Ming Dynasty: Is a mere unruly commoner rebelling against heaven?

Chapter 43: The Eight Tigers of the Palace!

Not long after Zhu You樘 returned to the imperial study, Gao Shun, who had been waiting in the palace early, came to request an audience.

“This humble general, Gao Shun, greets Your Majesty!”

Gao Shun entered the imperial study and knelt in salute.

“Rise.”

Zhu You樘 began by praising, “General Gao,朕 is very satisfied with the performance of the陷阵营 today.”

Gao Shun replied respectfully, “Everything is in accordance with Your Majesty's orders.”

Zhu You樘 instructed, “From now on, the陷阵营 does not need to return to Changtong; they will be stationed around the capital.”

“Select some good men to train the three great battalions of the capital for朕, so that they can quickly restore their combat effectiveness.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“What should be done with the more than twenty-six thousand prisoners and the captured supplies?”

Zhu You樘 thought for a moment and made a decision.

“All the prisoners will be divided and dispersed, sent to Annam to guard the border for朕.”

“As for the supplies, grain, salt, iron, and tea, the陷阵营 will keep half for yourselves, and the rest will be sent to the imperial treasury.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The瓦剌 are grassland people, accustomed to life on horseback.

Southern Annam is mountainous, filled with miasma, and infested with snakes, insects, and rodents.

How long these prisoners can survive in Annam will depend on fate.

Zhu You樘 spoke with Gao Shun for a while before dismissing him.

Afterward, Zhu You樘 summoned the eunuch in charge of the Treasure Note Bureau, preparing to have him oversee the printing of new Great Ming Treasure Notes.

Although the Treasure Note Supervisory Bureau and the Treasure Note Bureau differ by only two characters, their functions are completely different.

The Treasure Note Supervisory Bureau is managed by the Ministry of Revenue and is responsible for printing Great Ming Treasure Notes.

The Treasure Note Bureau is one of the four bureaus of the inner palace, responsible for making toilet paper for the palace.

By having the Treasure Note Bureau supervise the Treasure Note Supervisory Bureau, Zhu You樘 was taking back the power to print money from the Ministry of Revenue and placing it under his own control.

Soon, the eunuch in charge of the Treasure Note Bureau knelt before Zhu You樘, kowtowing respectfully.

“This old servant, Gu Dayong, kowtows to Your Majesty!”

Zhu You樘's hand holding the brush paused, and his brow furrowed.

“What is your name?”

“Uh, Your Majesty, this old servant is called Gu Dayong.”

Zhu You樘 put down the brush, looked at Gu Dayong, and suddenly chuckled.

He had almost forgotten that there were eight tigers hidden in his palace.

Seeing Zhu You樘's smile, Gu Dayong felt uneasy.

He didn't know why Zhu You樘 started laughing after hearing his name.

After Zhu You樘 had laughed enough, he asked, “Do you know someone named Liu Jin?”

Gu Dayong was taken aback, and immediately replied, “Yes, Liu Jin is a掌司 in the Bell and Drum Bureau; he's the one who rings the bell in the palace every morning.”

Zhu You樘 nodded; it was somewhat of a waste of talent to have such a killing god of the East Depot ringing bells in the palace.

Professionals should be placed in professional positions.

Zhu You樘 had a plan in mind and began to discuss business.

“Gu Dayong,朕 will merge the Treasure Note Supervisory Bureau into the Treasure Note Bureau, and you will be in charge of unified management.”

“朕 wants to reopen the printing of Great Ming Treasure Notes, with the same denominations as before, but the year should be changed to Hongzhi.”

“Print money urgently for朕, day and night, as much as you can!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Gu Dayong was overjoyed and immediately lifted his robes and ran out quickly.

This was the advantage of using eunuchs; they didn't ask questions or offer advice; they just did as the emperor ordered.

They were much more useful than the court officials.

Zhu You樘 then summoned Wang Zhi and told him about the establishment of the Great Ming Bank.

He also appointed Wang Zhi as the president of the Great Ming Central Bank.

However, Zhu You樘 hesitated about the position of the manager of the Beijing branch.

This was Zhu You樘's current situation: there were many who could kill, but few who could handle affairs.

