Some things, no matter how you speculate, are false until there is no evidence.
For example, the issue of the empty seal case was due to the anti-corruption system proposed by Zhu Biao before, and many people guessed that the source behind it was Su Jing.
But speculation is not fact.
It is unknown what role Su Jing played in this.
Maybe it was just a casual comment, or maybe he guided Zhu Biao to formulate all the plans.
Or maybe the speculation is just false.
This matter has nothing to do with Su Jing at all.
Now, Zhu Biao directly announced the matter completely, and the root cause behind it was Su Jing.
Empty seal case!
That was the largest case in the Ming Dynasty that killed hundreds of officials. It affected so many people that it had never happened before.
Naturally, no official would dare to hold a grudge against Zhu Biao, but Su Jing was different.
At this moment, many officials who had previously been neutral began to distance themselves from Su Jing.
The anti-corruption system has increased their workload, and if they are not careful at all, they will be charged with corruption.
Working under Zhu Yuanzhang was already hard enough, but now it is not only hard, but also has to be careful.
This official job is really tiring!
Cui Liang listened to Zhu Biao's words and was stunned for a moment without answering.
Because the Kongyin case was actually just Zhu Yuanzhang's anger. For officials, or for officials who needed to deal with actual affairs, the Kongyin method was to improve administrative efficiency.
Of course, it’s unclear what they want to do while improving administrative efficiency.
Always, when it came to the Kongyin case, officials did not dare to disobey the angry Zhu Yuanzhang, but at the same time they were not so firm in their stance.
"Cui Shangshu, what's wrong? Isn't this enough?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked Cui Liang.
Zhu Yuanzhang had a deep memory of the Kongyin Case.
After dealing with that large number of officials, he also highly praised the anti-corruption system that Su Jing taught Zhu Biao.
He didn't like Cui Liang's attitude at the moment.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, I believe that the credit for this matter belongs to the Crown Prince and has little to do with Su Jing, so it is not enough."
Cui Liang answered with cupped hands.
These words are very clever. They do not directly say whether the empty seal case is right or wrong, but only discuss the attribution of credit.
Indeed, it was Zhu Biao who drafted the anti-corruption system. Later, when the Kongyin case was investigated and implemented, Zhu Biao was even more involved.
The credit goes to Zhu Biao, which is completely understandable.
The most important thing is that Zhu Yuanzhang was not dissatisfied with this answer.
"Biao'er, keep talking."
Zhu Yuanzhang just glanced at Cui Liang and motioned to Zhu Biao to continue.
Zhu Biao nodded slightly, and then continued: "The movable pulley block of the Ministry of Industry was created by Master Su. It can save countless manpower and greatly increase the speed of the project. What does Cui Shangshu think of this matter?"
Moving the pulley is what the prince used to lift the cauldron in front of the Fengtian Palace. It is also widely circulated among the officials.
Regarding the moving pulley, officials in the Ming Dynasty did not care much about it, but those in the Ministry of Industry knew more about it.
After all, it is an engineering project, and this kind of knowledge still belongs to the category of strange skills and tricks.
Orthodox scholars often study the Four Books and Five Classics.
But the matter of the princes lifting the cauldron is no longer a matter of a tool. This is proof that God has blessed the Ming Dynasty.
Several princes actually lifted a large bronze tripod weighing hundreds of kilograms with only one person's strength. Such a deed, if casually publicized, would be a major event that could be praised for eternity.
At that time, after Zhu Xi and several princes successfully raised the tripod, Zhu Yuanzhang received many compliments, all kinds of flattery, and all kinds of praise the next day.
"Shilang Zhang, how is the current application situation of the movable pulley block in the Ministry of Industry?"
Zhu Biao asked Zhang Bing, the Minister of Rites, again.
Zhang Bing immediately replied: "Reporting to His Royal Highness, the movable pulley blocks have now been widely used in various large-scale projects of the Ministry of Industry. It is estimated that one-third of the manpower can be saved every year."
The previous Ministry of Industry was still somewhat resistant to the popularization of movable pulley blocks.
Because the moving pulley block saves manpower, it reduces the personnel power of the Ministry of Industry in disguise.
The number of personnel that could have been deployed has now been reduced a lot.
However, this didn't last long.
Because the Department of Accounts' year-end accounts review directly included the use of the movable pulley block.
There was no cover-up of the false reporting and empty pay, and it was completely exposed.
In this case, although many people are scolding in their hearts, they still have to promote the pulley block honestly, otherwise it will be treated as corruption.
Zhu Biao was very satisfied after hearing Zhang Bing's answer.
