Many civil servants had objections to Emperor Chongzhen's actions. However, at this time, as disciples of saints, they naturally have to behave in line with etiquette in public, otherwise, why should they speak of the emperor?
Therefore, many people have made up their minds that if the emperor does such an outrageous thing, and when they leave, they must write a memorial to the emperor to talk about it. They were just a group of warriors, how could they be so valued by the emperor? But this time, their tails were still in the air!
Emperor Chongzhen ignored them. After walking around for a while, he stepped back onto the reviewing stand. His legs were a little numb. He couldn't help but think that it seemed that in the future, he would have to follow the example of later generations when reviewing, and if he didn't have a car, he would use a horse-drawn carriage to review.
Looking at the soldiers of King Qin's army below, Emperor Chongzhen announced loudly: "I have said before that I will reorganize Tengxiang's left and right guards, Wuxiang's left and right guards, and reorganize them into battalions. If you have done meritorious service, let me I see your loyalty to the king and the country. I will fulfill my previous promise, and I will personally handle this matter in the next few days!"
After hearing the most anticipated thing, the emperor made the final decision in public, and all the soldiers of the King's Army immediately responded loudly: "Long live my emperor, long live, long live, long live!"
The sound was so loud that it shook the world. Even Queen Zhou and others in the harem in the Forbidden City could hear the shouts coming from outside.
Listening to the shouts that sounded from time to time, Queen Zhou knew that the emperor must have done a good job! Thinking this way, she felt happy in her heart. I feel that during this period of time, I set an example in the palace and accompanied the emperor to tide over the difficulties. I really did nothing wrong at all!
Not long after, the review was over. But Emperor Chongzhen still had many things to be busy with. He sent an order to the three military commanders, asking them to first place King Qin's army, and then discuss specific matters together. Of course, there would inevitably be matters of reward based on merit.
At the same time, in the Governor's Mansion of Xuanda far away in Shanxi, Fan Yongdou and other eight major Shanxi merchants came together to ask for an audience with Governor Xuanda. They all looked nervous. Chen Xinjia, who came out after hearing the news, suddenly felt a twitch in his heart, knowing that something bad would happen. , and quickly dismissed the idle people waiting for discussion.
"Mr. Governor, you must think of a solution this time!" Fan Yongdou said to Chen Xinjia anxiously before he could even sit down, "Fan Ji Bank in the capital has been sealed!"
"Yes, Mr. Governor, we all have people inside, so we can't ignore it!" Wang Dengku also said quickly.
Others wanted to follow, but Chen Xinjia had already understood the purpose of his visit, and his expression changed as well. He couldn't help but feel nervous, and quickly asked: "How is it possible? There are not many officials from the capital behind the bank? How did it get sealed? ?”
Fan Ji Bank was only opened by the Fan family at the beginning. Unexpectedly, it was a chicken that could only lay golden eggs. However, when making money, Fan Yongdou also realized that the greater the capital and the more backstage connections, the more money he would make. Therefore, he also brought in the other seven major Shanxi merchants. Chen Xinjia, as the official representative they supported, naturally also received shares.
Therefore, from Fanji Bank, each of their families contributed one hundred thousand taels of silver, and the total principal was nine hundred thousand taels. The money each family contributed was roughly equivalent to 500 million from later generations, which was considered too much.
Once the Fanji Bank was sealed, it would be impossible for them to have any money as shareholders. This is one of them.
Secondly, the reason why banks were opened was to facilitate Shanxi merchants to mobilize large amounts of money to do business in various places. The Fanji Bank in the capital was sealed, which would immediately have an impact on their business.
Therefore, when the eight major Shanxi merchants heard that the bank had been closed down, they hurried to Chen Xinjia as if their parents had died.
At this time, after hearing Chen Xinjia's question, Fan Yongdou, as the main shareholder, quickly replied: "The conspiracy case involving the nobles of the capital trying to assassinate the prince broke out. The factory guards conducted a strict investigation and found that the bank had connections with the palace. It was seized by Dongchang!”
Hearing this, Chen Xinjia couldn't help being stunned, and at the same time he breathed a sigh of relief, he felt that this was really an unreasonable disaster!
There shouldn't be too many collusions between people outside the palace and people inside the palace. Although Chen Xinjia is far away in Shanxi, he also understands this situation.
After all, among the ministers outside, who doesn’t want to know about the emperor’s situation? There are also those who have interests in the palace, or are related to palace purchases, or are related to palace concubines, etc. All of these will secretly collude with the palace to do some things, or inquire about information, or spread rumors, or join forces Whatever you do, etc., don’t be too normal at this time.
However, after all, these things cannot be brought to light. Once it is brought to light, it is indeed possible to accuse someone of treason and have evil intentions, to put it bluntly.
Chen Xinjia had military channels in the capital about the rebellion by Cheng Guogong and others, so he had naturally heard about it. Originally, he just lamented that these nobles committed suicide, and took pleasure in their misfortune. But he didn't expect that it would involve him.
