An hour later.
The feudal princes, whose stomachs were rumbling after being served with rice porridge, all walked out of the Huangji Palace with sad faces.
It was unheard of in history for an emperor to borrow money from vassals.
But today it really happened to them.
The king and the prince were glad that the emperor did not hold them accountable. For them, spending money to eliminate disasters was a good deal.
"Dad, let's keep our butts tight when we get to the fiefdom!" The prince said, "Otherwise, it might not be a matter of 200,000 taels next time!"
Dai Wang, who had never listened to others' advice, was particularly obedient this time.
"Son, you're right! You're right! The emperor doesn't dare to kill us, but we can't give him any more excuses to avoid being ripped off!"
"When you get to the fief, you walk around and clean up all those shady businesses. Clean them all!"
"Dad, don't worry, I guarantee the wash will be whiter than yours! Snow-white!"
"..."
Immediately, the two got on the sedan and left.
Behind them, standing side by side, were King Lu and King Shen.
King Lu looked at the Huangji Palace in the distance with an expression as if he had been cut off two pounds of meat.
"Prince Shen, you think His Majesty is so short of money, do you want us to pay for it?"
Shen looked at the starry sky, "Maybe he is really short of money!"
"Actually, what Dai Wang said is right. This world belongs to our Zhu family. We don't contribute, and others will not care about the Ming Dynasty!"
"Hey! I finally saved so much money!"
King Lu said as if he didn't hear King Shen.
King Shen smiled softly.
"The real difficulty is Your Majesty! We vassal kings don't have many worries in our lives. We don't have to worry about anything."
"But the emperor has to worry about the whole world, and he has to make the final decision on all kinds of issues!"
Suddenly, he looked at King Lu and said, "Actually, I feel that Your Majesty is quite lonely too!"
~~
Prison Department of Punishment.
The dark corridor is lined with cells one after another. The stone slabs on the ground are very damp, and there are some sticky and mysterious things on the surface.
"That's it!" Feng Bao stopped in front of a cell and said to the person behind him.
Behind him is Zhu Zaijing.
The people in the cell woke up from their deep sleep, as if they had sensed someone coming in advance. They stood up slowly, combed their hair and beard, straightened their clothes, and stood up respectfully to face the people in front of the cell door.
"The sinner Hai Rui, please see Your Majesty!"
A beam of moonlight hit Hai Rui's head and shoulders, revealing his messy hair and broad shoulders.
This silhouette gives people a full sense of solidity.
"No gifts! Gang Feng, get up quickly!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
A prison guard stepped forward to open the cell door, walked inside, and placed a stool in front of Hai Rui.
"Master Hai, you are not a criminal now!" The prison head smiled flatteringly, "You are now a serious high-ranking official with a good salary!"
When Hai Rui looked at him with a puzzled look, Feng Bao on the side shouted angrily.
"Stop talking nonsense and come out quickly!"
"Hey! Yes, yes!"
With a jar of wine and two bowls in his hand, Zhu Zaijing slowly walked into the cell and sat on a stool.
Then he motioned for Hai Rui to sit down as well.
"Your Majesty should not come to this dirty place, let alone sit with a sinner like me!"
Zhu Zaijing laughed while pouring the wine.
“As expected, it is the most powerful and sunny Haigang Peak!”
"First of all, this place is not a place of indignity. This is a place for the scum imprisoned here and the people they harmed to practice the law of heaven!"
Hai Rui was shocked. He didn't expect the emperor to give such an explanation to the prison.
"Secondly, you are not a criminal, you have been for a long time!"
The second time he heard that he was not the guilty party, Hai Rui's expression became even more confused.
Feng Bao, who was standing outside, stamped his feet anxiously when he saw him like this, and immediately explained, "Master Hai, your sin has been absolved by His Majesty, and you are already innocent!"
"Hey!" Zhu Zaijing corrected, "To make it clear, the late emperor has already exempted me!"
Hai Rui didn't react for a moment and looked at Zhu Zaijing in disbelief.
"Your Majesty, is it true?"
"It's true, it is indeed the late emperor's intention not to kill you!"
Historically, there were many reasons why Jiajing did not kill Hai Rui.
The first point is that Jiajing does not want others to say that he is a foolish king. Jiajing knew this very well. If he killed Hai Rui, everyone in the world would definitely call him a foolish king. He himself said: "This person is Fang Bigan, and his enemy is not a tyrant."
A reputation-conscious and selfish person like him would certainly not want to be remembered in history.
Secondly, Jiajing also admitted in his heart that Hai Rui's scolding was justified. What he said was true. Not only him, but almost all the ministers in the court saw him in this way.
The third is to leave Hai Rui to King Yu.
"Of course, the imperial edict to pardon you is from me, but if the late emperor hadn't spared your life, I wouldn't have had this chance!"
Hai Rui trembled. He was so shocked that he couldn't control himself. He slowly leaned on the wall and collapsed.
Zhu Zaijing looked at him and personally placed the wine bowl beside his bed.
Historically, Hai Rui cried and fainted several times after hearing about Jiajing's death.
In this era when the idea of loyalty to the emperor and the country is on the lips of most people, rather than in their hearts, he is almost the only true direct minister like him left.
The irony is that Yan Song only regarded Jiajing as a partner in making money, and Xu Jie and the others only regarded Jiajing as an old and confused Taoist priest. When he died, perhaps the only people in Beijing who truly mourned Jiajing from the bottom of their hearts were This minister who once scolded him so much that he killed him in a fit of rage.
"Do you understand what the late emperor meant?"
Hai Rui's eyes were wet and he said, "I understand. I understood it the day I heard about the death of the late emperor."
"It's just that when Your Majesty told me personally, I was still a little heartbroken!"
Zhu Zaijing patted him on the shoulder and encouraged him.
"I want to reuse you! The late emperor's purpose in not killing you was to leave you to me! Hai Rui, are you willing to serve me?"
The latter wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, knelt down and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, since ancient times, only emperors have chosen their ministers. How can there be any reason for ministers to choose emperors?"
"From the day I was selected for the imperial examination, I was already prepared to die for the country and the people!"
Zhu Zaijing helped him up, squatted down under his firm gaze, patted Hai Rui's robe, and wiped the dirty stains on him.
It's not that he is trying to win people's hearts like Boss Cao, but that he is almost the only person who shares the same values of putting people first as him. Zhu Zaijing feels very kind to him from the bottom of his heart.
Also because of Hai Qingtian's historical significance and influence, Zhu Zaijing's respect for him comes from the heart.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, no!"
Hai Rui exclaimed.
Zhu Zaijing stood up and asked him to sit down, "I can't respect you too much!"
"Come! Let us have a drink!"