Back in his small courtyard in Lishui County, Zhu Biao had already made calculations on how much manpower this pulley block could save in the Ming Dynasty's large-scale construction.
Basically in line with what he expected.
Another achievement, the officials in Fengtian Palace were so shocked that they didn't know what to say.
Zhu Yuanzhang conferred the title of uncle on Su Jing today, which he had planned for a long time.
Cui Liang stood in the middle, listening to Zhu Biao's details, and his mind was also buzzing.
He is not a member of the Huaixi Group, he just expresses his own opinions from the standpoint of his position as Minister of Rites.
Originally, he thought that Zhu Yuanzhang's intention to confer the title of uncle to Su Jing was an act of complete disregard for etiquette and completely destroyed the official system of the Ming Dynasty.
Su Jing is not a minister who follows Zhu Yuanzhang to conquer the world, and any reward he accepts is not excessive.
If this sets a precedent, if Zhu Yuanzhang wants to award a reward in the future, it will be a random mess.
He would not give in on matters of etiquette.
This kind of thing must be persisted, even if it makes Zhu Yuanzhang unhappy.
but now.
Cui Liang realized that he might have really underestimated Su Jing.
Each of these things was told by Prince Zhu Biao, and each one was a great contribution to the Ming Dynasty.
An indelible contribution.
After listening, Cui Liang actually felt that there was nothing wrong with Zhu Yuanzhang's reward.
"Cui Shangshu, what do you think?"
Zhu Biao asked Cui Liang.
Zhu Biao respected this Minister of Rites very much, and he also knew that his father Zhu Yuanzhang admired Cui Liang very much.
In fact, as long as it does not touch Zhu Yuanzhang's two nerves of corruption and rebellion, Zhu Yuanzhang is willing to listen to other things as long as they are reasonable.
It was Zhu Yuanzhang who was arbitrary and dictatorial, but he was also Zhu Yuanzhang who accepted advice with an open mind.
Cui Liang paused for a moment, then bowed to Zhu Biao and said, "Your Highness, I have no objection."
Cui Liang agreed!
In other words, he was convinced.
The Minister of Rites was convinced, and there was no objection to Su Jing's title, which meant that there was no problem with the etiquette system.
In Fengtian Hall, the expressions of the officials changed.
Especially among the ministers of the Huaixi Group, many of them had very ugly expressions on their faces.
Yongjia Marquis Zhu Liangzu's face jumped. He really didn't expect that Su Jing would turn into Uncle Feng in just a short time.
The Ming Dynasty was founded not long ago and there were many heroes.
There are only 6 dukes, 28 marquises and only 2 earls.
And many of them are now dead and are posthumous titles.
It can be said that if Su Jing could really become an earl, his status would be achieved instantly.
I thought that if Su Jing entered the court, she would have to grow up for at least a while, but she didn't expect that she would be so big right away.
Cui Liang, the Minister of Rites, even gave in. This matter seems to be irreversible.
"I think it's inappropriate."
At this time, Li Shanchang suddenly walked out and expressed his clear-cut opposition.
For a moment, the expressions of the officials in the palace became wonderful again.
Because Li Shanchang had always had a conciliatory attitude before, and had no intention of opposing Su Jing at all.
Even when a group of people from the Huaixi Group swarmed into his house, he still didn't let go.
At this time, Cui Liang, the Minister of Rites, took the initiative to speak when he had nothing to say. Both the Huaixi Group and other ministers were very surprised.
Why on earth did Li Shanchang, Prime Minister Zuo, want to make such a move at this time?
Even Hu Weiyong, who was not far behind Li Shanchang, was equally surprised.
But for many members of the Huaixi Group, Li Shanchang's behavior is tantamount to giving them hope.
Zhu Liangzu's eyes lit up and he stared at Li Shanchang. He was very surprised, but after the surprise, he was delighted.
Li Shanchang didn't pay much attention to him before, and he didn't seem so angry anymore.
Zhu Biao looked at Li Shanchang, looking a little confused.
Li Shanchang was once his teacher and taught him. In his opinion, Li Shanchang should not speak out at this moment.
"Shan Chang, what do you think is wrong?"
Zhu Yuanzhang went straight to the point.
Li Shanchang can become the leader of the six princes, so he naturally has the trust of Zhu Yuanzhang. Even though he is already suspicious, he still has a lot of weight in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart.
This is what Li Shanchang dared to say at this time.
Li Shanchang said respectfully: "Reporting to your majesty, I think that because of Su Jing's contribution, it is not enough to be granted the title of earl. Instead, he can be granted the title of marquis."
As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere in Fengtian Palace changed again.
What does it mean?