While he was still thinking about it, those Shanxi merchants had already urged him to wake up.
"Your Majesty the Governor, without this bank, we will definitely not be able to continue purchasing grain."
"Yes, it is too unrealistic to bring money from Shanxi. Even if the capital's banks reopen, it will delay our current business!"
"..."
Chen Xinjia was so noisy that he had a headache and his brows were wrinkled.
Fan Yongdou saw it. Although he was more anxious than others because his brother was also arrested, he still persuaded the others: "Be quiet first, it is not easy to solve this matter. Don't affect the Governor's ideas! "
Upon hearing this, the other Shanxi merchants quickly stopped talking and looked at Chen Xinjia, hoping that he would come up with a solution soon.
After a while, Chen Xinjia raised his head and said: "This matter involves conspiracy, which is indeed a bit difficult to deal with. In my opinion, we need to wait until the limelight has passed..."
Hearing this, Fan Yongdou couldn't help it, and quickly interrupted: "Mr. Governor, I'm afraid this is inappropriate. My brother is still in Jinyiwei Prison, and your business will be delayed again. If it affects us and... I’m afraid we will lose too much in Liaodong’s big deal!”
"Yes, Mr. Governor, this time the Qing army entered the customs and plundered the people on a much larger scale than before. This kind of big business is rare to do!" Wang Dengku also said anxiously.
"..."
Seeing that other people also wanted to speak, Chen Xinjia couldn't help but feel a headache. He quickly reached out and shook his hand to stop them. At the same time, he explained: "Listen to what I have to say! I said to wait until the limelight is over before talking. I don't mean to say everything." Don’t do it!”
Hearing what he said, the eight major Shanxi merchants immediately stared at him, their eyes full of expectation. When it comes to matters involving officialdom, it is still up to the people in the officialdom to find ways to make things happen.
"Aren't there many officials in the capital who have deposited money at Fanji Bank?" Chen Xinjia said slowly, "We can let them ask the court for money and let them probe the emperor's mouth. If they can get the money back, that means The emperor doesn’t care much about Fan Ji Bank’s affairs.”
At this point, when he saw someone wanting to speak, he immediately emphasized his tone and said: "From what I heard, this involves real money and silver from each of their families. Don't worry, they won't think of ways to trick the emperor. Why? , they can find a bunch of them themselves, we don’t need to worry about them.”
"Also, isn't it because the banknotes from Fanji Bank have good reputation and are used by many people? We will secretly encourage those who have banknotes from Fanji Bank to follow suit and exchange money, otherwise It’s just a piece of waste paper, but there must be many people who are unwilling to accept it and will try their best to make trouble.”
When Chen Xinjia said this, he finally said with confidence: "When the momentum becomes huge and we let people comment, maybe the emperor will take a lenient approach to Fan Ji Bank. At that time, if we continue to carry out special activities, things will be promising." ! Big things are reduced to small things, and small things are not impossible!"
After hearing what he said, these Shanxi merchants thought about it seriously, and many of them nodded.
"The Governor is still wise. If you follow this plan, it should be possible!"
"Yes, the so-called three people become a tiger, if you talk too much, the current emperor will definitely change his mind!"
"..."
Only Fan Yongdou still frowned and asked Chen Xinjia: "My brother is in Jinyiwei Prison. What should I do if the time is prolonged? I wonder if the Governor can do anything to save my brother?"
Hearing this, Chen Xinjia also frowned slightly, stroking his beard and thinking. After a while, he still shook his head and said: "It's not easy to handle! If it had been before, the Jinyiwei commander made Luo Yangxing greedy for money, and given some money, there would have been nothing even in the Jinyiwei prison. But now, the Jinyiwei commander I'm not familiar with Li Ruolian. I don't know anything about his temperament, whether he is greedy for money, lustful, or something else."
Hearing this, Fan Yongdou was inspired. He immediately said: "In that case, I will send someone to find out what kind of person this new Jinyiwei commander is!"
Compared with Dongchang's high-profile, Jinyiwei's side is very low-key. In particular, Emperor Chongzhen also asked Dongchang to implement the things detected by the Jinyiwei and arrest people, which made it even more obvious that the Jinyiwei had little movement, making people ignore its existence.
This time is too short. Li Ruolian was once again an old scalper, so who would care! Therefore, it is reasonable that these people in Shanxi do not understand Li Ruolian.
Seeing that Chen Xinjia had basically figured out a solution and solved a big problem in just a few words, the expressions of these Shanxi merchants became much better than when they arrived, and some of them even smiled.
"It's already February, the Qing army must be going back!" Fan Yongdou guessed, and asked other people, "How are your preparations for food, grass, supplies, iron and gunpowder? They should be gathered together! "
These Shanxi merchants purchased large quantities of things needed by the Qing Dynasty. Naturally, they could not be piled in one place, but scattered everywhere.