He didn't trust the civil officials, so he could only choose from the eunuchs in the palace.

In the end, Zhu You樘 gave this position to He Yong, the writing eunuch of the Directorate of Palace Affairs.

He was to be responsible for handling the establishment of the Beijing branch.

……

Wenyuan Pavilion.

Since Zhu You樘 left, the atmosphere here had been gloomy.

The four Grand Secretaries were all frowning and sighing.

“Chief Grand Secretary Xu, what should we do?”

“If the officials of the capital learn of this matter, the four of us will probably be condemned by them!”

“Not only did we fail to obtain the authority of the Great Ming Bank, but we even lost the Treasure Note Supervisory Bureau; what should we do!”

Xu Pu's face was also gloomy, and he was at a loss.

“I don't have any good ideas either; we really can't stop what His Majesty wants to do.”

Xu Pu sighed, feeling a deep sense of powerlessness.

Presumably, after tonight, once this order is passed down, the officials of the capital will be in mourning again.

The four of them never expected that Zhu You樘 had never thought of reaping wealth from the people, but was aiming at them, the officials.

This precise cut was a complete blow to their vital artery.

Xu Pu slowly walked to the desk, unfolded the memorial, and picked up the brush: “Let's all think about how this policy can be implemented in a way that is as beneficial to us as possible.”

“The general direction is fixed; even if we make small changes, it won't help.”

Liu Jian also walked back to the desk and sighed deeply: “As long as His Majesty doesn't budge on the rule that officials are not allowed to use silver, we have no room to maneuver and can only exchange silver for banknotes.”

Xu Pu didn't answer, but pondered and wrote down the specific steps for implementation in the memorial.

Li Dongyang and Xie Qian actually didn't have much say in front of the two elders, Xu Pu and Liu Jian.

Moreover, Xu Pu and Liu Jian were still serving as the Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Rites.

And they were only serving in the Hanlin Academy, which made them seem even more without foundation in comparison.

But in this way, they were also not bound by the interests of the civil official group.

The two also went to their respective desks and thought about the implementation plan for the currency reform based on Zhu You樘's ideas.

By the next evening, a thick memorial was sent by Huai En, the eunuch in charge of the Directorate of Ceremonial, to Zhu You樘's Qianqing Palace.

“Your Majesty, the memorial sent by the Cabinet specifically annotated it for urgent processing.”

Huai En respectfully held the memorial above his head.

Zhu You樘 took the memorial and flipped through it casually.

At the same time, Zhu You樘 also asked, “Huai En, do you know a掌司 named Liu Jin in the Bell and Drum Bureau?”

Zhu You樘's words seemed unintentional, but Huai En had already begun to quickly calculate in his heart, analyzing the meaning of Zhu You樘's words.

“Your Majesty, this old servant doesn't have much of an impression of Liu Jin; that area of the Bell and Drum Bureau is managed by Ge Hong.”

“Your Majesty, did Liu Jin do something wrong?”

Zhu You樘 raised his head from the memorial and glanced at Huai En.

“朕 is just asking; don't overthink it.”

Huai En's heart trembled, and he quickly nodded in agreement.

Zhu You樘 resumed reading the memorial: “朕 thinks this person's name is good, so don't stay in the Bell and Drum Bureau; go to the East Depot to train.”

Huai En raised his eyebrows, feeling excited, and quickly cupped his hands and bowed: “Yes.”

Afterward, Zhu You樘 spent a long time carefully reading the memorial and then instructed Huai En.

“Alright, Huai En, don't wait here anymore; go and call Gu Dayong for朕.”

“Yes.”

After Huai En respectfully withdrew from the Qianqing Palace, he immediately walked towards the Treasure Note Bureau.

After Huai En conveyed Zhu You樘's order to summon him to Gu Dayong.

Gu Dayong immediately put down all his affairs and ran to the Qianqing Palace as quickly as possible.

Afterward, Huai En stood on the spot and thought for a while, deciding to personally go to the Bell and Drum Bureau to see this掌司 named Liu Jin.

He wanted to know what abilities this Liu Jin had that could make Zhu You樘, the Emperor, know his name?