It's not enough to be called an earl, you also need to be a marquis?
Many officials did not react at this moment and did not expect that Li Shanchang would come like this.
For someone who is not a member of the Huaixi Group, it is already a great honor to be granted the title of earl.
As one of Zhu Yuanzhang's biggest helpers in bringing down the Ming Dynasty, Liu Bowen was just an earl. Although there were many reasons for this, it also showed that it was not Zhu Yuanzhang who started the business with him in his hometown of Fengyang, Anhui and its surroundings. It was very difficult to get a good title after the founding of the country.
Li Shanchang's proposal at this meeting not only surprised all the officials, but also Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao were a little confused.
This is really quite puzzling.
"Prime Minister Zuo, I think that a count is suitable. Isn't this marquis going too far?"
Cui Liang came forward again, but this time he was not opposed to Zhu Yuanzhang, but to Li Shanchang.
Li Shanchang was not annoyed, he just turned to look at Cui Liang and said: "Cui Shangshu, His Highness the Emperor has not finished talking about Su Jing's contribution. If you are not in a hurry, can you wait until His Highness the Crown Prince finishes talking about Su Jing's contribution?"
He didn't explain it at all, or rather, his explanation was very simple.
Su Jing's contribution is even more than what is said now.
Cui Liang hesitated a little, and Li Shanchang said to Zhu Biao: "Your Highness, Su Jing's contribution should be quite a lot, so I won't overdo it."
Zhu Biao nodded slightly and continued: "Master Su created the Wolf Constitution and compiled the Mandarin Duck Formation to defeat Japanese pirates. This year, we can solve the Japanese pirate problem along the coast of Shandong Province in the Ming Dynasty."
Wolf Xian!
Mandarin duck formation!
As soon as this thing was exported, the expressions of the military attachés in Fengxian Palace changed.
As a weapon against Japanese pirates, this wolf constitution is actually a very advanced method of warfare, and naturally it can be used not only against Japanese pirates.
The military generals in various ministries of the Ming Dynasty all knew something about it, and many even went to learn about it specifically.
Now that Zhu Biao said that the Langxian and Yuanyang formations were all created by Su Jing, their expressions were naturally quite wonderful.
"Cui Shangshu, I know you are not good at military formations. Or you can ask the military attache in the DPRK what the wolf constitution and mandarin duck formation mean."
Li Shanchang said to Cui Liang.
"No, I know about Lang Xian and Yuanyang Formation, and I have also served as the prefect of Jinan. Although I am not good at military formations, I can still understand them."
Cui Liang replied.
Being able to become the Minister of Rites, Cui Liang's resume is naturally quite good.
As early as the Yuan Dynasty, he served as the governor of Zhejiang Province, then surrendered, and then became the prefect of Jinan, and then returned because of his mother's worries.
He has never led troops to fight in a war, but he still has a reserve of knowledge in this area.
He also knew about the Wolf Constitution and the Yuanyang Formation.
"Then Cui Shangshu thinks that these two things are enough?"
Li Shanchang continued to ask.
Cui Liang just glanced at Li Shanchang, looked at Zhu Biao and said: "Your Highness, the power of the Wolf Xian and Yuanyang formations still needs to be verified. Perhaps we can make a decision after the Shandong coastal war report is released this year."
It's still the same as before. It's not that the credit is not enough, but it can't really be reflected yet and has to wait.
Zhu Yuanzhang listened to the confrontation between Li Shanchang and Cui Liang. He didn't say anything, but just watched quietly.
He is the emperor, and if he wants to speak, he must have the final word.
Now, let’s take a look at the situation first.
Li Shanchang said: "Cui Shangshu, I have some different ideas. Whether it is Potato Sweet Potato or Wolf Xian and Yuanyang Formation, you said it needs to be verified now. Then if the verification is successful, wouldn't Su Jing be able to become a public official?"
Feng Gong!
As soon as these words were spoken, the hall trembled again!
Becoming an earl is already a very surprising proposal. To go directly to becoming a duke would be too exaggerated.
When the Ming Dynasty was founded, six dukes were granted the title.
Each of them is the humerus that laid the foundation of the Ming Dynasty, and they all followed Zhu Yuanzhang to conquer the world early on, coming from the dragon all the way.
What is Su Jing?
Until now, I am still in vain and my resume is blank.
Although this credit is great, the gap between him and the feudal lord is still thousands of miles away.
But at this moment, Li Shanchang, as the first Duke of the country, was mentioned like this.
Some people have a slightly different taste in this matter.
Li Shanchang didn't seem to be helping Su Jing speak, but he had a hint of flattery.
(End of chapter)
