zhu Yuanzhang stood up and glared at Liu Weiqian and Li Yan: "You should know how to judge. How can a dignified minister of the Ministry of Punishment be controlled by others but not unknown? If so, how can I safely hand over the heavy code of criminal law to you?"
Liu Weiqian and Li Yan quickly confessed.
Zhu Yuanzhang waved the two men away, then looked at Fei Zhen, looked him over, and said seriously: "I remember you. When you were in Hanzhong, you subdued thousands of thieves with a little trick."
Fei Zhen looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and twitched his lips: "Thieves are ordinary people. I just want them to go home."
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled heartily and was very satisfied with the person in front of him.
He is a wise and powerful man.
In the second year of Hongwu's reign, thieves were rampant in Hanzhong. Fei Zhen governed Hanzhong. In order to eliminate the problem of thieves, he issued a notice that hundreds of thousands of grains of grain would be loaned to the local people and that they would be returned to the government after autumn.
The thieves were overjoyed when they heard that they could get food without having to do anything. This was a good thing. As for Qiu Hou, hey, you can pay it back to whomever you want. Anyway, we ran away long ago.
So a group of thieves entered Hanzhong, collected the food, and went home to see their family and neighbors whom they had not seen for a long time. As a result, Fei Zhen came out with his officers and soldiers and announced that Hanzhong would join forces and sit together. If he escapes, everyone will be in trouble.
There was no other way, these guys who had received the food had no choice but to do good under Fei Zhen's coercion and inducement. More than a thousand thieves were wiped out by bags of food without even being beaten.
Zhu Yuanzhang ordered people to remove the shackles from Fei Zhen's feet, and then said: "The imperial court has set up a department for the promotion of treasure banknotes, but who will be responsible for this promotion. I am not satisfied with the few people who came up in the Zhongshu newspaper. Today I looked at the documents of the Ministry of Punishment and I remembered you. . How about you, do you dare to take this job?"
Fei Zhen was stunned for a moment, unable to digest it for a moment.
He was a prisoner just now, and now he is directly asked to be the treasurer of the treasure banker's office?
Zhu Yuanzhang explained the reason for choosing Fei Zhen: "The matter of treasure banknotes affects all the people, and I always need to find someone who cares about the people to take charge. You are a good official who has the people in mind, and you are also capable of handling difficulties. This raises I’ll rest assured that you’ll be the one to take care of me.”
Fei Zhen knelt down and said, "Fei Zhen, my minister, will live up to your majesty's trust!"
Just when Zhu Yuanzhang was about to speak, the chamberlain came over and whispered: "Your Majesty, the prince is asking to see you. He said that a man from Quanzhou County would like to offer advice and treasures."
"Oh, what a coincidence. Let him come in."
Zhu Yuanzhang ordered.
Zhu Biao entered the palace, saluted, and presented a letter: "Father, after Mr. Gu heard that the imperial court had set up a department for raising treasure banknotes, he gave ten strategies for treasure banknotes and carefully drew a simplified diagram of treasure banknotes as a blueprint. For reference purposes only.”
"Mr. Gu?"
Fei Zhen narrowed his eyes.
The Mr. Gu mentioned by the prince must be Gu Zhengchen, a man from Quanzhou County.
How could a Jurong magistrate get involved in the matter of raising treasure banknotes?
Zhu Yuanzhang opened the letter and looked at a piece of red paper that slipped out of it. He couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. He picked it up and looked at it carefully. He stared at it and said, "Don't tell me that such a small piece of paper is the treasure note he designed?"
Zhu Biao smiled: "Father, that's right."
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned.
The Ming Dynasty's treasure banknotes have to highlight a big character, how can they be so stingy? This is not only a joke for the people of the world, but also makes the envoys of the vassal countries know about it, and they have to ask: Is the Ming Dynasty so short of paper?
It's too small. It should be at least one palm wide and two palms long, so that it looks impressive!
But look carefully, the treasure note carved by Gu Xiaozi is really exquisite. Here is the Chinese watch, which represents the majesty of the palace. Here is the denomination, which has the same value. There is a flower column with dragon inscriptions on the outside. There is also a seal position here. This blank is not painted. What is that thing, and why does it look like a human head?
Damn it Gu Zhengchen, this is a Ming Dynasty treasure note, how can you put it on someone's head? Who dares to put their head here?
Oh, me.
Zhu Yuanzhang opened Gu Zhengchen's letters two years ago, read them carefully, raised his head and cast his eyes on Zhu Biao: "He actually wants to print my face on the banknotes?"
Zhu Biao nodded heavily: "I have thought about it, Mr. Gu's plan is extremely brilliant!"
"What's so wonderful about it?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked seriously.
Zhu Biao lowered his hands and said easily: "Father, there are three wonderful things. First, my father drove out the Tartars and restored China, which was an unparalleled contribution to the founding of the country. If you leave your head on the treasure banknote, all the people will know it, and your descendants will know it, and it will last for a hundred generations. After Jiangshan, people in the world can still hold treasures and remember the achievements of my father!"