Upon hearing this, Wang Dengku was the first to respond: "Brother Fan, don't worry. This is a big deal. We have been preparing for it for a long time. Once we receive the news, once the Qing army leaves the customs, we will transport it to Zhangjiakou."
"Yes, the Qing army is still in the pass, and it is still very chaotic outside. There are so many thieves, refugees, and thieves. Although we have guards to guard us, it is not convenient for us to transport goods on a large scale." Wang Dayu also replied, " As soon as I heard that the Qing army came out of the customs, they would definitely be transported to Zhangjiakou."
"..."
Fan Yongdou listened to other people's answers and kept nodding. In fact, it is true. They have been in this business for a long time, and there is a lot of money to be made, so everyone is interested. If you remind yourself like this, it's just a precaution.
Thinking like this, he turned to look at Chen Xinjia and said to him: "Your Excellency, the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty also attaches great importance to the news in the official circles of the Ming Dynasty. This is more convenient for you. As long as the Qing Dynasty The emperor is happy, and the profits can be given to one more level, these all belong to the Lord, it is best to collect more before we leave the customs."
In fact, the more information provided here can win the favor of the Qing emperor, which is also helpful for their business. Otherwise, he wouldn't have deliberately reminded me.
Huang Yunfa also said to Chen Xinjia: "Sir, there is no military mobilization in Zhangjiakou, right?"
After hearing what they said, Chen Xinjia smiled as he thought about the large amount of money coming in again: "Don't worry, you don't have to worry about these things. What you have to do is to collect more supplies as soon as possible. But I remind you one thing. , this time the Qing army looted a lot, and the quantity required was large. Remember, there is no need to discount for large quantities, but it is better to order more, which is different from your ordinary business."
"Haha, sir, don't worry about this business matter, just leave it to us." Tian Shenglan said with a smile after hearing this.
Everyone else also laughed, and the living room was filled with joy.
The people of Ming Dynasty lived in dire straits, but they were complacent about sucking a lot of blood from Ming Dynasty.
At this moment, the steward of the Governor's Mansion suddenly broke in, making a "clang" sound that immediately attracted everyone's attention.
This time, the housekeeper didn't talk to Chen Xinjia's ear. Instead, as soon as he opened the door, he said with a little urgency: "Sir, King Qin's army won a great victory. In the battle of Tianjin, they wiped out more than 20,000 enemies and saved 20 people." Come to thousands of people, the Qing Dynasty..."
Before he finished speaking, time suddenly seemed to have stopped in the living room. Everyone's expressions froze on their faces, obviously very shocked by the news.
Fan Yongdou came to his senses first, and before he could finish speaking, he immediately interrupted and asked, "How could this happen? Did you hear me correctly? The Qing Dynasty is invincible in the field. How can the Qing army defeat the Qing army just by relying on diligence?"
"Yes, when did the Ming army become so powerful?" Huang Yunfa asked in surprise, "Also, why did they go to Tianjin?"
…
It was about the wishful thinking of these Shanxi merchants, and all of them were extremely anxious. However, when others wanted to follow up and ask questions, they heard Chen Xinjia suddenly yell: "Quiet!"
The living room finally became quiet. Chen Xinjia had a serious look on his face, as if he heard that it was not his own army that won the battle: "What happened? How did the Qing army lose? Please be specific. !”
He also couldn't figure out how the Qing army could lose the battle. Moreover, they lost the battle in the field and lost so many troops. It was simply unbelievable!
He had been in Guan Ning's army for a long time, and he had a lot of confidence in his understanding of the Qing Dynasty. Even the most elite Guan Ning army of the Ming Dynasty could only hide in the city. How could the Qing army suffer such a huge defeat in the field?
I can’t figure it out, I really can’t figure it out!
The housekeeper had recovered a little at this time. He turned around and closed the door. Then he stood at the door and told the public in detail the military information that had just been delivered: "The Qing army is about to leave the customs, and Lu Xiangsheng is unwilling to give in." , they collected animal power from surrounding towns... The most unexpected thing was that the emperor and Lu Xiangsheng wanted to go together. They also collected all the animal power in the capital, and also issued an order to the cities along the way. Therefore, the elite of King Qin's army went around Arriving in front of the Qing army, they ambush on the north bank of the Wei River and attack halfway across the river... According to current news, the Qing army has lost half of its harvest and has left the country. And King Qin's army has also returned to the capital. "
After hearing the whole story, Chen Xinjia couldn't help but show the expression of hatred and said repeatedly: "Careless, so careless! Isn't Dorgon usually a very shrewd person? How could he be so careless! How could he be found out? The army was half-crossed and attacked, and it was so unprepared, ah, what a pity!"
"Who says it's not the case! How could you be so careless! If we had known this, we should have kept people in the capital so that we could report to the Qing Dynasty..."
"Ah, you said that Fan Ji Qianzhuang will not cause trouble sooner or later, but it has encountered a conspiracy case. Otherwise, my brother will definitely send someone to report it."
"..."
These people sighed with emotion, and finally turned their attention to Chen Xinjia.