Zhu Yuanzhang picked up the tea bowl and his eyes fell on the small piece of paper.
What the prince said makes sense. If our portrait remains on the treasure banknote, as long as future generations don't change it randomly, then the world will still know my appearance thousands of years later!
Zhu Biao continued: "Secondly, Mr. Gu first proposed that all people should create a common identity and make the people of the Ming Dynasty proud. Later, he proposed that the way of faith should be widely practiced in the guards to unite people's hearts. My son thought, if my father is the emperor With the avatar appearing on the treasure banknotes, not only the people of the Ming Dynasty but also the sergeants of the guard have a common belief, and that is the Father!"
Zhu Yuanzhang raised his brows slightly.
Is it the belief of the people and soldiers?
Could it be that one day, I can become a figure like Sakyamuni, with people all over the world looking up to me and worshiping him?
Belief requires specific people to support it. If you only mention an empty, broad, and distant life state, then people are likely to lose this belief because they can't see it, can't think of it, and can't reach it.
If you believe in a certain person, such as Buddha, or the Allah that some Muslims believe in, then this belief will be concrete and have sustenance, and will not be lost as time goes by, but will become more pious and surrendered.
"What about the third one?"
Zhu Yuanzhang was a little moved.
Zhu Biao said with a smile: "Bao banknotes are popular all over the world. When people hold treasure banknotes, they understand that it is the father who guarantees that the treasure banknotes in their hands can be exchanged for as much food and as much goods as silver and copper. In this way, the imperial court Treasure banknotes need to be controlled to avoid excessive issuance, which will cause the banknotes to depreciate. People need to take good care of the banknotes and not deliberately damage them, causing the banknotes to become useless in a short period of time."
Zhu Yuanzhang reached out and took the small treasure note in his hand. He glanced at Fei Zhen, asked the chamberlain to pass the treasure note over, and then asked: "Tell me about it."
Fei Zhen looked at it carefully and saw that the design of the treasure banknote was exquisite, and the reserved portrait area tried to incorporate Zhu Yuanzhang's portrait into it. This was something that had never happened before in any dynasty.
During the Song and Yuan Dynasties, no precedent could be found.
Although the prince's words were a bit beyond my understanding, and I didn't know what their common identity was or what their beliefs were, I still understood the benefits of what the prince said.
Fei Zhen respectfully returned the treasure note to the chamberlain, and then said to Zhu Yuanzhang: "Your Majesty, if the Quanzhou County man can solve the problem of carving a head on such a small copper plate, I think that the head portrait is completely feasible and has many benefits. "
Zhu Yuanzhang did not speak. He picked up Gu Zhengchen's letter again, read it twice, and said in a deep voice: "Zheng Bo, send someone to Jurong and ask Gu Zhengchen to come to Jinling quickly."
Zheng Bo came out at the door.
Zhu Biao's eyes lit up. It was a suitable opportunity for Gu Zhengchen to return to Jinling at this time.
After all, Song Lian, Hongwen Museum and Guozixue needed to compile the pinyin version of "Cihai", and Gu Zhengchen came at the right time. Besides, he carved the treasure banknote, which saved a lot of work for the treasure banker. However, it also raised a difficult problem, that is, how to carve a portrait in such a small place. He had many ideas, so he thought he could solve it.
Zhu Yuanzhang stood up and handed Gu Zhengchen's letter to Fei Zhen: "After you go back, carefully read what Gu Xiaozi said and think about whether there is anything wrong in it. I will ask you the question another day."
Fei Zhen accepted it and Xie En exited the hall.
Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at Zhu Biao and walked out of the hall: "Gu Xiaozi's participation in the treasure bank transfer this time is somewhat beyond my expectation."
Zhu Biao followed Zhu Yuanzhang and said: "Father, my son informed Mr. Gu of many things in the court. He kept silent about other matters and never overstepped his bounds. The matter of mentioning the treasure banknote to the Si was just a casual mention. , he not only asked, but also proposed countermeasures, and even produced this unique treasure banknote, which made my son a little confused."
Zhu Yuanzhang didn't understand why Gu Zhengchen, who had always been indifferent to Jinling affairs and only cared about Jurong affairs, suddenly paid so much attention to Baochao and Ming Dynasty Baochao?
Thoughts are speechless.
After a long time, Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and sighed: "Perhaps, he was worried that the Ming Dynasty would repeat the mistakes of Yuan Ting's treasures. It can be seen that many of the countermeasures he proposed were to exploit the benefits of Yuan Ting's treasures and exclude Yuan Ting's treasures. The harm of Bao Chao. While the local county government has nothing to do during this period, let him come to Jinling to stay for a few days. The Bao Chao Lifting Department still lacks a deputy lifting..."
